
“I was thinking about how I might’ve had to approach it if I was making this record in the early ’80s.”
Working with some of rock’s biggest bands, including GNR, Tool, Nine Inch Nails, and the Smashing Pumpkins, prepared the guitarist to produce records—A Perfect Circle’s and his own. On his new What Normal Was, vocals and dark ’80s pop propel the soundtrack.
Billy Howerdel has topped the charts in A Perfect Circle (APC). He’s been a guitar tech with high-profile acts like Nine Inch Nails, the Smashing Pumpkins, and Tool (where he worked with future APC frontman Maynard James Keenan). He’s even scored video games. All the while, he’s crafted a unique and identifiable guitar style full of expansive ambiance, octave-fuzz-laced melodies, and crushing low-C riffs. Each of these experiences informed and inspired the next, like a row of dominos.
What Normal Was, Howerdel’s latest offering and first album under his name, is different. From the first notes of “Selfish Hearts” to the album closer, “Stars,” his guitar embraces a supporting role, putting the focus on his newfound vocal approach. Instead of futuristic, hard-rock aggression, he leans on the synth-heavy sounds that inspired his early years. According to Howerdel, he’s been cultivating this sound his entire life.
“From the time I was about 17, I was always writing songs. In my mid-20s, once I had enough strong material, I felt like, ‘This is the time to do it. It’s time to start really focusing on this.’”
Howerdel wasn’t sitting around and waiting for his big break, however. He was paying his dues as a lighting and guitar technician with some of the biggest names in the game. One gig, in particular, laid the foundation for all to come.
Billy Howerdel - Poison Flowers (Official Music Video)
Guitarist Billy Howerdel says he focused on vocals to find the characters of the songs on his new album, What Normal Was, which is his first release under his own name.
While teching for guitarist Robin Finck, Howerdel found himself shoulder to shoulder with none other than Axl Rose—working on the infamous Guns N’ Roses album, Chinese Democracy. “There’s a lot of talented personnel around [the GNR] camp. The engineers, producers, and technicians were trying to make the best-sounding record,” Howerdel remembers. “For me, it was the perfect situation. It taught me how to make records. It taught me how to make Mer de Noms, the first APC record, by myself.”
As far as which songs made it onto APC’s mammoth debut, Howerdel says, “I leave that up to my relationship with Maynard. I’ll present him with things I think he might like. But I’ll let him dictate it because he’s got to be engaged with the process.”
There’s no doubt that APC is a pillar of Howerdel’s musical personality. But as a voracious songwriter, he has more to say. That’s why he jumped at the chance when video game developer Naughty Dog asked him to score Jak X: Combat Racing. Not only was it an inspiring new medium. It would push his music into new territories.
“The object of that music was to have forward motion, to have a little more tempo,” Howerdel explains. “That’s something that doesn’t usually come from me. Everyone’s got their own flavor, and mine was a mid-tempo thing. Pushing the tempo up for that video game helped me push the tempo up for ASHES dIVIDE’s first record.” That album, Keep Telling Myself It’s Alright, was technically Howerdel’s first solo album.
“This is definitely a bit of a time capsule letter back to myself. It’s a look back to before I even became a musician; before I even considered picking up a guitar.”
Let’s follow the dominos: Guns N’ Roses into A Perfect Circle, A Perfect Circle into video games, video games into the solo project ASHES dIVIDE.And the dominos kept falling, bringing us to What Normal Was.
But this new domino somehow fell in reverse.
“This is definitely a bit of a time capsule letter back to myself,” Howerdel shares. “It’s a look back to before I even became a musician, before I even considered picking up a guitar.”
Pick any song on the album and it’s clear what he means. From the Andy Taylor-like (Duran Duran) guitar melodies of “Ani” to the Cure influence on “Follower,” this set exudes the darker side of ’80s pop, which Howerdel says is very intentional.
Billy Howerdel's Gear
Billy Howerdel used a Gibson ES-175 throughout his new album, What Normal Was.
Photo by Travis Shinn
Guitars
- Gibson 1960 Les Paul Classic Reissue with Tom Anderson humbuckers
- Gibson ES-175
- Yamaha AES 1500
- Gibson J-28 acoustic
Bass
- Fender Deluxe P Bass
- Warwick Thumb Bass 5-string (never used low B)
Strings & Picks
- Ernie Ball (.010-.046 sets)
- Clayton 1.0 mm triangle picks
Amps
- 1978 Marshall Super Lead 100 JMP modded with a Naylor-style preamp
- Friedman Naked
- Gibson GA-15RV combo
Effects
- Fractal Audio Axe-Fx III (used for effects and a Fender Twin model for completely clean tones)
- Prescription Electronics Experience Octave
- Electro-Harmonix MEL9
- Neve 1073 preamp
- Universal Audio 1176 Compressor
- Universal Audio Ampeg B-15N plug-in
“I was thinking about how I might’ve had to approach it if I was making this record in the early ’80s,” he says. “I tried to make it a focused album of 10 songs that fit together and balance between a modern record and honoring the classic, post-punk music that turned me on.”
Pulling from early influences like Echo and the Bunnymen, the Cure, and Killing Joke was quite the shift for Howerdel. Not only did it mean stepping out from under the ASHES dIVIDE moniker, but also embracing a new-to-him tracking processes.
“’Selfish Hearts’ is probably all through an amp like my Marshall, while there are other songs, like ‘Free and Weightless,’ where some of it is through an amp but double-tracked with miking the guitar body. I’m taking a [Shure SM] 57 shitty microphone, miking the Les Paul’s wood, and then reamping that.”
To be clear, the Marshall Howerdel is referring to isn’t really a Marshall anymore, though it began life as one. He explains: “The power section is a 1978 Super Lead 100 JMP head. The preamp is based on this amp called a Naylor. I was about to play the Naylor on the whole APC run, but I couldn’t play clean loud enough. So, Dave [Friedman of Friedman Amplification] gave a mod to the amp to bring that Naylor sound to it.”
Billy Howerdel onstage with A Perfect Circle, the band he cofounded in 1999 with Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan. Howerdel produced and engineered APC’s platinum debut, Mer de Noms.
Photo by Jenny Jimenez
That amp—which Friedman briefly offered and called the Naked—and a Gibson GA-15RV combo still make up the backbone of Howerdel’s studio and live rigs. That’s pretty surprising when you consider the guitarist’s walls of sound. It’s even more surprising when realizing that, aside from a wealth of Axe-Fx-driven ambiance, he often controls the whole thing with one guitar and a set of his favorite humbuckers.
“I do try and get a lot of sounds out of the same guitar,” Howerdel says. “It’s a [Gibson] 1960 Les Paul Classic Reissue with Tom Anderson pickups. I fell into those at an early age. You find what you have and start using them as your tools. And then your sound comes.”
Howerdel’s tools are so ingrained that he maintains a large collection of the same model loaded with those humbuckers. Many are kept in altered tunings or set up for his signature, otherworldly slide excursions. Generally relying on a glass Dunlop slide for songs like “Poison Flowers,” he will occasionally reach for another, previously owned by a very surprising influence: Joe Walsh.
While Howerdel can go on and on about his guitars, the instrument rarely dominates on What Normal Was. As with everything on this album, that’s also purposeful. “Truly finding the song’s character in the voice—that’s what is important to me on this record,” Howerdel explains. “Anything else, like guitar, is going to be in support of the vocal. And bass playing is such an important part of it. Basslines are as important as the guitar.”
“A few years ago, I even called my friend Pete Thorn and said, ‘I think I want to take lessons from you.’ He laughed about where we would even start. But part of me has a superstition about knowing too much.”
His focus on the low end is evident. Whether grinding through “Follower” or taking the lead on “Ani,” the bass adds to the compositions without falling prey to guitarist-playing-bass trappings, though, he admits, that’s precisely what it is. “I’m not a traditional bass player. I’m the guitar player who plays bass. Simon Gallup [the Cure], Peter Hook [Joy Division/New Order], and Paul Raven [Killing Joke] were what turned me onto the bass guitar.”
But don’t worry. There are plenty of breathtaking guitar moments throughout What Normal Was. “EXP” opens with a delicate and dissonant acoustic melody, he punctuates “Beautiful Mistake” with his trademark octave-up lead lines, and “Follower” delivers a classic guitar solo.
“Guitar is a big part of what I do. I like heavier guitar and riffy guitar,” Howerdel says. “A few years ago, I even called my friend Pete Thorn and said, ‘I think I want to take lessons from you.’ He laughed about where we would even start. But part of me has a superstition about knowing too much. That I will change the way I’m writing.”
Considering how different What Normal Was is while still sounding very Billy Howerdel, it’s hard to imagine guitar lessons changing the way Howerdel writes. But who knows? Surely whatever comes next will topple the succeeding domino, and the next, and the next.
Rig Rundown - A Perfect Circle
Other than upgrading to the Axe-FX III, Howerdel’s rig has changed very little since this PGRig Rundown from 2017. Watch as he pulls a world of tones from this deceptively streamlined rig.
- Riff Rundown: A Perfect Circle's "Judith" - Premier Guitar ›
- A Perfect Circle: Another Round for Billy Howerdel and James Iha ... ›
- Rig Rundown: A Perfect Circle - Premier Guitar ›
Axe-wielders Jake Cinninger and Brendan Bayliss take us through their current gear garages.
It’s been just over 10 years since we had legendary South Bend, Indiana, jam band Umphrey’s McGee on Rig Rundown, so when we saw that they were coming to play at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in early April, we figured it was time to reconnect.
Guitarists Jake Cinninger and Brendan Bayliss showed PG’s John Bohlinger what pieces of kit they’re digging these days, and how they orchestrate their incredibly broad range of sounds.
Brought to you by D’Addario.
Simply Z Best
Here’s an up-close look at Cinninger’s No. 1, a G&L Comanche. The Z-coil pickups do away with typical single-coil 60-cycle hum issues at high-gain settings. It’s an all-purpose workhorse.
Cinninger replaced the stock trem bar with a Jake Blade, a custom-made replacement patented by Mark Benjamin of RoughGauge LLC. Compared to a regular trem bar, it’s out of the way and allows for more expressive playing.
For strings, Cinninger uses D’Addario .10s, and he swears by his beveled-edge Telefunken 2 mm picks.
Special S
Cinninger says only 50 of these G&L S-styles were made, with remarkable pieces of wood and specially designed pickups. This one cuts closer to a classic, throaty Stratocaster sound, and if a venue has quiet, clean power that won’t present excessive noise issues, it’s more likely to be called into action.
Two by Two
Cinninger’s signal runs to one amp at a time. The Schroeder head, which is used for cleans, was built with military-spec durability by Tim Schroeder in Chicago and is one of 10. Cinninger says it’s got some Dumble qualities, with its clarity, power, consistency, and speed to the speaker, and it connects to a Schroeder cabinet and custom speaker.
The Oldfield Marquis 100-JC, built by Paul Gussler in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the Marshall-flavored side of Cinninger’s rig. It handles dirty signals and is connected to classic Electro-Voice drivers.
Jake Cinninger’s Pedalboard
Cinninger’s board, which he made with his dad, is 25 years old, and it’s constantly changing. His always-on boxes include a Banzai Cold Fusion Overdrive, Fuchs Royal Plush Compressor, and Mesa Boogie Five-Band Graphic EQ, plus a Steel Guitar Black Box tube buffer that adds some “air” in the high end.
On top of those, there’s a Boss TU-3, MXR Smart Gate, Radial Tonebone Hot British, MXR Distortion III, Sarno Earth Drive, TC Electronic Flashback, Boss PS-5, Source Audio Soundblox 2 Multiwave Distortion, Malekko Fuzz, Guyatone MD2, Boss PH-3, Morley Bad Horsie, BBE Mind Bender, and a custom “FuzzBucket” fuzz made by a friend.
Utility units include a Lily P4D, Radial BigShot ABY, and Ebtech Hum Eliminator, plus a 9-channel effects switching system.
Sorry, Mark
Meet Miss Lucy. This is a PRS Mark Tremonti Signature, albeit without Tremonti’s name on the headstock, and tricked out with the Jake Blade. This one runs a bit hotter than Brendan Bayliss’ other PRS guitars, and his tech changes the strings on it—D’Addario XL .010s—every day. Like Cinninger, he digs the Telefunken 2 mm picks.
Also in the stable are another PRS single-cutaway and a double-cut PRS McCarty.
Doubles of the Oldfield
Bayliss runs both a Mesa Boogie Lonestar head and a Gussler-built Oldfield head (which sounds similar to his Lonestar) at the same time. The Mesa runs to a cab with Celestion 12″ speakers.
Brendan Bayliss’ Board
Bayliss’ board also features the Steel Guitar Black Box, a Lily P4D, Radial BigShot ABY, a Boss TU-3, and a Morley 20/20 Bad Horsie wah.
Aside from those, there’s a Keeley Compressor, MXR Custom Badass Modified O.D., Cusack Screamer, MXR Timmy, Cusack Tap-A-Whirl, Audio Blend Edge EQ, Boss OC-5, Boss CE-5, MXR Phase 95, Eventide H9, Stigtronics Delay, and Boss DD-20.
The country virtuoso closes out this season of Wong Notes with a fascinating, career-spanning interview.
We’ve saved one of the best for last: Brad Paisley.The celebrated shredder and seasoned fisherman joins host Cory Wong for one of this season’s most interesting episodes. Paisley talks his earliest guitar-playing influences, which came from his grandfather’s love of country music, and his first days in Nashville—as a student at Belmont University, studying the music industry.
The behind-the-curtain knowledge he picked up at Belmont made him a good match for industry suits trying to force bad contracts on him.
Wong and Paisley swap notes on fishing and a mutual love of Phish—Paisley envies the jam-band scene, which he thinks has more leeway in live contexts than country. And with a new signature Fender Telecaster hitting the market in a rare blue paisley finish, Paisley discusses his iconic namesake pattern—which some might describe as “hippie puke”—and its surprising origin with Elvis’ guitarist James Burton.
Plus, hear how Paisley assembled his rig over the years, the state of shredding on mainstream radio, when it might be good to hallucinogenic drugs in a set, and the only negative thing about country-music audiences.
Tom Bedell in the Relic Music acoustic room, holding a custom Seed to Song Parlor with a stunning ocean sinker redwood top and milagro Brazilian rosewood back and sides.
As head of Breedlove and Bedell Guitars, he’s championed sustainability and environmental causes—and he wants to tell you about it.
As the owner of the Breedlove and Bedell guitar companies, Tom Bedell has been a passionate advocate for sustainable practices in acoustic guitar manufacturing. Listening to him talk, it’s clear that the preservation of the Earth’s forests are just as important to Bedell as the sound of his guitars. You’ll know just how big of a statement that is if you’ve ever had the opportunity to spend time with one of his excellently crafted high-end acoustics, which are among the finest you’ll find. Over the course of his career, Bedell has championed the use of alternative tonewoods and traveled the world to get a firsthand look at his wood sources and their harvesting practices. When you buy a Bedell, you can rest assured that no clear-cut woods were used.
A born storyteller, Bedell doesn’t keep his passion to himself. On Friday, May 12, at New Jersey boutique guitar outpost Relic Music, Bedell shared some of the stories he’s collected during his life and travels as part of a three-city clinic trip. At Relic—and stops at Crossroads Guitar and Art in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, and Chuck Levin’s Washington Music Center in Wheaton, Maryland—he discussed his guitars and what makes them so special, why sustainability is such an important cause, and how he’s putting it into practice.
Before his talk, we sat in Relic’s cozy, plush acoustic room, surrounded by a host of high-end instruments. We took a look at a few of the store’s house-spec’d Bedell parlors while we chatted.
“The story of this guitar is the story of the world,” Bedell explained to me, holding a Seed to Song Parlor. He painted a picture of a milagro tree growing on a hillside in northeastern Brazil some 500 years ago, deprived of water and growing in stressful conditions during its early life. That tree was eventually harvested, and in the 1950s, it was shipped to Spain by a company that specialized in church ornaments. They recognized this unique specimen and set it aside until it was imported to the U.S. and reached Oregon. Now, it makes the back and sides of this unique guitar.
A Bedell Fireside Parlor with a buckskin redwood top and cocobolo back and sides.
As for the ocean sinker redwood top, “I’m gonna make up the story,” Bedell said, as he approximated the life cycle of the tree, which floated in the ocean, soaking up minerals for years and years, and washed ashore on northern Oregon’s Manzanita Beach. The two woods were paired and built into a small run of exquisitely outfitted guitars using the Bedell/Breedlove Sound Optimization process—in which the building team fine-tunes each instrument’s voice by hand-shaping individual braces to target resonant frequencies using acoustic analysis—and Bedell and his team fell in love.
Playing it while we spoke, I was smitten by this guitar’s warm, responsive tone and even articulation and attack across the fretboard; it strikes a perfect tonal balance between a tight low-end and bright top, with a wide dynamic range that made it sympathetic to anything I offered. And as I swapped guitars, whether picking up a Fireside Parlor with a buckskin redwood top and cocobolo back and sides or one with an Adirondack spruce top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides, the character and the elements of each instrument changed, but that perfect balance remained. Each of these acoustics—and of any Bedell I’ve had the pleasure to play—delivers their own experiential thumbprint.
Rosette and inlay detail on an Adirondack spruce top.
Ultimately, that’s what brought Bedell out to the East Coast on this short tour. “We have a totally different philosophy about how we approach guitar-building,” Bedell effused. “There are a lot of individuals who build maybe 12 guitars a year, who do some of the things that we do, but there’s nobody on a production level.” And he wants to spread that gospel.
“We want to reach people who really want something special,” he continued, pointing out that for the Bedell line, the company specifically wants to work with shops like Relic and the other stores he’s visited, “who have a clientele that says I want the best guitar I can possibly have, and they carry enough variety that we can give them that.”
A Fireside Parlor with a Western red cedar top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides.
New Epiphone inspired by Gibson Custom Collection features eight new guitar models with Gibson USA pickups, high quality electronics, rosewood fretboards, world-renowned Gibson open-book headstocks, one-piece necks, new vintage gloss finishes, and premium design builds.
For over 150 years, Epiphone has been a leading innovator in instrument design. By leveraging its iconic past and leaning into the future, Epiphone has set the stage for the next era of sound for present and future generations. Epiphone’s game-changing Inspired by Gibson Custom Collection, developed in close collaboration with the skilled luthiers at Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, Tennessee, continues to expand, establishing a new tier of premium Epiphones for every stage. Featuring Gibson USA pickups and premium electronics, world-renowned Gibson “open book” headstocks, solid wood construction, and one-piece necks, Epiphone’s Inspired by Gibson Custom Collection brings Gibson Custom designs to the masses, adding to Epiphone’s full array of instruments for all player levels. Epiphone's Inspired by Gibson Custom Collection is now available worldwide at Authorized Epiphone dealers, the Gibson Garage in Nashville and London, and on www.epiphone.com.
The game-changing Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom Collection collaboration with the artisans at Gibson Custom is expanding with eight new models that feature Vintage Gloss finishes that give them a more vintage-correct appearance without looking overly aged. These guitars look as if they had been purchased new and then spent years sitting in a case that was safely stored away, just waiting for you to discover them. All of the models in the Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom Collection now feature rosewood fretboards for even greater authenticity and historical accuracy and USA-built pickups from the Gibson Pickup Shop in Nashville, Tennessee. These are the same high-quality, great-sounding pickups in the USA-built Gibson and Gibson Custom models. All of the models feature vintage-appropriate headstock shapes, from the authentic Reverse Firebird™ headstock on the 1963 Firebird V Reissue With Maestro™ Vibrola™ and the 1963 Firebird I Reissue to the “open book” Gibson-style headstocks on the other models, they give these guitars an undeniably authentic appearance.
“As Epiphone celebrates over 150 years of guitar craftsmanship, each iconic guitar is a tribute to Epiphone's rich history and dedication to quality,” says Aljon Go, Epiphone Product Manager, Nashville, Tennessee. “Our ‘Inspired by Gibson’ collection is all about bringing high-quality guitars based on classic Gibson designs, but at a price that won't break the bank. For those looking for something truly special, our newest ‘Inspired by Gibson Custom’ range offers premium models crafted in collaboration with the Gibson Custom Shop. These guitars are part of our ongoing mission to make the exceptional craftsmanship and elevated appointments of the Custom Shop more accessible to players and fans everywhere.”
Explore the full Inspired by Gibson Custom lineup of premium Epiphone models for players of every level HERE.
1962 ES-335 Reissue:
A 1962 vintage-style ES-335 Reissue Inspired by Gibson Custom
The Gibson ES-335™ is one of the greatest guitar designs of all time. It is renowned for its exceptional versatility and has been used by countless players in a wide range of genres. Combining the best elements of solidbody and thinline hollowbody designs, it’s a highly resonant guitar that resists feedback much better than a full hollowbody due to its interior solid maple center block. Now, Epiphone, in cooperation with Gibson Custom, is proud to introduce the 1962 ES-335 Reissue, a guitar that was very much inspired by Gibson Custom’s ES-335 offerings but purposefully based on a model year that Gibson Custom does not currently reissue – 1962, a year when popular features like rounded cutaways, small block inlays, and a fast-playing, slim neck profile were all present on the Gibson ES-335.
The Epiphone1962 ES-335 Reissue has a semi-hollow 5-ply layered maple/poplar body with rounded cutaways and a solid maple center block for outstanding sustain and feedback resistance. The genuine one-piece mahogany neck has a thin 1960s SlimTaper™ C profile and is capped with a rosewood fretboard that is outfitted with 22 medium jumbo frets and mother-of-pearl small block inlays. The fretboard features rounded edges to give it a comfortable, played-in feel that invites you to explore it for hours at a time. Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage 1962 ES-335 models and are placed in historically accurate locations. The Gibson-style “open book” headstock features the Epiphone logo and Gibson Crown inlaid in aged mother-of-pearl and is fitted with smooth-turning Epiphone Deluxe tuning machines with Double Ring Keystone-style buttons and a Graph Tech® nut. An ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic™ bridge and Gibson historic reissue aluminum Stop Bar tailpiece anchor the strings at the other end directly into the solid maple center block and further contribute to the 1962 ES-335’s excellent sustain. For electronics, a pair of USA-made Gibson Custom bucker humbucker™ pickups are hand-wired to CTS® potentiometers and Black Beauty paper-in-oil capacitors and deliver authentic ES-335 tonal versatility, making the 1962 ES-335 Reissue a great choice for rock, blues, jazz, country, and more. The Sixties Cherry and Vintage Burst finishes have a vintage gloss that gives them a cool vintage vibe. A vintage-style Black hardshell case with a plush Goldenrod interior and Inspired by Gibson Custom exterior graphics is also included to help keep this beautiful 1962 ES-335 Reissue safe during storage and travel.
Epiphone 1962 ES-335 Reissue Semi-hollow Electric Guitar - Vintage Burst
62 ES- 335 Reissue, Vin Burst1960 Les Paul Special Double Cut Reissue:
Special in every way
The Gibson Les Paul™ Special was first introduced as a single cutaway model in 1955, and with the exception of the sunburst Standards that were produced from 1958-1960, it was the last of the original50s-era Les Paul model variants to be introduced. An enhanced version of the Les Paul Junior with increased sonic flexibility, it featured two P-90 pickups instead of the single P-90 found on the Junior and also added a bit of extra bling in the form of a bound fretboard and a mother-of-pearl headstock logo. In 1958, the body shape was revised from a single cutaway to a double cutaway, which delivered improved fretboard access, and the Special hit its stride in 1960 when a thinner SlimTaper™ neck profile and a lower neck pickup placement made it more robust and easier to play than ever.
Now, Epiphone, in partnership with Gibson Custom, is proud to introduce the 1960 Les Paul SpecialDouble Cut Reissue, an Inspired by Gibson Custom recreation of the sought-after 1960 Les Paul Specia Double Cut. Like the originals, it features a slab mahogany body with double cutaways that provide excellent access to the entire length of the fretboard. The one-piece mahogany neck has a fast-playing60s SlimTaper profile and is capped with a rosewood fretboard with 22 medium jumbo frets and mother-of-pearl dot position marker inlays. The fretboard has a 12” radius that makes playing first-position chords and solos with string bends further up the neck equally effortless. The Gibson “open book” style headstock is equipped with Epiphone Deluxe three-on-a-plate tuners with white buttons and a GraphTech® nut to help keep the tuning nice and stable, while a historic style Wraparound bridge with intonation screws solidly anchors the strings at the other end and contributes to the excellent sustain that the Les Paul Special is famous for. A pair of USA-made P-90 Soap bar pickups from Gibson Custom that can go from sweet and clean to outright nasty and dirty-sounding are hand-wired to individual volume and tone controls with high-quality CTS® potentiometers and Bumblebee paper-in-oil capacitors for authentic vintage tones that are sure to please even the most tone-conscious players.
The 1960 Les Paul Special Double Cut Reissue comes packaged in a vintage-style case with a brown exterior and pink plush interior that features Inspired by Gibson Custom graphics on the exterior. It all comes together to deliver a vintage playing and ownership experience at an accessible price that is special in every way.
Epiphone 1960 Les Paul Special Double Cut Reissue Electric Guitar - TV Yellow
60 LP Special Double Cut Reissue , TV Ylw1964 SG Standard Reissue With Maestro Vibrola:
An Inspired by Gibson Custom reissue of one of the most beloved vintage SG models
The 1964 SG™ Standard Reissue With Maestro™ Vibrola™ recreates one of the most beloved SG model years of all time–the 1964 SG Standard. While the 1964 SG Standard was famously used by such notable players as George Harrison and Eric Clapton, the model year was a standout for the SG in general. By 1964, the less intuitive Sideways Vibrato had been replaced with the dependable Maestro Vibrola, while the neck profile increased in size somewhat from the ultra-thin neck profiles found on some of the earlier SG models, and the SG’s balance, playability, and look seemed to come into its own. 1964 was also the first full year that the SG dispensed with the Les Paul moniker it previously used. Now, Epiphone is proud to release the 1964 SG Standard Reissue With Maestro Vibrola, a stunning recreation of that legendary model. Made in collaboration with Gibson™ Custom, the Epiphone 1964 SG Standard Reissue With Maestro Vibrola is the most authentic recreation of the 1964 SG Standard ever released by Epiphone.
All of the classic appointments the 1964 SG Standard model is known and loved for are present here, including a one-piece mahogany neck with a long neck tenon for increased stability and sustain, a comfortable, fast-playing SlimTaper™ profile, and a bound rosewood fretboard. It also features mother-of-pearl trapezoid fretboard inlays, an aged mother-of-pearl Epiphone headstock logo, and an aged mother-of-pearl Gibson crown headstock inlay on the Gibson-style “open book” headstock. The center-seamed, two-piece mahogany body features the comfortable and distinctive bevels that help define a vintage-style SG and make it so comfortable to hold and play. The electronics are equally impressive, with two USA Gibson Custombucker humbucking pickups with Alnico 3 magnets that are hand-wired to CTS® potentiometers, Black Beauty paper-in-oil capacitors, and a Switchcraft® pickup selector toggle switch and output jack. The Vintage Gloss finish is nicely complimented by the nickel hardware, including Epiphone Vintage Deluxe “Double Ring” tuners. A black hardshell case with Inspired by Gibson Custom graphics, gold hardware, and a goldenrod interior is also included.Epiphone 1964 SG Standard Reissue Electric Guitar - Cherry Red
64 SG Std w/Maestro Vibrola Reissue, Chrry Red1963 Firebird V Reissue With Maestro Vibrola:
Made in collaboration with Gibson Custom, now with a rosewood fretboard and a new Vintage Gloss finish
Epiphone and Gibson™ Custom have once again teamed up to create the updated Inspired by Gibson Custom 1963 Firebird V Reissue With Maestro Vibrola – an authentic replica of the guitar designed by legendary automotive designer Ray Dietrich. When it was launched in 1963, the Firebird™ was Gibson’s first neck-through-body guitar, and it went on to be used by players in a wide range of genres, including blues legend Johnny Winter, Keith Richards and Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, and Phil Manzanera of Roxy Music, to name a few.
The updated Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom 1963 Firebird V with Maestro Vibrola delivers vintage Firebird specifications at an accessible price. The vintage-inspired features include a 9-ply neck-through- body made of mahogany and walnut with mahogany body wings to either side of the neck. This construction method results in the tuners, pickup, and bridge all being anchored into the same pieces of wood for exceptional resonance, sustain, and tonal transfer between them. The neck features a SlimTaper™ Rounded C profile with soft fretboard edges for a comfortable, played-in feel. The rosewood fretboard is adorned with mother-of-pearl trapezoid inlays and equipped with 22 medium jumbo frets. Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage Firebirds and placed in historically accurate locations. Kluson® planetary geared “banjo” tuners anchor the strings at the headstock and further add to the historic Firebird look, while an Epiphone ABR-1 bridge and Maestro™ Vibrola™ with an engraved Epiphone logo hold things down at the other end. The electronics are also premium and include Gibson USA Firebird mini humbucker™ pickups with Alnico 5 magnets, CTS® potentiometers, Mallory™ capacitors, and a Switchcraft® 3-way pickup selector toggle switch and 1/4” output jack, giving this remarkable recreation not only the look but also the sound of a classic Firebird V. An Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom hardshell case is also included.Epiphone 1963 Firebird V Electric Guitar - Polaris White
63 Firebird V Maestro Vibrola Reissue, Polaris Wht1959 Les Paul Standard Reissue:
A 1959 vintage-style Les Paul Standard Reissue Inspired by Gibson Custom, now with a rosewood Fretboard
The 1959 Gibson Les Paul™ Standard is one of the world’s most coveted–and valuable–vintage guitars. It has been embraced by numerous famous players, including Peter Green, Kirk Hammett, and Joe Bonamassa. The 1959 Les Paul Standard is very similar to the 1960 model year that followed it, but with a few differences, most notably, a somewhat beefier 1959 Rounded Medium C neck profile that many players prefer over the thinner SlimTaper™ profile found on the 1960 Les Paul Standard models. Now, Epiphone is proud to introduce the Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Reissue, a beautiful recreation of those rare 1959 Les Paul Standard models. Made in partnership with Gibson Custom, the Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Reissue delivers vintage Les Paul looks and performance at an accessible price. All of the classic appointments the 1959 Les Paul Standard model is known and loved for are present here, including a one-piece mahogany neck with a long neck tenon for increased stability and sustain, an authentic 1959 Rounded Medium C neck profile, and a bound rosewood fretboard. It also features mother-of-pearl trapezoid fretboard inlays, an aged mother-of-pearl Epiphone headstock logo, and the words “Les Paul Model” silkscreened in gold on the Gibson-style “open book” headstock.
Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage 1959 Les Paul Standard models and are placed in historically accurate locations. The genuine mahogany body features a carved maple cap that is topped with a beautiful AAA flamed maple veneer. The electronics are first class, with two USA Gibson Custombucker humbucking pickups with Alnico 3 magnets that are hand-wired to CTS® potentiometers, Black Beauty paper-in-oil capacitors, and a Switchcraft® pickup selector toggle switch and 1/4” output jack. The Vintage Gloss finish gives the guitar a vintage appearance without looking overly aged and is nicely complimented by the nickel hardware, including the Epiphone Deluxe “Single Ring” Keystone button tuners. A Brown hardshell case with Inspired by Gibson Custom graphics and a pink plush-lined interior is also included. This is the perfect Les Paul for players who love the vintage appeal of the classic 1959 Les Paul Standard, but don’t want to sell the house to afford one.
Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Reissue Electric Guitar - Deep Cherry Sunburst
59 LP Std Reissue, Deep Chrry Sunburst1963 Firebird I Reissue:
Made in collaboration with Gibson Custom, now with a rosewood fretboard and a new Vintage Gloss finish
Epiphone and Gibson™ Custom have once again teamed up to create the updated Inspired by Gibson Custom 1963 Firebird™ V Reissue With Maestro Vibrola – an authentic replica of the guitar designed by legendary automotive designer Ray Dietrich. When it was launched in 1963, the Firebird™ was Gibson’s first neck-through-body guitar, and it went on to be used by players in a wide range of genres, including blues legend Johnny Winter, Keith Richards and Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, and Phil Manzanera of Roxy Music, to name a few.
The updated Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom 1963 Firebird V with Maestro Vibrola delivers vintage Firebird specifications at an accessible price. The vintage-inspired features include a 9-ply neck-through-body made of mahogany and walnut with mahogany body wings to either side of the neck. This construction method results in the tuners, pickup, and bridge all being anchored into the same pieces of wood for exceptional resonance, sustain, and tonal transfer between them. The neck features a SlimTaper™ Rounded C profile with soft fretboard edges for a comfortable, played-in feel. The rosewood fretboard is adorned with mother-of-pearl trapezoid inlays and equipped with 22 medium jumbo frets. Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage Firebirds and placed in historically accurate locations. Kluson® planetary geared “banjo” tuners anchor the strings at the headstock and further add to the historic Firebird look, while an Epiphone ABR-1 bridge and Maestro™ Vibrola™ with an engraved Epiphone logo hold things down at the other end. The electronics are also premium and include Gibson USA Firebird mini humbucker™ pickups with Alnico 5 magnets, CTS® potentiometers, Mallory™ capacitors, and a Switchcraft® 3-way pickup selector toggle switch and 1/4” output jack, giving this remarkable recreation not only the look but also the sound of a classic Firebird V. An Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom hardshell case is also included.1957 Les Paul Goldtop Reissue:
An Inspired by Gibson Custom reissue of the classic humbucker-equipped ’57 Goldtop
1957 was the year that the Les Paul™, as most players think of it today, truly came into its own. It was the first full year that it had Patent Applied For humbucker™ pickups installed. The humbuckers, along with the ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic™ bridge and Stop Bar tailpiece that first appeared on a Les Paul with the introduction of the Les Paul Custom in late 1953 and on the Goldtop in late 1955, were defining features
that many players still prefer over the earlier models that had a wraparound bridge/tailpiece and P-90pickups and made the Les Paul into a true fire-breathing rock icon. Now, Epiphone, in collaboration with Gibson Custom, is very proud to introduce the 1957 Les Paul Goldtop Reissue, a stunningly authentic Inspired by Gibson Custom reissue of those early humbucker-equipped Les Paul Goldtops that delivers vintage Les Paul looks and performance at an accessible price. It has a genuine mahogany body with a carved, plain maple cap. It is finished in a new Vintage Gloss version of the classic Gold color that gives it a vintage appearance without looking overly aged. The one-piece genuine mahogany neck has a 50s Rounded Medium C profile and a long neck tenon for excellent stability and sustain. The bound rosewood fretboard is adorned with mother-of-pearl trapezoid inlays and equipped with 22 medium jumbo frets, just like the original models from 1957. It has an aged mother-of-pearl Epiphone logo and the words “Les Paul Model” silkscreened in gold on the Gibson-style “open book” headstock. Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage 1957 Les Paul Standard models and are placed in historically accurate locations. The hardware is nickel-plated, including the ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge, historical aluminum Stop Bar Tailpiece, and the Epiphone Deluxe “Single Ring” Keystone button tuners. The electronics are also first-class, with two USA Gibson Custombucker humbucking pickups with Alnico 3 magnets that are hand-wired to CTS® potentiometers, Bumblebee paper-in-oil capacitors, and a Switchcraft® pickup selector toggle switch and 1/4” output jack. A historic-inspired hardshell case with a Brown exterior and pink plush interior and Inspired by Gibson Custom Graphics is also included. The 1957 Les Paul Goldtop Reissue isn’t just a guitar; it’s a bridge to a symphony of possibilities, willing and ready to help you make your own mark on music history.
Epiphone 1957 Les Paul Goldtop Reissue Electric Guitar - Goldtop
57 LP Goldtop Reissue, Goldtop1960 Les Paul Standard Reissue:
A 1960 vintage-style Les Paul Reissue Inspired by Gibson Custom, now with a rosewood fretboard and new Vintage Gloss finish
The 1960 Gibson Les Paul™ Standard is one of the world’s most coveted vintage guitars. It has been embraced by such luminaries as Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, and Joe Walsh. The 1960 Les Paul Standard is very similar to the famous 1959 model year that preceded it, but with a few changes, most notably, a thinner and faster-playing SlimTaper™ neck profile that many players prefer over the somewhat beefier 1959 Les Paul Standard neck profile. Now, Epiphone is proud to introduce the Epiphone 1960 Les Paul Standard Reissue, a beautiful recreation of those vintage 1960 Les Paul
Standard models. Made in partnership with Gibson Custom, the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 1960 Reissue delivers vintage Les Paul looks and performance at an accessible price. All of the classic appointments the 1960 Les Paul Standard model is known and loved for are present here, including a one-piece mahogany neck with a long neck tenon for increased stability and sustain, a comfortable, fast-playing SlimTaper™ profile, and a bound rosewood fretboard. It also features mother-of-pearl trapezoid fretboard inlays, an aged mother-of-pearl Epiphone headstock logo, and the words “Les Paul Model” silkscreened in gold on the Gibson-style “open book” headstock. Even the side dot position markers are the same size as on vintage 1960 Les Paul Standard models and are placed in historically accurate locations. The genuine mahogany body features a carved maple cap that is topped with a beautiful AAA flamed maple veneer. The electronics are equally impressive, with two USA Gibson Custombucker humbucking pickups with Alnico 3 magnets that are hand-wired to CTS® potentiometers, Bumblebee paper-in-oil capacitors, and a Switchcraft® pickup selector toggle switch and output jack. The Vintage Gloss finish gives the guitar a vintage appearance without looking overly aged and is nicely complimented by the nickel hardware, including the Epiphone Deluxe “Double Ring” Keystone button tuners. A brown hardshell case with Inspired by Gibson Custom graphics and a pink plush-lined interior is also included. This is the perfect Les Paul for players who love the vintage appeal of the classic 1959 Les Paul Standard but who want a more comfortable neck profile.