“Offset guitars can be really clumsy, but that makes me approach them differently. I kept hitting the kill switch mid-solo, thinking, ‘Why is this here?!’” Samantha Fish on how Kurt Cobain turned her onto the Fender Jaguar

Think of Samantha Fish and the electric guitar and you'll think of her bone-white SG or maybe one of the cigar-box guitars she used to play when making her bones in blues guitar. 

But on the cover of her 2019 studio album, Kill or Be Kind, there she was with a Fender Jaguar – here, she explains why, and why you should think of switching up your favorite six-strings now and again.

When and where did you buy this guitar?

“Probably around 2018 or 2019. It’s one of those newer models, a Mexican Jaguar. I got it from Reverb; I’ve gotten a lot of stuff off Reverb and Sweetwater. I walk into guitar stores now, and there’s not always a massive selection to choose from. I can’t remember the last time I was able to successfully buy one from a store that felt good.”

You’re known for your Gibson SG, so why did you choose a Jaguar?

“I had never played a Jaguar before and wanted something that wasn’t overly expensive but that I could try out to see how it felt. I thought it was going to be an aggressive guitar – I was thinking of Kurt Cobain, who played a Jaguar – but when I got it, I felt it lent itself better to more of the R&B material I was playing.

“So I shopped around for a while, and this was the one that kept calling to me. It complemented old-school, ’60s R&B and had this nice bell tone. But if we’re going to be superficial about it, I think they look great. I’m still finding new sounds on the Jaguar because it has a ton of options.”

Samantha Fish "Kill Or Be Kind" (Official Video) - YouTube

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Have you used this guitar on any notable recordings?

“I definitely used it on Kill or Be Kind [2019]. I didn’t use it on Death Wish Blues [2023] or Faster [2021]; I had a limited arsenal for both albums. So it’s on Kill or Be Kind, but I can’t remember which songs. I don’t want to lie and rewrite history, but if I could take myself back in time, I probably would have used the Jaguar on the title track.”

What does the Jaguar bring to the party creatively that your SG doesn’t? 

“Offset guitars can be really clumsy, but that clumsiness makes me approach them differently. I had to refine my rhythms and kept hitting the kill switch mid-solo, thinking, ‘Why is this here?!’ [Laughs]. 

“Anytime you switch up guitars, it’s going to help you maybe rein in a bad habit or approach it in a way that unlocks a lot of stuff.”

Samantha Fish - Kill Or Be Kind/Watch It Die - 12/11/2019 - Paste Studio ATL - Atlanta, GA - YouTube

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It seems you have a special bond with this guitar. Is that why you chose it for your GW cover shoot?

“The photo used for the GW cover was one of the photos we didn’t use for [Kill or Be Kind]. We probably took 300 pictures in that set, and I had a bunch of my guitars with me, and I was trying different outfits and guitars to go along with them.

“I have a bond with all my instruments, but everyone sees me with the SG. It’s all about the song and the application. I beat the hell out of them, so it’s nice to have some variation.”

We know you still own this guitar; do you have plans to record with it in the future?

“Fender gifted me one when we were doing the Kill or Be Kind album cycle, so I got an updated Jaguar, and that’s the one I’ve been bringing on the road. It’s Sea Foam Green, so I’ve been leaving the Olympic White one, the original one, at home. 

“I play around with it when I’m off, and I could possibly record with it again. It’s still sitting here for a reason; if I had a house fire, it would be one of the top 10 I’d grab.”

• Kill Or Be Kind is out now via Concord.