What Types of Guitars Do the Jazz Greats Play

There’s an impressive lineup of talented musicians when one looks at the history of jazz guitarists. Starting with the first true jazz guitarist Eddie Lang to other legends like Tiny Grimes and Freddie Green up to modern jazz guitarists like Pat Metheny, the amount of talent and unique interpretations are as overwhelming as they are impressive. While many of these legends have been interviewed about what makes their play style so unique, the type of guitar being used can also play a factor. Do you know the type of guitars used by the legends of jazz? Check out our list below to see which instruments are loved by the greatest guitarists of the genre! 

Freddie Green 

Freddie Green, or as many have nicknamed him, “Mr. Rhythm,” primarily used archtop guitars throughout his career, specifically non-cutaway versions with a thickness of 3 inches or more. During his time in the Count Basie band, of which he played for 50 years, he favored models like the Epiphone Emperor in the 1930s and a sunburst Stromberg Master 300 model in the 1940s and 1950s. Beginning in the late 1950s, he changed to a Gretsch Eldorado which he’s said to have played up until his passing in 1987. 

Eddie Lang 

Eddie Lang is credited as the father of jazz guitar, and for good reason. It’s thanks to him that jazz guitar got the prominence it deserved in the space not only from a solo perspective but also in groups and big bands. Despite the previous issue of acoustic guitars getting drowned out by other instruments, Lang used heavy gauge strings and a high action to make his guitar heard clearly. He was so influential that, according to George Van Eps, banjo players had no choice but to switch to guitar. 1 Lang played Gibson L-4 and L-5 guitars, but he is most associated with his Gibson L-5. This type of guitar became a standard in part due to his association with the instrument.  

Django Reinhardt 

Django Reinhardt is considered one of the greatest jazz guitar players of all time for his contributions to gypsy swing and his innovative playing style, including his ability to solo with only two fingers after a childhood injury. Reinhardt played a Selmer-Maccaferri acoustic guitar, specifically the #503 model from 1940 until his death in 1953. This type of guitar was known for its distinct sound and features. These features became the bedrock of gypsy jazz guitar playing.  

Charlie Christian 

Charlie Christian is considered a jazz pioneer because he was the first to master and popularize the electric guitar in jazz. He was also a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. Christian played a Gibson ES-150 electric hollowbody guitar. The model was considered groundbreaking upon its release in 1936 because it was the first fully electric guitar, specifically designed for jazz and swing bands where before an electric guitar was seen as a novelty. The introduction of this model helped popularize electric guitars within jazz bands. Christian also played the Gibson ES-250, but it was the ES-150 that he was associated with. The pickup on that guitar is even famously known as the "Charlie Christian pickup.” 

Tiny Grimes 

Tiny Grimes was a prominent figure in the emerging rhythm and blues genre and played alongside many other legends including Charlie Parker, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, and Art Tatum. He used a Gibson ETG-150, a hollow-body electric tenor guitar, very similar to Charlie Christians but a four-string variant. This was a unique look as it’s a variant of the traditional six-string guitar. Grimes’ guitar had a shorter neck and fretboard. They are quite rare with less than 100 of these 4-string 150s being made, and “they remain the ultimate in a pre-war electric tenor” (Source).  

Barney Kessel  

Barney Kessel was a jazz great from the big band era. His knowledge of chords, inversions, and chord-based melodies made him a valuable asset, and he was a "first call" guitarist for many studio, film, and television recording sessions. Kessel played a heavily modified Gibson ES-350, particularly a sunburst version from the late 1940s or early 1950s. This guitar was in part a replacement of the original P-90 pickup with a Charlie Christian pickup, which Kessel described as having an irreplaceable magnet alloy. It’s been noted that he played other guitars, including Gibson ES-175s and flat-tops, the ES-350 remained his preferred instrument for work in jazz.    

Kenny Burrell 

A leading figure for jazz guitar, Kenny Burrell pioneered the guitar-led trio format in the late 1950s. His creative compositions and harmonic creativity helped him stand out as a jazz great. Burrell is a Gibson guy, most often associated with his trademark guitar, a Gibson Super 400. He played other Gibsons like the ES-175 and L-5 models, often with Charlie Christian bar pickups, but the Super 400 is most notable. Burrell is also often associated with Heritage Super KB, which is based on the Super 400 but with a thinner body.   

Wes Montgomery 

Wes Montgomery is seen as one of the greatest jazz guitarists of all time, in part because of his thumb-plucking technique and improvisation skills. He also had a mastery of the octaves that gave him a unique edge. Montgomery most notably played a Gibson L-5CES guitar, but in his early years, he started out with a tube amp and a Fender. In his later years, he played Gibsons that were custom made for him, and he played a Standel at the end of his career. 

John Scofield 

John Scofield has a career spanning over 50 years, with over 100 albums under his belt both as a leader and a sideman, collaborating with greats such as Miles Davis and Charlies Mingus. He’s best known for his distinctive sound of horn-like lines, and his ability to make notes ring like a bell. Scofield's first electric guitar was a Hagstrom, but the Ibanez AS200 is his signature guitar he’s used for years. Scofield actually has a Ibanez line named after him including the JSM10, JSM100, and JSM20 models, which are based on his 1981 AS200.  

Pat Metheny 

Pat Metheny is a jazz legend for finding ways to reinvent the jazz guitar sound by pioneering electronic music techniques. His ability to blend different musical styles also makes him impactful beyond the realm of jazz. Metheny’s signature guitar is the Ibanez PM-100. However, he has also used Gibson ES-175 hollow-body guitars (which was a guitar he bought at age 12 and retired in 1995). Other guitars used by Metheny include Roland G-303 Guitar Synth, the 42-string Pikasso, and baritone nylon-string guitars for performances. 

Kurt Rosenwinkel 

Kurt Rosenwinkel’s groundbreaking approach to the instrument, blending traditional jazz with modern techniques and harmonic structures is what makes him a modern jazz legend. Rosenwinkel has played D'Angelico, Sadowsky, Westville, and Moffa guitars, as well as Gibson ES-335 and Yamaha SG models. He has also used a Gibson SG and a Westville signature model over the years. 

Pasquale Grasso 

Pasquale Grasso has brought a new vision to jazz guitar, coming at it with a pianistic vision and blending it with a bebop style. He’s considered a rising star in the jazz world. Grasso primarily plays a "Modello Pasquale Grasso" guitar which is a custom-made Trenier archtop built for him by Luthier Bryant Trenier. He also uses a restored 1953 Gibson GA-50 amp that’s used in recordings and performances.   

Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this blog! I hope you learned something new about some of these amazing jazz guitar legends. If you play jazz guitar, what is your favorite type? What type of playing from these legends do you like the best? Let us know in the comments!  

Written by Kristen Petronio

Resource for Eddie Lang: 

1: Obrecht, Jay (December 2015). "The Lonnie Johnson-Eddie Lang Duets". Guitar Player. pp. 26–30, 140.