9000 9001

LEARN TO PLAY
!
THE BEATLES
Helter Skelter
LIL NAS X
Old Town Road
TOOL
7empest
SANTANA
Smooth

GARY
CLARK JR.
SAMANTHA FISH
ERIC GALES
JOE BONAMASSA
& MORE
IN TH
RIGH GET UND
LEARN THE TRICKS
BRIAN FALLON ESSENTIAL GEAR
THE CHATS
CODE ORANGE LE ARN TO PL AY

TOOL
7EMPEST

JOE
PERRY
PLAY LIKE THE
AEROSMITH ICON
REVIEWED
THE TG GROUP TEST

GRETSCH JETS FENDER

More twang for your buck! LEAD III
 EDITOR’S LETTER

Welcome…
Future Publishing
QUAY HOUSE, THE AMBURY, BATH, BA1 1UA
Tel: 01225 442244 Fax: 01225 822763
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.totalguitar.co.uk

EDITORIAL
Acting Editor: Chris Bird
Group Art Director: Graham Dalzell
Senior Music Editor: Jason Sidwell
Guitar Features & Tuition Editor: Chris Bird I remember when I first became aware of
Production Editor: Stan Bull
Music Co-ordinators: Zoe Maughan, Natalie Beilby blues. Aged about 13, I’d been listening to
CONTRIBUTORS rock for a while and playing guitar for a year
RichardBarrett,PhilCapone,JackEllis,CharlieGriffiths,JonathanHorsley,
StephenKelly,AlexLynham,GrantMoon,MatthewParker,AmitSharma, or two. Then, in 1990, two things happened;
MichaelAstley-Brown, Rob Laing, Paul Elliott, Stuart Williams
Gary Moore released his career-defining Still
Music Engraver: Simon Troup and Jennie Troup
Photography: Olly Curtis, Neil Godwin, Will Ireland
Got The Blues album and Stevie Ray Vaughan
ADVERTISING died tragically. It was my first exposure to
Phone: 01225 442244 Fax: 01225 732285
Chief Revenue Officer: Zach Sullivan, [email protected]
these giants and I was hooked immediately,
UK Commercial Sales Director: Clare Dove, [email protected]
Advertising Sales Director: Lara Jaggon, [email protected]
quickly exploring earlier generations of
Account Sales Directors: Alison Watson, [email protected]
Guy Meredith, [email protected]
guitarists who’d influenced my own new
MARKETING
heroes. Looking back, it felt like Gary and
Head Of Marketing: Sharon Todd
Subscriptions Marketing Manager: Tom Cooper
Stevie were breaking new ground in the way they played – albeit
PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION
in a style I was only just discovering myself. Their music felt fresh!
Production Controller: Frances Twentyman
HeadofProductionUK&US:MarkConstance
Fast forward to 2020 and this issue we find ourselves looking at
PrintedintheUKby:WilliamGibbons&SonsLtdonbehalfofFuture
Distributedby:Marketforce,2ndFloor,5ChurchillPlace,CanaryWharf
modern-day blues, and today’s new generation of guitarists are
London,E145HU
Overseasdistributionby: Seymour International
proving there’s still fertile territory in a genre which pre-dates
Head of Newstrade: Tim Mathers recording technology. Gary Clark Jr., who you’ll have seen on the
CIRCULATION
Trade Marketing Manager: Michelle Brock 0207 429 3683
cover, is at the forefront of the movement, but, fearful of being
SUBSCRIPTIONS
typecast, is drawing on funk, soul and hip-hop influences to
04 UK reader order line & enquiries: 0844 848 2852
Overseas reader order line & enquiries: +44 (0)1604 251045
take blues in new directions. Again, fresh!
Online enquiries: www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk
Email: [email protected]
In this month’s 19-page feature we’ve spoken to a host of players
LICENSING at the cutting edge of blues – and they’ve been spilling the beans
International Licensing Director: Matt Ellis, [email protected]
Tel: + 44 (0)1225 442244
to give us their playing tips and their wisdom. Alongside all the
hottest gear reviews and songs to learn, hopefully there’s
MANAGEMENT
Brand Director, Music: Stuart Williams plenty to keep you going until next month!
Head Of Art: Rodney Dive
Content Director: Scott Rowley
Group Art Director: Graham Dalzell

ChrisBirdActingEditor

MAKING THIS MONTH’S MAG

Future plc is a public Chief executive Zillah Byng-Thorne
company quoted on the Non-executive chairman Richard Huntingford
London Stock Exchange Chief financial officer Penny Ladkin-Brand
(symbol: FUTR)
www.futureplc.com Tel +44 (0)1225 442 244

All contents copyright © 2019 Future Publishing Limited or published under licence. All rights reserved. No
part of this magazine may be reproduced, stored, transmitted or used in any way without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
Future Publishing Limited (company number 2008885) is registered in England and Wales. Registered
office: Registered office: Quay House, The Ambury, Bath, BA1 1UA. All information contained in this
publication is for information only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of going to press.
Future cannot accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in such information. You are advised ROBLAING STAN BULL AMIT SHARMA
to contact manufacturers and retailers directly with regard to the price and other details of products or TG’sformerEditorjustcan’tstay In keeping with the theme of “Ihaven’tleftthehousemuch
services referred to in this publication. Apps and websites mentioned in this publication are not under our
control. We are not responsible for their contents or any changes or updates to them. away.Butthen,he’sonlymoved ‘new’, Stan’s been enthusiastic lately,”remarkedAmit,and,
If you submit unsolicited material to us, you automatically grant Future a licence to publish your submission
in whole or in part in all editions of the magazine, including licensed editions worldwide and in any physical
about10feetsincehewenttowork about a number of other young tobehonest, we can’t say we’re
or digital format throughout the world. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and, although every onmusicradar.com–closeenough artists appearing in this issue. At surprised. Aside from conducting
care is taken, neither Future nor its employees, agents or subcontractors shall be liable for loss or damage.
forTGstafferstoleavetheMartinX the top of the list are Code Orange telephoneinterviewsforthis
We are committed to only using magazine paper which is derived from SeriesacousticandFender’sSuper (p32). “I’m may not be the biggest month’smassivecoverfeature
responsibly managed, certified forestry and chlorine-free manufacture.
The paper in this magazine was sourced and produced from sustainable LeadIIIbyhisdeskwithpost-it metalhead in the office,” he says, (all14 of ‘em!), TG’s prolific
managed forests, conforming to strict environmental and socioeconomic notesmarked‘Pleasereview!’ “but I know an inspiring band contributor evenfoundtimeto
standards. The manufacturing paper mill holds full FSC
(Forest Stewardship Council) certification and accreditation.. attached.Findouthisthoughts when I hear one. This lot have catch up with AnnaCalvi(p12)and
inthis month’s Gas Station (p90). broken through the glass ceiling.” Code Orange’s RebaMeyers (p32).
 #330
MONITOR
042 006 In The Picture: Peter Green
Tribute Show
THE NEW 008 Scene

BLUES 010 First Look

012 Five Minutes Alone: Anna Calvi

EXPLOSION 014 On The Up

016 Me & My Guitar: Ace,
Skunk Anansie 092
018 Back Track: American Folk
FENDER LEAD III
HOW TO THE GAS STATION
020 Riff Of The Month: Tool – 7empest
022 Getting Started With… Scales 090 Start Me Up
024 The FX Files... Tube Screamers 092 Fender Lead III
096 Martin X-Series DX1E-04 05
026 What The F? Sus chords
098 Harley Benton SC-550
100 The TG Test: Gretsch G5602T
FEATURES Jet Baritone/G5602 Jet Baritone
028 Brian Fallon /G5222 Double Jet
032 Code Orange 106 Fender Smolder Acoustic
036 The Chats Overdrive
038 Play Like Joe Perry 108 Fix Your Guitar
042 The New Blues Explosion 114 The Playlist: Rob Caggiano,
Volbeat
LEARN TO PLAY
062ClassicTrack:
Santana– Smooth
032
072 Rockschool: CODE
The Beatles – Helter Skelter
076 Jam Track: Rockabilly
ORANGE
078 The Turnaround: Warren Haynes

TG UNPLUGGED
085 News
086 Interview: Seafret
088 Open-Mic Songbook:
Lil Nas X – Old Town Road
Cover Photo:Rob Monk

028
BRIANFALLON
 MONITOR
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

BLUES FOR
Words: Scott Rowley Photo: Ross Halfin

GREENY
Legends of the music world came together
last month for a tribute to the one and only
Peter Green at the London Palladium...

06

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 IN THE PICTURE
PEOPLE - NEWS - NOISE

T
he New Blues? You could say
that Peter Green invented
that back in 1968. Sure,
Ľuvw#dv#jxlwdulvw#iru#Mrkq#
Mayall’s Bluesbreakers
(where he replaced Eric
Fodswrq,#dqg#wkhq#dv#wkh#jxlwdulvw2iurqwpdq#
dqg#fuhdwlyh#irufh#ehklqg#wkh#ruljlqdo#
Fleetwood Mac, Green was key to the British
Eoxhv#H{sorvlrq#Ğ#dujxdeo|#wkh#wklug#zdyh#ri#
eoxhv#diwhu#Ġfrxqwu|#eoxhvġ#+dfrxvwlf,#dqg#
Ġxuedq#eoxhvġ#+hohfwulf,1#Dqg/#|hdk/#wkhvh#gd|v#
wkh#pxvlf#ri#wkh#Eulwlvk#Eoxhv#H{sorvlrq#lv#
the orthodoxy – classic rock, dad rock, the
suhvhuyh#ri#eoxhv#eruhv#wkh#zruog#ryhu1
Exw#wkhuh#zdv#dozd|v#pruh#wr#Shwhu#Juhhq#
wkdq#eoxhv#ydpsv#dqg#rog0wlph|#vkxŀhv1#
Between March 1968 and May 1970, Green’s
Iohhwzrrg#Pdf#uhohdvhg#vl{#vlqjohv#wkdw#
uhghĽqhg#pxvlf1#Zlwk#Eodfn#Pdjlf#Zrpdq,
Need Your Love So Bad, Doedwurvv, Pdq#Ri#
Wkh#Zruog, Rk#Zhoo#dqg#wkh#odvw#vrqj#kh#
hyhu#zurwh#iru#wkh#edqg/#The Green Manalishi
(With The Two Prong Crown), Peter Green took
wkh#eoxhv#whpsodwh#wr#wkh#prrq#dqg#
edfn/#eorzlqj#wkh#plqgv#ri#hyhu|rqh#iurp#
Wkh#Ehdwohv#wr#Slqn#Ior|g/#dqg#lqvslulqj#
ixwxuh#urfn#khurhv#dv#ydulhg#dv#Mxgdv#Sulhvw/#
Jdu|#Prruh#dqg#Qrho#Jdoodjkhu1 07
Qrho#zdv#rqh#ri#wkh#pdq|#jxhvwv#dw#ĠPlfn#
Iohhwzrrg#)#Iulhqgv#Fhoheudwh#Wkh#Pxvlf#Ri#
Shwhu#Juhhqġ#dw#wkh#Orqgrq#Sdoodglxp#rq#
59wk#Iheuxdu|/#zkhuh#wkh#jxlwdu#khurhv#sd|lqj#
wulexwh#wr#Juhhqġv#jhqlxv#lqfoxghg#Gdylg#
Jloprxu#+pdnlqj#Rk#Zhoo#Sw15 sound like
lw#zdv#wkh#fruqhuvwrqh#ri#Slqn#Ior|gġv#edfn#
fdwdorjxh/#dqg#dgglqj#vrph#jrujhrxv#ods#
steel to Doedwurvv,/#Eloo|#Jleerqv#ri#]]#Wrs#
+gxhwwlqj#rq#Rk#Zhoo#zlwk#Dhurvplwk#vlqjhu#
Vwhyhq#W|ohu,/#iruphu#Pdf#dqg#orqjwlph#Ere#
Vhjhu#jxlwdulvw#Ulfn#Ylwr/#Mrqq|#Odqj/#Shwh#
Wrzqvkhqg#+ghprqvwudwlqj#krz#kh#qlfnhg#
d#elw#ri#wkh#Pdfġv#Station Man#iru#Wkh#Zkrġv#
Zrqġw#Eh#Irrohg#Djdlq,/#Juhhqġv#ruljlqdo#
fr0jxlwdulvw#Mhuhp|#Vshqfhu#+wkuhdglqj#
gholfdwh#volgh#olfnv#wkurxjk#Hopruh#Mdphvġv#
Wkh#Vn|#Lv#Fu|lqj), and Metallica’s Kirk
Kdpphww/#wkh#fxuuhqw#rzqhu#ri#ĠJuhhq|ġ/#
the 1959 Les Paul Standard previously
owned by both Green and Gary Moore.
Juhhq#klpvhoiB#Kh#zdvqġw#wkhuh#wr#khdu#lw1#
Kh#uhwuhdwhg#iurp#pxvlf#diwhu#guxj#dqg#
phqwdo#khdowk#sureohpv#lq#wkh#:3v1#Idlu#
play: when you’ve reinvented the blues
dqg#lqvsluhg#dq#hqwluh#jhqhudwlrq#ri#jxlwdu#
players, you’re work here is done.
ģShwhu#vdlg#kh#zdvqġw#fxw#rxw#iru#wkh#pxvlf#
business,” Gary Moore once said. “I think he
Kirk Hammett takes to the glg#wkh#uljkw#wklqj#ohdylqj111#Kh#zdv#dq#
stage with Billy Gibbons
dpd}lqjo|#ghhs#shuvrq#Ğ#L#phdq/#lwġv#lq#wkh#
wielding ‘Greeny’, a 59 Les
Paul standard once pxvlf#lvqġw#lwB#Dq|rqh#fdq#khdu#wkdw1Ĥ#
belonging to the man himself

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 MONITOR PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

SCENE
YOUR NEWS IN GUITARS

The Strokes teasing

their next chapter from
the rally in New
Hampshire

08

EVENT

THE ADULTS ARE TALKING

INDIE ICONS THE STROKES PLEDGE THEIR ALLEGIANCE
TO BERNIE AND ANNOUNCE THEIR SIXTH ALBUM
ast month, 00s indie revivalists which have been performed live in the band’s more

L
The Strokes returned to the stage recent (but still sporadic) performances. The album
once more to perform at a Bernie artwork is taken from a painting by the late New
Sanders rally in New Hampshire, York artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.
showing support for the Following speeches from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,
Democratic candidate alongside Cornel West, Cynthia Nixon and Sanders himself, the
Photos: Jim Dyson / Brian Cooke/Redferns/Getty

the likes of Vampire Weekend and Sunflower Bean. band took to the stage to perform an hour-long set
During their set, the group debuted a new song in the which featured two new songs, a video of a third titled
form of Bad Decisions and announced the release of At The Door, a cover of Talking Heads’ Burning Down
their imminent sixth album, The New Abnormal. The House and revered Strokes classics Hard To Explain,
The band’s latest studio effort is to be released Someday and New York City Cops, ending in a mass-
on 10th April and was recorded by Rick Rubin at his stage invasion and the interference of real-life
Shangri-La studios in Malibu, California. Eagle-eyed New York City police officers.
fans of the group may recognise Ode to the Metz and The New Abnormal will be released via
The Adults Are Talking on the track list, two songs Cult Records/RCA on 10th April.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 SCENE
PEOPLE - NEWS - NOISE

ROUND-UP
The newspieces
picking our ears up

The Art of
Shredding
Dean’s new Exile
Select Series to
introduce new levels
of shredding...

D
ean Guitars has
lqwurgxfhg#wkh#H{loh#
Select Series, a new
range in the company’s
top-level import line of
prghov1#Wkh#vl{#jxlwduv/#
according to Dean, were 09
designed to help players
attain “the next level of
Artists from far and wide
vkuhgglqj#joru|1Ĥ
paid respect to the New
York Dolls guitarist on The guitars are available
this hand-painted with a choice of burled
AUCTION Gretcsh poplar or satin-finished
quilt maple tops, as well as
dq#H{loh0vkdsh#doghu#erg|#

HELP FOR HEROES

A GUITAR SIGNED BY KEITH RICHARDS, SLASH AND MANY MORE IS
with beveled edge,
three-piece Slim D-shape
maple neck and a 16-inch
radius ebony fretboard with
24 jumbo frets and pearloid
UP FOR AUCTION TO BENEFIT NEW YORK DOLLS’ SYLVAIN SYLVAIN eorfn#lqod|v1
Other features include
mini Grover tuners,

B
ack in April 2019, New York k haas hosted performances from Sylvain five-ply body and
Dolls guitarist Sylvain Sylvaiin and Tyla, had the idea of purchasing the
a headstock binding and a
revealed he was undergoin ngg Grretsch, a model played by both artists, Floyd Rose tremolo bridge
treatment for cancer, and annd
d then have it painted and auctioned v|vwhp#rswlrq1#Hohfwurqlfv#
a GoFundMe page was set rļ1 W||od vhfxuhg#d#Juhwvfk Hohfwurpdwlf duh#HPJ#8:WZ#2#99WZ#
xs#wr#khos#rļvhw#wkh#frvw#ri#phglfdo#eloov1# guitar, donated by the company’s Mike coil-split pickups with
At the time of writing, almost $72,000 Taft, haand-painted an original New York sxvk2sxoo#yroxph#dqg#wrqh#
ri#wkh#';3/333#wdujhw#kdv#ehhq#udlvhg1 Dolls desiggn on it and reached out to artists pots and a five-way selector
Now, musicians and bands ranging from m Keith
K iru dxwrjjuddskv1 vzlwfk1#Ilqlvk#rswlrqv#duh#
Richards and Slash to Skid Row, Faster Pussy ycat To commbbat the costs of shipping the guitar Satin Turquoise Burst or
and others have signed a one-of-a-kind around tthe e world, all artists wishing to take part Satin Natural, with a choice
Gretsch electric guitar, hand-painted by provided authenticated
a handwritten signatures, of six- or seven-string
Dogs D’Amour frontman Tyla, to raise which were then process-printed onto the back
Photos: Tyla/RobMonk

frqiljxudwlrqv1#
dgglwlrqdo#ixqgv#iru#V|oydlq1 ri wkh
h jxlwdu1#Wkh#ruljlqdo vljqdwxuhv duh
The charity guitar is the brainchild of Tyla lqfox
xghhg lq wkh#dxfwlrq1 For more information,
and his friend and business partner, Alan Wkhh jxlwdu#uhfhqwo| vrog dw dxfwlrq rq Hed| head to deanguitars.com
Kdpswrq1#Kdpswrq/#zkr#rzqv#d#edu#wkdw iru d wrwdo#ri#†8/6331

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 MONITOR
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

Whilst the Sonnet is also

available in blonde, the black
model looks none-more-slick

10

BLACKSTAR SONNET
Photography: Olly Curtis

60 AND SUPER FLY

Crank your open-mic or busking set up to 11 with the
latest acoustic amps from Blackstar...
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 FIRST LOOK
PEOPLE - NEWS - NOISE

UP CLOSE

Portability Wattage Features

The Super Fly can run from its rechargeable Blackstar’s Sonnet comes in two versions: The Sonnet includes two channels, Bluetooth,
battery, and also includes mic and bluetooth 60 and 120, with an option for two different reverb, phase switching and a tilt-back stand
connectivity, making it perfect for busking. finishes on each. on both models.

F
ollowing 2019’s Super Fly
portable amp, Blackstar
has recently expanded
its acoustic stable with
the addition of the
Sonnet and Fly3
Acoustic (more on that later on p91). 11
While the Super Fly is battery-powered
and aimed at those wanting to perform
‘on the go’ (there’s an electric channel
with overdrive in addition to the acoustic
voicing and mic input), the Sonnet is
d pxfk pruh dfrxvwlf0vshflĽf dps1
The Sonnet lineup comprises two models:
Sonnet 60 and Sonnet 120 each with – you
guessed it – either 60 or 120 watts of output
power on tap. Key features for both amps
include four inputs: microphone,
instrument, auxiliary and bluetooth, as well
as reverb (independent levels for each
channel), phase switching to help manage
feedback and a tilt-back stand to ensure
your sound is projecting properly.
As well as the extra power, the Sonnet 120
has a few additional features up its sleeve,
such as an 8-inch speaker (plus tweeter),
two additional reverb types, phantom
power and a level control per-channel
for the anti-feedback circuit.
The Sonnet 60 and 120 are also both
available in a modern black-with-black-
grill or blonde with copper styling for
a more ‘vintage’ look.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 MONITOR
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

Tommy used to work on the docks

“We’re all guilty of “It was an amazing opportunity to score the
wanting to play fifth series of Peaky Blinders. The main thing
fast when we I talked about with the director was how to
shouldn’t!” score Tommy Shelby’s mind, because he’s
psychologically deteriorating as the story
goes on. I wanted to find ways to bring out the
tension through music. I used a lot of sliding
and bent notes to help create that suspense,
that feeling of chaos and things not being
quite right, plus some strong hits on the
guitar for danger and aggression.”

Don’t stop me now

“The worst thing about playing guitar is
having to resist the urge to play fast all the
time. There’s something about guitar that
makes you want to show off how fast you can
play. I don’t know why – of all the things that
impress, it’s not really fast playing that makes
someone a great guitarist. But we’re all guilty
of wanting to when we shouldn’t! I always felt
Django Reinhardt played fast, even if that’s not
the first thing people think of when they hear
that name. For only two fingers, he definitely
got around the fretboard.”

Wandering stars, for whom it is reserved

“I did some recording with Adrian Utley from
12 Portishead, who taught me a valuable lesson.
I remember I was strumming this riff and he
kept asking me to play it in different styles,
the same notes but as if they were glam rock or
whatever. I’d never really thought about it like
that before. Often when you’re singing you
will think about putting on these different
FIVE MINUTES ALONE characters as you do it. It had never occurred to

ANNA CALVI
me to think of my guitar lines in the same way,
and I remember learning a lot from that.”

You’re the one that I want

The London-born singer-songwriter on scoring “I got my dream guitar when I was 14 and it’s
the same guitar I play now – a 1994 Telecaster.
Peaky Blinders and controlling the urge to play fast. It just sounds so pure and beautiful, better than
anything else I’ve played. I’m monogamous
when it comes to guitars. I haven’t changed
Got my first real six-string Castles made of sand anything on it, though I do sometimes wish
“My first guitar was a Strat that belonged “I’d say my initial guitar hero was Jimi it had a whammy bar because they can be
to my Dad. I don’t know exactly what year it Hendrix. I saw some footage of him playing at a lot of fun.”
was from, but it was probably an 80s model. Woodstock, I must have been around nine years
I must have been around eight at the time. old and I thought he sounded amazing. It got The road not taken
In the beginning, my Dad taught me a few me really excited. If I could meet any musician “I think it’s all about adding extensions to the
things, some blues and rock ’n’ roll stuff. from history, it would definitely have to be him. scale. You can put a nine in there or bend up
Like a lot of players, when I learned the Just to be in the same room and see him play to it or bend down in some way. You can find
pentatonic scale I was suddenly able to would be magical. When I was a bit older, I got notes that are slightly dissonant to lead you to
jam along to a lot of my favourite records... into Jeff Buckley, I really loved his approach to where you end up. A less-walked path to get
Words: Amit Sharma Photo: Maisie-Cousins

That was probably my first big moment guitar, as well as [jazz and] fusion-style players back into the final notes from the pentatonic
on guitar as a kid.” John McLaughlin and Django Reinhardt.” scale, which can be stronger-sounding. I find
that’s a great way of making the scale

“FOR ONLY TWO FINFERS, DJANGO REINHARDT more interesting.”

DEFINITELY GOT AROUND THE FRETBOARD...” Anna Calvi’s new release Hunted
is out now.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 MONITOR
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

White Stones:
For those missing
Opeth’s death
metal days look
no further

14

WHITE STONES
Opeth four-stringer revisits his death metal roots…
s the bass player from his Barcelona home. Andy Farrow that swiftly led with original single-coils,”

A
in progressive “This all came from having to a deal with Nuclear Blast. continues Martín, save for
rock visionaries fun. After writing six songs It wouldn’t have been possible the solos which were mostly
Opeth, it would I felt there was something in the past, notes Martín, but performed by Åkesson. “That
be fair to say it’s good there, so I called up some Opeth taking a small step back went through a Mesa/Boogie
usually Martín Méndez’s local friends. The singer has from heavy touring has made Rectifier on the orange
bandmates Mikael Åkerfeldt been my neighbour for many it possible to pursue new channel, which has less
and Fredrik Åkesson being years and owns the studio avenues of creativity. distortion. I didn’t use much
interviewed for this magazine. I recorded in. The drummer For the recordings, he stuck gain, to be honest, it was
Words Amit Sharma Photo ©chiaraceccaioni, Ralph Barklam

That all changes this year with and the live guitarist play in to a few basic essentials and probably on about three!
the arrival of Martín’s new bands around here, so we’ve dialled in some distinctly Effects like delay and reverb
death metal project White known each other a while.” organic, yet forceful tones. were added through plug-ins,
Stones and their debut album The 10 tracks heard on the “I did the whole album with so really it was all done with
Kuarahy (named after his debut were originally set for a a stock Fender Stratocaster one guitar and one amp.”
birthplace in Uruguay), on low-key limited vinyl release,
which he played six-string but it was encouragement FOR FANS OF Opeth, Morbid Angel, Death
as well as covering the lower from Mikael and manager GEAR Fender Stratocaster, Mesa/Boogie Rectifier, Fender Jazz Bass
register he’s known for.
“I’ve always written music
but never really presented “THE ALBUM CAME FROM HAVING FUN. I CALLED UP
anything to Mikael for
Opeth,” says Martín, calling SOME FRIENDS; THE SINGER IS MY NEIGHBOUR...”
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 ON THE UP
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

GABRIELLA JONES LEECHED

Seductive pop/blues from the Midlands Manchester crew hellbent on sonic terror
fter making a name for “My main guitar hero is Paul he 10 tracks that make “Feedback is the most

A herself at various
events like Wireless,
Hard Rock Calling and
Kossoff,” says Gabriella. “That’s
why the main guitar I play is a Paul
Kossoff 1959 Reissue Les Paul in
T up Leeched’s second
full-length To Dull The
Blades Of Your Abuse are
important,” stresses guitarist
Judd Langley, who cites “guitarists
who think for themselves” as key
the Isle Of Wight Festival – as well Lemon Burst. I grew up listening to undoubtedly some of the most influences. To bring their
as supporting megastars like a lot of Free and loved his vibrato.” harrowing and disturbing sounds malevolent noises to the stage, the
Beyoncé and Bon Jovi – Gabriella “This generation needs that one coming out of the UK right now. guitarist says he isn’t particularly
Jones has released her latest track riff or hit song which transcends Fusing elements of blackened fussy: “I tend to use the Way Huge 15
404 via Spotify. The Birmingham- genres and has widespread hardcore, death, post- and Swollen Pickle Jumbo Fuzz mainly,
based singer-songwriter describes appeal,” she says – which, we industrial metal into a powerfully but generally I’ll rely on whatever
her poppy blues as “something suspect, is precisely what she’ll be cohesive yet remarkably violent can be stamped on extremely hard
simple, but with the power to working on for the rest of the year. aural assault, the Manchester and not break.”
move people”, and similar things hellraisers also use feedback as
could be said of the band that FOR FANS OF Free, Fleetwood Mac, a powerful tool to disorientate FOR FANS OF Converge, Code Orange
inspired her most... GEAR Gibson Les Paul Kossoff 1959 their listeners... GEAR Way Huge Swollen Pickle

CLEOPATRICK FÉLIXRABIN IRIST

WHO? The Canadian duo who just opened on WHO? The young blues ace recently seen on tour WHO? The Atlanta quintet recently signed by
Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes’ UK run with Samantha Fish Nuclear Blast for their debut
SOUNDS LIKE Two mates playing stripped-down, SOUNDS LIKE The makings of the next John SOUNDS LIKE What you’d hear if Gojira and
bluesy punk rock Mayer? Watch this space Mastodon formed a supergroup
GEAR Gibson Les Paul Traditional 2011, Vox AC30, GEAR Fender Stratocaster ’66 reissue, Fender GEAR Dunable Yeti, Reverend Sensei RA, EVH 5150
Earthquaker Devices Cloven Hoof Blues Junior, Blackstar HT Dual Distortion III, Marshall JCM 800 2203, Strymon BigSky

FOR FANS OF Jimmy Eat World, Highly Suspect FOR FANS OF John Mayer, Jeff Buckley, Cream FOR FANS OF Gojira, Kylesa, Sepultura
HEAR Sanjake HEAR Pogboy HEAR Order Of The Mind

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 MONITOR
PEOPLE - NEWS - NOISE

I’d always wanted a Gold Top. I was talking My original spec was a PRS 57/08 in the bridge and
1 to Nick Fraser, the Technical Manager for
PRS Europe, and he suggested I get a Custom
3 in the neck, but the neck was too bassy for me,
so I swapped that with a 59/09 to balance it up. Now
Shop one made. I was going to be 50 the next on the bridge pickup it’s really 1971 – that Free, Paul
year so I thought, ‘You know what, instead of Kossoff Fire And Water sound, and going through the
a mid-life crisis why don’t I get a guitar made neck it can sound like Slash, Appetite For Destruction
for myself!’ We specced it up and a year later, era. I’ve got those two classic sounds to play with.
the day before my 50th birthday, I got the call
that it had arrived. I drove up to their workshop
in Cambridge straight away, and that’s the Both pickups are
picture you see here. That night, I went for
dinner with the band, took the guitar to show
4 independently coil-tapped.
You can mix what you have as a
them, and they gave me this envelope stuffed humbucker and single coil when
with money saying: ‘This is for your guitar – you’re in the middle [pickup
Happy Birthday!’ I’ve had it three years now, selector] position. There are
it’s the only one in the world, and it’s hands a lot of sound combinations
down the most comfortable, most responsive, available on here.
best-sounding guitar I’ve ever owned. I’ve
used it on every demo and recording since,
like the single This Means War. 7 The bridge is the PRS 594,
Interview Grant Moon Photo Kevin Nixon
5 ‘tune-o-matic’-style bridge
– their take on the classic

ME AND MY GUITAR
Gibson bridge, with a vintage-
style tailpiece, too.

ACE 5
6 I wanted a black headstock because all
Gibson Gold Tops have that, and the PRS
logo is on there in gold. The Custom Shop guys

SKUNK ANANSIE 3 1
actually wrote ‘Happy 50th Birthday Ace’ in
lacquer on the back! The tuners are the PRS
Phase IIIs that are open so you can see the
4 screws. I’ve since swapped the ACE truss rod
16
The Brit rockers’ cover with a custom one by Jay Tsujimura, the
guy who made Lenny Kravitz’s jewellery.

powerhouse It’s my swallow logo cut into a silver cover.

guitarist on the 50th 7 The guitar’s not too heavy, about the same
weight as a Les Paul Gold Top. The body
Birthday present to is mahogany with a maple top then the gold
lacquer. I’ve since added my swallow logo

end them all – his to it, too, and have a few good luck stickers
on the back. You know, bands are funny.
It’s like when you get a new girlfriend and
custom-made Paul they’ll eye them sceptically. It’s the same
with guitars, like, ‘Hmm, do we like your new

Reed Smith Gold Top guitar?’ It’s usually for the look of it! Well,
they appreciated this one straight away.
I was writing the other day, and [bassist]
Cass said ‘That’s such a good-sounding
2 guitar’. It’s been accepted by the band!

I switched from Gibsons to

2 PRS in 2000 when I got my first
Tremonti. They have a nice, thin neck,
so I wanted one like that. But I could
tell from the slightly different
profile that this didn’t just come
with a Tremonti neck stuck onto
it – this one’s custom-made, and
it’s so comfortable. The fretboard
is real rosewood. I had to get the
certificate from CITES [Convention
on International Trade in Endangered
Species] for that. The PRS birds are
lovely – they’re not just white, they’ve 6
got more colour in them, like abalone.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 MONITOR
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE Boho raconteur
Dave Van Ronk

Back track
18

A GUITARIST’S GUIDE TO THE ARTISTS YOU NEED TO KNOW

AMERICAN FOLK
The cultural and geographical
isolation that helped shape the
folk music traditions of the British
Isles was conspicuously absent
on the other side of the Atlantic, START WITH
as American musicians readily
adapted Old World songs for guitar,
DAVE VAN RONK
FOLKSINGER (1962)
Words Stephen Kelly Photo Kai Mort Shuman /Getty

and the emergence of unique forms

1
— bluegrass and country from the Regarded by many as a crucial link between America’s post-war folk revival
mountains, jazz and blues from the and the folk rock zeitgeist of Bob Dylan et al, Dave Van Ronk was a boho
raconteur, a technically versatile jazz guitarist who reverse-engineered
South — profoundly influenced the himself into a folk/blues fingerpicker. An eclectic offering, Van Ronk convincingly
sound of contemporary American moves between the syncopated ragtime of Samson And Delilah and a languid,
music. From Carter picking to open bluesy take on Ray Charles’ Come Back Baby, squeezing in the West African ballad
Chicken Is Nice for good measure. Van Ronk’s arrangements of traditional material
tuning, modern guitar owes much seem to deftly underscore the emotions at play, such as the slow-burning threat
to the inventions of American folk. of violence as a few spartan notes build to a rhythmic climax in Poor Lazarus.
Download Poor Lazarus

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 BACK TRACK
PEOPLE ✪ NEWS ✪ NOISE

THEN TRY DON’T MISS OUT ALSO RECOMMENDED

WOODY GUTHRIE JAKE XERXES FUSSELL JOHN FAHEY
Woody At 100 (2012) What In The Natural World The Legend Of
(2017)
Blind Joe Death (1967)
2
There are times when the music of Woody

3
Guthrie can get a little lost in the man’s Fascinated by the past but unafraid to

4
own mythos, but set aside the wandering reframe it for the present, Fussell’s music A descent into skid row alcoholism
poet shtick and what’s left is a body of music is a fine an example of 21st century folk; during his twilight years might have
rich in righteous indignation, wit and warmth. his choice of source material reaching from the overshadowed John Fahey’s legacy, but
Talking Columbia and Hard Travelin’ rely on Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia to the coal his striking originality as both performer and
simple, economic chord progressions indebted mines of South Wales. The tone throughout interpreter on these early recordings remains
to country musicians like Jimmie Rodgers and borders on the dream-like, Fussell’s playing undimmed. While later releases would
Maybelle Carter (This Land Is Your Land borrows nimble and understated on a quaint deconstruct folk and blues into increasingly
its melody from Carter’s When The World’s On reimagining of Duke Ellington’s Jump For Joy, dissonant, abstract shapes, here the pastoral
Fire), while the wry Talking Dust Bowl draws enriched by contributions from fingerstyle renditions of Poor Boy and John Henry on
from 1920s blues. Fingerstyle murder ballad guitarist Nathan Salsburg on Pinnacle Mountain steel-string acoustic are beautifully picked.
Buffalo Skinners is an eerie highlight, while Pretty Silver Mine, and the hypnotic steel guitar of Better still is the rhythmic workout on Desperate
Boy Floyd presents Guthrie’s socialist bona fides Mountain Goats sideman Nathan Golub on Man Blues and the melancholy Sligo River Blues,
in rousing, yet sympathetic fashion. Canyoneers and album highlight Furniture Man. whose repetition resembles a classical raga. 19
Download Talking Columbia Download Furniture Man Download Sligo River Blues

WORTH A SPIN WILD CARD LIVE!

ANNA & ELIZABETH MARISA ANDERSON TOWNES VAN ZANDT
The Invisible Comes To Us Traditional And Public Live At The Old Quarter
(2018) Domain Songs (2013) (1977)

5 7
A number of female artists producing As country music during the 1970s

6
American traditional music with When a piece of music becomes so played became increasingly beholden to the
deeply-rooted yet musically-progressive out that it loses any artistic meaning, campy Nashville sound, Townes Van
approaches emerged in the last decade, sometimes only stark reinvention can Zandt instead leaned into the balladeering
including the duo of Anna Roberts-Gevalt and help us hear it anew: enter Marisa Anderson, of 60s folkies like Dylan and Tom Paxton.
Elizabeth LaPrelle. Faithful interpretations like whose solo interpretation of these worn-out Although there’s lively moments –
John Of Hazelgreen harness the acoustic guitar songs for electric guitar is a revelation. including a scrappy cover of Bo Diddley’s
and banjo of Appalachian ballad traditions, A work of texture and tone, Anderson imbues Who Do You Love? – it’s Van Zandt’s
while the gorgeous hymnal Mother In The standards like Pretty Polly with the nastiness of heartbreakers that hit hardest: Kathleen’s
Graveyard rests on an effective single-chord a blood-and-dust Western, while Gospel tunes spidery fingerpicking is countrified Leonard
drone. Virginia Rambler is a total deconstruction, Uncloudy Day and Will The Circle Be Unbroken Cohen, while stripped-down versions of To
and though Ripest Of Apples and Black Eyed Susan border on mild psychedelia – the drifting, Live Is To Fly, Tower Song and an electrifying
hew a little closer to their origins, both benefit sustained notes a fine example of what guitarist Lungs make this an essential performance.
from a refreshingly experimental arrangement. William Tyler dubbed “cosmic pastoral”. Download Lungs
Download Ripest Of Apples Download Pretty Polly

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 HOW TO WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
Drop-D tuned riffs
Exotic scale sounds
Hammer-ons, slides and pedal tones

Get the tone CHANNEL DISTORTION

5 5 6
7

0
GAIN BASS MID TREBLE REVERB

Tool engineer Joe Barresi has

stated that he recorded five
guitar tracks using a variety of
amps from Bogner to Rivera to
Orange, which he would blend to
achieve the desired tone for each
part. A safe bet is that this riff
comes from Adam’s Les Paul
Custom plugged into his main
Diezel VH4 and Marshall Super
Bass blend. A nice, even EQ and
a modest amount of gain is all
you need. There is also a phaser
-type effect with the sweep
set to a slow and shallow rate,

U RO
to augment the riff rather

YO E
Bridge humbucker

ON I D
riff of the month than be the feature.

CD
V

TOOL
7empest

W
20 hen Fear Inoculum – the vwdqgdug#H#D#G#J#E#H,1#Vr#pdq|#ri#wkh#edqgġv# Eh#vxuh#wr#iroorz#rxu#vorzhg0grzq#
Californian prog-rock band’s lfrqlf#ulļv/#vxfk#dv#Jambi, Schism or Forty Six & 2, shuirupdqfh#lq#wkh#ylghr#rq#|rxu#Jxlwdu#Vnloov#
Ľuvw#doexp#lq#ryhu#d#ghfdgh#Ğ# zrxog#hlwkhu#eh#lpsrvvleoh#wr#sod|/#ru#vrxqg# FG#dqg#|rxġoo#kdyh#doo#wkh#wrrov#|rx#qhhg1#
gursshg#odvw#|hdu/#Wrro#suryhg# yhu|#glļhuhqw#lqghhg#sod|hg#dq|#rwkhu#zd|1
wkh|ġg#orvw#qrqh#ri#wkhlu#pdjlf1# Sduw#ri#Dgdpġv#ulĿqj#dssurdfk#lv#wr#fuhdwh# CHEAT SHEET…
Dw#wkh#khduw#ri#wkh#edqgġv#vljqdwxuh#vrxqg#lv# uhshdwlqj/#phglwdwlyh#krrnv#zlwk#d#k|sqrwlf# Appears at:#4=4<04=79
jxlwdulvw#Dgdp#Mrqhvġ#xvh#ri#gurs#G#wxqlqj1# txdolw|/#zklfk#wklv#olqh#lq#480plqxwh#hslf# Tempo:#475#esp
Dfklhylqj#wklv#wxqlqj#lv#vlpsoh#hqrxjk#Ğ#doo#|rx# 7empest#fhuwdlqo|#kdv1#Dqg/#dowkrxjk#lwġv# Key/scale:#G#Sku|jldq#prgh
gr#lv#gurs#|rxu#vl{wk#vwulqj#grzq#iurp#H#wr#G/# uhodwlyho|#vlpsoh/#wkh#volgh#iurp#6ug#wr#;wk# Main techniques: Volghv#2#kdpphu0rqv#
vr#|rxu#wxqlqj#lv#G#D#G#J#E#H#+dv#rssrvhg#wr#wkh# iuhw#fdq#eh#d#olwwoh#wulfn|#wr#sod|#dffxudwho|1# 2#vlqjoh0qrwh#slfnlqj

The riff uses a repeating open low D note along

with five notes along the fifth string. For most of
the riff, you will be using the notes on the 3rd, 5th
and 7th frets, while the remaining two notes
appear as variations at the end of each two-bar
repeat. The riff lands mostly in D Phrygian territory
C C# D Eb F (D Eb F G A Bb C). Note that the major 7th (C#) note
in the riff doesn’t technically fit within the scale,
D but acts as a brief passing note.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 HOW TO

GETTING
STARTED WITH…
SCALES
They’re at the heart of
nearly all music. TG looks WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
at the thorny subject Two easy scale shapes
One hard rock riff
of scales… An easy scale-based melody

“Scales. Everyone talks about “Right, I’m armed and ready –

them, but what are they?”
Basically, a scale gives you a skeleton set of
what actual music can I play?”
Rxu#Ľuvw#wde#h{dpsoh#lv#d#vlpsoh/#ixq#ulļ#edvhg#
BOXING CLEVER…
Learn scales the easy way with
notes to make music with. A musical scale on the E minor pentatonic scale. Get stuck in.
climbs up through a sequence of notes
two essential fret boxes
(ascending) and back down (descending), “That was better than I thought, O O O
almost always using the same notes. did you mention something 1. The E minor
about lead playing, too?” pentatonic scale
“Okay, they sound boring. The major scale is used in all Western genres. Play each note one after
2 2
the other and try to make
What’s the point?” Pop, rock, country, jazz, indie – everywhere! them all the same length.
3
Scales have a bad rep because some people The scale has a bright, happy sound found at You’ve got four fretting
fingers – the numbers in
22 focus on the misapprehension that if you the heart of nursery rhymes like Twinkle Twinkle the dots tell you the best
learn them you’ll be forced to do endless scale Little Star, but, more importantly, in soaring one to use as you play
each note.
practice instead of playing real music. Not so! melodies like Steve Vai’s Liberty and the main
E minor pentatonic
Scales are music’s building blocks – the basis of theme in Star Wars. Our second tab example
scale
wkh pxvlf |rx oryh1 Wkh| duh xvhg lq ulļv/ vrorv uses the G major scale and is a great
and to make chords. Ignore them at your peril. opportunity for you to play your
Ľuvw#hslf#phorg|1# O O O
2. The G major
“That makes sense. Where do I start?” scale 1
The minor pentatonic scale is used by loads of “I want more!” Again, make sure you use the
fingers shown for each note 2 2
jxlwdulvwv/ vr lwġv d juhdw Ľuvw vfdoh wr ohduq1 The two scales on the right will keep you busy – this help’s with accuracy.
Although it has a long name, it’s easy to play. for a while. Don’t fall into the trap of learning Listen out for the brighter, 3 3
happier vibe of the major
Lw kdv Ľyh glļhuhqw qrwhv/ zlwk wkh Ľuvw qrwh endless scales – work on how to use these well scale compared to the edgier
repeated at a higher pitch, so you play six notes Ľuvw1#Xvh#wkhp#wr#fuhdwh |rxu rzq ulļv dqg minor pentatonic scale.

lq wrwdo1 Wkh Ľuvw qrwh lv zkhuh wkh vfdoh jhwv lwv melodies. If you don’t know where to start, try
qdph1 Wkh Ľuvw vfdoh vkrzq lq wkh er{rxw rq changing just one note in our examples. If you G major scale
the right starts with an E note, so it’s the stick to the notes in the scale it’s almost
E minor pentatonic scale. Simple! lpsrvvleoh#wr#sod|#d#gxļ qrwh1

1 E MINOR PENTATONIC RIFF TRACK 07 2 G MAJOR MELODY TRACK 08

q = 90 q =110
N.C. G C G

.. .. .. ..
œ œ
T . . T . 3 3 1
3 2 2 0
3 .
B
. 0 2
0 2 2 . B
. 0 0
.
0 0 0 3 3 0 0

It’s tempting to play this riff using just your first finger. However, use the fingers As soon as you’ve played each fretted note, release pressure on the string and
shown in the scale box and you’ll play faster and more fluently. start moving to the next fret – this will help you play the riff at full speed.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 HOW TO

OVERDRIVE TONE
This pot controls the The tone control on the
gain of the op-amp Tubescreamer, like the
stage, effectively one on the ProCo RAT,
increasing the amount is deceptively simple.
of amplification the An oversimplified,
pedal generates, and and not-quite-correct
thus the amount of summary would be
clipping in turn. that, depending on the
position in its rotation,
LEVEL it’s a low-pass filter or
The level control a bandpass filter.
dumps signal to For most players, it’s
ground, reducing best understood as
the output volume functioning like
of the pedal. a high-pass filter,
with most treble
content removed
when it’s fully
counter-clockwise.

24

The original ‘overdrive pedal’, the Ibanez Tube Screamer was ground zero for
a new type of effect, and all the op-amp based drives that have followed.

N
ot only is The Tube Screamer circuit was in the op-amp’s feedback path unit and alter the circuit further
the Ibanez Tube designed by Susumu Tamura, an - which is to say, almost all for the next 20 years, when people
Screamer the engineer for Maxon, in 1979. It was overdrive pedals. say ‘Tube Screamer’ tone, they’re
most famous conceived as a competitor to the The original Ibanez units are generally talking about the
overdrive ever BOSS OD-1 and MXR Distortion+, rare and coveted, but there’s also TS-808 or TS-9 models, and
produced, it’s and its op-amp based topology Maxon units available, which wklv#lv#uhľhfwhg#e|#wkh#qxpehu#
also probably where we get the instantly set it apart from where marketed as the OD-808 ri#kljk0surĽoh#sod|huv#wkdw#kdyh#
name ‘overdrive’ from, as the transistor and JFET-based designs, and OD-9; these correspond to gravitated towards these units over
original TS-808 model labelled as well as fuzzboxes. To this day, the two ‘classic’ Tube Screamers the years. Since then, not only has
the gain control on the pedal the family tree of Tube Screamer that Maxon produced – the TS-808 the pedal been cloned to death,
‘overdrive’. Its origins are pedals includes most op-amp and TS-9. Although Ibanez would it’s been built on and adapted into
interesting – although now Maxon based drives that use soft clipping continue to build variations of the d kxjh vsuhdg ri glļhuhqw irupv1
is a company you can buy readily
in a guitar shop, back then they
were an OEM (original equipment
manufacturer) for other brands,
WHEN PEOPLE SAY ‘TUBE SCREAMER’ TONE, THEY’RE
in this case Ibanez. GENERALLY TALKING ABOUT THE IBANEZ TS-808 AND TS-9
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 THE FX FILES

# UNDER THE INFLUENCE

PAUL COCHRANE ANALOG MAN SNAKE OIL EFFECTS

TIMMY KING OF TONE THE VERY THING
FROM $129 FROM $245 FROM £149
With the new MXR version about to be released, The two main influences on the coveted King Of Tone If you’re not after lots of clipping, but mainly want to
Paul Cochrane’s classic overdrive circuit is poised are the Tube Screamer and the Marshall Bluesbreaker use the Tube Screamer as a boost, then there have
to become more accessible than ever. Essentially pedal, and for all its component changes and rare been a number of versions of the circuit created by the
a streamlined op-amp drive with less compression diodes, the biggest changes to the tone are the EQ – like DIY community over the years. Amongst the best is 25
than a Tube Screamer, a dual-cut EQ and no ‘mid-hump’, the Timmy, an absence of the mid hump – and increased Jack Orman’s TS circuit, which repurposes it as a boost.
the Timmy is ideal for low-gain drive sounds or using headroom. You can hear the difference in diodes, but The Very Thing is very closely based on this design,
as a boost to drive a tube amp into saturation. it’s a marginal change in the grander scheme of things. should you not want to build your own.

# CLASSIC TONES
GET THE TONE #1 GET THE TONE #2 GET THE TONE #3
METAL BOOST BLUE TONE SATURATED RHYTHM
For everything from grunge to modern Rolling back the treble at either the guitar TONE
tech-metal, you need your amp working or the pedal, and using a combination of Although not that many people use its drive
overtime. This setting dials back the pedal gain amp and pedal saturation to get a resonant, wide open, the Tubescreamer has a surprising
and uses the huge volume tap on offer from the ‘singing’ lead is perhaps the Tubescreamer’s amount of distortion on offer when it’s maxed
Tubescreamer to coax more gain out of the quintessential setting. Through our out. Into a solid-state amp this can sound
amp, which you want to have running on the single-ended 5W test amp, we found this a little bit thin, but into a tube amp, carefully
gain channel. You’ll likely want to roll off some to be an effective setting, with the guitar’s dialling in the level control can result in
bass off your amp to stop it getting ‘woofy’. tone pot wide open and on the neck pickup. a thick,powerful rhythm tone.

Get the tone Get the tone Get the tone

OVERDRIVE TONE LEVEL OVERDRIVE TONE LEVEL OVERDRIVE TONE LEVEL

DRIVE 7 o’clock TONE 1 o’clock DRIVE 3 o’clock TONE 10 o’clock DRIVE 3 o’clock TONE 1 o’clock
LEVEL 5 o’clock LEVEL 3 o’clock LEVEL 2 o’clock

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 STAY
HOW TO ON TRACK!
TRACK 09
Our short backing track is a jam
around a Dsus4-D-Asus4-A
chord progression. Either follow
the track with the chord shapes
below or try playing your
own riffs around the sus
and major notes.

WHAT THE
THEORY T
heory helps explain playing sus chords long before they
the creative aspects know how they work – there are
of music. Ponder on loads of easy shapes, after all.

MADE
that for a moment. So, how does knowing the
Theory isn’t there to theory help you? Well, once
give you strict rules to follow – it’s equipped with a little essential

EASY
your music and your rules! No, knowledge, you can start to plot
theory should help explain what’s new shapes around the fretboard.
going on. The structures and scales You’ll develop your ear, too, and
you learn are just commonly-used start improvising around these
patterns. Get to grips with them essential shapes. And if chords

THIS MONTH…
and gradually you’ll understand aren’t immediately exciting to you,
how the guitarists you love just remember that you can write
write and play. riffs, arpeggios and melodies
Go beyond basic majors and get some new Which brings us on to this around these ideas too. Before you
month’s lesson on suspended (or know it, you’ll be incorporating
shapes sussed with our look at sus chords ‘sus’) chords. Most guitarists start these ideas into your playing.

NICE AN’
D’EASY! 1
Let’s start with one of
2 GETTING
IT SUSSED
Dsus4 is about as easy
the easiest chords of all as guitar chords get.
– D. It’s a beginner chord
X X D/1 X X D/1
If you were using your
and super easy to play. first three fingers to
26 The notes are D, F# and fret the D chord, just
A, just spread out in a drop your fourth finger
different order to make down to play the new
A/5 F#/ 3 A/5
it easier to play. Let’s note. Theory-wise,
move on to the theory, you’ll be ditching the
then... The D major scale D/1 D/1 G/4 3rd (F#) and replacing
has seven notes: D E F# it with a 4th (G). The 3rd
G A B C#. Try to is said to be ‘suspended’
remember that D, F# in favour of the 4th,
and A are the first, third hence the name
and fifth notes; we've D ‘sus’ 4.
marked them 1, 3 and 5.
D (notes & intervals) Dsus4 (notes & intervals)

X A/1 E/5 X A/1 E/5

NOW TRY A
Let’s try it with 2
another easy open
4 ASUS4
Look back at D
and Dsus4. Remember,
chord – this time A. E / 5 A / 1 C#/ 3 E/5 A/1 we ditched the 3rd
Again, aim to identify interval and replaced it
the notes and their D/4
with a 4th. Well, the
corresponding intervals. shape’s slightly
Get your head around different here, but the
that and you’ll be well on process is the same.
your way to sus chord Play the 3rd fret on the
mastery all across the second string and your
fretboard. The notes in 3rd interval (C#)
an A chord are A, C# and becomes a 4th (D) to
E – the first, third and A (notes & intervals) Asus4 (notes & intervals) give you Asus4.
fifth notes of the A Whichever major chord
major scale (A B C# D you’re playing, you’ll find
E F# G#). the 4th one fret higher
than the 3rd.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 H
E
R
LOCAL
Words Rob Laing
Photography James Sharrock

28

BRIAN FALLON’S THIRD SOLO ALBUM

IS HIS STRONGEST STATEMENT YET –
HE TELLS US HOW AN OPEN MIND AND
OPEN HEART FOUND HIM RAISING HIS
BAR AS A PLAYER AND SONGWRITER.
BUT IT DIDN’T COME EASILY…

“I
feel that in my career, everything I’ve hinted at,
from Sink Or Swim to The ’59 Sound to playing
zlwk#Euxfh#dqg#doo#wkdw#vwxļ/#hyhu|wklqj#kdv#
been a hint and a partial viewing to what I truly
hear in my heart and I’m trying to do. And I’ve
never achieved it, and I’m demanding of myself
that it will happen.” Brian Fallon told us that just
over a year ago. So today, as we read those words
back to him when we meet in the cafe of
London’s Rough Trade East record shop to discuss his new solo album
Local Honey, we have to ask him – did it happen?
“I feel that this is step one,” he smiles. “The door is now opened, walked
through. I have no choice but to walk forwards. I honestly feel that when I’m
done making records this will have been day one. And it felt good though to
get there, personally. Even if the record didn’t do well, I feel like I’ve
achieved something already.”
 BRIAN FALLON

If this is a new start for the Gaslight suredeo| eh pruh wudglwlrqdo/Ĥ kh

Anthem chief, it’s quite a statement dgplwv1 ģWkhuh zrxog kdyh ehhq
to begin with. Local Honey is eight songs Ľggohv rq lw1 L wklqn wkdwġv zk| L zhqw
but feels complete because its writer wr Shwhu1 L wklqn shrsoh pdnh
makes every moment of them count; wudglwlrqdo Dphulfdqd uhfrugv ehwwhu
lq sodfh ri wkh sxqn urfn Ľuh ri rog wkdq L frxog1 L glgqġw zdqw wr frpshwh1
wkhuhġv d uhvwudlqw dqg vwulnlqj krqhvw| Ehfdxvh Lġp wkh nlqg ri shuvrq zkhuh
wkdw ihhov mxvw dv srzhuixo1 Exw lw frxog li L fdqġw dw ohdvw gr zhoo/ L grqġw zdqw
only have come from a sea-change to compete. I’m not going to run you
in Fallon’s approach as a player in a race because I can’t run.”
dqg d shuvrq1

HERE AND NOW

AN EDUCATION Olvwhqhuv zloo dovr ihho d glvwlqfw vkliw
ģLi L kdgqġw grqh doo wkrvh ohvvrqv in his lyricism; while the tragic Vincent
L zrxog qrw kdyh ehhq deoh wr sod| ru lv Euldqġv Ľuvw ixoo| Ľfwlrqdo wdoh ri
zulwh wkh vrqjv/Ĥ Idoorq dgplwv wr xv1 pxughu dqg wudjhg|/ khġv pruh
Last time TG met the New Jersey shuvrqdo dqg suhvhqw wkdq hyhu ehiruh
vrqjzulwhu/ kh wrog xv kh zdv ghhs lqwr elsewhere. You Have Stolen My Heart is
d txhvw wr lpsuryh dqg ohduq pruh dv d his purest love song; on moving
jxlwdulvw Ğ dvlgh iurp pdlqvwd| opener When You’re Ready, he’s
lqľxhqfhv olnh G|odq dqg Wrp Zdlwv/ a father talking to his young
kh zdv devruelqj nqrzohgjh iurp gdxjkwhu/ dqg 21 Days suggests his
glyhuvh vrxufhv lqfoxglqj Pdun shuvrqdo vkliw iurp d gdunhu wlph 29
Nqrsľhuġv Ľqjhuvw|oh dqg \rxWxehu beneath the guise of what seems to
John Tuggle’s blues technique. But eh d elwwhuvzhhw jrrge|h wr fljduhwwhv1
Idoorq kdg dovr ehjdq sod|lqj sldqr olyh/ All are his truths.
too, reworking Gaslight favourite The ģLġyh dozd|v kdg wklv zdoo wkdw Lġyh
’59 Sound dorqjvlgh klv ydulhg vror zrun put up,” Brian confesses, the warm
wr vslqh0wlqjolqj hļhfw1 Local Honey fdqgrxu ri wkh doexp yhu| pxfk
qrz vhhv doo wkdw wlph sd|lqj rļ1 Elj hylghqw lq shuvrq wrgd|1 ģHyhq wkh
wlph1 Wkh doexp lv d ghwdlohg exw most personal songs I’ve written
moving work that mixes acoustic ehiruh L qhyhu rshqhg xs doo wkh zd|1
Ľqjhuslfnlqj zlwk od|huv ri I guess it’s maybe the age or the place
hohfwulf dqg nh|v I’m at in life where I think, I’m just
wr vlghvwhs jhquh jrlqj wr gr wklv dqg Lġp qrw zruulhg
pigeon-holing. derxw klglqj dq|wklqj1 L grqġw fduh111
Somehow he’s Zhoo/ lwġv qrw wkdw L grqġw fduh ehfdxvh
pdqdjhg wr fduyh L gr fduh/ exw Lġp rn zlwk ehlqj
out something uncomfortable; I’m ok with
xqltxh dqg ehlqj h{srvhg1Ĥ
frqwhpsrudu| iru klpvhoi dorqjvlgh Wkh If 21 Days is a confessional born
Qdwlrqdo dqg Wkh Zdu Rq Guxjv from “a lot of therapy” its musical
surgxfhu Shwhu Ndwlv1 Wklv lvqġw Euldq ghyhorsphqw zdv mxvw dv frpsoh{1
Fallon’s rootsy Americana album. “If Lqwlpdwh dqg vorz exloglqj rq uhfrug
|rx ohiw ph wr p| rzq ghylfhv lw zrxog zlwk yrfdov yhujlqj rq vsrnhq zrug dw

“I’m ok with being

uncomfortable;
I’m ok with being
exposed...”
APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR
 Open all night
Ľuvw/#lw#dfwxdoo|#vwduwhg#dv#ixoo0eruh#
Fallon performing with
urfn#vrqj#wuxhu#wr#wkh#Jdvoljkw#gd|v# The Horrible Crowes at
ehiruh#Euldq#uhzrunhg#lw#ryhu# The Koko, London
painstaking weeks following Katis’s
dgplwwdqfh#kh#zdvqġw#vxuh#kh#frxog#
surgxfh#wkdw#nlqg#ri#pxvlf#zkhq#
kh#khdug#wkh#ruljlqdo#ghpr1#
“That song, I tell you, it was like
exloglqj#d#krxvh#rqh#vfuhz#dw#d#wlph1#
Lw#zdv#fud}|1#Lw#zdv#vr#glĿfxow1#Exw#zh#
uhfrughg#lw#zlwk#ph#|hoolqj#dqg#uhfrughg#
lw#zlwk#ph#txlhw#dqg#L#vzhdu#wr#|rx#lw#klw#
kdughu#zkhq#lw#zdv#txlhw1#Dqg#L#zdv#olnh/#
L#grqġw#eholhyh#wklv#mxvw#kdsshqhg1#
Exw#wkdw#uhdoo|#rshqhg#p|#h|hv#
to a lot of things.”

CHORD WORK
Lwġv#lqglfdwlyh#ri#d#zulwlqj#dqg#uhfruglqj#
process that saw Fallon willingly leaving
his comfort zones as a guitarist, while
also embracing others. Songs like I Don’t
Mind (If I’m With You)#dqg#Lonely For You
Only#zhuh#vorzhg#uljkw#grzq#zkloh#
ryhugxeehg#hohfwulf#sduwv#dqg#nh|v#zhuh#
wdnhq#lq#dqg#rxw#ri#wkh#pl{#lq#sxuvxlw#ri#
wkh#shuihfw#htxloleulxp#ri#vrxqgv#dqg#
wh{wxuhv#zh#qrz#khdu1#Dorqjvlgh#vrph#
zrqghuixoo|#lqyhqwlyh#guxp#zrun#iurp#
30 Nxuw#Ohrq#+zkr#zloo#mrlq#Euldqġv#edqg#rq#
wrxu#wklv#|hdu,/#wkhuh#duh#ghwdlov#wkdw#
ehfrph#fohduhu#ryhu#uhshdwhg#olvwhqv#
Ğ#lqfoxglqj#hohfwulf#olfnv#iurp#Euldqġv#
“you’ve got to hold back
eorqgh#Fxvwrp#Vkrs#Whoh#wkurxjk#klv#
ġ99#Ihqghu#Ghox{h#Uhyhue/#dnd#
– Hit the right notes at
“the best amp ever”.
ģZlwk#wklv#vwxļ/#L#zdv#orrnlqj#dw#wkh#
zd|#Gdqlho#Odqrlv#sod|v/Ĥ#kh#qrwhv1#
the right time”
ģKhġv#jrw#wkdw#edqg#Eodfn#Gxe#wkdw#kh#
sod|v#lq/#dqg#li#|rx#olvwhq#wr#klv#jxlwdu#
sod|lqj#lwġv#h{wuhpho|#khog#edfn#exw# fkrugvBġ#Dqg#khġv#olnh/#ģQr/#ehfdxvh#lwġv# derxw#|rx/#exw#L#wklqn#Lġp#grlqj#douljkw1#
wdvwhixo1#Hyhq#wkh#Wrp#Zdlwv#uhfrugv# qrw#vdg1#Xvh#wkh#vdg#fkrugv1#Wkdwġv# \rx#nqrz#zkdw#Lġp#vd|lqjB#^odxjkv`1#
Nhlwk#Ulfkdugv#sod|hg#rq/#olnh#Rain Dogs, zkdwġv#jrrg1Ĥ#Lw#nlqg#ri#jdyh#ph# L#nqrz#zkdw#wkh#fkrugv#duh/#Lġyh#jrw#
kh#zrxog#sod|#wkhvh#h{wuhpho|#wdvw|# shuplvvlrq1#Lġp#xvlqj#wkh#fkrugv#L#zdqw# the 7th, the 9ths, the 11th...
wklqjv#exw#lw#zdv#zd|#lq#wkh#edfn1#Rqh# wr#xvh1#Hyhq#wkh#vrqj#Nocturne by Julian Exw#L#grqġw#fduh1Ĥ
qrwh#kdg#wr#phdq#hyhu|wklqj1#Li#L#glgqġw# Odjh/#lwġv#E#plqru#wr#D#dqg#wkhq#G1#Lwġv# Brian’s example of another key
jr#wkurxjk#wkh#odvw#wzr#|hduv/#dqg#Lġp# wkh#vdph#fkrug#surjuhvvlrq#L#xvh/#exw# lqľxhqfh#zkrvh#qxdqfhg#vrqjv#zhuh#
vwloo#grlqj#lw111#Lġp#ohduqlqj1#Lġp#zd|#lqwr# although it’s like this really fancy jazz vrphwlphv#plvxqghuvwrrg#dv#Ġvlpsohġ#
Julian Lage now, I’m learning all these vrqj/#lwġv#nlqg#ri#wkh#vdph#wklqj1Ĥ lv#whoolqj1#Wkh#sdudoohov#duhqġw#kdug#wr#
glļhuhqw#wklqjv1#Exw#|rxġyh#jrw#wr#krog# Fallon’s clearly warming to a theme gudz1#ģL#uhdg#lq#dq#lqwhuylhz#zlwk#Wrp#
back, that’s the secret. Hit the right khuh1#Kh#wxuqhg#73#d#frxsoh#ri#gd|v# Shww|/#d#jxlwdu#sod|hu#fdph#xs#wr#klp/#
note at the right time.” ehiruh#zh#phhw/#dqg#wkhuhġv#vrphwklqj# d#iulhqg#ri#klv/#dqg#vdlg/#ĠLġyh#jrw#wklv#
Uk|wkplfdoo|/#Idoorq#kdvqġw#jrqh#md}}# nh|#wr#eh#ohduqhg#iurp#klv#sdwk#dv# frro#fkrug#dqg#L#xvhg#lw#lq#d#vrqj1ġ#Dqg#
rq#xv1#Txlwh#wkh#rssrvlwh1#ģL#vwduwhg#wr# a player to get to this point – namely Shww|#vdlg/#ĠZk|B#Gr#|rx#nqrz#zk|#wkdw#
ohduq#doo#wkhvh#glļhuhqw#fkrug# growing while embracing the things fkrugġv#qrw#ehhq#xvhg#lq#d#vrqj#ehiruhB#
surjuhvvlrqv#ehfdxvh#Lġyh#dozd|v#xvhg# wkdw#pdnh#xs#|rxu#lghqwlw|1# Ehfdxvh#lwġv#qrw#jrrg1ġ#Idlu#hqrxjk/#
L0Y0YL0LY#d#orw#^vhh#kxqguhgv#ri#klwv# “I think it’s a thing that’s my thing. ehfdxvh#|rx#nqrz#zkdw#zrunvB#J/#G#dqg#
from YMCA to Every Breath You Take, Let’s Li#|rx#erlohg#lw#grzq/#lwġv#wkh#phorglhv#ri# F1#Vr#ohdyh#lw#wr#Wrp#Shww|/#eohvv#klp1Ĥ
Get It On, Stand By Me, NIN’s Hurt; the list wkrvh#fkrugv1#Zhoo/#vrph#shrsoh#pljkw# Local Honey is released through
jrhv#rq`#dqg#yduldwlrqv#ri#wkdw1#Exw#|rx# vd|#wr#ph/#ĠWkdwġv#erulqj/#|rx#xvh#wkh# Brian Fallon’s Lesser Known Records
nqrz/#L#olnh#wkdw#fkrug#surjuhvvlrq#vwloo1# vdph#fkrugv#doo#wkh#wlphġ1#L#wklqn#wkdwġv# on 27th March. He tours the UK
Photo: Gettty

Dqg#L#vdlg#wkdw#wr#Shwhu/#ĠL#ohduqhg#doo#wklv# pretty creative that I’ve written, like, 95 with his band The Howling
md}}#vwxļ#vr#vkrxog#L#eh#xvlqj#wkhvh# vrqjv#zlwk#vlplodu#fkrugv1#L#grqġw#nqrz# Weather in May.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 BRIAN FALLON

It’s good to be king

If G, D and C are good
enough for Tom Petty,
they're good enough
for Fallon, he says

31

YOUR LATEST TRICK

Knopfler knowledge

L
ocal Honey contains Brian’s “There’s a song he did called Haul “I was learning that these chords
unabashed take on “Mark Away and it sounds like an old Irish were moving at different times, but it
Knopfler covering Tom Petty” ballad,” Brian explains. “I was trying to wasn’t a fingerpicking song – I thought
with the song Hard Feeling – the figure it out and he’s using standard to myself, ‘How do I do this?’ On Haul
writing for which stalled two years ago chords but he’s playing it like a piano, Away, Mark was strumming with his
and needed his growth as a musician to not like a guitar. That was one of the fingers, but it’s not up and down,
get it done. “The patterns of the chord tricks I used on the record, chord-wise. there’s not like a bass note and
cycle only happen twice then it moves, When a piano moves chords it’s not like then a high strum – like boom-ring,
throughout the whole song,” notes ‘1, 2, 3, 4’ move, it’s ‘1 and 2 and 3 and 4’. boom-ring – to keep the beat. With
Fallon. Like many of Mark’s songs, it If you move guitar chords like that you this, there’s only the ring. So it’s rest,
sounds so simple but it’s so not have to adapt your strumming and your ring. To get that delicate strum, and
simple.” But the former Dire Straits picking. Jeff Buckley did it really well the strum [I use] on the song You Have
leader’s influence appears elsewhere, and Nina Simone’s guitar player [Alvin Stolen My Heart, is so much harder
though it could be easily missed. Schackman] did it amazingly. than it seems!”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 INTERVIEW

THE
Words Amit Sharma / Photo Olly Curtis

POWER
32
OF THREE
In Code Orange, one of the heaviest bands on
Earth, Reba Meyers is one of three guitarists.
With an experimental new album released this
month, she discusses the origins of her “unique,
self-taught style”, the influence of hip-hop and
music theory in her writing, and the “perfect”
design of her first signature guitar.
Plus: Reba’s studio gear breakdown.

T
here’s a well of The Pittsburgh noise merchants,
unimaginable who won a Grammy nomination
darkness and on their last album, 2017’s
intensity driving Forever, now stand as one of the
Code Orange’s most important extreme bands
latest album of the last decade. Speaking to TG
Underneath. So much so, that in the cafeteria of a London hotel,
it feels almost more soundtrack guitarist Reba Meyers explains
than metal – adding digital the secrets to their devastating
squelches and heavily-effected sound, and how employing
samples to the nightmarish hip-hop sampling techniques
onslaught of chainsaw guitars helped them make heavy
and crushing beatdowns. metal even heavier...

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 REBA MEYERS

The new black Since your last TG interview, you

“I love evil sounds people released the LTD RM-600 with ESP.
wouldn’t necessarily know
are played on guitar” What were you looking for in your
very first signature guitar?
ģKrqhvwo|/#L#zdv#vxusulvhg#zkhq#wkh|#Ľuvw#
asked me! I really didn’t expect it. I’ve
always been an ESP player... That’s just
been me my whole life, ever since I started
playing metal guitar. Tony [Rauser], who is
the Artist Rep, came to some of our shows
and we became friends, then ended up
asking me. I had not planned for it, so on
a whim I started messing around with
designs, getting the right headstock on
the right body. I’ve always wanted to play
a reverse headstock guitar, but I love the
Viper, so we thought we’d see what it
looked like on Photoshop. I thought it
looked sick, so then we started messing
durxqg#zlwk#Ľqlvkhv1#Wkhuh#zdv#qr#
masterplan per se, but sometimes that’s
better. A lot of times, if you take too long
and sulk and sit on things – even songs and
ulļv Ğ lw vwduwv#jhwwlqj#wrr#frqyroxwhg1#Dq#
idea that pops into your head out of
nowhere can be so much better.”

And there’s only one

pickup – an EMG 81
in the bridge… 33
“It’s just classic. I’ve
always experimented
zlwk#glļhuhqw#wklqjv#exw#
you can’t really go wrong with that
one, whoever buys this guitar will be in love
with the sound of that pickup. It’s perfect
for this style of music. I was so happy with
how it came out, I didn’t expect it to be so
perfect but they got everything right,
including the weights. I wanted to make
lw#khdylhu#dw#Ľuvw#ehfdxvh#L#zdv#vr#xvhg#wr#
my old LTD from the early 2000s, so they
worked with me on that. Then they had the
idfwru|#Ľjxuh#rxw#d#zd|#wr#gr#wkh#Ľqlvk#zlwk#
saran wrap, using this special technique
they hadn’t done before. They went pretty
hard on it! I was proud and very pleased.”

It also made history as ESP’s first

signature guitar for a female musician...
“I’m sure there’s a lot of women out there
that can shred a lot harder than I do!
I hope this inspires other guitarists who
duh#frqĽghqw#lq#krz#wkh|#sod|/#hyhq#li#lw#
isn’t the usual demo shredding guitar style.
There’s a lot of that and it’s cool, but
that’s not why I love guitar. I’m glad I can
represent not only female guitarists, but
also any guitar player who isn’t the same as
the rest of the roster. I feel like I come from
d#glļhuhqw#vlgh#ri#wklqjv1#Zkhq#|rxġuh#eruq#
into punk music, you don’t play the typical
way. I’m self-taught; I learned how to play

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 INTERVIEW
based on who I saw in my city. all the digital and analogue It’s an unusual dynamic
Nowadays, everyone can look on mixed together. The line you have between you
YouTube, but growing up, it was more between electronics and and the band’s other two
about taking little pieces from other guitars is fine – we have a guitarists, Shade and
musicians in Pittsburgh and my friends. core guitar sound but it gets Dominic Landolina. What
It’s that more unique, self-taught style” blurry in the other bleed- have you learned to watch
noise sections. You don’t out for with three guitars
What felt different about the really know which is which. on stage?
writing and recording process Sometimes computers have “Tuning is the main issue,
for Underneath ? an unnatural feel, so our if I’m being honest. I’m
“We’ve been taking a lot of influence approach was to make constantly being a stickler
from modern rap, which people dog on something electronic about that. My bandmates
in the metal community sometimes. starting with a guitar riff. know what kind of look I give
But there’s a production style and
freedom in current rap artists that we
It’s a human playing with
hands, it might be a bit
A guide to Reba’s them when something’s
wrong. When you’re playing
find admirable. I’ve watched a lot of messier but it creates gear on the in drop A or B, if you hit the
interviews with Mike Dean, who is
a producer for Kanye and others, where
a tenseness and realness
that’s really important to
Underneath... strings too hard it’s gonna
sound like shit because you’ll
he talks a lot about using different our band and why people go out of tune. That’s a
ESP CUSTOM VIPER
software for guitars and how he creates like us. It’s a perfect “They recently gave me a Custom constant issue for a band with
ideas and makes beats. It’s very situation, no-one is Shop cherry red Viper which is just three guitar players. Other
inspiring. He came from a classical trying to turn down, it’s perfect for our sound. For some than that, it’s making sure
background, it seemed, playing three people who really reason, I play my best on that guitar we’re not all playing when
saxophone – which I really related to understand guitars and I can’t explain why. I tried so we don’t need to be. Having
because that’s the world I came from. chopping riffs and sending many in the studio, especially to get three guitarists is a necessity
It made me realise I could connect my them back and forth.” some variance in there, and there for us, especially on this
knowledge of chord progressions and are some Gibsons to thicken out the record – there’s an insane
music theory to the band, even though That makes for some choruses, but for the most I was amount of stuff going on, it’s
just using that one Custom shop.
it’s not something you might expect. really unusual time really dense. We need to keep
I’ve never had anything like it. It has
34 Whenever I think about who it should changes and pushes EMG pickups too, there’s the 85 in the most important facets
sound like, the answer is always the with your riffs... the neck, but I never come off the played live, I don’t want us to
deepest version of Code Orange. I didn’t “Yeah, as well as the 81 bridge pickup – ever!” be missing important pieces.
want it to sound like this band mixed Pittsburgh beatdown-style Three guitars can easily fill all
with that band. It had to sound like us.” bands who introduced us to EVH 5150 III the gaps sonically, my sound
that. That’s where we got “I hadn’t used this amp much before; is really mid-rangey and in
There’s almost a mechanical sense the influence for super it caught me by surprise! Once we your face while Dom’s is
to a lot of the guitars, like they’ve heavy time-switching riffs. started rolling, I was using it a lot. really scooped with Strat
been chopped to the extreme... It’s kinda ingrained into us.
The EVH didn’t need any extra highs and low-end from the
tweaking or gain, it was perfectly
“There’s a song called You And You People might look at it amp and then Shade will fill
cutting and smooth – present but
Alone which really went far with that really technically and say not in a crunchy way, which tends to in any gaps we need. His main
approach. I wrote a bunch of stuff it’s a bar of four, then five be the battle I’m always having!” thing is synths now, but he
quickly and demoed it out with and then seven. I never runs his guitars through his
programmed drums. It was a messy think about that until much SOUNDTOYS PLUG-INS computer. We get him to do
thing with a chorus in between, me later, just so I know what’s “What made this album different a lot of the avant-garde stuff
and Jami (Morgan, drummer) thought going on. That’s all by ear. If was how we used plug-ins and when we play live.”
Shade (guitarist/vocalist Eric ‘Shade’ you have an understanding pedals in conjunction. Soundtoys
Balderose) could do something insane, of where the beat needs to make a lot of plug-ins that are mainly Natural sounds like
so he chopped it up into some electronic fall and where it can feel
used for vocals, but you can use pick-scrapes, harmonics
them on anything. I used the
version of itself. I had to go back and cool when it’s in the ‘wrong’ and clashing diads also add
PhaseMistress, FilterFreak and
relearn how to actually play it. There place, it happens on the fly. Decapitator on my guitars. There to the heaviness...
was a lot of that on this album, ideas If you took a part like that was a whole bundle of stuff and not “I have a box of tricks,
that got screwed up and relearned, and lined it all up perfectly, many people use them the way we basically. Noises are
which then created another style and it wouldn’t sound good. do, which created these new, something you can throw
feeling to it. I was able to go so much You need a feel for those unusual sounds.” in there to make it even more
further than I expected myself to using kinds of parts.” mean-sounding. It’s
something I’m addicted to,

“My band know the kind

honestly. It also makes playing guitar
more fun and satisfying, you’re not just
Randy Ho mes/Getty

playing a bunch of chords or shred stuff.

of look I give them when I love those evil sounds that people
PhotoCassieStaub

wouldn’t necessarily know are played

something’s wrong” on guitar, made through just hands and

Photo:

body. It’s an intensity I’m addicted to.”

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 FEATURE

W
hen we talk punk
rock we often talk
about three
chords and those
being enough to
capture its whole
aesthetic. As
though that’s all you need. But that
alone doesn’t get you there. You’ve
got to find a way of capturing a punk
intensity, of getting that attitude into
a recording. The Chats, a gloriously
unworked and uncouth punk trio from
Queensland, Australia, applied a simple
rule to the making of their debut album
High Risk Behaviour: you get three

Aussi
takes and that’s it.
As guitarist Josh “Pricey” Price tells it,
forget rehearsals. Playing in The Chats
isn’t an office job. “We’d just go into the

Jonathan Horsley
studio with no songs and then whack
for a day and come out with four,” he

Rules
says. “And we don’t really know how to

Words
play them still. There are like four songs
on the record that I don’t even know
how to play.” Does he worry about
having to play them live? “I am a big fan
of Joe Walsh and he said, ‘If you act like
you know what you are doing, everybody
36 thinks you do,’” says Pricey. “That’s
a good bit of advice, I reckon.”
The Chats were formed in 2016.
They played as a four-piece for a short
while before paring it down to a trio with BRINGINGTHETHUNDERFROMDOWNUNDER,
Eamon Sandwith on vocals and bass
Matt Boggis on drums. A very modern THE CHATS ARE THE WORLD’S HOTTEST NEW PUNKBAND,
kind of fame found them in 2017 on
the back of a viral video for the track
Smoko named after Aussie slang for
LOVED BY IGGY POP AND DAVE GROHL. BUT AS GUITARIST
a cigarette break. Thereafter, things
changed. They found famous fans in
JOSH ‘PRICEY’ PRICE ADMITS: “THERE ARE SONGS ONOUR
Iggy Pop and Dave Grohl, and toured
with Queens Of The Stone Age. They
RECORD THAT I DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW TO PLAY!”
have a US tour booked for April, jam non-stop. We’d go over after school on the moon sometimes.” There’s plenty
a European tour in October, and they’re or work and jam all night because we of wide-open space for misadventures,
playing theatres, not clubs. “Everyday were out in the middle of nowhere. and the songs on High Risk Behaviour
it’s like you’re pinching yourself,” says No one could hear us. We could just jam are full of such stories, such as The Clap,
Pricey. “I was washing cars in a car until two in the morning or something, which is a skronky shout-along number
dealership. Eamon was a checkout chick then wake up and go to school or work. about venereal disease, complete with
at Coles. Matt never really had a job.” It was great.” thematically apt hand-claps. Every track
The Chats are a full-time concern, The Sunshine Coast features miles on High Risk Behaviour is written from
but their approach is still DIY. A mate of unspoilt beaches, small towns experience. These grubby stories about
manages them. They formed their own separated by bushland. The heat can the drink, the bongs, the clap… “I just
label. Their sound remains unevolved get the better of you, as can the drink. write about things that actually
from those early days out in the It feels sleepy, but kind of lawless too, happen,” says Pricey. “I dunno, people
boonies, playing in their mate’s shed. as though everyone is left to their own just write shit and I can’t. I have to wait
“He’d have a pool table and a big fridge, devices. “Yeah, totally, it does feel a little for something to happen, something to
ping-pong and darts, a couch, a big bit like that,” says Pricey. “It just feels really piss me off.” Once the story is in
generator,” recalls like we are place, it’s given the same treatment;
Pricey. “We’d set it all simple
up and just used to
sleep on the couches.
Oh, dude, we used to
“Punk is an attitude” arrangements,
fast, loud
and brief.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 37

High risk behaviour

The Chats from left:
Josh ‘Pricey’ Price, Eamon
Sandwith and Matt Boggis

Pricey mostly tracked the album with

a rare solid-body Takamine GX100 electric
that’s shaped like an Explorer, though he
uses a Jazzmaster as well. These will MattWalter
invariably go through a Fender Twin, with
an always-on EHX Soul Food for that
Chuck Berry breakup. “I have the amp on
pretty clean and then I’ll put that on with
a little bit of drive to get that thickness,”
says Pricey. “But not too thick. I still like
that twang.” He cites Berry, Stevie Ray
Vaughan and Angus Young as his heroes,
Photos Jamie Wdziekonski / MattWalter / Kane

and brings 12-bar blues riffs into

The Chats’ arrangements. He’ll also use
a Crowther Audio Hot Cake for solos.
Are guitar solos punk? “I think people
are getting the wrong understanding
of punk,” he says. “Punk is an attitude.
I might say we are a rock band but
everyone calls us punk, and I get it.”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 Let the music
do the talking
Joe Perry, the bad
boy of Boston...

38

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 JOE PERRY

Words Jonny Scaramanga, Richard Bienstock, Chris Bird Photography Olly Curtis, Kevin Nixon Guitars and backing Jonny Scaramanga

ROCK THIS WAY!

GET A GRIP ON THE AEROSMITH MAIN MAN’S STYLE AND
PUT SWAGGER IN YOUR RIFFS AND SWING IN YOUR SOLOS

“I
’m not sure where it Joe’s take on this? “I listen to what Brad’s collections. Alongside the big two brands,
comes from, because playing, and he listens to what I’m playing, Perry’s recently been spotted playing a Guild
we come from two and then we just try and mix it up, right Bladerunner, a Nelson Admiralcaster, an
different places”, down to – especially in the earlier days – Echopark Geisha and a Danelectro 12-string;
Aerosmith’s Brad saying, ‘Who’s gonna play the Strat? Whitford’s played a Charvel Pro Mod SD1,
Whitford related Who’s gonna play the Les Paul?’ That kind a Gretsch G6228 and various other S- and
to TG’s sister mag Guitar Player in 2019. of thing. And when we come up with new T-style guitars. Still, if there’s a formula to
“He’s [Joe Perry] not schooled at all, so it’s riffs and new songs, we each come at it from be had, and if you’re playing with another
totally a “feel” thing for him, whereas I did different angles, and then we settle into our guitarist, you’re best off using one
a lot more studying of the guitar. So you’re thing. I’ve always felt like we have two lead humbucker- and one single coil-equipped
seeing two different approaches, but they players and two different flavours in this guitar. A little light fuzz, and, if it takes your
work really well together. Ultimately, you band, and that’s really important.” fancy, a clean boost are the icing on the cake.
want to have both sides.” What Brad is The division of sonic duties is far from In this lesson, we’re breaking down some
explaining is the intangible secret of the simple, though, and certainly not just of Joe’s trademark techniques before taking
Aerosmith groove machine. Even if you a matter of Strats and Les Pauls. Though a look at his riffing secrets. Our photos show
can play like Perry or Whitford, the band’s Fender and Gibson feature heavily in the you how Joe approaches the basics – and you 39
sound is the sum of two distinct parts. duo’s arsenal, both have extensive guitar can apply these to our musical examples.

Like his hero Keith Richards, Joe Perry’s Joe’s outstanding groove and the way music like you’re too cool to care, you’ll Many Aerosmith songs are played with
guitar approach has been described as the entire Aerosmith machine locks in be well on your way. That means keeping swing, and this funk and soul influence
‘tight yet loose’. To get his parts to sound together. The looseness is about being your wrists loose, and being sure not to is crucial to making the riffs feel right.
right you’ll need to nail both parts of that relaxed. No one ever accused Joe of rush. Even when he’s playing manic solos, Listen carefully to the drummer’s kick
equation. The tightness comes from seeming uptight, and if you approach the Joe doesn’t sound like he’s in a hurry. and hi-hat while you play.

HOLDING HIS PICK ANCHORING HIS PICK HAND HYBRID PICKING

Joe holds his pick between his thumb and the flat pad For more control, Joe often anchors a couple of free From this anchored position, Joe can easily pluck the
of his index finger, with his thumb straight or bent fingers on the body near the bridge pickup. Picking highest strings with his second and third fingers, like
slightly back, approaching the string almost parallel. near the bridge gives bite to his tone. for those open string snaps in Walk This Way.

THUMB OVER THE NECK STRING BENDING WIDE-STRETCH THUMB POSITION

Joe mostly uses the ‘baseball bat grip’ or thumb-over Joe’s fingers don’t move relative to his hand when he Wide stretches on bass strings are impossible with
position preferred by many rock and blues players for bends. The movement comes from a rotation of his a thumb-over grip, so Joe uses this more classical
more controlled bending and vibrato. wrist and forearm. position on his funkiest riffs round the bottom end.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 JOE PERRY

FUNK-ROCK RIFFING TRACK 10

q = 88 q q =q q
.. ..
. . . . . # n n . . # n
.
T . 0
0
0
0 .
B
. 4 5
5
7 5 7 4 5 4
0
2 1 0 4 5
5
7 5 7
.
0 7 3 0 7 4 5 4 5 6 7 3 0

Many of Joe’s riffs pay tribute to funk icons like The Meters and James Brown. This one features Perry’s trademark swung 16th notes and offbeat rhythms – watch out for
the timing in bars 1 and 4. It also uses the classic blues trick of playing both the minor and major 3rd (the 3rd and 4th frets on the sixth string, respectively), giving that dirty
feel. He also uses plenty of pull-offs, helping the ‘tight yet loose’ vibe.

BLUES-ROCK SWING FEEL TRACK 11

3
j
q =123 q q =q q
A5 G5 D5 D6 D7 A5 G5 D7 D6

n .
# .. ..
PM PM
PM PM PM PM PM PM

T . 5
5
3
3
3
3
5
5
3
3
3
3 13 13 ¿¿ 13 ¿¿ 12 .
B
. 0 0
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0 0
4
0
5
0 0
5
0
0 0
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
11
12
11
12
11
12
11
12 .
40

For such a renowned riff writer, Joe plays surprisingly few chords, but our example packs in all his favourites. Bars 1 and 3 feature classic AC/DC-style open powerchords; bar
2 uses rock ’n’ roll ideas a la Chuck Berry and bar 4 uses funk/soul style voicings, hinting at his love of James Brown. The groove is an eighth-note shuffle as heard in Same Old
Song And Dance and Uncle Salty.

LOOSE, SLIPPERY LEAD STYLE TRACK 12

q = 88 q q =q q
n œ ~~~~~~
# ..
~~~~~~~~
T . 12
12
15 14 12

B
. 12 11
14 12
14 13 12 10
14 12 [12 ]

n œ œ .~~~~~~
j
œ
# ..
3

BU
RP
BD
RP
~~~~~~~
T .
¿
14 (15 ) (15 ) (14 ) 12 14 12

B
14 12 14 16 12
11 12 14
12 12
14
14 12
14 .
3

Joe’s lead style has a slippery feel from lots of pull-offs, slides, and string bends. Even his solos are highly rhythmic, so pay attention to the timing, especially in the last two
bars here. A big part of the sound is adding the major 6th to the minor pentatonic scale – in this case it’s C# on the second string, 14th fret. He uses it on its own and as part
of the aggressive doublestops in bar 4.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 COVER FEATURE

Bl s
Words Amit Sharma, John Bishop, Charlie Griffiths

THE NEW

42
EXPLOSION!
In the hands of a new generation of guitarists, the power
of the blues lives on. TG speaks to the leading players in
modern blues about technique, tone, influences and more...
or a genre so deeply more diverse and musically rich, message across in the same way.

F
and tragically which means there’s no shortage Plus it’s very close to the gospel
entrenched in history of sounds and talent to take music I grew up around, going to
– stretching back one inspiration and learn from. church with my mum and dad and
and a half centuries – Right now, when it comes to coming from a musical family.
wkh eoxhv Ľqgv lwvhoi embodying the sheer power of the That’s probably the main reason
lq d ghĽdqwo| uxgh blues – from songwriting to chops why it all made sense to me and
state of health in and attitude – few could rival Eric why I ended up striving to always
53531 Wkh zruog lv d yhu| glļhuhqw Gales. Whether he’s showcasing his play from the heart and soul.
place now, and still far from perfect, Ľhu| jhqlxv wkurxjk eod}lqj shqwdwrqlf ģXowlpdwho|/ |rx kdyh wr Ľqg
though truth be told the potency of sweeps or his playful side courtesy whatever it is that makes you feel
shqwdwrqlf vfdohv/ 450eduv dqg ľdw of some heavily embellished chords, more inspired. Is it the tone or
Ľyhv wr wkh kxpdq hdu kdv qhyhu occasionally sticking to the standards the player or the genre? Inspiration
waned, largely thanks to the musicians and at other times rewriting the can come in many forms – so get
keeping this form of expression alive. rulebook, there’s no denying the rxw wkhuh dqg Ľqg lw Ğ dqg lw
For this month’s special, we wanted Memphis-born virtuoso is the complete will carry you through for
to celebrate the players who have been package. Even beyond the music he’s days, even weeks!”
doing precisely that – whether it be known for, stretching way back into
dedicating their lives to faithful his early childhood, his essence and life FEATURED IN TG’S NEW BLUES SPECIAL
Photo: Andrea Ripamonti / Alamy

recreations of the sounds of the past story is just about as bluesy as it gets... ALL-STAR LESSONS WITH ERIC GALES,
ru#Ľqglqj#qhz#zd|v#wr#uhlqyhqw#d#yhu|# “For me, the blues always felt like JOE BONAMASSA, SAMANTHA FISH AND MORE
classic formula by introducing country, the most deep and meaningful mould ALL THE GEAR YOU NEED
jazz or hip-hop tonalities. As an and style of music,” he tells TG. “I just THE REINVENTION OF GARY CLARK JR.
art form, the blues has never been don’t think other styles can get the THE 20 GREATEST MODERN BLUES RIFFS

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 43

Come a long way

Eric Gales, a blues icon
in the making...

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 COVER FEATURE

"JLCKL1JHiEA
ERIC GALES
If anyone has a chance of stealing
Joe Bonamassa’s crown as the king of
blues, it’s Eric Gales, who JoBo himself called
“One of, if not the best players in the world...”

“I
am quite fond of recipes together. For the extended
runs in fives, for chords, that all came from listening
some reason. to gospel cats, especially keyboard
Though it’s an odd and organ players who use a lot of
number and people passing chords. Those clusters have
might think fours make more sense, it been hugely inspirational to me.
can sound more unique. And actually, I wanted to try and incorporate
if you blend fours and fives, it won’t it into my guitar and somehow it
sound repetitive. I like skipping worked out pretty damn good
between five to four to two to for me. When I’m at home, I try
three and mixing them all up with to go to church every Sunday
no particular pattern. That’s what and listen to more chords... It’s
will make your riff or lick sound a great reference point for me.
44 a bit different. I can’t necessarily I like picking out the modes and
take credit for that – I attribute it embellishments because they
to listening to guys like Frank Marino, sound amazing to me. Ultimately,
Eric Johnson and SRV. Eric Johnson in you can only find out by trying.
particular has a way of doing it that Being afraid to try is not going
really rubbed off onto me. As for other to help you expand. I’ve paid
things I do to sound more unique and attention to different styles,
less predictable, I like to throw some from jazz to country to rock to
less obvious scales and chords into gospel. They all bring different
my arsenal. I can’t say I always 100% nuances to my own playing.
know what mode or scale I’m playing, All of my music comes from
I just know if it sounds good. That’s within… I’ve been through quite
why I leave it up to you guys at a bit of stuff. I play from that
Total Guitar to put a name to it all – vantage point and it gets pretty
like using E Phrygian Dominant over deep. There are never any lies
an A blues! I like mixing different with me. Hopefully it shows!”

EXTENDED CHORD CLUSTERS TRACK 13 WAH WAH FOR FEEL TRACK 14

q = 95
Gadd 9 G Aadd 9 E9 E 13 E 9 Gadd 9 G Aadd 9 E9 E 13 E 9

.~~
A A
.
.~~
j j
... ... # œ œ
j œ
œ
j

.. ..
n . 3 3
. . ~~~ ~~~~
¿¿ ¿¿ BU BU
5 7 7 5
BUBDBU

¿¿ ¿¿ T
5 5 3 7 7 7 5 5 5 7 7 9 7 10 (12) 8 5 8 (10) 8 5 5 5 7 ( 9 ) ( 7 )( 9 )
T 3
4
3
4
3
4
5
6
5
6
5
6
5
6
5
6
5
6
7
8
7
8
7
8
7
8
6

B
5 5 5 7 7 7 7 7 7 6
7
6
7
6
7
6
7 B
3 5 5 5 0 0

Supposedly it’s bad technique, but Eric seems pretty comfy when he frets the Eric describes his Bob Bradshaw-designed Dunlop wah as a Cry Baby-esque
Photo: Anthony May

low E string with his thumb – and it frees up his other fingers to embellish the “nasal ‘Weeeeh’ rather than a darker ‘Waaaargh’”. Make of that what you will,
chords he plays. We’re using a Leslie speaker effect for a cool sounding wobble. suffice to say here we’re using our wah to accentuate the longer notes in the
A chorus pedal set up with a fast rate and medium depth will do a similar job. lick. That means no ‘waka-waka’ wah rhythms – just play by feel, Gales style.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

"JLCKL1JHiEA
CHRISTONE
KINGFISH INGRAM
The extremely young yet equally talented
Mississippi native who’s making a name
for himself by squaring up to the big guns.
Meet your new favourite blues prodigy...

A
s well as contemporary He’s been since spotted promoting COOL SHUFFLE RIFFS TRACK 16
heroes like Gary Clark Jr. the new Vintera series by Fender,
j 3

and Lauryn Hill, there was covering Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ q =120 q q =q q
one lesser-known name credited hit I Put A Spell On You on a Seafoam
as a guest musician in the liner Green Strat. And as far as #
E7 1/4 1/4 1/4
~~~
notes of Eric Gales’ Middle Of The promotional material goes, they
Road album – generally considered
the best blues release of 2017. That
couldn’t have picked a better
rising star to help translate their
œ œn œ œn ~~~
qdph zdv Fkulvwrqh NlqjĽvk legacy to modern players. Hailing T
Ingram, who despite only being 16 from Clarksdale – the birthplace 2 2
1/4
2
1/4
¿¿ 2 ¿¿ 2 2
1/4
2
B 2 2 2 5 2 2 2 5 2
years old at the time of recording of blues heroes like Robert 0 0 3 0 0 3 3

his contributions for the track Help Johnson and Muddy Waters –
A fierce soloist, Christone also knows how to lay down a solid shuffle riff – an
Yourself, played with the conviction he’s a guitarist that looks set to
essential part of the blues. Our classic riff is based around the bottom three
and authority of an old blues carry the traditions of old into notes of an E chord, but it’s the surrounding notes that’ll make it sound authentic.
master, much likes Gales himself. an incredibly bright future. 45

"JLCKL1JHiEA
ANA POPOVIĆ
Serbian-born, American-based blues ace Ana
Popović believes the secret to great blues is
“Trying to stay within the boundaries, while also
pushing the limits to introduce something new...”

“T
hat sounds tricky, pentatonic framework, using all
right?! There are nlqgv ri qrwhv wkurxjk <v/ ľdw <v/
GO BEYOND PENTATONICS TRACK 17 limitations to what 9wkv/ ľdw 9wkv/ pdmru :v1 L pljkw
q =120 you can do because the essence use the altered scale on any 5th
#
C7 9
b ~~ of the blues (I-IV-V and the fkrug1 L Ľqg wkh Ġdssurdfk qrwh
b pentatonic scale) is the tradition. pattern’ in the bebop style or in
And if you alter that too much it the form of a bend or landing
will turn into something else. But on the note can add to sounding

10 11 13 10
~~~~ there’s a lot you can do to sound
more unique. I might switch from
xqfrqyhqwlrqdo dqg xqh{shfwhg1
But most importantly, I never
Photo: Johnny Louis / Stephen J. Cohen/Getty

T 13 11
10 10 8 8
10
xvlqj d sohfwuxp wr Ľqjhuvw|oh wr actually think of the scale when
10
B ‘feel’ the notes a little more and I play. I think of moods and
Ľqg wkh uljkw wh{wxuh1 L pljkw essence of the song and the
The minor pentatonic scale is often found at the core of blues solos. Like many pick up a slide, having learned a lot groove. So my tips would be think
players, Ana adds other notes from outside the scale for extra flavour. With the C from Elmore James, Roy Rogers less and let your inner-self do the
minor pentatonic scale (C Eb F G Bb ) as our foundation, we’re adding D (a 9th
or Johnny Winter. Or, I might wdonlqj lq rughu iru |rx wr Ľqg
interval) and A (6th) notes. Now try it without thinking of the scale, just like Ana!
introduce outside notes into my your own signature guitar style.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 COVER FEATURE

Bulletproof
Samantha’s sound, songs
and style have seen her win
plenty of awards already

"JLCKL1JHiEA
SAMANTHA FISH
Born and raised in Kansas City, Samantha
Fish has become a modern master of all
things Southern and swampy, whisking
us away with her tantalising roots-rock...

“I
really mean it when it becomes ingrained. I’ve actually
I’m saying it... And found there are more right notes than
ultimately that’s wrong notes on the guitar. If you hit
46 the most important a wrong one, bend it into something
aspect of blues. better. I’m kinda obsessed with that
I remember years back, I got into whole North Mississippi sound, but
some serious hand trouble because I also have more modern blues
I was holding my guitar too heroes, too. I think Jack White is one
aggressively and kinda strangling it! hell of a blues player, but he doesn’t
Using a lighter touch didn’t seem get a lot of recognition in the blues
to match the feeling of my music, because he’s considered more
when I’m on stage, I’m feeling really contemporary rock. Everything he
passionate about what I’m doing. So, does is blues and has introduced that
the answer was to find somewhere sound to a new generation. He evolved
in the middle... There’s a balance it which is so important to perpetuate
between emotion and keepin’ the the genre. Same as Dan Auerbach or
fuckin’ thing in tune. The pentatonic Gary Clark Jr. – they’re all just moving
scale is the most important thing to it forwards in new ways. I also love
play rock and blues music. You think Derek Trucks. Nobody sounds like
about it a lot at first but the further him in the world. You just know...
you go, the less you need to, because And that’s what I aspire towards.”

GET A PENTATONIC GROOVE ON TRACK 15

q =100
~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~
j
œ

. ~~~~~ . ~~~~~~~~~
T
7 9 5 5
B 0
7 5
7
5 7 5
7 0
7 5
7
5 7 5
7
Photo: Anthony May

Of course Samantha can hold down a tight groove – the Kansas City blueswoman played drums for two years before ever picking up a guitar! This simple riff uses the E minor
pentatonic scale as a funky foundation to build your riffs on. And it’s a well-used shape, too, so make sure to memorise it!

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

"JLCKL1JHiEA
JOANNE SHAW
TAYLOR
One of the UK’s top contributions to the new
wave of blues players, Joanne Shaw Taylor
insists her playing is an amalgamation of
different styles and genres...

W
est Midlands prodigy but I wouldn’t say that I’m MOTOWN-INSPIRED PHRASING TRACK 18
Joanne Shaw Taylor has pushing boundaries like Jack
q =120
gone from being one of White,” she once admitted.
Db Eb Bb
wkh prvw h{flwlqj eoxhv qhzfrphuv
and lead guitarist in Annie
ģL wklqn Lġp d pl{wxuh ri
lqľxhqfhv1 Lġp qrw
. j
.
j œ
œ
Ohqqr{ġv edqg wr rqh ri wkh predominantly a blues player, but
genre’s most respected players, reylrxvo| wkdwġv d kxjh lqľxhqfh
kdylqj lqnhg d pdmru odeho ghdo on me. There’s the rock and 10 8 8 6 6
iru odvw |hduġv vl{wk doexp Reckless fodvvlf urfn Ğ Iuhh/ Sdxo Nrvvrļ/ T 6 8
10 8 7
5 6 6 8
Heart. That said, she hasn’t Gary Moore, Clapton and all kinds B
forgotten where she came from, ri 93v vwxļ1 Lw jlyhv |rx d qlfh zlgh
vzhdulqj e| khu yhu| Ľuvw hohfwulf area to draw from. As a songwriter,
Joanne admits to a broad range of influences and we're looking at some
(a 1966 Fender Esquire bought on L olvwhq wr d orw ri glļhuhqw vwxļ soul-style sliding shapes here. These can be used both as a way to outline a chord
Denmark Street) above all else. –soul, Prince, Motown. I try to progression (as with the Db and Eb chords in bar 1) or in a more melodic way (bar 2).
“I don’t think I’m a traditionalist, include everything into my style.” Try moving the shapes all round the fretboard. 47

"JLCKL1JHiEA
KING SOLOMON
HICKS
Despite being only 25 years old, King Solomon
Hicks has been active on the New York blues
scene for a decade. Here’s what he’s learned...

“I
’ve had a lot of mentors in history. Practising and listening
in my life. New York to the right records is great but
DESCENDING PHRASING TRACK 19 City and Harlem isn’t there’s nothing like going through
j3
really a big blues town compared your own heartbreak. Being in New
q =125 q q =q q
wr#Fklfdjr#ru#Wh{dv#ru#Phpsklv/#vr# \run/#wkhuhġv#d#orw#ri#md}}#khuh/#dqg#
n ~~
A7

# j j
1/4 ~ a lot of my inspiration came from though I try not to think about the
œ œ listening to records. Thanks to harmonies and chromaticism too
YouTube I’ve spent countless hours much, I guess it still comes out.
3 3
~~~ ~~~
watching the three Kings, as well You can take a lick and descend or
3

8 5 BU 5
1/4 as some modern players who are ascend chromatically, even if it’s
T 10 8 5 8 5
equally amazing, like Eric Gales, not necessarily in key. There
Photo: C Brandon / Jack Vartoogian/Getty

7 8 7 5 7 (9) 5
7
B Joanne Shaw Taylor or Tyler are lots of ways to stretch the
Bryant. I guess the only real way to pentatonic scale out that way to
Before you get into the tough chromatic licks Hicks describes, it's worth learning play the blues is to live it. I know jlyh lw qhz ľdyrxuv/ ehqglqj qrwhv
to navigate some simpler pentatonic ideas - like this descending line. And that’s a funny thing to say - here and there. I also like using my
chromatic notes? Just try adding in one or two notes from outside the lick. Easy!
obviously the original blues guys thumb like Wes Montgomery did
Think also about which combination of fingers makes the lick easier.
went through a much rougher time for a warmer tone with less bite.”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

BLUES
GEAR
BUYERS
GUIDE
Got the blues but not
the rig? Kit yourself
out with our authentic
guide to the best
bluesy gear around

GIBSON LES PAUL STANDARD

50S P90 GOLDTOP
RRP: £1999
While just about any Gibson Les Paul will come
in handy for nailing thicker and meatier blues
tones, this Goldtop oozes some extra vintage
class and flair. And compared to the typical
humbuckers found on most other models,
the P90s are better suited to warmer and
rounder sounds.

FENDER ORIGINAL ’60S

STRATOCASTER
RRP: £1699
That unmistakably glassy and chimey sound of
a Strat has been integral to many a great blues
recording. Finished in 3-Color Sunburst, Shell
Pink or Olympic White and complimented by
a period-correct mint green scratchplate,
the American Original guitars are worthy of
the guitar giant’s game-changing legacy.

GIBSON ES-335
RRP: £2299
Many of the early greats – from Chuck Berry
to BB King – favoured Gibson semi-hollowbody
guitars, which carried a more natural, open
and≈airy resonance compared to the sharper
attack given by solid-bodied instruments.
Then, of course,there’s the fact they simply
look cooler than virtually any other guitar
out there.
 COVER FEATURE

Boss katana
For more than just blues,
FENDER PLAYER TELECASTER but full of great tone
RRP: £599 nonetheless
With more of a mid-range snarl in direct
comparison to the scooped output of a Strat,
the Fender Telecaster has been wielded by all
sorts of players from Muddy Waters and
Jimmy Page to Prince and Joanne Shaw Taylor.
The Player Series from the Ensenada factory
brings a lot on a budget.

TAYLOR 324CE
RRP: £2399
While a lot of Taylor acoustics feature Sitka
Spruce tops, which are usually brighter
sounding, this model pairs a warmer Tropical
Mahogany top with Tasmanian Blackwood for
the back and sides. The result is a high-quality
acoustic with an airy mellowness perfectly
suited to folky blues.

MARTIN 000-15M
STREETMASTER
RRP: £1499
With a gorgeous distressed satin finish and
plenty of warmth from the all-mahogany
body, here’s an acoustic that looks every bit
as vintage as it sounds. Instead of a scooped MARSHALL 1962HW Gibson es-335
EQ curve like more modern acoustics, the BLUESBREAKER A true staple of the blues
(but looks nicest in red)
StreetMaster thrives and drives on mids, Rrp: 1499 49
ideal for the blues hounds among us... Allegedly created so that Eric Clapton could fit
his amp into the boot of his car, the first ever
FENDER ’57 CUSTOM T WIN Marshall combo was affectionately named
RRP: £2799 after the band it was most associated with.
When it comes down to touch dynamics and It soon became one of the most popular amps
sensitivity to bring out all the nuances in your of its era and this hand-wired modern reissue
playing, few amps will be able to compete with recreates those timeless Beano album tones
the response of a valve-powered Fender with minimal fuss.
combo. This hand-wired Fender ’57 Custom
might be on the expensive side, but tonally VICTORY V30 MKII
it’s in a class of its own. RRP: £999
Designed with some expertise from one of
the most respected players to ever pick up
the instrument, Guthrie Govan, this updated
version of The Countess offers two channels,
each with a crunch mode as well as a switch to o
take you back to the original V30. If you want
boutique looks and tones without the
boutique pricetag, look no further...

BOSS KATANA
RRP: £229
With its built-in effects and five unique amp
characters, this modelling amp from Boss
can cover a whole lot more than blues.
But given the quality of its less overdriven
and cleaner modes, which are often where
amps of this ilk fall flat, it definitely tops
the list of budget options.

IBANEZ TS9 TUBE SCREAME R

RRP: £129
Stevie Ray Vaughan is probably responsible

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

50

for more Tube Screamer sales than any other JIM DUNLOP vibe pedal. This update of the
guitar player to ever walk the earth. And rightly FUZZ FACE Vibe Machine
M by Croatian
so – by boosting the mids and adding overdrive RRP: £159 spec
cialists Drybell is
into highly compressed and cranked Fender One of the first pedals of itss pretty much the best
p
combos, he created some of the greatest kind, the original Fuzz Face of its kind, with even
guitar tones in music history. was famously utilised more modes and
m
by early rock pioneers like functionality bundled
BOSS BD-2W BLUES DRIVER Jimi Hendrix and David into a tiny package.
RRP: £135 Gilmour. The secret behind
Smoother and more transparent than a Tube its rich, creamy fuzz was K
KEELEY
Screamer, the Blues Driver is more suited to the Germanium PNP COMPRESSOR
C
players who want a boost in signal and transistor – which, we’re PLLUS
P
overdrive without affecting their overall amp pleased to report, is still fou
un
nd RRRPP: £129
tone. This special edition Waza Craft version on the models produced toda ay. If you
u’re after clean blues
offers all the classic sounds as well as new tones andd don’t have the luxury
options through its Custom mode. JIM DUNLOP of a hand-wire
hand wire
wiredd Fender-style amp,
CRY BABY WAH a compressor pedal may very well end
RRP: £79 up becoming your best friend. This mid-priced
There are many variations of Jim Dunlop’s unit made Robert Keeley – a world-renowned
legendary Cry Baby wah, from mini versions to effects tweaker and builder – is undoubtedly
signature editions with on-board distortion and one of the best on the market.
frequency dials, but the basic GCB95 version –
first manufactured in 1965 – remains a firm XOTIC EP BOOSTER
favourite to this day. Wah sounds don’t RRP: £119
come much more classic than this. While it’s great for an extra push for leads and
solos, the EP Booster is even better at being
DRYBELL VIBE MACHINE MK2 an ‘always-on’ pedal to ramp up richness and
RRP: £285 articulation no matter what you’re plugged into.
If you’re looking to recreate that throbbing It’s voiced after the pre-amp in Echoplex EP-3
modulation conjured by Jimi Hendrix on tape delay once favoured by players as
Machine Gun, or by Robin Trower on early hit esteemed as Neil Young, Brian May and EVH.
Bridge Of Sighs, you’re going to need a good

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 COVER FEATURE

Marshall
bluesbreaker
Can you even think of a
more iconic-looking amp?

51

LINE 6 HX Adaptive Radius Technology as well

STOMP HELIX as a Unique Tension Control system.
RRP: £399
Much like the Boss Katana amps, FENDER STOOL
the Line 6 Helix series stretches RRP: £75
far beyond your basic blues Anyone prone to playing a bit of
crunch yet doesn’t lose sight of guitar in kitchen or garage will
those vintage overdriven sounds undoubtedly want one of these
in its quest across the tonal Fender stools to rest on as they do
spectrum. What you get is an it. The only question is whether to go
entire rig in one relatively small for the classic logo or Custom Shop
floor unit, modelling all kinds of version. Or perhaps both.
classic amps and effects.
MARSHALL MAJOR III
JIM DUNLOP HEADPHONES
DEREK TRUCKS RRP: £69
SIGNATURE SLIDE Since launching their first headphone range in
RRP: £20 2010, the Marshall logo has been seen almost
If you’re going to pick up a slide, it might as well everywhere and on everyone – from guitar
be the one used by the man generally nerds to just about anyone that wants to enjoy
considered to the best in the world. The closed music on the move. The Ma ystal
y
weighted end of this medicine bottle-sttyle slide clarity and great value for money, costing only
ensures a slick and balanced playability. half the price of its Bluetooth-enabled bigger
brother.
G7TH PERFORMANCE
3 CAPO
RRP: £39.99
A capo can turn your acoustic or electric
c into
a whole new instrument. Since launching g in
2004, G7th have been behind some of the
most popular models and the new
Performance 3 version offers their

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 COVER FEATURE

"JLCKL1JHiEA
JOE
BONAMASSA
The New York blues master has spent his
life paying dues to the originals who inspired
him, even as he gradually transitions into
becoming one of the genre’s elder statesmen...

W
here would playbook and we’re all still using
the blues be those same licks now. But they
without Joe were inventions back then.
Bonamassa? Just look at how BB was able
It’s hard to to identify himself with one note!
say, but there’s no denying the There are those early live
42-year-old virtuoso has dedicated recordings from the early 60s
his life to the cause, starting out – Live At The Regal, Blues Is King
52 as a young prodigy mentored by – that reverb-drenched stereo
the likes of BB King and Danny Gibson sound. That was the
Gatton to eventually becoming archetype for electric blues for me.
the blues giant we know today. Coupled with the material and his
Responsible for some of the most singing, it was a tour de force.
jaw-dropping techniques and And so powerful. Albert was
tones in the entire history of the a soul singer and had about
genre, it’s JoBo’s attention to detail ten distinguishing riffs. But he
that has ultimately paved his way was able to use them in such
to global domination. That said, a devastating way... You always
he’d be the first to tell you he know when it’s Albert King. And
wouldn’t have gotten here then Freddie was the scorpion, he
without his heroes… would tear your face off with treble
“Albert, Freddie and BB were the and play with bad intentions, you
archetypes for modern electric know? They don’t call them the
blues,” he tells us. “They wrote the three kings for nothing!”

JOBO’S TRICK: SLOW THEN FAST TRACK 20

3
j
q =120 q q =q q

n
E G A
~~C
#

~~~
T 15 12
14 12
12 10
12 9 12 9
14 12 12 9 12 9
B 12 10

Few guitarists have revved up the blues more than Joe in recent years, and this
Photo: Anthony May

lick is pure Bonamassa gold. The notes are pentatonic scale-based but it’s all
about the rhythm. Switching between swung eighth notes and 16ths is the trick,
giving a sense of accelerating then pulling back. Try it with any pentatonic scale.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

"JLCKL1JHiEA
DEREK TRUCKS
Derek Trucks might just be the king of modern
slide guitar, a player who has channelled the
spirit and technique of his hero Duane Allman
into something distinctly his own...

C
onsidered by many to be the semitone divisions across the
the greatest slide player fretboard. “There’s no distinction
alive right now, it should between one note and the next:
come as no surprise that Derek |rxġuh khdulqj hyhu| lqľhfwlrq lq VOCAL-LIKE SLIDE PHRASING TRACK 21
Truck’s earliest musical memory between,” he once noted, while q = 60

was hearing Duane Allman on also admitting picking up a slide Am

~~ F G

Wkh Doopdq Eurwkhuv Ľuvw olyh

album At Fillmore East, as well as
came with its own unique
challenges. “I think it’s a lot harder
.~~~~
the slide pioneer’s contributions to bullshit people as a slide player,
on Layla And Other Assorted Love as opposed to straight playing,
Songs by Derek And The Dominos. because it’s so raw and honest. ~~~~ ~~~~~
There was something about the Y’know, you can sit in a room, T 13 17 15 17 15 13 15 13 10 13 12

power of a slide guitar, he once practise all day, learn your scales
B
told this magazine, and its ability dqg eod}h eoxhv ulļv= lwġv hdv| wr
to emulate the human voice. hide behind that. But I think with A slide master, Derek truly brings his own unique vocal phrasing to the guitar. Now
A big part of that came down to the slide, it’s a little bit tougher. that's bullshit-free! Here we concentrate our efforts up and down one string
the microtones available to slide And I’ve certainly heard people – slide guitar in a microcosm, if you like. The flurry of notes is typical Trucks fare.
players – those notes in between play that are bullshitting!” Try also pressing down so your slide ‘frets’ like your fingers.
53

"JLCKL1JHiEA
DAN PATLANSKY
Few can rival South African singer-songwriter
ace Dan Patlansky when it comes to that
angrier, SRV-inspired Texan-style blues…

“T
hrough my teen years doing, and even faster guys like
all I listened to was Yngwie Malmsteen, and the one
SRV. I wanted to thing they in common was a very
sound like him, dress like him, loose picking hand. SRV looks like
I wanted to be him. And I don’t he’s hacking the guitar in half, but
regret that phase at all, it became if you focus in on what his right
SRV-INSPIRED LICK TRACK 22 the foundation of my playing, hand was actually doing, it was
q.= 92 a more aggressive and relentless relaxed. For years, I battled to get
C9 F9 take on the blues. I noticed after my speed and tone up to scratch.
bœ
j b a while that the faster I played, the In photos I would notice my right
œ
j
œ
j b .
. ‰ more my picking hand would start kdqg orrnlqj dv vwlļ dv d erdug1
locking up. It’s a natural human That was my lightbulb moment.
4:3 4:3

8 10 9 8 11 8
~~ 10 8 8
reaction because your brain is
telling you that you are doing
I got into hybrid picking – using
d pl{ ri slfn dqg plggoh Ľqjhu
BU
T 8
10(12 )
11 8 11 8 11 8
10 11 10 8
10 8
10 9 8 8 something intense. As soon as for the faster runs. It’s almost like
Photo: Keith Griner /Getty Olly Curtis

B your picking hand starts locking having two picks instead of one!
xs/ doo ľxlglw| jrhv rxw ri wkh How I learned the technique was
The legendary Stevie Ray Vaughan was a huge influence to masses of new window. You won’t have that arpeggiating basic chords with
players looking to add fire and flair to their playing – Dan Patlansky in particular. qdwxudo ľrz1 Wkdqnixoo|/ wkhuh duh hybrid picking, it really woke
This lick channels both players, taking a minor pentatonic framework and adding
ghĽqlwho| vkruwfxwv wkdw pdnh lw up my right hand and made
more colour with notes from outside the scale.
easier. I looked into what SRV was it so much more natural.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 "JLCKL1JHiEA
CHRIS BUCK
Once described as a “f*cking awesome guitarist”
by Guns N’ Roses legend Slash – who might know
a thing or two about the blues – Newport’s Chris
Buck is one of the rising stars of the genre...

“T
he big turning point totally the opposite to a lot of
for me was seeing how players, who prefer minor, but
Hendrix approached I wouldn’t say that I ever really
playing rhythm; until that made a point of practising one
moment, rhythm and lead more than the other. In hindsight,
DEVELOPING TOUCH AND FEEL TRACK 23 had been two distinctly separate I used to put great emphasis on
q = 60 art forms. Obviously its lineage learning and understanding
Am F G goes back further to the likes of a song’s melody as much I did as
j j its chord progression. Not just
bœ œ
bœ
j
n bœ
j
n Fxuwlv Pd|Ľhog/ exw vhhlqj krz
hļruwohvvo| Khqgul{ lqwhuwzlqhg the notes themselves but the
melody and harmony was lqľhfwlrq zlwk zklfk wkh| zhuh
3 3 3 revolutionary. Any combination of delivered. Whether it’s Nat King
BU BD BU BD the two that I work into my playing Cole or Paul Rodgers, there’s
10 12 11 10 15 12 10
T 10 13 13 10 15 13 15(17 )(15 )(17 )[ 17 ](15 )13 11 12 13 11 12
14 12
undoubtedly has its roots in those something to be gleaned from
14 12 early days of emulating Jimi. For any great vocalist; the way they
B
me, the major pentatonic scale is dssurdfk qrwhv/ li wkh| idoo rļ
Playing fingerstyle certainly isn’t new, but it offers a level of touch and feel that’ll lqĽqlwho| wkh prvw pxvlfdo Ğ L Ľqg them laconically or make a show
54 really help you discover your own identity on the instrument. The tab here in our it easier to be lyrical and expressive of it, their vibrato, the dynamic of
Buck-inspired example may look scary but it’s a slow ballad, so it’s slow enough in that context. I know that’s one line or word versus another...”
not to be too challenging. Played with a pick, you’d get a more forceful and less
personal delivery.

"JLCKL1JHiEA
JONNY LANG
The American gospel singer/guitarist pays
tribute to the man he describes as the
greatest living blues legend...

I
t speaks volumes that in he recently noted. “But I guess
the list of guest performers for me Buddy Guy is the big one,
involved with Mick he’s probably the guy when it FUNKY RIFFING TRACK 24
Fleetwood’s Peter Green tribute comes to the proper legends.
q = 85
night at the London Palladium I remember seeing him play at
.. .. . . ..
D9
in February – dotted in amongst an some point very early on in my #
all-star cast including luminaries career, just watching him go
such as David Gilmour, John Mayall crazy on stage. He wasn’t
and Billy F. Gibbons – the only thinking about it at all. That’s

5 7 ¿¿5 7 ¿¿ 5 7
9 10 10 10
Photo: Stephen J. Cohen/Getty Olly Curtis

‘younger’ name belonged to Jonny what made me realise it’s okay T 9 10 10 10

8 9 9 9 5 7
Lang. The North Dakotan gospel to be reckless when you play 7 5 3
urfnhu#grļv#klv#fds#wr#pdq|#ri#wkh# pxvlf1#Wkdwġv#shuihfwo|#Ľqh1#
B 5

old blues legends, though perhaps It can actually help push you into
The autowah effect adds a funky edge and sounds great for riffs and quirky lead
one more than any other… d#glļhuhqw#sodfh#dqg#Ľqg#qhz#
work. Sliding into chords from a semitone below is a tried and tested funk trick,
“There are so many legendary ideas. Buddy is the master of and here we are using a cool sounding fingering for the D9 chord.
blues musicians still alive,” that... The guy is amazing!”

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

"JLCKL1JHiEA
ERJA LYYTINEN
If Carlos Santana describes you as “the future”
of guitar music, chances are you’re going to be
well versed in the blues. Here Finland’s Erja
Lyytinen explains the secrets to her style…

“T
he secret to playing starting from a quiet, easy-going
great blues is emotion. conversation, and letting it grow
You have to be true to little by little, until the ‘words’
BIG BLUESY BENDS TRACK 25
what you play. It’s good to know pour out fast and loud. I also like
the tradition and the roots, of to use a lot of bends and I like to q = 80

course, but I like to mix the old explore with rhythmical ideas, B5 A5 E/G # A5
~~~
.
j . œ
j
~~
blues with modern sounds. I use
pedals to create interesting worlds.
sometimes repeating the same
pattern to create tension. I’ve # œ
j
œ
j ~~ œ

Blues can be played fast, slow, always loved Albert King’s

3

BU ~~~
seriously or humorously. There are overbends and experimenting
so many ways to express yourself. with those sorts of sounds – like 7
~~~ BU
10 (12 )
BU BD
12 (14 ) (12 )10
~~~
T 10 (12 ) 10 7 BU 12
Theoretically the blue note is bending a whole step up, then 9 (11) 9 7
considered to be essential in blues come down slightly a microtone, B
music. It is a note somewhere jr edfn xs wr wkh Ľuvw qrwh dqg
between minor and major repeat that a few times! It’s a great Some things never change. Since the dawn of electric guitar-based blues, string
third that gives this longing, exercise and once you’ve mastered bends have been a staple soloing technique – and Erja has a full arsenal of chops.
melancholic sound. When playing it, it can make the world of Here in our Lyytinen-style, lick you can hear how bending gradually higher up the
fretboard builds the excitement
a blues solo, I try to tell a story, glļhuhqfh wr |rxu vrxqg1Ĥ 55

"JLCKL1JHiEA
KENNY WAYNE
SHEPHERD
Self-taught Louisiana blues maestro Kenny
Wayne Shepherd has become one of the
genre’s modern heroes, and deservedly so…

“M
usic is not where instinct comes in, knowing
something you when to build it all up and bring it
can fake. You have back down. Even something as
to tap into your heart and soul, simple as a slide across the strings,
BITING LEAD SOUNDS TRACK 26 displaying that through your with no actual notes played, can be
q =130 instrument and then following powerful. It’s more like a sound

n .~~
Am your own instincts and intuitions. hļhfw#dqg#fdph#iurp#Doehuw#Nlqj/#
j j j j
b j
3
œ œ œ œ 3
#œ I certainly feel like there are a lot I think. I don’t know what inspired
œ #œ
of players out there that have him to do it but it sounds almost
a deeper vocabulary than I do, like a jet engine going over you. It’s
3

~~~~ especially in other genres. such a simple trick that can add so
Photo: C Brandon/Getty Aija Lehtonen/Shutterstock

BU BU BD BU BU BU
10 (12 ) 10 (12 )(10 ) 8 10 (12 ) 10 (12) 9 (10) 8 But I work hard on crafting an much excitement and energy
T 10 (11 ) 9 (10) 10
emotional experience through my to a song. Then, there are other
B solos. In each song, I’m trying to Albert King-style ideas like pulling
frqyh|#d#glļhuhqw#hprwlrqdo#vwru|# up on one string and catching
Kenny’s influences run deep, from SRV-style aggressive lead to earlier Chicago – even if the licks are similar from another for the bend down. To be
blues influences. Here, we’re looking at the more traditional end of the spectrum one song to the next, it’s how honest, whenever you need the
and a technique also used by greats like Albert King and Gary Moore – the
they’re woven together that tells ultimate go-to licks for when all
two-string bend. The trick is getting the interval just right so it really bites.
wkh#vwru|#lq#d#glļhuhqw#zd|1#Wkdwġv# else fails, think like Albert King!”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 THE REINVENTION OF
GARY CLARK JR.
How the modern blues trailblazer has defied convention
and broken the mould in order to find himself, pushing
the genre in new directions along the way…

I
t would be fair to say zklwh#fxowxuh1#L#grqġw#zdqw#wr#wxuq#
singer/guitarist and this into a race thing, but it got real
multiple Grammy for me, as far as understanding
winner Gary Clark Jr. where things came from in terms of
has a complicated the evolution of guitar playing – it
relationship with the vwduwlqj#rļ#dv#dq#dffrpsdq|lqj#
blues. On one hand, instrument and ending up out front
he learned virtually everything he thanks to Chuck Berry and Jimi
knows about music from growing up Hendrix. They’re the guys who
in Austin, Texas – starting with his vwduwhg#wklv#zkroh#wklqj1#Lw#zdv#dq#
experiences at the local Baptist eye-opener for me, a place where
church where he backed the choir L#jrw#p|#hgxfdwlrq/#pruh#vr#wkdq#
and later at Antone’s, the club in L#glg#iurp#jrlqj#wr#judgh#vfkrro1#
which Stevie Ray Vaughan and his Not to discredit school, it’s
56 elder brother Jimmie had famously important for kids to stay in school!
cut their teeth some decades prior. But for me, it was a great learning
These early years were pivotal in h{shulhqfh#wkdw#vkdshg#zkr#L#dp#
moulding Clark as one of the most wrgd|1#Lġp#yhu|#judwhixo#iru#lw1Ĥ
commercially successful, critically Fast forward a few years to the
revered and musically diverse guitar writing sessions for latest album
heroes of the modern age – a man MablyEZg], however, and the notion
who’s played with everyone from BB of being any kind of modern blues
Nlqj#dqg#Mhļ#Ehfn#wr#Dolfld#Nh|v#dqg# saviour was not sitting well with him
Foo Fighters and comfortably held at all. Clark felt stuck creatively
his own... and typecast as a one-trick
ģWkh#Ľuvw#wlph#L#zdonhg#lqwr# srq|/#xqdeoh#wr#vkdnh#rļ#
Antone’s was kinda mind-blowing,” the feeling that he was
he told this writer around the release stagnating in a genre that’s
of his 2015 album, The Story of Sonny often too guilty of sticking to
Boy Slim1#ģLw#zdv#vrphwklqj#L#grqġw# tried-and-test formulas.
really know how to describe, there He’d won all kinds of awards,
was this feeling that brought depth gotten his major label deal,
wr#p|#olih1#Folļrug#Dqwrqh#^qrz# played at the White House for
deceased] took me in and brought former President Barack Obama
me under his wing. He introduced and received a letter from Eric
me to Jimmie Vaughan, Hubert Clapton with an unforgettably
Sumlin, Calvin ‘Fuzz’ Jones, Pinetop powerful admission. “Thank
Perkins – all these greats that played you,” Clapton wrote. “You make
with Muddy Waters or Howlin’ Wolf. me want to play again”.
ģL#ohduqhg#d#orw#derxw#klvwru|#dqg# Exw#lw#mxvw#zdvqġw#hqrxjk1#Lq#rughu#
a lot about myself as a black man in to move forward,

“REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE,

BUT PUSH THE LIMITS AND
Photo Rob Monk

SEE HOW FAR YOU CAN GO”

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2019
 COVER FEATURE

RETRO BUT CONTEMPORARY TRACK 27 CLARK’S BLUES TRACK 28

~~~~~œj ~~ œj ~~
q = 90
Am 1/4
j
Am
~~~~ œ
j ~~~~~ nœ
j
œ
.. . .
. . ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~ ~~~
1/4

T 5 [5 ] T 7 (9)
5
9
7
(11)
8
10 (12 )
10
12 (14 )
13
16 (17)
5 [5 ]
7 5 7 7 5 7 5 BU BU BU BU BU
B 7 5 3 7 B
5 5 5

Fuzz and spring reverb fuel Gary’s retro-yet-contemporary vibe and we’re looking Gary’s soloing is very much about his feel for dynamics and how effects like fuzz
at a simple minor pentatonic riff here. Gary’s fretting is more nuanced than you distortion and octavers affect his tone. These clashing unison bends are typical
might notice on a first listen, so pay attention to small details like the short, of his style, and if you add a little finger vibrato to the third string you’ll create a
clipped feel of staccato playing and the bluesy-sounding quarter-tone bends. bluesy dissonance.

Rqh#ri#wkh#vrqjv#L#uhdoo|#oryhg# 57
as a kid, especially because of the
guitar, was Pbma:<abe]ƅlA^Zkm, from
rqh#ri#Plfkdho#Mdfnvrqġv#Ľuvw#vror#
albums. The guitar tone was really
beautiful, with loads of subtle
hammer-ons over these gorgeous
fkrug#fkdqjhv1#L#uhphpehu#wklqnlqj#
wr#p|vhoi/#ĠZrdk/#L#zdqw#wr#sod|#
Gary Clark Jr. had to rethink, guitar one day and sound like that.’”
re-evaluate and reinvent himself As fate would have it, the young
– and ultimately draw on his soul, Texan’s hopes and dreams would
ixqn#dqg#kls0krs#lqľxhqfhv# eventually become reality, and –
more than ever before... having just announced a 35-date
“The whole soul thing came from North American tour as special guest
my parents,” he explained in a later to indie rock heavyweights The Black
interview with this writer. “My dad Keys – he stands today not only as
was like a soul brother and kinda one of the most important crossover
funky. There are pictures of him artists to embrace and embody the
with a big-ass fro and the bell- blues, but also the musician best
bottoms, and my mother was pretty poised to propel it to new heights.
righteous. They grew up in the era “You do things musically by
where it was all afros, shiny suits reaching back and pulling from the
and disco lights. Bands like foundation to push it all forward,”
The Temptations, The Spinners, he explains to TG. “That’s how
Parliament, Maze, Al Green, Marvin L#dp#lq#olih#dqg#krz#L#dp#dv#
Gaye and The Jackson Five – all their d#shuvrq1#L#juhz#xs#lq#d#krxvh#
classic records were playing in my zkhuh#L#zdv#wdxjkw#wr#uhvshfw#
krxvh#zkloh#L#zdv#jurzlqj#xs111 your elders and where you
ģL#uhphpehu#vhhlqj#Wlwr#Mdfnvrq# come from – remember
with the 335 and long hair and who you are – but also to
thinking he was pretty cool. Also look forward. Encourage
Fxuwlv#Pd|Ľhog#Ğ#pdq/#wkrvh#wrqhv# yourself to push the limits
rang out and resonated with me. and see how far you can go...”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 0
/T O O O
S
EO
LY G S E
G3 T N
S D

ID
LE V I

3 0O
V
T.
BI

T
ES
RIFFS
Blues bangers
from today’s
58 modern maestros.
Plus, learn with
TG’s slowed
down videos!

Ain’t Messin ’round

Evoking Hendrix and
Zeppelin, Gary Clark Jr.
is a master of the
blues-rock riff

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 COVER FEATURE

O1 JEFF BECK
HAMMERHEAD
Master of reinvention and arguably the most
05 BILLY F. GIBBONS
MISSIN’ YO’ KISSIN’
“There’s a secret language to the blues, you
dependably brilliant guitarist to walk the earth, need to say it without saying it,” the ZZ Top
Jeff Beck won his last Grammy in 2011 thanks singer/guitarist told TG around the release of
to this absolute gem of a riff. It’s built off the his second solo album. Its opening track does
D Mixolydian scale, sticking to the minor exactly that, making use of the classic boogie
pentatonic notes from the same key shuffle Billy built his career on
save for the addition of a major 3rd.

02 JOE BONAMASSA
DIRT IN MY POCKET
The fourth track from 2007 fan-favourite
of his own”. This track from his Over Your Head
album reworks familiar E minor pentatonic
notes into an unusual swing.
Sloe Gin could very well be JoBo at his heaviest,
making full use of an open-E tuning, a slide
and a fair amount of overdrive. The usage of 10 ERJA LY YTINEN
SNAKE IN THE GRASS

O
DE
a major 6th in addition to the 2nds, 3rds and Finish singer/guitarist Erja Lyytinen’s

VI
minor 7ths found in the riff is what gives it opening riff to Snake In The Grass doesn’t
a Dorian flavour.
O6 GARY CLARK JR.
WHAT ABOUT US
Section: Intro/Verse
feel especially remarkable – at least until you
get to its final bar, where she climbs back down
the C blues scale in a way guaranteed to turn
Appears at: 0:17-0:40 heads and raise eyebrows. It’s a great
Original tempo: 80bpm example of using time divisions to
Key: F minor catch listeners off-guard.

This riff starts with some Hendrix-style

chord fragments which you can play with 11 ROBIN TROWER
TRUTH OR LIES
O

On his 1974 hit Bridge Of Sighs, Robin Trower

DE

a barre at the 5th fret and your remaining

VI

fingers to add the chord changes. Gary popularised the sound of a Fender Strat going

O3 RICHIE KOTZEN
PEACE SIGN
Section: Intro/Verse
lets the notes ring together and creates
a nice dissonance between these close
intervals. The second half of the riff is
through a vibe pedal. All these years later,
on tracks like this, his recipe for gripping,
psychedelic blues is clearly one that still works.
59

Appears at: 0:00-0:16 more of a Led Zep-style rock riff with the
Original tempo: 123bpm F root note played with palm mutes and
Key: B minor even downstrokes, and the A b and B b
powerchords on the middle two strings.
Richie plays this riff using the first and
second positions of the B minor
pentatonic scale. The doublestops on the
second and third strings borrow from the 07 GARY MOORE
UMBRELLA MAN BLUES

O
DE
Dorian mode, too. Richie tends to play the This track from what would be Gary Moore’s

VI
notes on the sixth string with his thumb, final solo album cheekily nods to his Thin Lizzy
so the opening octave shapes are played
by the thumb and third finger. This riff is
made up of a lot of parts and techniques
years and is built off the A-minor pentatonic
scale. Nine years on from his passing, the
Belfast blues hero’s influence is felt in
12 JOANNE SHAW TAYLOR
WHO DO YOU LOVE
Section: Intro/Verse
from string skips to slides to vibrato to every corner of the world. Appears at: 0:00-0:19
bluesy bends so break this one down into Original tempo: 105bpm
chunks to help memorise it more easily.
Although we’ve played the riff with a pick,
you can also play the riff fingerstyle as
08 LARKIN POE
BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS
Led by sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell,
Key: Bb minor

This riff is based in the first position of

Richie does! Larkin Poe have become one of the most the B b minor pentatonic scale and
exciting names to emerge in blues over recent primarily uses the middle two strings. The
years. On Blue Ridge Mountains, Rebecca holds first phrase is a pull-off from the 8th fret

04 THE DEREK
TRUCKS BAND
CROW JANE
the chords and sings while Megan matches
her melodies on lapsteel.
to the 6th on the fourth string, then
moves down to the 8th fret on the fifth
string. There is a muted note which acts
On this track, Derek gets some extra mileage
09 JOSH SMITH
FIRST HAND LOOK
as a punctuation mark in the rhythm –
Photos: Rob Monk Nur Photo/Getty

out of his 7th chords, switching between keep your fingers resting lightly on the
playing bass/root note rhythms with his (AT DOWN AND OUT) strings without pressing down and pick
thumb and spelling out dominant chords “Josh is one of my favourite musicians on the as normal. At the end of the riff, slide up to
with his fingers. It would make a great planet,” Joe Bonamassa once stated, praising 13th fret on the third string. Add some
exercise to practice your fingerstyle blues. the American singer/guitarist’s ability to vibrato on the longer notes for blues ‘feel’.
“transcend the boundaries of blues into a genre

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 COVER FEATURE

O
DE
13 ERIC VI
GALES
I’VE BEEN DECEIVED
Section: Verse
Appears at: 0:22-0:46
Original tempo: 82bpm
Key: C minor (original key C# minor)

Eric’s guitar is tuned to drop C#, but we’ve

recorded the video in drop D, so you can
simply tune your sixth string down a tone
rather than retuning your whole guitar.
– particularly 2003’s Sapphire Blues and its
2006 follow-up Fire Wire – are the mark of
a man with impeccable taste. The up-tempo
20 JOHN
NEON
MAYER
Despite reinventing himself as more of
The riff starts with an open powerchord grooves of Inkblot 11 are reminiscent of a bluesman as the years have gone on, it’s
on the lowest two strings, followed by Stevie Ray Vaughan at his funkiest. this riff from John Mayer’s breakthrough debut
a melody on frets 5, 3 and 7 of the fourth album Room For Squares that showcases him
string. Eric’s playing is very lyrical and
emotive, so the best way to learn this
phrase is to think of the words he sings
18 CLUTCH
THE REGULATOR
Though Clutch are better known for their
at his best – breathing life into simpl cho
with complex fingerst .

‘how does it feel’ and place each note on heavier, electric guitar-driven pentatonicc riffs,
riffs
the syllables. The riff repeats four times, The Regulator saw guitarist Tim ult o e
with a variation the third time. more of a swamp-st s on a drop -D
60 acoustic. It clusion on hit American
show The W lking Dea helped the band

14 BLUES PILLS
YOU GOTTA TRY
There has no shortage of young bands trying
reach new audience

to emulate the vintage sounds of the past in

recent years, but few have pulled it off with the
conviction and authenticity of Sweden’s Blues
Pills. This 60s-style G minor jam off their
second album is one of their finest.

15 ERIC CLAPTON
O
DE

SPIRAL
VI

This ballad from one of Slowhand’s more recent

studio albums uses dominant doublestops
against an A root note to great effect. It’s an
19 TYLER RYAN
ON TO TTHE NEX
Section: Intro/Vers
old trick – similar usage of intervallic pairs, Appears at: 0:00-0:13
usually 3rds or 6ths, stretches throughout Original tempo: 83bp
his entire discography – but it sure works. Key: F# minor (origina key F minor)

16 BUDDY GUY
WHAT’S UP WITH
THAT WOMAN
Tyler tunes his guitar d n to E , but
we’ve shown the riff in andard E t ing
so you don't have to ret e. This riff ses
As one of the elder statesmen of the genre 1st position of the F# mi or pentato c
– now fast approaching his 84th birthday – scale with first finger at t 2nd fret. The
Buddy Guy shows no signs of tiring from what first phrase is played as a ck-up bar
he does best. This track from 2003’s Rhythm leading into bar 1. Use your third finge
er to
& Blues swings hard in A minor and makes bend the third string, then e your f st
Photo: Scott Legato/Getty Rob Monk

good use of that all-important b 5th. and third fingers to comple the ph se.
The rest of the riff is played ith str ht

17 LARRY CARLTON
INKBLOT 11
Though he’s generally considered more of
16th notes on the sixth strin using
2nd and 5th frets and an ope string. Play
with even, alternate picking th ougho
a jazz musician, Larry Carlton’s blues albums

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K

62

SANTANA
SMOOTH
Jam along with Santana’s 1999 summer
hit and master the Latin-rock legend’s
long, masterful solo

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K

T
aken from Supernatural, the
multi-platinum selling album that
won over a whole new generation
GET THE SOUND
of fans for the irrepressible guitar
hero, Smooth was a huge hit for Everything you need to know before playing ‘Smooth’
Santana back in the summer of
arlos’ tone has been the
1999. In a clever move to reboot Santana’s
career, the album featured collaborations with
prominent artists of the day, and this track
Get the tone
5
CHANNEL OVERDRIVE
5
C stuff of legend since the
earliest days of his career.
He was one of the first players to
6 switch to Mesa/Boogie amps in
showcases Matchbox Twenty vocalist Rob
the early 70s, and still uses his
Thomas (who co-wrote the song with 8 3 original MkI combo. On Smooth,
producer Itaal Shur). he played his own signature PRS
Wkh vrqj lv hļhfwlyho| rqh orqj jxlwdu vror> Santana II guitar. Opt for an
GAIN BASS MID TREBLE REVERB overdrive channel on your amp
there are no rhythm parts, just plenty of cool
with plenty of gain dialled in to get
licks to learn! Santana has never allowed that famous singing sustain. Roll
himself to be boxed in by the minor Select a neck position
off some of your guitar’s volume
humbucker pickup
pentatonic scale, and this song is no in the verse and chorus for
and roll off a little of
a cleaner tone, then turn up
h{fhswlrq1 \rxġoo Ľqg sohqw| ri h{dpsohv ri the tone for that
again for the intro/interlude/
how to use the A ‘natural’ minor scale, and signature Santana
solos. Santana also varies his pick
the A harmonic minor scale. But don’t worry, sound
attack to create greater levels of
wklv lv qr ixvlrq Ġvkuhg rļġ Ğ Vdqwdqdġv vw|oh expression and dynamics, so
don’t be afraid to experiment!
lv lqfuhgleo| pxvlfdo> klv lghdv dozd|v
beautifully phrased. Hopefully this track will
inspire you to think more outside of the
(pentatonic) box, too!

CHORDS SCALES
T S
he chord boxes are purely optional for this track because Santana only antana uses the A natural minor (A B C D E F G) and 63
plays lead on it! There’s no rhythm guitar either, but who wouldn’t want harmonic minor (A B C D E F G#) scales throughout.
to try a few strums over that intoxicating Latin groove? Either add some The latter is key to that exotic Latin vibe. The major
rhythm to the full mix or try your own unplugged version. :wk#J&#qrwh#lq#wklv#vfdoh#pdnhv#lw#ĠĽwġ#zlwk#wkh H: fkrugv
(E G# B D) perfectly. These shapes will help you navigate
your way around the fretboard. Try them out before you
X O O O O O X X O
tackle the solos in Smooth.
1 1 1 1 1 1

2 3 2 2 2

3 4 4 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
4 7 12
1 1 1 2 1 1 2 2 2 2

2 3 3 3 3 3
Am F E7 Dm 3 3 3 4 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
X X O X X X O O X O O 4 4 4 4
1 A natural minor A natural minor A natural minor
scale (shape 1) scale (shape 2) scale (shape 4)
2 1 2 1 1

3 4 3 4 3 4 2 3 4

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
4 7 12
1 1 2 1 2 2 2 2 2
Dm/C Bm7b5 G/B G/B 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3
X X 3 3 3 4 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Guitars and backing: Phil Capone Photo: Getty Images

4 4 4 4

1 1 1 1 1 A harmonic minor A harmonic minor A natural minor

scale (shape 1) scale (shape 2) scale (shape 4)

3 4 3 3
4

F#7sus4 Bsus4

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K
SMOOTH
Words by Rob Thomas

SANTANA Music by Rob Thomas and Itaal Shur

Copyright © 1999 EMI April Music Inc., EMI Blackwood Music Inc.,
U Rule Music and Itaal Shur Music
All Rights on behalf of EMI April Music Inc., EMI Blackwood Music Inc. and U Rule

SMOOTH Music Administered by Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC,

424 Church Street, Suite 1200, Nashville, TN 37219
All Rights on behalf of Itaal Shur Music Administered by Downtown DMP Songs
International Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved

SANTANA SMOOTH Intro solo

q =118
E7
Am
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F
. j
. œ

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BU BD
T 12 14 13 14
12 12 (13 ) (12 )
14
12
12 14 14
B
1

Am
~~~ ~~~~~~~~~F E7 Am F

. . ~~~~~~~~~~
œ
j
œ
j
œ
j . œ
j
.
3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ RP
~~~~~~~~~~~~
BU BD BU BD BU BD
T 13
14 14 [14 ] 7 ( 9) ( 7 )( 9 ) ( 7 )( 9 )
8
[ 9 ]( 7 ) 5

B
3

E7
~~~~~~~Am~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F E 7

64 œ
j
.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T 7 5 4
7 6 7 7 9 7
B
6

The first four bars should be played in 12th position using shape four of the natural minor and harmonic minor scales. Shift down to 5th position in bar 4 for the tone bend
on the third string. In bar 6, the lick is played mainly along the fourth string – use your third finger for the slide.

SANTANA SMOOTH Verse 1

Am F
.
E7
. . . . ~~~~
6 . .
3
0:19
~~~~~
T 12 13 12 15 13 12
14 13
12
13 14
10 12 14
B 12
10 12
1

~Am F E7 Am F
œ
j
œ
j . E7
~~~~~

~~ BU BU BU ~~~~~~
T 15 (17) 15 (17) 13 15 [15 ] (17)

B
4

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 SANTANA / SMOOTH

SANTANA SMOOTH Verse 1 (cont’d)

b
Dm Dm/C Bm7 5 E7 Am F
.
E7
. ~~~~
œ
j . œ
j
œ
j

BU
12 15 12 12
BU BD BU ~~~~~~
T 15 (17) 15 13 13 15 15 (17) (15 )(17) [17 ]

B
8

The lick across bars 7 and 8 illustrates how Santana effortlessly switches between the natural minor and harmonic minor scales to reflect the changing harmony;
he’s not forcing pentatonic licks over chord changes, his ideas are in response to what he’s hearing in the music.

SANTANA SMOOTH Pre-chorus 1 / Chorus 1

Dm Dm/C
.
G/B
. ~~~~~~~~~ G
6 .

0:52
~~~~~~~~~~~
T 14
12 13 12
14
12 12 12 14 15
B
1

F # 7sus4 Bsus 4 E7
œ
j
œ
j
œ
j
. . 65

RP
BU BU BU BD
12 12 15 12 12
T 15 (17) 15 (17) 15 15 (17) (15) 13 15 13 15 13
13
15 13

B
4

Am F Dm7 E7
~~~~~~~~~~~~ 5

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T 14
13 13 15
10 10 12
B
6

The E note is found in both F#7sus4 and Bsus4 chords, so Carlos’ repeated bent and fretted E notes work perfectly, tying the chord progression and lead guitar together
with elegant simplicity. Using common chord tones this way is a neat trick you can apply to your own playing.

SANTANA SMOOTH Interlude / Verse 2

E7
~~~~ E ~~~~~~~~~~~~
Am F Am F 7

.~~~ . œ
j ~ ~~~~~~ œ
j .

3
1:29
~~~~~ BU BD ~~~~~~~~~~~ BU ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PB15
BD
T 12 14 13 14
12 12 (13 ) (12 ) 10 12 13 10 10 15 (17) (17)(15)

B
1

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K
SANTANA SMOOTH Interlude / Verse 2 (cont’d)

~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Am F E 7 Am F E7

. j
~~~~ .
œ

PB15
BD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~
T (17) (15 ) 13
14 7 9 7 9

B
5

b
Bm7 5 E7
~~~~E ~~~~~~~~
Dm Dm/C Am F 7

. . œ
1
1
.

5 7 8
~~~~~~
7 10 8 7 7 7
~~~~~~~~~
T 5
8 10 7 9 10

B
9

~~~~
œ. œ.
E7
~ .
Am F Am F
j j j
5 œ œ œ

~~ BU
12 15 12 12
BU BD BU ~~~~~
T [10 ] 15 (17) 15 13 13 15 15 (17) (15 )(17) [17 ]

66 B
13

The recurring opening melody is played here with its conclusion spilling across the start of verse 2, hence we’ve presented these two parts as one example.
Use pick attack to drop your playing level going into the verse, then roll off your guitars’ volume a little for the rest of the example.

SANTANA SMOOTH Pre-chorus 2 / Verse 2

b
Dm Dm/C Bm7 5 G7
6 3 œ

2:11

T 14
12 13 15 13 15 13 15
12 14 15
B
1

F # 7sus4 Bsus 4 E7
œ
j
œ
j
œ
j
. . .

RP
BU BU BU BD
12 12 15 12
T 15 (17) 15 (17) 15 17 15 (17) (15 ) 13 15 13 15 13 15 13

B
4

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 FULL TRACK + BACKING (TRACKS 29-30)
This song comes with a full demo track and a backing
track (minus guitar) on your CD. Simply insert the disc in
your player, press play and jam along guitaraoke style!
SANTANA / SMOOTH

SANTANA SMOOTH Pre-chorus 2 / Verse 2 (cont’d)

Am F E7
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~Am~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F E7

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ . .~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

T 14
12
14
12 13 15 15

B
6

Am F
. .
E7
. . . j . ~~~~
Dm E7
œ

12 13 12 12
~~~~~
T 15 13 13 15 13 15 13 15 13 13 13 15
10 10 12
B
10

Notice that the ideas here are similar, but not identical, to those in the previous pre-chorus and verse. The chorus section has also been filled out with a rising theme in
bars 11 to 14. Building ideas in this way demonstrates Santana’s skill and musicality, he’s not just jamming along and playing the first idea that comes into his head!

SANTANA SMOOTH Solo

67
E7
Am
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~
F
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~Am~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F

œ . . .
3
2:50
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~ BU BD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T 12 14 13 13
12 (13) (12 )
14
12
14

B
1

E7
~~~~~~ ~~~~~Am. F
~~~~~
E7

.
3
~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~
T 13 13
12 13 12
14
12
13
12 13 12
12
12 13 12
14
B
4

Am
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ F E7
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
œ
j
œ
j .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T 14 14
12 14 12 14 12 14
B
7

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K
SANTANA SMOOTH Solo (cont’d)

E7
√
Am F

œ
j
œ
j
œ
j ~~~~~~~~~~

BU BU BU BD ~~~~~~~~~~~~ 19
BU
(20)
BD
(19 ) 17
T 20 (22) 20 (22) 20 (22) (20) 17
19
17 17

B
9

Am F
( ~~~~~~~~~~
œ œ
.~~~~~~~~~~~~~
j
œ

17
~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 17 19
BU
19 (20) 19
T 17 18 17
19
17
17 19
17
19
17

B
11

Am F E7

68 (√j ) j j j j j j j
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ j
œ

3 3 3 3 6
RP RP
BU BU BU BU BU BU BU BD BU
19 (20) 19 19 (20) 19 19 (20) 19 19 (20) 19 19 (20) 19 19 (20) 19 20 20 (22) (22) (22) (22) (22) (22) (22) 20 (22) (20) 17 17
T 20 20 (22) (22)

B
13

b
Bm7 5 G7
( )
Dm Dm/C
6

œ
j
œ
j œ œ
j

BU
17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 BU 17
T 20 (22) 18 17 17 17 20 17 BU BD
19 19 (21) 19 (21) (19 ) 17 17 19 9 9 9 9
19
B 7 7 7 7
15

F # 7sus4 Bsus 4

6 6 6
6

T 9 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 10 10 11 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 12 12

B 7 7 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 10 10
17

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 SANTANA / SMOOTH

SANTANA SMOOTH Solo (cont’d)

E7 .

6 3
6 6

T 13 13 13 13 13 13 14 14 14 14 14 14 16 16 16 16 16 16 17 17 17 17

B 11 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 12 12 14 14 14 14 14 14 15 15 15 15
18

Santana opens his solo with ‘variations on a theme’ of the intro melody based in 12th position. In bar 8, you’ll need to move the natural minor shape up an octave to the
17th position. The concluding octave shapes should be fretted using your first and third fingers; mute the idle open strings by angling your fingers onto the adjacent
open strings.

SANTANA SMOOTH Outro solo

E7
~~~~ E
Am F Am F 7

.~~~ . œ
j ~ ~~~~~~ œ
j

69
3
3:44
~~~~~ BU BD ~~~~~~~~~~~ BU ~~~~~~~
T 12 14 13 14
12 12 (13 ) (12 ) 10 12 13 10 10 15 (17)

B
1

E7

.~~~~ . ~~~~
Am F Am F
j
œ

~~~~~~ BU BD
12
~~~~~~
T 12 14 13 14
12 12 (13 ) (12 )
14
12 13 13 12 13 12
14 12 14 14 [14 ] 12
14
B
5

E7 Am F E7
~~~~
~~ ~~ ~~~~ ~~ ~ ~~~
1 .

~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

T 12
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17 16 19
12 14 14 14 14 12 14 14 14 14 14
B
8

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 CL ASSIC
T R AC K
SANTANA SMOOTH Outro solo (cont’d)

Am F E7
~~~~~~~~ .
1

~~~~~~~~~~
T 17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17 16
17

B
11

Am F E7

j j
œ œ

BU BU BD BU 17 17
T 17 17
19 (21)
20 17 20 17
19
17
19 (21) (19) (21)
17 15 17 15 17

B
13

Am F E7
(√) j j
œ œ
70 j
œ

3 3 3 3
BU BU BD
17 17 17 17 17 17 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 (20) 19 19 (20) (19 ) 17 17 17
T 15 17 15 17 17 17 17 17 17

B
15

E7
( )
Am F

j j j œ
j œ
j œ œ
j ~~~
œ œ œ

3 3

17
BU
17 17
BU
17 17 17
BU
17 17 17 17 17 17 17 19 19 20
BU
20 (22)
BU
20 (22) 20 17
~~~~
17
T 20 (22) 20 (22) 20 (22)

B
17

E7
(~ )
Am F

j j
œ œ

~~
3 3

BU BU
T 20 17 17
19 19 (21) 19 17 17 19 (21) 19 17 19 17 19 17 19 17 19
13
14 14
19
B
19

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 SANTANA / SMOOTH

SANTANA SMOOTH Outro solo (cont’d)

E7
Am

.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F
. . j .
Am
~~~~~~~~F
. . œ

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~
T 14 14 16 16 17 16
15
16 14 14
14 14 15 14
B 17
21

E7 Am F

~~
3
~~~~ 12 12
T 9 9 10 12
10
10 12 14
12 13 15
12 14 10 12
B 15 12 12 12
24

E7
√
Am F

j
œ

6 6 6 6 6 6 71
17 19 20 19 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17 20 19 17
T 15 17

B
26

E7 E7
(√)
Am F

œ œ œ œ
j . œ

6 3 RP 3

22 20 19 22 20 19 22 20 19
BU
22 (24) (24)
æ
(24)
æ
(24)
æ
(24)
æ
(24)
æ
(24)
BU
(22)
BD
(24) 20 22
T 22

B
28

Am F E7
( ) ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~~

3
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ 17
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
T 20 22 22 20 22 22 20 20 18 17
19 17
19 [19 ]
B
31

Once again, Santana uses the intro melody as the opening motif for his final solo. Things get pretty wild here, especially towards the end – the best way to approach this
section is by breaking it down into manageable four-bar licks. Start slowly, practising with a metronome before playing along to our backing track.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 ACOUSTIC

THE BEATLES
HELTER SKELTER
TG and Rockschool take a look at a
song that paved the way for heavier
rock acts that followed

T
he story goes that Paul ri Urfnvfkrroġv Judgh Wzr h{dp1#
McCartney, taking guitar duties, Having said that, most of the
was trying to create the dirtiest vital elements remain.
sound that The Beatles could Play the four-bar intro with
muster. To his credit, the song downstrokes for an urgent, forceful
achieved a level of aggression the band delivery, making sure to keep the
had rarely displayed before. By today’s rshq#Ľuvw#vwulqj#ulqjlqj#rxw1#Wkh#
standards, the guitar isn’t very qh{w#vhfwlrq#lv#edvhg#durxqg#J/#H:#
distorted, but back in 1968 it was a dqg#D#fkrugv#Ğ#H:#fdq#eh#dznzdug/#vr#
ixoo0irufh#gholyhu|#wkdw#zrxog#lqľxhqfh# sudfwlvh#wkh#irxuwk#Ľqjhu#vwuhwfk1#Wkh#
many rock and metal bands to follow. duudqjhphqw#urxqgv#rļ#zlwk#urfn#ġqġ#
Here, we’re looking at an abridged uroo#ulĿqj#dqg#d#uhzrunlqj#ri#wkh#lqwur1#
version of the song with some parts Grqġw#eh#diudlg#wr#vdfulĽfh#vrph#ri#wkh#
72 vlpsolĽhg#wr#pdwfk#wkh#h{shfwdwlrqv# tidiness for a more authentic vibe.

Whether you’re taking your first steps on guitar or

moving into further/higher education, a Rockschool
Grade will improve your playing ability whilst you
learn iconic tracks from the world of popular music.
For more info visit: www.rslawards.com
facebook.com/rslawards
HELTER SKELTER
instagram.com/rslawards Words & Music by John Lennon & Paul McCartney
© Copyright 1968 Sony/ATV Music Publishing.
@RSLAwards @mikegoodmanguitar All Rights Reserved. International Copyright Secured.

THE BEATLES HELTER SKELTER TRACKS 31-32

q = 84
E5 N.C.

7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
T 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

1
Words: Mike Goodman Photography: Getty Images

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
T 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0
0
0
0

B
3

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 FULL TRACK + BACKING (TRACKS 31-32)
This song comes with a full demo track and a backing
track (minus guitar) on your CD. Simply insert the disc in
your player, press play and jam along, guitaraoke style!
THE BEATLES / HELTER SKELTER

THE BEATLES HELTER SKELTER (cont’d) TRACKS 31-32

G E7

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 0
T 3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
0
0
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
B 2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
0
2
0
2
0
2
0
5

#
‘

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
T 3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7

73

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
T 3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
11

A E7

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
T 2
2
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1
3
1 4
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 4
0 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
13

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 ROCK
SCHOOL
THE BEATLES HELTER SKELTER (cont’d) TRACKS 31-32

A5 A6 E5 E6
#
#
T 0
2 2 4 4 4 2 0 0
0 0 0 0 4 2 0 2 2 4 4 4 2 0
0 0 0 0 4 2 0
15

A5 A6 E

0
T 0
0
1
2 2 4 4 4 2 0 2
0 0 0 0 4 2 0 2
0
17

74

N.C.
œ

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
T 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

19

G E7

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 0 0
T 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0
0
0
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
3
0
0
0
3
1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
B 2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
3
2
0
21

The fretted notes that are played with the open E drone string (in the intro and outro) can be pulled slightly sharp to add tension and aggression to the sound,
but this does make it trickier to keep the open E string cleanly ringing – it’s up to you! In bars 15 to 17, make sure you use ‘down-up’-style alternate picking and
build up your speed gradually.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 JA M
T R AC K

JAM TRACK PLAY GUITAR WITH A BAND!

ROCKABILLY
Get brylcreem slick with your rockabilly
licks as you jam along with our 50s-style
backing track

I
n the 1950s, a new style would Horton Heap taking the style in bold
come to life, fusing elements of new directions.
country and rhythm and blues This month’s jam track harks back
to create a sound that would to the earlier era, with acoustic and
eventually morph into rock ’n’ roll hollow body guitars at the heart of
dqg#hyhq#lqľxhqfh#wkh#odwhu#sxqn# the sound. Still, some harmonic
movement. Elvis Presley guitarist themes have persevered throughout.
Scotty Moore is widely regarded as The chords in our track can be applied
rqh#ri#wkh#ghĽqlqj#irufhv#ri#urfndeloo|/# anywhere from pre-rock ’n’ roll to
dv#zhuh#Jhqh#Ylqfhqwġv#d{hpdq#Folļ# more aggressive punk-tinged
Gallup and virtuoso soloist Chet psychobilly. Listen carefully to
76 Atkins. Later, the style would enjoy lghqwli|#wkhlu#vrqlf#ľdyrxuv#dqg#
a resurgence in the 70s and 80s with experiment with tempo and drive
acts like the Stray Cats and Reverend tones to mix things up stylistically.

CHORDS SCALES
T O
he ‘6’ and ‘6/9’ chords are quintessentially ur backing track is in E major (E F# G# A B C# D#),
rockabilly-esque chords. Simply strum them, but be aware that there’s a G note in the A9 chords
as we’ve done in this month’s backing track, – so target G instead of G# here. It’s not as simple as
or try creating a solo out of some arpeggios. It’s quite widdling through the major scale, however. Generally, we
the challenge, but a typical approach in rockabilly solos. recommend using arpeggios based on the chords in the
chart or two- and three-note chord shapes arranged as
X X X X X X melodically as you can. The E blues scale (E G A Bb B D)
features some out-of-key notes, but its tense, edgy sound
1 1 1 1 1
6 4 4 is well suited to melodic runs.
2 3 4 2 3 4 2 3 4 1

2 3

4
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
11 12

B6/9 E6/9 A9 E6 2 2 2 2 2
Guitars and backing: Phil Capone Photography Michael Ochs Archives/Getty

X X X X O 3 3 3 3 3
1 2 3 3 3
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
1 2 3 3 3

3 4 E major scale E blues scale

E7 B9 Bb9

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 BACKING TRACK (TRACK 33)
This song comes with a backing track on your CD.
Simply insert the disc in your player, press play and
jam along, guitaraoke style!
JAM TRACK / ROCKABILLY

CHEAT SHEET JAM TRACK

Tempo: 185 bpm

rd
Time 4/4
Key/scale: E minor

f f le
INTRO / MID-VERSE BREAK

| B6/9 || E6/9 / / B6/9 | E6/9 / / / | / / / / ||

VERSE 77

| A9 / / / | / / / / | E6 / / / | / / / / |
| B9 / / / | A9 / / / | E6 / / / | / / / / ||
CHORUS

| E6 / / / | / / / / | / / / / | E7 / / / |
| A9 / / / | / / / / | B9 / / / | / / / Bb9 |
| A9 / / / | / / / / | E6 / / / | / / / / |
| B9 / / / | A9 / / / | E6 / / / | / / / B6/9 ||

Note that the verse actually runs twice through the eight-bar section shown here, each time separated by a further run through of the intro progression.
The track doesn’t change much, so think about light and shade in your solos. For example, you could switch between chord-based and melodic soloing.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAAR

 TURN
A ROU N D

THE TURNAROUND LICKS OF THE BLUES GIANTS

WARREN
HAYNES
Learn the secrets of the explosive style of blues
guitar guru Warren Haynes and practise over
TG’s custom-made backing track

W
arren Haynes is perhaps best known a couple of Fenders and PRSs. You don’t
as the longtime guitarist with necessarily need a Gibson, but a humbucker-
Southern rock greats the Allman equipped guitar is near essential to recreate the
Brothers Band. He has also enjoyed majority of Warren’s thick, overdriven tones.
a long solo career as a singer-songwriter, with This month’s tab examples demonstrate
a string of great live and studio recordings a few of the key techniques and stylings
released with his own Warren Haynes Band and Warren employs when soloing. Our backing
also with Gov’t Mule – essentially a Haynes- track features a Warren Haynes band style
fronted Allman Brothers side project. chord progression that is great fun to solo
Over the years, Warren has been closely over. All the licks in the lesson use the B minor
associated with Gibson guitars, often being pentatonic scale as their foundation – with
seen sporting a Les Paul 58 reissue or playing rwkhu#ľdyrxu#wrqhv#dgghg#lq#wr#wdvwh1#Fkhfn#rxw#
78 his signature Les Paul models. ES-335s and the 1993 album Warren Haynes Band Live At The
Firebirds also feature in his arsenal, alongside Sting to hear more of his explosive style.

1 STRING BENDS AND PENTATONICS TRACK 34

q =123

B5 A5 G5 D/F # E5
1/4
j
j nœ
# œ
j œ
œ
j œ
j 1j
œ .
3 3 3 3
~~~~~
1/4 3
BU
BU 7 7 9 8 7 10 7
T 7 10 (12) 10 7 10 7 BU BU BU
9 (11) 9 (11) 9 7 7 9 11 (14 ) 9 10 9 7 9 7 (9)
9 9 9
B

Our first example exploits trusty fingering for the best known shape of the minor pentatonic scale (usually known as ‘shape 1’), with a few extra notes from outside the
scale. The two fret-bending points exist on the 9th fret of the third string and the 10th fret of the second string.

2 CLASHING STRING BENDS TRACK 35

B5 A5 G5 D/F # E5

œ
j .. ~ 1/4
j
1/4

#
œ
œ
j
#œ
j 1/4

. ~~
Guitars and backing: Jon Bishop Photograph: Getty

3 3 3 3 3

17 14
~~~~ 1/4 BU
10 (12 )
1/4

10 7
PB 10 1/4
~~~~
T 17 (19 ) 15 17 15
16 16
15 10 7 10 (12 )
( 11 )(10) 9 7 9
7
7
BU BU 9
BD
B

This lick opens with a string-bend technique known as an ‘oblique bend’. Hold the first string steady on the 17th fret then bend the second string. For a Hendrix-inspired
clashing bend in Bar 3, grab the third string and pre-bend it as you bend the second string. When you strike the pre-bent string, release the bend for a clash.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 FULL TRACKS (TRACKS 34-38)
These tab examples come with audio tracks
on your CD. Simply insert the disc in your player,
press play and jam along, guitaraoke style!
THE TURNAROUND / WARREN HAYNES

3 REPEATABLE PHRASES TRACK 36

B5 A5 G5 D/F # E5
#
1/4
j j j j j j j j j
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
. œ

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

7 BU 7 BU 7 BU 7 7 BU 7 BU 7 BU 1/4
~~~~
BU 7 BU 7 BU
T 9 (11 ) 9 (11 )
7
9 (11 )
7
9 (11 )
7
9 (11 ) 9 (11 )
7
9 (11 )
7
9 (11) 9 7 9 7 7 9 (11 ) 9 7 9 7
9 9 9
B

Effective sounding phrases that are easy to repeat are handy to have up your sleeve. Here we use a classic blues and rock idea and repeat it over two bars before
bringing the lick to and end with the minor pentatonic scale. It’s a neat idea that you can really milk.

4 SCREAMING BENDS TRACK 37

B5 A5 G5 D/F # E5

~~~ √
# ..
3
.. .~~~~~~~~
1/4
j j j
n œœ # n œœ n œœ # œ œ
3
j j j
# œ
œ
œ
œ
œ
œ

3 3

BU BU BU
14
1/4 ~~~~ 19 (21) 19 (21) 19 (21)
~~~~~~~~~
19
T 17 (19 )
17 (18 )
17 (19 )
17 (18 )
17 (19 )
17 (18 )
15 17 15
16 16
19 (20) 19 (20) 19 (20)

B
79

It’s possible to bend and play two strings at the same time – and it’s a great blues hack, too. If there’s a ‘trick’ to this, it’s not to play too tidily. These bends really scream
when the notes aren’t too accurate. So, just let rip with your fieriest bends – and remember, it’s not an exact science!

5 PEDAL TONE LICK TRACK 38

B5 A5 G5 D/F #

17 ¿ 16 ¿ ¿ 15 ¿ 17 ¿ 16 ¿ ¿ 16 ¿ 17 ¿
T 16 16 16
19
16 16 16 16
19
16 16 16

B
1

E5
(√) ~~~~
j j ~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# œ œ
œ
j

3 3
BU BD BU ~~~~~~ BU BU BD BU ~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
17 (19 ) (17) (19) 17 (19 ) 17 14
T 17 15 17 (19 ) (17) (19 ) 17 15
16

B
3

Notice the repeating 16th fret note on the third string in the opening two bars. Known as a ‘pedal tone’, a repeating note like this provides a solid base to play around and
focuses your lick around a continuous, unchanging root. If you tend to widdle across the length of the fretboard, this is a cool way to add a bit of focus.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 TAB GUIDE
Get more from TG by understanding our easy-to-follow musical terms and signs
Whatistab?
Tab is short for tablature, a guitar, from the sixth (thick) down on the tab. Unfretted
notational system used to give vwulqj dw wkh erwwrp wr wkh Ľuvw strings are shown with a ‘0’. The
detailed information as to where (thin) string at the top. On these key and time signatures are
notes should be played on the lines, numbers represent which shown in the notation. TG also
fretboard. Tab appears iuhwv |rx sodfh |rxu Ľqjhuv1 Iru includes a timestamp to tell you
underneath conventional music example, an A note on the 2nd where in the original track you’ll
notation as six horizontal lines fret, third string, will be shown Ľqg hdfk h{dpsoh dqg whpsr
that represent the strings of the as a number ‘2’ on the third line expressed in beats per minute.

FRET BOXES: CHORDS, SCALES AND CAPO NOTATION

HAND LABELLING NUT AND FRETBOARD CHORD EXAMPLE

2 m o o o o o o o o o
3 1 i a
4 c
1
T p
2 3
80

Here are the abbreviations used for each finger. Fretting hand: 1, 2, 3, 4, (T) This fretbox diagram represents the guitar’s fretboard exactly, as seen in the This diagram represents a G chord. The ‘o’s are open strings, and a circled number
Picking hand: p (thumb), i (index), m (middle), a (annular), c (little finger) photo. This design is used for ease of visualising a fretboard scale or chord quickly. is a fretting hand finger. A black ‘o’ or circled number is the root note (here, G).

CAPO EXAMPLE CAPO NOTATION SCALE EXAMPLE

CAPO 2ND
o o o x o o
FRET >
CAPO 2ND
FRET > 4 1 1 1 1
1
2 2 2 2
1 2
3 3
2 3 3
4 4 4 4 4

A major scale
A (G) D (C)
The blue line in the diagram represents a capo for this A chord, place it at the Here the chord looks like a C in the tab, but the capo on the 2nd fret raises the The fret box diagram illustrates the fret hand fingering for the A major scale using
2nd fret. Capos change the fret number ordering. Here, the original 5th fret pitch to make it a D. The 2nd fret capo’d notes are shown with a ‘0’ in the tab black dots for root notes and red dots for other scale tones. The photo shows part
now becomes the 3rd fret, 7th fret now 5th fret, etc. as if they were open strings. of the scale being played on the fourth string with the first, third and fourth fingers.

GUITAR TECHNIQUES: PICKING

DOWN AND UP-PICKING TREMOLO PICKING PALM MUTING PICK RAKE APPREGGIATED CHORD

The symbols under the tab tell you the Each of the four notes are to be Palm-mute by resting the edge of your Drag the pick across the strings shown Play the notes of the chord by
first note is to be down-picked and the alternate-picked (down and up-picked) picking hand palm on the strings near with a single sweep. This is often used strumming across the relevant strings
second note is to be up-picked. very rapidly and continuously. the bridge saddles. to augment a rake’s last note. in the direction of the arrow head.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 TAB GUIDE

FRETTING HAND
HAMMER-ON & NOTE TRILLS SLIDES (GLISSANDO) FRET-HAND TAPPING FRET-HAND MUTING
PULL-OFF

Pick the first note then hammer down on After picking the first note, rapidly Pick the first note and then slide to the Sound the notes marked with a square by X markings represent notes and strings
the string for the second note. Pick the alternate between the two notes shown in next. For the last two notes pick the first, hammering-on/tapping with your fret hand that are muted by your fret hand when
third note and pull-off for the fourth note. brackets using hammer-ons and pull-offs. slide to the next and then re-pick it (RP). fingers, instead of picking. struck by your picking hand.

BENDING AND VIBRATO

BEND AND RELEASE RE-PICKED BEND PRE-BEND QUARTER-TONE BEND VIBRATO

Fret the first note (here, the 5th fret) and Bend up to the pitch shown in the Silently bend the string up from the 5th Pick the note then bend up a quarter- Your fretting hand vibrates the string by
bend up to the pitch of the bracketed brackets, then re-pick the note while fret (PB5) to the pitch of the 7th fret note, tone (a very small amount). This is small bend-ups and releases. Exaggerate
note, before releasing again. holding the bent note at the pitch shown. pick it and release to the 5th fret note. sometimes referred to as a ‘blues curl’. this effect to create a ‘wide’ vibrato.

HARMONICS

NATURAL HARMONICS ARTIFICIAL PINCHED HARMONICS TAPPED HARMONICS TOUCHED HARMONICS

HARMONICS

81

Pick the note while lightly touching the Fret the note as shown, then lightly place After fretting the note in the triangle, Place your finger on the note as shown, A previously sounded note is touched
string directly over the fret indicated. your index finger directly over ‘x’ fret dig into the string with the side of your but sound it with a quick pick hand tap at above the fret marked TCH (eg, TCH 9)
A chiming harmonic results. (AH‘x’) and pick (with a pick, p or a). thumb as you sound it with the pick. the fret shown (TH17) for a harmonic. for it to sound a harmonic.

VIBRATO BAR / WHAMMY BAR

WHAMMY BAR BENDS SCOOP AND DOOP SUSTAINED NOTE GARGLE WHAMMY BAR VIBRATO
AND DIVEBOMB

The note is picked as shown, then the Scoop: depress the bar just before A Note is sustained then the vibrato Sound the note and ‘flick’ the vibrato bar Gently rock the whammy bar to
vibrato bar is raised and lowered to the striking the note and release. Doop: bar is depressed to slack. The square with your picking hand so it ‘quivers’. This repeatedly bend the pitch up and down.
pitches shown in brackets. lower the bar slightly after picking note. bracket indicates a further articulation. results in a ‘gargling’ sound! This sounds similar to fret hand vibrato.
OTHERS

PICK SCRAPE VIOLINING FINGER NUMBERING PIMA DIRECTIONS PICK HAND TAPPING

The edge of the pick is dragged either Turn the volume control down, sound The numbers in the traditional notation Any kind of fingerpicking requirements Tap (hammer-on) with a finger of your
down or up along the lower strings to the note(s) and then turn the volume up refer to the fingers required to play are shown at the bottom of the picking hand onto the fret marked with
produce a scraped sound. for a smooth fade in. each note. tab notation. a circle. Usually with ‘i’ or ‘m’.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 ACOUSTIC

84
Unplugged
YOUR MONTH IN THE ACOUSTIC WORLD

085
ACOUSTIC NEWS
086
SEAFRET
088
ACOUSTIC TAB:
OLD TOWN ROAD

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 Keeping up with Keef:
As idiosyncratic
ACOUSTIC
as ever

TRACKS 39-43

QUICK
CHORDS
Essential chords to
fuel your creativity

X X O

Fmaj7

KEITH RICHARDS’ SECRET

ACOUSTIC GUITAR TUNING 1 1 1

FINALLY REVEALED? 3

Dm7add11
4

85

THE YOU CAN’T ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU WANT X X

TUNING HAS ELUDED MANY... UNTIL NOW!

T
1
he Rolling Stones are “I’ve seen every YouTube video, players can create the sounds by 2 3 4
one of the most famous all the sheet music books, I’ve eohqglqj d vl{0 dqg 450vwulqj1 Vr
bands in guitar history, scanned the forums, interviews,” yes, you need a 12-string. Hey,
but that doesn’t stop vd|v PdfOhqqdq1 ģL fdqġw Ľqg we never said it would be
the persistent myths any interview about Keith straightforward!
Em7b5
and mysteries around Richards talking about what
them – and one involves the he did to make this sound. Here’s his five-step method: X X
tuning of the much-loved closing “Many people say it is in open E 1 Start with a standard-tuned
1
track to 1969’s Let It Bleed album. with a capo on the 8th fret,” he 12-string guitar and remove all
Keith Richards’ rhythm part on adds. “This tuning sounds slightly grxeohg vwulqjv h{fhsw iru wkh
the song You Can’t Always Get What like the recording, but it transfers doubled high E string. This gives a 3 3
You Want has been the subject of the chords that Keith plays down vl{0vwulqj jxlwdu zlwk wzr kljk H
conjecture amongst guitar-playing to a thicker string. Unfortunately, strings – seven strings in total
Stones fans for years. It isn’t C this really changes the timbre 2 Remove the low E string 4
and F chords, and it apparently ri wkh Ľoov1 completely. Now you should have
isn’t Keef’s usual open G with “With other methods, you d wrwdo ri vl{ vwulqjv Bbadd#11
the bottom string removed. don’t get that doubled high string, 3 Tune the A string down one X
Now, one man believes he’s which is only heard when Keith whole step to G
cracked it. strums through to the high E 4 Add a capo on the 5th fret
LA-based pro guitarist Jon strings. That’s what gives the 5 \rxu Ľqdo wxqlqj vkrxog uhdg 1
MacLennan says he has spent guitar a chorusing 12-string sound (with the capo) C G C E A A
2 3 3 3
“hours and hours and hours” at moments. Another theory is
listening to the recording in that the guitar is tuned to open G, The guitarist demonstrates it all
Photo: Luciano Viti/Getty

rughu wr Ľjxuh rxw h{dfwo| a staple of Keith’s playing, but this in this video, and we applaud his
what Keef is doing on the method is actually using a G6 – dedication: www.youtube.com/
studio track – because the a slight variation from open G.” watch?v=WYH8M-XfeWc& C9
man himself has never told us. MacLennan has devised a way feature=emb_title

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 ACOUSTIC Words Grant Moon

Seafret
WITH ALMOST 500 MILLION STREAMS TO DATE, YORKSHIRE DUO SEAFRET
REALLY ARE MAKING WAVES. GUITARIST HARRY DRAPER TAKES US
BELOW THE SURFACE OF THEIR SUCCESSFUL SOUND.
n 2009, Harry Draper tuned in to Radio 2 playing banjo with his dad’s band, and the ģWkh Ľuvw uhfrug zdv uhfrughg ryhu wzr |hduv#

I and his life changed. The legendary John

Martyn had just died, and the station was
presenting a tribute. “They played May
You Never,” Draper recalls, “and I’d never
khdug#wkdw#vrxqg#ehiruh#Ğ#wkh#Ľqjhuslfnlqj/#
the arpeggios, the slapping. I became obsessed
zlwk#klp#dqg#zhqw#edfn#wkurxjk#klv#zkroh#
vlqjhu#zdv#derxw#wr#gr#klv#yhu|#Ľuvw#sxeolf#wxuq1#
He sang James Morrison and Paolo Nutini
songs, and impressed Draper enough to
vxjjhvw#wkh|#mdp/#zkhuh#wkh|#klw#lw#rļ1#
After a slew of gigs playing covers at local
boozers they started writing original material
and adopted the name Seafret (a rolling mist
in various studios across London,” says Draper,
ģexw#wkh#qhz#rqh#ihhov#olnh#dq#doexp1#Lw#zdv#doo#
uhfrughg#lq#wzr#prqwkv#lq#rqh#sodfh/#Urfnhw#
Vflhqfh#Vwxglrv#lq#Jodvjrz#Ğ#mxvw#ph/#Mdfn#dqg#
our producer, Ross [Hamilton]. We limited
ourselves to four guitars, bass, piano, a couple
of synths and amps. It’s more raw, there’s less
catalogue. I went from a 13 year-old who’d wkdw#frphv#lq#rļ#wkh#vhd,1#Wkh|#txlfno|#fdph# on it, but we have a lot more experience now,
never played guitar to wanting to play May to the attention of record producer Steve Harris dqg#pruh#frqĽghqfh1#Zh#duh#ehlqj#rxuvhoyhv#
RhnyG^o^k, and I didn’t put the guitar down +Ndlvhu#Fklhiv,#dqg#vljqhg#wr#Vzhhw#Mdqh# as writers, musicians and people this time.”
until I could. John Martyn is the reason Recordings via Sony’s Columbia label in 2014, In the studio, Draper played a Gibson J200
I got into playing.” with Tell Me It’s Real following two years later. guitar, with a Martin D18 for ‘the strummier
86 Qrz#57/#Gudshu#lv#rqh#kdoi#ri#\runvkluh# parts’ and his £200 Yamaha classical
gxr#Vhdiuhw/#frpsohwhg#e|#vlqjhu#Mdfn# guitar when a nylon tone was needed.
Sedman, and their emotionally-charged All electric passages were played on his
pop ballads have found a huge audience Japanese Fender Telecaster, usually
online. Since the release of 2016 debut through a Fender Twin Reverb. His
album Tell Me It’s Real#wkh|ġyh#forfnhg#xs# pedalboard includes a TC Electronics
over 300 million streams on Apple Music Prophet Delay, Hall Of Fame Reverb,
and Spotify. Their single Oceans has been Overdrive and a Boss OC-3 Super Octave.
played over 100 million times on Spotify, ģL#vhw#wkh#rfwdyh#vr#lw#slfnv#xs#wkh#erwwrp#
where Seafret are streamed on average end and puts it an octave lower. I use that
two million times per month. Their live, it’s low in the mix and you hardly
stylish, gritty YouTube videos have been notice it but it gives the choruses a boost,
viewed over 170 million times, with Game it sounds good through the subs. I stole
Of Thrones star Maisie Williams starring in wkh#lghd#rļ#Mrq#Jrpp$Ĥ#
the clip for Oceans. Seafret’s current tour in support of
“It’s hard for us to believe,” says new album Most Of Us Are Strangers
Draper. “It blows our minds. We just wdnhv#wkhp#iurp#Ph{lfr#wr#Prvfrz/#
always loved playing and writing tunes
and playing in pubs, then suddenly we HARRY’S HACKS culminating in their own headline show
in Bridlington on 6th June. Live, Draper
got signed, wrote the album and it’s gone Harry Draper has some neat tricks to help xvhv#klv#zrunkruvh#jxlwdu#Ğ#klv#
from there. We wrote Oceans in an hour you get that Seafret sound mahogany Taylor 322E, bought in
after being in the pub. It’s only three Orqgrqġv#Ghqpdun#Vwuhhw#lq#5347#
chords! We go all over the world and “I tune my guitars down a semitone. You get more with his record deal advance.
we have to play that one.” bottom end, a richer bass. I use heavy strings, 13s, As modern as they are, Seafret have
and tuned down they’re slack and nicer to play.
The duo have performed extensively been compared to another iconic acoustic
“I’ll often tune my high E down to D, so that when
across the UK, Europe, Russia and Brazil gxr/#Vlprq#Dqg#Jduixqnho1#ģ\hdk/Ĥ#vd|v#
you play a C, G and A Minor letting that D on top ring out
and they’ve opened for Lewis Capaldi, gives the chords a nice, open feel. I use open D tuning Draper with a laugh. “We’ve had that
Hozier, James Bay and – in their home a lot too – D A D F# A D. I’ve always loved that tuning; a few times. I love Paul’s guitar playing,
wrzq#ri#Eulgolqjwrq#Ğ#Mdnh#Exjj1#ģWkhvh# strum the open strings and you’ve got a lovely chord.” the way he pronounces some notes and
are all artists we really respect”, says As for his fingerpicking, that John Martyn influence misses others out to complement the
Gudshu1#ģZhġyh#ehhq#yhu|#oxfn|1Ĥ comes through: “He only used his thumb and first vocal. Art had such a beautiful voice,
Photo: kris-kesiak

Draper met Sedman nine years ago finger, which is pretty amazing. You look at his hand dqg#vr#kdv#Mdfn1#Khġv#jrw#wkh#kdlu/#wrr$Ĥ
at an open-mic night at a small pub in and it’s so fast. I pick with those same fingers too.” Most Of Us Are Strangers is out now
Vhzhue|/#\runvkluh1#Wkh#jxlwdulvw#zdv# via The Orchard.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 INTERVIEW

87

“WE WROTE OCEANS IN AN

HOUR AFTER BEING IN THE
PUB. NOW WE GO ALL OVER
THE WORLD AND PLAY IT”

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 LEARN
TO PL AY

OPEN-MIC SONGBOOK
LIL NAS X
OLD TOWN ROAD
Grab your cowboy hat and capo then
get ready to ride the Old Town Road
with TG’s easy strummer lesson

T
his huge hit for rapper You’ll need just four simple open
Lil Nas X was released late in chord shapes to play Old Town Road, so
2018. Columbia records quickly you can easily add it to your open-mic
noticed the huge interest it was repertoire. The recording features banjo
generating and jumped on the song, samples taken from Nine Inch Nails’
re-releasing both the original version 2008 track 34 Ghosts IV. So, with no
and a remix featuring country guitar, our tab is an arrangement
superstar Billy Ray Cyrus in the spring based on the sounds you can hear
of 2019. The song spent 17 weeks at from the sample and played in live
88 the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart performances. You’ll need to use a capo
and also topped the charts in the UK, on the 4th fret to play along with our
and has scooped up a multitude of backing track, but this makes it easy
awards worldwide. to change the key later if you wish.

CHORDS
T
hough not on the original recording, Billy Ray Cyrus has been seen
jamming out these chords on acoustic guitar in live shows. If you’re
singing along solo, simply move the capo higher or lower to suit
your pitch. The capo makes for some complicated chord names, but
don’t worry about that! All the shapes are easy to play and we’re sticking
with the un-capo’d names in the song sheet so you won’t get confused.
Finally, position your thumb around the back of the neck to keep the
sixth string muted out.

O O O O O X X O X O O
OLD TOWN ROAD
CAPO – 4th fret Words and Music by Trent Reznor, Billy Ray
CAPO – 4th fret CAPO – 4th fret CAPO – 4th fret Cyrus, Jocelyn Donald, Atticus Ross, Kiowa
Roukema and Montero Lamar Hill
Copyright © 2019 Form And Texture, Inc.,
1 Sunnageronimo Publishing Inc., Songs By MPA,
Songs Of Universal, Inc., Songs In The Key
Of Mink and Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
All Rights for Form And Texture, Inc.,
2 3 1 1 2
Guitars and backing: Phil Capone Photo: Getty Images

Sunnageronimo Publishing Inc. and Songs By

MPA Administered Worldwide by
Kobalt Songs Music Publishing
2 3 4 3 2 3 4 All Rights for Songs In The Key Of Mink
Administered by Songs Of Universal, Inc.
All Rights for Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Administered by Sony/ATV Music Publishing
LLC, 424 Church Street,
Suite 1200, Nashville, TN 37219
Ab B Gb Esus2 All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission
- Incorporates the song “34 Ghosts IV” (Words
(E) (G) (D) (Csus2) and Music by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor)

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 BACKING TRACK (TRACK 44)
This song comes with a backing track (minus guitar) on
your CD. Simply insert the disc in your player, press play
and jam along, guitaraoke style!
LIL NAS X / OLD TOWN ROAD

SONG SHEET

Chorus Pre-chorus Repeat pre-chorus

Ab B Ab B & chorus
Yeah, I’m gonna take my horse to the old town road Can’t nobody tell me nothin’
Gb Esus2 Gb Esus2
I’m gonna ride ’til I can’t no more You can’t tell me nothin’ Bridge
Ab B Ab B Ab B
I’m gonna take my horse to the old town road Can’t nobody tell me nothin’ Hat down, cross town, livin’ like a rockstar
Gb Esus2 Gb Esus2 Gb Esus2
I’m gonna ride ’til I can’t no more You can’t tell me nothin’ Spend a lot of money on my brand new guitar
Ab
Baby’s got a habit
Verse 1 Verse 2 B
Ab Ab Diamond rings and Fendi sports bras
I got the horses in the back Ridin’ on a tractor Gb Esus2
B B Ridin’ down Rodeo in my Maserati sports car
Horse tack is attached Lean all in my bladder Ab B
Gb Gb Got no stress, I’ve been through all that
Hat is matte black Cheated on my baby Gb Esus2
Esus2 Esus2 I’m like a Marlboro Man so I kick on back
Got the boots that’s black to match You can go and ask her Ab B
Ab Ab Wish I could roll on back to that old town road
Ridin’ on a horse, ha My life is a movie Gb Esus2
B B I wanna ride ’til I can’t no more
You can whip your Porsche Bull ridin’ and boobies 899
Gb Gb
I been in the valley Cowboy hat from Gucci Repeat chorus
Esus2 Esus2
You ain’t been up off that porch, now Wrangler on my booty

LIL NAS X OLD TOWN ROAD Intro TRACK 44

q =135 (half time feel)
N.C.
Capo 4th fret

.. ..
b
T . .
B
. 1 1 2 2 2
0
2
0
2
3
2
3
.
0 0 3 3

These diads should be played with a ‘pinch’. That means picking down with your thumb and up with a finger – i.e., pinching the strings. Simple! Alternatively, use a pick for the
low note with a free finger playing the higher note – a technique known as hybrid picking. It can be tricky, but it’s handy when you want to switch from picking to strumming.

LIL NAS X OLD TOWN ROAD Chorus TRACK 44

Ab Cb Gb F b sus 2
(E) ( G) (D) ( Csus 2 )

.. bb bb bb ..

T . 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3 .
B
. 1
2
2
1
2
2
1
2
2
1
2
2
0
0
2
0
0
2
0
0
2
0
0
2
2
0
2
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
3
0
0
3
0
0
3
0
0
3
.
0 0 0 0 3 3 3 3

These easy chords should pose no problems – just remember to use a capo at the 4th fret to play at the same pitch as the record. Use gentle downstrokes to recreate the
steady pace of the original track and build up to more complicated strumming if you like. Some of the live performances are pretty epic!

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 THE GAS
106

STATION REAL WORLD REVIEWS OF THE

BEST NEW GEAR

Welcome to the GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome*)

Station! Every issue, TG scours the market for the
hottest new gear and brings you transparent reviews
that you can trust. From the smallest of accessories
that make your life easier, to big investments such as
brand new guitars, amps and effects pedals – if it’s
90 worth your attention, you’ll find it here!

HOW WE TEST BEST BUY AWARD

TGBestBuyAwardsare
reservedforstand-out 96
CURATION NO SNAKE OIL productsthatearnafive-star
Our product selection is \rx#zrqġw#Ľqg#xv#jhwwlqj# rating.Thisisthebest,most
driven by our love of gear. hung up on hokey mythology excitingnewgearthatyou
need tocheckout
We select the most exciting
products on the market every
or nonsense marketing
speak: we aim to bring you
091 START ME UP!
Five new items for your rig
month to bring you opinions bullshit-free opinions on the
you can trust. gear you’re interested in.

FACE-VALUE REVIEWS WE CAN’T BE BOUGHT

092 FENDER LEAD III
This late-70s outlier gets a sprightly new reissue
We’re not gear snobs here at TG review scores are a true
Total Guitar. We judge it on uhľhfwlrq#ri#rxu#h{shuwvġ#
whether it looks good, sounds
good and plays well – not by
opinion on the product
they’ve been testing. You’ll BEST FOR…
096 MARTIN X-SERIES DX1E-04
Differentguitaristshave
An affordable dreadnought asking the big questions
the name on the headstock. qhyhu#Ľqg#d#udwlqj#lq#rxu##
differentneeds.Thisbadge
mag that has been bought
and paid for.
highlightsaparticularstrength
thataproducthasinaTGTest
orGroupTest,soyoucan
098 HARLEY BENTON SC-550
*WHAT IS GAS? Thomann’s own-brand single-cut that rocks with
Gear Acquisition Syndrome
REAL WORLD REVIEWS choosewhat’sbestforyou
the best of ’em
is the guitar-player’s We test every product under
never-ending urge to acquire the conditions that they were
new gear, irrespective of
whether they actually need it.
designed for. For example,
if an amp is designed to be
100 TG TEST: GRETSCH JETS
Two baritones and a double-cut square up as we
Don’t pretend you don’t played loud, rest assured BEST assess part of the legendary brand’s 2020 output
have it – we all do!
that we’ll have tested it at FOR…
rehearsal/gig volumes!
106 FENDER SMOLDER
SUPERB, A BEST BUY EXCELLENT ABOVE AVERAGE KIT SOME ISSUES POOR
ACOUSTIC OVERDRIVE
The first ever acoustic stompbox from the Big F

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 GAS STATION

91

02

START ME UP!
Five new products to fuel your GAS this month…
ERNIE BALL SLINKY SOLIDGOLDFX EHX-2020 CHROMATIC BLACKSTAR FLY 3 D’ADDARIO PRO PLUS
2020 SETS COMMUNICATION TUNER ACOUSTIC CAPO
March sees the exciting BREAKDOWN We’re surprised it’s taken Followingthecompany’s The capo is perhaps the

1 release of a selection of
new Ernie Ball string sets
designed to give players more 2
Yes, there is a clue in that
name – Jimmy Page’s
Yardbirds/Zeppelin
3 the would-renowned
pedal brand Electro-
Harmonix this long to release
4 firstdedicatedacoustic
combowiththeSonnet,
it’snowdecidedtocontinue
5 guitar’s most essential
but undervalued
accessory, but D’Addario are
choice to find the right set for debut-era Tone Bender MkII a pedal tuner, but the EX-2020 therunwiththiseditionofits giving it anatomical attention
them. Adding to EB’s already fuzz tones can be summoned Chromatic Tuner is making hugelypopularFly3seriesthat here. The company claims that
extensive range of strings, here, but that’s only one half of up for lost time with its havesetthestandardformini the FlexFit technology used on
these include Turbo Slinkys the story. The Fuzz A channel pedalboard-friendly size amps.The3-wattcombooffers the Pro Plus’s pad mimics the
(9.5, 12, 16, 26, 36, 46) Mondo brings updated MK1.5 Tone and wallet-friendly price. The flatresponseandamid-cut anatomy of a human finger,
Slinkys (10.5, 13.5, 17.5, 30, 42, Bender sounds that can be EHX-2020 can be calibrated to modewithbuilt-inecho,too. eliminating unwanted buzz and
52), and Mighty Slinkys (8.5, 11, combined or switched between a reference standard of 436 to TheFly3Acoustic103 intonation issues. Plenty of
15, 22w, 30, 40). Also in the as needed. The Canadian 445Hz in 1 Hz steps and offers ExtensionCabisavailable players can take reap those
product line are Ernie Ball’s company’s own JFET preamp a wide tuning range of B0-B7, separatelytoexpandto potential rewards, too; the Pro
Skinny Top Beefy Bottom brings more clarity to the plus three flat tuning modes 6-wattsorapackincluding Plus is compatible with flat,
Slinkys (10, 13, 17, 32, 44, 54), legendary circuits and a very to enable you to tune down half theFly3AcousticandPSU-1 classical and vintage 7” radius
which are available in both six nice two-in-one deal on classic, a step, a whole step mainadaptor. fretboards. It’s available in
and seven-string sets. highly-desirable fuzz machines. or a minor 3rd. (£69/FlyAcousticPack£99 black and silver options.
(£7.29 www.ernieball.co.uk) (£239 www.solidgoldfx.com) (£39 www.ehx.com) www.blackstaramps.com) (£33.50 www.daddario.com)

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STATION

92

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 REVIEW

1 WEIGHT AT A GLANCE
FENDER Our test guitar is
pretty much bang on
average for a hardtail
BODY:Alder

LEAD III Strat in our experience NECK: Maple

£599 at 7.4lbs SCALE: 648mm (25.5”)
FINGERBOARD: Pau
FINISH
Is this rebirth of a late-70s model getting 2 While the other
two finises (Olympic
ferro fingerboard,
Modern ‘C’ shape
profile
the second chance it deserves? White and Black) are
options from the FRETS: 22

G
original Lead series, PICKUPS: Alnico II
the Metallic Purple is humbucking
uitars are discontinued degree. They’re now part of all new
CONTROLS: Pickup
for all kinds of reasons Fender’s ever-growing Mexican Switching: 3-Position
NECK
– some simply don’t
connect with enough
Player Series so that means Player
series pickups and tuners, plus
3 The original lead
logo remains but the
Toggle: Position 1.
Bridge Pickup, Position
players and for others wkh prghuq F qhfn surĽoh1 2. Bridge and Neck
Player series neck
Pickups, Position 3.
it just isn’t their time... Reissues Wkh Ohdg LLL srwhqwldoo| rļhuv profile is a little thicker
Neck Pickup
can give lost gems a second life; the widest tonal options of the two than the old models
COIL-SPLIT
d fkdqfh wr Ľqg wkh idqedvh wkdw new models, and whadoyaknow; SWITCHING:
hoxghg wkhp Ľuvw wlph durxqg1 that’s what we have here; in the 1. Humbucker coil-split
Zklfk eulqjv xv khuh iru wkh Sxusoh Phwdoolf Ľqlvk Ihqghu lv when bridge or middle
encore of the Fender Lead. the keenest to showcase of pickup engaged
2. Standard
Lw zdvqġw h{dfwo| d ľdvk lq wkh the selection. 3 humbucker mode
pan design originally, though. Wkh 58180lqfk vfdoh pd| eh wkh 3. Humbucker coil-split
Surgxfhg ehwzhhq 4<:< dqg vdph dv d Vwudw exw wkh qduurzhu/ when neck pickup
4<;5/ wkh Ohdg hyhqwxdoo| pruh grxeoh0fxw erg| pdnhv engaged
encompassed three guises in the Lead III look and feel more HARDWARE:Six-saddle
93
string-through-body
its original lifetime; the single compact. According to your own
hardtailwithblock
kxpexfnhu Ohdg L zlwk vhulhv2 preferences, that could win you saddles,70svintage
parallel switch, the Lead II with round if you’ve never taken to stylemachineheads
two single-coils and a phase Leo’s original or immediately turn withFstamptuners
vzlwfk dqg Ľqdoo|/ wkh grxeoh |rx rļ1 Exw pdnh qr plvwdnh/ lwv FINISHES:Sienna
Sunburst,Olympic
White,MetallicPurple

A STRAT ALTERNATIVE THAT 2

(as reviewed)

PLAYERS MIGHT PREFER...

kxpexfnhu Ohdg LLL wkdw vxuidfhg distinct in the Fender catalogue.
lq 4<;5 zlwk frlo vhohfwru vzlwfk1 We like it a lot and the guitar feels
Erqr slfnhg xs d Ohdg LL lq X5ġv close and personal sitting down,
earlier days; Clapton’s is sitting in zlwk d edodqfh rq wkh vwuds/ wrr1
London’s Hard Rock Cafe. Even Zh olnh wkdw phwdoolf Ľqlvk> lwġv
St Vincent has a heavily-modded certainly won a fair few fans in the
model. Even so, the Lead is not WJ rĿfh dqg zrunv yhu| zhoo zlwk
h{dfwo| d xeltxlwrxv fxow prgho1 wkh eodfn2zklwh0hgjhg slfnjxdug1
Vzlwfklqj frqĽjxudwlrqv dvlgh/ Though CITES changes suggest
it’s tempting to dismiss the Lead urvhzrrg zloo eh zrunlqj lwv zd|
dv d exgjhw Vwudw dowhuqdwlyh wkdw to more models this year, the
gave way to the advent of the Player series is sticking with
Mdsdqhvh Vtxlhu vhulhv lq 4<;51 sdx ihuur iru qrz1 Lwġv xqghqldeo|
But spending time with one d oljkwhu dowhuqdwlyh/ exw wkhuhġv
reveals a distinct shape that holds not much in it in terms of feel.
its own. It is a Strat alternative Wklv lv rqh ri wkh prvw sod|deoh
that players might actually prefer. examples of the modern C neck
The Lead II and III are returning we’ve encountered – the action
Photography: Phil Barker

exw wkh L kdv ehhq ohiw rxw ri wkh lv orz dqg idvw1 Shrsoh wdon derxw
uhxqlrq1 Zkloh qrw ehlqj edgjhg wkh vshhg ri ľdw surĽohv iurp wkh
as a strict ‘reissue’, the two Leads olnhvri Ledqh}/ exw d zhoo0vhw0xs 1
iru 5353 gr vwd| dxwkhqwlf wr vrph Fender C is an addictive thing

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STA N

L tA dF d
Fender’s unlikely
comebacks

T
he Lead is not alone in
ehlqj dq rog/#vrphzkdw#
revfxuh prgho#eurxjkw#
edfn iurp wkh vkdgrz|#fruqhuv#
of guitar history. Fender has
some weird and wonderful
models away from the accepted
fodvvlfv1 Wkh odwh 93v#vlqjoh#
slfnxs Vzlqjhu +slfwxuhg#deryh#
lq lwv ruljlqdo irup,#ehlqj#wkh#
most recent revival with
a Japanese-only reissue. Before
94 wkdw/ wkh zrqghuixoo| rgg rļvhw
Meteora got a second chance
zlwk d 534; Sdudooho Xqlyhuvh
prgho iroorzhg e| odvw |hduġv
ALSO TRY...
pruh dļrugdeoh KK prgho1 Wkh PRS SE MIRA
semi-hollow Starcaster revival With a coil-split on the
85/15 ’buckers, this isa
is now on a victory lap -
close rival for price
wkh uhfhqw Vtxlhu prghov zhuh too, so it all comes
uhylhzhg lq WJ65:1 Hyhq wkh down to whether you
Y0vkdsh0jrqh0dzu| plg0;3v like the PRS Wide Thin
Katana got a Prestige model in neck profile.
53491 Exw wkhuhġv sohqw| pruh
Ihqghu jrog wr eh plqhg lq
them hills – the Performer
pxvw eh gxh d uhdssudlvdo vrrq$ PLAYER
STRATOCASTER
HSH
indeed. John Mayer claims the D#fdyhdw#zruwk#uhphpehulqj# familiar and the fresh all from an If it really must be a Strat,
slack in the strings is the key to lv#wkdw#ghvslwh#wkh#Ġehvw#ri#erwk# xqolnho|#frphedfn1#Wkh#Ohdg#LLL# why not throw another
pickup (an alnico 5
a great guitar, and there’s a sense worlds’ concept, coil-splits aren’t uhdoo|#pxvw#eh#wulhg#rxw#wr#vhh#zkdw#
single-coil) and a
ri hdvlhu zlqv iru |rxu#ehqgv#dqg# the same as the full-fat single-coil lw#rļhuv#lq#ihho#dqg#wrqh/#exw#zh# two-point trem into
yleudwr rļhuhg zlwk#wkh#hodvwlflw|# experience. The level drops a little think it feels good and plays great. the mix?
here that we love. The large heel zkhq#|rx#vsolw#khuh/#exw#vr#grhv# Udwkhu#wkdq#edgjh#wklv#dv#zruwk|#
eorfn lv ghĽqlwho| iurp#wkh#roghu# wkh#erwwrp#hqg1#Zkdw#|rx#jdlq# addition to a guitar arsenal, we
vfkrro/ exw wkh dfrxvwlf#h{shulhqfh# lv#wkuhh#pruh#vlqjoh0frlo0hvtxh# think it holds its own as a potential CORT
khuh erghv zhoo iru soxjjlqj#lq1# ľdyrxuv#Ğ#zh#hvshfldoo|#olnh#wkh# pdlq#vtxhh}h#wr#fryhu#|rxu#qhhgv1 290 FAT
Wkh wklq doghu erglhv#ri#Ihqghuv# mid position split here, a great Rob Laing If we’re talking
versatility, it’s hard to
with this scale length are typically edodqfh#ri#wkurdw|#sxqfk#wkdw#
FEATURES ignore our guitar of 2019
euljkw vrxqglqj jxlwduv#dqg#wkdw#lq# recalls the middle territory of – classy build with five
SOUND QUALITY
turn leads to a lively tonality when a Strat that’s also great for positions including coil
SUMMARY

kxpexfnhuv duh eurxjkw#lqwr#sod|1# strumming with the volume VALUE FOR MONEY splits and some
That’s here in spades from these wound down a notch. BUILD QUALITY wonderful tones.
Alnico IIs– a crisper crunch along This is an interesting mix of PLAYABILITY
with some welcome versatility. the distinct with Strat traits; the OVERALL RATING

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 T H E GA S
STATION

96

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 REVIEW

SCALLOPED

MARTIN X SERIES 1 X-BRACING

Scalloping the classic
AT A GLANCE
Martin X-brace TYPE: 14-fret

DX1E-04 £603 formula involves

shaping away wood
in the middle of the
bracing. It was used
dreadnought
electro-acoustic
TOP: HPL
BACK AND SIDES: HPL

What does Martin’s entry-level on Martin’s coveted

pre-war acoustic
NECK: Multilayered
laminate/Performing
models and one Artist C-shape with
laminate-made dreadnought add up to? advantage is to
increase bass
High-Performance
Taper profile

T
response – we FINGERBOARD:
he entry-level models the approach for some of us – in a certainly detected Richlite
more plugged in SCALE: Scale Length:
of big guitar brands good way. Fingerpicking suddenly
645mm (25.4”)
aren’t just important feels friendlier. Digging in doesn’t HIGH
for players, they’re id}h#wkh#G[4H>#lw#vhhpv#frqĽghqw# 2 PRESSURE
LAMINATE
FRETS: 20
TUNERS: Martin
enclosed chrome
absolutely vital for the in its balance across the spectrum.
The top is spruce NUT: White Corian
brand’s fortunes. As guitarists we Honestly, we were getting a bit
patterned and the BRIDGE: Richlite
have our loyalties, but they have tired of seeing Fishman’s Sonitone back and sides are ELECTRICS: Fishman
to be earned. So if we have a good system with Sonicore piezo on so mahogany patterned; MX
experience with a guitar early on, many electros in this price range. both are high pressure FINISH: Satin
we may well trade up in time and It’s now called the MX here and laminate are have a CASE: Soft gigbag
harder feel than many LEFT-HANDED
stick with that brand for years. the sensors and processing have acoustics we’ve OPTIONS: Yes
Conversely, if we have a negative reportedly been upgraded. We encountered. But as CONTACT:
experience, it might inform our fdq#ghĽqlwho|#khdu#lw#lq#d#krwwhu# a result it feels martinguitar.com
opinion of that guitar company low-end that adds welcome study, too
for a long time. warmth. Your control to dial this
Martin’s entry level X1 Series back on the guitar if required is 97
prghov#uhsuhvhqw#d#vljqlĽfdqw# limited because the two controls
investment, there’s no way inside the soundhole are volume
around it. And the Martin name dqg#d#wuheoh#uroo0rļ#fdoohg#Wrqh1#
carries expectations earned over This guitar raises the question,
generations. But their build is how much do materials matter?

2
IT RAISES THE QUESTION,
DO MATERIALS MATTER?
vljqlĽfdqwo| glļhuhqw iurp wkh Perhaps it depends who is making
traditional idea of a Martin, even the guitar. This is a very playable
though 2020 brings changes to it. guitar with a beautiful balance and
The DX1E-04’s top and sides are response to lightness of touch.
high pressure laminate. For some It’s made of laminate and plywood
players this will spell two things; woods. We still don’t like the
cheap and not ‘real wood’. The striped look of the ‘stratabond’
1
stock argument will be this choice multilayered wood neck and the
is more resistant to temperature G[4H037#Ľqgv#lwvhoi#lq#d#yhu|#
changes that can play havoc competitive end of the market,
with acoustic guitar. It’s also but there’s something reassuring
sustainable material. More to be found. Martin know how
importantly, how does it play? wr#frqvwuxfw#frqvlvwhqwo|#Ľqh#
Very well, actually. We don’t playing and sounding guitars.
use the word ‘silky’ lightly, but Rob Laing
this really is. Low action and fast
FEATURES
Ğ lw#ihhov#txlwh#hļruwohvv#wr#sod|#iru#
SOUND QUALITY
a dreadnought. What it lacks in
SUMMARY
Photography: Phil Barker

boomy projection and mid punch VALUE FOR MONEY

it makes up for in a lovely, BUILD QUALITY
balanced response to a more PLAYABILITY
delicate touch. It will change OVERALL RATING

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STATION

98

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 REVIEW

1
HARLEY BENTON SC-550 £222 AT A GLANCE
BODY: Mahogany with

A great-sounding budget electric arched AAAA maple

top
NECK: Mahogany

that’s a single-cut above SCALE: 628mm

(24.72”)

W
FINGERBOARD: Jatoba
FRETS: 22
hoever Harley HEADSTOCK
Benton is, he
Wkh#mdwred#Ľqjhuerdug/#zkloh#
almost black in appearance, 1 Vintage-style
tuners are present
PICKUPS: 2x Roswell
LAF Alnico-5
certainly keeps possesses that familiar soft humbuckers
and correct, and that CONTROLS: 2x volume,
himself busy. The urvhzrrg#ihho/#dqg#zkhq# diamond is just about 2x tone, 3-way pickup
hoxvlyh#Ľjxuh#ehklqg# frpelqhg#zlwk#wkh#frpiruwdeoh# different enough to selector
German über-retailer Thomann’s G0vkdsh#qhfn/#sxwv#|rx#Ľupo|#lq# keep things distinct HARDWARE: DLX
rzq0eudqg#jhdu#kdv#ohqw#klv#qdph# fodvvlf#vlqjoh0fxw#sod|lqj#whuulwru|1# tune-o-matic bridge,
NECK HEEL
wr#ryhu#4/833#surgxfwv#dw#wkh#wlph#
ri#zulwlqj/#udqjlqj#iurp#fdsrv#wr#
Wkh#idfwru|0Ľwwhg#31343#GġDggdulr#
[O#vwulqjv#jlyh#d#pruh#urexvw#
2 This angled take
on the classic LP join
Wilkinson tuners
LEFT-HANDED: Yes
FINISH: Faded
shgdoerdug#srzhu#vxssolhv#dqg# sod|lqj#uhvsrqvh#wkdw#pdnh#wkh# improves what would Tobacco Flame,
grxeoh0qhfn#hohfwulfv1#Lq#uhfhqw# jxlwdu#ihho#pruh#h{shqvlyh/#wrr# already be excellent Paradise Amber Flame,
upper-fret access Black Cherry Flame,
|hduv/#Khuu#Ehqwrq#kdv#vwhsshg# Ğ#sduwlfxoduo|#frpsduhg#zlwk#
xs#klv#jdph#zlwk#wkh#frpsdq|ġv# 571:8Ĥ0vfdoh#vlqjoh0fxwv#vwuxqj#xs# Desert Flame Burst
TOP
hohfwulf#jxlwduv/#rļhulqj#wkh#nlqg#
ri#vshf#|rxġg#h{shfw#wr#vhh#rq#
with a-little-too-slinky 0.009s.
Wkdw#sulfh#wdj0exvwlqj#
3 Look at the flame
on that! This has to
(reviewed)
CASE: Not included
CONTACT: Thomann
prghov#dw#grxeoh#ru#hyhq#wulsoh# performance translates to the rank among the thomannmusic.com
best-looking guitars
wkh#sulfh#Ğ#dqg#wkdwġv#fhuwdlqo|# Urvzhoo#slfnxsv/#wrr1#Wkh|#rļhu#d# at this price point
the case with the SC-550 that’s plg0wr0kljk#rxwsxw#wkdwġv#whdphg#
zlqjhg#lwv#zd|#dfurvv#Hxursh# zlwk#sohqw|#ri#suhvhqfh#dqg#wrxfk# 99
for review. sensitivity, which means they
Wkhuh#duh#qr#sul}hv#iru#jxhvvlqj# kdqgoh#ryhugulyh#zlwk#jxvwr1#Wkdw#
wkh#lqvsludwlrq#ehklqg#wklv# kljk0hqg#vsdunoh#phdqv#wkh#qhfn#
pdgh0lq0Ylhwqdp#vlqjoh0fxw/#exw# kxpexfnhu#lvqġw#ryhuo|#gdun/#zkloh#
wkhuhġv qr ghq|lqj lwġv d orrnhu1 vwloo srvvhvvlqj sohqw| ri pxvfoh1# 2

THE PICKUPS ARE A DIRECT

ROUTE TO CLASSIC ROCK CITY
There are some important Wkh eulgjh/ phdqzkloh/ lv d gluhfw#
glvwlqfwlrqv#ehwzhhq#wkh#VF0883# urxwh#wr#Fodvvlf#Urfn#Flw|/#rļhulqj#
dqg#lwv#pxvh/#krzhyhu=#wkdw# hqrxjk#sxqfk#iru#doo#wkh#Sdjh2
cutaway is more Florentine than Shuu|2Vodvk#ulļdjh#|rx#fdq#kdqgoh1#
Yhqhwldq/#dqg#wkhuhġv#dq#dqjohg# There are some seriously funky
qhfn#khho#wr#surylgh#ehwwhu# plggoh0srvlwlrq#wrqhv/#wrr1
xsshu0iuhw#dffhvv#0#rk/#dqg# Wkh#exgjhw0jxlwdu#pdunhw#lv#
hqrxjk#dhvwkhwlf#wzhdnv#wr#wkh# dzdvk#zlwk#dffrpsolvkhg#hohfwulfv# 3
khdgvwrfn#dqg#lqod|#ghvljqv#wr# wkhvh#gd|v/#exw#wklv#vlqjoh0fxw#
keep Gibson’s lawyers at bay. kdv#wkh#glvwlqfw#dgydqwdjh#ri#
Rxu#rqo|#txleeoh#zlwk#wkh#exlog# Thomann’s keen attention to
lv#wkdw#wkh#doljqphqw#ri#wkh#G#dqg# ghwdlo/#dv#zhoo#dv#vrph#vwhoodu#
J0vwulqj#pdfklqhkhdgv#lv#voljkwo|# wrqhv1#\rxġuh#jxdudqwhhg#
rļ/#exw#wkdwġv#rqo|#ylvleoh#rq#wkh# d#jrrg#wlph#zlwk#wklv#Kduoh|1
uhdu#ri#wkh#khdgvwrfn#Ğ#dqg#lwġv# Michael Astley-Brown
not like we haven’t seen that
FEATURES
from other manufacturers
SOUND QUALITY
at all price points.
SUMMARY
Photography: Phil Barker

Li#vrphrqh#wdshg#xs#wkh# VALUE FOR MONEY

khdgvwrfn#orjr#dqg#kdqghg#|rx# BUILD QUALITY
wkh#VF0883/#|rx#zrxog#kdyh#qr# PLAYABILITY
lghd#lw#zdv#d#exgjhw#jxlwdu1# OVERALL RATING

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STATION

100

Words Jonathan Horsley / Photography Phil Barker

GRETSCH JETS
ROUND-UP
Blast off to Kicksville with two baritone single-cuts and a neat double-cut
that present classic Gretsch tones at pocket-friendly Electromatic prices...
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 THE TG TEST

101

M
aybe it’s because Gretsch came of age at accommodate low tunings such as baritone (B E A D F# B) or
a time when rock ’n’ roll was the big bang D#vwdqgdug#+D#G#J#F#H#D,#zlwkrxw#wkh#vwulqjv#jrlqj#ľrss|/#|hw#lw#
moment for youth culture that it will always looks and feels uncannily like a super-sized Duo Jet. Then there’s
be a heritage brand. Maybe it’s simply a case wkh#J855#Grxeoh#Mhw/#Grxeoh#Mhw#dv#lq#grxeoh0fxw/#wkdwġv#Ľqlvkhg#lq#
of the classics never going out of style. a deep red Walnut Stain. The Electromatic versions of today might
But for all the revisions it has made to its have subtle changes in build – they are built in China, there are
line-up over the years since the Gretsch newly-designed pickups – but the fundamentals remain
plant in Brooklyn, New York was a mid-50s xqfkdqjhg/#zlwk#d#fkdpehuhg#pdkrjdq|#erg|#rļhulqj#wkdw#
epicentre of cool, there’s something unchanged about its guitars, lightweight Gretsch experience. Whether in baritone tunings
as though they were unearthed in Grandpa’s attic. Take this or at concert pitch, these are all designed to twang. It’s just
month’s Jets. We’ll start with the baritones, the G5260 and a question of which register you want to park yourself in.
G5260T, the T for tremolo. These have a 29.75-inch scale to Let’s take a look and see which one is right for you.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STATION

BARITONE £659
That twang is back in style

AT A GLANCE
BODY:Mahogany
NECK:Maple,bolt-on
FINGERBOARD:
Indianlaurel
102 FRETS:22
SCALE:29.75”
PICKUPS:2xGretsch
Mini-humbuckers
CONTROLS:1x
volume,1xtone
SWITCHING:
3-PositionToggle
HARDWARE:

B
Bigsby-licensedB50
Vibrato,anchored
aritones might have enjoyed ‘twang’, used a Danelectro Longhorn electronics are simple. There are two Adjusto-Maticbridge,
a surge in popularity in recent 4623 liberally – most famously on mini-humbuckers, G-Arrow master chrome
years with metal players 1959’s The Twang’s The Thang – volume and tone controls, and FINISH:Black[as
reviewed],Airline
looking to put them into the and his signature tone was faithfully a three-way pickup selector. Clean, dry
Silver
service of high-end, low-end transposed to the longer 30-inch scale tones reveal a baseline piano-esque
CONTACT:0845305
chug but they are nothing new, and lqvwuxphqw1#\rxġoo#Ľqg#wkh#vdph# bass tone, ideal for sitting under the 1122/GretschGuitars
were originally designed for less experience with the G5260T. It has hurdy-gurdy clang of a modern beat .com
musically-destructive applications. a solid mahogany body, a big ol’ slab combo, but dial in some spring reverb,
Hitherto their destructive potential with a similarly-scaled maple neck some tremolo and slapback delay and
would have been restricted to with a four-bolt heel, and once you you’re back in the orbit of 50s rock ’n’
demarcation disputes with musicians’ catch your breath after hearing the roll tones. Here, the G5260T truly
unions; are you a bassist or a guitarist? low sixth-string – here tuned to A – excels, with the Bigsby-licensed
Well, using this you are kind of both. uxpeoh#iru#wkh#Ľuvw#wlph/#|rxġoo#eh# B50 vibrato on hand to provide a little
Slfnlqj#xs#wkh#J8593W/#wkdwġv#wkh#Ľuvw# struck by how much of that Gretsch wobble to those oh-so-dreamy chords.
thing that hits you. It’s a six-string, elastic growl is in its tone. The musical If you liked Vinnie Bell’s playing on the
the geometry seems in proportion, possibilities soon stretch out in front Twin Peaks soundtrack then the G5260T
idploldu/#dqg#wkdw#qhfn#surĽoh/# of you. As Gretsch guitars go, the is a fun entry-point into that world.
a shallow C, is never going to fool
you in a blind taste test with a P-Bass,
exw#lw#vxuh#grhv#ihho#olnh#d#glļhuhqw#
instrument; like a bass. This is how
“THE GEOMETRY SEEMS IN PROPORTION,
baritones were originally intended.
Duane Eddy, a man whose tone should
FAMILIAR, BUT IT SURE DOES FEEL LIKE
be listed in all good dictionaries under A DIFFERENT INSTRUMENT; LIKE A BASS”
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 THE TG TEST

BARITONE £569
Let’s get ready to rumble…

AT A GLANCE
BODY:Mahogany 103
NECK:Maple,bolt-on
FINGERBOARD:
Indianlaurel
FRETS:22
SCALE:29.75”
PICKUPS:2xGretsch
Mini-humbuckers
CONTROLS:1x
volume,1xtone

F
SWITCHING:
or all intents and purposes, the sibling, but there’s something about 3-PositionToggle
G5260 is pretty much the same its tone, the sharper attack, and the HARDWARE:
guitar as the G5260T. It, too, has promise of a fuss-free experience – the V-Stoptail,anchored
Adjusto-Maticbridge,
the solid mahogany body and Eljve|#fdq#eh#d#Ľggoh#Ğ#wkdw#pdnh#wklv#
chrome
the bolt-on maple neck. The a baritone for sitting in the pocket, FINISH:LondonGrey
scale is a similarly generous 29.75 partnering up with the drummer as the [asreviewed],Jade
lqfkhv1#Wkh#Ľqjhuerdug#lv#odxuho#Ğ#dv# rhythm section, or digging in for some GreyMetallic,Dark experience, and thanks to its skinny-ish
is it is across the 2020 Electromatic super-aggressive low-end playing. CherryMetallic neck, the G5260 isn’t too intimidating.
models – and you’ve got the same The factory settings say rock ’n’ roll, CONTACT:0845305 If your amp can handle it – and this
1122/GretschGuitars
electronics, with a pair of gnarly but the clarity and heat of those .com
will reward those who invested in
proprietary mini ’buckers with master mini-humbuckers makes the G5260 a combo with a 12-inch speaker – the
volume and tone and a three-way suitable for all kinds of mischief. Clean, G5260 has a lot of range for playing
selector for dialling in the tones. it’s ideal for playing country basslines. distorted. You can imagine some
The anchored Adjusto-Matic bridge is With a splash of spring reverb you can alt-metal acts getting a lot of high-
lghqwlfdo1#Vr#zk|#grhv#lw#ihho#glļhuhqwB# put a new spin on your surf rock playing. volume joy from the G5260 and a fuzz
Why the subtle variation in sound? Well, Indeed, approaching the baritone from box. The question is whether drowning
it sure isn’t the block inlay. Maybe it’s to a regular six-string is a transformative out its natural twang is worth it.
gr#zlwk#wkh#Y0Vwrswdlo/#zklfk#rļhuv#
a solid zero-wobble anchor point for
your strings, and the imagination, too.
Sometimes there is no getting by the
“IDEAL FOR COUNTRY BASSLINES, A NEW SPIN ON
power of suggestion. The G5260 could
be deployed in almost all the same
YOUR SURF ROCK PLAYING OR EVEN HIGH-VOLUME
situations as its Bigbsy-equipped ALT-METAL WHEN PAIRED WITH A FUZZ BOX”
APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR
 DOUBLE JET
Built for the long haul
£495

AT A GLANCE
BODY:Chambered
mahoganywith
mapletop
NECK:Mahogany,
104 set
FINGERBOARD:
Indianlaurel
FRETS:22
SCALE:24.6”
PICKUPS:2x
GretschBlackTop
Broad’Tron
CONTROLS:1x

I
mastervolumewith
treblebleedcircuit,
f your eyes are watering and 1xmastertone, and resonant. When it was unveiled pickups are wound quite hot as
fretting hand is in paroxysms of 2xvolume at NAMM 2020, the main talking Gretsch pickups go, but retain the
psychosomatic tendonitis at the SWITCHING: point was the newly-designed Black sort of balance you would expect.
3-PositionToggle
mere prospect of playing your Top Broad’Tron pickups. These are The bridge pickup has plenty of trebly
HARDWARE:
jr0wr#urfn#dqg#eoxhv#ulļv#rq#wkh# V-Stoptail,anchored controlled by a master volume control attitude. Taking the tone control back
wide-open spaces of a 29.75-inch scale Adjusto-Matic mounted on the treble-side horn, with d#olwwoh#dqg#lw#urxqgv#rļ#vrph#ri#wkdw#
guitar, then worry not, the G5222 bridge,chrome individual volume controls for each meanness quite nicely. Select both
Double Jet returns us to familiar FINISH:Walnut pickup and a master tone control. pickups together and kick on some
territory. In fact, after adjusting Stain[asreviewed], Gretsch’s four-knob setup might ryhugulyh#ru#ix}}#dqg#|rxġoo#Ľqg#wkh#
JadeGreyMetallic,
your style to get the most out of the LondonGrey,Aged seem a little complicated, but it makes Double Jet in classic rock territory
baritones, the Double Jet feels like Natural perfect sense when interacting with where there’s no shortage of midrange
a toy. Its neck has got a fairly skinny CONTACT:0845 d#sxvkhg#ydoyh#dpsolĽhu1#Lw#jlyhv#|rx# sustain. The neck pickup rounds out
surĽoh#Ğ#d#ģwklq#X/Ĥ#vd|v#Juhwvfk#Ğ# 3051122/ total control over the guitar’s tone, the tone without killing the harmonics.
that welcomes all styles, with GretschGuitars.com with the master volume’s treble It’s seriously addictive. But then
a short-ish 24.6-inch scale and bleed circuit allowing you to roll |rxġoo#kdyh#wr#zhdq#|rxuvhoi#rļ#
d#ľdw0ihholqj#450lqfk#iuhwerdug#zlwk# back the volume without losing any that bridge pickup to get there.
22 medium-jumbo frets. This all adds brightness. The Black Top Broad’Tron That won’t be easy.
up to feel reassuringly contemporary,
despite being on a guitar that’s all
derxw#Ľqglqj#wrqhv#wkdw#suhgdwh#wkh#
colour TV. The neck is glued to the
“FEELS REASSURINGLY CONTEMPORARY
body. Channeling classic Jets of yore,
it has a chambered mahogany body
FOR A GUITAR THAT’S ALL ABOUT FINDING
with maple top that keeps it light TONES THAT PREDATE THE COLOUR TV”
TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020
 T H E GA S
STATION

FINAL VERDICT
Will you succumb to your most bass impulses?

T
here’s no question that the those equipped on your regular standard- ’n’ roll machine. The V-Stoptail looks great
Jet Baritones are specialist tuned six-strings, it turned an instrument rq lw1 Wkh Zdoqxw Vwdlq Ľqlvk lv pruh uhg
instruments, but at the Electromatic that was built for the rhythm section into than walnut and incredible. The Black Top
price-point they sure are tempting vrphwklqj fdsdeoh ri wdnlqj wkh ohdg1 Xvlqj Broad’Trons are just about hot enough. We
for anyone looking to add a baritone this with tape echo and experimenting with would have preferred a fatter neck but that
to their game. There was little fuss with either reverb, it really does become transcendent. might be an unpopular opinion. Nonetheless,
baritone. Intonation and tuning was solid. That said, there’s something about the the Double Jet is so accessible, so easy to get
Once you get used to the sound fretboard simplicity of the G5260. The V-Stoptail is a tune out of. Rock, country, blues? All the
geography and the weight, they are eminently super tidy. If you don’t think you’ll use the above and more. Love AC/DC but can’t spring
playable instruments. The Bigsby-licensed Bigsby much, save some money on the for a Malcolm Signature? Well, the Double Jet
B50 vibrato is stable, and although it is G5260. The Double Jet, meanwhile, is lv dydlodeoh lq Djhg Qdwxudo Ľqlvk/ dqg wkh
qdwxudoo| d orw vwlļhu/ zlwk ohvv jlyh wkdq a no-brainer if you are looking for a rock eulgjh slfnxs khuh vd|v ģEx| ph qrz1Ĥ

G5260T JET G5260 JET G5222

BARITONE BARITONE DOUBLE JET

105
BEST FOR BEST FOR BEST FOR ROCK
TWANG SIX-STRING ’N’ ROLL
BASS

FEATURES FEATURES FEATURES

SOUND QUALITY SOUND QUALITY SOUND QUALITY
SUMMARY

SUMMARY

SUMMARY

VALUE FOR MONEY VALUE FOR MONEY VALUE FOR MONEY

BUILD QUALITY BUILD QUALITY BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY PLAYABILITY PLAYABILITY
OVERALL RATING OVERALL RATING OVERALL RATING

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 T H E GA S
STATION

106

FENDER SMOLDER ACOUSTIC OVERDRIVE £129

The Big F’s ever-growing effects family births its first acoustic stompbox

W
hen Fender launched Olnh#wkh#uhvw#ri#wkh#olqh/# wkh#gulyh#gldoohg#uljkw#grzq1#
d#eudqg#qhz#hļhfwv# wkh#Vproghu#kdv#d#kdug|#fkdvvlv/# Zkloh#wkh#jdlq#wdnhv#|rx#iurp# AT A GLANCE
olqh#zlwk#vl{#shgdov# zlwk#vlpsoh#dqg#frqwhpsrudu|# d#errvw#wr#Ľhufhu#whuulwru|/#wkh#HT#
TYPE:Acoustic
dw#wkh#ehjlqqlqj#ri# w|shidfh#pdnlqj#hyhu|wklqj#fohdu1# hļhfwlyho|#vkdshv#lw#wr#ehfrph# overdrive pedal
534;/#ihz#frxog#kdyh# Phwdoolf#eurzq#lv#yhu|#pxfk#dq# d#yhuvdwloh/#rujdqlf#wrro1# CONTROLS: Tone,
suhglfwhg#mxvw#krz#hqwkxvldvwlfdoo|# Ġxqsoxjjhgġ#yleh#wrr/#uljkwB# Wkh#Wrqh#gldov#rxw#dq|# Treble, Bass, Pickup
Comp, Level, Blend,
lw#zrxog#hpeudfh#h{sdqglqj#lw># Wkh#rswlrqdo#OHGV#rq#wkh#frqwurov# xqzdqwhg#vl}}oh#iurp#|rxu#gulyh#
Drive, LEDs off and on
wkhuhġv#qrz#55#shgdov#dqg# duh#d#zlq#iru#xv#wrr#iru#gdun#vwdjhv# wrqh#+zh#glgqġw#jhw#pxfk#dq|zd|/# BYPASS: True bypass
frxqwlqj#lq#d#frqvlvwhqwo|# Ğ#dqg#fdq#eh#vzlwfk#rļ#dw#wkh#edfn1# wrs#eh#idlu,#dqg#wkh#Eohqg#lv#wkh# SOCKETS: Guitar in,
lpsuhvvlyh#udqjh#wkdw#eulqjv# Ihqghuġv#hļhfwv#uhľhfw# uhdo#nh|#frqwuro#khuh>#lw#edodqfhv# guitar out (the pedal
lqqrydwlyh#ihdwxuhv#wr#wkh#wdeoh1# frqvlghudwlrq#lq#zkdw#lwv#qhz# ryhugulyhq#dqg#sxuh#slh}r#vljqdo1# has default inbuilt
cabinet simulation
Wklv#lv#Ihqghuġv#Ľuvw#dfrxvwlf# flufxlwv#fdq#rļhu#wkdw#rwkhuv#rq# Wkh#frpelqdwlrq#lv#d#kljko|#
when plugged into
shgdo#lq#wkh#idplo|/#dqg#udwkhu# wkh#pdunhw#pd|#qrw1#Wklv#jrhv# hglwdeoh/#yhuvdwloh#dqg#yhu|# an amp or PA)
wkdq#d#pruh#xeltxlwrxv#uhyhue/# ixuwkhu#wkdq#|rx#pd|#suhvxph># pxvlfdo#dfrxvwlf#shgdo#wkdwġv# POWER: DC 9V
frpsuhvvlrq#ru#ghod|/#wkh|ġyh# wkh#Slfnxs#Frpshqvdwlrq#frqwuro# dqrwkhu#zlq#iru#wkh#vhulhv1 CONTACT: Fender EMEA
Fender.com
jrqh#iru#d#ghglfdwhg#ryhugulyh1# hļhfwlyho|#vprrwkv#rxw#rxu#slh}r# Rob Laing
Zhġuh#lqwuljxhg$#Lw#wxuqv#rxw# hohfwur#dfrxvwlfġv#wrqh#wr#suryh#
FEATURES
zh duh uljkw wr eh1 d xvhixo wrro lq lwvhoi hyhq#zlwk#
SOUND QUALITY
SUMMARY

HIGHLY EDITABLE, VALUE FOR MONEY

BUILD QUALITY
USABILITY
VERSATILE AND MUSICAL OVERALL RATING

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 T H E GA S
STATION

FIX YOUR GUITAR

108

INSTALLING A NEW
3-WAY SWITCH
Our guide to soldering in a different brand switch without ruining the circuit
Words: Jack Ellis

A
ny moving electrical than expected to keep an eye
part on your guitar is on too. To boot, we’ll show you
can wear out. Tone how to ID pickup colour codes
pots and jack sockets if you have an unusual pickup.
are especially prone. And it’ll The switch we’ll be, erm,
come as no surprise that switching is an Oak Grigsby
switches can become crackly 3-way item which will replace
or fail mechanically too - just the bust no-namer example.
like this month’s repair job. The Oak Grisgby one is the
The old switch doesn’t have more common Fender style
MEET YOUR EXPERT
any ‘clicks’, so it won’t stay in terminal layout and we’ll Jack Ellis runs Jack’s
position, and, as such, it’s need to use both sides of it. Instrument Services
earned itself a ticket to the We like these switches because
WHAT YOU NEED Wirecutters
Wirestrippers
Pickupcolour from his workshop in
40Watt code(optional) Manchester. In his career
odqgĽoo1#Khuhġv#wkh#wklqj# you can see the workings of Solderingiron Handypoker/pick Digital Multimeter he has worked on
Maskingtape (optional) thousands of instruments,
though; the new switch has them, so, if there’s ever any 60/40Solder
from simple fixes and
Soldering Wiring Diagram
d#glļhuhqw#slq#od|rxw#zklfk# confusion as to which (either drawn or SKILL LEVEL upgrades, to complete
helpinghand rebuilds. For more info, see:
confuses things a little; there’s terminals are getting downloaded) Medium
New 3-way switch www.jacksinstrument
a more complicated circuit connected, you can just look! services.co.uk

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 T H E GA S
STATION

Whip off the back plate cover – this will get you access to the electronics cavity Inside, we have a surprise component we weren’t expecting – a push-pull pot.
1 where all its guts are hiding. A PH1 screwdriver will do just fine. Our repair here is for
a Kramer Vanguard guitar but the principles presented here are fairly general.
2 So, we have a master volume, a master tone, 3-way switch and a coil-split function.
The push-pull pot has two functions: to turn down the treble (tone), and to cut half of
each pickup out – coil-splitting both pickups – by pulling the switch up.

109

Take a snap of the old wiring just in case anything goes wrong. We’re aiming to Oh look, a diagram! We drew this to lay out the whole wiring diagram, including all
3 change just the pickup switch only but chances are a wire may fall off too,
especially on an old guitar. Even better would be to draw the wiring diagram.
4 the details for the coil-split design and also to put in the new switch. There are
essentially two switch designs: one with the solder terminals all in a line and another
www.guitarelectronics.com hosts loads of accurate diagrams. offset style, which is what Fender tend to use. This diagram converts one style to the
other to save head-scratching!

Still more theory before we get to the practical exam! Each manufacturer has their Each Quad Rails pickup has four coils connected in series for a whopping output.
5 own cabling colours, Googling ‘pickup colour codes’ will be immensely helpful to
learn which wire is what. In our Kramer here, we have the brilliantly daft Quad Rail
6 We figured out the colour code for ours by getting a ~6k ohm reading from
red+white and the same from green+black using a multimeter. The bare wire is always
pickups. You can use the old locations of the wires to skip this step if you’re confident. earth. Here, the green+white is the coil junction that gets sent to the push-pull pot.

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 FIX YOUR GUITAR

Whip out the connections from the old switch by unsoldering them. You could Top Tip! Tape wires out the way, when you’re re-soldering the new switch back
7 snip them with wire cutters, but then you’d have to strip the wires again, and
sometimes there’s not enough wire left. Our switch had ground wires going to the
8 in the last thing you want is to melt a rogue wire. Unscrew the old switch from
the front of the guitar using a PH2 Screw driver, we chose to reuse the old screws
casing of the old switch, we’ll move them to connect to the body of the pots instead. as they suited our colour scheme!

110

We’re preparing the new offset terminal-style switch by tinning each terminal. Following the diagram, we’ve added some jumper wires onto the switch – this is
9 This will free up a hand when we reattach the wires later, where all we have to
do is heat the joint up and melt in the wire, and not have to supply solder at the same
10 best done safely clamped in a soldering helper before it goes back into the
control cavity. The bare jumper wires are where the pickup ‘hot’ wires will attach,
time! Use a solder helper to hold the switch in place but be careful not to damage it. one pickup per side. The red wire connects the two common terminals together.

Go for it, complete the circuit adding your hot wires and output wire. In our Time to test! Plug in, turn up the volume and tap test by tapping a screwdriver
11 case, we had to rehome two ground wires that used to be attached to the
switch body; we sent them to another earth connection on the rear of the pots. Mount
12 onto your pickup. You should hear the pickups working through your amp. If
your pickups are the wrong way round compared to the switch then swap the two hot
the new switch on your guitar with the two bolts to the front. wires around. If you made a mistake, go back to the diagram and see what it could be.

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 Subscribe to
Total Guitar and get a
G7th PERFORMANCE 3
FREE CAPO HURRY!
GIFT worth £40 OFFER ENDS
WORTH 30/6/20
£40

112

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020

 SUBSCRIBE TO TG!

Print & Digital Bundle

For just £27 every 6 months
Save 58%

113

Fitted with Adaptive Radius

dius The Unique Tension Control
Con system gives near-infinite
Technology, the Performance 3 adjustment AND an easy, one-handed action.
will actively adapt to match the Inert silicone wrap around rubber eliminates
curvature over the strings in EVERY deadening of tone and avoids dangerous metal
position, on ANY guitar neck. This to wood contact on your guitar neck.
means the pressure is always evenly Performance 3 is perfect for both acoustic and
distributed over the fingerboard, electric steel string guitars and comes complete
giving unrivalled tuning stability. with a Free Lifetime Warranty.

ORDERING IS EASY. GO ONLINE AT

www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/g7th20
FOR CALLS (0344 848 2852) QUOTE ‘G7TH20’
*TERMS AND CONDITIONS: *Gift is only available for new UK subscribers. Please allow up to 60 days for the delivery of your gift. Gift is subject to availability. In the event of stocks being exhausted we reserve the right
to replace with items of similar value. Prices and savings are compared to buying full priced print & digital issues. You can write to us or call us to cancel your subscription within 14 days of purchase. Payment is
non-refundable after the 14 day cancellation period unless exceptional circumstances apply. Prices correct at point of print and subject to change. UK calls will cost the same as other standard fixed line numbers
(starting 01 or 02) or are included as part of any inclusive or free minutes allowances (if offered by your phone tariff). For full terms and conditions please visit: bit.ly/magtandc. Offer ends 30/06/2020

APRIL 2020 TOTAL GUITAR

 THE PLAYLIST

Sometimes there will be a song with

The Playlist
d#fkdoohqjlqj#vror#dqg#Lġoo#eh#olnh#
ĠGdpq/L#zlvk#wklv#zdv#odwhu#lq#wkh#vhw$ġ

The best tone on

record…
1984 – Van Halen
Volbeat’s axeman on why there are no guilty pleasures, L#wklqn#iru#ph#rqh#
of the best tones
and how Eddie Van Halen has eluded him ever is Eddie Van
Halen on Van Halen

T
19841#L#wklqn#rq#wkdw#
he Riff that made me want to record his sound
play… Back In Black – AC/DC zdv#wrwdoo|#uhdolvhg#dqg#irfxvvhg1#L#phdq/#lw#
There are a few, it’s kind of hard for is on every record! But that one in particular
me to remember back then as kid is really spot-on, it’s amazing.
but there are three! AC/DC’s Back In
Black#lv#rqh#wkdw#uhdoo|#vwdqgv#rxw1#Wkdw#ulļ#lv# The solo that I wish I’d written…
just phenomenal, there’s something about Fool In The Rain – Led Zeppelin
the way they recorded it too - Mutt Lange is Maybe Jimmy Page’s solo from Fool In The
a genius, he’s one of my idols as a producer. Rain1#Wkdwġv#d#juhdw#vror1#Li#qrw/#wkhq#Hgglh#
There’s just something very special about Van Halen on Michael Jackson’s Beat It is
wkh#zd|#wkdw#ulļ#vrxqgv1 one of my favourites of all time. And only
Another of my favourites, and one of the rqh#wdnh$#Dfwxdoo|/#L#wklqn#wkh|#glg#wzr#
khdylhvw#ulļv#ri#doo#wlph/#Immigrant Song by dqg#wkhq#nhsw#wkh#Ľuvw#rqh1#Vwhyh#Oxndwkhu#
Led Zeppelin. Still to this day it gets me all is on there too and he’s another favourite
Ľuhg#xs#zkhq#L#khdu#lw1#Wkhq#dq|wklqj#e|# of mine!
Van Halen! He’s my all-time favourite
jxlwdu#sod|hu/#edfn#zkhq#L#zdv#d#nlg#lw# My guilty pleasure…
114 was those three bands - AC/DC, Led You Should Be Sad – Halsey
Zeppelin and Van Halen that really L#olvwhq#wr#doo#nlqgv#ri#vwxļ#pdq/#iurp#
put me on this path! h{wuhph#phwdo#wr#srs#pxvlf#vr#Lġp#qrw#
hpeduudvvhg$#Lwġv#doo#pxvlf#dqg#L#dssuhfldwh#
The riff I want to be doo#ri#lw1#L#olnh#wkh#qhz#Kdovh|#vrqj#L#khdug#
remembered for the other day [You Should Be Sad`111#Lwġv#ixqq|/#
L#grqġw#nqrz#pdq$#Wkdwġv# Lġyh#ehhq#lq#wkh#vwxglr#surgxflqj#wklv#edqg#
d#kdug#txhvwlrq111#Lġp#zhlug/#Lġp# called Like Machines, doing a couple of
ghĽqlwho|#d#shuihfwlrqlvw#dqg#hyhq# tracks. We were dialling in tones and we
vwxļ#wkdw#Lġyh#grqh#ryhu#wkh#|hduv# found this really cool tone, drenched in
Lġp#dozd|v#wklqnlqj#ĠRk#pdq/# reverb, a little bit fuzzy and heavy.
L#frxog#kdyh#grqh#wkdw#ehwwhuġ# Zkhq#L#khdug#wkdw#qhz#Kdovh|#vrqj#
ru#ĠL#frxog#kdyh#sod|hg#wkdw# there’s a sound in the middle of it
glļhuhqwo|ġ1#Vr#lwġv#krqhvwo|# wkdwġv#nlqg#ri#vlplodu1#L#zdv#olnh#ĠZrz/#
hard for me to even say. this is an amazing guitar sound!’

The riff that will If I could jam on a song with

destroy the crowd… one player…
For us (and any band really) Hgglh#Ydq#Kdohq1#Lġyh#qhyhu#phw#klp/#
we get excited about the new Lġp#qhz#wr#wkh#Ihqghu2Mdfnvrq#idplo|#exw#
material. A band like Volbeat, Lġyh#qhyhu#phw#klp1#\hduv#djr/#L#zdv#grlqj#
ru#hyhq#zkhq#L#zdv#lq# Wkh#Gdpqhg#Wklqjv#zlwk#Vfrww#Ldq#dqg#
Anthrax, there’s these classic those guys. We were supposed to play the
staples that have to be in the set Soundwave festival in Australia and Van
and you have to play them every Kdohq#zhuh#khdgolqlqj#vr#L#zdv#krslqj#wr#
night. And that’s awesome, but as meet him then, but that [got cancelled]
a band we’re always excited about playing vr#L#qhyhu#hqghg#xs#phhwlqj#klp1#
new songs. We have a new album out called
Rewind, Replay, Rebound and all the songs The song I’m most proud of...
on that record go over really good live. Lġp#uhdoo|#surxg#ri#wkh#vwxļ#rq#wkh#qhz#
Photo: Brittany Bowman

doexp1#L#ihho#olnh#Lġp#dozd|v#wu|lqj#wr#
The song that is a big challenge live… progress as a musician - not just as a guitar
Iru#ph#vrphwlphv/#L#olnh#wr#xvh#wkh#Ľuvw#ihz# sod|hu1#Lġp#d#surgxfhu#dqg#L#dovr#sod|#rwkhu#
songs in the set to get my hands going. lqvwuxphqwv/#vr#L#mxvw#oryh#pdnlqj#pxvlf1#

TOTAL GUITAR APRIL 2020