Since that day, I have traveled thousands of
miles and held some of the most incredible
bursts in my hands, and I’ve learned that every
burst is like a fingerprint or a snowflake, one of
a kind, and each one comes with a story. One
of my favorites is Lois’ story.
Back in the late ‘90’s a woman named Lois
owned one of the most memorable bursts that
I had come across at the time. She was a lovely
elderly lady and she had been gifted a ‘59 Les
Paul Standard by her husband as a wedding
gift in 1959. Lois was a player, and she and her
husband had met while playing in a country
swing band in the mid ‘50’s. Lois performed
with that ‘59 Les Paul in that band up until
sometime in the late ‘80’s when she and here
husband realized that it had become quite a bit
more valuable; too valuable to take on the road.
She didn’t stop gigging, but she did get a newer
guitar to perform with. I met Lois because the
time had come for her to sell her burst to cover
medical expenses, and I must admit it was quite
an emotional experience. I took a video as Lois
played her burst for the last time. Tears were
shed, and she said goodbye to her guitar as
she handed it to me and I handed her husband
a bag with a large sum of money.
That very special ‘59 burst has resided with a
close friend for almost 20 years now. Soon after
my friend acquired it I put him in touch with
Lois and her husband. They spoke often on the
phone and remained friends for a number of
years, forever bonded by a 1959 Les Paul that
will always be referred to as “Lois”.
In 1959 the Les Paul Standard model sold new
for $249. If we had only known then what we
know now!
If you really want to dig into the guts of the burst
I would highly suggest the book “Beauty of the
Burst” by Yasuhiko Iwanade, as well as all of Vic
DePra’s books.
Burst on!
Jul Aug 2016
CollectibleGuitar.com
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