Gibson Tal Farlow 2011

The Tal Farlow model, initially launched in 1962, has a body that bears a striking resemblance to the well-known ES-5 in terms of size, but then takes its own original form, inspired by the creativity of this talented guitarist. Its distinctive faux-scroll rounded cutaway (designed by Farlow himself), flipped J-200 fingerboard inlays, dual-crown headstock inlays, and Tal Farlow trapeze tailpiece with a rosewood block inlay make it stand out from any other Gibson archtop ever made.

Body and Neck
Gibson's Custom Shop makes the Tal Farlow today in the exact image of the original, down to the enlarged five-point pickguard and the Farlow scroll cutaway, created-now as then-by curling the binding into the body at the cutaway to create the impression of a mandolin-like scroll. It's a full-sized archtop at 17" wide and, more comfortable than other models of its day, 3" deep. As preferred by many professional jazz guitarists, including Farlow, the ES rounded neck profile is made to a 25-1/2" scale length, with a 1-11/16" nut width. The model also features multi-ply binding on the body's top and back, single-ply white binding on the fingerboard, headstock, and f-holes, and is available in vintage sunburst and viceroy brown.

Hardware
Fully acoustic, it is also a fully electric model, with two set-in humbucking pickups with individual volume and tone controls, and a three-way selector switch. Its floating rosewood bridge base carries an ABR-1 tune-o-matic bridge for full adjustment of individual string intonation and excellent sustain. Outfitted with L-5 Electric .012 strings, the Tal Farlow model comes with the standard Gibson Custom case and certificate of authenticity.