The Gibson Guitar company has been taking it on the chin the last couple years. Far be it from us to defend the fret and tonewood dynamo with legends Bill Monroe and Les Paul in its distinguished past; we have little emotional investment or personal stake in the company's historic reputation. Other than a brief stay of a Gibson F-9 in the JazzMando arsenal almost a decade ago, no Gibson instruments, not even a modest tribute to the strong Florentine F5-clenching tradition here.

That said, we'll register the company has fended off some unfair blows with the latest government US Fish & Wildlife witch hunt, class action ambulance-chasers' lawsuit, and an investigation that not only included the guitar giant, but competitors Fender and Yamaha. We'll weigh in that we see the only victors being the legal profession, and the ill effects could eventually spill over onto the consumer. Profit assures innovation; progressive companies being gnawed at by greedy lawyers will ultimately result in players shorted in the long run.

The Nashville Business Journal weighs in: Gibson Guitar hitting a sour note

Posted by Ted at March 1, 2010 5:51 AM