Gibson has unveiled its latest crop of Certified Vintage electric guitars – and it’s a time capsule that offers an unprecedented glimpse into the firm’s forgotten Superstrat era of the 1980s.
The Certified Vintage initiative was unveiled back in 2023 as a way for Gibson to unearth, showcase and sell some of its most exclusive forgotten prototypes and archival pieces.
Comprising one-of-one prototypes that highlight unseen innovations, obscure body shapes and long-forgotten builds, the newest Certified Vintage collection serves as a whistle-stop tour of Gibson’s activities through an especially transformative era, set against the backdrop of supercharged guitar evolution.
Though Slash would famously alter the very fabric of the firm’s history when he popularized the Les Paul, the period preceding this was one of heavy experimentation for Gibson, which at the time was owned by the Norlin Corporation.
During that period, that was the case for most guitar brands, which aimed to cater to the growing demand for sleeker aesthetics, faster playability and versatile electronics, as forward-thinking guitar music – spearheaded by Eddie Van Halen – gave rise to a new generation of guitar heroes.
It was a time when the Superstrat became a force to be reckoned with, and this turn towards high-performance double-cuts – something that is seldom associated with Gibson – is fully reflected in the new Certified Vintage drop.
The 1986 Gibson US-1 prototype is indicative of that trend, as is the equally shred-ready 1987 Gibson U-2. Both HSS models with traditional Strat-style body shapes, the six-strings feature a bevy of expansive switching that speaks to the need for greater tonal options.
The U-2 also has a Floyd Rose – a rather uncommon accompaniment to Gibsons – while the US-1 opts for a flamed top, TOM/Stop Bar combo and an expanded 25.5” scale length – again, an unusual spec for a firm that famously favors 24.75” scales.
“So much of guitar playing in the 1980s was all about speed, precision, and high performance, all in a bold, eye-catching package,” Mitch Conrad, Gibson’s Certified Vintage Mamager, tells Guitar World. “These Gibson models really embody that spirit and were designed to meet the needs of that musical moment.
“I think the wider scene of music in general is so often a factor in our innovation,” he adds of how the spirit of the time informed these builds. “We’re always looking to create the best tools for musicians during their moment in time.”
The U-models aren’t alone in showing a more adventurous side to Gibson’s building in the 1980s, nor are they the only guitars to highlight the firm’s interest in entering the Superstrat market.
Three Q Series prototypes are also included in the drop. A spiritual sibling to the recently revived Victory line, the Q models feature elongated double-cut bodies and a range of hardware and pickup configurations.
The 1984 Q200, for example, offers a P-90/humbucker combo with a Kahler Flying bridge, while the 1984 Q300 opts for three P-90s. The third unbadged Q model from 1983, meanwhile, comes equipped with a prototype Gibson roller bridge and tremolo system.
“Innovation is all about exploration,” Conrad notes of the left-field specs on display, “testing ideas, refining designs, and landing on one path to move forward on. I think a natural part of that process is choosing the option that achieves the original goal.”
The Superstrat experiments are joined by some more conventional – but by no means any less intriguing – gems from the Gibson archive.
The 1983 Challenger Prototype, for example, was an early effort to bring the Les Paul to an accessible, player-friendly level, with a curious bolt-on (as opposed to the regular set) neck design and abandoned headstock shape.
Elsewhere, the 1985 Explorer XPL Prototype puts a radical spin on the conventional Explorer body shape “to match the attitude of the ’80s music scene”, while the 1985 Spirit II XPL paired a hockey stick headstock with a Les Paul DC-style body.
This Certified Vintage drop is an interesting lens through which to appraise the history of Gibson. At the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s, when Slash catapulted the Les Paul’s popularity into the stratosphere, the model’s fortunes took off, and such experimental builds that failed to have a lasting impact were soon abandoned.
But more recently, Gibson has been reviving some of these forgotten gems, as evidenced by the return of the Victory last year and, to an extent, the release of the Theodore.
As for whether we could ever see the return of the US-1 or the Q line, Conrad teases, “It’s amazing how Gibson’s past designs continue to shape what we do today. The Spirit II XPL, for example, has a lot in common with the figured-top Les Paul Special Doublecuts the Custom Shop has been making in recent years.
“Whether these exact models will return, I can’t say – but Gibson’s legacy of design and innovation is always finding new ways to inspire the guitars we create today.”
Visit Gibson to find out more about the new Certified Vintage collection.
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