Epiphone 1963 Firebird V Vibrol B-Stock

The guitar's two-piece mahogany body features a central seam and boasts the classic, deeply bevelled double cutaways of the original SG shape, while its extremely lightweight design and one-piece set mahogany neck offer superb resonance. A long-tenon neck joint ensures a highly stable connection between neck and body – and the extra sustain that this detail gives the 1964 SG Standard Vibrola CR can certainly be heard. The '60s Slim Taper neck profile ensures a comfortable playing feel for everything from rhythm work to rapid lead runs, and the 22-fret rosewood fingerboard features cream binding and real mother-of-pearl trapezoid inlays. The guitar also comes with a solid setup and a pleasantly low string action right from the factory, giving players the feeling of picking up and playing a treasured and familiar old gem.

Today, Epiphone is known only as the Asian budget offshoot of Gibson. Yet both companies were once independent, equal, and also bitter rivals. The roots of Epiphone go back to the 1870s and to Anastasios Stathopoulo, a Greek instrument maker, who emigrated to America in 1903 with his son Epaminondas ("Epi" for short). Epi changed the name of the firm to the "Epiphone Banjo Company" after taking over the family business in 1928. During this year, Epiphone also began to manufacture guitars, which rapidly came to dominate their sales. In 1957, Epiphone was taken over by C.M.I., which already included Gibson, but continued as a separate brand until 1970, when manufacturing was outsourced to Asia. Well-known Epiphone models include the Casino, played by the Beatles, and the Sheraton, John Lee Hooker's instrument of choice.