Guitar Tricks Insider February/March Digital Edition | Page 50

GEAR REVIEW

D’ANGELICO – EX-SS
SEMI-HOLLOW BODY
ELECTRIC GUITAR
Review By Dave Celentano

STREET PRICE $1,599

D’Angelico started making guitars in the ‘30s and
became world famous for exquisitely-crafted,
gorgeous-looking, and beautiful-sounding archtop
guitars. Primarily used by jazz guitarists, the big sized
acoustic style body and built-in pickup provided the
extra volume muscle to compete with big band horns
à la Freddie Green style. Some of D’Angelico players
include Kenny Burrell, Barney Kessel, Joe Pass, Mel
Bay, and Chet Atkins. But their guitars aren’t just
for jazz enthusiasts. Rock and blues players dig
them, too: Susan Tedeschi and Bob Weir are proud
endorsees, and Eric Clapton is also a D’Angelico
fan. In fact, any guitarist who has studied from the
bestselling Mel Bay guitar method will be instantly
familiar with the D’Angelico look – it graces the cover
of every book in the series!
Unfortunately these revered guitars were out of
budget for most players. Well, things have changed.
D’Angelico teamed up with luthiers in Korea to
develop a line of guitars that retain the legendary
Art Deco look and features, but at a more affordable
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DIGITAL EDITION

price. One of the guitars in the new line is the EXSS, a single cutaway semi-hollow body electric
that’s designed for those who play jazz, blues, and
rock, and want a guitar that can cover all styles. Its
purity will satisfy jazz aficionados, but also it has the
versatility for edgier rock and blues enthusiasts. The
EX-SS is D’Angelico’s smallest (15” wide and 1.75”
deep) in the line of archtops, and stands out as one of
their bestsellers – most likely &V6W6R