Though primarily a lead guitarist and backing vocalist, Shiflett has also fronted bands such as Jackson United and Chris Shiflett & the Dead Peasants. He has also made several solo albums; his third, Lost at Sea, was released in October 2023. In 2021, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Foo Fighters.
Shiflett was born in Santa Barbara, California. He has two older brothers, Mike, and Scott, who also became a musician – best known as the bassist of the punk rock band Face to Face. When Shiflett was 11, he started learning how to play the guitar. A promising young soccer player, Shiflett played with the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) from 1982–1984 under legendary coach Noemi Vazquez. Pressed to make a choice on his career, Shiflett joined his first band by the time he reached the age of 14. Shiflett is a supporter of Arsenal F.C.[3]
Shiflett began his music career in a band called Lost Kittenz with current members of Sugarcult. He later moved on to be the resident lead guitarist for the San Francisco Bay Areapunk rock band No Use for a Name. In 1999, when a friend told him that Guns N' Roses were auditioning for a guitarist, Shiflett asked the friend to get him an audition instead with the Foo Fighters, who after recording There Is Nothing Left to Lose as a trio held open auditions to hire another guitarist. Offered the job, and seeing an opportunity that he knew he could not pass up, he quickly parted ways with No Use for a Name to join Foo Fighters. His departure was abrupt, as his former band was about to head out on tour in support of their album More Betterness!.
Dave Grohl said part of his motivation to hire Shiflett was that he had a history in the underground punk scene, including opening for Grohl's former band Scream as bassist of the group Rat Pack. After being hired, Shiflett played on the tour for There Is Nothing Left to Lose, and all subsequent studio albums starting with One by One. Shiflett has noted several times that one of his favorite songs that he plays with Foo Fighters is "All My Life" from their fourth studio album One by One. He has said that he was afraid of being fired even before he started to play with the band, as previous guitarist Pat Smear had asked to return. Smear eventually did rejoin the band as a touring rhythm guitarist in 2005, and finally as a full-fledged fifth member in 2010.[4]
In addition to his full-time duties with Foo Fighters, Shiflett also plays in his own side-project, Jackson United, as well as Viva Death with his brother, Scott. For numerous projects, Shiflett performed under the name Jake Jackson. He played with the cover band Chevy Metal along with the late Foo Fighter Taylor Hawkins. They played songs from classic rock bands such as Black Sabbath, Queen, ZZ Top, and the Rolling Stones.
In 2009, Shiflett played in a band called The Real McCoy, which was founded by Andy McCoy, the guitarist of the former Finnish rock band Hanoi Rocks. The band split up after only three gigs.[5]
In 2010 Shiflett created a new country-oriented side project, Chris Shiflett & the Dead Peasants, releasing a self-titled album in July.[6] In 2011, Shiflett performed at the 2011 Wisconsin protests in Madison. He also performed at the Anti War rally for the A.N.S.W.E.R coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism). Shiflett performed at the opening rally at the one and a half mile march from Hollywood and Vine to Hollywood and Highland March 19, 2011.
Shiftlett at a 2017 solo concert
In 2013, Shiflett announced he would be releasing a new album with The Dead Peasants, called All Hat and No Cattle. The album of honky-tonk covers and original tracks came out on July 30, 2013, via SideOneDummy Records.
April 2017 saw Shiflett release West Coast Town, the first album to bare solely his name, which was a collection of original honky tonk tracks. A short North American tour accompanied the release.[7] A second solo album Hard Lessons was released on June 14, 2019. As with the first album Hard Lessons was produced by Dave Cobb.[7] His third solo album, Lost At Sea, was released on October 20, 2023. The album's announcement came with a run of solo dates through the UK and Ireland, which were completed in March 2023.[8]
From October 2013 to December 2022, Shiflett hosted the weekly podcast Walking the Floor with Chris Shiflett. 215 episodes of the show were produced in total. In June 2023, Shiflett announced a new guitar-based podcast entitled Shred with Shifty.
Shiflett uses various Gibsons[9][10] and Gretschs,[11] but over the past few years has been using mostly Fender Telecasters, Fender Telecaster Deluxes, and Fender Telecaster Thinlines. Shiflett also assembled some Telecaster Deluxes and Telecaster Thinlines out of Warmoth guitar parts with his tech. On the headstock of the Warmoth Telecasters, Shiflett's nickname "Shifty" replaces the Fender logo that would appear on a Telecaster created by Fender. He also has a signature Fender Telecaster Deluxe based on the Warmoth Telecasters, that is now his main guitar.
