Vintage 1964 Epiphone Riviera.

jumping@shadows · May 2019

Hi all, up for sale is a very rare and absolutely incredible sounding early spec ‘64 Epiphone Riviera, complete with it’s blue lined Epi hard case.

Only 170 Rivieras were made this year, and nickel part examples are few and far between as production ramped up post ‘65, and its essentially a ‘64 335 with spectacular sounding mini humbuckers and a more ornate headstock.

Its fully stock save for an added B7 Bigsby, with original pickups, ‘21st week of ‘64 dated pots, original plastics and hardware, jet black Brazilian fretboard and 1& 5/8” nut.

It’s been played A LOT, with lots of weather checking and a neck played smooth, but the original finish is still bright and looks fantastic with the Royal Tan sunburst finish still strong.

Only issue is a fine crack repair vertically along the headstock with some touch-up, which I may tidy up on request, but I haven’t been compelled to as it’s an honest repair, and the guitar sounds so good I’ve been too busy playing it!

The mini hums sound like crisper, more chimey P90s, and are exactly as you’d expect a more snappy/focused PAF to sound, but still overdrive with that fat P90 midrange- really a magic combination in a ‘64 335 chassis!

Without the minor headstock issue this would be a £5k guitar (if you could actually find a comparable early spec nickel part example as the vast majority out there are late ‘60s), but this is priced accordingly at £3850.

For someone looking for an early nickel part 335 without the £12,500-£16000 budget, this would be an ideal alternative as it sounds just as good- if not better if you like some P90 in your PAF, and no one else you know will have another

Thanks for looking, and feel free to ask any questions. J@S