Trade Regrets: Edwin Wilson

Renowned luthier, Edwin Wilson, notable for his pioneering work for Gibson Custom‘s True Historic program, passed away on July 14 at the age of 59.

Wilson served as director of the True Historic program until 2017, revolutionizing many aspects of vintage guitar replication. The True Historic Program – especially the Collector’s Choice line – was a first for the industry: Gibson’s effort to faithfully replicate Golden Era guitars down to the smallest detail. Wilson and his team went far beyond merely attempting to make newer instruments “look old.” Rather, they sought to create guitars that played, sounded, and felt as close as possible to the originals.

As Gibson was headed towards bankruptcy in 2017, Wilson parted ways with the iconic brand and moved on to serve as head of Guitar R&D for Vista Musical Products ( Harmony and Heritage Guitars ). In his new role he was instrumental in introducing an entirely new line of Harmony guitars and launching the Custom Core line for Heritage.

Wilson’s passing has been observed by many notable figures in music, including Joe Bonamassa who posted to Instagram that, “Edwin was instrumental in developing prototypes for both my signature Les Paul and 335 models as well as the Collector’s Choice series for Gibson Custom. He was a good dude and gone too soon.”

Matt Koehler, VP of Product for Gibson, observed, “Edwin Wilson was fearless. He was a great friend. And he helped me get the job at Gibson. I’ll never forget his smile, his laugh and his heart. His legacy in guitar is worth of a book itself. For decades he was behind the Gibson Custom Historic model evolution, all the coolest limited runs, and all the artist models. We kept up until the very end and he was always in great spirits. We love you Edwin! You will be greatly missed.”