Compiling a list of "Classic" Tones...

[kewlpack]

I posted this on TDPRI and wanted to hear from you guys too...perhaps from a Christian music perspective.
~A~

I'd like to compile a list of examples of "Classic" tone. These can be from any genre of music and any year so long as they include one or more guitars.

Please take a few minutes to jot down your favorite tones from your favorite artists in the last 30 years or so. Please include the reasons why you like the tone or why it stands out as a "classic".

It would be helpful to split this into two categories:

1) Rhythm Tones

2) Lead Tones

We've no doubt got a lot of great ears our here - so let's hear from you!

Cheers.
~A~

[Teleguy]

Welp,
Certainly the classic Strat clean tone quack would be Mark Knoffler, "Sultans Of Swing."

Les Paul Junior: I always think of Joe Walsh, either with the James Gang, or with The Eagles. Has that spanky growl.

Classic Telecaster: Mike Bloomfield on the early Paul Butterfield records, Steve Cropper on a LOT of Stax/Volt (Atlantic) soul records, like Green Onions, Hip Hugger, etc., in fact a lot of the Blues Brothers movie featured music originally using Steve Cropper to back up Sam and Dave, etc etc etc.,
and of course Roy Buchanan really showed how much emotion you could get out of a Tele.

[MrMike]

If I had to pick one song upon which to base my tones, it would be "Mississippi Queen" by Mountain. The rhythm tone is massive and the solo tone is thick and juicy, like a really nice steak.

[Nickcha]

Ditto for Leslie West's P90/Marshall tone on Mississippi Queen.

I've been captivated by Clapton's 335 & SG-through-Marshall-Plexi tones, on cuts like "White Room", "Crossroads" (and just about everything he did with Cream).

Additionally, both the rhythm and lead tones he got on "Had To Cry Today" (Blind Faith) are a benchmark in my mind. These early Clapton tones using Gibson HBs through early series Plexis are the height of great rich, chewy warm and harmonically complex guitar tones.

For Marshalls I also would add:

Free's "All Right Now" - LP>Plexi

Jimmy Page's LZ I & II - Tele>Plexi & Supro

Boston's "Long Time" & "Peace Of Mind" for early 70s metal face Marshalls

Jimi's "All Along The Watchtower", "Fire", "Wind Cries Mary" and "Little Wing" - Strat > early series Plexi (Although he used others in the studio)

Clapton & George Harrison on Cream's "Badge"



The VOX AC30 (one of the true holy grail amps) never met a guitar it didn't love or make a perfect match with, exemplified by Mike Campbell w/ Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.




For Fender amps I'll go with:

Keith Richards - Tele > Tweed

SRV - Strat > Vibroverb

Don't know what Knoffler used on SOS but THAT was an awsome compressed Strat.


There have been many good tones that have emerged since those days, but these are the signature tones that have set the bar for classic guitar sounds for me (and many others). Obviously EVH captured the ears of many w/ his Brown sound - excellent. But I found a lot of the tones that emerged from 80s+ amps to be overly processed and somewhat boxy. There was a haunting harmonic quality that the early PTP Marshall Plexis, VOX AC30s, Tweed and BF Fenders possessed, that simply gave way to fizzy, buzzy overly circuited amps that followed. Aerosmith has done a good job of keeping the flame of tone alive.

[Crunchyriff]

Clapton & George Harrison on Cream's "Badge"

Oh man, I'm all over that! That to me is one of the finest moments in recorded rock guitar.

That picking signature just drives me nuts- I never want it to end.....

[Nickcha]

And there's certainly nothin' wrong with Johnny Winter's Firebird>Marshalls on:

Leland Mississipi Blues

Rollin and Tumblin

Hwy 61-revisited

R'nR Hoochie Koo


If you guys have access to these tunes and want to remember what guitar playing is all about..... 8)

[MrMike]

I'd have to put David Gilmour's solo in "Comfortably Numb" right near the top of my list too. I don't think it could be more perfect.

[Crunchyriff]

MrMike: I'm trying hard to stay away from all the usual references, but I hear ya! That's a top pick for me, too.

[MrMike]

Yeah, I'm torn. There's the stuff that everybody has heard, but I don't want to get too obscure, either.

Here's one that's somewhere in between:

The Cars' "Since I Held You" from the "Candy-O" album. Elliot Easton is an absolute master; a tasteful and skillful player who always played for the song, not himself. It's a really nice solo.

[Crunchyriff]

Okay, here's one:

"Crying To The Sky" off the Sunburst Finish album by BeBop Deluxe.

That howlin' ES-345 of Bill Nelson's was just outstanding. Still makes the hair on my arms stand up everytime I hear it.

[TheViking]

... not actually guitar related but still would be....
Mrs Cavewoman bashing Mr Caveman over the head with a heavy and hard object..... kinda rythm and lead at the same time don't ya think? :D like thump thump thump howl howl thump

[Ascension]

Gary Moore Still Got the Blues For You and Parisienne Walkways off the Blues Alive disk Soldano+ 58 Les Paul+ Duncan Alnico Pro II`s =STUNNING TONES!!!!(My MTS Carvin- DC145 in mahogany neck and body with a set of Dimarzio Nortons( Air in the neck) is AWFULL close though!!)

[Crunchyriff]

Viking, you never cease to amaze! :wink:

Vintage tone, indeed! :mrgreen:

[kewlpack]

... not actually guitar related but still would be....
Mrs Cavewoman bashing Mr Caveman over the head with a heavy and hard object..... kinda rythm and lead at the same time don't ya think? :D like thump thump thump howl howl thump
Hahaha ya... but man, a vintage club would cost what? Like $2,530,219.32! Especially to get one that has aged properly and didn't have gig-rash or coffee stains on it. :mrgreen:

Collectible, vintage percussion.
~A~

[TheViking]

Hahaha ya... but man, a vintage club would cost what? Like $2,530,219.32! Especially to get one that has aged properly and didn't have gig-rash or coffee stains on it. :mrgreen:


Acyually i think I saw one at ebay closing at $2,510,00.32, but someone else beat me to it. Looked like a beautiful thumping stick, just normal use wear. :D It looked kinda unique too so I guess it's an early custom shop piece.

[Teleguy]

For THAT price it should be pre-CBS, and mint!

[32203miracle]

One of the sweetest solos which actually intros the song is on the live version of the song "Sweet Jane" by Lou Reed. I imagine the guitarists was J. J. Cale.

Just a great tone and solo.

[Crunchyriff]

'Miracle'- that is a sweet solo on "Sweet Jane"- a very nice recording. Great tone!! YEAH!!

I'm not sure if that is JJ Cale or not...but it sure is a good 'un...

[jazzrat]

On the CCM side how about Phil Keaggy's Les Paul tones! Can't think of a particular song but any time I hear that middle position honk I think of Phil. Love that guy.

[MrMike]

One of the sweetest solos which actually intros the song is on the live version of the song "Sweet Jane" by Lou Reed. I imagine the guitarists was J. J. Cale.

Just a great tone and solo.

That was Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner. They did a lot of stuff uncredited in the 70's. For example, that's them on the end of "Train Kept A'Rollin" by Aerosmith, on the pseudo-live section. Apparently Perry and Whitford were "under the weather". They also did some Kiss stuff, again uncredited. Dick Wagner now lives in Saginaw, MI, about 20 minutes from me. He owns a recording studio there.

[32203miracle]

That was Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner.

Cool !!
Thanks for the info.

[refin]

If I had to pick one song upon which to base my tones, it would be "Mississippi Queen" by Mountain. The rhythm tone is massive and the solo tone is thick and juicy, like a really nice steak.

Absolutely! The solo tone (and choice of notes....sigh) on "Theme To An Imaginary Western" is one of my favorites. I think Leslie helped put the P-90 on the map,along with another favorite tonal album,"Live At Leeds" by the Who....the different shades of tones that Townsend gets on that recording are incredible.He knows tone.
That covers the heavy stuff! :mrgreen:

Chet Atkins always had the purest tone of anyone,IMHO...and the super clean touch.He and George Harrison are my two favorites overall.George's lines were super inventive (and not locked into the blues/pentatonic frame) with great AC-30 tone,and it didn't change when he went to Fender amps.He was the most inventive guitarist to me,and played what it took to make the song work.

[Micter]

Tone is so subjective but I gotta say Michael Schenker has phenominal tone. Especially in the late UFO days. There is just something about the V through a Marshall. Listen to the solo on Rock Bottom from Strangers in the Night. Geeze that sound is "it" for me.

Another guy that has great tone is Gary Moore. That Les Paul/MArshall combo is awesome!

[Teleguy]

This morning after Worship a guy told me I was nailin' the Led Zep sound. I was playin' a tele through a small Vox.
I think Jimmy Page recorded a Champ with a Tele for the first album.
Seems like a pretty classic tone, and not hard to get. :wink:

[Old Believer]

Rhythm:
I'd have to say Keith Richards. A Tele, equiped with an humbucker in the neck position, straight into an old fender amp.

Lead, and slide:
I'll go with Duane Allman. An old Lester through a fifty watt marshall turned up to ten.

Also, Dickey Betts. Lester through a Marshall turned up to ten.

Mick Taylor. Great tone, and style.

[Surfcaster]

I'm a little late getting in here. I would agree with much of what's been posted already...and just to supply some info on Knopfler...for clean Fender stuff he use's a Twin Reverb...I think he uses Electro Voice speakers (like $250 a pop!) Of course his laid back, ambient, Les Paul neck p/up through a 50W Marshall half stack is also one of my favorites (i.e, Brothers in Arms, also Silvertown Blues on his solo album Sailing to Philadelphia captures it really well...not in your face, but sort of in the background, but powerful all the same!)

I'd have to add Eric Johnson to the list...serious tone-meister!! (Fender Deluxe Reverbs, Marshall Plexi, Chandler Tube Driver, Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face...though I'd never buy a fuzz, personally)

Wes Montgomery for that fat, jazz tone.

Alex Lifeson from Rush has yet to have bad tone...or even mediocre tone, for that matter...at least to my ears. It's pretty amazing because he's all over the place tonewise...he doesn't really have a signature tone like many players do, but it always shines, no matter what it is, IMHO.

Tom Scholz from Boston has already been mentioned, but he always sounds good!

And what's kind of wierd is that I always thought .38 Special sounded great on their recordings, but I saw them live last year at a podunk local fair and they didn't sound that great at all...but I still think their recordings have great tone.

(Can you tell I'm a child of the 80's yet?)

Christian music wise, Dann Huff and Gordon Kennedy from White Heart were awesome guitarists with great tone.

Even Bob Hartman from Petra usually had good tone.

Phil Keaggy is kind of hit and miss on tone with me...sometimes great, sometimes not. Always an excellent player, however.

The dude that plays for Tait gets some pretty decent tones, too, as do Brad and Mark from Third Day.

And I've got the new Kutless CD...they sound pretty good, though they could work on their creativity and their chops a little more.

Okay, I'll stop for now! :)

Jonathan

[Old Believer]

I thought I'd add the harmony guitar stuff from Thin Lizzy

[Gino]

On the CCM side how about Phil Keaggy's Les Paul tones! Can't think of a particular song but any time I hear that middle position honk I think of Phil. Love that guy.^

Actually you can get Phil's tones in great purity on the 'How The West Was One' live album. I think he plays his Les Paul and his 65' Strat through some kind of Fender amp. Also listen to his overdriven LP sound (through s Princeton or Champ) on 'Holding On To You (Paul Clark: Good To Be Home). He's actually high on my list of 'tonemeisters' - Christian and secular. How about his solo on 'Carry Me On' on Paul Clark's 'Out Of The Shadow'? Sounds to me though like his Yamaha SA 2000. A lot of good Strat stuff also on 'Emerging'.

On the secular front Duane Allman (Allman Bros. live at the Fillmore East) is a definite must: LP trough Plexi Marshall. And then some of Larry Carton's awesome tones! My favorite is 'Blues Bird' (Sleepwalk).
BTW: I'm not completely sure about Paul Kossoff's (Free) Plexi: On the Isle of Wight DVD he does play a Marshall, but I've seen an old (Live) performance on German TV where he played through an Orange stack (well, it's Brit-EL 34 anyway...)

Gino

[rkymtnhi]

Maybe not classic in the traditional sense of the word, but.....

Robert Smith of the Cure--textural, delayed, hooky lines
the Edge of U2--AC30 & delay with catchy lead/rythm lines
Andy Summers of the Police--reggae beats and delay
Dick Dale--reverb

I love textural sounds--and think they really do well in worship settings...

Other guys:
John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers--crazy effects, funky lines
David Wilcox--awesome accoustic tone and great songwriting!
Joe Perry and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith--powerful rythmic lines & interesting hooky leads
Angus and Malcom Young of AC/DC--same as above
Bonnie Raitt--Fat soulful grooves and slide guitar
311, Foo Fighters, Everclear all have interesting sounds
Brian May of Queen--orchestrated guitar symphonies
The Pixies & the Waterboys used reverb to create texture and space

The guys from Delerious and David Crowder Band do a great job of creating mood and texture within the worship genre