Gibson ES-120T Review

I'm about 20 years into my story as a songwriter, singer and guitar player.   Over those years, I've played a lot of guitars, and this one I've always come back to.

This is a thin-line arch top, light and easy on the shoulders with a nice jazz tone when played lightly, but it really gets a rough and knuckly sound when played with some conviction.  Gibson originally sold it as a Spanish guitar,  although I didn't realize that until I looked it up for this review! I play a fairly eclectic mix of music, from fingerpicked blues and country to damaged noise rock, and while very simple, this guitar is able to get credible sounds for just about everything -- although it breaks down just short of metal.   Where it really shines is as the songwriter's companion;  its chambered body produces enough sound to double as an acoustic guitar, and its electric sound is surprisingly beefy; great for bar gigs.

I have a 1967, and its a little beat up, but I got a great bargin.   Since this is not a collectable model, its widely available and can be snached up for a song.   After 40 years, the soundboard is really jumps and sings; its really astonishing what years can do for a nice piece of wood.

The only real complaint I have is that because it is a lower end model (and maybe because of the wooden bridge),  it has a few intonation problems.   I've had it refretted and the bridge recut, but above the seventh fret it is a bit wobbly.   This is generally a minor complaint, as I don't use it as a lead guitar, and mostly play fairly low on the neck.