1959 Gibson ES-335 Dot Neck
Sunburst (Refin) Ex Axel Heilhecker / Wesley Plass

25.000,00 €

differentially taxed according to §25a UStG. plus Shipping costs

Art.Nr. Gi59ES335

Dating from the second year of ES-335 production, this 1959 Gibson belongs to the earliest generation of a model introduced in 1958. Its an early desired “thin-top” version. Its semi-hollow construction and solid center block brought together elements of Gibson’s archtop and solidbody designs. This particular example also has a musician-owned history, recorded in a signed letter from Axel Heilhecker dated April 23, 2016, and was featured in grand gtrs magazine. According to Heilhecker’s letter, an early owner was Siggi Hussner, from whom session guitarist Wesley Plass acquired the guitar in 1978. It subsequently passed to Munich-based session musician and studio owner Zlatko Horvatic, then to Heiner Musiol in the 1980s. Axel Heilhecker purchased it from Musiol in 1998 and states that he played this ES-335 on numerous album releases, television appearances and videos. The ownership history connects the guitar with musicians active across the German and international recording scene. Plass’s career includes work with Donna Summer, Jennifer Rush, Udo Lindenberg and Harold Faltermeyer, while Heilhecker’s credits include Wolf Maahn, Klaus Lage, Marius Müller-Westernhagen and Herbert Grönemeyer. The guitar already had a polyester refinish when Plass purchased it in 1978. During Musiol’s ownership, arrangements were made through Valley Arts in Cologne for a Frankfurt specialist (our luthier Mathias SChindehüte) in nitrocellulose finishes to remove the polyester and refinish the instrument. The guitar is fitted with a wax potted long magnet PAF in the bridge- and a short magnet PAF/patent sticker humbucker (we can’t tell due to missing decal) with a replaced slug coil in the neck position. The stoptail, ABR-1 bridge, and electronics are period correct. The guitar is fitted with Grovers. The neck has been shaved to a rather early 60s style profile. As you would expect from a musician’s guitar it sounds extremely good – very lively and resonant! Comes incl. original brown Lifton case.