UNRESERVED. Serial#: 23251002. Many working musicians of the fast-paced and musically adventurous 1950s required a new instrument - one that captured traditional Gibson archtop artistry and craftsmanship, but represented a redrawing of the blueprint for the needs of the day. Enter the Byrdland, released in 1955 after consultation with first-call Nashville session musicians Billy Byrd and Hank Garland. Outwardly every bit a Gibson, this model represented a handful of developments that were radical, even revolutionary, in its day.

The Byrdland retained the traditional carved solid Spruce arched top and wide dimensions (17") of big-bodied jazzers like its predecessor the L-5CES, but was considerably thinner. At the request of Billy Byrd and Hank Garland, the Byrdland was made with a reduced scale length, but featured all the finery of a top-of-the-line Gibson archtop guitar. The Byrdland's super-thin neck and 23 1/2" scale length was intended purely for speed and playing ease, and its five-ply binding, ebony fingerboard with pearl block inlay, gold-plated hardware, and triple-loop Byrdland trapeze tailpiece all single it out as a top-shelf guitar.

Completed in a Vintage Sunburst finish, other details include a pearl flower pot headstock inlay, rounded Venetian cutaway, sculpted fingerboard, and a Byrdland trussrod cover.

VG