Category: Gibson
Even though my roots are in the shredder ’80s – but guys like EH, Randy Rhoads and George Lynch, not the ‘wanna-bes’ – it’s been a while since I’ve bashed on a Floyd or gotten excited about a guitar from a Japanese guitar company. I guess I’ve mellowed into the vintage scene…dude. Don’t get me […]
Does Angus Channel Koss? Almost 40 years since it was released in 1970, and still one of the all-time classic tunes: Do I need to say more? You know the riff, you know how to play it (or think you do, sorta) and you might even think you know what Paul Kossoff used gear-wise: a […]
It’s generally accepted that, rock star-owned guitars possibly excepted, the priciest guitars in the world are 1959 ‘burst Gibson Les Pauls. Apparently they sound great, feel great, play great, and they’re old and rare – all amounting to guitars worth a few hundred thousand dollars each. At times I’ve seen prices quoted in the half-mil […]
Leaving the Allmans Soon? Lots of slide typically doesn’t do a whole lot for me. But I do love what Duane Allman, Sonny Landreth, Derek Trucks and a few others can do with a slide. They are truly expressing themselves, not just playing the guitar. And they’ve got TONE – of a Woody nature, of […]
Before the Chickenfoot show last night, my buddy and I hit the guitar stores on 48th Street – the three of them that remain, anyway.
Have you ever seen and heard Jimmy Page talking about his number-one Les Paul? Well now you can. I’m sure Pagey fans will know this info already, but may not have seen this video, dug up from YouTube by the good folks at fretbase.com. A few quick highlights of the video:
‘An Angry Moore….’ California’s Contra-Costa Times newspaper took the time to pursue this story as far as it can be pursued right now. It managed to get in touch with both parties, so there’s some good stuff in the article. Bottom line: It still looks like Ronnie Montrose will have a tough time getting “his” […]
Part 1: Blackfoot and Skynyrd Gear I love Blackfoot. One of the best bands ever to be on a stage, period. If you missed ’em, I feel for you. It was all good ‘ol rock ‘n’ roll: loud, fast, Les Pauls and Explorers through Marshalls, hitting the skins hard. No BS, no ballads – during […]
What if you owned a 1959 ‘burst Gibson Les Paul, one of the most valuable and sweet-sounding guitars ever, and found out that decades ago it had been stolen from a famous player – and now that famous player wanted it back? What would you do, presuming you had bought it in what you thought […]
No Les Paul for the Dead Gibson.com continues to make every effort to do justice to musicians who play their instruments, the latest being an interview with Warren Haynes. Warren, as we all know, is a player’s player – meaning a working musician with lots of talent, a thirst for playing and an ear for […]
No One Touches Sykes’ Les Paul! I happened upon a cool, recent interview on PremierGuitar.com of Scott Gorham. Good stuff there, but not a lot on his Thin Lizzy-era gear, maybe because it was Les Pauls and Marshalls and that’s it. But I had to find out, which led me to a Performing Musician interview […]
Pearly Replica! And the Band Was Named After… Gibson.com recently published a so-so interview with Billy Gibbons. It’s always cool to hear from the Rev, but there isn’t much new in this piece. Still, it’s always good to read what comes from famous guitarists, if for no other reason than to see if it matches […]
Meant to post this when the May issue of Guitar Player came out – just found it again. Here’s the Scorpions’ Matthias Jabs – whom I always liked, playing-wise more than tone-wise) – on how he seasoned one of his Les Pauls. And for the record, I did search for a photo pf him playing […]
The folks at PremierGuitar.com recently had a good interview with Alex Lifeson, who after using Les Pauls back in the early days of Rush (Alex is a huge Jimmy Page fan), went to Gibson ES-355s, then did the super strat thing for a while, then played PRSs and now is sporting a sweet-looking Les Paul […]
After doing that research about Joe’s gear for Wednesday’s post, I realized there wasn’t anything about his guitar. I know he plays a custom Gibson Les Paul now, but didn’t know the specs. Nor, importantly, did I know why he switched from a huge arsenal of Fenders to Les Pauls. Luckily someone at Gibson.com asked […]
Fair Warning Tone Ain’t All the Same
Got it in my head to figure out which Van Halen song tones – not album tones – I liked the most. Started with Fair Warning, whose balls I just can’t get enough of…which doesn’t sound so good but you get what I mean. Listen to it cranked in my car because that’s the only […]
Pondering VH’s Fair Warning Tone
LOVE the first four Van Halen albums. Always have, always will. Love the rest too, including the Van Hagar years (oops, forgot about VH III…), but those first four vinyl donuts are to me and many others just the nads. The nadliest of nads. They’re a band kicking the world’s butt in every way, and […]
Recently I was ruined yet again by a good amp. This time a bud’s Bogner Shiva, EL34 version. Let’s call him Sean – because that’s his name…. He’d been talking about how awesome it was for a while, and even though I know he has good ears, wasn’t too motivated to go try it. I’d […]
The Gene-EVH-Ace-Joe Perry Connection
Have you picked up “Guitar World Presents 40 Years of Van Halen” yet? Zactly – I didn’t even know it existed until I saw it in a bookstore (remember those? lol). Anyhow, I’m always amazed at how I think I’ve memorized every word ever written about Ed and his gear and then I read something […]
More On the YMI5150 Model-A Guitar
Few weeks ago I posted a brief “review” (outdated word) of Kevin Holbrook’s YMI5150 Model-A guitar. As a brief reminder, what got my attention were the following things: > A good wood combo: swamp ash, maple/rosewood. > An interesting and unique combo of components resulting in a Strat-shaped and -scaled guitar with an ABR bridge […]
Did You Read the Esquire EVH Piece Yet?
We’re going to have to wait yet another week for the interview with Kevin Holbrook of YMI5150 guitars because we have yet another newsworthy event. This time it’s the recent Esquire interview with Edward Van Halen. Now before you EVH fans get to getting your hopes up, let’s bear in mind the same ol’s: 1. […]
Show ‘Review’: Van Halen at the Garden
Took my 10-year-old son to see Van Halen at Madison Square Garden in New York City on March 1. I think he was more excited to see them than I was – not that I wasn’t, but this was the mighty Van Halen whose tunes the both of us have copped, jammed to and listened […]
