I always loved the look of a SG Junior and remember thinking how cool this simple guitar looked in the hands of Carlos Cavaso (Quiet Riot) and Jake E lee (Ozzy) during the 80’s. It was not until I actually played one that I became hooked. These guitars sound great and while this particular guitar has a big neck (baseball bat size), it is effortless to play. It was a difficult decision regarding which one to purchase as I played several different vintage SG Jr’s (1963 – 1965) and each one felt a little different. In the end, I purchased this one from Norms Rare Guitars because of the neck, condition and price.

In 1961, the traditional Les Paul Standard received a makeover that included a thinner body with beveled edges, symmetrical pointed double cutaway (sharply pointed horns) and eventually a new name - the SG (solid guitar). The headstock on the early SG Jrs (until mid 1963) had the “Les Paul” decal on the headstock but after 1963 (like on this example) there was no designation on the headstock. The SG, like the Les Paul has become a main stay in rock music and has been associated with many great guitarists over the years. While Angus Young is probably the first name to come to mind, also think of Eric Clapton’s psychedelic painted “Fool” SG, Pete Townsend of the Who during his SG Special phase, and of course, Tony Iomni’s love affair with the SG body style.

The Junior was designed with the student in mind, a simple and un-fussy construction which makes playing easy, a fabulous sound and most importantly affordable. It has two basic control knobs (for volume and tone) and a lovely "single-sided" pick-guard (later in 1965 the pickguard was changed to the large style) join the single-coil P90 pick-up and wrap-over bridge in a perfect composition of minimalist functionalism. The slender mahogany body and big, chubby neck combine with the pick-up and bridge to produce a rich yet twangy tone with lots of sustain. These entry-level single pick-up solid-bodies are among the best electrics ever made and an excellent bang for the buck.

This guitar has a few changes, the tuners were changed at one time (the originals were reinstalled), the knobs are missing their metal tops and there is a small screw hole on the face of the body. None of these affect her playability and more importantly, sound, but it did provide me with a bargaining tool when buying her. Norm, as always, treated me right and I was more than thrilled with my selection. Check out the original case with the Gibson badge on the inside. What more can I say, simplicity at its best, this guitar is a real rocker and a pleasure to play. What really surprised me was the beautiful (mellow) sound she offers when played through an amps clean channel. To unleash the beast, just turn up the volume to ten and switch to your amps favorite “dirty” setting. This guitar can cover most sounds – the P90 pickup is truly a working musician’s best friend, handling both the clean and dirty sounds at will. You owe it to yourself to try one of these old “budget” student model Gibson guitars. Although the neck may feel too big for some players, the sound will sell you instantly!