Joe Pass Model Appreciation Page
Welcome to the Joe Pass guitar appreciation page. This site
is dedicated to owners of
Epiphone's Emperor II, Joe Pass archtop guitar. Other
sites are devoted to products like Zoom's 505 guitar processor
and Epiphone's Emperor Regent jazz guitar, so I thought it high time
to do the same for Epi's most popular jazz archtop - the Emperor II.
By way of introduction, my name is Greg. I (used to) own a Joe Pass model guitar and am very pleased with it's performance, especially in light of it's price and features. I am just a hobbyist that tries to play jazz and even though I own several guitars, my favorite one to play is the Joe Pass. My Joe Pass guitar makes me sound like George Benson or Wes Montgomery - at least in my own mind :) One day soon, I'll get around to posting sound clips of my playing.
The Epiphone Emperor II, more commonly referred to as the Joe Pass model, is one of Epiphone's most popular archtops for jazz applications. The Joe Pass retails for about $1,200 USD, but typically sells for about $750 USD new and $500-$600 USD used. The low cost of the Joe Pass coupled with its numerous features and tone has made the Joe Pass a standard model in many jazz player's stables.
Prior to Joe Pass' endorsement of the Emperor II sometime prior to September 1993, Epiphone was manufacturing this guitar as the Emperor II and, prior to that, possibly the Monterey.
With the Joe Pass model, Epiphone moved the pickup selector switch above the fretboard, put a facsimile of Joe Pass' signature on the pickguard, and put the words "Joe Pass" on the truss rod cover.
In a letter from September 1993, to fellow newsgrouper Lawson Stone, Joe Pass mentions his endorsement of the Epiphone Emperor II.
Like most new Epiphone guitars, the Joe Pass model is manufactured in Asia (possibly Korea by Samick). A recent visitor to this site passed the following information on to me:
A friend who worked at Epiphone's warehouse in Nashville told me that not all Epis are made by Samick. Some come from another Korean manufacturer, and others come from a factory in Indonesia. However, these other factoriesmake many of the models in the line, not just the cheapest ones; one could possibly get a Broadway, or a Riviera, or a Joe Pass made in Indonesia, simply by luck of the draw. The letter preceding the serial number tells where the guitar was made. If the number follows an S, the guitar is a Samick; if it follows a U, it's from another Korean factory; and if it follows an I, the guitar is Indonesian. According to my friend, the quality of the Indonesian instruments is not nearly that of the Samicks. I thought this information might be of interest to you, given your devotion to the Joe Pass model.
Epiphone touts that Joe Pass played a part in the design of and actually
played an Emperor II. Some players look down
their nose at the Joe Pass model because
it is made in Korea and they wonder if a super-player like Joe Pass ever
really played an Emperor. Well, supposedly he did,
but, as everyone knows, his favorite electric guitar was Gibson's ES-175. Heck,
even jazz guitar giant, Jimmy Bruno,
owned an Epi Emperor II in years past. As for Joe Pass, Danny, the owner of a gorgeous
tricked-out JP, had this to say:
Also I have seen an instructional video of Joe Pass playing one of these (an Emperor II). The video was put out by Hot licks. It's is called "Joe Pass the Blue Side of Jazz". He was playing a sunburst. His guitar has the pick guard removed and the pickup selector switch is on the bottom and the truss rod cover says Gibson on it. It may have been an Emperor II instead of the regular Joe Pass model. (Added 12/22/07 - Youtube link to the video)
If you have read this far and are wondering who Joe Pass is, then you've missed something profound in the world of jazz music. Joe Pass was a jazz guitar virtuoso who, like many jazz musicians, had a problem with drugs and alcohol. He overcame his addictions to become a world-reknowned jazz musician, playing with such notables as Ella Fitzgerald. In fact, Joe and Ella did an album together called Alone Together wherein it was just Joe and his guitar and Ella and her voice.
During Joe's career, he developed a self-accompaniment style of walking bass lines punctuated by chord comps and flurries of single note solos. All jazz guitarists owe a debt of gratitude to Joe Pass for bringing jazz guitar to the forefront as a solo instrument. As such, Joe opened the door for current guitar greats such as Tuck Andress and Martin Taylor.
Sadly, Joe Pass passed away in 1994 after a long fight with cancer. In his wake, we are left in awe of the man who came so far and did so much for jazz music and jazz guitar.
| Width | Depth | Scale | Neck Width | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Min | Max | at nut | ||
| 16" @ lower bout | 2.5" | 2.75" | 24.75" | 1.68" |
The list of standard features includes:
Oh yeah, Epps uses a Bartolini Model 1 C-TA (Tuck Andress model) pickup.
Here's what one newsgroup poster had to say about Epps and Cathy:
Wow...thanks for posting that link. It's a guitarist accompanying a female vocalist and they are two very talented people. I would even buy their CD. I downloaded their jazzy version of the Jimi Hendrix song, Castles Made Of Sand in MP3 format. The Epi Joe Pass sounds freakin' phenomenal! I think this kind of thing should settle the debate on whether the low cost jazz boxes can perform like the $$$ ones tone wise ([Epps] uses a Bartolini pick up on it). That Joe Pass Epi sounded as good to me amplified as a $20K Benedetto does. The tone was there.
The guitar Epps plays has also 2 Bartolini elements on it, like Tuck Andress has. You know Tuck&Patti? They were our inspiration as you may have noticed. I appreciate your enthusiasm! And good luck with your site! greetings,Click here for an interview with Cathy. Click here for a review of Epps 'n Cathy's CD. For payment, please contact Cathy by email .
Katelijne.
Visit
Freddy's site.
Guitar reviews:
Guitar pictures:
Ask Chip
Manufacturer's links:
E-mail links:
Owner testimonials:
I have the Joe Pass epi myself (the blond)- which is how it came up in
conversation with Bruce... I said "your guitar sure looks a lot like my Joe Pass"
and he said, "I know. Yours is actually a copy of mine, etc.."
The guy who made Joe Pass' guitar for Ibanez also made Bruce Forman's guitar.
When Epiphone asked him to make a Joe Pass signature guitar for them, he
decided to use the design for Bruce Forman's guitar instead of the one
for Joe Pass... so, in a way, it's really a Bruce Forman signature guitar
- Bruce still plays the original two or three nights a week at Jazz at
Pearl's in San Francisco and on weekends at various sites in Monterey
County, and once a month while traveling with the Monterey Jazz
Festival Traveling Clinicians programs.
Here is
Bruce Forman's reply to me when I asked for confirmation of the
story above:
#1 It's true...a man named Fritz Katoh made both of our guitars for Ibanez
and he has since moved to Epiphone.
#2 We never talked about the JP signature Epiphone, however, the
dimensions are the same as mine (the only thing it has in common with the JP),
the f-hole style is the same as MINE, the choice of wood types are the same
as MINE, and the pickup placement is the same as my model. Epiphone changed the
tailpeice design to metal, away from an ebony version which was a replica of
the newer D'Aquistos'(something my model also had in common with the Ibanez JP).
When I did a comparison with my axe, an Ibanez JP and the Epiphone it was obvious
to all of us, and there were a whole bunch of guitar players there, that my model
was far more similar.
#3 The Epiphones are very good inexpensive guitars, I recommend them,
but beware, they vary quite a bit from axe to axe. Some are much better
than others.
I wanted a jazz box for playing blues (along with my two
Strats and a '69 Gibson SG) and very much like the sound of the Epi. I plan to take it to
my guitar tech for a once over. The action seems a little high but the tone is nice.
BTW I named my JP Emp "Theresa" after a very
beautiful tall blonde woman I used to hang with about 7 years ago. The named seemed
appropriate because the JP is big, beautiful, curvy and naturally blonde
just like she is! I'm still friends with her and recently told her about
her namesake guitar!
Hi,
I also have an Epiphone Joe Pass model which I love
(even more than my PRS Archtop which cost five times as much.)
The top of the Joe Pass model is spruce. I e-mailed Epiphone
(Gibson) and questioned them about the top, which I thought
was spruce. They indicated that the top is spruce.
I too play one of the Joe Pass
Epi's. I use mine for finger style, in the style Chet Atkins.
I also have modified it by installing a Bisgby and a
Seymour Duncan
Distortion neck pickup. I should have put a 59. But I had an extra,
it still sounds better than the original equip.
Here are a couple of my pics of the Joe Pass.
As you can see I put a Bisgby and I modified the
arm by cutting it off so It would be shorter more
like the one Chet uses. However his are does not swing
away it remains stationary. I also Put a
Seymour Duncan SH-6 Distortion Humbucker in the neck
position. I also put a Shaller Roller bridge for
smooth movement. Also I had the bridge pinned to the
body. It kept moving and would go out of tune.
After I had it pinned it stays in tune perfect.
My favorite guitar is my MT19R 6 string El Degas acoustic
with a Fishman "under the saddle mount" transducer.
My Jazz & Blues staple is an Epiphone "Joe Pass" arch-top,
two pick-up electric-acoustic.
I also play bass and use a blue Vantage 4 string and to jam
with my bluegrass buddies I own an old Framus 5 string banjo.
Sitting in the corner of my livingroom (more for show than
play) is a homemade pedal-steel guitar.
Added link to Youtube of The Blue Side of Jazz video with Joe Pass playing an Epi Joe Pass.
Added links to Doug Berry - excellent jazz guitarist who use an Epi Joe Pass.
Fixed my email address at the bottom of the page. Sorry, but it was wrong for months.
Since I last updated this site, I sold the following guitars:
- DeArmond StarFire Special
It just easn't my cup of tea. Great price @ $299, but the finish was definitely nowhere near a Gibson nitro finish. It was cheap looking. It was also too bright for my tastes.
- Alvarez RD30SCE flattop
This one developed structural problems. I sent it back to SLM and they replaced it with a new, upgraded AD60SCE. I sold it as in the long time SLM took with my guitar, I had to buy another flattop.
I also had to delete Danny's SANDMAN.RM file as I was running out of room. Sorry, Danny. I updated Danny.htm and took the link to the sound file off. I also posted another Epi AD picture from 1993, showing Joe Pass in a picture next to an Epi JP (see top, left). I also corrected used JP pricing to reflect the higher prices these guitars are now commanding. A couple of years ago, they were going as low as $385 used. Now they are closer to $600.
Since I last updated this site, I have bought and either sold or still retain the following guitars:
- DeArmond X-155
Though I wanted to love this guitar, I found that it was redundant with my Epi JP. The Epi JP actually sounded better for jazz with it's SD pickups. And the JP played a whole lot easier. Still, if I had not already had the JP, I probably would still have the X-155.
- Gibson ES-135
This is the humbucker-equipped limited edition. It is a beautiful, pro-level guitar. Though it sounds best when used for blues and rock, I restrung ti wiht flatwounds for use wiht jazz. I still have this guitar.
- DeArmond StarFire Special
Very nice archtop with dual US-made single coil pups and a Bigsby-style tremelo. This guitar is bright and is currently set up for R&R and blues with round wounds. Still, with the tone rolled back, it does a good job with jazz and could easily do jazz full-time with flatwounds.
- Alvarez RD30SCE flattop
It's a flattopand sounds nice for those type of applications.
Greg 12/07/01
I updated this site today to thank those who signed the guestbook and to reiterate my satisfaction with the Epi JP. It remains the only guitar I have bought new and still have! I have sold all my other guitars, yet the JP lingers on. It's versatility, playability and tone combine to make one heckuva argument as to why I can't get rid of it!Over the last year, I have been on a quest for tone. As such, I have been through Fender Super Reverbs, Princeton reverbs, Acoustasonic Pro's, Crate Vintage Clubs, and on and on. I have sold every one of those amps (as is typical for me). I have also been through a number of guitars from a '61 Gretsch archtop to some 70's Japanese well-made archtops to strats and others, but the only guitar that will remain after I have sold other stuff is the Epi JP.
I really have tried to jettison the JP, but I can't; it plays too well and sounds too good. Even so, I bit on the closeout of DeArmond by Fender picking up an X-155 archtop for a song. I am due to receive the guitar by week's end. Soon thereafter and if the X-155 looks like a keeper, I'll do an in-depth comparative analysis between it and the JP. It is my hope to make the X-155 my jazz guitar, restring my JP with roundwounds and use it for rock and blues. I really need a guitar to do rock and blues as well as jazz and the only guitar I have found to do all well is the JP. With the roundwounds on the JP, I hope to make it more dedicated towards roick and blues, but we'll see..
Greg 08/22/01
