How To Play ‘I Know a Little;’ Played on a Les Paul? Thirty-two years ago today, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane went down and we lost one of the greatest guitar players ever to walk out on a stage: 28-year-old Steve Gaines. Steve was an absolute monster. Couple quotes to that effect (if you read nothing else, […]
I’ve found myself digging certain parts of KISS’s new Sonic Boom CD, and realizing (or re-realizing) a few things, which are:
Wanted a Trumpet, Drums; Settled for Guitar Fender.com recently published a short-ish interview with Ritchie Blackmore that had a couple of interesting tidbits in it, below. For the full interview, which discusses his current work with Blackmore’s Night, click here. Fender: Is it true that when your father bought you your first guitar at age […]
If you follow all things Seymour Duncan, you will have seen a couple weeks ago that the company announced that Seymour himself has been working on Angus Young’s guitars. Here’s what was said: “We’ve been working behind the scenes with Angus Young for the past year. His tech, Takumi Suetsugu, contacted Seymour Duncan about dialing […]
For tone-heads, cheap video and the Internet came a few decades too late. So instead of having loads of video on pioneering rock bands who had real talent and real tone, we have only a few interviews, some of which might be gone and forgotten. Luckily someone at the MetroAmp forum (I think…might have been […]
ZZen and the Kung Fu Masters of Rock Dang! I was lucky enough to catch that little ol’ band from Texas at New York City’s Beacon Theatre a couple weeks ago, and wow, what a show. The guys were just…cool, and the sound – I hope the sound guy got a case of beer that […]
Sound Clip Below! Here’s the rest of the interview with Gaspedals owner Jayson Lane, followed by a sound clip and some notable info. WoodyTone: I read on your website that you’re a tone-chaser, obviously a guitar-player. What sound were you trying to find or achieve when you got on to the Carb and do you […]
The Gaspedals Carb! What if a stompbox gave you only two things: more and better. More of the tone you worked hard at creating for yourself, then opening that up with more clarity, dynamics, harmonics and whatever other descriptors you want to toss in there that equal better to you. Would you jump all over […]
Did you see Edward Van Halen on the Two and a Half Men TV show last week? Naturally they left him until the last part of the show, but for Ed fans the wait was worth it – because Ed had a guitar in his hands and proceeded to whip off 10 or so seconds […]
Some Gear Now Appearing on eBay? Any Savatage fans out there? I know there must be, and if Criss Oliva were still alive today there would probably be a lot more (RIP Criss). I remember the first time I heard “Hall of the Mountain King,” with the classical music intro. I knew I’d heard the […]
George Lynch is one of my favorite guitarists, but for guitar fans he seems to be a love him or hate him guy – no middle ground. Maybe that’s because he has a distinctive style, and he’s very experimental having tried the rock-rap thing (I love the Smoke This CD), entire albums and concerts with […]
In the same April 1979 issue of Record Review Magazine mentioned in last Friday’s post, Ed was asked when he started playing guitar. He said: “I’d say that I really didn’t start playing guitar and getting into lead guitar until Cream and the heavy guitar things started happening.” Ask how old he was, he said: […]
Here we are again, I guess – another episode of “is it true or not?” starring Edward Van Halen. Can you take him at his word, or not? Is 90% of what he said truth or was 90% misdirection? Was it more like 50/50? Who knows. I’m not in one camp or another. I just […]
And Why Hatchet’s First Album Sounded Like Skynyrd I still love Molly Hatchet’s tune “Flirtin’ With Disaster”…and I know I’m not alone! A great song, fast tempo, some great guitar-playing, multiple leads – separated by the southern lead singer whistle which means “c’mon and play something” – harmony leads, it’s all there. Tone of the […]
An Ode to Joy (Seriously) By now I assume you’ve heard about the documentary on the Canadian metal band Anvil. It’s called “Anvil: The Story of Anvil,” and is showing in smaller theaters in the U.S. and Canada (I’m not sure about Europe). I was given a promo copy by a friend in the music […]
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 […]
