Django Reinhardt's Gibson ES-300?
After World War II, Django Reinhardt traveled to the United States in 1946 to tour with Duke Ellington. He had not brought his trusty Selmer guitar with him and was forced to play a Gibson ES-300, probably arranged through the William Morris Agency. This instrument, along with an experimental amplifier and speaker cabinet, was intended to rise above the sound of Ellington's orchestra.
However, Django was hardly familiar with amplifiers and electric guitars. Recordings show that he struggled with the instrument and mainly used sustain, something he was not familiar with acoustically. Photos with other musicians' guitars (such as Epiphone or Gretsch) were mainly for show, and there was no real sponsorship or support.
Django with his Gibson ES-300 (Source: https://gypsyjazzuk.wordpress.com)
Not long ago, I bought a 1946 Gibson ES-300 in the United States. Once the guitar arrived in the Netherlands, I called my good friend Richard Dielen. Jokingly, I told him that there was a good chance this could be Django Reinhardt's ES-300. We both knew the famous photos of Django with his ES-300.
The Gibson ES-300 1946.
After I hung up, I decided to take another good look at the photos, and Richard did exactly the same. Half an hour later, he called me back and said, “I think this could be right!” To which I replied, “That's what I just thought!”
From that moment on, we started collecting as many photos as possible of Django and his ES-300. We carefully compared the damage and the wood grain. And yes—the grain in the top of the guitar clearly matches.
Typical dark discoloration in the mother-of-pearl on the 12th fret.
Characteristic dark grain in the top.
We also came across a photo of Django with his ES-300, in which the side of the guitar is clearly visible. It clearly shows that the guitar has a mahogany back and sides. This is an important clue, because most ES-300s from that period were built with a maple back and sides.
As can be seen in the photo, Django played an ES-300 with mahogany back and sides. However, the vast majority of ES-300s from 1946 had maple back and sides.
I decided to contact the seller in America. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell me much about its origins. All he knew was that the guitar had been stored in San Jose, California, for a long time.
The guitar itself is in good condition and came with the original case. We only replaced the pickguard with one of our handmade reproductions. The original is still present, but has been quite damaged over the years.
We cannot say for certain, but the evidence strongly suggests that this was Django Reinhardt's Gibson ES-300. Any additional information about this instrument is, of course, very welcome.