Epiphone Wilshire

Last updated
Epiphone Wilshire
Epiphone Wilshire.jpg
Manufacturer Epiphone
Period1959-1970, 1982-85, 2008-current
Construction
Body typeSolid body, double cutaway
Neck jointSet neck
Scale 24.75"
Woods
Body Mahogany
NeckMahogany
Fretboard Rosewood
Hardware
Pickup(s) 2 soapbar P-90s (1959-1962, 2020), 2 mini-humbuckers (1963-1970, 1982-1985, 2009-), 3 mini-humbuckers (1982-1985)
Colors available
Polaris white, Cherry red, Various Sunbursts and custom finishes

The Epiphone Wilshire is a solid body electric guitar made by Epiphone from 1959 to 1970. [1] After Epiphone was acquired by Gibson in 1957, this was one of the many models produced to rival the very popular Fender Stratocaster. [2] The original Wilshire's sound was known for its pop, surf, and garage rock sound, although it could also be useful for "heavier" music of the 60's. [3] It was positioned between the higher specification Crestwood and the lower specification Coronet. The Wilshire was reissued in two versions, the Wilshire II and Wilshire III, from 1982 to 1985. It was reissued again starting in 2009 and remains in the Epiphone catalog.

Contents

History

The Wilshire was introduced in 1959 as a symmetrical, double-cut, solid body guitar with a square-edged body and two P-90 pickups. [4] For the 1963 model year, the guitar was substantially changed to an asymmetrical shape with rounded edges and two alnico mini-humbucker pickups. It remained largely in this configuration for the remainder of its production run. In the 60s, Epiphone also experimented with new, vibrant colors such as California Coral, as seen on some 1965 Wilshires. [5] The Wilshire was reissued from 1982 to 1985 as the Wilshire II and Wilshire III. The Wilshire II had two mini-humbucker pickups and the Wilshire III had three. Epiphone once again reissued the Wilshire beginning in 2009. Several models were introduced: the limited edition Pro, '66 Worn (with or without "tremotone" (vibrato)) and '62 USA. In 2011, Epiphone released the Frank Iero signature Wilshire "Phant-o-Matic". [6]

Epiphone re-released the Wilshire, along with the Coronet and Crestwood in 2020. The re-issued Wilshire came with 2 P-90 pickups, and was available in two colours, being "Cherry Red" and "Ebony". [7] Additionally, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Epiphone, a Wilshire featuring 2 mini-humbuckers was released, available only in a "Pacific Blue" colour.

Reception

Doug Robertson of Premier Guitar praised the Wilshire, saying it was "perfect for old-school garage rock." He also stated that it "is the epitome of functional design. It’s simple, durable and versatile, yet it’s stylish enough to leap off an album cover." Robertson also noted: "This neck works great for power chords and tight rhythm jabs, but it may not be the most lead-player-friendly." [8] In reviewing the '62 Wilshire for the September 2009 issue of Guitar Player magazine, it was noted that "this thing really rings out acoustically, with a bright snap to the notes that is underpinned by a rich, woody resonance." [9]

Notable players

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson SG</span> Solid body electric guitar model

The Gibson SG is a solid-body electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1961, following on from the 1952 Gibson Les Paul. It remains in production today in many variations of the initial design. The SG Standard is Gibson's best-selling model of all time. SG stands for "solid guitar".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Les Paul</span> Solid body electric guitar

The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typical design features a solid mahogany body with a carved maple top and a single cutaway, a mahogany set-in neck with a rosewood fretboard, two pickups with independent volume and tone controls, and a stoptail bridge, although variants exist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epiphone</span> American musical instrument company

Epiphone is an American musical instrument brand that traces its roots to a musical instrument manufacturing business founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos in İzmir, Ottoman Empire, and moved to New York City in 1908. After taking over his father's business, Epaminondas Stathopoulos named the company "Epiphone" as a combination of his own nickname "Epi" and the suffix "-phone" in 1928, the same year it began making guitars. From the 1930s through to the early 1950s, Epiphone produced a range of both acoustic and (later) electrified archtop guitars that rivalled those produced by Gibson and were the instruments of choice of many professionals; a smaller range of flat-top guitars were also produced, some designations of which were later continued during the Gibson-owned era for the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson ES-335</span> Semi-hollow electric guitar

The Gibson ES-335 is a semi-hollow body semi-acoustic guitar introduced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its ES series in 1958. It features a solid maple wood block running through the center of its body with upper bouts that are hollow and two violin-style f-holes cut into the top over the hollow chambers. Since its release, Gibson has released numerous variations of and other models based on the design of the ES-335.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Firebird</span> Solid body electric guitar

The Gibson Firebird is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson beginning in 1963.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Iero</span> American musician (born 1981)

Frank Anthony Iero Jr. is an American musician who is the rhythm guitarist and backup vocalist of the rock band My Chemical Romance and a guitarist in the supergroup L.S. Dunes. He was also the lead vocalist of the post-hardcore band Leathermouth. He has a solo project titled Frank Iero and the Future Violents. He released his debut solo album titled Stomachaches on August 26, 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicke Andersson</span> Swedish musician

Anders Niklas Andersson, also known as Nicke Andersson, is a Swedish musician best known as the singer and guitarist for the rock band The Hellacopters and drummer for the death metal band Entombed. Besides his work with the Hellacopters and Entombed, Andersson currently plays and writes songs for the soul band The Solution, the death metal band Death Breath, the hard rock band Lucifer, and rock band Imperial State Electric.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Flying V</span> Electric guitar

The Gibson Flying V is an electric guitar model that was originally introduced by Gibson in 1958. The Flying V offered a brand new, radical, "futuristic" body design, much like its siblings: the Explorer, which was released the same year, and the Moderne, which was designed in 1957 but not released until 1982. The initial run of guitars used a distinctive wood of the Limba tree marketed by Gibson under the trade name "korina"; later models used more conventional woods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epiphone G-400</span>

The G-400 is an Epiphone solid body electric guitar model produced as a more modestly priced version of the famous Gibson SG. Currently, Epiphone is a subsidiary of Gibson and manufactures the G-400 and other budget models at a lower cost in Asia. Visually and ergonomically, it is almost identical to a 1962 SG.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P-90</span> Guitar pickup

The P-90 is a single coil electric guitar pickup produced by Gibson Guitar Corporation since 1946, as well as other vendors. Compared to other single coil designs, such as the ubiquitous Fender single coil, the bobbin for a P-90 is wider but shorter. The Fender style single coil is wound in a taller bobbin, but the wires are closer to the individual poles. This makes the P-90 produce a different type of tone, somewhat warmer with less edge and brightness. As with other single-coil pickups, the P-90 is subject to mains hum unless some form of hum cancellation is used.

The Gibson Les Paul Junior is a solid-body electric guitar introduced in 1954 as an affordable, entry-level Les Paul. It was first released with a single-cutaway body style; models with a double-cutaway body style were later introduced in 1958. The Junior continued through the first three years of the Les Paul/SG body redesign. The initial run was discontinued in 1963.

The Gibson Melody Maker is an electric guitar made by Gibson Guitar Corporation. It has had many body shape variations since its conception in 1959.

The mini-humbucker is a humbucking guitar pickup. It was originally created by the Epiphone company. The mini-humbucker resembles a Gibson PAF humbucker, but is narrower in size and senses a shorter length of string vibration. This produces clearer, brighter tones that are quite unlike typical Gibson sounds. It fits in between single-coils and full-sized humbuckers in the tonal spectrum. It is frequently used in jazz guitars, mounted under the fingerboard or on the pickguard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson SG Special</span>

The Gibson SG Special is an electric guitar made by Gibson that has been manufactured since 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Nighthawk</span>

The Gibson Nighthawk was a family of electric guitars manufactured by Gibson. Introduced in 1993, the Nighthawk represented a radical change from traditional Gibson designs. While its maple-capped mahogany body and set neck were reminiscent of the classic Gibson Les Paul, the Nighthawk incorporated a number of characteristics more commonly associated with Fender guitars. The Nighthawk was not a commercial success; production of all models was discontinued in 1998 after only five years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epiphone Genesis</span>

Epiphone Genesis refers to three Genesis Series models ever produced

The Epiphone Sheraton is a thinline semi-hollow body electric guitar. Though the Sheraton and all its variations were introduced under the ownership of the Gibson Guitar Corporation, Epiphone is the exclusive manufacturer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Spirit</span> Guitar model (produced 1982-86)

The Gibson Spirit was a guitar model sold under Gibson and Epiphone USA nameplates in the 1980s. This article does not refer to the made-in-China Spirit guitar sold under the Gibson Baldwin Music Education nameplate.

The Epiphone Coronet is an entry level guitar previously manufactured by Epiphone. The guitar has been manufactured a number of times since its first production on the 1950s.

References

  1. "Epiphone Wilshire electric guitar". Archived from the original on 2012-12-31. Retrieved 2012-10-28.[ self-published source? ]
  2. "Commercial Success". Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation . Retrieved 2023-08-10.
  3. Hunter, Dave (September 2009). "Epiphone Custom Historic 1962 Wilshire". Guitar Player. Vol. 43, no. 9. pp. 86–88. ProQuest   222467102.
  4. "Epiphone 1966 Worn Wilshire". Epiphone.com. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  5. Magazines 2023.[ page needed ]
  6. "Epiphone Wilshire Phant-o-Matic". Epiphone.com. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  7. Martenpublished, Neville (2021-02-16). "Epiphone Coronet, Wilshire and Crestwood Custom review". guitarworld. Retrieved 2024-05-05.
  8. "Epiphone Worn 1966 Wilshire electric guitar review". Archived from the original on 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-10-28.
  9. First Impression: Epiphone Custom Historic 1962 Wilshire [ dead link ]
  10. "Old gold: 1961 Epiphone Wilshire". MusicRadar. August 31, 2018. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  11. Kraftman, Tamzin (5 July 2023). "You can now own Jimi Hendrix's 1961 Epiphone Wilshire – you'll just need $1.25 million". Guitar.com.