1981 Tokai LS-75 AG — All Golden, All Rare

This guitar can only be described as ultra-rare.
In all my years of collecting, I’ve seen only two examples of it — this one included.
Those deeply familiar with Tokai’s history may already know of this model,
but until I acquired it, I had no idea such a guitar even existed.

At first glance, it appears to be an ordinary Goldtop.
But look closer — the back is gold as well.
That’s what the “AG” stands for: All Golden.
In other words, it’s gold all over.
Gibson produced the original version of this design around 1956.

Still, you have to marvel at both sides of this creation —
the builder, who decided to make something so extravagant,
and the buyer, who decided to order it.
You can’t help but admire that kind of conviction.

When I first obtained it, I thought it looked a bit too flashy.
But after living with it for a while, I began to find it rather elegant — even austere.
There’s almost a Buddhist sensibility about it.
If a biwa-playing monk were to wander the land,
substituting this guitar for his traditional lute,
it wouldn’t look out of place at all.

The top is a two-piece maple,
while the back seam is invisible — likely a single piece.

Weight: 4.23 kg (including strings)
(Updated August 27, 2016)