Alright, I have been a hollow body and semi-hollow body fanatic since I first picked up a guitar twenty one years ago. I have always wanted a Sheraton, in fact, it was what I had all picked out when I got my first guitar but alas, we could not afford it at the time and I ended up with a great Japanese 83 Telecaster. I still play Tele's a lot but the longing for a Sheraton never left me. It transformed over time into longing for a Gibson ES-335 and I was all set to just buy one of those. Epiphone made a Riviera, another great guitar that they keep fooling around with and I wish they would just keep in their lineup, and I was dying to get a Nick Valensi Riviera but sadly I missed the boat on that one. When this guitar hit the shelves I determined I would not let the opportunity pass me up and I am glad that I did not. After playing this instrument, I am not so sure I even need to pick up a 335 anymore. You can say what you want about the build quality of the Chinese Epiphones and I have seen good and bad myself, but this guitar is top notch. The neck, though listed as a 60s neck, is actually a touch thicker and because of that, it is a very comfortable neck to play for long periods of time. The setup was pretty close to perfect out of the box and everything works great. This guitar is a complete tone monster and will handle any music that I could ever want to play. Mine is finished in Cherry and it just pops. It is a beautiful finish to look at. I saw only one minor… read more bleed over of the finish into the binding at the lower corner of the headstock but other than that, everything was A+. I own three Gibsons and many other guitars and these are on par with anything else that I own. The mini-humbuckers are amazing. I never liked them before but I am sold on them with this guitar. Well worth every single penny and they are only making 1962 of them so if you don't get one, be ready to cough up some serious dough on the secondary market on the auction sites. Additionally, I absolutely love the headstock shape on this guitar. It sets the whole thing off and I love it compared to the shape of the headstock on the Sheraton II, which is a great guitar in it's own right. You cannot go wrong with this guitar. Get one before they are all gone!

Musical Background:
21 Years playing, I own fourteen other guitars

Musical Style:
Blues, Jazz, Red Dirt Country, Rock, Rock-a-Billy, a little Metal and Hard Rock when I feel like it. read less