Gordon Smith GSG1 P90 Korina

What we say

Although the legendary Junior is the Les Paul style one of the 50s, we have a big soft spot for the later SG version of the following decade: they're sleek, sexy, lightweight, and with great high fret access. Sadly if you want a vintage Gibson version these days you're going to need deep pockets, so we're pleased to see our friendly local guitar makers Gordon Smith having a go at one!

And don't they do a good job! This is a really pretty looking guitar, not least because of the gorgeous piece of korina wood it's made from. Korina has that nice balance of every piece looking different and with a lot of character but not so flashy as to constanty scream look at me - it's luxurious, that's the best term we can think of for it. 

As all good Juniors do, there's a dogear P90 hand wound by Gordon Smith in the bridge position which can snarl and bite like the best of them. But with no neck pickup option it's also important on Juniors to have a decent volume and tone control and this guitar can sweeten up surprisingly well - it might not be your first choice for smokey jazz but it's easy enough to soften things up if you need to. 

With the hard case and upgraded wood it's tipping the £1000 mark, sure, but this is a hand made guitar with premium materials, for which it's probably a little underpriced. A veritable rock monster and well worth checking out!

 

What they say

A classic design with the distinctive GS build quality.

Specs

Body: Korina

Neck: Korina

Neck profile: Thin

Fingerboard: Rosewood

Scratchplate: BWB

Scratchplate Design: GSG1

Bridge: Wraparound bar

Pickup: Handwound GSG P90

Pickup cover: Black soap bar

Headstock colour: Black

Fret wire: Nickel silver

Hardware colour: Nickel silver

Wiring loom: Standard

Tuners: Standard 14:1 ratio

Strap buttons: Standard