1955 Gibson ES-5 Switchmaster

The 1955 Gibson ES-5 Switchmaster is a hollow-body electric guitar from the "ES" (Electric Spanish) series of guitars. It was the first in the series to have three pickups. Originally it was the ES-5 model with three volume knobs (one for each pickup) but in 1955 the model evolved to the ES-5 Switchmaster with a new 4-position pickup selector switch and a six-knob tone control layout. The Switchmaster was discontinued in 1962, and remained so until the 1995 reissue from the Gibson Custom domain.

Andy Summers has a 1955 ES-5 Switchmaster in his guitar collection: "'[I have the ES-5 Switchmaster] because I grew up listening to great American jazz players. For some reason, I associate that guitar with Tal Farlow, who was not one of my greatest influences – he was too fast for me, and not quite as lyrical as some of the other players I preferred. But it’s very much that ’50s/overbuilt jazz guitar. It’s wonderful – large, with three pickups. I don’t even remember where I got it, but it was many years ago.'"