The Gibson Marauder is a relatively unknown guitar produced by Gibson in the mid 1970's, (1975-1979) an often tumultuous period from Gibson's history. After the relative, but limited, success of the L-6C, Gibson again called on pickup and guitar designer Bill Lawrence to design a set of pickups that would help compete with the bolt on guitar market, specifically the Fender Telecaster Deluxe, with its neck humbucker and bridge single coil.
The pickups, instead of normal nickel or chrome covers, were cast into clear epoxy, giving a futuristic look that seemed alien for the company whose image had largely relied on heritage and tradition. In 1976, the normal toggle switch was replaced with a potentiometer that helped blend between both pickups. There was a single volume and a single tone control. In total, only 7,111 were produced.
The body, though shaped like a Les Paul, had a bolt-on maple neck with either a Rosewood or maple fretboard, and a Flying-V style pointed headstock. This particular guitar is, visually, in great shape. There are a couple noticeable dings, notably the lower bout, as well as an abrasion on the back of the neck. The most apparent damage is a large, straight scratch into the guitar on the bass side, but its not incredibly noticeable from most angles.
The frets are low, although strangely this adds to this already odd guitar's appeal, as the Lawrence designed neck humbucker is actually an incredible sounding jazz pickup, or rhythm in general. The bridge pickup is fairly anemic, but is intriguing in its own right. Blended together, they sound great. Serial #00187270 comes with a Rudy's soft gig bag.
