Wiktor Wise
Gibson is one of the oldest guitar makers in the world and has a history dating back to 1894. Orville Gibson founded the company in 1902 as the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Gibson pioneered a guitar design that featured a carved, hollow top with an oval sound hole, which became the standard for the archtop guitar. In 1935, Gibson released its first electric guitar, the EH-150, followed by the ES-150 in 1936, marking the start of the company's long-running ES series.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Founder | Orville Gibson |
| Year founded | 1902 |
| Inception year | 1894 |
| First electric guitar | EH-150, released in 1935 |
| First "Electric Spanish" model | ES-150, released in 1936 |
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What You'll Learn
Orville Gibson's beginnings
Orville Gibson was born in 1856 on a farm near Chateaugay, New York, in an area known as "Earlville". He was the youngest of five children born to John W. Gibson and Amy (or Emma) Nichols Gibson. John was an immigrant from England, and Amy was from Peru, New York. Orville shared his home with his parents and siblings: sisters Pluma and Emma, and brothers Ozro and Lovell.
Around 1880, Orville Gibson moved from his native New York State to Kalamazoo, Michigan. It is unclear why Orville travelled from his home in upstate New York to Michigan, but records indicate his concerns about health and wellbeing. By 1890, he had taken up the hobby of making musical instruments in his home workshop in Kalamazoo. Gibson had no formal training, but he created an entirely new style of mandolin and guitar that followed violin design, with its curved top and bottom carved into shape. He pioneered a guitar design that featured a carved, hollow top with an oval sound hole that would become the standard for the archtop guitar.
Demand for his handcrafted creations soon took off, and in 1902, he secured financing from five businessmen to form the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company. Gibson sold his patent rights to the company and received a regular royalty for five years, followed by a monthly cheque until his death in 1918. Within a short period after the company was started, the board passed a motion that Orville be paid only for the actual time he worked for the company. After that, there is no clear indication of whether he worked there full-time, as a consultant, or just as an occasional visitor to the factory. Gibson did, however, invest in the company, purchasing 60 shares of stock in his own name in November 1902.
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Gibson's first electric guitars
Gibson is one of the oldest guitar makers still in existence, with a history dating back to 1894. Orville Gibson, the company's founder, started making instruments in that year and established the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company in 1902.
Orville Gibson developed an unconventional mix of ideas and methods to make his mandolin-family instruments and guitars. He pioneered a guitar design that featured a carved, hollow top with an oval sound hole, which became the standard for the archtop guitar.
In 1935, Gibson released its first electric guitar, the EH-150. This model featured an aluminium body, which was soon discontinued due to the material's susceptibility to temperature changes. The EH-150 was replaced by the wooden-bodied ES-150 in 1936, marking the start of Gibson's remarkable history of electric guitars.
The ES-150, also known as the "Electric Spanish" model, was one of the first commercially available hollow-body electric guitars. It gained popularity through musician Charlie Christian, who used one of these guitars. This model was followed by other electric instruments, including steel guitars, banjos, and mandolins.
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The 'Guy Hart Era'
Orville Gibson founded the company in 1902 as the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Mfg. Co. Ltd. in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to make mandolin-family instruments. By the 1930s, the company was also making flattop acoustic guitars, as well as one of the first commercially available hollow-body electric guitars.
Following designer Lloyd Loar, Guy Hart was the next major figure to influence the company. Musician-writer Walter Carter called the next two decades "The Guy Hart Era". Hart ran Gibson from 1924 to 1948—a period of great innovation for the guitar and the company.
During the global economic depression of the 1930s, Hart kept the company in business by introducing a line of high-quality wooden toys. As the country began its economic recovery in the mid-1930s, he opened new markets overseas. In 1935, Hart and Gibson's in-house engineers developed a prototype for an electric, Hawaiian-style lap steel guitar. The E-150 was rolled out in late 1935, and it looked like a guitar with its round feminine curves, shoulders, and scooped waist. In 1936, Gibson introduced its first "Electric Spanish" model, the ES-150, followed by other electric instruments like steel guitars, banjos, and mandolins.
In 1937, Guy Hart, the general manager of the Gibson Guitar Company, was awarded the first patent for an electric guitar pickup. This innovation allowed the company to create electric guitars that looked like guitars, rather than the "frying pan" design of competing models. Hart's design was superior to competing models, and it could be more easily incorporated into new, innovative guitar designs.
During World War II, Hart led the company through challenging times by converting the factory to wartime production, winning an Army-Navy "E" award for excellence. After the war, he returned the factory to instrument production before he retired.
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The 1950s: modernistic designs
Orville Gibson began crafting instruments in 1894 and established the company in 1902 as the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The company's first foray into electric guitars came in 1935 with the release of the EH-150, followed by the ES-150 in 1936, marking the beginning of Gibson's journey into electric guitars.
By the 1950s, Gibson was facing competition from Fender, whose solid-body Telecaster and Stratocaster guitars were capturing market share. In response, Gibson introduced the Les Paul in 1952, a high-quality instrument rooted in traditional craftsmanship. However, recognising the need to revitalise the brand, Ted McCarty, who had been leading Gibson since 1950, launched a bold new series with futuristic designs.
The Gibson Modernistic series, introduced in 1958, featured eccentric and avant-garde designs, including the Explorer, Flying V, and Moderne. These guitars turned conventional design upside down with their use of straight lines and angular body shapes, creating a set of future collectibles. The solid-body design allowed for unconventional shapes, as it eliminated the constraints of a resonance chamber. However, the Modernistic series initially failed to impress the music industry and did not appeal to the public, with the guitars' radical designs deemed too extreme for their time.
The Explorer and Flying V were reintroduced in the late 1960s and gained traction through musicians like Albert King and Jimi Hendrix. The Flying V's popularity surged in the 1970s, leading to reissues and inspiring numerous copies. Today, these guitars are prized collector's items, fetching high prices in the vintage market. The Moderne, on the other hand, never went into full production in the 1950s, earning it a reputation as the "holy grail" of collectible guitars. It wasn't until 1982 that Gibson finally released the Moderne as part of their production line.
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The 1960s: changing buyer preferences
Orville Gibson started making instruments in 1894 and founded the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company in 1902. By the 1930s, the company was making flattop acoustic guitars and one of the first commercially available hollow-body electric guitars.
In the late 1950s, Gibson was seen as a traditional company, and its archtop-derived instruments failed to impress the guitar-playing public, who wanted guitars that looked more futuristic. In 1958, Gibson produced two new designs: the Explorer and the Flying V. These "modernistic" guitars did not sell well initially. The Firebird, in the early 1960s, was a reprise of the modernistic idea, though less extreme. In 1958, Gibson also introduced the Moderne, which had a radical, futuristic design, but it never even made it into full production in the 1950s.
In the 1960s, Gibson's production mix had to respond to a changing buyer's market. In 1961, the body design of the Les Paul was changed due to demand for a double-cutaway body design. The new body design became known as the SG ("solid guitar"). The original Les Paul design returned to the Gibson catalogue in 1968.
In the late 1960s, a decision was made to move Epiphone guitar production from the USA to Japan. The Eko Ranger series of guitars was also incredibly popular in the second half of the 1960s and through the 1970s, selling in large numbers. In 1969, Gibson executive Julius Bellson noted that "Four years ago, electric guitars accounted for almost 70 per cent of our guitar sales".
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Frequently asked questions
Gibson started making electric guitars in 1935 with the release of the EH-150.
The first electric guitar made by Gibson was the EH-150.
The ES-150, released in 1936, was one of the first commercially available hollow-body electric guitars made by Gibson.
In the late 1950s, Gibson produced two new designs: the eccentrically shaped Explorer and Flying V.
