Gretsch White Falcon - Billy Duffy Gear interview

The Gretch White Falcon.... it's got to be one of the most beautiful guitar every made. If god plays guitar, he would use a Gretsch White Falcon. The Gretsch White Falcon with its white finish and gold hardware, and the shape of the guitar, THE SHAPE, this guitar is perfection, something from heaven.

However, not many guitarist play a White Falcon. Billy Duffy from The Cult does, and he's one of the rare guitarists that have made it his trademark guitar, and he's managed to make it suit his image and playing style. Billy Duffy has been playing the Gretsch White Falcon for decades and has a wide collection from vintage 1970's models, to the most current new productions. If he doesn't know about the White Falcon then who does. The White Falcon from the 70's although looked great, had no output and not suitable for gigs. Billy Duffy used to swap the pickups with custom made Seymour Duncans. Billy Duffy bought his first double cutaway White Falcon in 1982 using all his life savings to buy it, commiting his life to Rock N' Roll and music.

Heres a video interview with Billy Duffy talking about his love for the Gretsch White Falcon throughout his career.

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Stevie Ray Guitars - SRV guitars interview

This is the second part of the interview on Stevie Ray guitars. The second Stevie Ray Vaughan gear setup interviwe. Stevie Ray Vaughan SRV blew the world away with his fat full tone with 13 guage strings from his Fender Strat which still had the glassy crystal clear sound that is signature of Strats and Hendrix. If your looking for a Stevie Ray Vaughan gear interview on his guitars, here it is.

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Heres the second part:
Interviewer: I've seen you using a white Stratocaster style guitar with Danelectro lipstick pickups, whos made this guitar?
SRV: It started out being a Stratocaster, and Charley Wirt re-did it for me. Charley's no longer with us, but he had a guitar shop in Texas called Charley's guitar shop which was where everybody went,
Interviewer: In Houston?
SRV: In Dallas, everyone seemed to go there, from other countries, it was becoming world famous, because the guy was such a straight shooter, he didn't mess you around and his prices were right, and his work was excellent, he was a real neat guy, he and his partner Rene Martinez, Rene works with us now, they're repair work seemed to be better than everyone elses, their repair work was mainly redoing Stratocasters, and they were just called, they just said Charley's, and then for that particular guitar, whoever they made it for had something to do with them, mine's an E flat model, he done things to it when it was tuned to E flat which is what I tune. And the lipstick pickups, he matched himself, and I don't think they're completely stock, he may have changed something small about them, but nothing major, they are what they appear to be, is what I mean, and they just really sound real good in that body style, in fact sometimes I think better than a Stratocaster pickup.
Interviewer:So there aren't any special wirings inside of it?
SRV: Not that I know of, he didn' tell anybody
Interviewer: They ain't no active circuits inside of it?
SRV: No, no, no, nothing like that, theres nothing like that in any of my guitars
Interviewer: It sounds abit different from your regular Stratocasters.
SRV: It seems to be clearer in someways, however it, clearer and fatter in someways, however its got more of a bite too, it depends on how your using it, you know, they just seem to work real well, and the only other difference on that guitar is that its only got one tone knob and one volume, somehow the tone seems to be a little different because of that, if you disconnect the tone knob it sounds different.
Stevie Ray Guitars

Stevie Ray Vaughan Gear Setup - Amps and Effects pedals,

The first video of Stevie Ray Vaughan Gear Setup. Here's a rare audio interview with Stevie Ray Vaughan talking about his guitars, amps, setup and gear. The audio interview isn't that clear, so I've typed out everything for everyone to read aswell. I'm not sure about when the interview took place or who is interviewing him, but it's a good indepth interview.

Heres Part 1

Interviewer: Do we still have time to talk?
SRV: Yeah
Interviewer: Do you think so? I'd like to talk alittle bit about your gear today,
SRV: OK
Interviewer: Uh, What kind of amplifiers do you use?
SRV: Well, I'm using two different kinds right now, uh, for a long time I used a combination of a bunch of things, um, well different... I used to use lots of Fender amps, I would use Super reverbs and Vibroverbs, along with Dumble, which are custom made amps. Now I've, I've gone to a smaller rig numbers wise, I'm using a Marshal Major amp powerhead (JCM 800), and a Dumble powerhead, which I'm not sure about the Wattage on, but they're both about the same, but it's an old Marshall, and this Dumble which is a custom made amp out of California, are you familiar with them?
Interviewer: Yeah, I heard about them and seen advertisements
SRV: OK, well, the Dumble that I'm using is a Steel String Singer, it's basically cleaner when it's not like a overdrive monster or anything, it's more like just a clear amp,
Interviewer: Yeah Yeah,
SRV: and I use two 4x12 cabinets
Interviwer: Yeah
SRV: and a Leslie (Fender Vibrotone Leslie Cabinet), thats all I'm using.
Interviewer: Ok, What kind of pedals do you use?
SRV: All I've always used is a Leslie and a Tubescreamer (Ibanez TS-9) right now, the reason I still use a Tubescreamer is because I haven't found anything that I like better, and I'm still looking, and a old Vox Wah Wah, and that's all, for pedals, every once in a while I'll try something new, if I like it I'll put it in or replace something with it, however to this day I still, at least dependability wise, and from day to day some, ......

Part 2 will be posted soon which will be about his guitars

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Billy Sheehan Gear - The Evolution of Yamaha Attitude Bass

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These kind of videos is what I been looking for for every artist. The perfect video for this blog.

Billy Sheehan talks about his first guitars, his signatures and all the way to the most recent Yamaha Attitude bass.

Billy still has his original bass which he used as a youngster. In the video he talks about the mods he made to the bass. The first mod was changing the neck to a 68 Telecaster bass neck, hipshot D-tuner, replaced the pickups, putting in a Gibson Humbucker, and rewiring it so that it had two jack sockets!!

The first signature was the Yamaha BB300S bass Billy Sheehan signature, which had many of the mods he done on his original P-Bass. The neck was a neckthrough body, not a bolt on this time.

Then he goes to the Yamaha Attitude bass. This bass went back to being a bolt-on however it was bolted twice in two position so that it wouldn't move. The pickups were Dimarzio model-1 and Dimarzio Will Power, and include Half Scalopped neck on the higher frets.

Then finally he goes through the most recent version of the Yamaha Attitude bass and a new version of the Yamaha BB series.

The second video is just a little extra, Billy Sheehan Yamaha Advertisement for the Yamaha Billy Sheehan signature BB300S

Billy Sheehan gear interview - Dimarzio pickups

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Carrying on with ym Vai theme this week I've been searching for Billy Sheehan gear interviews. In case you don't know Billy Sheehan was the basses when Vai was with David Lee Roth, he can shred on the bass and keep up with Vai, he's got the reputation for being a shred guitarist on bass but he's much more than that, he's also a musi
cian.

In the video Billy Sheehan talks about the pickups he used in the past and how he eventually ended up staying with Dimarzio pickups. Billy Sheehan also talks about the specific sound he want from the pickup, that being as clear as possible, Billy want the pickup to be a link in the chain, and not to distort the pure sound of the strings.

Another Steve Vai rig walkthrough

Heres another clip I found of Steve Vai talking through his rig for Guitar World Magazine, this video was recorded before the Sound Theories tour while he was in rehersals. It features Vai going through his pedal board which interestingly has the prototype of the Jemini before it got it's multicoloured case. As usualy he talks about Evo and Flo (sustainer).

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Heres his rig:
Pedal Board: Steve Vai Morley Bad Horsey Wah Wah pedal, Prototype Ibanez Jemini Distortion pedal, Digitech Whammy, then it goes back into the Carvin Legacy steve Vai signature heads, out of the effects loop of the Carvin it goes into a rack, Eventide Ultra Harmonizer, Carvin Power amp(for speaker monitors), then back to the pedal board with TC Entertainment G system board, Morley Volume pedal, Boss Ds-1 Distortion, Eddie Van Halen MXR Phase 90.

Moore Gary Moore Gear video - Pedals Boss DS1 Distortion

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I didn't think I would, but I found more Gary Moore gear footage. This video has a young Gary Moore demonstrating the Boss DS1 Distortion pedal. Like always when Gary Moore is demonstrating his gear for us he'll play some killer licks.


Enjoy


ps. If anyone has or knows of more Gary Moore gear interviews and videos then please comment or email me.

Gary Moore interview with Marshall Amplification

Gary Moore talks about his association with Marshall, his setup and his influences.

The talks about his original amp setup that he used early in his career. Gary Moore goes through his early career with Skid Row and Thin Lizzy, how he joined and rejoined these bands, and how Parisian Walkways was written.


The second video has Gary Moore talking about Ozzy and Randy Rhoads and the Randy Rhoads amp. Gary Moore then talks about his collection
of amps including Marshall JCM 800, Small Box 50, and JTM 45.

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Jimmy Page interview on his guitars: Jimmy Page Les Paul

I finally got round to editing the Jimmy Page interview and got all the parts when he's talking about his guitar.

Jimmy talks about his famous 1959 Gibson Les Paul given to him by Joe Walsh, his Martin Acoustics, briefly talks about his double neck, and mentions some of his cherished guitars such as the Gibson Everly acoustic given to him by Ronnie Wood.

The Jimmy Page Les Paul was later copied by Gibson Custom shop, creating an exact replica with scatches and all.

I'm planning to upload the parts where he talks about his amps and effects as well, so stay tuned for them in the future.
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Jimmy Page gear interview, more coming soon on his Gibson Les Paul and Marshall

Since I started this blog I've been searching for footage of my top guitar hero Jimmy Page talking about his gear, and what I've found is that it's damn rare, impossible to find, or doesn't exist. But now I've finally found what I've been looking for, there's no footage but an audio interview. The interview is with Steven Rosen for Guitar Player magazine in 1977. The interview is about an hour and a half long, with Jimmy talking about alot of other stuff. As this blog is just on guitar heroes talking about their gear I only want that part of the interview to show to you guys, he talks about his Gibson Les Pauls, Marshall Plexi and more. So I plan to take excerpts of when he's talking about his gear and compile it into sections such as Amps, guitars, effects, etc, and post it up. It will take some time, I'll try to do this when I get more time.

Keep tuned in for this post in the future.

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For now here's a more recent "audio" only video of Jimmy Page and his Signature Gibson Double Neck SG that was released.

Eric Clapton interview on his Gibson 1964 SG Fools Guitar

Eric Clapton's distinctive legendary psychedelic Gibson 1964 SG named "The Fool" guitar. Below is a clip of Eric Clapton talking about the volume and tone knobs etc.

I also found a good article about the guitar from an old "Guitarist Magazine" here it is....

PLAYING THE FOOL

There can be few more evocative guitars than the multicoloured Gibson SG used by Eric Clapton in Cream. And when it was teamed with a brace of 100-watt Marshallstacks, the results were ear boggling...

Words Neville Marten

As if Gibson's twin-horned SG wasn't striking enough to look at, in 1967 Eric Clapton decided that the one he had needed a bit of visual enhancement. This was the summer of love, of psychedelia and of mind-expanding drugs. What's more, a new kid had arrived on Eric's block, in the shape of a skinny black guy from Seattle who wore women's blouses and played mean guitar himself. Clapton, still basking in the glory of his 'God' tag, wasn't going to be outdone on any front (although in hindsight his ensuing Afro hairdo may well have been a style statement too far).

Almost certainly a cherry model - only a very few were made in other colours at that time - Eric gave his SG to The Beatles' Dutch artist friends, Simon Posthuma and Marijka Koger, part of a collective known as The Fool. Together they decorated the instrument in rainbow colours, with a naked nymph, clouds, moons and stars gracing the front. The back was a simpler affair, a glowing sun and rippling echoes of the SG's horns making their way up to the headstock.

All in all it was an impressive feat and strangley suited the style of the guitar - especially where the rainbow curls into the guitar's top horn. The colours look quite muted today, although early photos show a bright and vibrant guitar.

Eric's SG was a 1964 model, still very much in the vein of the earlier 'Les Paul' SGs but with an extra scratchplate screw and the long Deluxe Vibrola system replacing the earlier model's unsatisfactory sideways operated vibrato. Clapton retained the Vibrola, but after the paint job its faceplate was never replaced and Eric kept the arm out of harm's way, pointing backwards.

Pickups were patent number humbuckers, the legendary PAF or 'patent applied for' units having given way to these around 1962. The tuners, which would originally have been plastic buttoned Klusons, were replaced with Grover 'kidney bean' types, deemed more accurate and reliable.

Eric recorded with this instrument from Cream's highly regarded Disraeli Gears album onwards, and on live shows until the group disbanded in 1968. It had a sweeter, more open sound than the Les Pauls he'd favoured until Cream's early days, and it was on this guitar that he famously demonstrated how to achieve his then trademark 'woman' tone, with the volume control full up and the tone backed right off. Check out Disraeli Gears tracks SWLABR and We're Going Wrong to hear this sound played on this guitar.

After Cream folded, and while doing a session for George Harrison's Apple signing Jackie Lomax, Eric lent the guitar to the singer and never saw it again. Lomax later sold it to guitarist, and producer of Meatloaf's Bat Out Of Hell album, Todd Rundgren.

The famous guitar is now owned by Hard Rock Cafe and has been spotted in seven of the company;s burger joints around the USA. An inauspicious end for one of rock's greatest ever musical icons, perhaps, but let's thank God that its sounds are preserved on some of the most influential recordings of all time.

source: Guitarist

Magazine Issue 263 May 2005

Heres another good link I found on the Fool guitar and Eric Clapton's Gear check out LegendaryTone.com

And heres the clip.... enjoy

Kirk Hammett interview and his guitars

Kirk Hammett from Metallica and his tech goes through some of his guitar collection. The video shows a Kirk Hammett interview talking about his guitar such as, the spider guitar and caution ESP guitars, his tech says he goes through 30-40 in a tour, lol. Kirk like other guitarists love to smash guitars during a gig for entertainment value, he actually repairs and changes parts of the guitar he smashes to smash the following night. Other guitars featured are Kirks Mummy guitar, Luigi guitar, and ESP transparent guitar which can be filled with liquid.

Pickups - Steve Vai and Larry DiMarzio

Steve Vai talks with Larry Dimarzio about pickups

Slash interview on Gibson signiture guitars

Gibson Les Paul Slash Goldtop

sl

Gibson Les Paul VOS Standard

Gibson Les Paul Slash Signiture

Epiphone Les Paul Slash Signiture

Eddie Van Halen EVH interview on his Frankenstein guitar with Fender

Eddie Van Halen joined up with Fender to replicate his famous red-black and white striped "Frankenstein" guitar. Fender managed to replicate the guitar to every last detail, even Eddie couldn't tell the difference! Watch the Eddie Van Halen interview he's done with Guitar World and Fender.


Info
Name: VH® Frankenstein™ replica
Price: $25,000
Colours Available: Red-Black and White Striped
Availability: Limited, only 3000 made
Fingerboard: 12" to 16" compound radius maple fingerboard
Frets: 21 Dunlop® 6100 jumbo frets
Pickups: Seymour Duncan® Custom Shop EVH® humbucking pickup


source: Fender