Cherry is surely your favourite Gibson colour and this stunning 1964 Gibson ES-330 TDC wears it so well.

Introduced in 1959 as the successor to the ES-225 and the budget thinline alongside the ES-335, the ES-330 bridged the gap between the new centre block arch top guitars and Gibson’s classic arch tops of the previous decades becoming a firm favourite with players such as BB King and Grant Green not to mention the rhythm guitar of choice for many.

Theres no hiding with this guitar round your neck. The cherry finish has kept that deep colour both front and back and free from any knocks or wear. The colour really accentuates the grain pattern of the maple. There is a little crazing on the sides but the top has avoided this.

The same can be said for the neck which has a free minor dings. the fretboard is excellent and the frets look unused. The plastics are in great shape with only very slight warping of the pick guard. The hardware shows no signs of corrosion and still has that lustrous shine which is rare for a 55 year old nickel plated Gibson.

Electronically the guitar looks to be correct with the solder joints being untouched and both pickups undisturbed with original windings. There is a small ‘2’ just by the serial number which indicates when it was new there was some kind of finish flaw. 55 years later this is impossible to see why.

The guitar comes with its correct black tolex Lifton type hardshell case with yellow lining.

Acoustically this guitar has a pleasantly warm tone that certainly tips the hat to Gibson’s arch top heritage. Plugged in the guitar runs the gamut from warm neck pickup to a more honky, biting bridge pickup tone. The neck has with the chunkier ‘64 profile I very comfortable a delight to play and a good reason to seek out these 1964 Gibson neck profiles.

1964 was a classic year for Gibson and this guitar is a testament to that. If 330’s are your thing and why would they not be, don’t let this one get away as it is a nightly fine example of this timeless classic…