TQR Tone Quest Report Oct. 2002

The Player’s Guide to Ultimate Tone TM

the

Report

Mountainview Publishing, LLC

$10.00 US, October 2002/VOL.3 NO.12

INSIDEThe Rev Deliversthe Goods fromthe Woodshed !

10Lighten Your Loadwith a classic Les

Paul Special

11The Radiators’

Dave Malone onTone from the

Bayou!

19The Electro-

Harmonix HolyGrail Reverb

www.tonequest.com

Billy F. Gibbons

TONEQUEST REPORT V3. N12. October 2002

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Welcome, Señors and Señoritas. We resume our explorationinto the mysterious realm of tone, and this month our journeybegins midway between Houston and San Antonio in a littletown called La Grange. You know how that story goes... Thecreepin’ shuffle boogie intro to “La Grange” exploded intoone of the most unique and recognizable guitar tones on theplanet, compliments of Billy F. Gibbons and that Little ol’Band from Texas. You gotta hand it to the Rev... with just onenote stroked from Pearly Gates, there is no absolutely nodoubt who’s in charge, and that’s a high wire act matched bya mere handful of players in the long and colorful history ofthe guitar.

We caught up with Mr. Gibbons in his hometown of Houston,and it was a good hang. ZZ Top has ridden high on the chartswith a ton of hits over the past 30 years, yet the band andcrew are a completely down-to-earth outfit lacking any of thehubris that often infects successful artists and their ‘people.’We spent two days in Houston talking about Billy’s uniquevibe and how he nails it, and as you might expect, many sur-prises await, so let’s get to it!

TQR: What was the first exposure to this strange music that set ya’ll on the path to play the blues?

BB King, JimmyReed, MuddyWaters, LittleWalter, Howlin’Wolf, Elvis, andHouston bluesradio! It startedway early… theseare just a few of themany that stand as

the inventors of this fine American art form. The challengeremains to attempt a refreshed interpretation of the magnet-ism of the blues.

TQR: Your dad entered the picture about that time, yes?

Indeed. He enjoyed entertaining, spanning a remarkablecareer, from concerts through the motion picture business,and all points in between. He developed quite a wide range ofcreative expressions…

TQR: A house full of music, no doubt!

Si, Señor!

TQR: You’ve got ties from England, correct?

Yes. My poppa and his five bro’s hangin’ in New York

formed a feisty combo The Jazzy Five, followed by TheGibbons Brothers Band, appearing in the upstate New Yorkresorts. Full out 30’s elegance… and a bit of ragtime, shabbysheik to boot.

TQR: Jimmy Reed is credited as a most important influ-ence. Why Jimmy Reed in particular?

The JR simplicity is nothing shortof infectious. It grabs you quick. Apure and accessible sound, whichis always still around. Two guitarsand drums is the ultimate trio.Jimmy Reed, and also the Big BeatMaster, Bo Diddley… Street-sim-ple and elemental, with an unex-pected complexity of the innerworkings of tremendously tonefultrios. Bo Diddley on guitar,Clifford James on his solid snare,and Jerome Green’s propellingmaracas. All quite intriguing. Loudelectric guitar became the move.

TQR: So LOUD electric guitar was next?

Yeah… single cut, single pickup Gibson Melody Maker witha Fender Champ amp.

TQR: Damn… you got right on it, didn’t you?

Yessir… That was ignition!

TQR: I suppose your garage band scene was not far behind?

Yeah. At first, just bangin’ and jangin’ things after school,chasing blues records. Some buddies also picked up the gui-tar, and a guy a couple of streets over with a set of well-beatdrums, well, that was it. It was on. The unlikely aggregationThe Saints started runnin.’

TQR: Was there any particular mentor, or was it picking things up on your own?

The back rooms blaring the likes of Chuck Berry and LittleRichard took over.

TQR: So The Saints provided a genuine beginning!

Most certainly… neighborhood parties, always out of control– always real gone. Truly reckless. The Stones suddenlyjumped on the scene, playing their version of classic R&Bwith their different twist, and providing even more influ-

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ences. I organized a new group and recorded a tune, “99thFloor,” released on a local Houston label, which fortunatelycaught on over the region’s radio stations. Out of town callsand bookings started showin’ up. We loaded up a stationwagon and headed out of town. Nuthin’ but a blast.

TQR: Is “99th Floor” still available?

Yeah, the original version is to be included in a new ZZ Topboxed set. It’s furious and fuzzy.

TQR: And the name of this new band was…

The Moving Sidewalks. By that time we were guitar, bass,drums, and keyboards. There was a brief time when soulmusic was the rage and we briefly added horns to the band,but the tough sound of a combo was tighter.

TQR: What kind of guitar were you playing?

A white ’63 Jazzmaster. Stabbin’ at that cool look… match-ing stuff… Fenders and blonde piggybacks.

TQR: Definitely a style, Amigo.

Oh, yeah… two blueframe 12’s behindmaroon grill cloth – fullvolume. Then Vox startedmaking an appearance onthe scene. Vox were thebiggest things we experi-enced. From the rare Voxtube models moving onto the super chrome-framed towers.Meanwhile, I switchedthe Jazzmaster to FenderEsquire. And with theinherently thin, cutting

Esquire, Vox made the sound pretty hairy. Those circuitscould really bark.

TQR: What happened on the heels of “99th Floor” and the subsequent Moving Sidewalks releases?

We continued performing throughout Louisiana andMississippi – mostly southern stuff – and in 1968 we weresigned to appear on the Jimi Hendrix tour along with theband from Paris called The Soft Machine. We played a num-ber of shows in Texas and a few in Arizona, and wound up inCalifornia twisting off on our own for awhile. We’d play amiddle of the week gig at this joint or that, then Friday nights

at Gazarri’son The Strip.I saddled upalong sidethe drummerto redesignthe lineupback inHouston,Texas. Afterlookingaround a bit,we found afriend of

ours who was an accomplished Hammond B3 specialist. Healso kicked bass pedals, which filled out the sound, and that’sall we really wanted.

TQR: What kind of music were you playing?

We kept all the blues influences, and then the psychedelicscene captured us. One of the first psychedelic bands ever –The 13th Floor Elevators – actually coined the term psyche-delic. Their first record was called The Psychedelic Sounds ofthe 13th Floor Elevators, and they followed that with analbum called Easter Everywhere.

TQR: We’ll check that out. Another heavy acid band from that period were Blue Cheer, and that was a direct,4-way hit.

Oh, man… I loved that band. When was that… 1967?

TQR: Yes, when they broke out with “Summertime Blues…”

Loved that song. We went out to see them one night, and notonly were they the loudest band we had ever heard, but thatwas the first time we had ever seen a drummer use cut-offbroomsticks for sheer power (laughs).

TQR: You retained your 3-piece organ trio?

Yeah, we changed the name from The Moving Sidewalks toZZ Top, and we cut a single in 1969 titled “Salt Lick,” backedby a track called “Miller’s Farm.” It was named after a ranchwe’d been given access to. We set up at the ranch house andyou could play as loud as you wanted and bothered no one.

TQR: Did you come up with the idea for the name of the band?

Yeah… we practiced and wrote material for about six or so,and the drummer and I decided on recruiting our buddy from


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Dallas to play bass, Billy Etheridge. He originally wasrhythm guitarist in one of Jimmy Vaughan’s first groups outof Dallas called The Chessmen. And then, Etheridge intro-duced me to drummer Frank Beard, who quickly establishedthe now famous backbeat. And Frank then recommendedauditioning another Dallas bassist, Dusty Hill. Frank andDusty worked together in Dallas, and made for a solidrhythm section.

TQR: Rock solid and tight, indeed…

Yeah, Dusty did a few pickup gigs around Houstontown, andtook Mr. Beard’s offer to join an afternoon jam session. Wedid a simple blues shuffle and it lusciously lasted for threefull hours. We looked at each other and said, “Man, this feelspretty good.” That’s what went down.

TQR: What gear was on the deck at this time?

We still had Vox, the oldEsquire, an Oyster PearlLudwig kit, and, of course,a Fender bass. Then we metJeff Beck… We hungaround with his outfit forawhile and noted a strangeamp even bigger than theVox. Man, it did soundgreat. We had discoveredMarshalls. Beck’s roadmanager had contacts atJim Marshall’s factory back

in the U.K., and suggested he score a couple of stacks for us.They were the 1969 Super Leads, and as soon as they arrived,we jumped over to them immediately and never looked back.Now, when I met Beck, he was playing his sunburst Les Paul.Shortly thereafter, the Jeff Beck Group album came out…what a great record.

TQR: So Beck was playing his ‘burst…

Yeah, I kept asking around and discovered that Gibson haddiscontinued them. The original sunburst Les Paul as we allknow it, now long gone, got replaced by the Les Paul SG. Atthe same time, John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers appeared,and on the back of the album cover was a picture of EricClapton with a ‘burst and a 2x12 Marshall Bluesbreakercombo. Well, I saw that, and thought there must really besomething to that guitar. I didn’t have much technical knowl-edge at that time, but noticed the pickups on the Les Paulwere larger than the pickup on the Esquire, plus there weretwo of them. A buddy of mine, Red Pharoah, had a guitarwith a couple of those pickups on it, so I bought it… a 1958Flying V. I picked it up for $300, and we were off and run-

ning. Marshalls and humbuckers.

TQR: Is that when you began to really hone in on what we would consider to be “your sound?”

Yes. Things took anotherstep up a month laterwhen a friend called andsaid he knew a farmerwith an original LesPaul. He kept it underhis bed and rarelyplayed it. At that time Iwas driving an old 1930sPackard automobile, andI gave it to a girlfriendso she could get out toCalifornia to audition fora part in a movie. Shemade it and got the part,

and swiftly sold the Packard and sent a check to me. Iremember the day her letter arrived, and immediately struckout toward the farmer’s place and said, “How ‘bout $250 forthat guitar?” He said, “Fine,” and that’s Pearly Gates.

TQR: An original Texas gee-tar…

It sho ‘nuff is.

TQR: And what followed was the culmination of one of the most distinctive, unique, and recognizable gui-tar tones on the planet…

Well, it did takesome time todevelop, and therewas an evolutionin progress, but allof these little indi-cators… seeingBeck, and thenClapton with one

of these guitars, and Mayall through his brilliance, finding somany wonderful guitarists like Peter Green and Mick Taylor.They were all playing these sunburst Les Pauls.

TQR: And ZZ Top was off to the races…

Yeah, we had met this individual who had an interest in man-agement. He had come down to Houston with another friendof his to see us perform with The Doors. He ran a record dis-tribution agency in Houston that happened to handle LondonRecords, which was the label for The Rolling Stones andMayall. Well, Mayall had organized a U.S. personal appear-

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Pearly Gates

Pearly Gates


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ance tour, traveling alone from town to town. More often thannot, he would get a hankering to put together impromptu jamsessions, and would usually inquire who might be availableto handle a couple of hours of the blues. And that’s how wemet our soon-to-be manager. Being somewhat familiar withour work, we got together and it was a classic scene. Hebrought out some cigars and said, “I’m going to make you astar.” With our handful of songs, we piled into this 1968Buick deuce and a quarter – a big old land yacht – and droveto a little town in east Texas. We cut the first ZZ album atRobin Hood’s on the Texas/Louisiana line. That studioalready had a couple of national hits with J. Fred and thePlayboys, Mouse and the Traps, and a lot of the big soulbands from southern Louisiana…The Boogie Kings, GGShinn and the Rollercoasters, Cary Ray and the NationalSoul Review… all from Robin Hood’s. They had the momen-tum and knew how to do the do. A preview of the ZZ record-ings reached a few labels, with London Records showing akeen interest. I said, “Man, that’ where The Rolling Stonesare. Let’s go there.

TQR: In regard to your playing and your fine, fine signa-ture guitar tone – you mentioned an ‘evolution’ hadtaken place over time. We might say a revolution considering the impact you made with Pearly… Looking back now with the benefit of hindsight,how were your influences as a guitarist continuing to develop and become more defined, from Trés Hombrés, onward?

A most interestingquestion… A revisitof the vintage record-ings from somefavorite blues per-formers, includingMuddy, Little Walter,BB King, CliftonChenier,Howlin’Wolf, and theall-time longstandingfavorite, Jimmy Reed.

Oddly enough, as many times as one revisits these timeless,unchanged recordings, different ways to look at the blues asan art form continue to appear. As soon as you think you’vegot a bead on exactly what’s going on, at the very least youdiscover something that might have been overlooked or inter-preted in a different fashion. My interest in the blues stillrides high.

TQR: Were any of your contemporaries or blues heroes ofthe past inspiring your playing and songwriting?

We all have our personal influences, and it’s worthy to note

some of our cherished contemporaries, like the late greatDoug Sahm, Jimmy Vaughan, and of course, Stevie… Alsothe work of John Mayall and his line of infamousBluesbreakers, who have continually provided a source ofmystery and entertainment.

TQR: The first time we heard Buddy Whittington on a record we thought, “Now, who the hell is that?”

(Laughs) Yeah… and another great player, James HardHarpin’ Harmon is a fine entertainer who would be just ashappy walking onto a stage at 9 p.m. opening a show orstrolling in at midnight as the headliner.

TQR: You can righteously be accused of having created the perfect marriage of the smokiest, greasiest blues riffs slithering around the ka-ching of monster big time Top 40 lyrical hooks and tongue and cheek imagery… a tall order, indeed. What’s the voodoo behind your song writing success? Is it more inspi-ration by accident (“I was playfully engaged with a warm snifter of Reposado one evening when Mescalito appeared…”) or do you just sit down and deliberately create another hit?

The mystery behind the magic of ZZ Top is an engagingendeavor… We take the latest composition and go to thewoodshed, where we place Frank Beard at the opposite endof the room where Dusty and I are set up. We then deliver thegoods, and at the end of the day we ask Frank what it is hethought we said? Usually, it’s an interpretation that is so farremoved from what was actually written, yet it’s usually bet-ter than what we had originally started with earlier in the day(laughs).

TQR: So there’s still room for the happy accident coming from the ZZ woodshed.

It starts out with the two bearded boys posing a challenge tothe beardless Mr. Frank – “Where’s it going, and what’s yourinterpretation?”

TQR: How has your stage rig evolved from the early dayswith ZZ Top to the present? You’ve credited the LesPaul ‘burst and the Marshall Superlead…

The Marshall and Pearly were the energized origin of thesound of the ZZ Top trio, enjoying the acquisition of somereally exotic critters that we’ve since collected over the years.We managed to build a couple of stacks of guitar rigs oneither side of the drum riser, and in essence, we have Dustypounding out his thang on a Fender 4-string, (which is basi-cally a low guitar in the band), and the Reverend Willy Gslamming out his thing on a high bass… and we have Mr.


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Beard in between. Over time, there were some interestingexcursions into guitar design centered from that one corner-stone element… Pearly Gates was the mystery factor thatfounded the sound of the band, and that particular sonic ele-ment was the one to be acknowledged. All of the creativeexcesses we’ve made managed to succeed as playable instru-ments while retaining the tonal qualities still found in PearlyGates.

TQR: Were you putting Seymour Duncan’s Pearly Gates pickups in a lot of the custom guitars you had built for ZZ Top tours?

Yes, and we also had the goodly assistanceof the Gibson Custom Shop, the FenderCustom Shop, Seymour Duncan, Mr. JohnBolin’s outfit out of Boise, Idaho, JamesTrussart, Tom Anderson, WD Products,Warmouth… the list is endless. I shouldalso mention the late Eric Yunker. It is asomewhat idealistic approach, enteringbrave new worlds without compromisingtone, taste, or tenacity. As most instrumen-talists know, you could grab the first sixguitars on an assembly line and the last sixon the line and none of them will necessari-ly sound the same. In the final analysis, it’sbasically meat on metal on wood… At the

same time, you’ve got a complexcollective of different grain struc-tures and wood from differentstands of trees held together by

new glue, old glue, and sometimesno glue… Pickups are wound with42 gauge wire that might havebeen dipped in lacquer one weekand something else the next.Thanks to the stalwart persever-

ance of people like SeymourDuncan, Lindy Fralin, DiMarzio, Rio Grande, and others, wenow have insights into the unknown.

TQR: We live in the golden era of the guitar. We have more choices today than ever before.

That’s the good news. And despite these disparate, unpre-dictable elements, it really comes down to diggin’ in deep forsome creative soul and spirit, and from there you can sho‘nuff make it happen.

TQR: Now, the DeArmond tremolo is very cool, and we particularly liked it on “What’s Up With That?” and“Zipper Job” on Rhythmeen. When and how did you discover it?

It’s a mousetrap which isstill notcompletelyunderstood,yet, it is oneof the keyfeatures inthe old BoDiddleyrecords.SteveMelkisethian

of Angela Instruments had stumbled across one and sent itdown thinking that we might be interested and perhaps evenfind a use for it.

TQR: How long ago was that?

Pre-Eliminator. We framed itas a quizzical shelf piece inour studio and on one after-noon, one of the greatHouston engineers, “Willy theWorkingman” took theDeArmond over to the con-sole to see what this thing wasall about. It rattled and shakedand tumbled and quaked, andwe thought it was a little bitof insanity, but it sure soundedgood.

TQR: He had taken it over to the console and he was run-ning the guitar signal through it?

Yeah, he had it plugged up and we said, “What is that doingover here?” to which Willy replied, “We’re gonna find out.”As you know, the DeArmond has reached a point with methat has gone beyond the point of being ridiculous, yet if youcan get one that actually works, they produce one of the cra-ziest, indescribable tremolo sounds…

TQR: It’s a reddish blue, transparent throb which we find particularly satisfying on “What’s Up With That?”on Rhythmeen.

Oh, yeah…

TQR: That track showcases the throb quite nicely.

I think that’s an appropriate description of the sound. Thanksto Bo Diddley and Steve at Angela Instruments, we haveanother peek into the Wonderful World of Tone.

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Bam

boo

Tele

TQR: Your two pound‘bursts are quite thethang… How’d they dothat, and what were youthinking when you de-cided to gut them perfect-ly good guitars?

Sheer laziness… I got totalkin’ to some of my LesPaul buddies… JimmyPage, Jeff Beck… evenEric Clapton… he kind ofgrimaces when you bring

up the Les Paul. “Hey, Eric, how about throwing this overyour shoulder?” (making a “bad oyster” face and laughing).

TQR: Well, we all kinda want him to play one again,which is reason enough for him not to. Eric seems to be quite the contrarian…

That well could be. Even Slash… my two buddies from theBlack Crowes… Jimmy Vaughan even played one during hisearly career, and there may be lingering memories of theweightiness of our favorite tone grinder. But the code hasbeen cracked, and with a judicious approach to the modifica-tions, you can lift the load but still deliver the tone.

TQR: So what you’re saying is that many of our favorite players may have put the Led Paul down ‘cause it was too damn heavy.

That was one reason. Credit should be given to those that fol-low form. Fashion may change, but this is an instance whereform must remain, even in the face of changing fashion.

TQR: You’ve certainly stuck to your guns, Rev…

You gotta have the tone, brother.

TQR: Tell us about your fascination with the old tweed Fender Dual Professionals.

Yes… by the way – thehemp Tone Tubbyspeakers were sentover to the studio lastweek. We had a coupleof Dual Showman

cabs, and you know thatamp went through an evo-

lutionary renaissance, but fortunately, we had a couple of theold, smaller 2x12 cabinets with the maroon grill cloth. Now, Ididn’t realize that they make a “darker” and a “brighter”

hemp Tone Tubby, so we did a little experiment and loadedone cabinet with the two darker ones side by side and theother cabinet with the two brighter ones. Then we triedanother cabinet with one of each in the same cabinet. Eachone of them has merits, and they’re all different, but we con-cluded that no matter how you stack it, that is one fine, finepiece of product. They look great, but most importantly, theysound great. They are really stunning, and they stand tall withanything – blue frame Jensens, 30 year- old CelestionGreenbacks, the Vox Bulldog… you name it. All of the indus-try leaders are now standing beside another new individual,and it’s really cool.

TQR: We couldn’t agree more. It’s not often that something truly new and cool comes along, just like those old Dual Professionals in their time…

They were introducedin 1948, and I believethat Don Randallmay have had some-thing to do with thedecision to build anamp that could holdtwo speakers insteadof one. They didn’tknow what to call it,and Leo looked overhis shoulder and sawa box of metal name-plates that they usedfor their double necksteel, which wascalled the DualProfessional. Theyreminded Leo thatthe name was used

for a Hawaiian guitar, and Leo said, “Yeah, but we have afew extra boxes of these names plates, so let’s just call it theDual Professional, too (laughs). So, for the first run, they hada double neck steel and the amp with the same name, and Ibelieve it was 1951 when they changed the name to theSuper.

TQR: And you’ve been collecting them over the years…

Yeah. They were only 18W-20W, and they varied somewhat.Although the circuit boards were the same, the values of thecomponents and transformers could change from week toweek. Thanks to the ingenuity of Leo and his staff, they wereable to create a cabinet and an amp that was louder, and itsounded bigger than Dallas. The Dual Professional was oneof the interesting turning points in amplifier history. They’rerare, and like guitars, each one has a peculiar personality, but


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‘Lil’ Red’ & Dual Professional


if you’re willing to check them out, there’s probably onethat’s perfect for every application. And if it doesn’t work,just find a good fuzztone and turn it up to ’10’ (laughs).That’ll work every time.

TQR: You’ve used the B.K. Butler Real Tube Overdrive for a long time, haven’t you?

Yeah, the Real Tube has a 12AX7driven circuit, it’s not battery pow-ered, and at the same time, the stan-dard that Mr. Butler established stillstands tall with each and everymodel. With a little experimenta-tion, you can tweak them in to whatI call “sittin’ on the fence” tone. Youdon’t have to go ‘Rat’ and you don’thave to go ‘Clean.’You can justapproach… let’s call it the border

zone. No… la frontera (laughs). It’s like TexMex tweakin.’

TQR: And Dusty uses one too…

Yes, he does. He takes a little bit more of a darker stance thanmost, but at the same time, it just produces an indescribableyet delightful sense of overdrive without getting out of con-trol.

TQR: Or pummeling your amp and speakers…

That’s right. Harvey Moltz from Rainbow Guitars in Tucsondiscovered the Real Tube. He was really the grist of thegrind, and he was the one who allowed me to first check itout. I’m also still very fond of one the most exotic littleeffects ever made – the Expandora – the little silver Skoal canwith all of the craziness inside. That unit not only carriesgood tone, but it works off batteries, and a lot of players real-ly like it.

TQR: And they are priced accordingly… You also get a ton of your tone through your hands. You have a real easy touch, and you don’t appear to be break-ing a sweat going through the motions of playing the guitar. It’s smooth, light, and fluid, with no struggle at all.

That’s a gracious compliment. It’s not a problem workin’ up asweat – the problem is wipin’ it off (laughs). It’s always achallenge to get the mind to match the motion. But the realtask is to enter that wondrous realm of making it flow.

TQR: And there’s that innate ability to play the song perf-ectly when the little red light is lit. You either have that, or you don’t.

That’s true, and the good news is… it’s not always the guitaror the amp or the amp and the guitar… it’s how you spendyour time getting it to go from here (head) to here (hands).

TQR: You don’t seem to be someone who practiced a lot though – it seems as if you just jumped into a band and you’ve been playing ever since.

Yeah, let’s change the old adage toplayin’ makes perfect.

TQR: What’s up with those African guitars? Where did you get them?

I went to Africa.

TQR: You’ve been in thestudio recently polishingoff a new CD that will be

out soon. What’s the themeof this year’s ZZ Top party?

We’ll know soon. There are allkinds of challenges to beaddressed.

TQR: I’m sure there are.

Well, you do it every month…

TQR: Kinda like a ZZ Top record… We consider every ZZ Top record to be a party record, and every party needs a theme.

Just pop it in the car stereo, drive to El Paso, and report backto me later.

TQR: Is the Quest for Tone ever over?

No. You got to have the tone.

TQR: ¡ Gracias, Amigo ¡

¡ Si, Señor ¡

Stay tuned for ZZ Top’s new release on RCA, plus reportsfrom the road as TQR Advisory Board member Billy F.Gibbons and the boys embark on the Europe Tour 2002! Formore information on the band, including tour schedules,swag, and news, visit www.zztop.com

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QT


TQR: Whoah! What the hell…

Check this out… (handing overa ’59 burst Historic Reissue) Ibought a few recent re-issuemodels right from the rack,and following a bit a someexperimental customizing,each one successfullyemerged as ultra-light LesPaul Standard ‘50s styleSunbursts – traditionallyconsidered a rather weightysolid-body Spanish electric6-string. The modificationswere expertly transformed

and customized by the illustrious guitar maker, Mr. JohnBolin & Co., from his state-of-the art studio out in the wildsof Idaho. Bolin and crew developed a technique allowing theradical transformation of these fine instruments, whichretained the heaviness of the performance of the guitar, whilelifting the guitar into fresh heights of slingin’ the slab.Definitely a shot in the dark, yet, a surprisingly utilitarianoutcome from a previously unknown design concept! Thechallenging aim to liberate the weight progressed with no

shortage of theunknown…! At the com-pletion of this radicalrestructuring, the serieswere restored to factory-fresh like thrasers, retain-ing structural integrity andmost importantly…theTONE…! As the infamousPearly Gates remains oneof ZZ Top’s cornerstoneelements, workin’ withinthat mysterious structureproved to be most reward-ing. This unexpected

excursion jumped up during a discussion out in Californiawith our good friend Jimmy Page & Co. over in Hollywood’slate night loud-zone… Jimmy’s Les Paul is one of thewickedest examples on the planet, along with one of thewickedest pound-for-pound heavyweight electrics. The com-bination of our curiosity of revamping our fave-raveStandards forwarded the move. And, thanks to the brilliancefrom Bolin’s expertise in handling the affair, all’s good onstage and studio. Quite a delight! Deep, dark grindin’ contin-ues onward, Amigo – no question about it. Great work.

TQR: Any difference in performance regarding altering weight and mass?

Again, each instrument held differences in character and per-sonality, yet, the object of the project retained the profile ofperfect personality. Ghostly!

TQR: And Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates pickups enteredthe mod, too, yes?

Indeed. Bolin’srelationship withSeymour DuncanResearch is stillthe choice ofchamps. Bolinand Duncan bothacknowledge thevalue of the orig-inal elementsfrom SethLover’s remark-able invention ofthe Humbuckingmagnetic pickup.The real luxuryof hot-rodding

one’s preferred rig is still cuttin’ up with scant regard to sani-ty. Going for some serious tone ain’t no thang. Just light upthe torch and go for it – decals on ‘em, paint ‘em and rip ‘eminto Day-Glo world! Chop ‘em, rock ‘em, and do what youwanna do. Drive it straight to the unknown zone…and playthem Blues…!

TQR: (Walking to the rack of amps and effects) This is the stuff that delivers some of the ZZ extremes…

Mostly so… loads of variables are in there, but we’ve man-aged the sound analysis using real-time analyzing gear. We’vestayed up through those all-night jams just running Pearlystraight in and straight out, standing on the Texas ‘G.’ We lis-tened for the averages, and after those 3 o’clock-in-the-morn-ing moments, satisfaction rides on in. And once you do ittwice…you be right on. Establish the curve of your pictureand get it on, man…! What is the character of this crazy girlnamed Pearly? Soulful EQ’ing will bump it up down the lineand you’re in there. Another good thang…!

TQR: Calibrating those variables sounds like a righteous-ness kind of night…

Yeah. You get to play it. We’re sorting about with someexperimental tunings on the main guitars – open ‘E,’ evendown to ‘B,’ and on down to low ‘A’, bro… Hideous…!

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"Gib

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Gear from the Woodshed

TQR: Which gauge strings?

Eights. Wet rope below-sea-level.

Billy Hale (BFG’s guitar tech): “Haveno fear.”

As you know, each piece of gear usually impacts the outputin some manner – positive, antagonistic, and always unex-pected. Double the rig. If one bank breaks down, you got aback-up restoring the line. We’re on JMP1 12AX7-driven

preamps, Line6’s rack unit,Zoom’s powerbox, aVaridrive sig-nal snapperfrom SanDiego, Bixonic

Expandoras, Z Vex oddities, all of it… matched intoMarshall’s tube boys for a grind to warp the mind. Prior tothis we were using a beautiful Marshall EL34 100/100. ThisPro 120 hit the market, and I can’t remember where weexperimented with this amp, but we started collecting them

and flooding thetone settings, andthe effect becametruly transparent asone might want, stillretaining the whipof Jim Marshall’sspecial sound.Power amplifierplatforms simplytakes the sound and

make it bigger. We keep some measures of available head-room, ‘cause we don’t wanna redline the motherfuckers perse… Just tweak those 50-some odd user presets and step onit. Keep domain over your power …!

Notes on Instruments Pictured:

‘Lil’ Red’ (SGpg. 7) is one ofBilly F. Gibbon’sfirst guitars.

The Teuffel wascustom-coveredin pink fabricresembling theold pink paisley

pattern used on ‘60s Telecasters. Billy and Dusty own match-ing Teuffels.

Vintage effects include many DeArmonds, Marshall SupaFuzz, Park Fuzz, and DeArmond volume pedal.

Studio Notes:

We also toured “TheWoodshed,” where wefound a few more tone-ful curios, including acustomized little vintageMarshall 2x10 combothat had been moddedfor dual 12’s. Also pres-

ent in Billy’s studio rig was a vintage Alamo (Valco), aMarshall Valve State, and the ever-present Real Tube

Overdrive by B.K.Butler. Guitars includeda wild ‘matchstick bam-boo’ Tele, a vintageEsquire, and theesteemed and worldlyPearly Gates. Billy’s rackrig in the studio includeda pair of Marshall JMP1

valve midi preamps (dimed), Tech 21 Sans Amp units, and aduet of rack-mounted DeArmond Tremolo units.

Most of us won’t be willing or able to acquire a ‘59 burst RIand lighten the load as the Rev did, but if toting the Led Paulis beginning to put a hurt on ya, there are options…

Feeling devilish? The horny SGmight do the trick. It’s light, youcan run your humbuckers in it,and it’s a Gibson, which meansit’s supposed to be ‘goodenough.’ The SG’s evil look neverreally caught on, which alsomakes the vintage models a greatbargain (comparatively speaking),and even some of the 70’s erabrown (should we say ‘chest-

nut’?) SG’s can be pretty good utility guitars with a simplepickup upgrade. But it’s a bit of a crapshoot... Many old ‘70sSG’s seem to now be cursed with screwy necks, and we’veplayed a few that divebombed like a Strat (but in the absenceof a tremolo tailpiece). Not good...


guitars

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QT

Demeter Isolation Cabinet

HISTORIC REISSUESINGLE CUT LES PAUL SPECIAL


interview

Let’s go for something much morecomely, with kinder curves, like a

1997 Gibson Historic ReissueLes Paul Special. We specificallyhunted down a single-cut modelon eBay and we wound up pay-

ing just under a grand for ourbarely used ‘96. The LesPaul Specials remain in pro-duction at the GibsonCustom Shop, and they areavailable as double or singlecutaway models in Cherry orTV Yella finish. Our particu-

lar guitar was originally shipped from the Gibson CustomDivision on September 1, 1996, which was the first year ofproduction. According to TQR Advisory Board member andGibson Pro Shop Manager Ernest King, our guitar was anearly transition model, since the Gibson logo on our guitar isa gold decal rather than the later pearloid logo on hollyveneer. These axes are more in the Stratocaster weight range,but they are single-slab mahogany, and they sound real good.Part of the mojo is the wrap-around tailpiece. It makes anaudible difference that you’ll really feel and hear when youplay. This guitar vibrates, and the tone has a deep, woodyvibe that’s lacking by comparison in a lot of new instrumentstoday. Again, it’s the wrap-around that really makes the dif-

ference, and ifyou’ve passed onthis feature think-ing you couldn’tget your intonationdialed in, that’s justnot so. In additionto the standardGibson tailpiece

with two sets screws for fine tuning the position of the bar,the wrap-around tailpieces made by TonePros offer 3adjustable sliding sections for improved intonation. Youadjust each section for a pair of strings, similar to vintageTelecaster saddles, but the tonal benefits of the wrap-arounddesign are maintained. Reviews are in the works.

The ‘60 Special is considerably lighter than a ‘58 or ‘59 LesPaul Historic RI, and it’s a really fun guitar to play. TheSpecial sounds plenty big enough, although the neck profileis the ‘slim taper’ rather than the late ‘50s baseball bat style.We like ‘em both, and would be happy with either neck shapeexclusively. We did notice that the slimmer neck needs ashade more playing time to settle in after changing strings.The truss rod on our Special had never been touched, and itneeded tightening by a quarter turn when we received it. Thatdone, we strung it up with a set of Pyramid .010-.048’s and ittook about 10 minutes for the neck to settle down. Since then,

the Special has stayed in tune perfectly, and it seems to gethappier every time we play it (as do we). Of course, the fac-tory fret level had skimmed the crown on the frets, and we’llprobably get them dressed. We’re back to P90’s again withthe Special, and the Gibsons on our guitar sounded very, verygood. They’re dynamic, warm, punchy, full of bite, andkicked down a little, they can be charming, subtle, andsmooth. We mentioned the fun factor, and the way the Specialresonates is energizing and inspiring. You can feel the entirebody and neck vibrating as you play, and the Special’sextraordinarily lively character is absolutely captivating. Theclassic design is so uniquely cool, that if you leave this guitarout where it’s accessible and in view, you’ll quickly discoverjust how irresistible it is. We rarely find such a unique classicthat really has something different to offer, but the Specialfits the bill, and we hope you’ll find the time to check themout. It’ll be well worth your time.

Thanks to TQR subscribers Jim Beck and Dave Malone forthe following interview in which Dave so thoughtfully shareshis personal Quest for Tone. Once again, you’ll find pIenty ofpriceless tips in this article, straight from an experienced andsupremely talented and accomplished player who has devotedyears to The Quest.

TQR: When did you first pick up a guitar?

I’m one of those peo-ple that saw TheBeatles on Ed Sullivanand went, “That iscool!” I didn’t reallyget into it right away –my older brothersshortly thereafter wereplaying guitar, and Iended up kind ofsneaking in and play-

ing theirs, and as you well know when you’re learning, ithurts like hell… When you can actually play a song for thefirst time, I don’t know about you, but for me it was, “Oh, myGod – this, I’m gonna do!” So I would play ‘til my fingersbled – one of those goofballs. Having my older brother play-ing helped immensely.

TQR: Did you ever receive any formal training?

No, no – my dad was in the Air Force, but by the time I start-

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Dave Malone &the

I n t e r v i e w & p h o t o s b y J i m B e c k


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12

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ed playing guitar, we had settled in the country in Edgard,Louisiana. You’ve never heard of it – David Bartholomewwas from there – the guy that arranged for Fats Domino andwrote all those songs. It’s just a little town along the river inLouisiana. Lots of sugar cane...

TQR: Louisiana is one of the most musically rich areas inthe world. Who were your local influences?

Songwriters... the stuff that Alan Toussaint wrote and then allthe famous New Orleans singers did – really cool songs…Earl King, and as far as just the sheer joy of playing musicand having this energy just jump out of you that infects thecrowd, Professor Longhair was the guy for that. I was luckyenough to play with him a few times, and I was luckier stilljust to hang out with him a lot. Man, that guy was music!There were lots of people like that. Jesse Hill was a nut, buthe was a great entertainer, and then somebody like JamesBooker, who was just beyond description. His piano playingwas from another world.

TQR: You all tend to have a pretty rich sensibility to yourplaying.

Yeah, we were exposed to a lot of different kinds of music,and you know, in the South, they make gumbo out of pouringa lot of different things into a pot, and I guess that’s kind ofwhat we do.

TQR: You seem to have become associated with The Grateful Dead, and the band is absolutely adored by Deadheads. How did that came about?

You know, musically, I don’t see it… but maybe it’s just fromhow we carry ourselves. We’re one of those bands that hasalways allowed people to record our shows, so then you gettape traders, which becomes a thing – maybe it’s that. Ormaybe its just that we’re into this free abandon, go for it kindof attitude, with the jamming, I mean. Maybe it’s that and thefact that we kind of mix up blues and rock and country andsoul, because The Dead did too, to some degree.

TQR: You have a working repertoire of several hundred songs, just like they did, which must have its own challenges.

Yeah, but you know what? As far as I’m concerned, if I wasin one of those bands that had to play the same 15 songsevery night, I would go absolutely nuts! I couldn’t stand it.That might be another connection to The Grateful Dead.People know that if we’re doing a 3-night run, at say, GreatAmerican Music Hall, they’re not going to hear the samesongs from one night to the next. We’re going to do threenights and not repeat a song. Some people really like that,

and some people don’t. People who are prone to buyingwhatever the current pop sensation is want to hear the hits allthe time. Maybe they don’t like it, but it certainly keepseverything fresh.

TQR: You and Camile are very complimentary players.

Yeah, we don’t play at all alike. Before The Radiators,Camile was in rock bands and I was in country rock bands. Iwas very into vocal harmonies, and I still am, which The

Radiators don’t do a lotof. We’re not thesingin’est fools onearth, so I was playingcountry rock stuff –Buffalo Springfield,Poco, Burrito Brothers,Graham Parsons, andstuff like that. I wasplaying country rockand rockabilly licks,and he was playingblues and all rock stuff,

and for some reason our styles worked well together. Andeven from day one – and this is not horseshit at all – we havethis ESP thing going on that freaks us out to this day. It hap-pened last night several times. In the middle of a song thatwe’ve played however many times, we’ll play a lick that nei-ther of us has played before in that spot in the song. We’llplay the same lick, and we’ll look at each other like, “Wherethe hell did that come from?” Not only that, but sometimeswe play them in harmony and it just freaks us out. We don’teven really talk about it that much because we’re afraid we’lljinx it. But literally from the very first day we played togeth-er that happened.

TQR: It seems like one of your signatures is kind of a sweeter bayou feel, for lack of a better term – triad 9th’s and 7th’s funk. And Camile, he just shreds. He’s up and down the board and he screams. But you tend to stay with the “in-the-pocket” riff…

Well, my thing is, I never have been and never will be, norwant to be “Mr. Guitar,” where people say “Oh, look at that.”I’m glad Camile does it, because then we have a guy in theband who does it, and people dig it. I’m really only con-cerned with the song and what the song needs, you know?Trying to figure out something that helps the song along.Thinking that way, I’m all about trying to think aboutmelody, and stay in the pocket. That’s definitely where Icome from. Sometimes the song tells you. Talking about thisESP thing that Camile and I have, I think the song sometimestells you what it wants you to play. I can’t stress enough that,bottom line, there is nothing more important than the song.

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The fact that we play these same licks at the same time out ofnowhere – that came from somewhere. Maybe the song dic-tated to us to play that lick right there, and we both heard itthe same way. Or maybe this is all bullshit (laughs).

TQR: I don’t think so. I’ve seen it, and others who have seen you play see it as well. We’ve seen it in a lot of the great bands where the players are able to communicate in that way.

Bottom line for me is, I try to play either melody or counter-melody, or something that I think the song needs in themoment. I always try to stress doing something that worksperfectly for the song, not necessarily just going off on theguitar, although that is fun, too. But I can’t stress enoughthat, to me, nothing is more important than the song itself.

TQR: Let’s talk about guitars. Your main stage axe is the Strat…

Yeah… I might as well mentionthat last year at the end ofOctober our equipment truck wasstolen. They got everything, andwe’ve gotten nothing back so far.We’re getting our equipment backtogether now. I had 7 guitars onthe truck, Camile had 3, andReggie had 2 or 3 basses. Mymain guitar was a 1982 ‘57 reis-sue blonde Strat. I think that wasthe first year that someone atFender got the bright idea to startmaking them like they used to,‘cause everyone wanted thoseguitars, anyway. I think 1982 wasthe first year they reissued the‘57 Strat, and from what I cantell, that was the only year that

the neck had a lower profile. It’s not as stocky as myTelecasters, and it’s just a breeze to play. Maple fretboardsare very unforgiving, and I just loved having having thesmaller profile Strat neck. I changed the pickups to VanZandts, and after the stuff got stolen, I couldn’t find one.Then my wife found one on eBay that was 15 serial numbersoff from the Strat that was stolen. We were going to NewYork a week later – here, in fact, at BB King’s. The last timewe were here, the guy that had the guitar on eBay met me, Iplayed it, and it felt exactly like my stolen guitar, so I was ashappy as could be. I think I’m going to change the pickupson it, too. They’re not quite right, but it plays like a dream.

TQR: Did you like the Van Zandts?

Yeah, I did, and I didn’t know anybody else that used them,actually. I kind of stumbled on to them. I’m always lookingaround for stuff, which is what’s cool about The TonequestReport, because you can get all that information you would-n’t get elsewhere. I don’t remember how I heard about them.I called them, and they told me if I would say that I usedtheir pickups, they would give me a set. I checked them outand I really liked them. My younger brother Tommy is a gui-tar player in The Subdudes. After I had my guitar stolen and Iwasn’t able to find another Strat that had that shape and sameneck feel, I got the ‘82 that I play now and Tommy actuallyhad his neck measured and cut exactly the same as mine, heliked it so much. He has Lindy Fralin pickups, and I reallylike the sound of them, so I might check those out. They havea nice sweet tone to them– a little bit hot – but not hotenough to be abrasive. They still sound very liquid, and allthe other words people use to describe Strats, but with a littlemore “oomph.” So, since the stuff got stolen, I’m playing that‘82 reissue Strat. Fender was very kind to me. They sent me abunch of guitars and said “Try these, buy the ones you want,and send the others back.” I’ve got a sunburst ‘57 reissueStrat as my backup, and then I have a ‘62 Custom Tele as myTelecaster guitar. The first guitar I ever bought was a ‘56Tele, but I don’t bring it on the road – it stays at home. Ibought it when I was 17, paid eighty dollars for it and bitchedabout the price! But that thing... I will not take it on the road.

TQR: Do you still have the Melancon (pronounced muh lah’ sah) – your “Melecaster?”

He makes really good guitars. I got the Melancon because Ididn’t want to bring my ‘56 Tele on the road anymore. Iplayed a bunch of Fender guitars at the time, and I couldn’treally find any I liked. I didn’t want to drop a bundle on avintage Tele when I already had one, so I tried this Melanconand it was just perfect. That got stolen, too.

TQR: Those are custom made in Louisiana?

Yeah, a guy in Thibedeaux, Louisiana by the name of GerardMelancon. He makes really good guitars. That was a heart-breaker, too. I got that stolen and a couple of Danos and aGibson SST – the electric acoustic with the star inlays in theneck. My backup Strat was a ‘62 body with a rosewoodTelecaster neck on it. That got stolen, too. Somebody’s gotsome cool guitars out there, the thievin’ bastards!

TQR: What about your Les Paul – it really sounded great at the show. It looks like a Special with a tune-o-matic.

They call it the TV Les Paul, with the P100’s. It’s not old –about 10 years old, I guess. It screams, and I love that guitar!Like I said, the first guitar I ever bought was a ‘56 Tele with


a maple fingerboard, and thosethings are hard as hell to play.They’re very unforgiving, and youbetter be right on, ‘cause they willdamn sure let everybody know thatyou screwed up. Playing Gibsons tome is almost like cheating (laughs).Fenders are harder to play, but it’svery rewarding when you get some-thing out of them, you know?Gibsons, to me – they’re just likebutter. I’m still a Fender guy, but Ido like that Les Paul. I’ve owned afew Gibsons.

TQR: I was really impressed with the tone on that guitar. I noticed on your web site that you play some otherweird stuff – mando-guitar, baritone, some other Danelectro… What other cool stuff stays home?

The mando-guitar I did bring on the road. That’s a thing thisguy named Fatdog at Subway Guitars in Berkeley built forme out of old Danelectro parts. Basically, it’s 4 double cours-es of strings, but they’re set apart on a guitar neck, so they’respaced far apart. I tune it like the first four strings of a guitar– I don’t tune it like a mandolin. It’s wacky sounding, but it’sreal cool. I might bring that back on the road again. It’s justbeen sitting at home. Let’s see… at home I have a Fender 8-string electric mandolin – I don’t even know the model num-ber. That’s going to go back on the road. I have one of those4-string late ‘50s Fender electric mandolins with the anodizedpickguard. They look like a tiny, shrunken Stratocaster, and Idon’t believe they made a whole lot of them.

I have a ‘68 cherry red Gibson 335 in mint condition, andthat is the most I ever paid for a guitar. It looks brand new.The very first gig I played with it, I banged it into the micstand and dented the lower horn (laughs). I thought “Oh, OK– it’s definitely my guitar, now.” I also have a ‘65 GibsonJ160E, and I’m a real Beatles fanatic. Don’t get me started onthat, ‘cause we’ll never stop talking! I really like that percus-sive sound of the J160. They never were very good acousticguitars, and I think they are more of a percussion instrumentwith tuned strings. For that ching-ching-ching percussive,acoustic strumming thing that’s on the old Beatles records,it’s perfect. That’s the sound.

After all of my stuff got stolen, Anders Osborne gave me a1946 Gibson L50. I had to get it tweaked a little bit and get anew trapeze tailpiece for it, but when I strung it up, that gui-tar was just saying “thank you, thank you!” It was so happyto be strung up again. I have a 1936 Epiphone Broadwayarchtop with the off-center indentation on the headstock, anda 1921 Martin 00018. I just used that doing some recording

with Martin Simpson, the famous British guitar and slideplayer, who is phenomenal. Reggie and I did some trackswith him, and I also used the Gibson L50. I have a nylon-string classical guitar that this guy in San Miguel de Allendein Mexico made for me, and I have a turquoise Rickenbacker12 – the pointy one. I think it’s the 360, and it’s just a beauty.I have a ‘62 reissue Strat in Sherwood Green, too. I also havea bunch of old Silvertone amps, a tweed Vibrolux, a brownVibrolux, and a blonde piggyback Bassman that just kills.

TQR: Do you play on the Bass or the Normal side on thatamp?

I go in the Normal. The secret weapon for our last album wasthis thing I kind of stumbled on to at Guitar Center in New

Orleans. It’s called a ProJunior by Fender – a littleteenie class A amp thatjust screams. For a littleamp with great tone, Ihighly recommend it.They come from the fac-tory with kind of crappyinput jacks and controls,like the plastic shaft con-trols, but you change allthat stuff out and then

you’ve got a great amp. They’re so good sounding! We usedit more than any other amp, probably. For recording, they’rejust awesome.

TQR: You got into the tweeds a little bit... Tweed Vibroluxes – you don’t see many of them.

No, this one has the original cover, it’s in really good shapeand it is a sweet, sweet amp. I love it, but that stays home.

TQR: And the brown Vibrolux, too…

Yeah. That stays home and I’ve had that thing for ages. It’sgone through all kinds of changes, me messing with differentspeakers after I blew up the originals. Back then, people did-n’t think about “Oh, it’s a vintage this or that.” They wouldmess with their stuff, then they’d kick themselves in the buttlater when they realized what they’d done. Everybody hasstories of guitars or amps they wished they had never gottenrid of.

TQR: What’s yours?

Oh, the best sounding Twin Reverb that was ever made, prob-ably. It was my amp for years when I was doing countryrock. You know, Twins are kind of clean. In fact, they’re veryclean. But this one had that cleanliness to it but with a vibe

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interview

and a warmth to it. I sold it, like a moron! I had a nice SuperReverb, old Les Pauls…

TQR: Tell me about your Silvertones...

Dickinson turned me on to this, and I think he got turned on tothem from Ry Cooder. It’s the 1x12 Silvertone – I don’t evenknow the model name – but the controls are mounted verticallyon the right side, on the back. They are just great. I have onethat’s completely stock with the original speaker, and I haveanother one where someone modified the baffle and put in anancient 10" Jensen speaker that just kills. Then I have anotherone, which is one of those 1x15 Silvertones – the kind wherethe amp stores in the back of the speaker cabinet. The ampstores in the back, and these two little plastic things flip downto keep it from falling out. It’s really goofy, but it sounds awe-some! That big 15" Jensen just kills in that amp. All of theseamps I’m talking about are really great studio amps, but they’renot really loud enough to play gigs with.

TQR: Thanks for drawing out your signal chain (on hotel stationery). That really helped me get a handle on what you’re doing with your effects.

That’s something I’ve invested countless hours on. Years ago,people didn’t realize how drastically every little thing in yoursignal chain affects the sound. I’ve experimented with all dif-ferent kinds of cords, etc, and have hours of my life invested intrying different stuff. Not to the degree that Eric Johnson does– like which battery sounds better – I don’t go that far. It’s real-ly surprising when people realize that just changing a cord canchange how their whole rig sounds. So, I experimented with all

that stuff, and I came to the conclusion that for my needs, I likethe Rock 500 Monster cable from the guitar to the input, whichis the first input into the Vox wah. Then I patch mostly littleGeorge L cables. George L’s are really good-sounding wire.You buy the wire in bulk, then you buy the connectors. There’sno soldering – you clip the end off of the wire, stick it in theconnector, bend it through this thing and tighten up a knurledknob, and that’s how you make the cables. And they just soundgreat. You have no loss in the high end, and all the low end,and the low end is no longer muddy. It really makes a big dif-ference. They’re not really good to use as guitar cables,because the wire is real stiff, and I don’t think the connectorscould take a lot of abuse, but for wiring pedal boards and con-

necting my splitter box up to the amps, that’s where I use them.

So, it’s the Monster cable from the guitar to the wah, thenGeorge L’s patch , then a 3-foot George L goes around the micstand to the left pedal board, and then on some of those, justfrom me messing around with them, I like the sound of thePlanet Waves right-angle 6" wire. I just like the way theysound, and I don’t know why. I’m just going by what I like,which is all anyone should do, really. No one should just say“Oh, I’m gonna do this because so-and-so does it.” Everybodyshould listen for themselves. I have a Planet Waves cable goingback to my left pedal board to the Bayou Buff Box, and then Ihave George L’s going to both amps and then another George Lgoing up to my Korg rack mount tuner.

TQR: How did the concept for the Bayou Buff Box come about?

At some point, probably inmy rehearsal space justmonkeying around, Idecided to see what twoamps sounded like togeth-er. I discovered that I real-ly like the spatial thingthat two amps create, but I

also discovered that I really, really like this enveloping thing...When you stand in the middle of the sound with one of theamps wet, meaning reverb, and one of them dry, it just createsthis sound that I love standing in front of. And let’s face it, ifyou’re loving the way you sound, you’re going to play better.So, I did that, and at the time, I was using a splitter box, and Iwas checking that out, and I noticed some serious signal loss.It’s worse with the splitter boxes that they sell in the musicstores, like Whirlwind and Morley. They split your signal sureenough, but you most definitely have signal loss. You have lossin the high end and the low end gets muddied up compared togoing straight in. So I was thinking there had to be a way forme to do this, because it wasn’t much better than a crappy Y-cord.

I was talking to my brother John, the older brother who playedmusic before I did, who works in the physics department at theUniversity of Virginia. He put together a splitter box, andexactly what you put into the inputs is exactly what comes outof the outputs. That’s what a buffered splitting box is. In mycase, I need one in and three outs, because I use two of the outs,which are footswitchable off/on that go to the amps, and thethird out is always on, which goes to the tuner. So I can walkback to the splitter box, which is in front of my amps, step onthe buttons to kill the two amps and go right to tuner. I couldn’tfind a box on the market that did that. So my brother John builtme one, it was stolen, and I was shit out of luck and back tosquare one. Kenny Lannes (Acoustic Analysis, Inc./KJL Amps)

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had called me yearsbefore to tell meabout his amps, butI wasn’t interestedat the time, ormaybe, too lazy orwhatever. I calledhim back and gotconnected withKenny, and I justwanted him to makeme another splitterbox. But then whenI heard his amps, Iwent “Wow, these

sound good, man!” So we put our heads together and withmy input and his input, we’re going to come up with a modi-fied version of his 60 watt head. I tweaked the tone circuitson it a little bit. He’s got a midrange selector that’s a “cut”knob more so than a boost. You can add mids when it’s all theway off, and there’s a 6-way frequency selector switch. I cutthe low mud out with the mid range cut knob, and then I candial in the independent tone controls, which is very cool, anddial in whatever treble and bass I want and then cut thatmushy100 Hz that sometimes just sounds like mud.

TQR: So, you select, say, the 100Hz frequency on the 6-way selector and then decide how much to cut out.

Right. I just wanted him to make me another buffered switch-ing box, but then we started talking about different circuitsand he knows all that stuff so well, that he could tweak outthe tone section to exactly how I wanted. I said “Well, shit, Iwant to start working with you, and I’ll use your amp as mydry amp.” At the same time, I told him about this bufferedswitching box that had been stolen, so we put our headstogether and redesigned that and actually improved upon mybrother’s design, because it used a transformer or somethingto do the buffering, I think. With the new one, we have opamps where you can actually hit the front end of the ampharder if you want, or lower, so the two outs going to the amphave a little volume control. It’s almost like having a gaindevice stomp box on before you plug into the amp. So youcan either set it at unity, which is zero, or a little less if youwant, or whatever. It’s very usable, and it sounds great. I’vegot the prototype now and we’re working on getting the fin-ished thing done. If something like that is on the market Idamn sure couldn’t find it, because I went all over theInternet looking and in music store catalogs, and I foundnothing like that.

TQR: I tried a Morley AB box probably 15 years ago to do a similar thing and I gave it up, because I couldn’t make it sound good.

Right... they sound like crap. The Whirlwind is my backup.That’s the only one that’s even usable, but you can hear thedifference with that, too. Big difference!

TQR: When you go above unity, it really will drive the preamp in your amp and break it up a little quicker?

Absolutely! I don’t do that a lot myself. I’m from the oldschool. I’m a stomp box guy – I love stomp boxes. The dryamp is not distorted, really. A lot of people who use twoamps call them their clean amp and their dirty amp. I keepthem both on at all times. My dry amp has got a little bit ofdirt to it, but more of a warmth, and not really distorted. I getany distortion I want from pedals, because I like my rhythmparts to be clean. I like that watery Strat tone, or whateverother adjectives people use to describe that liquid Strat sound,especially when you’re in the 2nd and the 4th position in the5 way switch. If you have a lot of distortion on them, youlose all that stuff. I like my dry amp to be not too dirty.

TQR: It’s loud, but it’s not breaking up yet.

Right,right. Iget allthe dirtfrom thestompboxes.So myreverbamp Ikind ofdiscov-ered by

accident. I was in International Vintage Guitars in NewOrleans and I had seen pictures of these Gibson GA-30s, andI plugged into it, and it freaked me out. Probably the bestsounding reverb I’ve ever heard. And that’s saying a lot,because as I said, I did have the best Twin Reverb ever made(laughs).

TQR: And the GA tends to mesh well with the KJL?

Yeah, very well. So I get the reverb from the Gibson and Ijust stand in front of this wall of beautiful sound, and it reallyinspires me.

TQR: How do you power the Buff Box?

Oh, just a regular 110 power cord. I was adamant about that.I’m on the third prototype right now because of all thechanges we’ve made. The first one was battery powered andthat was a pain in the butt. I got away from batteries com-

-continued-

16


interview

pletely, although truth be told, on some of the stomp boxes Ido prefer the sound of batteries, but it’s just too much hassle.

So on myright pedalboard, allthose ped-als arepoweredup by that

VHT Valvulator, which I don’t use in line. It’s got a tube in itthat’s a little kind of preamp too, but I didn’t like the highend sound of it, so I don’t use it in line with my guitar, but Ido use it to power up the pedals. Before I got the bufferedswitching box, when I was using the Whirlwind, I would usethe VHT because it would restore the high end from all thelong cable runs. Now that I have the buffered switching box, Idon’t use it as a preamp anymore. I just use it’s power sectionto power up the stomp boxes on my right pedal board. Then

on the leftpedalboard, Ihave aVoodooLabs

Pedal Power 2. The new versions have little dip switches foreach output where it can do, like, battery sag. It’s very cool.So it simulates my Tube Screamer. I have one that AnalogMan modified for me, with batteries. The harder you dig intoit, it dips a little bit and makes this cool thing. I don’t evenknow how to describe it.

TQR: Like compression?

Yeah, and Voodoo Labs kind of simulated that somehow withthese little switches for each of the outs for when you’reusing any kid of overdrive or gain device.

TQR: I noticed that you’ve got a real broad functionality. With your huge repertoire, you don’t just throw it up on the neck pickup and call it good – you use a variety of tones.

Well, it’s not just for the songs – it’s just that I like sounds asmuch as I like guitar playing. I like the atmosphere that dif-ferent sounds make, like a good sounding chorus used spar-ingly, or whatever. I like sounds. I’m just crazy about thatstuff.

TQR: You mentioned chorus... I noticed your chorus tone has a lot of nice clarity to it – all the lush and none of the mush. Is that the Analog Man?

For my slow chorus it’s an Analog Man clone chorus, yeah.That’s a very lush sounding, warm chorus. It kicks in on the

low end a littlebit and creates avery warm, cho-rus sound. I real-ly like it. Theother kind of cho-rus that I usewould be some-thing trying tosimulate Lesliesounds, and I’m

using a Voodoo Labs Analog Chorus. I’m not totally sold onthat, because one of the things that also got stolen from mewas a Hughes and Kettner Tube Rotosphere. From what I’vefound, that’s the best thing, for my ears anyway, for soundinglike a Leslie. I also love the Electro-Harmonix ElectricMistress, but it’s just noisy as hell and I can’t use it.

TQR: What about your MXR Micro-Amp?

It’s just a gain thing – it adds a little dirt. I mainly use it as avolume device when I want to just kick it in instead of usingthe volume knob on my guitar. And I can also kick that in if Iwant to get really nuts with the Tube Screamer or the BossCompressor-Sustainer, or the Boss Distortion, which I reallylike, by the way.

TQR: Which? The Boss Distortion?

Both of them – the blue Compressor-Sustainer or the orangeBoss Distortion. I turn the tone all the way off, turn the driveall the way up, and then mess with the level according towhatever I need. You get that instant kind of Clapton “StrangeBrew” kind of tone. I really like that pedal a lot. I also have aBoss delay I like quite a bit. My old pedal boards had allthese old stompboxes and they were all stolen, so I had tostart my research from scratch. I’m happy with everything Ihave on the boards right now, with the exception of the Lesliesimulation.

TQR: Are you using the footswitchable boost on your KJL amp? Kenny told me the amp footswitches to max midrange boost.

No, I don’t use it. I set the amp one way and leave it there.The Gibson has channel switching, too, and it has a greatsounding overdrive. I don’t use that either. I just get it fromoutboard stomp boxes.

TQR: Are you pretty pleased overall with the EQ on the KJL? From what Kenny described, he’s really worked hard on that section.

Yeah, the independent tone controls… I’ve played through all

-continued-


interview

kinds of amps since my stuff got stolen, and I won’t even gointo the names. A lot of them sounded pretty much the same.I noticed on a lot of them, for my ears, the bass controlwouldn’t be usable past 3 or 4. After you turned it up pastthat it just turned into this low end mushy, thick, yucky stuff.You can use his tone controls pretty much throughout the fullspectrum, from ‘Off’ to ‘On’. We’re working on somethingthat might have a bigger power section.

For people who would want to have more amp distortion inthe preamp section, this amp doesn’t really do that. Even ifyou turn the preamp knob all the way up, it won’t get dirtylike some of the other custom amps I’ve played.

TQR: You’re using the KJL Club Owner cab with the 12 and the 10?

That’s right, with Celestion vintage 30’s – one 12, and one10. Those speakers are what I’ve had the most luck with, andI like the overall tone from bottom to top.

TQR: Besides the sheer trouble of getting up here to play a gig in Anchorage, what are the challenges of using rented backline amps, tonally? You sounded great, but it’s got to be a bitch not having your own gear.

That is another big reason why I put so much time and effortinto getting the pedalboards right. If you get a Twin Reverbfrom a backline company... I don’t necessarily like thoseamps, but the Twin is a workhorse, and you can get themanywhere. Everybody has them. If you can get one that evensounds halfway decent, then you can shape the sound withyour pedals. Doing fly gigs, that’s really the only way to doit, unless you’re some superstar who can demand a certainamp. For a band that travels sometimes without our crew andour gear, it’s nice to have your pedal boards and a nice flycase so that you can still sound like yourself no matter whatamp you play through. It would have to be a pretty shitty ampfor Camile and I not to get a halfway decent sound out of it.

TQR: You sounded great in Anchorage. Of course, being Anchorage, I wasn’t sure what you were going to get (they both played vintage blackface ‘65 Fender Twins). I considered bringing my Bassman into town just in case (laughing).

When I’m using one amp, I try to get an amp that has at leastan OK sounding reverb, because I do like reverb.

TQR: I chain up my Bassman with a Peavey Valverb, and it does really well. It’s a rackmount tube reverb,and it’s got master volume, so you can hit your amp

harder with it if you want.

Oh, my brother Tommy had one of those! It’s tube, you say?So it’s like an old rackmount Fender Reverb. I’m writing thisdown, because I’ve been looking for a good outboard reverband I haven’t been able to find one.

TQR: You can usually find them on eBay, although not in large numbers. They usually sell in the $300’s… They’re wonderful, and footswitchable, too. Matched with a Bassman, it’s a great setup.

Well, that’s good to know, because when I play my blondeBassman at home, I’ve been using this little Alesis Microverbjust because I couldn’t find anything that worked well. I hadan outboard Fender reverb, but I didn’t really like it.

TQR: What’s the future hold for you and The Radiators?

Well, ourmotto is “Toostupid tostop!” We’rejust going tokeep doingwhat we do.We love play-ing together.We’ve nevergotten to thelevel of a bigsuperstar, but

we’ve been awfully lucky to be able to do what we love andmake a good living at it. Whenever I get bummed out or tiredof all the airports and hotels and stuff, I just kind of remem-ber what a regular job feels like. My worst day at work stillbeats the best day at a regular job… My wife put it into per-spective when I was bitching and moaning about somethingand she was just looking at me, shaking her head, sayingsomething to the effect of “Shut up – if I had a job whereafter I was through working, people stood up and applauded,I would be happy as could be.” She has a point, there.

TQR: Is the quest for inspiring guitar tone ever over?

No, and I think people should be aware of the fact that withvery little effort, they can improve the way they sound. Eventhe smallest things can make a difference. Just because a cordworks, doesn’t mean that it’s the best thing you should beusing. I am curious about the solid copper wire that SteveKimock is using… I’ve been thinking about getting a hold ofhim about those…

http://www.radiators.org/

18

QT


effects

Every so often (not often enough), someone creates a toolthat inspires us with its extraordinary ability to do what

it was intended to do so well that it seems destined to becomean archetype among inferior pretenders. These small yet sig-nificant discoveries are the bounty that awaits all who bravelyembark on the Quest for Tone (that would be you). As wecontinue to doggedly dog the tone, take comfort in knowingthat we will only bring home the good stuff. Bring it onhome…

Yeah, Jimmy... Bring it on home. The last time we saw LedZep was in 1969 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum (‘Hoosier’ for a cavernous brick barn with a dirt floor).Jimmy Page had an Echoplex and a violin bow with him onthat unforgettable 3 hour gigjam, but the reverb was suppliedby dual Marshall Super Leads and 24 celestial Celestions inthe house. For two hours plus five encores, Page’s dual quar-tets of red hot Mullard EL34’s unleashed a withering barrageof high-decibel Celtic code-talk upon our wilting innocence.The band might as well have been playing Madison SquareGarden instead of Naptown’s horse palace that night (thankyou, boys). The crushing midrange snarl from Page’s LesPaul relentlessly smashed against the Coliseum’s glazed brickwalls, screaming highs blew north in a wailing, reverberatingvortex of luuuuuuuuvvvvvv, whilst the lows thundered downupon the horseshit and dirt floor of the Fairgrounds with suchhideous force that our hearts felt as if they would be stoppedby the gut wrenching smack of Bonzo’s kick drum and JohnPaul Jones’ bass pounding in our chests. Now, that was someass-kickin’ reverb.

Until now, you’ve had few good options if you wished to addthe ambiance of reverb to your sound. You could buy an old

Fender reverb box, buya new Fender reverbbox, or throw down bigmoney for a VictoriaReverberato. Or maybeyou have an old TCElectronics reverbstashed away... Most ofthe the Asian digiverbshave fairly well sucked,the old Fenders aredreamy enough, butexpensive, the newFenders are not thesame as the old ones(modern manufacturing

techniques again), and theVictoria Reverberato is theshit, but it isn’t cheap either.Enter the Electro-HarmonixHoly Grail digital reverbunit. Buy one now.

We first spotted the HolyGrail tucked inside PeterStroud’s effects rack.Anytime you can find amonster player who hasbeen doubly blessed with

dog ears and he happens to play in a band that affords himthe luxury of using anything made by man, it pays to payattention. We did. The Holy Grail packs some big time,believable spring reverb tone in a small and inexpensivepackage. We’ve been running the Holy Grail with our 1970Park 75 50W head, and does it ever sound great! The springybounce is righteous, and the noise is tolerable. Yes, the HolyGrail is a little noisy. You won’t care. Features are simple –three settings on a small slider switch – ‘Spring,’ ‘Hall,’ (gen-uine Fairgrounds bounce), and a wobbly weebly ‘Flerb.’ Likecheap tequila, the ‘Flerb’ sound is available, and the intendedeffect is intense, but we’re not sure it’s all that good for you.No matter. The Grail has one big knob to control the depth ofyour reverb vibe, and that’s it. Power is supplied by a 9volt/500 mA jack (power supply included), and you get a nicelittle wooden box, all for the paltry sum of $99. The earliestunits made were not true bypass, but they are now. The HolyGrail is conveniently available from Analog Man, and sincedigital effects aren’t usually his thing (there is no DigitalMan), we asked him why he’s chosen to walk on the wildside by carrying the Holy Grail:

TQR: Given your deep experience with practically every cool production pedal known to man, what prompt-ed you to start selling the Holy Grail?

We always try to offer any quality pedal that fills a void, andthe Holy Grail certainly does that. There is really no way tobuild an analog reverb without using a traditional reverb tank(a few have tried this in pedals with poor results to date), soas far as pedals are concerned, digital reverb has no real com-petition. EH basically found a good chip (digital delay thatcan do all the processing with very little additional circuitry).It’s the Crystal Semiconductor reverb chip (CS4811), and itisn’t very expensive. They built it up with just a few featuresand it seems to do the job OK, except for a bit of noise athigher settings. If they have the (usually blue) switch with 9lugs and wires are used in all 3 rows, it’s true bypass. Theearlier models used a black switch with 6 lugs.

www.Analogman.com

19

QT


www.tonequest.com

ToneQuest

The ToneQuest Report TM (ISSN 1525-3392) is published monthly by Mountainview Publishing LLC, 235 Mountainview Street, Suite 23, Decatur, GA. 30030-2027, 1-877-MAX-TONE, email: [email protected]. Periodicals Postage Paid at Decatur, GA and At Additional Mailing Offices. Postmaster: Send addresschanges to:The ToneQuest Report, PO Box 717, Decatur, GA. 30031-0717.The annual subscription fee for The ToneQuest ReportTM is $98 per year for 12monthly issues. International subscribers please add US $20. Please remit payment in U.S. funds only. Visa, MasterCard and American Express accepted.TheToneQuest ReportTM accepts no advertising and is published solely for the benefit of its subscribers. Copyright© 2002 by Mountainview Publishing LLC. Allrights reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in any form or incorporated into any information retrieval system without the written permissionof the copyright holder. Please forward all subscription requests, comments, questions and other inquiries to the above address or contact the publisher [email protected]. Opinions expressed in The ToneQuest Report are not necessarily those of this publication. Mention of specific products, services ortechnical advice does not constitute an endorsement. Readers are advised to exercise extreme caution in handling electronic devices and musical instruments.

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Graphic Design

David WilsonLiz MedleyRick JohnsonJim Weider

Joe GlaserCoco MontoyaStephen Bruton

The Gibson Custom ShopThe Blackstone OverdriveBlackbox Effects

SavageBognerMaven Peal Zeeta

TV JonesDuncan – Seth LoversTom Holmes RevisitedMore From Lollar Land

‘58 Reissue Les PaulBaker WarriorTQR’s 2002 Acoustic Picks

INTERVIEWS:

FEATURE ARTICLES:

AMPLIFIERS:

PICKUPS:

GUITARS:

EDITORIAL BOARD

Analogman

Tom AndersonTom Anderson GuitarWorks

Mark BaierVictoria Amplifiers

Jeff BakosBakos AmpWorks

Joe BardenJoe Barden Pickups

Dick BoakCF Martin & Co.

Don ButlerThe Toneman

Steve CarrCarr Amplifiers

Mitch ColbyKORG/Marshall/VOX USA

Ben ColeGHS Strings

Larry FishmanFishman Transducers

Buzz Feiten

Bill FinneganKlon Centaur

Ritchie FlieglerFender Musical Instruments Corp.

Lindy Fralin

Billy F. GibbonsZZ Top

Joe GlaserGlaser Instruments

John Harrison A Brown Soun

Johnny Hiland

Gregg HopkinsVintage Amp Restoration

Phil JonesGruhn Guitars

K&M Analog Designs

Chris KinmanKinman AVn Pickups

Mark KaranBob Weir & Ratdog

Ernest KingGibson Custom Shop

Mike KropotkinKCA NOS Tubes

Winn KrozakPaul Reed Smith Guitars

Sonny Landreth

Albert Lee

Andy MarshallTHD Electronics

René MartinezThe Guitar Whiz

Greg MartinThe Kentucky Headhunters

Terry McInturffTerry McInturff Guitars

James PennebakerNashville, TN

Scott PetersenHarmonic Design Pickups

Doug RoccaforteRoccaforte Amplifiers

Paul RiveraRivera Amplifiers

Roger SadowskySadowsky Guitars Ltd.

Tommy ShannonDouble Trouble

Todd SharpNashville Amp Service

Tim ShawFender Musical Instruments Corp.

Chris SiegmundSiegmund Guitars and Amplifiers

John SprungAmerican Guitar Center

Peter StroudThe Sheryl Crow Band

Randy VolinRockindaddy’s Guitars

Donnie WadeJackson Guitars

Laurence WexerLaurence Wexer LimitedFine Fretted Instruments

Lord ValveNBS Electronics

Buddy WhittingtonJohn Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

Don YoungNational Reso-phonic Guitars

Zachary VexZ Vex Effects

Documents

TQR Tone Quest Report Oct. 2002