Содержание выпуска: July 2019 — Guitarist

As I was idly playing the Jimmy Page ‘Mirror’ Tele reviewed on p74, I felt that familiar sinking feeling yet again. “Oh, no…” I thought. “Not another guitar I’d really quite like to own..” Yes, we’ve all felt those first heady effects of GAS kick in. First, you feel a flush of euphoria, then your judgment starts to become impaired as you find yourself thinking things like, “Well, I guess I can probably afford it. If I squint a bit at my bank statement and sell a few things first, then why not? The family will understand–what do they want with going on holiday anyway?” You get the idea, I’m sure. At such moments, it’s wise to put the guitar down and walk away for a period of mature reflection…

Nowadays, it’s dead easy to get your name on a range of guitars. Throw some coin at a factory in China; commit to a container load of gear; get your John Hancock silk-screened on the headstocks. That, in a nutshell, is the biography of many guitar brands you’ll find fattening up the stock online or at your local music store. Of course, we’re not saying there’s owt wrong with that approach. If the punters get what they want, it’s all good. It’s just that we tend to get more excited when we encounter a new guitar range that comes with a juicy backstory. Here’s the synopsis on newcomer Finlayson. This fledgling brand is a collaboration between respected Scottish luthier Billy Finlayson and prolific Canadian manufacturer Robert Godin, with the results…

John Petrucci nuts will likely already know that the guitarist’s prog metal beat group Dream Theater was originally called Majesty. That, and the fact that he’s been a Music Man endorsee for a good 20 years or so. In fact, so fertile has his relationship with the California-based brand been that he’s regularly spotted in the company of more new models than Rod Stewart. The latest release is an addition to his Indonesian-made Majesty guitar. This one, the ‘X’, brings a couple of new finishes to the existing Majesty range: a toothsome Pearl White and the princely Purple Metallic you see splashed all over these pages. A good excuse, in other words, to catch up with a guitar that promises plenty. To bring you up to speed, the Majesty range…

PRICE: £1,999 ORIGIN: USA TYPE: Valve preamp, power amp, valve rectifier OUTPUT: 12W RMS VALVES: 2x 12AX7, 2x 6V6, 1x 5Y3 DIMENSIONS: 480 (w) x 406 (h) x 239mm (d) WEIGHT (kg/lb): 15/33 CABINET: Pine LOUDSPEAKER: 1x12” Eminence CS Signature CHANNELS: 1 CONTROLS: Volume, Tone, Speed, Intensity FOOTSWITCH: Single-button footswitch toggles tremolo effect ADDITIONAL FEATURES: External speaker jack, Filson twill cover OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: None Fender Musical Instruments EMEA 01342 331700 www.fender.com PROS Superlative clean and natural overdrive tones; fabulous tremolo effect CONS A lot of money for a 12-watt valve combo, but in this case it’s not hard to justify…

Guitarist was saddened to hear of the passing of UFO rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Paul Raymond, who died from a heart attack on 13 April, aged 73. UFO had only recently completed the UK leg of their farewell Last Orders tour on 4 April at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Raymond joined the band in 1976 to play alongside Michael Schenker on the classic Lights Out album the following year. Before UFO, he worked with blues bands Chicken Shack and Savoy Brown and would go on to play in the post-UFO Michael Schenker Group for their second album, MSG. Devin Townsend toured the UK for a run of solo shows last month with his first signature acoustic model by Prestige. The Empath ($2,699), named after Townsend’s latest album, is a dreadnought…

G7TH ULTRALIGHT CAPO £9.98 We’ve long been fans of G7th capos, especially their rapid cam-lock action Performance 3 model that enables quick changes of position. But if you just want something to tuck into your pocket for occasional use, it’s worth checking out G7th’s Ultralight, which weighs only eight grams. Thanks to its skeletal form made from composite materials, it’s one of the lightest capos on the market. It’s a little more fiddly to fit than the more expensive G7th designs, with a ‘click-and-twist’ action where you notch the bar into place (that’s the ‘click’), then adjust the knob to tighten it to the fretboard (which is the ‘twist’ bit), but it’s still straightforward enough. It’s suitable for both electric and acoustic, including nylon-string guitars and, best of all, costs…

’TRAY CATS I thought your May issue (445) featuring 70 years of the Telecaster was the best yet. As a Telecaster picker and R&D engineer, I can understand the simplicity of this guitar along with the ease of production Leo was after. However, what was the purpose of the ‘ashtray’ or string cover? The press for this drawn steel cover would have been an expensive tool and, let’s face it, you have to take it off to replace strings. And also, where would Johnny Cash be without Luther Perkins’‘boom-chick’ rhythm? I play rockabilly with my ’52 Squier Tele, which I modified with top-loaded strings (easier to replace strings and more twangability), brass nut and four-position switch that gives a fatter, wide humbucker sound in 4th position. I have plans to…

What was the first gig you played and how did it go? “My first public gig to a real audience? The Allman Brothers. I sat in with them when I was 19 years old. A couple of the band members saw me playing in clubs in New York City, like jazz clubs. But, technically, my first gigs were playing to five or six people in little clubs when I moved to NYC [from Australia] at 18. I’d been playing bass for maybe a year and I was determined to study all the time by playing live – the best kind of study.” Describe your current stage rig… “In terms of basses, I have a 1969 P-Bass in Pelham Blue, that’s my main bass. Then I play a Harmony, I’ve no…

Most of the songs on Ariel’s new album have been written for over a year. When the guitarist was over in the UK last spring, many of them had already featured in his live set and it was a spur of the moment phone call while Ariel was in London that finally set the wheels moving for getting them recorded. “I made the decision to call my friend Murray Pulver, who I co-wrote a few songs with,” he tells us. “I said, ‘Listen, man, if we don’t do this, I’m possibly never going to do it. Let’s do this record. Do you want to produce it? I’m going to book out some studio time.’” Ariel had around 10 or 11 songs ready to go, but strenuous self-editing in the studio…

Jimmy Page is as busy as ever. When Guitarist catches up with him, he’s bright-eyed and practically bouncing with excitement. He’s just loaned some of his most prized guitars to an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum Of Art in New York City (including his full stage rig from Led Zeppelin’s 1977 tour), he’s contributed new interviews to a forthcoming documentary about the band helmed by American Epic director Bernard MacMahon, and, he says, he’s been working on new music. But his latest project – which the guitar legend says has been all-consuming over the past several years – is a unique collaboration with US guitar manufacturer Fender: a soup-to-nuts recreation of his fabled 1959 ‘Dragon’ Telecaster, gifted to him by his longtime friend Jeff Beck upon joining The Yardbirds in…

PRICE: £799 (inc gigbag) ORIGIN: Indonesia TYPE: Double-cutaway, carved-top solidbody electric BODY: Mahogany with figured maple veneer over maple top NECK: Mahogany, wide-fat profile, glued-in SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”) NUT: Friction reducing FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, abalone ‘old-school’ bird inlays, 254mm (10”) radius FRETS: 22, medium HARDWARE: PRS Stoptail with brass inserts, PRS designed vintage-style tuners with black keystone buttons STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52.5mm ELECTRICS: PRS TCI ‘S’ Treble and Bass humbuckers, 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, 2x mini-toggle switches for independent pickup single coil/humbucking modes, master volume and master tone OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: See Rivals (p89) LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISHES: Fire Red (as reviewed), Amber and Aqua PROS Improved top carve, bridge and single-coil switching; the best SE yet? It’s a lot of guitar for the money CONS No vibrato or…

The Student Edition was originally a slab-body, no-maple zone because Paul Reed Smith believed those features would impact on the sales of USA models, yet the range’s latest is the closest so far to a ‘copy’ of PRS’s core models. “It’s a fine-line process,” states Jack Higginbotham, PRS COO (and prime mover behind both the SE and S2 lines), diplomatically. “It started with the new headstock logo [originally seen on the 2017 SE models]. I wanted to say we’re the same company. We’re not a different company, so I wanted the Paul Reed Smith logo with the SE as a suffix. But, you have to be careful not to get too close. “Yet the other side of that line is that if you make an excellent guitar that’s an inspirational…

PRICE: £4,295 (inc case) ORIGIN: USA TYPE: 000-14 fret acoustic TOP: VTS Sitka spruce BACK/SIDES: Indian rosewood MAX RIM DEPTH: 101.6mm MAX BODY WIDTH: 381mm NECK: Mahogany SCALE LENGTH: 632.5mm (24.9”) TUNERS: Waverly gold butterbean open gear NUT/WIDTH: Bone/44.5mm FINGERBOARD: Ebony FRETS: 20 BRIDGE/SPACING: Ebony/54.7mm ELECTRICS: Optional WEIGHT (kg/lb): 1.25/2.75 OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: The Modern Deluxe Series includes the D-18 (reviewed here) and the D-28 and OM-28 (both £4,295) LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISH: Nitrocellulose gloss (satin neck) PROS Fabulous good looks and a distinct tonal upgrade CONS Traditionalists might flinch at the shock of the new, but we’d urge them to give this model a demo…

1 What was the first pedal you built and how did the design come about? “The first design I sold was a strange feedback loop pedal. I built about a dozen and sold them on Facebook. Word got out and I moved on to making fuzzes. Once I was selling quite a few, my fiancée suggested I put a name to it. ‘Zander’ comes from the second half of my first name [Alexander] and the first pedal I sold under the Zander brand was the SiClone. It was inspired by the Fuzz Face, but it has extra knobs that effectively ‘break’ the circuit to create cool oscillations and sub-octaves.” 2 What do you think makes Zander Circuitry unique? “Although some of our pedals are based on classic fuzz and distortion…

THE BACKGROUND DAVID THOMPSON, GUITARIST READER VIA EMAIL Hi all, wonder if you can help me as I’m a little stuck, which is unusual for me. I’m running my pedalboard through a Peavey 5150 head through the send and return channels on the back of the amp. Not a problem there – all the effects work great. But I recently tried to add a Dunlop Cry Baby into the loop and it sounds weak and uninspiring. I’ve tried it at the front and back and it’s the same, but when I run it in the conventional way out of the front of the amp it works perfectly well. Any ideas? THE QUESTIONS 1 WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT SORTS OF EFFECTS LOOPS? 2 WHY DOES MY CRY…

Analog Man Beano Boost The Beano Boost is inspired by Clapton’s exemplary ‘Beano’ album ’Burst tone gleaned from a cranked Marshall model 1962. Much like the original unit, this pedal is point-to-point hand-wired and features an NOS germanium transistor. In addition to boost level control, a three-way switch enables further tone sculpting. www.buyanalogman.com BBE Bohemian Treble Booster With wider component tolerances than today’s high-spec pedals, original Rangemasters can be inconsistent sounding – transistor values and bias often differ, unit to unit, resulting in a variety of desirable, albeit fixed, tones. This Brian May-inspired pedal has a useful bias control, dialling in an array of authentic sounds. www.bbesound.com ThroBak Strange Master With a nod to Sabbath’s Master Of Reality, the Strange Master is a bells and whistles booster sporting hand-tested germanium…

JIMI HENDRIX Band Of Gypsys Showcasing the more funky side to Hendrix’s playing, laced with lots of chord fragments and, of course, lots of well-phrased solos, this album was recorded live, so you really get to hear Jimi play, free of overdubs and production tricks. On tracks such as Who Knows, Power To Love and Message To Love, you can hear Jimi using pentatonics, chord inversions and tightly arranged riffs, viewing the fretboard in the same way as our examples above. JOHN MAYER Where The Light Is Although this live album showcases a few sides of John’s musical style, it’s his playing on tracks such as Wait Until Tomorrow, Who Did You Think I Was and the cover of Bold As Love that clearly display his affection for Jimi’s playing…

Right now, somewhere in the world, a musician is firing up a Marshall. They might be a rock legend in a boutique Los Angeles studio, rolling up the gain on their vintage JCM800; a rising British hip-hop producer digging fresh digital tones from a CODE combo with their laptop or smartphone; or an about-to-blow female punk band relying on their Studio and Origin valve amps to get them through a tour. Genre, geography and generation: none of these things matter when it comes to the products embossed with that iconic white signature. We are all Marshall. Relying on past glories is a dangerous game. With no stake in the modern music scene, most heritage firms trumpet their distant golden age, ancient products and long-gone endorsers. Marshall’s relationship with its own…

Indestructible is not the first word you’d traditionally associate with valve amps. As any hard-gigging young band will tell you, the demanding slog of the modern circuit – with its knocks, prangs, spills and intense studio sessions – can leave lesser-made valve models in pieces. But not if you’re plugging into a Marshall. “It’s like Lemmy said,” reflects Product Director Luke Green. “Old Marshalls never die, they just blow your head off. And it’s true. One of Marshall’s biggest competitors globally is ourselves, and that’s because our products just go on and on. That’s part of our reputation. We’re always thinking of the bands in vans, doing it for real.” From the start, when Pete Townshend demanded an amp that could survive The Who’s auto-destruction, Jim Marshall lived by the…

Back in issue 436, we looked at Patrick James Eggle’s single-cut Macon Junior. Except, as we pointed out, in classic guitar terminology the (Les Paul) Junior has only one pickup: Patrick’s had two. In truth, that Junior has a more simplistic air with its slab mahogany body and open-pore finish and, let’s face it, Junior-and-a-half doesn’t quite do it on the name front. But don’t despair as the latest model to come off of the PJE workbench is this correctly named Macon Special – a souped-up version of the Junior. It’s the latest in an increasingly long line of electrics since Patrick turned his back on the world of acoustics to build electric solidbodies. In what is undoubtedly a loss to the serious acoustic player, us electric players have been…

PRICE: £1,399 (inc TRIC case) ORIGIN: Canada TYPE: 000-size electro-acoustic TOP: Select pressure-tested solid spruce with Adirondack spruce bracing, gloss finish BACK/SIDES: Solid Indian rosewood MAX RIM DEPTH: 102mm (4") MAX BODY WIDTH: 396mm (15.5") NECK: Mahogany with slotted headstock and satin finish SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5") TUNERS: Gold Sta-Tite NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech TUSQ/43.6mm FINGERBOARD: Richlite, small offset mother-of-pearl inlays, 406mm (16") radius FRETS: 21, medium BRIDGE/SPACING: Richlite with TUSQ saddle/54mm WEIGHT(kg/Ib): 2.12/4.11 PICKUP/PREAMP: Fishman Sonitone with soundhole mounted volume and tone controls RANGE OPTIONS: 100 Series D-100RCE dreadnought in Natural (£1,399) LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISH: Vintage Burst (as reviewed) GuitarGuitar 0800 456 1959 www.guitarguitar.co.uk PROS Jaw-dropping looks, all-solid woods, that fantastic plump neck shape: the 000-100RS excels on every level CONS There’s nothing to see here. We’re in love…

PRICE: £1,149 (inc gigbag) ORIGIN: Indonesia TYPE: Double-cutaway solid body electric guitar BODY: Mahogany NECK: 3-piece mahogany, set-in SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”) NUT/WIDTH: Graphite/42mm FINGERBOARD: Rosewood with shield inlays, 400mm (16”) radius FRETS: 24, medium jumbo HARDWARE: Black chrome ‘Modern Tremolo’ 6-saddle floating bridge with push-in arm, locking tuners STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm ELECTRICS: 2x Sterling humbuckers, master volume with push/push 12dB boost, master tone, 3-way pickup selector mini toggle switch WEIGHT (kg/lb): 2.9/6.5 OPTIONS: No RANGE OPTIONS: Majesty X 7-string (£1,249) in Purple Metallic and Pearl White. The existing Majesty (in Arctic Dream, Stealth Black and Crimson Red) also costs £1,149; the 7-string in Arctic Dream is £1,249. All models include a gigbag LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISHES: Purple Metallic (as reviewed), Pearl White Strings And Things 01273 440442 www.sterlingbymusicman.com PROS…

Our Guitarist Of The Year competition is now open for 2019 and we’re delighted to reveal not only a new category this year but also some of the star judges who will help to choose the finalists. In addition to last year’s Guitarist, Young Guitarist and Acoustic Guitarist Of The Year, there will now be a Bass Guitarist category in our search for new talent. Mark King (Level 42), Stu Hamm (Joe Satriani, Steve Vai), Joe Dart (Vulfpeck) and Robert Trujillo (Metallica) have been confirmed as judges for the video submission stage. For Guitarist Of The Year, we’re delighted to announce Toto and session icon Steve Lukather, Dream Theater’s John Petrucci and Tosin Abasi of Animals As Leaders as judges, with virtuoso Andy McKee confirmed as the first judge for…

Like many others, I love playing the never-ending game of pedalboard Tetris, and so I’ve recently welcomed in a couple of new toys. The brief I’d set myself was to find a pedalboard that would work for the artists I’d been booked to play for over the next couple of months. First up was a BBC broadcast for Imelda May, at the London Palladium. We also played with The Rolling Stone’s Ronnie Wood, who did two guest songs with us, so I’d need versatility as well as a proper loud rock ’n’ roll sound. Next up, a gig that is being recorded for the wonderful soul singer Beverley Knight, plus a similar engagement for Paloma Faith, in a band run by UK jazz stalwart Guy Barker. Obviously, there are a…

Even the most ‘rock ’n’ roll’ among us have probably marvelled on occasion when hearing the harmonic/chordal possibilities coaxed out of a guitar by the likes of Joe Pass, Barney Kessel, Wes Montgomery and Tal Farlow. While this feature doesn’t claim to be the last word in how to achieve this, it will hopefully give you some interesting information to consider – not just for chord playing, but in note choices for embellishments and solos, even over blues-rock powerchords. Though the underlying chord may be relatively plain and simple, there is usually scope for adding melodic interest by superimposing more harmonically detailed ideas. Even the minor pentatonic/blues scale contains a b 7th, which is not present in your average blues accompaniment or powerchords! We are simply extending that principle a…

A new book, Led Zeppelin: Denmark 1968-1970, documents Led Zep’s early years, including their first ever gig as The New Yardbirds in Copenhagen in 1968. Teenage photographer Jørgen Angel was there at the very beginning of the band’s live journey and ended up befriending them, capturing them on and off stage whenever they passed through his home city in Denmark. There’s plenty of unseen photography of their landmark first two years here, with an accompanying narrative from music historian Søren Vangsgaard. Led Zeppelin: Denmark 1968-70, by Jorgen Angel & Søren Vangsgaard, is out now, £20, published by Flying V Books…

PRICE: £2,349 (inc case) ORIGIN: USA TYPE: Single-cut, bolt-on electric BODY: 2-piece ash NECK: Maple, Jimmy Page Custom ‘Thin D’ profile, bolt-on SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”) NUT/WIDTH: Bone/42.2mm FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, white dot inlays, 184mm (7.25”) radius FRETS: 21, vintage HARDWARE: Vintage-Style Tele bridge with 3 threaded steel rod saddles (top-load/strings-through-body), Pure Vintage ‘Fender Deluxe’ tuners STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54.5mm ELECTRICS: Fender Jimmy Page Custom ’59 Tele single coils (neck and bridge), 3-position level pickup selector, master volume and tone WEIGHT(kg/lb): 3.47/7.63 OPTIONS: None, but case candy includes 8 circular stick-on mirrors, a black coiled cable, vintage-style ‘stained glass’ strap and a custom Certificate Of Authenticity RANGE OPTIONS: Closest vintage-spec-style Teles are American Original ’50s (£1,599) and ’60s (£1,689) LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISHES: White Blonde only – gloss nitro (body and neck)…

34 years on, the PRS solidbody recipe of a double-cutaway, carved maple top, glued-in neck guitar remains pretty unique. Yes, there are copyists: Fame in Europe makes a tidy guitar and there are entry-level options from the likes of Vintage and many more. In the high-end boutique world, PRS’s influence is far-reaching; Nik Huber is a good example. But, as ever, PRS’s main competition is actually itself. There are two Custom 22s (standard and with piezo), and four Custom 24s (standard, with piezo, with Floyd and in the 24-08 configuration). The McCarty, the only other Stoptail-equipped model, comes in its classic two-control format or with four controls, two-piece bridge and shoulder-placed toggle as the 594. Similar switching to the Paul’s Guitar is used on the 408 and the 509, and…

PRICE: £3,699 (inc case) ORIGIN: USA TYPE: Double-cutaway, carved-top solidbody electric BODY: 1-piece ‘lightweight’ mahogany with figured maple top NECK: 1-piece dense mahogany, pattern profile, glued-in SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”) NUT: Bone FINGERBOARD: Honduras rosewood, imitation ivory medium brushstroke bird inlays, 254mm (10”) radius FRETS: 22, medium HARDWARE: PRS Stoptail with brass inserts, PRS Phase III locking tuners (w/brass posts and faux bone buttons) STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52.5mm ELECTRICS: PRS TCI Treble and Bass humbuckers, 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, 2x mini-toggle switches for independent pickup single coil/humbucking modes, master volume and master tone OPTIONS: 10 top/hybrid hardware (£4,299). Artist package (£4,969) RANGE OPTIONS: See Rivals (p89) LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISHES: Copper (as reviewed), Black Gold Burst, Faded Blue Jean, Charcoal, Fire Red Burst – all high-gloss nitrocellulose PROS Typically high-quality…

PRICE: £3,650 (inc case) ORIGIN: USA TYPE: Dreadnought TOP: VTS Sitka spruce BACK/SIDES: Mahogany MAX RIM DEPTH: 124mm MAX BODY WIDTH: 395mm NECK: Mahogany SCALE LENGTH: 645mm (25.4”) TUNERS: Waverly gold butterbean open gear NUT/WIDTH: Bone/44.5mm FINGERBOARD: Ebony FRETS: 20 BRIDGE/SPACING: Ebony/54.7mm ELECTRICS: Optional WEIGHT (kg/lb): 1.25/2.75 OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: See 000-28 LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISH: Nitrocellulose gloss (satin neck) PROS Good, solid, all-round support for singer-songwriters, plus some new twists along the way CONS Again, the traditionalists might resist the modern touches…

Plenty of pedals aim to recreate the Fender ‘Tweed’ sound. Some even have paint-jobs to reflect that look. However, Brantone Electronics has gone one step further with a pedal that’s actually covered with the same tweed material that lumps together that particular period of Fender amps. And it looks great! If you’re in need of a recap of just what a Tweed amp is, the name relates to Fender amps from about 1948 to 1960 when they had a varnished stripy cloth covering that resembled tweed. The covering generally changed to Tolex in 1960, although a couple of amps continued the tweed look for a few years after that. The main desirability of a Tweed amp, though, is its touch-sensitive playability and a sound that transitions easily from clean, breaking…

It’s common knowledge that back in 1968 ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons got to spend a lot of time with Jimi Hendrix while Billy’s then band, The Moving Sidewalks, were opening support on The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s first headlining US tour. One thing that came out of that was Billy’s introduction to octave fuzz in the form of Roger Mayer’s Octavia. That octave fuzz effect became a favourite and he still uses it to this day together with a seven-band graphic EQ to sculpt the tone. Now, endorsed by Billy Gibbons, Jim Dunlop/MXR has combined both the octave fuzz (with circuitry based on its Jimi Hendrix Octavio fuzz) and a graphic EQ in a single pedal. The Siete Santos appears to take its styling cues from a late-60s Roger Mayer pedal…

Tucked away amid the anonymous industrial units surrounding the Bob Hope Airport in Hollywood, some sleek machines are taking flight. These ones have strings rather than wings, admittedly, but they look fit to break the sound barrier nonetheless. The ESP Guitar Company has always built guitars to an exacting standard, but the instruments built at its unique US workshop positively glow. Stepping inside, we admire the deep, lustrous, mirror-flat finishes over quilted maple that adorn the finished guitars on display. Looking more closely, we also note the perfectly finished frets and sculpted heels that add function to the beautiful form of these high-spec instruments. It’s no surprise, then, that the cadre of luthiers working at the ESP USA workshop are very proud of their work. But that pride is based…

TREE HUGGERS I have a Fender Stratocaster and I’m in love with this guitar despite the fact the tuning isn’t that stable. I’ve had the top nut professionally set up, but I think the problem is drag caused by the string trees on the headstock. My question is, what happens if I remove them? W Semple, via email String trees increase the angle at which some of the strings pass over the guitar’s top nut. Without them, those strings – usually the high E and B – would pop right out of their slots when you pluck them. So, yeah, you need the trees, man. We do feel your pain. Those metal clips can cause the strings to drag, which results in tuning problems. That’s why you see some versions…

Difficulty 5-10 mins plus Tutor Phil Hilborne | Gear used: Gibson ES-339, Fender ‘EJ’ Stratocaster, Gibson SG, PRS Custom 24, Gibson ‘Beano’ Les Paul. Marshall JCM2555 ‘Jubilee’, Two Notes Torpedo, Marshall JMP-1. Xotic AC Booster and Friedman BE-OD. Some stereo reverb added in the mix via Logic X  IT SEEMS TO ME that repeating lead-guitar motifs, riffs or licks are often wrongly looked at as being musical ‘filler’ or, in other words, as being something you can play while you’re thinking about where to go next! I can see the logic in this assumption and agree that this certainly does happen sometimes. However, on the flip side of that argument you have guitarists such as Chuck Berry, Angus Young, Gary Moore, Mark Knopfler and tons of others who have used…

Electrics BMG Red Special with padded gigbag. Home use only, in immaculate condition. £400. Call Steve on 07946 386314 Acoustics Lowden O-22, 2014, vgc, home use only. £1,950. Call Del on 07818 093844 or email cainresidence@gmail.com. Essex Martin D-28 Marquis guitar with 1937 Sunburst top,with TKL case,as new condition. £2,995. Call Ray on 01646 682112. Pembroke, South Wales Martin 000-28 EC, 2001, good condition, home use only. £2,350. Call Del on 07818 093844 or email cainresidence@gmail.com. Essex Peerless Journeyman jazz guitar and hard case, twin pickups, natural finish with gold hardware. £650. Call Dick on 01344 772203 or email robinsonuk@compuserve.com. Berkshire Bass Gibson 1962 EB-3 short-scale, cherry, excellent condition though OSSC is distressed – no handle. £4,995. Contact 07773 276815. Cumbria Gibson Thunderbird ’76, Sunburst, OHSC, two owners since it…

Inspiration can strike anywhere. The Marshall Studio series made its world debut at the 2019 NAMM trade show in California, with Dan Hawkins of The Darkness spraying molten valve-driven riffage over an open-mouthed music press. The flashpoint for this small-but-mighty range of heads, combos and cabinets came two years earlier, at the Music China event in Shanghai. Manning the Marshall booth, it wasn’t unusual for Product Director Luke Green to meet amp enthusiasts pitching ideas. But this one was different. “This guy came up to me,” remembers Green. “He was a musician, not an industry guy. And he asked if we could bring out a JCM800 that was only 20 watts. He said that he had two 100-watt heads and stacks in his house, but they were too loud to…

Since 1962, Marshall has been the amp choice of the guitar gods. But while we’ll never tire of the crunch and sneer of Marshall-powered classics like Back In Black and Appetite For Destruction, the British brand is the sound of here and now, providing the guts behind modern rock’s most exciting new albums. Bursting out of the Sheffield rock scene with 2006’s debut album Count Your Blessings, Bring Me The Horizon have shaken the planet with their heartfelt, hooky and seismically heavy brand of metal. And while this year’s chart-topping sixth album Amo advances their savage early sound with flavours of pop-rock and electronica, guitarist Lee Malia tells us he can always rely on his JCM800 and JTM-45 to deliver the goods. What’s it like being in Bring Me The…

PRICE: £3,100 (inc case) ORIGIN: UK TYPE: Single-cutaway solidbody electric BODY: 1-piece slab mahogany with thin maple cap NECK: Roasted maple w/ ‘Fat-C’ profile SCALE LENGTH: 625.5mm (24.625”) NUT/WIDTH: Bone/42.9mm FINGERBOARD: Santos rosewood, 6.4mm clay dot inlays, 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 22, medium (Jescar 55090) HARDWARE: ABM 3205 aluminium one-piece wrapover bridge, Gotoh SD90 Kluson style tuners — aged nickel plating STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52mm ELECTRICS: Mojo Mojotron humbucker (bridge), Mojo soapbar single coil (neck). 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, individual pickup volume and tone controls (with coil-split pull switch on bridge tone) WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.26/7.17 OPTIONS: H/H pickup configuration RANGE OPTIONS: The Macon Junior kicks off at £2,990. The carved maple top Macon Single Cut starts at £4,200 LEFT-HANDERS: Yes, to order FINISHES: Faded Tobacco Burst (as reviewed), Island…

PRICE: £549 ORIGIN: Canada TYPE: Dreadnought-size electro-acoustic with cutaway TOP: Solid spruce with Adirondack spruce bracing BACK/SIDES: Laminated red wild cherry MAX RIM DEPTH: 123mm (4.8") MAX BODY WIDTH: 395.6mm (15.5") NECK: Mahogany SCALE LENGTH: 630mm (24.84") TUNERS: Chrome die-cast NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech TUSQ/ 43.6mm FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, dot inlays, 406mm (16") radius FRETS: 21, medium BRIDGE/SPACING: Rosewood with TUSQ saddle/54mm WEIGHT(kg/Ib): 2.18/4.13 PICKUP/PREAMP: Fishman Sonitone with volume and tone controls RANGE OPTIONS: Other 5 Series models include the 00-5NE and C-5NE electro-acoustic nylon-strings (both £599) and the F-5CE folk-size (£549) LEFT-HANDERS: No FINISH: Aged Burst (as reviewed), Natural PROS Killer playability and build quality should own the mid-range electro market; neck profile is boss CONS It doesn’t look all that different from a regular Simon & Patrick, Seagull etc…

Rockin’ The Blues 4 June O2 Forum, Kentish Town, London Following last year’s debut showcase of Provogue Records’ blues rock talent featuring Eric Gales, Lance Lopez, Gary Hooey and Quinn Sullivan, the 2019 edition hits London next month and it doesn’t disappoint. Jonny Lang makes a welcome return to the UK alongside a more familiar face to our shores – the irrepressible Walter Trout. Rounding out the trio is rising British star Kris Barras for what should be a bill packed with blues power. Though Lang will be part of a five-piece, he’s keeping it economical on the gear front. “I haven’t had a new pedal on my ’board in a long time,” he confesses. “I stick to the same stuff I’ve always used: my Les Paul or Telecaster with…

Among the bands I play with is Bristol quintet Furlined. Fronted by writer-guitarist Neil Crossley, they’ve had skirmishes with success, four-star reviews in Mojo, etc. The guitarist I replaced was ex-Bush axeman Nigel Pulsford (who also writes Guitarist’s Backtracking column), so it’s a proper setup with talented players. But being ‘on the Bristol scene’ means mainly pub gigs. There’s always a sound engineer and PA, but it’s essentially still a pub gig. I’ve tried various setups including Strat, Tele or Les Paul into a Blues Junior or Deluxe Reverb with a small pedalboard. For our last gig, though, I was feeling reckless and decided to use my Telecaster direct into my Matchless, with no pedals. Just the thought of it made me sweat, like the panic of no sat-nav, even…

LUTHIERY BEYOND LIMITS I just read the article about the Kauer Starliner guitar (issue 446). Its shape looked quite familiar and your article referred correctly to Claudio and Claudia Pagelli. I would love to learn more about them and other real high-end builders, such as the Luthiers Beyond Limits group. All these builders produce one-offs or extremely small series of guitars, so they normally can only be seen/touched/played at conventions. Is there anything in that direction planned? Stephan Meier, via email Hi Stephan, we’ve featured the fabulous Pagelli guitars in our Wishlist section in recent years, which is really the place in the mag set aside for out-and-out exotica and bespoke guitars. Every time we go to NAMM, the area featuring high-end, small-volume luthiers is always fascinating to walk through…

Edgelarks Feather Dragonfly Roots Mesmerising folk-inspired mystic imagery We’ve featured an album from slide/resonator maestro Phillip Henry in these pages before, but here he forms one half of the duo with banjo/fiddle player Hannah Martin, collectively known as Edgelarks. This is their second album under this particular band name and they have already won plaudits from the likes of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. But there’s something more than traditional music going on here. With influences as diverse as Indian classical music and 1970s Laurel Canyon songwriters, it’s a breath of fresh air and something truly different – a difficult trick to pull off in these days where a fusion of styles is taken as the norm. Rich, hypnotic and immensely satisfying. [DM] Standout track: Where I Stand For…

The Rolling Stones Get Yer Ya–Ya’s Out! Decca 1970 Recorded over two nights at New York’s Madison Square Gardens towards the end of their short American tour in November 1969, this superb album captures The Rolling Stones at their most urgent and vital. Touring for the first time since 1967, and with new guitar player Mick Taylor onboard, they manage to banish all the troubles that had dogged them over the last few years (drug busts, the British press’s scandalised reports of their behaviour, and the departure and death of founder member Brian Jones) and invest their performances with a harder, dirtier, driving sound. Gutsy music from the seamy underbelly of the city! Mick Taylor, at 20, already a veteran of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, was the perfect replacement for Jones.…

Close your eyes and he could still be with us. That inimitable creaky door of a voice. That unforgettable bob-and-weave guitar work. For JJ Cale’s widow and former bandmate, Christine Lakeland, it was an emotional wrench to embark on Stay Around, the new posthumous album whose 15 songs were foraged from the demos left behind by the late legend upon his 2013 death. “But when I found the title track,” she recalls, “it floored me. I thought this music should be heard, y’know?” For Cale fans, this material is an unexpected pleasure: a few last shards of genius to hold close. Thankfully, for Lakeland, there are other mementos to keep her late husband’s memory alive. Sprawled across the couple’s South California home – and in storage nearby – lies Cale’s…

FENDER JIMMY PAGE MIRROR TELECASTER £2,349 If you’re a Jimmy Page guitar-playing acolyte, there’s a good chance you’ll have already placed your order for this USA guitar along with its Mexican-made dragon-painted version due to be released in the middle of the year. All good. But aside from homage, what is this Telecaster bringing to the table? Made in Corona, it tops Fender’s Artist Series and is the most expensive guitar produced by Fender outside of the Custom Shop – period. It does come with some case candy, including eight round stick-on mirrors, but that only goes so far in sweetening the pill and, along with its signature status, obviously adds to the cost. It’s classed as a ’59-spec vintage-style Tele, but Fender is a little unsure of exactly what…

In a classic ‘brain meets brawn’ story that began in 1994 in the small English town of Henley-on-Thames, Lovetone has gained near mythical status as a milestone on the road of effects pedal evolution. Merging art and technology to a degree of originality accomplished by few, Lovetone’s intrepid arrival during the ‘birth of boutique’ in the mid-90s was welcomed with open arms and nurtured by a music culture that was ripe for sonic experimentation. Lovetone pedals are coveted now more than ever for their inimitable (and often unpredictable) sounds – their virtues being extolled by sincere word of mouth among a cult following of guitarists, producers and engineers. Similarly, in the late 90s as the Lovetone buzz steadily gathered momentum with each new unveiling, the company grew organically and injected…

While both versions of Paul’s Guitar outwardly have the same controls and functions, remove the backplates and they’re noticeably different. The USA model, with its master volume, master tone and three-way toggle switch, has evolved from the original designs that initially had a pre-set tone switch (the Sweet switch) instead of a tone control, and a five-way rotary pickup switch that pre-dated the use of a three-way toggle. The pots here are 500k, the tone cap is 0.033 microfarad, and the volume uses PRS’s standard 180 picofarad capacitor for its treble-bypass circuit. But there’s a little more going on. The two mini-toggles are three-pole, double-throw, on-on switches. Two poles allow the single-coil split that voices the slug coil, but, unusually, completely removes the screw coil from the circuit.“These switches don’t…

TCI stands for Tuned Capacitance and Inductance. But what does that mean? The best way of getting a handle on these terms and their implications is to consider not just the pickup but the whole electric circuit, which ultimately includes your guitar lead and the input impedance of your amp and/or effects. As Paul Reed Smith tells us, while he “can’t control whether the player is using a long or a short lead, or the impedance of the input device”, there is plenty to consider onboard the guitar itself. “This TCI thing has just started. We named it before we understood it. But once we ran into it, it was like, ‘Whoa!’” A pickup, of course, is basically an inductor. Inductance is measured in Henry units (H) and plenty of…

If modern tweaks aren’t your thing but you still lust for Martin’s famous tone, then fear not – a straight, no-chaser Martin D-18 will cost you around £2,300 and the 000-28 around £2,700. If you’re keen to peep over other makers’ fences then Collings has a range of triple-0 models, the 0003 12-fretter at £5,250 or thereabouts and the dreadnought D1 at around £4,499. Staying in the upper price bracket but looking at used models, a Bourgeois Country Boy OM can be found for £3,700 and it would be worth checking out the Standard line, too.…

MARTIN D-18 STANDARD £2,299 Martin’s belt and braces dreadnought has established itself as the staple diet of the singer-songwriter. With a Sitka spruce top, mahogany back and sides and scalloped bracing, this is a dread with a wealth of tonal scope and character. It might not look as ornate as its illustrious cousin, the D-45, but it will be your faithful no-frills companion on anything from an open mic night to the Royal Albert Hall. MARTIN D-18E RETRO £2,699 If you’ve been charmed by the D-18’s acoustic voice but want an instrument that is stage-ready, then look no further than the D-18E Retro. Everything that enchanted you with the Standard model remains, but the winning formula of spruce and mahogany has been enhanced by a factory-fitted Fishman Aura VT pickup/preamp…

CATALINBREAD Formula 55 £145 The Formula 55 is designed to reproduce the preamp section of a Fender Tweed 5E3 Deluxe. The company also has the 5F6 (£137), its take on the Tweed Bassman sound. MAD PROFESSOR Big Tweedy £149 According to the bods at Mad Professor, the Big Tweedy is voiced after a “super rare High Powered Tweed Twin amp” and features Volume, Drive, Tone and Presence knobs. CRAZY TUBE CIRCUITS Falcon £139 Going further than Tweed, the Falcon delivers 5E3 Tweed Deluxe and 6G2 Brownface Princeton style sounds: select your amp via a toggle switch and tweak it with Volume, Output and Tone knobs.…

FULLTONE OF-2 OctaFuzz £159 Claimed by Fulltone to be the only exact circuit copy of the legendary Tycobrahe Octavia, this pedal has a toggle switch to bring in the octave so you can use it purely as a traditional fuzz if desired. ELECTRO-HARMONIX Octavix £85 More pedalboard-friendly in its Nano enclosure, the Octavix will give you some octave fuzz for a lot less outlay and offers separate knobs for fuzz and the amount of upper octave mixed in with it. EARTHQUAKER DEVICES Hoof Reaper £319 There’s plenty of extra clout for your ’board from this triple-footswitch pedal with two fuzzes (Hoof and Tone Reaper) and a switchable octave. Each effect can be used individually as well as in series.…

Writer JAMIE DICKSON Guitarist, Editor-in-chief This month,Jamie’s 330 faces a stiff challenge from a well-spec’d rival hollowbody from the East. Which will prevail? After my last Longterm report, I received an email from Pepijn ‘t Hart, the designer behind Eastman Guitars. He wrote to say, being a fan of 330s and Casinos, he had read the report with interest and would I like to put my Gibson up against Eastman’s T64/v AMB to see how his 330-inspired design (which scored highly in a Guitarist review) measured up? I accepted the offer and days later, the Eastman arrived. The first thing I did was stand both guitars side by side. This revealed some interesting differences. The Eastman’s bridge pickup, for example, was located further away from the bridge than on the…

Jamie Dickson Guitarist editor Jamie is as happy with steel wool in his hand as he is with Steely Dan in his headphones, and loves vintage-gear restoration and ambitious signal chains. Dave Burrluck Guitarist’s assiduous reviews editor is also the author of numerous guitar books.Very handy with a fret file and indeed any aspect of a finely fettled six-string. Ed Mitchell After 18 years in guitar retail Ed turned to journalism as reviews editor ofTotal Guitar, then as a contributor toGuitarist. He’s also edited the mags The Blues and Country Music. Neville Marten Edited Guitarist for 13 years, after working for both Fender and Gibson as a repairer. From desirable Les Pauls to dream Strats, he’s owned and worked on the lot. Nick Guppy Guitarist’s amplifier specialist has built up…

Difficulty 10 mins Tutor: Richard Barrett | Gear used: Knaggs Choptank, Vox AC15 C1 Experiential Blues CLAIMING ANY PIECE of music is ‘in the style’ of Jimi Hendrix is fraught with risk, due to his multi-faceted style and the differing perspectives of those who have grown up with his music, but this month’s Headlines is nevertheless inspired by him. Taking a cross section of Little Wing, Wind Cries Mary and Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland), this piece – and the examples culled from it – are a conscious nod to Jimi’s power-trio format, leaving the guitar to set the mood, harmony and dynamics almost single handedly, with support from the bass and drums. Though John Mayer and Stevie Ray Vaughan have both contributed significantly to this kind of…

Like the towering stacks that are associated with the name, Marshall are one of the pillars of amplified guitar tone as we know and love it today. Back in the early 60s, Jim Marshall and designer Ken Bran started a revolution in tone that powered legendary players such as Jimi Hendrix and Pete Townshend into the stratosphere of rock. But no maker, no matter how illustrious, can afford to rest on their laurels. The very essence of rock is the visceral excitement and energy of young players breaking down the door of pop culture with electrifyingly powerful music. That’s why Marshall have designed a new generation of products that honour Marshall’s heritage even as they unlock new capabilities and sounds for today’s players – including amps that measure up to…

From the moment they touched down with 2003’s debut album Permission To Land, The Darkness were larger than life. With their huge riffs, monster solos and eye-popping showmanship, Dan and Justin Hawkins were the guitar gods we’d been waiting for – complete with a backline of towering Marshall stacks that went with their classic rock vibe. As such, show-goers at NAMM 2019 might have been surprised to see Dan demo the new Marshall Studio Vintage 20 head and SV212 cabinet. But as the rhythm man reminds us, this compact valve series is small yet perfectly formed. What are your memories of demo’ing the Studio at NAMM? “I was a bit nervous about it. I’m a rhythm guitarist, really, and the sort of people that do demonstrations at NAMM, they’re virtuosos,…

Live for music. It’s not just a catchy slogan: it’s a fiercely held philosophy that has helped the Marshall brand evolve before our eyes in modern times. The British firm’s reputation as the most respected global amp-builder isn’t going anywhere: the focus on that side of the operation should be obvious from the starburst of new models that includes Studio, CODE and Origin. But in the post-millennium, amps are just one part of a bigger picture. “Marshall is a music brand,” nods Managing Director Jon Ellery. “Everything that we do is about creating, consuming and enjoying music.” A passion for music isn’t something you can just switch off at the end of a gig, rehearsal or studio session, then get out again the next time you need it. Music is…

Nobody said it would be easy – but few young bands realise just how tough the modern music industry will be to crack. Marshall has been there as the business shifted from vinyl and million-dollar advances to MP3s and streaming fees. And in 2017, with doors slamming shut on promising bands, the firm took a stand. “Marshall Records is all about encouraging people to start playing again,” says Managing Director Jon Ellery. “We can offer everything, from production and publishing to rights and management.” The first band aboard was the mighty King Creature; since then, the label has snapped up artists from Irish folk-rockers Keywest to Japanese virtuosi D_Drive. With the roster showcasing at Marshall Live on 1 June and offering the use of the firm’s soon-to-be-completed studio at Milton…

What next? Where do you go when you’ve conquered the amp sector, attracted the biggest music stars from every generation and built a consumer brand that embodies the swaggering spirit of rock ’n’ roll? For less imaginative firms, the answer might be to sit back and dine out on past glories. For Marshall, however, it’s to race headlong into creating the next trailblazing product and triggering a new cultural revolution. “If you rest on your laurels and rely on your reputation, you’re going to fail every time,” says Managing Director Jon Ellery. “There are people snapping at our heels, but they’re always going to be there. And that just makes us stronger.” From Milton Keynes to Vietnam, every member of the Marshall operation is looking at the road ahead. That…