Tom Murphy, who’s known for his “aged” finishes for Gibson, discussed his work and whether the specific type of finish may or may not affect the sonic output of electric guitars. There’s only one Tom Murphy in the world. His unique way of deliberate aging changed the game in the business, making his guitars not only look but also feel aged.
Appearing in an interview with the UK’s Andertons Music Co. retailer, Murphy reflected on his process and how this special process really affects these instruments. Asked about the matter, he offered (transcript via Ultimate Guitar):
“Guitar lacquers have been engineered for a long time to be durable and protective — and that’s fine. But that can have a sort of a dampening effect on a piece of wood.”
And does this all affect the tone of your guitar? Well, according to Tom, there are a lot of components to the sonic equation with electric guitars. This aged finish may or may not be part of it, but it also may not be in the direct conventional sense that we tend to think. As he continued:
“So, even though we will not claim, specifically, the sonic benefits of the finish on our solid-body electric guitars — which I can plug into a bunch of pedals and [someone will go], ‘Does it sound old?’ ‘Yeah, the pedal sounds old’.”
“But I think when people feel it for themselves, in their hands, it gives you that sort of warm feeling of, ‘Oh, this is a friendly instrument.'”
One of the most popular aspects of his work is that cracked finish that looks so genuine. It’s really identical to the natural process of aging and the “cracked” finish that comes with it. Tom explained:
“I did discover a new material and a new process to get a more convincing and authentic style or pattern of checking. That’s all real. That is really cracked.”
Obviously, these guitars are designed to show wear, even though they’re new. That’s the main appeal of these guitars, with Tom explaining:
“That’s what we want people to be aware of when they buy a Murphy Lab guitar. No matter what, it’s gonna show wear. Not because it’s an inferior finish, because it’s a finish engineered to show wear.”
Of course, there’ll always be naysayers out there. And, most commonly, people will complain about how the practice of making, marketing, and selling electric guitars with deliberately aged finishes don’t make a lot of sense.
But Tom’s argument is pretty simple — if you’re not into it, Gibson still offers the conventional stuff. Additionally, he added that there’s the impact of these finishes on the tone of electric guitars:
“I just would like to think we have tastefully and with integrity, offered the concept to people. Then they can decide if there are sonic benefits and a feel — which I believe there is.”
Tom’s work on giving guitars unconventional yet appealing finishes goes all the way back to the 1970s. As he told Guitar World in an interview from 2022, this goes back to the 1970s and nothing but pure interest in electric guitars.
“I had already started having a knowledge and appreciation for older guitars,” Tom said, “like so many other people. I moved to Houston, Texas, in 1969, and there happened to be a culture of old-guitar guys there.”
“My first Les Paul was a 1968 Goldtop, and I guess I’d say my first experience there was I stripped all the gold off of it. I’ve told people [since then] I am definitely paying for several sins I committed back in the day!”
“I actually never planned to be a guitar technician, luthier, or repairman, but it finally caught up with me that that’s what I was supposed to do – helping other people with their guitars and just letting my passion guide me.”
Les Pauls are also incredibly popular for their maple tops, particularly when we get to see the wood grain. But although the legendary flamed maple is so widespread, the figured pattern gives a completely different vibe to the finish.
“We all have a love of the organic nature of a really beautiful figured top,” Murphy argued. “I have a silly saying that when we see a great top and the guys are marveling at it, I say, ‘This stuff doesn’t grow on trees, you know?’ And why it’s beautiful is it doesn’t exist until it’s found on a processed tree and so no two are alike, though some are similar.”
“The difference today, and it has been since the ’90s, is that we can calculate [production] and produce beautiful, awesome instruments every day through our source of wood, so it’s really not a rarity today to find a beautiful top. But think back to the time before that was engineered into the guitars…”
Photo: Geoff Alexander (Gibson ES-Les Paul & Gibson Memphis Les Paul – Gibson Pure Shop – Gibson Guitar Factory, Memphis (2016-11-04 13.37.23 by Geoff Alexander @ Flickr 25343586529))
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