Gibson ES-135, Epi Zephyr Regent win Guitar Player awards</B>

To recognize products that are fun, innovative, technologically advanced, and/or exquisitely rendered, Guitar Player magazine has established the Editors' Pick Award. In the July 2000, issue the Gibson ES-135 and the Epiphone Zephyr Regent both won an Editors' Pick Award.

"Guitar Player" has always delivered comprehensive product reviews, and, under the direction of Technical Editor Art Thompson, we feel confident that our Editors' Picks accurately reflect the hippest products the industry has to offer," say the Editors. "The criteria for receiving an Editors' Pick Award is pretty simple," the Editors explain. "Beginning with the January '99 issue, a product must be evaluated in a GP Bench Test and receive at least one "5" in our pick ratings. Once a product qualifies, the GP editors meet to discuss its merits and vote on whether it gets an award. Approval must be unanimous."

As writer Joe Gore notes, "These archtops from Epiphone and Gibson borrow heavily from the ES-175, Gibson's classic "budget acoustic-electric. A radical instrument when it debuted in 1949, the ES-175 was one of the first archtops to feature a laminated top, and it popularized the pointy, Florentine-style cutaway that has been a staple of guitar design ever since," Gore says. "The 175's uncluttered layout and warm-but-snappy tone made it a favorite of no-nonsense jazz players such as Joe Pass, yet it has also proved versatile enough for non-traditionalists such as Pat Metheny and Steve Howe."

Gore's evaluation: "The Gibson ES-135 is a super-versatile ax that fuses the ES-175 traits with aspects of the semi-acoustic ES-335," he says. "With relentless sustain and slap-your-face presence, the ES-135's gargantuan tones are as easy to ignore as a hippo in your hot tub."

The single humbucker Zephyr Regent, Gore says "evokes a '50s version of Gibson's classic ES-175, delivering ample old-guitar vibe at a modest price."

Both the Gibson ES-446S and the Epiphone AJ-18SCE, previously won Guitar Player Editors' Pick Awards. To read more about the ES-446S award go here.

For more information call 1-800-4GIBSON or go here to find your nearest Gibson or Epiphone dealer.