Innehållsförteckning för October 2018 från Guitarist

Tommy Emmanuel shared an interesting piece of advice in a recent interview with Guitarist. Here’s what he said: “Skill comes before music. Then practice will turn those skills into something musical.” We can take him to mean that the licks we learn can be useful tools but aren’t actually all that musical unless you play them at a moment when the music really calls out for that phrase. It’s so important to just stop and remember that music is a dialogue between the musicians making the music together in the moment. And, thus, simply inserting set-piece licks into musical situations they don’t quite fit can be the guitar equivalent of being the guy who tells joke after set-piece joke at a party when everyone else wants to have a proper…

PRICE: £1,049 ORIGIN: Korea TYPE: Reverse double-cutaway, semi-hollow electric BODY: Alder with centre-block NECK: Maple, bolt-on SCALE LENGTH: 622mm (24.5”) NUT/WIDTH: Graphite/42mm FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, 355mm (14”) radius FRETS: 22, medium HARDWARE: Wilkinson WVS50 IIK vibrato and vintage style tuners – nickel-plated STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52mm (2.04”) ELECTRICS: 1 x Lipstick humbucker (bridge), 1 x P90-style single coil (neck), master volume and master tone with pull/push coil split and three-way pickup selector toggle switch WEIGHT (KG/LB): 3.4/7.6 OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: ’66 hardtail in four colours (£999); ’66BT Baritone in three colours (£1,099); ’64 solid body with licensed Bigsby True Vibrato in four colours (£1,099) LEFT HANDERS: No FINISHES: 3 Tone Sunburst (as reviewed), Trans Blue, Trans Orange DANELECTRO WWW.DANELECTRO.COM PROS You can’t deny it’s a looker but the…

PRICE: £3,899 with moulded case ORIGIN: USA TYPE: Orchestra Model six-string acoustic TOP: Solid Sitka spruce BACK/SIDES: Solid East Indian rosewood NECK: Select hardwood (African mahogany or Spanish cedar) SCALE LENGTH: 645mm (25.4”) TUNERS: Schaller open-gear ‘butterbean’ NUT/WIDTH: 44.45mm (1.75”) FINGERBOARD: Ebony FRETS: 20 medium-fine BRIDGE/SPACING: Ebony, modern belly/54.7mm (2.15”) ELECTRICS: None WEIGHT: 1.8kg/4lbs OPTIONS: OM-28E (£2,995) with Fishman Aura VT Enhance or LR Baggs Anthem LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISH: Natural with aged top toner, or dark vintage sunburst RANGE OPTIONS: OM-42 (£5,295), OM-21 (£2,450), D-28 (£2,399), D-41 (£4,150), D-42 (£5,295), D-45 (£8,299), 00-28 (£2,750) 000-28 (£2,899), 000-42 (£5,295), J-40 (£3,599), M36 (£2,699) Martin Guitars www.martinguitar.com PROS: Fantastic build, tone and playability; really intelligently thought-out upgrades CONS: Lacks the bass thump of a dreadnought; ours had slightly sharp nut…

You’ll already know that if you want to get the most from your humbucking pickup, then you’ll need four-conductor wiring. Don’t worry, you won’t lose your ‘vintage’ tone, but it’ll give you maximum flexibility, especially if you want to get some single-coil sounds. One seemingly new concept is the ‘partial’ coil split. This was explained to me by luthier Brinsley Schwarz who, at the time, worked at Chandler Guitars in Richmond. As we said last issue, a coil-split is achieved by knocking out one coil. But that, on a lower-powered humbucker, can lead to a thin sound. The partial coil-split, however, puts a resistor between the split point and ground so some of the dumped coil is retained producing a slightly thicker, bigger sounding split. PRS is one mainstream company…

What? Roland Blues Cube ‘Hot’ Combo Where seen? www.gear4music.com Price? £419 Description? I’ve played and demoed several models in the Blues Cube range and genuinely like them. Using Roland’s Tube Logic technology, this 30-watt combo looks purposeful in black, and at just over 400mm square and weighing a paltry 12.6kg, it’s small and light enough to carry in one hand with a gig-bag slung over the other shoulder.These things really do sound convincing, and with onboard reverb, plus switchable Boost and Tone features, it offers a range of cool sounds from crystal clean to mean and meaty. Particularly nice touches are power scaling from 0.5w through 5w, 15w and full power, and a USB port for recording direct to computer. It can handle small gigs but would make the…

GURN BABY GURN I realise this is going to be contentious, and definitely uncool, but why do so many guitarists gurn? I’m now in my 60s and have played guitar since my teens. In this time, I’ve watched the faces that guitarists pull when soloing get more and more extreme. When I look at your excellent magazine, I’m almost scared by the visages of pain, aggression and general craziness. I’ve seen pictures of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton obviously ‘concentrating’ or ‘away with the fairies’, but nothing like what goes on now. Please can the gurners among your readers explain why it’s necessary? Don’t give me the ‘every note I play is like tearing a piece of flesh from my body’ musical-martyr rubbish, as we all play guitar because it’s…

The Rising Moving On Renegade Maverick Alt-country trio shine once more on second album The Rising have been garnering excellent reviews since their debut album Coming Home in 2014. But their second release was delayed due to lineup changes and a road accident – guitarist Chris Logan spending months in recovery. The material on Moving On is country pop/rock with Chantelle McAteer’s vocals supported by Logan’s jangly rhythm and strong lead guitar. Hook-laden songs with singalong choruses bode well for future success. [DM] Standout track: Even The Stars Fall For You For fans of: Lady Antebellum, Taylor Swift…

Emmylou Harris Elite Hotel Reprise Records 1975 By the time she embarked on her solo career in 1975, Emmylou Harris was already noteworthy for having sung with Gram Parsons and featuring on Bob Dylan’s Desire. Elite Hotel was her second album, recorded with the more than able assistance of James Burton, Glen D Hardin, Emory Gordy and Ron Tutt, among others. These had all played in the Taking Care Of Business band for Elvis Presley and had also featured on the last Gram Parsons studio album, Grievous Angel. Emmylou had enjoyed a close working relationship with Gram who had died at the end of 1973, and he had a profound effect on her career. Elite Hotel features her gorgeous rendition of Parsons’ classic Flying Burrito Brothers song, Sin City as…

tone knobs a little more, but I pretty much get all of my tones from pedals, with all of the guitar knobs turned up. That’s just how I’ve always done it.” Effects pedals have been a big part of your sound since the early Blur days… “I always relied on all my dynamics from pedals – getting louder and louder and getting three or four levels of dynamic. I had enough to worry about with complicated pedal changes and backing vocals. I couldn’t be doing with adjusting my guitar volume as well. I’m used to pressing pedals!” What are some of your favourite effects pedals at the moment? “I was never properly into pedals until the last couple of years, I guess. I always had my ’board, and that was…

Bert Jansch’s debut record is probably best known for hosting his version of Davy Graham’s Anji. RetitledAngie, Jansch’s exuberant version is notable for the crashing chord stabs that pierce through his blues lead. Despite its status as an important English folk record, there’s a lot of country blues here. Strolling Down The Highway andFinches prove that you didn’t need a Les Paul and Marshall combo to cut a killer blues album in the mid 60s. Standout track: Angie Technique take-home: Pepper your fingerstyle with blues and ragtime motifs…

“Beck uses his vibrato arm, volume control and harmonics to produce a beautiful Celtic melody” This is the album that put Jeff Beck back on the map for many guitarists in the late 80s. From the cover painting of Beck working on a car-sized Strat in his garage to the selection of balls-to-the-wall rockers on the tracklist, it was that generation’s Blow By Blow. The most remarkable track, Where Were You, finds Beck using his vibrato arm, volume control and harmonics to produce a beautiful Celtic-inspired melody. No one had heard anything quite like it before. Standout track: Where Were You Technique take-home: The Strat vibrato can do more than surf, bud…

“The tape was passed between gobsmacked guitar students for years” Like his fellow Telecaster genius Roy Buchanan, Danny Gatton would chase wider recognition throughout his career only to die in tragic circumstances. Gatton was a walking, picking compendium of classic American guitar styles with rockabilly being his true love. Originally, only available as a bootleg, The Humbler captures an ’83 live date with Stateside Shakin’ Stevens, Robert Gordon. The live set is great but it’s the soundcheck recording, christened Fingers On Fire, that shows just what Gatton was capable of. The tape was passed between gobsmacked guitar students for years. It’s pure, unfiltered greatness at points. Standout track: Fingers On Fire Technique take-home: Learn to switch between genres on a dime like Danny…

When Fender launched the first ever mass-produced electric solidbody guitars in 1950 – the blonde Esquire and Broadcaster – the instruments became the de facto leaders of a brand-new niche in the music industry, as well as progressing the art of guitar-building as a large-scale industrial process. Company founder Leo Fender’s aim was to economically and consistently manufacture a hard-wearing product that improved performance in areas such as feedback, intonation and action and was also relatively easy to maintain and repair. Because the company’s manufacturing practices have evolved over time, it can be difficult to trace how, exactly, things used to be done at Fender. As a result, a mythology has arisen within guitar culture concerning the intricacies of how these old instruments were put together – from the obscure…

1 Do all Taylors now use this new bracing system? No. The V-Class bracing was premiered on a quartet of high-end Grand Auditorium (GA) models at the start of 2018. New V-Class models have been added – again GAs only – from the 800 series down to the start-up 300 series. 2 So you can buy the 714ce in both standard and V-Class bracing? Yes and no. The specific V-Class models have replaced the previous standard-braced versions in the Taylor line-up but, obviously, there are plenty of stores with the previous standard-braced models in stock. 3 Will V-Class change our world? Probably not, but Taylor clearly believes it’s a better guitar with enhanced dynamic range, projection and improved intonation. A better tool? We’re not disagreeing.…

PRICE: £3,359 (inc case) ORIGIN: USA TYPE: 14-fret grand auditorium-size cutaway electro acoustic TOP: Solid Lutz spruce with V-Class bracing and relief route BACK/SIDES: Solid Indian rosewood MAX RIM DEPTH: 117.5mm MAX BODY WIDTH: 406.5mm (16”) NECK: Tropical mahogany SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”) TUNERS: Individual Taylor logo’d – nickel-plated NUT/WIDTH Black Graphite/ 44.75mm FINGERBOARD: West African ebony, abalone ‘Reflections’ inlays, 381mm (15”) radius FRETS: 20, medium BRIDGE/SPACING: West African ebony with compensated Micarta saddle/56mm ELECTRICS: Taylor Expression System 2 with volume, treble and bass rotary controls WEIGHT (kg/lb): 2.17/4.77 OPTIONS: Only Western Sunburst top finish (£3,569) RANGE OPTIONS: See boxout LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISH: Natural gloss body, satin neck, as reviewed PROS: Typically fine-detailed build, all-round performance acoustically and plugged-in that’s enhanced by V-Class bracing CONS: Not all of us have…

1 Who are B&G? Based in Tel Aviv, B&G Guitars was founded by “skillful and expert luthiers in the field of vintage guitars from the Golden Era” Eliran Barashi and Yotam ‘Kiki’ Goldstein, as well as artist and entrepreneur Avi Goldfinger. 2 These guitars are very different prices. Why? The Step Sister is B&G’s latest model and is made in Israel; the Little Sister was the original B&G model and this Crossroads version is made in China with Korean-made parts. 3 What is a Private Build? While UK distributor The North American Guitar holds various models in stock, each is effectively custom made with options on a cutaway/non-cutaway style and a choice of tops you can pick yourself. There are also pickup options including B&G’s own-design Kikbuckers.…

PRICE: £3,995 (inc case) ORIGIN: Israel TYPE: Single-cutaway solidbody electric BODY: One-piece African mahogany with thin maple top NECK: One-piece Honduran mahogany, soft V profile, glued-in SCALE LENGTH: 629mm (24.75”) NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech Tusq/43.54mm FINGERBOARD: Pau ferro, pearloid dot inlays, 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 20, small/tall HARDWARE: B&G brass ABR-style tune-o-matic bridge, brass tailpiece Waverly open-back tuners – all nickel-plated STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52mm ELECTRICS: 2 x B&G covered Kikbuckers (hum-cancelling single coils), 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, master volume and tone WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.30/7.26 OPTIONS: Top choice (figured maple or mahogany), chambered body, slotted headstock, nut width, custom neck shape, ziracote fingerboard, humbuckers or P-90s, open-pore nitro finish RANGE OPTIONS: See Little Sister LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISHES: Honey burst (as reviewed) from a choice of 14 colours – gloss nitrocellulose…

1 Manson? Hugh Manson is one of the most experienced guitar makers in the UK. His company, Manson Guitar Works, based in Dartmoor, creates dream machines for many big names. Skindred’s Mikey Demus is their latest signature artist. 2 Looks cheap for a UK handmade… That’s because the body work and spraying is done in the Czech Republic, then the hardware, pickups and any custom-spec ‘mods’ are done by the Manson team here in the UK. 3 I thought Manson used Bare Knuckle pickups? They do! However, for these MD models, as well as using Seymour Duncan classics (a Hot Rails at the bridge and Pearly Gates at the neck on the MD-1), the MD-2 uses a new UK brand, Psychopaf Pickups. Psychopaf is an off-shoot of Manson Guitar Works,…

PRICE: £1,299 (inc gigbag) ORIGIN: Czech Republic TYPE: Single-cut solidbody electric BODY: Two-piece alder NECK: Maple, bolt on SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”) NUT/WIDTH: Graphite/43.73mm FINGERBOARD: Ebony, faux clay dots, 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 22, medium jumbo HARDWARE: Gotoh Tele-style bridge (chrome), Gotoh SG381 HAP tuners (black) STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm ELECTRICS: Seymour Duncan Hot Rails Tele (bridge) and Seymour Duncan covered Jazz humbucker (neck), 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, individual pickup volume and tone controls WEIGHT (KG/LB): 3.63/8 OPTIONS: Black Aluminium control knobs (£120 set of 4), Black Aluminium tuner buttons (£109), Coil-split (£55), Mojo Switch (series/ parallel, £55) LEFT-HANDERS: Yes, no extra cost FINISHES: Atomic Tangerine (as reviewed), Dry Satin Black (minus £100) Manson Guitar Works 01364 653751 www.mansonguitarworks.com PROS: Classy stage-ready build, great hardware and classic…

Designed to deliver the sort of tremolo sounds you’d find on 50s and 60s amps, the Surf Trem has the simplest of control options, providing just Speed and Depth knobs. However, the new design offers plenty of improvement over its chunky but cool-looking predecessor. Its sleek, slimline shape presents a more workable footprint on the pedalboard with all connections at the top end, making it easy to site similar pedals right next to each other. It does, though, lose the second blinking LED, which showed you the tremolo speed at a glance. The circuitry (taken from the TremO’vibe tremolo and vibrato pedal) offers a warm and rounded tremolo reminiscent of Fender-style bias tremolo with plenty of variation running from a deep slow throb to fast and fluttery. And you won’t…

1 What was the first pedal you built and how did the design come about? “I made loads of Fuzz Faces for Dallas Arbiter. I’d just finished a five-year apprenticeship and they needed someone to test their Fuzz Faces. They all sounded different because the gain in the transistors tended to vary and a lot of the problems didn’t show up until you played the guitar. In fact, one of the reasons I got the job was because I played guitar!” 2 What’s your best-selling pedal and why do you think that is? “The First Fuzz, because of the history I have with [the original Fuzz Face] and the fact we use carefully selected germanium transistors and carbon comp resistors. That’s what we used originally. I’ve tweaked the design and…

Twelve-string acoustics occupy an awkward slot in most players’ buying plans. The problem is the majority of guitarists don’t use them often enough to justify spending big bucks on a really good one, such as the benchmark Guild F-512 (with a full retail price of £3,591) or the excellent, contemporary Taylor 562CE, retailing at a wallet-winding £3,359 (although they street a lot cheaper). On the other hand, many cheap 12-strings sound ratty and are the devil to play, which is no fun. The Auden Austin, then, is a tempting proposition at just shy of £1,500. In case you’re not familiar, the Auden brand is operated by Doug Sparkes, who recently bought classic British maker Gordon Smith, before making some very canny, craftsmanlike updates to that classic lineup of electrics. Auden…

“As much as we guitar players indulge in an impulse buy, we are also prone to an impulse sell” Writer ROD BRAKES Guitarist & Journalist Having parted ways with a classic amp – a 1961 Gibson GA-79RVT – Rod is on the hunt for an alternative, as he discovers that he may need to look beyond the obvious Finding a replacement for my 1961 Gibson GA-79 RVT amp has been a challenge. In fact, it brings to mind Captain Lawrence Oates’ famous last words before he stepped out into an Antarctic blizzard, never to be seen again: “I may be some time”. I knew I’d be up against it, but the further I pushed on with putting dozens of reverb/tremolo combos through their paces while practising, writing, recording, rehearsing and…

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…

With sleek, angular geometry reminiscent of classic cars, the Gibson Firebird was released in 1963 Gibson’s Firebird electric solidbody guitars first appeared in 1963. Striking in appearance, they were perhaps the last in Gibson’s line of iconic and stylistically defining ‘rock’ guitars to arrive. Prior to this, in 1952, the Les Paul Model debuted as Gibson’s first solidbody and, by 1961, all the Les Paul variants had morphed into an SG-style body. Meanwhile, in 1958, Gibson’s first semi-hollowbody electric, the ES-335, made its appearance along with the Flying V and Explorer, while the Melody Maker was released the following year. Further bolstered by their Epiphone brand of electric solidbodies, such as the Coronet, Crestwood/Custom and Wilshire from the late-50s onwards, Gibson’s catalogue continued to expand and their Kalamazoo factory began…

1. SERIAL NUMBER Six digits on back of headstock; no ‘Made In USA’ stamp 2. HEADSTOCK ‘Reverse’ direction; bevelled edge 3. HARDWARE Gold-plated Kluson banjo-style tuners, pickup covers, pickup surrounds, tune-omatic bridge, ‘leaf-and-lyre’ Deluxe vibrato, jack socket nut/washer, pickup selector washer, strap buttons and pickguard screws 4. NECK Mahogany two-piece through-neck; bound 22 jumbo fret ebony fingerboard with pearl block inlays; 24 ¾” scale; 1 11/ 16” nut width 5. PLASTICS White plastic pickup selector switch; gold-painted logo on black truss rod cover; three-ply (white/black/white) pickguard with bevelled edge and red engraved Firebird logo; 4x flared gold-base bonnet knobs with metal tone/volume caps 6. PICKUPS Three dual bar magnet Firebird mini-humbuckers, (“Patent No. 2,737,842”); tighter, punchier sound than regular minihumbuckers; two volume and tone pots; front loading jack socket 7.…

Difficulty 15 mins Tutor: Richard Barrett | Gear used: Knaggs Choptank, Vox AC15 C1 Example 1 THOUGH THERE ARE rhythm guitars on the backing track, I’ve opted for a strong start by playing an A5 chord, jumping straight into some A major pentatonic ideas in the same position. Over an A5 chord, there is the freedom to change between major and minor, so I’ve taken advantage of this in bar 2, shifting to shape 1 of the A minor pentatonic. In both cases the second finger is brought in for a percussive attack and simultaneous notes. Example 2 STAYING WITH THE A minor pentatonic until almost the end, I’m demonstrating a couple of different ideas here, often using fingers two and three. There’s a lot going on here (with potential…

THIS MONTH, I’m combining the conventional flat-picking technique with fingerstyle – more widely known as hybrid picking. An advantage of this method is the ability to incorporate simultaneous ‘piano’- style triads and intervallic skips, with the option to change to alternate picking at any point. Holding the pick between thumb and first finger, I’m using the second (and sometimes third) fingers to play up to three simultaneous notes. The pick takes the role of what would be the thumb if playing completely fingerstyle. So why not use a thumbpick? Well, Chet Atkins and Tommy Emmanuel are among the players who have done so – though this tends to lend itself more to solo guitar arrangements where independent basslines and melodies are more intricate. Hybrid picking seems to be the preference…

ALBERT LEE HIDING Albert’s first solo album from 1979 opens with the now-legendary Country Boy. Admittedly, we’re jumping in the deep end here, but there’s no harm in that, as long as we take the ‘long-term osmosis’ approach rather than attempting to duplicate it immediately. Another – more melodic – side of Albert’s playing is showcased on Now And Then It’s Gonna Rain, which also employs a device called a B-Bender, helping him to emulate a pedal steel guitar. DEEP PURPLE MACHINE HEAD We’re going for contrast here. Ritchie Blackmore’s playing often has a surprisingly light touch. The riff that got dozens thrown out of guitar shops – Smoke On The Water – is not attacked with a heavy pick and metal distortion at all, but played using fingers, light…

Electrics Fender Classic Player Strat, 1950s edition in Sonic Blue. Never gigged, so excellent condition. Includes gig bag. Recent pro set-up. £500. Phone 01296 435520, email paulcurtis1@btinternet Fret-King Eclat in sunburst, as new condition. Superb player and range of sounds from the humbuckers, Varitone control – all the way to single coils and in-between. Great value, build and woods, Fret-King gig bag, £360. Email kevin@larmar.co.uk Gibson 339 Custom Shop in Antique Vintage Sunburst. 2012 model, ’57 Classic humbuckers, Memphis tone circuit, great condition, home-use only, case and certs. Superb range of sounds and more comfortable to play than the larger 335, £1,500. Email kevin@larmar.co.uk Gibson Flying V, 1995 black RCA Hendrix ‘25 years’ replica, £2,750. Phone 0777 327 6815, Cumbria Gibson Les Paul Special SC 1976 Limited Edition. P-90s, wrapover…

Graham Coxon From success in Blur to a two-decade solo career, he’s one of our most compelling and creative riff-makers. Rod Brakes joins him in the studio on p48 B&G Electrics We really got a buzz from testing two guitars from rising Israeli maker B&G this issue – instantly hard to put down, they grace our cover this month p92 Bach To Basics Phil Hilborne shows us what Johann Sebastian Bach brought to the world of guitars, with a neo-classical lesson every player can take something from p142…

PRICE: £649 ORIGIN: Korea TYPE: Twin-cutaway, semi-hollow electric guitar BODY: Composite top and back with plywood centre-block NECK: Maple, bolt-on SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”) NUT/WIDTH: Graphite/42mm FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, 355mm (14”) radius FRETS: 21, medium HARDWARE: Nickel Wilkinson WVS50 IIK vibrato and vintage style tuners STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52mm (2.04”) ELECTRICS: 1 x Lipstick humbucker (bridge), 1 x P90-style singlecoil (neck), master volume and master tone with push/pull coil split and three-way pickup selector toggle switch WEIGHT (KG/LB): 3.2/7.2 OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: The hardtail ’59X comes in four colours at £579 LEFT HANDERS: No FINISHES: Gloss Black (as reviewed), Burgundy, Silver PROS A superb Frankenstein job on an iconic guitar, the ’59XT is a tonal Swiss Army knife with the added bonus of a great-quality whammy bar CONS We do…

Duane Eddy 23 to 30 October London, Glasgow, Manchester “You have to have your own sound, do it with authority and let it all hang out,” says Duane Eddy. “Those three things. You put the emotion into it and, as the country artists did, you do it with authority, whether you’re right or wrong and just lay it out there! Just believe it yourself, you know? If you do that you communicate with your guitar.” Duane Eddy has walked his talk since the 1950s as one of the original heroes of the the guitar and now, as reaches his 80th year, he’s taking a moment to celebrate the journey so far with a rare UK visit. And if you can’t be there to learn from the master in person at…

Things I always remember to take with me on sessions generally include pencils, a capo, a slide, an EBow and a variety of spare bits and pieces. But, this week, it also included crutches, as I managed to break three bones in my right foot while playing football. Mercifully, my arms, hands and fingers were left intact by the (not so) beautiful game, and so I continued via taxi to Air Studios in London’s leafy Hampstead to record the soundtrack to a forthcoming Hollywood film entitled Judy – a biopic of Judy Garland starring Renée Zellweger. Apart from being tripped up by the engineer’s dog as I arrived in Studio 1, things got off to a fairly smooth start… Many films made in Hollywood actually have the soundtracks recorded in…

Continuing in our quest to demystify non-standard chord voicings (ie not your straight major or minors) we turn our attention to the Sus and Add chords. When we see the word ‘Sus’ in a chord name, such as D sus4, it is an abbreviation of D suspended 4th. So instead of the usual D major chord tones – D (root), F# (3rd) and A(5th) – the 3rd is replaced by the suspended note, in this case G, 4th note of the D major scale. Playing a D sus4, then a D major chord gives the feeling that the first ‘suspended’ chord ‘resolves’ to the major chord – like an ‘Amen’! Sus2 chords work in the same way. What about Add chords, you may ask? Well, we simply add notes to…

BY GEORGE! Quite a candid admission from George Lynch [Perfect 10 – Guitarist issue 437], regarding his frustrations with the theory aspect of playing guitar. Undoubtedly, he is not alone in having a limited knowledge of theory and yet has still gone on to become successful. His description of his early years resonated with me – I too spent far too long trying to write early compositions and jamming with friends. Although I had formal lessons and covered basic music theory, when I began this beautifully tortuous journey, I never put it into practice and so it withered. Similarly, I’ve tried to compensate with courses and the like, but I found that was a situation of diminishing returns and took up time better spent learning the latest pub favourite for…

Tell us about your first gig… “My first gig was when I was 15 I think. We played in Chattanooga, Tennessee. If I remember correctly it was the day of Live Aid and we drove up and opened for this band from California – I remember they were just called Yo. We’d moved past the punk phase and got into bands like REM and The Cramps, Dream Syndicate – bands that were more alternative. We got 50 bucks and I remember the cheque bounced, so that was good. We were still living with my mum and so it was like, ‘Mum, we got a cheque, here it is!’ and it bounced and she was like, ‘Oh, alright…’” Describe your current stage rig… “Right now I’m using two amps, a 25…

Graham Coxon is hard at work behind the doors of a North London studio in preparation for an imminent US solo tour. We immediately recognise his playing from the other end of the corridor and walk in to find him auditioning a new Yamaha Revstar RS620 at volume through his most recent of gear revelations – the Line 6 Helix. Surrounded by guitars and boxes of effects pedals, he takes a break from rehearsing the new set, which has been drawn from two decades’ worth of solo releases. How far back are you going with the songs for the solo tour? “Right the way back to the beginning, which is 20 years ago! I’m just figuring out the logistics of what acoustics and electrics I can take, what I shouldn’t…

Last month in the Guitarist office a conversation started about the underrated guitar albums that inspired us to play better. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that getting better at playing guitar is solely a matter of learning new licks or boning up on theory. What gets forgotten is that we also have to educate the ear – and occasionally reconnect with the passion for beautiful playing, which is the reason we fell in love with the instrument in the first place. With that in mind, we decided to put together an eclectic playlist of guitar recordings, each of which is a masterpiece in its own way, which will hopefully strike fresh sparks in your musical imagination. Disclaimer You’ll notice, in perusing our list of 30 masterpiece…

“It demonstrates just how warped Steve Vai can get, even if he’s dealing with a simple pop melody” Yeah, it’s not just a clever name. Leftovers gathers together tracks that didn’t make it onto Vai’s original 1984 recordFlex-Able. OpenerYou Didn’t Break It might be cheesier than a quattro formaggio pizza but it demonstrates just how warped Steve Vai can get, even if he’s dealing with a simple pop melody. Chronic Insomnia is a nightmarish soundscape of wailing whammy bars. Okay, it’s not three-minute classic material but it does prove that the man always sounds like no one else even when he’s torturing a Floyd. Standout track: Call It Sleep Technique take-home: Always work towards your own instantly recognisable sound…

“In the late 40s and the 50s, furniture was very popular in a blonde colour. It was modern at the time. If you go back to the pre-war era, everybody had dark furniture, but after the war, people decided to make it a bit lighter – I remember my mum and dad getting new light oak furniture! All the guitar industry was doing was moving with whatever else was going on, be it in the motor industry or the furniture industry. You see the custom colours coming in in the late 50s because that’s where fashion was going. You’ve only got to look at the American cars. “They used ash for blonde finishes only because it was a prominent grain. Ash is very hard on machinery – it blunts your…

On page 18 we look at Martin’s Standard Series Reimagined OM-28, an updated classic all-rounder that, in electro option, will cost you (£2,995) with Fishman Aura VT Enhance or LR Baggs’ Anthem. New bracing systems are pretty rare, certainly in the world of the mainstream acoustic guitars. One exception is PRS’s hybrid X/Classical bracing that you’ll not only find on their ultra high-end Private Stock acoustics, but also the highly affordable, Sitka spruce/figured maple SE A50E (£879) and the Sitka spruce/ ovangkol SE A40E (£759), which also feature ebony fingerboards, bone nuts and Fishman’s GT1 pickup system. There is considerable design diversity in the boutique acoustic world, of course, but don’t expect a cheap date. The North American Guitar ( thenorthamericanguitar.com ) is a virtual one-stop shop for…

B&G’s 14-fret Little Sister is fairly unique in terms of contemporary builds, but you’ll find Silvertone’s 1423, a modern version of the original 14-fret 60s design, for a paltry £249 (see page 130 for our long-term test). Supro is another relaunched brand and the Indonesian-made Westbury (£799 or £899 with a maple-veneer top) with a stylish retro voice. Reverend’s Tricky Gomez R TG (£879) is a rather good semi-solid with original retro appeal. Guild’s Newark St M-75 Aristocrat streets around £975 – a solidbodysized retro single cut. Gordon Smith’s GS2 Semi (circa £1,135) made here in the UK is another contender for some solidbody-sized semi action with numerous options. Eastman’s SB59 Goldburst (£1,399) is a LP-derived solidbody, made in China – a lot of guitar for the money. Moving up…

Fender’s American Professional Tele Deluxe ShawBucker (£1,549) is a great place to start on your ‘hot rod’ Tele search. The Tim Shaw-designed ShawBuckers are new versions of Fender’s Wide Range humbuckers and give this Tele a classic humbucking voice. Highly recommended. Also Fender, the 2018 Limited Edition Tele Thinline Super Deluxe (£1,609) is part of their Parallel Universe range and gives a Gretsch spin with nitroorange finish, silver sparkle pickguard and dual TV Jones Classics. Schecter’s PT Apocalypse (£1,189) uses the twin-humbucking PT style but with a custom vibe thanks to the Rusty-Grey-finished swamp ash body and custom-style pickguard. It’s loaded with two high-output Schecter USA Apocalypse-VI ’buckers and also features stainless-steel frets. Reverend’s offset Tele-ish outline is used on numerous models that mash up their influences. The Buckshot Buck…

PRICE: £1,589 (inc gigbag) ORIGIN: Czech Republic TYPE: Single-cut solidbody electric BODY: Two-piece alder NECK: Flamed maple, bolt on SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”) NUT/WIDTH: Graphite/43.5mm FINGERBOARD: Ebony, faux clay dots, 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 22, medium jumbo HARDWARE: Gotoh Tele-style bridge (chrome), Gotoh SG381 HAP tuners (black) STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm ELECTRICS: Psychopaf British Rail Iced T (bridge) humbucker, Psychopaf Benchmark (neck) humbucker, 3-way toggle, 2 volume, 2 tone WEIGHT (KG/LB): 3.94/8.67 OPTIONS: The base price of the MD-2 is £1,449. Our sample adds Cybertron Neck Pickup Cover (£20), Custom Hardware Black Aluminium control knobs (£120 set of 4). See MD-1 for other options LEFT-HANDERS: Yes, no extra cost FINISHES: Dry Satin Black (as reviewed), Atomic Tangerine (adds £100) PROS: The same deal as the MD-1 but with added versatility…

ORIGIN: China TYPE: Multi-FX pedal FEATURES: Compressor, Drives x 2, Graphic EQ, Modulation (Phaser/Tremolo/Flanger), Reverb & Delay, Tuner, Tap Tempo, 5 presets CONTROLS: Comp knobs x 3 (Vol, EQ, Comp), Comp on/off switch, OD knobs x 3 (Volume, Gain,Tone), Hi-Gain knobs x 4 (Volume, Tone,Tweak, Gain), Hi-Gain Mid Boost on/off, Hi-Gain Gate on/off, EQ band sliders x 5, EQVolume slider, EQ Post/Pre switch, Mod knobs x 3 (Colour, Range, Rate), Mod type selector (Phaser/Tremolo/Flanger), Mod tap division selector, Delay knobs x 3 (Level, Time, Feedback), Reverb knobs x 2 (Mix, Decay), Delay/Reverb type selector (Delay/Reverb/Delay+ Reverb), footswitches x 6, Phones Volume CONNECTIONS: Standard inputs, standard outputs L(Mono)/R, standard POWER: 9V adapter (1000mA) (Not supplied) OPTIONS: PDNT9V2AUK/ PDNW9VAUK Mooer power units (£19.99) DIMENSIONS: 370 (w) x 96 (d) x 51mm (h)…

The original DC Drive (now discontinued) was a double footswitch pedal that packed a boost alongside its overdrive. This new single-footswitch version loses the boost but still offers the overdrive, delivered via Level, Tone and Drive knobs and a Regular/Fat toggle switch that effectively gives the pedal two distinct voices. Regular is quite lean, rolling off some of your bottom end, but Fat puts that back in and adds in lower mids for more girth and a smidge more gain – it’s fuller and smoother. There’s quite a range of drive available here from clean boost through all shades in-between to a driven-amp saturation that brings out harmonics, but cleans up very well with the volume knob. With a tone knob that focuses on top-end presence, there’s a host of…

THE BACKGROUND JAMES WALLACE, EXETER GUITARIST READER: I’m a real fan of many of the early-90s shred-era legends such as Paul Gilbert and Steve Vai. I’d like to get that really searing but studio-quality high-gain sound that players like Vai got on Passion And Warfare or Satriani got on The Extremist, plus some of the modulated clean sounds they made great use of. However, I’m a gigging guitarist and would like to do this with a fairly portable combo or small stack and a smallish pedalboard. How would you approach this and what pedals would you go for? I’ve got a decent budget, and I just want to get the most compact, potent rig I can to capture those incredible sounds. THE QUESTIONS 1 HOW DO…

“My first project was a travel guitar, which was really overcomplicated – and it didn’t work out” Tucked away in the backstreets of Bristol, away from the tourist thrum and bustle on the city’s main highways and byways, you’ll find Tom Waghorn’s workshop. Neat, compact and festooned with instruments in all stages of completion, the apparent calm is in direct contrast to the fact that Tom Waghorn’s order book has rarely been so full. Manufacturing instruments that range from classically designed electrics through to customers’ slightly more unconventional fantasy models, Tom’s workshop turns out just about everything you can strum, pick or pluck. His guitars are used by a broad spectrum of players, although he has noticed that tech metal and prog musicians in particular are fans of his work.…

Writer DAVE BURRLUCK Guitarist, Gear Reviews Editor Our typically skint Reviews Editor continues on his perpetual quest for a bargain-basement buy. But what blast from the past has he rediscovered this time? Those who don’t believe an instrument’s component and build quality have any impact on the sounds will often say: ‘it’s all in yer fingers’. But, if that was the case, we wouldn’t need to spend vast sums of cash on our gear, would we? Working on this issue of Guitarist I was impressed by the B&G guitars (see page 92), but I would need a serious overhaul in budget before I could shell out on even the £1,500 Little Sister Crossroads. So, maybe it’s time to put “it’s all in yer fingers” to the test? B&G’s original 14-fret…

Q I have a grand or so burning a hole in my savings account and so I’d like to splash out on a new guitar. I’d like a couple of humbuckers, a vibrato of some description, and a traditional mahogany/maple body format. Is there anything out there other than a secondhand Les Paul Standard with a Bigsby? Pat Cheyne, via email A They might not hold their resale value quite like a Gibson but guitars from the likes of Yamaha, ESP’s LTD offshoot and the excellent PRS SE range, can give you all the spec you want, and leave you with a decent wedge of change out of your grand. Think outside the box on this one and you’ll be amazed what is achievable within your budget. 1. Yamaha Revstar…

Early 1963 Gibson announce Firebird line prior to 1963 NAMM show in Chicago 1963 Earliest production ‘reverse’ models registered with through-neck construction, bound ebony fingerboard and pearl block inlays. 20 Firebird VII guitars registered shipped 1964 Red engraved Firebird emblem appears on scratchplate (previously absent). 173 Firebird VII guitars registered shipped 1965 ‘Reverse’ style phased out, ‘non-reverse’ model phased in with glued-in neck, rosewood fretboard and dot inlays; some transition headstock specs. 110 Firebird VII guitars registered shipped (‘reverse’ and ‘non-reverse’) 1970 Firebird VII discontinued 1994 Firebird VII Centennial released in limited run (serial numbers 1894-1994)…

Guide example to formatting your adverts CATEGORY: Electrics ADVERT: Fender Stratocaster, USA Standard, 2001, black, white scratchplate, three Lace Sensor pickups, vgc, never gigged, Fender hard case, £435 ono. Phone Joe on 01234 567890, email joebloggs@youremail.co.uk, Runcorn Send your ads to: guitarist.readerads@futurenet.com PLEASE NOTE: Due to the section’s popularity there can sometimes be a period of around a month before your advert will appear. We are unable to send a notice of receipt for your advert. Guitarist magazine reserves the right to omit or change any reader ads which fail to meet the above guidelines or infringe any company’s registered trademarks, ie Strat copy, Gibson copy, and so on. Please write concisely and double check phone number and e-mail address! You get 21 words max, and they’re all free!…

We’ve reviewed several instruments in Martin’s Reimagined range, so an in-depth description of those reimaginings is probably not required here. But a quick rundown of the upgraders to this great-looking Orchestra Model includes: scalloped bracing; tinted top toner; old-style Martin headstock script; open-gear tuners; bold herringbone binding; high-performance neck taper, and vintage-style fingerboard inlays. It’s good to see Martin giving a bit of love to its Standard line, and not just concentrating on the super-high-end stuff such as the Authentic and signature models. It started with the upgrades to the now-brilliant D-18 and – as this is the bread-and-butter of the company’s output – deserves to look right, play right and sound right. Materials-wise the usual 28-style appointments apply with solid Indian rosewood back and sides, Sitka spruce top and…

PRICE: £1,529 ORIGIN: USA TYPE: All valve preamp and power amp OUTPUT: 25 watts RMS VALVES: 4 x 12AX7, 1 x 12AT7, 2 x 6973 DIMENSIONS: 475 (h) x 520 (w) x 220mm WEIGHT (kg/lb): 18/40 CABINET: Ply LOUDSPEAKER: 1 x 12” Supro BD12 CHANNELS: Two, parallel non-switching CONTROLS: Gain 1, Gain 2, Bass, Treble, Reverb, Tremolo speed, depth, Master volume FOOTSWITCH: Double latching footswitch toggles Reverb and Tremolo effects ADDITIONAL FEATURES: Extension speaker outlets OPTIONS: A matching 1x12 extension cabinet costs £519 or there’s a 1x15 for £539 RANGE OPTIONS: There’s a head version at £1,299. The non-reverb Black Magick combo also costs £1299, while the nonreverb head is £1,129 John Hornby Skewes & Co Ltd 0113 286 5381 www.suprousa.com PROS: Portable yet with plenty of bottom…

Ed King 1949 – 2018 Guitarist was saddened to hear of the passing of former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King, who died in Nashville on 22 August, aged 68. King served two tenures in the band from 1972 to 1975 and again with the reformed lineup from 1987 to 1996. The guitarist was responsible for co-writing Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama and he also played a key role as part of the band’s triple-guitar dynamic on their first three albums, alongside Gary Rossington and the late Allen Collins. While Rossington first came up with the genesis of Sweet Home Alabam, it was the King who contributed the memorable intro riff after hearing his bandmate strumming. And it wasn’t his first time contributing to a hit, having penned the bridge to…

When I joined Guitarist in 1985, a question we asked every artist interviewed was, “Will guitar synths kill the electric guitar?” This was the days when Roland, Yamaha, ARP and others were piling pots of money into guitar synth R&D and there was a genuine fear that, if someone got it right, the electric guitar could become obsolete just decades after its invention. As we all know, despite my leaving Guitarist to join SynthAxe, this never happened. I was back within a year, along with the timely arrival of Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen and others, who made guitar-playing exciting again and gave us new music to write about instead. Apart from wacky geniuses Allan Holdsworth and Robert Fripp doggedly toiling away, the guitar synth returned to the back…

“I played a festival and someone threw a hand grenade on stage! It landed right in front of me” 1 What was your first guitar and when did you get it? “It was a Hagström, a Swedish guitar, and I got it when I was 13, as a Christmas gift. It all started when I discovered I wanted to be a guitar player. I went home and told my mum that ‘life ain’t worth living without a guitar…’ This is a form of psychology that can work on parents – you’re a kid and you get into all sorts of trouble and they don’t want you to be extra-troubled on top of that. So I got a cheap Hagström Impala, I think it was about 150 krona, the equivalent of…

It sounds like you were more preoccupied with the essential ideas… “It was all about getting something down and getting the job done. I never noticed any kind of veil between my playing and the sound – y’know, if the emulation wasn’t reacting and translating, or that I couldn’t play as I wanted to play. I’m not very sensitive to that. I mean, I can be, but this was the time when I just wanted a distorted guitar chugging away, y’know? I could feel the difference when I started using the Line 6 Helix though, especially when I started using the modulation effects.” Can you generally tell the difference between digital and analogue effects? “Telling the difference between things that are digital and analogue is often the same as telling…

Elmore James didn’t invent slide guitar, of course. His genius was to create an electric sound that took blues in a new direction while still retaining a splash of DNA from the Delta. Dust My Blues kicks off with the most famous slide blues lick of all time and James uses it again on Standing At The Crossroads, Happy Home andBlues Before Sunrise. In fact, it’s present on more than half the tracks here, yet doesn’t outstay its welcome. Standout track: Dust My Blues Technique take-home: Substitute precision with feel when you play slide…

“The film is an enjoyable bit of fluff but the Ry Cooder soundtrack is the absolute business” If you remember Crossroads at all it’s likely thanks to the scene where Ralph ‘Karate Kid’ Macchio cuts heads with Satan’s guitar-slinger Jack Butler (aka Steve Vai). Based around the legend of Delta bluesman Robert Johnson, the film is an enjoyable bit of fluff, but the Cooderproduced soundtrack is the absolute business. Witness Cooder’s epic reworking of Johnson’s Cross Road Blues and his mournful slide on Feelin’ Bad Blues. Of course, it was really Ry who defeated Steve Vai in the guitar duel. That Macchio kid was just miming… Standout track: Feelin’ Bad Blues Technique take-home: Deconstruct classic blues licks and find a new direction…

While most of the albums on this list are included in the name of virtuosity, Live Seeds is all about atmosphere. A collection of murder ballads, the album finds Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds at their most macabre with jarring moments of dark humour. The guitars of Mick Harvey and Blixa Bargeld stalk the stage ominously, pumping ice-cold blood through the veins of The Mercy Seat, John Finn’s Wife and the truly frightening Tupelo. It’s about the big picture, not standing out. Standout track: Tupelo Technique take-home: Use your guitar as an aural paintbrush…

Following on from the quartet of £5k-plus original launch models, which included the 914ce (£6,239) and the PS14ce (£9,479), the good news is you can now experience V-Class braced GAs from £2,219 with the long-standing and well-loved spruce/ sapele 314ce. The shaded edgeburst mahogany/Tasmanian blackwood 324ce costs £2,399. Next up is the spruce/ African ovangkol 414ce (£2,639); the spruce/rosewood 414ce-R is £2,855. The 514ce (£3,119) uses a fingerstylefriendly Western red cedar top with mahogany back/sides; the 524ce (£3,239) is all-mahogany. Price-wise, we then jump to our 614ce models – the 614ce (£4,019) uses a torrefied spruce top with maple back/sides, and the 614ce Builder’s Edition (£4,199) version (which offers an awful lot, even at this money), adds a beveled armrest, ‘refined’ cutaway and ‘silent’ satin finish. At the same price…

PRICE: £1,550 (inc gigbag) ORIGIN: China TYPE: Single-cutaway semi-hollow electric BODY: Chambered three-piece African mahogany with thin maple top NECK: One-piece African mahogany, soft V profile, glued-in SCALE LENGTH: 629mm (24.75”) NUT: Graph Tech Tusq/43.37mm FINGERBOARD: Ovangkol, pearloid dot inlays, 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 20, small HARDWARE: Brass ABR-style tune-omatic bridge (gold-plated), lacquered brass tailpiece, B&G Delta tuners STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 52mm ELECTRICS: 2 x covered humbuckers, 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, master volume and tone WEIGHT (kg/lb): 2.98/6.56 OPTIONS: Non-cutaway outline, nut width, custom neck shape RANGE OPTIONS: The Little Sister Private Build (from £4k) is made in Israel with extensive options (see Step Sister) LEFT-HANDERS: Yes FINISHES: Tobacco burst (as reviewed), Midnight Ocean – UV-cured The North American Guitar 020 7835 5597 bngguitars.com Pros: Smart build,…

You can get a good flavour of the Manson style with the Cort/Manson-designed range that kicks off at £399 with the Classic TC. Next up is the M-Jet (£469) with a 24-fret bolt-on neck and high-output twin humbuckers.The key model is the Cort MBC-1 Matthew Bellamy Signature (from £519), which gives a solid evocation of the guitars played by Muse’s mainman with the extended shoulder body design.This is available in original Matt Black finish and Red Sparkle.The MBC-1 takes centrestage in the Cort Mod Shop range (from £629), which pimps up the guitar to various levels and specs, providing affordable versions of Matt’s instruments.The next level – the MA Classic and MA Evo – are made in the Czech Republic but, like the Mikey Demus guitars, various hardware and pickups…

MANUFACTURER CARL MARTIN MODEL SURF TREM 2018 / DC DRIVE 201 / RED REPEAT 2016 PRICE £75 / £99 / £99 CONTACT WWW.CARLMARTIN.COM Since TC Electronic launched in 1976, Denmark has become home to several pedal companies. T-Rex, Emma and LunaStone come to mind, but Carl Martin is one of the longest established, having released their Hot Drive ’n Boost back in 1993. Since then, the company has expanded its range considerably, with more than 40 guitar pedals spread across their Pro and Vintage Series, plus a handful of pedals for bass players. You can always rely on Carl Martin to update their pedals. The original Hot Drive ’n Boost comes in three guises – original, MKII and MK3. Which brings us neatly to these three Vintage Series pedals here,…

Carl Martin’s longstanding delay pedal gets some neat new features with this 2016 Edition. This includes an extra footswitch to deliver Tap Tempo and toggle-switched modulation with adjustable Depth and Speed courtesy of two mini knobs. As another toggle switch selects between the Time knob and Tap Tempo for the delay time, you can always have two favourite delay times instantly available. While the pedal is digital, it is voiced to deliver the less-than-pristine repeats that you might expect from a vintage analogue device, either tape or BBD-based. This is something it does well, offering repeats with a crusty edge to them that can blend in naturally, helped with a practical Tone knob that rolls back their top end. The modulation feature, designed to emulate the ‘wow and flutter’ of…