How a deeply personal twist of events brought a beloved 'Burst into Vince Gill's life

Well over six decades after they rolled out of the company's Kalamazoo, Michigan factory, the sunburst Les Pauls Gibson manufactured from 1958 to 1960 remain arguably the most coveted and valuable electric guitars in the world.

The cult around those golden era models is such that there's even an acclaimed book about them, not to mention their eye-watering value on the resale market – price tags high enough to make even bona-fide rock stars shy away from digging into their wallets for one.

Jason Isbell, for instance, told Guitar Player in 2020 that – though he initially felt he didn't particularly need a 'Burst – he ended up taking on a series of gigs he normally wouldn’t take, such as birthday parties and other private engagements, to afford late Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King’s legendary “Red Eye” 'Burst. “I met some interesting people and went to some parts of the Hamptons that I’ve not been to before,” he joked.

Vince Gill – best-known as one of the all-time Nashville guitar greats – similarly felt that, given his somewhat infrequent Les Paul use, a 'Burst was unnecessary. A sad and deeply personal twist of events, however, would end up bringing one into his life.

“I bought [a] ’59 Les Paul from my brother-in-law from my first marriage [to country singer Janis Oliver],” Gill told Guitar Aficionado in 2017. “We were great friends, and he owned this great ’59 sunburst since 1959. He’d played it his whole life but got sick a couple of years ago. He called me and said, ‘There’s not much they can do for me. I’m probably not gonna make it. You’ve always been my favorite guitar player. Will you buy my Les Paul?’

“I didn’t have a sunburst Les Paul in my collection, and I previously couldn’t justify the expense because I don’t play a Les Paul that much, But this one came along and I said, ‘There you go,’” Gill continued. “I got the one I was supposed to have. My friend played it for 40 years, and now it gets to live on and still make music.”

The 'Burst occupies pride of place in Gill's collection, which is largely housed in his home studio. Of his collecting habit, Gill, with a chuckle, told GP in 2022, “I’m sure I’ve got a couple of hundred guitars, but I don’t have a boat or multiple houses or cars. I wouldn’t say it’s out of control, but it’s borderline.”