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Collectable Guitars

Collectable Guitars pt 12 – The Gibson Trini Lopez

Gibson Trini Lopez

Trini Lopez is a popular American-Mexican singer and guitarist who designed two signature guitars for Gibson in 1964. The first was the Trini Lopez Standard and the second the Custom, or Deluxe.

Gibson Trini LopezThe Standard is based on the classic ES335 shape, but with a trapeze tailpiece (as seen on early Gibson Les Pauls) and diamond-shaped soundholes. The guitar also differed to an ES335 in that it had a Gibson Firebird neck set into the body.

The Trini Lopez Custom is a much rarer instrument. It is based on an old jazz guitar designed in 1961 by Barney Kessel. The Custom has a double-cutaway body like that of an ES335, but with the cutaways much sharper and a larger body, giving a slightly unbalanced look.

Gibson Trini Lopez CustomThe Lopez models were discontinued in 1971 and are collectible and highly prized today, although not particularly expensive at this point in time.

The Standard has been given a new lease of life in 2008 by Dave Grohl, singer and guitarist with the Foo Fighters.

His Gibson signature DG335 model is a modified Trini Lopez Standard finished in Gibson’s classic shade Pelham Blue. The Trini Lopez models are rare and pretty expensive, but Grohl’s signature model is more affordable (and readily available).

 

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