O.K. I'm going to put a plug in here for Hamer Guitars. This company used to get a lot more press in the 80's when several high profile players were using their guitars. They're still making great guitars and if anything, they're making them better now than they did in the 80s.

I would reccomend any of the Hamer USA guitars. These are handmade guitars built in their factory on the east coast. They also have a line of import guitars which aren't very good at all, however these USA made ones are extremely good. http://www.hamerguitars.com/

I currently own a Hamer Newport. This is a hollowbody guitar that looks like a 335 only smaller. It has a carved Mahogany back and solid Spruce top. It comes with Seymor Duncan "Phat Cat" pickups which are P90 pickup in the same size as a standard humbucking pickup. It also has a bigsby tremelo. It sounds like a cross between a Tele and a Gretch Duo Jet. It's one of the most versatile guitars that I've ever owned and a fantastic choice for doing Blues and Jazz. It also nails the sound of an old Epiphone Cassino pretty well, so it captures a lot of the old Beatle guitar tones very nicely. The workmanship is outstanding and better than most of the stuff I've been seeing from Gibson's lineup lately. Their quality is on par with PRS.

Anyway, if you have never played a Hamer USA guitar, then do yourself a favor and try one out. They aren't as common as Gibson, PRS, etc. so they might have to search for a dealer who carries them. They are a great value for the money and you won't have to pay extra $ just for the brandname.

-- Jim