Tony Hicks

In this live performance of "Look Through Any Window" on Sunday Night at The London Palladium, 1965, Tony Hicks plays a Vox Phantom XII, clearly seen at 1:35.

Throughout the mid-1960s, around 1965-1966 or 1967, Hicks mainly play the Vox Phantom XII, in several songs, and live/mimed TV performances. It is used briefly in Evolution with songs such as You Need Love and many more. Hicks would retire the guitar by the late 1960s, as he is not seen playing the Vox after 1968.

One of Tony Hicks most used guitars in the early days of The Hollies was this cherry red Gibson ES-345 with the pickup covers removed. It can be seen in colour here.

Tony actually have modified this Gibson model into a different color. In the mid 60s, around 1966, he painted the guitar in a Jet Black finish, still keeping the Bigsby Vibrato system. It is seen in numerous performances, especially in the early 70s and late 60s, some may see it in a concert with Mikael Rikfors, and some may see it in several TV performances in Sorry Suzanne.

In a promotional video of "Little Lover", the only original composition on The Hollies first LP Stay with The Hollies, Tony Hicks plays a Fender Jazzmaster. It can be seen at 1:06 and 1:35.

On a poster from Teenbeat magazine, Tony Hicks holds a Rickenbacker 360 in mapleglow. He can be seen using it live in Croatia in 1968 here.

Tony extensively used this Rickenbacker throughout 1968 to 1969, seen in performances of Jennifer Eccles, Dear Eloise, Carrie Anne, and many more. This guitar is also seen in a live performance in Yugoslavia (now Croatia). But after 1968, this Rickenbacker is not seen again. Possibly given away, or he traded it.

In this live show, Tony Hicks plays "Carrie Anne" on a Vox 240 Folk Twelve electric. It can be seen at 1:30.

This Vox 12 string was not really used much in performances and recording, but one notable song that extensively used this Vox 12 string is Bus Stop, with Tony's 12 string intro. Along with that, as mentioned above, it is used in Carrie Anne, in both recording and the BBC performance. But besides that, it is not really used, though it can be heard in For Certain Because, with the song Crusader.

Tony used some Les Paul Custom guitars. In 1967, he play Les Paul Custom with P-90 during recording video of "On A Carousel". In 1969, he used custom with three humbucker pickups. It can be found in some ”Sorry Suzanne” clips and BBC In Concert on3 May 1969.

In this footage of The Hollies recording On a Carousel in 1967, Tony Hicks appears to play a black Gibson Les Paul Standard fitted with P-90 single coil pickups. There are great shots of it at 0:44, 1:26 and 2:12.

The ownership of this guitar is unknown, as it is switched constantly between Graham and Tony. In several performances, Graham is seen playing this Gibson in the Beat Beat Beat performances, and in other several TV performances. Yet, we see Tony in the On A Carousel video playing the exact Gibson Les Paul. From my observation, both Tony and Graham switch instruments every now and then, to get different tones in their songs.

In this photograph of The Hollies in ABC Studios, 1967, Tony Hicks poses with a Gibson Les Paul Standard.

There was an interview (found on YouTube) where Tony was asked what his favorite guitar was, and he said that PRS is his favorite, but he recalled purchasing this Gibson Les Paul. The story goes that Tony was on tour and went into a Pawn Shop to have a look around, and with a TV sponsor sponsoring The Hollies, he is basically able to purchase anything, and with that, he saw this Gibson Les Paul, and the rest is history. Though, he did say afterward that he was not really fond of the Les Paul, and eventually gave it away, traded it, or sold it to get another guitar.

There are several performances where we can see Tony perform the Les Paul, in the Beat Beat Beat TV performance, on songs Bus Stop and On A Carousel, besides that, we can only see this guitar in pictures. But after the 60s, Tony is never seen playing a GIbson Les Paul Standard, only the Double Cut Special.

In this performance from 1968, Tony Hicks plays Graham Nash's customised Epiphone Texan. It is clearly seen at 0:45.

This customised Epiphone Texan belongd to Graham Nash as it is seen being played by him in numerous live/TV performances throughout 1967 and 1968. Tony would borrow this guitar for the Bobby Gentry show (video above), and would mime it to a backing track.

During this concert in Finland, 1969, Tony Hicks plays a Rickenbacker Rose Morrise 1997 (the export version of the 330 with an f-hole). It can be seen close-up at 8:00.

This guitar may only be a lent instrument, and can only be seen in their "live" performance in Finland around 1969. Tony plays this guitar extensively during this concert, but after this concert, the Rickenbacker Rose Morris is never seen in Tony's hands, only in this performance.

In the mid to late 1970s, Tony Hicks occasionally played a Gibson Explorer electric guitar, although it was a rare sight. He is known to have used this guitar possibly for only one show, suggesting it might have been a short-term acquisition or a borrowed instrument. This is evidenced by a user-uploaded photo.

In the early 70s, Tony acquired a Gibson Les Paul Special Double Cut electric guitar. The specifications of this guitar include double P90 pickups, a TV yellow finish, and dotted frets. Tony would use this guitar in several songs in the early 70s, one notable song is Long Cool Woman, in which he can be seen performing in several Long Cool Woman performances with Allan Clarke. Tony would use this guitar extensively throughout the 70s, but has brought it down and kept it from performances by the late 70s, preferring other guitars. But it made a comeback in the mid-late 80s with The Hollies Reunion with Eric Haydock and Graham Nash.

In this photogrpah from 1964, Tony Hicks poses with a Gretsch Country Gentleman.

In this 1969 performance, Tony Hicks plays a Gibson E-160E.

This guitar is still in the possession of Terry Sylvester, their high harmony vocalist and rhythm guitarist, as in other footage, Terry is the one playing this guitar. Only for this song, a 3 song set of Quit Your Lowdown Ways, I'll be Your Baby Tonight, and Settle Down, Tony used Terry's guitar to play the acoustic lead. But besides that, this may be the only time we see Tony play the Gibson J-160E

In this 1969 performance with The Hollies hit "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", Tony Hicks plays a sunburst Fender Precision bass with bridge and pickup covers. It is clearly seen at 0:33.

This bass is still owned by their bassist Bernie Calvert, but for the He Ain't Heavy performances, Bernie is switched onto piano, which will be a common change in future Hollies songs. Tony was lent this bass by Bernie for the He Ain't Heavy performances, in which Bernie would also lend his Rickenbacker 4000 bass in future performances.

Featured in this 1965 Vox ad. It was used live and on In the Hollies Style, as documented by this page from a website dedicated to the Vox AC-50. A photo of the amp during recording is shown.

Abbey Road, Studio 2, July/August 1964. The AC50 belonging to Tony Hicks of The Hollies. Recording session for the album "In the Hollies Style", released in November '64. The number of diamonds on the grille cloth shows this is a large box AC50 speaker cabinet.

Featured in this 1967 Vox ad.

Tony himself plays a Phantom twelve-string guitar through a 120 watt Solid State amplifier. The Hollies insist on taking their VOX equipment on every date.

Tony Hicks has been playing various PRS Custom 24 electric guitars since the mid-1980s. In an interview with All Access Pass, he mentioned that the PRS is his favorite guitar for both live performances and recordings. This is further illustrated in the video "The Hollies Remember - Tony Hicks Plays I'm Alive" by Eight to the Bar on YouTube.

In this picture, credited to a FanPop website, (https://www.fanpop.com/clubs/tony-hicks/images/44443519/title/tony-hicks-canada-c-1974-photo), Tony Hicks is playing a concert with a Gibson Les Paul Junior with a different pickup and pickguard attached to it. In the caption of the photo, it is credited that this performance is during a Canadian Tour sometime in 1974. It would be assumed that Tony still kept this guitar for a little while afterwards, but since then, no sightings (as of this moment) of the guitar has surfaced, most likely sold, stored, or traded.

Credits: https://www.fanpop.com/clubs/tony-hicks/images/40048403/title/tony-hicks-hollies-telecaster-guitar-photo

In this photo credited to a FanPop website, shows a TV performance of Tony Hicks playing a Fender Telecaster. This Telecaster has a Bigsby attachment which is fitted at the back of the guitar. Tony would use telecasters, mainly this white cream version, throughout the 1970s, with performances of Air That I Breathe, Son Of A Rotten Gambler, and many more. He would stop using the telecaster for awhile during the late 70s, and early 80s, but would bring it up again for a few more performances. As of now, this Telecaster's presence is unknown, most likely within Tony's collection.

In this TV performance of The Hollies playing Shot Down on TOTP, Tony Hicks can be seen playing with his Danelectro Baby Sitar. Tony would acquire this particular guitar in the early 70s, possibly 1971, and would use this song throughout the early to mid 70s, first appearing in The Baby. But Tony would use this guitar on other songs such as the one in the video. Though the guitar itself would not be used after the 70s, as in the 2000s, Tony is playing a more modern, hybrid version of the baby sitar guitar, with effects that allows the guitar to both sound like his banjo and a sitar, which also replaced the banjo that Tony would normally play.

What is not known within The Hollies is that Tony Hicks played more than 1 12 string guitar, in particular this Framus Hootenanny 12 string, that is complete with pickups and volume knobs. This Framus Hootenanny 12 string would appear in the live Beat Club performance of Look Through Any Window in 1966. The guitar would only so far appear in this particular Beat Club performance, as the guitar itself did not appear (as of now) in any promotional shoots or live performances after the Beat Club performance. This guitar though would also be present in Bus Stop as the lead guitar, according to 'manwithnoexpression' on his Bus Stop cover video.

In a promotional video for "The Air That I Breathe," Tony Hicks is seen playing a Rickenbacker 450/12 12-String Guitar in a natural finish. This appearance is unique to the video, as this specific guitar is not captured in other media featuring Hicks.

In a user-uploaded photo from an unidentified live performance, Tony Hicks is seen playing a Gibson Firebird I, notable for its single bridge pickup. It is believed that he acquired this guitar in the mid to late 1970s and used it occasionally on stage. Although it doesn't frequently appear in his later performances, it is thought to remain part of his collection. Hicks later favored a PRS guitar extensively from the 1990s onward.

Throughout the 70s, when Bernie would go on piano, Tony would fill him in on bass (mainly on He Ain't Heavy and I Can't Tell The Bottom From The Top). The bass that Tony is playing here in Germany, around 1976 (according to Getty Images), still belongs to Bernie, which is a Rickenbacker 4000 with no neck pickup and only a bridge pickup.

In the video for On A Carousel (around 0:05 for example), Tony can be seen plugged into a Vox Buckingham. The Vox solid state “MRB” feature (and distortion) can clearly be heard on that track on setting 3, as well as other tracks from the Hollies from 67 onwards. Tony having a Buckingham is very peculiar because as far as I could find, they were one of the Vox solid state amps that were for USA production, and not widely found in England at any point in time. You can get close to this tone with modern gear like the White Pedal or Go Rocky Go, which both mimic 60s Vox solid state amps.

In the YouTube video titled "The Hollies - Stop Stop Stop," Tony Hicks is seen using the Gold Tone Cc-Ot Cripple Creek Banjo Clawhammer Package Vintage Brown during the performance of the song "Stop, Stop, Stop." This video, uploaded by MasterChristian82, provides visual proof of Hicks employing this specific banjo.