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Limited Edition Signed Les Paul Electric Guitar

Created by Epiphone to aid Music Rising At a recent charity auction in New York City, a Limited Edition Signed Music Rising Epiphone Les Paul went for $30,000. Another sold for $35,000 to an individual. Adorned with a Music Rising graphic designed by U2's The Edge, all proceeds from the sale of this guitar will go to Music Rising. . . . Click here for more information. Our Price: $10,000.00 As Low as $333.00 a month

Epiphone Electric Guitars Products

The Heritage of Epiphone Electric Guitars

Epiphone was founded in 1873 by Anastasio Stathopoulos, who manufactured his own instruments.  The company wouldn't be called Epiphone until Anastasio's son, Epiaminondas or Epi for short, took over the company in 1915.  The unique name comes from Epi's name combined with phone, which is the Greek word for sound. Anastasio made his own lutes, fiddles and mandolins while living in Smryna, then immigrated to American in the early 1900s to create these ancestors of the Epiphone Electric Guitars that are still popular today.

Anastasio died in 1915, and soon after Epi took the company over, he changed the name to The House of Strathopolous.  After the first World War ended, the company began producing banjos to take advantage of the instruments surging popularity.  Their Recording Line banjos became popular after their release in 1924, prompting a name change to the Epiphone Banjo Company.  They began creating guitars in 1928, the forerunners of Epiphone Electric Guitars, called Recording Guitars.

These Epiphone guitars didn't do well commercially.  The Epiphone guitars were shaped differently than most other guitar designs, they were much smaller and more ornate.  At the time, Gibson was the musical force to contend with, and their guitars got celebrity endorsements while Epiphone guitars did not. Epiphone decided to compete against Gibson's Master Model line of guitars with their Masterbilt series, released in the 1950s. 

Epiphone guitars were well respected worldwide and highly coveted.  Then the company decided to compete with Rickenbacker, the maker of the first electric guitars, as well as Gibson with the release of their first Epiphone Electric Guitars. They released the Electar series in 1935, giving birth to the first of the Epiphone Electric Guitars.  Their release preceded Gibson's, strengthening the rivalry.  And within 2 years, Epiphone Electric Guitars were so popular that the company's sales had doubled, cementing them as one of the giants in the industry.

Gibson's and Epiphone's rivalry continued until World War II.  During the last years of the war, Epi died of leukemia.  In 1943 after his death, the company was transferred to his brothers Orphie and Frixo.  For a while, competition with Gibson continued and production of top quality Epiphone Electric Guitars and other instruments continued.  But it soon became clear that the brothers didn't get along.

Epiphone Electric Guitars continued to be produced, but Frixo sold out to Orphie in 1948.  And the brothers' management was putting a strain on the company, with Epiphone Electric Guitars suffering poor craftsmanship and other problems.  The workers making Epiphone Electric Guitars pushed for union benefits.  So Orphie moved the company to Philadelphia to get away from the union issues, leaving many of their skilled craftsmen who created Epiphone Electric Guitars behind in Manhattan when they refused to move to remain with the company.  The decline of the Epiphone guitars had begun.

When the quality of Epiphone Electric Guitars fell further, Gibson's good standing only grew with their Telecaster and the Stratocaster, which became one of the most famous guitars ever created.  Orphie offered Gibson the company for $20,000 and Gibson absorbed their operations. They were going to market the upright bass, but instead re-released their Epiphone Electric Guitars alongside their own, re-establishing the Epiphone name and making it stronger while tying it to their own.

Gibson began sending Epiphone Electric Guitars to the dealers who wanted Gibson's but didn't have enough sales or prestige to warrant a contract.  Dealerships were in heavy competition to be able to sell genuine Gibson guitars at the time.  So those who had tried but failed were allowed to market Epiphone Electric Guitars instead.  Ernest Tubbs and even 3 of the Beatles were among other stars used Epiphone guitars and provided endorsements through their use, further popularizing Epiphone Electric Guitars.  Epiphone Electric Guitars are still one of the most popular brands of instruments still sold today, alongside Gibson and Fender as one of the leaders in the industry.