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15 Famous Semi-hollowbody Players

Thursday February 2, 2023. 02:00 PM , from Sweetwater inSync
The semi-hollowbody guitar is the superhero of reduced feedback, with a tone and swagger that perfectly bridge hollows and solids. This guitar style comes in many forms, is heard genre-wide, and has been wielded by countless past and present guitar greats. So, join us as we take a closer look at just 15 incredible semi-hollowbody players — in no particular order — and the gorgeous axes in their hands. One of them may inspire you to get your hands on a semi-hollowbody guitar of your own!

Be sure to stick around for our official Spotify playlist filled with noteworthy tracks from each of these guitarists!

Peter BuckTom FogertyEmily WolfeAlex LifesonRichard FortusChristone “Kingfish” IngramJim AdkinsSyd BarrettAlana HaimZach MyersJoey SantiagoLarry CarltonTrini LopezKristin HershDave Davies

Peter Buck

A true jack of all string trades, Peter Buck’s guitar and mandolin sound was a defining trait of R.E.M.’s instrumental appeal for the group’s entire 30-plus year lifespan. Buck has been involved in several solo and side projects and a handful of supergroups throughout his career, including the Baseball Project with fellow R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills. But Buck and the boys of R.E.M. will forever go down in history as poster children for alternative rock’s evolution throughout the ’80s and into the ’90s, a lot of that having to do with Buck’s bright, glassy tone and authoritatively precise playing style. A studio and stage constant for Buck was and still is his high-output Rickenbacker 360 Thinline, making memorably clean and gut-punching overdriven appearances on all of R.E.M.’s studio efforts. On all guitar lines of “The One I Love” from R.E.M’s 1987 album, Document, you can hear the Rick 360’s brilliant chime!

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Tom Fogerty

The shufflin’ rhythms of Creedence Clearwater Revival that we’ve bobbed our heads and tapped our feet to for years were delivered courtesy of Tom Fogerty, older brother of CCR lead singer and lead guitarist John Fogerty. The band brought swamp rock to the spotlight in the late ’60s, with Fogerty backing the group until 1971. Fogerty released five studio albums and collaborated with Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders before disappearing from the spotlight. But that classic, late ’60s, not-quite-acoustic, not-quite-electric rhythm-guitar sound that CCR carried throughout its first four years is a prime example of the semi-hollowbody in action — thanks, in part, to Fogerty’s favoring of a pearly white Guild Starfire VI electric guitar. Listen for his syncopated strumming pattern in the background of “Down on the Corner” from CCR’s 1969 album, Willie and the Poor Boys.

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Emily Wolfe

Rock guitarist Emily Wolfe takes semi-hollowbody distortion to new realms with an exciting blend of heavy blues riffing, creative song mapping, and deep lyrical honesty. Her talents have caught the ears of many in the rock world, as she has performed with huge names like Gary Clark Jr., the Pretenders, and more. In the studio, she’s laid down three full-length albums, a pair of EPs, and a handful of singles dating back to 2012. Having earned her stripes on the road and through her work with other industry pros, like Ben Tanner of Alabama Shakes, Wolfe and her accumulated repertoire of soul-speaking songs is nothing short of spectacular. And her guitar of choice? The signature Epiphone Emily Wolfe Sheraton Stealth semi-hollowbody electric guitar, of course! It’s packed with attitude and possesses a tonal palette that effortlessly conveys every nuance of her expressive playing style. Check out the versatility of the axe as it goes through its paces on “Cover of Virtue” from Wolfe’s 2021 album, Outlier.

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Alex Lifeson

Rush’s position as one of the greatest progressive rock bands of all time wouldn’t have been possible without an immensely talented trio of guys fronted by the quick fingers of guitarist Alex Lifeson. For 50 years, the melodic main man on Rush’s 19 studio albums delivered some of the most memorable riffs and intensely cool guitar solos that prog rock has ever known. How’d he do it? Well, other than knowing a fingerboard better than the back of his hand, he had some pretty sweet gear to accompany him! Lifeson has been known to reach for a few different axes in his time — most frequently, a Gibson Les Paul — but his playing during Rush’s rise to fame in the early to mid-’70s was emphasized by the sonics of Gibson ES-335 and ES-355 semi-hollowbodies. Hit the play button on “Fly by Night” from Rush’s 1975 sophomore album of the same name, and you can immediately hear the resonant warble of the semi-hollow as it saturates into beautiful, breathy distortion during the solo.

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Richard Fortus

A touring and studio member of Guns N’ Roses since 2001, Richard Fortus has spent his fair share of time on the big stage — and he’s far from finished! Fortus’s many musical endeavors include teaming up with groups like the Psychedelic Furs, Thin Lizzy, and the Dead Daisies, among others. And this Gretsch White Falcon–loving shredder has, in recent years, become quite the hollowbody devotee, devising a Gretsch G6636T-RF Richard Fortus Signature Falcon with Bigsby that launched in 2021. But what makes his Falcon so special? Aside from a myriad of personalized pickup and control specifications, this Falcon is actually a semi-hollowbody, unlike the traditionally full-hollowbody Falcons of the past! He gigged a Falcon extensively on GNR’s most recent tour, but studio tracks featuring the guitar are almost nonexistent because of its exclusive live usage to this point. But the track “Evil” from the Dead Daisies’ 2015 album Revolución is a must-hear sonic glimpse at the sheer talent of the St. Louis shredder.

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Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Hailing from Clarksdale, Mississippi — the same historic small-town stomping grounds of Delta blues greats like Muddy Waters and Gus Cannon — Christone “Kingfish” Ingram carries the inextinguishable blues torch into the 2020s with authority. With Ingram’s talents having been recognized by notable artists, such as Buddy Guy, Eric Gales, Bootsy Collins, and more, and having already recorded a pair of studio albums, Ingram has found quite a bit of success at only 24 years of age. The first of his two works, Kingfish, features Ingram on the cover while holding a gorgeous Fender Squier Starcaster. And while we’ve seen him with Stratocasters, Telecasters, and Les Pauls in hand, the characterful semi-hollowbody tone and aesthetic of the Starcaster electric guitar are emblematic of this raw blues record. Have a listen to the blistering solo of “Outside of This Town” — it isn’t hard to see why this young phenom is generating such a buzz!

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Jim Adkins

Jim Adkins, the front man of Mesa, Arizona, group Jimmy Eat World, has churned out ten albums with the band since its inception in 1993. A swirling concoction of pop-punk, post-hardcore, and emo pop, Jimmy Eat World has accumulated a commendable catalog of headbangers throughout the years and has shared stages with fellow pop-punk groups, like Weezer and Blink-182. The band has also completed three stints on the Vans Warped Tour. Adkins’s 2015 solo venture saw the release of an EP and an acclaimed acoustic tour across the US, the UK, and Europe. One of his most preferred guitars throughout his career has been the Fender Telecaster Thinline, which ultimately led to the development of his own Fender Jim Adkins JA-90 Telecaster Thinline semi-hollowbody electric guitar. This signature semi-hollowbody perfectly encapsulates the vibe of Adkins’s 2000s-era Jimmy Eat World sound with a pair of P90s for pop-punk-esque playing and fluid, clean-to-crunch transitions. It’s a sound that generated a series of hit songs for the group, including the unforgettable track “The Middle” from the band’s 2001 album, Bleed American.

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Syd Barrett

As one of the original creative forces behind Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett is widely accepted as a true pioneer of late ’60s experimental music. And as a learned art student and advocate for the odd, Barrett’s guitarwork possessed a musicality and rhythmic diversion that was scarcely tied down by popular conventions of the time; the same was true of his lyricism. With that in mind, he understood the growing threat of overcrowding contemporary music, both while in Pink Floyd and working solo, so he worked to let his music speak for itself; he gave it room to breathe instead of cramming in notes for shock value. Barrett recorded a lot of his work on Pink Floyd’s first two albums with a Danelectro 3021 semi-hollowbody, which has been reissued in modern times as the Danelectro ’59DC. While listening through “Lucifer Sam,” and the entire 1967 The Piper at the Gates of Dawn album, for that matter, one cannot help but appreciate the undeniably cool conglomeration of Barrett’s guitarwork and songwriting.

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Alana Haim

As the youngest of the three sisters who make up the Los Angeles–based pop-rock trio Haim, guitarist and pianist Alana Haim is no stranger to the spotlight. The group has recorded three studio albums since 2013 and has been touring extensively in that time as well, with four headlining tours. They’ve also opened up for some enormous names in music, including Taylor Swift, the Killers, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Additionally, 2021 marked Alana Haim’s acclaimed film debut, as she delivered the starring role of Alana Kane in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Oscar-nominated film Licorice Pizza. Haim has taken a liking to the style of a Gibson ES-339 semi-hollowbody as her primary live guitar, and there’s no doubt that she’s picked a winner. Check out her spirited playing in “The Steps” from Haim’s 2021 album, Women in Music Pt. III, and bask in some groovy, chorused riffing and seriously cool slide guitar!

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Zach Myers

Shinedown guitarist Zach Myers’s guitar riffing is heavy and hypnotic and powers the rock group’s stage and studio sound with a huge stomp. Influenced by hard-rock trailblazers, like Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page, Myers has brought his uniquely heavy-handed yet melodically inspired guitarwork to the forefront of the band since 2008, spanning five studio albums. He also founded the side-project supergroup, the Fairwell, back in 2008 and recently released a 2021 album, Schizophrenic Love Songs, Pt. 1, in collaboration with several musical cohorts from the bands Ingram Hill and 12 Stones. A big PRS fanatic, Myers has played an extensive list of their models throughout his years with Shinedown, including his stage-favorite PRS SE Zach Myers semi-hollow electric guitar — it’s his go-to for live renditions of lead single “Cut the Cord” from the group’s 2015 album, Threat to Survival. And it supplies enough brawn to effortlessly cut through and power the band’s massive sound.

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Joey Santiago

Boston alternative band Pixies emerged in the mid-to-late ’80s with Joey Santiago on lead guitar. A dream/rock/punk-ish hybrid sound with a clear alternative edge put Pixies in a sonic league of their own, and a lot of that had to do with Santiago’s playing style. Santiago and the group have been a significant inspiration for many alternative rock icon successors, including the Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Radiohead, and plenty more in today’s realm. Apart from Pixies, Santiago has ventured into television and film scoring while collaborating with fellow bandmate Black Francis, and he also founded a side-project group called the Martinis. Santiago records and takes on the road with him a cherry-red ’65 Gibson ES-345 semi-hollow electric guitar, and boy, is it a beauty! Have a listen to the 1991 track “Motorway to Roswell” off Pixies’ fourth studio album, Trompe le Monde, and witness the trademarked somber drones of Santiago’s ES-345 at work!

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Larry Carlton

Jazz guitarist Larry Carlton has amassed a virtually unsurpassable discography of session and studio work dating back to the late ’60s. With his versatile playing style that mixes fusion with pop and rock elements, Carlton has been a go-to studio guitarist for artists like Steely Dan, Barbra Streisand, Joni Mitchell, and Joan Baez. His impressive 6-string talents helped him found jazz group the Crusaders, record dozens of solo albums, and win six Grammy Awards. Carlton has been most famously accompanied by his Gibson ES-335 for the majority of his solo work, even earning him the title of “Mr. 335.” More recently, however, Carlton has become a signature artist for Sire, releasing several Sire Larry Carlton guitars of various shapes and builds, including a drop-dead gorgeous Sire Larry Carlton H7V semi-hollowbody electric guitar. Title track “Sleepwalk,” from Carlton’s 1982 solo album, delivers that classic, silky smooth, and vibrant chirpiness that is so perfectly emblematic of his semi-hollow sound.

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Trini Lopez

Trini Lopez, the late great pride of Dallas, Texas, recorded nonstop throughout the ’60s, releasing a staggering 20 albums worth of covers, originals, and live tracks in the decade alone. From Ritchie Valens’s “La Bamba” to the Vogues’ “Five O’Clock World” to a brief acting career that included a role as one of The Dirty Dozen in 1967, Lopez was undoubtedly a true entertainer. My Name Is Lopez — a recent and inspiring 2021 documentary about the legendary pop, rock, folk, and Latin guitarist — chronicles his life in the spotlight and his impact on the musical world and Latin-American presence in rock and roll. Lopez played his signature Gibson semi-hollowbody guitars, faithfully re-created today as the Gibson Custom 1964 Trini Lopez Standard Reissue VOS and seen in the hands of big-name artists like Dave Grohl, Noel Gallagher, Dan Auerbach, and more. You’ll hear his Gibson sing out chords in his well-known cover of the protest classic, “If I Had a Hammer,” from the 1963 live record, Trini Lopez at PJs.

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Kristin Hersh

Kristin Hersh, lead songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist for the alt-rock trio, Throwing Muses, has been orbiting the alternative scene since the mid-’80s. She’s drawn inspiration from contemporary alternative groups, like Talking Heads, Violent Femmes, and R.E.M. Hersh has also written three books and recorded a wealth of solo records since 1994 in addition to a catalog of work with alternative group 50 Foot Wave. Her steadfast delivery of unique vocals and typically distorted, heavier guitar parts offer a sonic result that continues to resurrect that old-school and edgy alternative vibe into the 2020s. Hersh has expressed her keenness for her semi-hollowbody ESP LTD Xtone PS-1000 while out on tour, and it perfectly complements her heavy alternative sound. For a healthy dose of that sound, lend an ear to Throwing Muses’ headbanging single “Dark Blue” from their most recent album, 2020’s Sun Racket.

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Dave Davies

Dave Davies found tremendous success throughout the ’60s playing lead guitar beside his older brother, Ray Davies, in the four-piece British band, the Kinks. Davies and the group are historically regarded as key contributing factors to the British Invasion, releasing iconic guitar-heavy tracks like “You Really Got Me” and “All Day and All of the Night,” as well as “Waterloo Sunset” and “Lola” which display Davies’s softer touch. The Kinks’ lead guitarist was known to sport a few different guitar models, including a Gibson Flying V, but was most notably the wielder of a Guild Starfire III semi-hollowbody for the band’s earlier hits. A great piece of British Invasion pop rock that highlights Davies’ guitarwork is the track, “Till the End of the Day,” off The Kink Kontroversy — a 1965 album which put Davies’ Starfire III on full display on the cover!

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Listen on Spotify!

We’ve compiled the tracks from each of these artists into a Spotify playlist below. Give us a follow, get inspired, and discover a diverse helping of the semi-hollowbody in its many forms!

Who’d We Miss?

We’ve only scratched the surface of the wide world of semi-hollowbody guitarists — believe us, we could go on for days! And the beauty of the guitar’s unique build and sound means that the list of players will continue to grow in years to come. Is it time for you to join this list? If you’re ready to take a closer look at the hundreds of semi-hollowbody guitars available here at Sweetwater, then be sure to contact your semi-hollow expert Sweetwater Sales Engineer at (800) 222-4700for assistance in making your dream guitar come true. Trust us — you’re in good hands!
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