The first B.B. King models were introduced in 1980 with two variations: the B.B. King Standard and the B.B. King Custom. Rather than true signature models, these guitars were regular production models with King's personal touches, and only later became part of the Gibson Custom Shop Collection in Memphis. The B.B. King models are based on a Gibson ES-345 with Varitone stereo electronics. Each model was renamed in 1981, respectively as the Lucille Standard and Lucille Custom. The Standard was produced through 1985, in 1986, the Lucille Custom was changed to the B.B. King Lucille, and up until 2002, there was only this variation of the B.B. King. In 1999, Gibson added King's requests and personal appointments to their small-bodied Blueshawk and called it the Little Lucille. In mid-2002 (according to Gibson's price list) production of the B.B. King models was moved from Nashville to the new Gibson Memphis factory, and a new model was introduced called the B.B. King Super Lucille. They also began to offer a signature fingerboard option (Special order with B.B. King or Lucille inlayed in mother of pearl on the fingerboard) on the B.B. King Lucille until circa 2004. In 2006, the Gibson Custom Shop produced 81 B.B. King 80th Birthday Lucille's in honor of King's birthday (King took ownership of Prototype #1) and that same year produced 150 B.B. King "King of the Blues" models that were exclusively sold through Guitar Center stores. The author would like to thank Eric Dahl for his contributions in the B.B. King section.
Models (10)
B.B. KING STANDARD/LUCILLE STANDARD
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- symmetrical double rounded cutaway ES-335-style semi-hollow body, arched maple top, maple back and sides, no f-holes, multi-ply top and back binding, maple neck, 22-fret bound rosewood fingerboard with pearl dot inlays, black headstock overlay with pearl Gibson logo and Lucille inlays, three-per-side tuners, tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 tunable stop tailpiece, raised layered black pickguard, two covered humbucker pickups, stereo electronics, four knobs (two v, two t), three-way pickup switch, two 1/4 in. outputs, chrome hardware, available in Cherry or Ebony finish, mfg. 1980-85.
This model was originally called the B.B. King Standard, and in 1981, it was renamed the Lucille Standard.
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B.B. KING CUSTOM/LUCILLE CUSTOM/B.B. KING LUCILLE (MODEL ARLC)
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- symmetrical double rounded cutaway ES-335-style semi-hollow body, arched maple top, maple back and sides, no f-holes, multi-ply top and back binding, maple neck, 22-fret bound ebony fingerboard with large pearl block inlays, multi-ply bound headstock with black overlay and pearl Gibson logo and Lucille inlays (1980-circa 2007) or custom B.B. King inlay and graphics and a gold "Lucille" inscribed truss rod cover (circa 2007-2017), three-per-side tuners, Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 tunable stop tailpiece, raised layered bound black or tortoise pickguard, two covered humbucker pickups, stereo electronics, four knobs (two v, two t), Vari-Tone rotary tone knob, three-way pickup switch, two 1/4 in. outputs, gold hardware, available in Beale Street Blue (2002-04), Cherry/Wine Red (disc.), or Ebony finish, 24.75 in. scale, mfg. 1980-2017.
This model was originally called the B.B. King Custom, in 1981 it was renamed the Lucille Custom, and in 1986, it was renamed the B.B. King Lucille. In circa 2007, the headstock was redesigned with a new B.B. King custom logo and graphics that did not feature the Gibson logo. This instrument was most recently produced in the Gibson Memphis factory.
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B.B. King Lucille Gem Series
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- similar to the B.B. King Lucille, except available in five limited edition "Gem Series" finishes including Amethyst, Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, or Sapphire, limited production of 25 instruments in each finish (125 total run), BB King Certificate of Authenticity booklet color matched to guitar with color and serial number inside, also included "The Best of B.B. King Christmas Collection CD" and The B.B. King Treasures hardbound book, launched through Musicians Friend Private Reserve division mfg. late 2010-2011.
The B.B. King Lucille Gem Series was serial numbered "BBK0NNN." For example, the 120th guitar of the series has the serial number "BBK0120."
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100% New
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B.B. King Lucille With B.B. King Signature or Lucille Inlayed Fingerboard (Model ARBB)
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- similar to the B.B. King Lucille, except has a signature fingerboard, available in Ebony finish only, mfg. mid-2002-04.
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B.B. King Super Lucille (Model ARLS)
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- similar to the B.B. King Lucille, except has abalone block fingerboard inlays, abalone headstock veneer of Gibson logo and Lucille name, a hand signed B.B. King signature pickguard, available in Black Sparkle finish only, limited edition run of 67 instruments (including 17 Artist Proofs), mfg. mid-2002-04.
This model was produced at the Gibson Memphis factory. In 2004, Gibson produced 17 Super Lucilles as "Artist Proofs" to raise money for the Diabetes Foundation. These guitars have "Artist Proof" written in directly below the serial number, have a silver medallion below that, and have a medallion on the front. The guitar body is hand signed instead of the pickguard on these Artist Proofs or Neiman Marcus Lucilles as they are called. A leather-bound picture book of the signing with other details to send the guitar back to Gibson to clear coat the signature was included as well. The Custom Shop Certification individually numbers which one out of the 17 it is. These guitars were sold through Neiman Marcus and the number 17 represents the 17 million Americans living with diabetes in 2004 which B.B. King also suffers from.
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B.B. King Signature Lucille 65th Birthday Model (ARLC14)
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- similar to the B.B. King Lucille, except has a MOP "Lucille" in the headstock overlay and a gold engraved "65 Years" truss rod cover, mfg mid-2014 only.
This model commemorates the 65th Anniversary launch of the Gibson ES355TD-SV model in 1959 which was the origin of the current "Lucille" model introduced in 1980.
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100% New
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B.B. KING 80TH BIRTHDAY LUCILLE
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- symmetrical double rounded cutaway ES-335-style semi-hollow body, arched laminated maple top, laminated maple back and sides, no f-holes, multi-ply top and back binding, set three-piece maple neck, 22-fret bound ebony fingerboard with large pearl block inlays, multi-ply bound headstock with black overlay, B.B. King 80th birthday inlays, and a gold "Gibson" inscribed truss rod cover, three-per-side tuners, Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 tunable stop tailpiece, raised engraved bound pickguard engraved with B.B. King signature and crown logo, two covered B.B. King engraved humbucker pickups (490R, 490T), stereo electronics, four gold UFO knobs with MOP inserts (two v, two t), Vari-Tone rotary tone knob, three-way pickup switch, two 1/4 in. outputs, gold hardware, available in Black Pearl finish only, 24.75 in. scale, black levant case, personally signed certificate of authenticity included, limited edition run of 82 instruments (80 guitars plus 2 prototypes), mfg. 2006 only.
The headstock design and inlays matches the artwork on B.B. King's 80 album, which is a birthday tribute to King.
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B.B. KING "KING OF THE BLUES"
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- symmetrical double rounded cutaway ES-335-style semi-hollow body, arched laminated maple top, laminated maple back and sides, no f-holes, multi-ply top and back binding, set three-piece maple neck, 22-fret bound ebony fingerboard with large pearl block inlays, multi-ply bound headstock with black overlay, Gibson logo, gold truss rod cover, and pearl plaque on back of headstock (reflecting the number of the 150), three-per-side tuners, Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 tunable stop tailpiece, raised non-bound pickguard with hand drawn "Crown" and "King of Blues" logo inscription, two covered humbucker pickups, stereo electronics, four amber knobs with silver inserts (two v, two t), Vari-Tone rotary tone knob, three-way pickup switch, two 1/4 in. outputs, gold hardware, available in Ebony finish, 24.75 in. scale, black levant case included, limited edition run of 150 instruments, mfg. 2006 only.
This guitar was built and sold exclusively for Guitar Center.
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100% New
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B.B. KING LUCILLE 2019
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- symmetrical double rounded cutaway ES-335-style semi-hollow body, arched ply maple/poplar top and back, no f-holes, multi-ply top and back binding, maple neck, 22-fret bound rosewood fingerboard with mother of pearl block inlays, black headstock overlay with pearl Gibson logo and pearl Crown inlays, brass "Lucille" engraved truss rod cover, three-per-side Grover rotomoatic tuners with Keystone buttons, tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 tunable stop tailpiece, raised tortoise pickguard, two covered humbucker 490 pickups (B.B. King signature engraved in bridge pickup cover), stereo electronics, four black speed knobs (two v, two tone), three-way pickup switch, six position varitone switch, two 1/4 in. outputs, gold hardware, available in Alpine White finish, hardshell case included, mfg. 2019 only.
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100% New
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LITTLE LUCILLE (DSLL)
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- single sharp cutaway Blueshawk-style poplar body, maple top, two f-holes, single-ply cream body binding, narrow mahogany neck with a slight V shape, 22-fret bound rosewood fingerboard with diamond inlays, black headstock overlay with pearl Gibson logo and gold "B.B. King" engraved truss rod cover, three-per-side tuners, painted "Little Lucille" on body next to start of the fingerboard, tune-o-matic bridge, TP-6 stop tailpiece, two Blues 90 with hum cancelling dummy coil pickups, two black numbered knobs with gold inserts (v, tone with push/pull Varitone disable), three-way pickup switch, six-way rotary Varitone selector, gold hardware, available in Blues Burst (2002-04), Ebony, or Wine Red (2002-04) finish, 25.5 in. scale, mfg. 1999-2004.
In mid-2002, this model's production location was moved from Gibson USA in Nashville to Gibson Memphis.
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