Gibson Melody Maker
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| Gibson Melody Maker | |
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| Manufacturer | Gibson |
| Period | 1958 |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Set |
| Woods | |
| Body | Mahogany |
| Neck | Spanish Cedar |
| Fretboard | Rosewood |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | Tune-O-Matic |
| Pickup(s) | 1 Single-coil P-90 |
| Colors available | |
| Satin Cherry, Satin Ebony and Satin Yellow (Pictured) | |
The Gibson Melody Maker is an electric guitar that is similar to a Gibson Les Paul but with only one single-coil pick-up near the bridge; other differences from its Les Paul counterparts include differences in width to the standard and classic at the 1st fret (20 millimeters thinner) and 12 fret (25 millimeters thicker), its much shorter heel length (125 millimeters shorter), dot inlay instead of trapezoid, its lack of a carved maple top or top of any kind, its plastic knobs including only one tone and one volume and its cheaper plastic tuners with lower gear ratio.
This guitar was used by Green Day guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong on the song "Wake Me Up When September Ends". The 1959 Melody Maker is the main instrument of Carl Barat, formerly of The Libertines, now lead singer and guitarist of Dirty Pretty Things. Jon Foreman of the band Switchfoot uses this guitar in the music video for "We Are One Tonight". The guitar is often said to be ugly in its simplicity, but the simplicity of design, raw tone and organic look make it, along with the Les Paul Junior and the Les Paul T.V., a very popular guitar with guitarists in many so-called "alternative" styles of music.
