The Marauder and its edgy sibling, the S-1, are two fairly obscure Gibsons from the mid ’70s that enjoyed only five years of production before slipping off the radar and into obscurity. However, thanks to the dramatically escalating prices of ’50s and ’60s Gibsons, these two solidbodies are making a comeback, especially with players in search of hip, unique instruments to take on stage.

The Marauder
Making its debut in January, 1975, the Marauder came first. Like the L-6S, the Marauder featured pickups designed by Bill Lawrence—a hot Super Humbucker in the neck position, and a loud, yet cutting, angled singlecoil at the bridge. In lieu of individual polepieces, the bridge pickup sports a wide blade that runs the length of the coil. Both these pickups are cast in clear epoxy, so it’s possible to peer inside and see the coil wire.

Though the Marauder first sported a standard Gibson three-way pickup switch near the single cutaway, this was replaced with a unique—and extremely cool—continuously variable rotary pot and chicken-head knob that effectively lets you pan between the neck and bridge pickups. The blender pot was originally located on the right horn, but in later models was positioned between the volume and tone knobs.

Thanks to the blender, you balance the two pickups anyway you like, from full neck to full bridge, and all points in between. Panning between pickups was radical in its day, and it’s still a valid and toneful concept.

Measuring 13” across and 1-3/4” deep, the Marauder’s solid body is built from alder, maple, or mahogany. Here’s the twist: The guitar has a bolt-on neck, a huge departure from Gibson’s traditional glued, set-neck design. The laminated maple neck sports either a rosewood or maple fretboard with 22 frets and a 24-3/4” scale length. While standard Marauders have dot position markers, the Marauder Custom boasts a rosewood fretboard with neck binding and pearl block inlays. The Marauder’s headstock is straight lift from the mighty Flying V.

For hardware, the guitar has a Schaller “wide travel” tune-o-matic bridge, a stop tailpiece, and enclosed nickel tuners. Gibson offered the Marauder in Natural Satin, Walnut, Wine Red, Ebony, Tobacco Sunburst, and Natural Mahogany. These finish options varied according to year and fretboard material.

In 1976, the list price for a Marauder was $359, while its upscale Custom brother listed for $499. A Marauder hardshell case ran an additional $74.

The Marauder Custom was discontinued in 1977, while the standard Marauder survived until 1980. Paul Stanley played a Marauder in Kiss, Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore played one until it was stolen in 1986, and more recently, Josh Homme has wielded his Marauder in Queens of the Stone Age.


The S-1
Appearing in 1976, the S-1 essentially mates the body, bolt-on neck, and headstock of the Marauder with slick, triple-pickup electronics. The S-1’s three singlecoils were also designed by Bill Lawrence. As with the Marauder, they’re cast in clear epoxy, which reveals their sexy innards for all to see. The three pickups feed a master volume and master tone controls.

With is two-way toggle and four-position rotary switches, the S-1’s wiring scheme is somewhat fussy, and this may explain the S-1’s limited appeal back in the day. In the earliest S-1 models, the two-way toggle selects either the bridge pickup (offering an immediate way to jump into “full-blast” mode) or the four-way selector. In the latter mode, the rotary switch yields these settings:

Position #1: Neck and middle pickups in humbucking mode. Position #2: Bridge and middle pickups in humbucking mode. Position #3: Neck, middle, and bridge pickups in humbucking mode. Position #4: Neck and bridge pickups, out-of-phase.

In later versions of the S-1, the wiring scheme was altered, allowing the four-way rotary switch to deliver these combinations:

Position #1: Neck pickup. Position #2: Bridge and middle pickups in singlecoil mode. Position #3: Neck, middle, and bridge pickups in humbucking mode. Position #4: Neck and bridge pickups, out-of-phase.

With its bolt-on neck and potent singlecoils, S-1 offers rich, glassy tones with more snap and sparkle than classic humbuckers. The best-known guitarist to embrace an S-1 is Ron Wood, who played one with the Rolling Stones in the mid ’70s. In 1975, an S-1 in Tobacco Sunburst carried a list price of $509, sans case.

Though both the S-1 and Marauder are fairly rare, they remain quite affordable. These black-sheep ’70s guitars offer a unique mix of sonic versatility and quirky visual appeal—perfect for rockers and blues guitarists who want singlecoil shimmer mixed with the sonic girth of a Gibson.