The passion at Epiphone has always
been about about making music. Starting in Greece and eventually
moving to Nashville and a legacy of over one hundred and twenty-five
years, Epiphone has looked for new and better ways
to help players take their music farther.
Epi Stathopoulo is the founder and namesake of Epiphone
Guitars. He was the first instrument maker that embraced Jazz music.
He led the industry away from mandolin and banjo production and
increasingly into making guitars. At the age of twenty-four Epi
obtained a patent that changed fretted instrument construction forever.
The extension truss rod design, the first pick-up with individual
pole pieces, and the Tonexpressor - the precursor to the modern
day "wah-wah" pedal - were all innovations created at
Epiphone. However, the greatest contribution to
guitar making came in 1941 while Les Paul experimented in the Epiphone
factory. The experiments that were done led to the Les Paul "Log"
and the first solid-body electric guitar.
Mr. Stathopoulo's vision of the future of music
and guitars, as well as the importance of his work is seen by, and
in, those who choose to play Epiphone guitars.
Musicians who are themselves visionaries like George Van Epps, Harry
Volpe, Howard Roberts, Joe Pass and other legendary players have
made music history using Epiphone guitars. Others including John
Lee Hooker, and the Beatles, recorded the songs "Paperback
Writer", "Ticket to Ride", and "Yesterday",
with Epiphone guitars. The legacy continues today with artists like
Noel Gallagher, Lenny Kravitz and other artists who choose to make
music with Epiphone Guitars.
