Fretboard

Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Limited Edition

Kenny — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:30:06 +0000

Epiphone’s 1959 Les Paul Standard Limited Edition is modelled, as the name suggests, on the most famous Les Paul of them all — the 1959 Les Paul Standard. Original Gibson Les Paul Standard’s from 1959 change hands for hundreds of thousands of dollars because it’s regarded by many as being the peak of Gibson’s Les Paul output.

Fifty years later, and just weeks after the death of the man from whom it takes its name, only 1959 of these limited edition guitars are available to buy. The Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Limited Edition features an authentic 1950s rounded neck profile. Nick-named ‘the baseball bat’ this neck, according to Epiphone ‘feels beefy yet comfortable in your hands while adding warmth and sustain with it’s greater mass.’

The solid mahogany neck is hand-fitted to the body with a deep-set long neck tenon which ‘extends well into the neck pickup cavity creating even more tone and sustain.’ The body itself is solid mahogany, with a carved hard maple cap and AAA grade flame maple veneer on top. One look at the pictures and you can see just what a stunning guitar this is.

The Gibson BurstBucker pick-ups have unpolished magnets and non-potted coils and are designed to recreate the sound of the Gibson humbucker pick-ups on the orginal ‘59 Les Paul. Those pick-ups had coils with a different number of turns which gave the sound more ‘bite.’

There’s a Switchcraft toggle switch, Mallory-150 tone capacitors with metal pointers, nickel hardware, and a blank trussrod cover. The serial number is stamped on the back of the headstock.

The Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Limited Edition comes with a replica brown Lifton-style case with pink interior and a certificate of authenticity. It’s available in two finishes; Faded Cherryburst and Faded Iced Tea.

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Gibson Guitar Announces Les Paul Commemorative Events

Kenny — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 07:52:38 +0000

Gibson Guitar Announces Les Paul Commemorative Events: “Gibson Guitar will celebrate the life and contributions of guitar and audio recording innovator Les Paul during the month of September, 2009, with events connected to the anniversary of Pauls 1953 #1 Billboard Pop Single, ‘Vaya Con Dios,’ and the release anniversary of his 2005 album, American Made: World Played.”

(Via Modern Guitars Magazine – News Archive.)

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Les Paul 1915 – 2009

Kenny — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:47:19 +0000

Front page image by Maury Mccowan licensed under Creative Commons

By now you’ll have heard the very sad news that Les Paul has died, aged 94. There’s little I can add here to the glowing tributes that have already come from some of the biggest names in the business. Except to say this: stop for a moment and try and imagine how the last fifty years would have sounded without the guitar Les Paul designedand the multi-track recording he invented. Rock and Roll and the music it spawned would have been very different.

Here are some tributes:

Joe Satriani: ‘Les Paul set a standard for musicianship and innovation that remains unsurpassed.’

Slash: ‘Les Paul was a shining example of how full one’s life can be. He was so vibrant and full of positive energy. I’m honoured and humbled to have known and played with him over the years.’

Joan Jett: ‘He was a genius inventor, musical innovator and a wonderful person. Without the advances he pioneered, the recording sciences and the electric guitar would have been left years behind. I will miss him so much.’

Billy Gibbons: ‘Les Paul was an innovator, a groundbreaker, a risk taker, a mentor and a friend. Try to imagine what we’d be doing if he hadn’t come along and changed the world. There will always be more Les to come. That’s certified.’

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Epiphone ES-335 Dot | Guitar reviews | Musicradar.com

Kenny — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:26:06 +0000

Music Radar recently reviewed the ES-335 Dot. It’s verdict? “If you fancy a no-nonsense semi with more than a whiff of background and expertise, cast your eyes in Epiphone’s direction. The Dot is a gem.”

Four and a half stars too, we can’t disagree with that. The reviewer was particularly taken with the feature that gives the Dot its name, the fretboard inlays, preferring them to the block inlays on Epiphone’s other semi-hollowbody’s like the Casino and Sheraton. Personally, I prefer the block inlays, but hey, each to his own.

(Via Music Radar.)

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Doctor who tried to save Jimi Hendrix says murder claim plausible – Times Online

Kenny — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:17:33 +0000

“The doctor who attempted to revive Jimi Hendrix on the night that the guitarist died believes that it is ‘plausible’ that he was murdered.” says The Times today.

Commenting on claims in a book written by former Hendrix roadie, James ‘Tappy’ Wright, that Hendrix had been murdered on the orders of his manager, Mike Jeffrey, Dr John Bannister said that ‘medical evidence was consistent with claims in a book that Hendrix was killed on the orders of his manager.’

Mysteriouser and mysteriouser.

(Via The Times.)

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Epiphone 1962 Wilshire Re-issue in White

Kenny — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:14:36 +0000

The Epiphone 1962 Re-issue in White is the second in Epiphone’s Custom Historic USA guitars, following the cherry red Wilshire 1962 Re-issuelaunched in January.

Like that model, the white version will be very difficult to get hold of, only 100 are being made. The cherry red Wilshire Re-issue sold out immediately, so you really will have to be quick.

At $4,832 it won’t be on everyone’s shopping list, but it’s sure to be a collector’s item. Made in gibson’s Nashville factory, the 1962 Wilshire re-issue in white has a Peruvian Mahogany body and glued-in set neck. Its rosewood fretboard has 22 frets with pearloid dot inlays, and the headstock is set at 17 degrees with three Vintage Kluson machine heads on each side.

The pick-ups are soapbar P-90s with adjustable pole pieces and there’s a three-way selector switch with volume and tone controls for each pick-up.

In addition to a fantastic guitar, lucky owners will get; an original style hard case, numbered certificate of authenticity, vintage-style colied guitar cord, commemerative picks, a commemerative t-shirt, and a 1962-style thin leather strap.

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BB King Exclusive interview in Guitarist

Kenny — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 13:16:45 +0000

From Guitarist: BB King Exclusive: “We recently caught up with a full-on legend; BB King. We’ll be featuring our interview in a future issue of the mag but if, like us, you just can’t wait, there’s a decent chunk of it up on Music Radar.”

(Via Guitarist.)

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Hendrix ‘was murdered by manager’

Kenny — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 09:38:27 +0000

Chris and Danny both have posts on a claim made by James “Tappy” Wright, a former roadie for Jimi Hendrix, that Hendrix was murdered by his manager, Michael Jeffrey. According to Wright’s claims, made in a new book, Wright had an insurance policy on Hendrix’s life and killed him to cash in. Wright says Jeffrey confessed to him afterwards.

Three things strike me about this claim:

1. Wright has a book to sell and nothing sells books like a controversial claim about a well-known and much-loved figure, particularly when it involves a conspiracy theory about that person’s death.

2. Jeffrey is dead and therefore can’t defend himself or be libelled.

3. Hendrix’s death has, despite the official verdict that he choked on his own vomit after consuming alcohol and barbituates, long been shrouded in mystery.

Seems to me that if this were true, Wright would have mentioned it before now. He could have made a fortune by writing on it and appearing on TV shows to talk about it, yet he chose to wait nearly 40 years before telling anyone. It may be true, but I have my doubts.If you liked this, I’d also recommend:

Epiphone Les Paul 1956 Gold top

Kenny — Fri, 29 May 2009 10:10:50 +0000

Epiphone 1956 Gold top, originally uploaded by Wouter Duijndam.

According to Epiphone’s website, the 1956 Gold Top has been discontinued, which is a great shame as by all accounts it’s a lovely guitar. It’s certainly on my list of Epi’s I’d buy – although, I don’t really need a another Les Paul.

So, to mark the passing of a great guitar, I thought I’d post some pics of the Les Paul 1956 gold Top from Flickr.

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New Epiphone Guitar on the Way

Kenny — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:52:24 +0000

This post on the Epiphone blog paves the way for what looks like a new Wilshire in white. No details at the moment, I’ll post more as soon as I have it.If you liked this, I’d also recommend: