GSWJ - JP Reviews the Gibson 1960's J45 re-issue 

JP my wife recently bought me a faded burst J45 to help get me through a recent bout with prostate cancer. The burst is beautiful. The tone with the matte finish is resonant, and sweet. You my friend have a huge winner there. It’s fantastic

You've played a lot of fine guitars on this channel, but this is _the one_ I'd most like to hear more of.

I’m so excited you finally found a Gibson you love! Congrats JP! I grabbed a 2022 sunburst J-35 Custom Shop earlier this year and it’s the finest instrument I’ve ever owned. 👌

Sounds spectacular JP!

Stunning 🤩 I’m envious 😮

So glad I stumbled onto your channel. Your videos with Boucher made me both laugh and cry. When you play, I see your face change - the music is flowing out of you as easy as you speak. Love the reviews and commentary. And the pre-video commentary too. Funny stuff. Cheers brother.

Wow absolutely amazing!

JP could make a tennis racquet sound like this! Gibson are great. I have just got a LG 2, which is awesome, as is that JP45.....new name JP45.

Always entertaining JP. As always a honest review of this guitar. Love, love your playing and Humor.

That Sounds Absolutely Mega, it sounds like Home if that makes sense, just Stunning 🌞👍🏻❤️ and great playing as always JP ❤️🌞👍🏻⭐️

Saw one at Chicago Music Exchange, the color is gorgeous, however the combo with that white pick guard just does something warm & fuzzy for me. Absolutely love it!

You are one fine player JP and I love that t shirt!!!

I am happy you found one that has the sound you where looking for. I bought one last year and have played it every day and use it for live gigs. I played eight different ones till I tried the one I bought and it blew the other seven out of the water. Most balanced sound of any guitar I had played.

Sounding great JP

Another geat video. I love Gibson guitars. It's funny though, I recently made a video on how I removed the adjustable saddle, on my "65" Epiphone Texan (FT79N) and made a tight fitting Brazilian rosewood plug. I then routed for a bone saddle. The difference that made, in sound, was crazy good. Before, it sounded clicky, but now it sounds so good (to me). And I can take it back to stock very quickly and permanently altered nothing. Keep up the awesome videos. You inspired a few of my guitar purchases, so thank you for that.

My first acoustic guitar was a 1960's Gibson LG1, which I fell in love with the tone and playability. It was a very quiet guitar that was extremely beat on - had the back off it at one point before I owned it. Along the way I had the adjustable bridge (floating rosewood saddle) filled in and slotted for a standard saddle. That is the one thing I am not too hip on them bringing back. But this re-issue does sound pretty great.

This is a fabulous message! Good for JP and all his positive influence! So glad to hear this.

love that Gibson is really getting solid acoustic guitars out in production, this one is fantastic

Holy cow that one sounds good - there was so much bass it broke two panes of glass in my window!!!!!!!! - Just bought a Southern jumbo and also a Dove this past year. Gibson is hitting it out of the park these days!!!!!!!

Hi JP! I love your playing man, you have that knack for just making it look so damn easy when we all know it’s certainly not. I usually knock around on electric guitars although I own a few Martin’s here and I love them. Gibson is my favorite electric guitars and I do love their acoustics as well. I had no clue they were coming with adjustable saddles so this is an education as well. I’m assuming the typical cork sniffers would probably be totally against this adjustable saddle even though it’s obviously so much easier to adjust it’s height as opposed to sanding the base down. It’s difficult to judge though because you can take a broom stick with a string nailed to it and probably make it sound good JP! 🤙 As always, thanks for sharing your gift, Tommy~

I've got one in Black and absolutely love the thing! Mine also has the real deep Punch on the big E string! Totally different sound than the Martins and other dreads!

Every time I hear you do a guitar review it inspires me to go back and play my guitar!!!! I am so happy that GIBSON has returned to their fantastic guitar building that made them famous and sought after!!!! You are the best guitar reviewer that I have ever seen JP, you never fail to inspire me to want to play guitar !!! I would love to hear one of the MARTIN guitars, that are being made like you were describing also!!!!

Awesome! I recently got a new martin d18 satin. It's been great ! I've always wanted a d18 and with the new satin series I could get one .

Yes, it sounds like they have gotten serious about building a quality guitar! I guess that competition has had an influence!!!!

I did the same thing, my local store had just got a selection of J 45's in and I tried them all. The black 60's reissue model sounded the best of the bunch. I didn't want a black guitar but that one came home with me.

I just bought the black one and im really happy with it.Its a good sounding guitar.

Oh my…. Sounds fantastic. A look’er too

Down here in Texas, we’ve always turned our nose up at the adjustable bridge 60’s models. Most don’t sound good, I know of one that had the bridge replaced with a standard non-adjustable bridge and it sounds good and boomy. That said, the one you just showed sounded good and boomy which we like for our fiddle contest accompaniment.

If I had money that would be the one I would pick. Looked at them for a long time. Good demos of them on Normans Rare Guitars. Nice picking and great review.

Great education, friend. As always. WOW $3100. Cool!

Man that J45 has certainly got IT! Great big sound on my speakers here.

Thanks brother. Thinking about retiring my Taylor.

I bought the exact same guitar 3-4yrs ago. Yeah, of course I loved the show-stopping look of it but its mainly the feel of that slim 1 11/16" nut width being so-oo comfortable in my left hand that somehow it frees my mind to play better. Oh yeah, and although the Tusq adjustable saddle idea gets a lot of stick on snobby guitar-geek forum sites I personally love it AND I think it contributes to that satisfying mojo tone, Yeah, owning this guitar is like scoring some gear that gives you the hit you've been yearning for . . every single time you use it!

I just got My Custom Shop Innspired By D18 In February of this year and it is Flawless out of the box flawless!!!

I couldn't agree with you more on the sound of that guitar. My dad had one but his was bought sometime in the 50's, Tabaco sunburst.

Daddarrio strings renamed Gibson that comes with their acoustics are very good. Not sure where you're lookin but Gibsons have been making quality guitars for the last few years with tha great open Gibson sound. I have an ebony version of this, my latest slope shoulder Gibson along with my J-29 (2015) and J-35 Saito (2018) which I love.

I’ve got several Martins dating back from 1999 and thus far had no issues with them so at least for me their quality has been great. That Gibson by way sounds great!

I have the same 60s reissue Gibson but mine is black with the white pick guard.

Sounds great and beautiful guitar! Have you checked out Iris Guitars yet? They are hand made, much like the older Gibson's and they charge very moderate prices. I just bought an Iris DF made similar to the Gibson J-45 but has its own thing going and sounds amazing. Worth checking out anyways.

Nice sounding Gibson! As a "retired" ( '02 ) guitarist/singer/blues harp/stage performer of many years ( I grew tired of the club/restaurant lounge scene in east/central Florida ), I've been out of the loop for quite some time. And according to you JP, it seems that not much has changed with Fishman acoustic electronics/PU's. I also hated them all throughout the 90's. They just sounded way too bassy and sterile to me. To my ear, they made an acoustic through a PA system sound more like an electric guitar being played clean through a really clean amp. They just did not deliver the rich, warm, VERY slightly NATURAL WOODY distorted sound that an unplugged/un-mic'd acoustic guitar sounds like. In other words: the Fishman stuff just stripped everything away from the natural sound of an acoustic guitar.

I find it so hard to believe I'm hearing a great sounding gibson. Thx john

I will (grudgingly) admit that it does sound pretty good. I don't think C$3100 is cheap.

JP YOU ARE SOUNDING GREAT AS EVER....TRY LA BELLA VAPOR STRINGS IF YOU HAVENT YET...I SWEAR BY THEM. ALSO ILL USE DADARRIO XT STRINGS WHEN I CANT GET LA BELLAS

I am so excited that through JP'S wonderful love of acoustic guitars that were made famous through GIBSON and MARTIN guitars, that he has worked extremely hard to bring back affordable guitars that are absolutely fantastically made!!! That we now have GIBSON and MARTIN and GALLAGHER guitars making the guitars that made them famous again!!!! You truly are a Jem to the guitar world JP and I thank you for this from the bottom of my heart!!!!

I've got my dad's old 1939 J-45 Grand auditorium. It's a great guitar but need's repair to the back due to the lack of humidity, the mahogany split all the way up the back. I'm thinking about sending it to Frank Ford for repairs. Thanks for the review. They're still not building them like they used to. I think that you might of gotten one that just happened to come out right by accident. Maybe! Let's just hope that they are listening to us and trying to do better. Thanks!

I've said it before and I will say it again; JP is the best guitar salesperson on the planet. The person in second place is not even close.

Funny thing about Gibsons. You can play ten of 'em and nine will sound ok, but then one just blows your mind!

After listening to JP's opinion, I bought an Epiphone by Gibson J-45. I think I made a good purchase. I played about 7 guitars and chose the one that sounded the best. So far, I have played 6 Gibsons offered by shops in Glasgow. No Gibson ever sounded good. Congratulations JP for being lucky enough to have such a model. Greetings from a Polish fan from Scotland. One more information; none of the Gibsons I've ever played have a chance against my Yamaha LL16D Black, which I bought a few years ago, and number one is Furch, which I bought in the company store in 1999 while living in Poland.(several people offered me very good money, or a Martin guitar and extra money)

JP, I swear, if you were a girl I'd marry you. You are such a quality man. So kind, but very tough. Your playing is a gift to listen to. Many good years ahead for you, young fella. I am looking at Gibson in the J or SJ models. Your presentation here has made me think seriously about this specific Gibson. Thank you.

Amazing big tone to spare Gibson J-45. How many other J-45 did you play before selecting this one. I was worried about the adjustable bridge. Now that you show and explain that is a tusk or bone saddle it looks not so intimidating now, especially how great it sounds. You got a sweet deal at any price. In the end the cost becomes secondary to how it plays and sounds to you. Your face tells it all. Its going to show lots of love not too far in the future as you play the devil out of it.

I got a southern jumbo i made it my profile pic I love it so much.

Jp that saddle is a ceramic material that they used for a time. They got away from it but it turns out the harmonic overtones from those saddles is a certain sound.

I have the same exact guitar. It’s my 4th J-45, & hands down the best! My forever Dreadnaught 😊

I had a 1964 donavan leech j45 . Cherry sunburst. It was willed to me by my cajun friend. It is a perfectly ballanced instrument. It really shines behind a good microphone. It had that very,very,small neck profile. I gave it to an up comeing student. It fit her hands and style perfectly.

I too love those wine red tops…myself I would prefer a black pickguard bit to each their own…you own it…lol

Need to mention that companies like Eastman and others are making guitars on par with them at half the price also plays a role in them have to up their game newer players and such don’t care about the name on the headstock over feel and sound… great channel I play Yamahas and Eastmans can’t spend 5K on a guitar

Beautiful. I believe it's a run off of the '68 models, as they came with the autographed pick-guard. I know, someone will disagree. That's ok. I have a 1965 J50, my Wife surprised me Christmas time, about 35 years ago. It came with that style pick-guard. It was on it when she purchased her from the Folklore Centre, and Tom , I believe told her, it wasn't the original guard. I , also own, a 1967 J45, in which I rescued about 40 years ago, and Tom put her back together for me. She sounds just like yours. You hit the nail on the head when you said Gibsons has that different sound, basically for strumming ang sing alongs. I believe that's why the great country singers of 'yester-year' preferred them . The Martins are made more for picking, hence bluegrass. Love you video's, keep up the great work👍

Just got a j100xtr gibson yay

Hi JP, whats the neck like on this beauty? Is it thin like other "60s" gibson models like the SG and Les Paul?

Sounds a lot like my '68 J-45. They're just really special guitars for sure.

Looking to buy one just not sure how I feel about not having a pickup, does that bother you at all?

That J-45 looks and sounds amazing. I got a J-40 from 1970 that I'm going to get redone! Good choice JP! 👍👍🎶🎶🎶🎶🤠🤠🤠🤠😎😎😎😎

I agree with you. I bought two Martin D35s in my life and will never pay that much for another guitar. I'm thinking about selling my 2001 D35 and buying a less expensive guitar of some kind. Do you recommend a certain guitar of any kind? I do like your Gibson and I love the color. Thumbs up to your videos.

He is right about Martins problems with guitars falling apart and cracking because I have one that I paid $6500.00 for and after a year had to get it glued back together.

What a great sounding J45! And love the red too! But JP is a monster on guitar and he can make a shitty KMart special sound like a million bucks!

Just curious, of the J45 .s you tried out how many were as good as this one?

I can’t get over that cheap silkscreen logo for 3 big ones but still sounds great🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Every time I watch one of these videos my credit cards all go into hiding!!

Does it stay in tune like a standard J-45? Thank you!

Youre right, doesnt sound like a J45 ! Sounds really explosive..

What pick are you using JP?

They improved that adjustable bridge, the ones in the 60s used plastic. The new ones like yours are made from a synthetic bone material (TUSQ) which is the same material they use for the nut and saddle on the J-45 Standard. I usually prefer bone, but that guitar does sound fantastic.

Can't go wrong with the original series! I have both 50s and 60s

JP have you ever checked out Larivee guitars? A local music store where I live deals in Larivee and I highly recommend them. I personally think they’re better than Martins.

You can make anything sound good. What about a seagull or godin review ?

Own both gibson 45 and martin hd-28 I think the martin is better take;s heavy playing Nothing like going to a party with the boys in N.B. and taking in their music I wonder do they still have quart bottles of beer. The last time the alpine beer was very good. From out west John

👍👍👍

Gibzun.

I’ve always felt Gibsons were not worth the price tag, let alone the underwhelming performance of the ones I’ve tried. But I think this one sounds fantastic, even over RU-vid the quality of tone comes across and I’m sure it was worth every dollar 👍🏻

Maybe when you bought it at L&M it was $3,100 but they are selling it for $3,749 now. Looks like not only did you score a fine sounding instrument, but as the commercial for Loblaws used to say, "at Loblaws, more than the price is right, but by gosh, the price is right."

👌😎

But if you fret a bar chord in the 5th fret, can you actually hear the B and E strings? I usually love way the way many Gibson acoustics sound until I play past the third fret and then I’m like they want more than $400 for this? Lol

The only thing Gibson have upped is their prices.

A few years ago, I walked into out local store and they had a brand new shipment of Gibson Acoustics. The nut, saddle, and fret work were atrocious. The finish wasn't great, and fret boards were all dried out. I couldn't believe USA made guitars were being shipped with those horrible attributes.

Can I find a great Gibson in the 4g range, or must I look up?

It's got the classic 60s "boob" emblem on the pickguard.😂

Give Gibsons full phosohor bronze coated strings a try bud. They were awfull like 2 years ago but darn decen now and 10 bucks cheaper than elixir for the coated string users.

Sounds nice but as of October 2023, it goes for about $3000. u.s. dollars. For that price, there shouldn't be any tear out in the braces. If I didn't own a D 28, which I don't, I would go for that over a shotty quality control guitar. For me, they need to still improve on the quality control and get the price down. A D-18 is cheaper and most people would rather have a brand new D-18 and some extra cash left over.

Wouild I buy yet another Gibson acoustic guitar? Most likely not because there are many other options now.

In a conundrum John. HELP. I am in the market for a new guitar. I have 2500....maybe a bit more. I was debating yamaha FG5...but then I thought for almost the same money i could get BOTH fg3 and LL16?

MOST J45 NOW ARE NOT DEAD. I’ve played 4-5 in 3 separate states and all of them blew every other guitar away, for fingerpicking. Not flat picking.

How many guitars do you own, JP?

I have to disagree. Gibson have been making stellar acoustics for at least the last ten years. My lg2 2012 is beautiful. While ridiculously expensive, their songwriters are really special as well.

Dud I hear stone temple pilots in that noodling

if Gibson guitars were 1/3 of the price , I'd consider buying one

I sent you an email

Why blues grass and not folk finger style? It’s harder and sounds better

That's a good guitar for your style, but IMHO is unbalanced toward the bass. If you want to hear a guitar with a thick treble, try a Greenfield.

Anybody else notice the logo on his hat? Histerical.

I love the sound of Gibson acoustics but they've gone off the rails with their mind numbing amount of "different" models. It's ridiculous at this point, especially when you factor in the Epis.