Gibson Les Paul Custom (Ebony, with Bigsby)

Model: Gibson Les Paul Custom
Color: Ebony
Year: 1957 (serial: 72xxx)1

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Used in...

- 2000

- played during Hey Hey My My at Wembley (21 July 2000)
Details

This elusive Les Paul Custom was played for Hey Hey My My during the first night at Wembley in 2000, as seen in the live DVD Familiar to Millions.

For years, I couldn't tell whether this was an original mid-'50s model or a late-'90s reissue. Several readers reached out with different theories, until the answer finally surfaced!

The guitar is fitted with a Bigsby B-7 vibrato unit, a P-90 pickup in the bridge, and an Alnico 'staple' pickup in the neck. If it is a '50s model, that would date it between 1954 and 1956; in 1957, Gibson introduced the humbucker pickup, and the P90/staple configuration was discontinued.2

In early 2025, I was contacted by someone who had worked on Oasis gig production in 2000, and who is also a guitar enthusiast.3 He provided great insight about several instruments, including the Epiphone Casino from the Sunday Morning Call video.

Here's the thing: this Bigsby-equipped Les Paul actually had an early 1957 serial number, making it likely one of the last models with this mixed pickup configuration, right before PAF humbuckers took over later that year.
As far as I know, this guitar was never seen before or after the first night at Wembley. Even on the second night, Noel switched back to one of his usual Cherry Sunburst Les Paul Standards for Hey Hey, My My.

It may have been a recent purchase, but as a collectible vintage piece, Noel probably didn't want to take it on tour.

According to the anonymous source, he still owned it in the mid-2000s.

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  1. For privacy reasons, the full serial number isn’t shared here: only the details needed for accurate dating are provided. ↩︎
  2. The Gibson Les Paul Book – Tony Bacon & Paul Day, 1993 ↩︎
  3. The source prefers to stay anonymous – thanks! ↩︎

2 thoughts on “Gibson Les Paul Custom (Ebony, with Bigsby)”

  1. Brian Hogenson's avatar

    Long story short, this definitely maybe is a ’54 reissue.

    It’s hard to tell definitively from the still shots and video, but I believe the neck/rhythm pickup is a “staple” pickup which was only on the first year of the Les Paul Custom, being replaced with a neck/rhythm P90 for a few years before the ’57 models got PAF humbuckers.

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  2. Tim's avatar

    It’s more likely an original 50s Les Paul Custom rather than a later re-issue. The give away is the fact the bigsby isn’t gold. Prior to 1957 if a Les Paul custom was ordered with a Bigsby these weren’t gold. The re-issues would have all gold parts

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