Rant: Jimi’s legacy (not only related to Jimi though)

The above video got me thinking… while on the one hand, its of course very cool for avid Hendrix-fan to have yet another “never before heard, recently discovered” song or collection of songs to be released, it makes me think about what Jimi himself would say about all this.
Remember, he was a big perfectionist in the studio, very specific about every detail of a production, every bit of a song and its sound. I wonder whether he would appreciate all those “official” releases of demos, ideas, unfinished or even discarded songs. I mean, he was unhappy with certain aspects of the actual albums released during his lifetime (I think he was quite unhappy with the sound of “Axis: Bold As Love”, for example).
While I of course see how fascinating that is for a Hendrix-fan, imagine this: youre an artist and you really are very specific abotu what you want the FINISHED product to sound. You put a load of work and thought into your albums and songs, the writing, the production, the mix and mastering. Then, you hear how some of your songwriting ideas, demos, and songs you simply discarded cuz you considered them inferior, are made publically available.

I am not only talking about bootlegs, either. Some of those sure sound pretty good and might have some extra-special performances, some breath-taking renditions of a particular song. However, some do not sound very good at all, and I wonder whether Jimi would like to have those for sale. I also am thinking of some of the “official” releases, like the CD of recordings from the Isle Of Wight festival, one of his last performances ever. Jimi was very much under the influence of drugs during the show, and if you see footage, you can tell. During some songs, especially “Machine Gun”, you can hear the security guys talk on their walkie talkies, which was bleeding through the PA and/or guitar amps. I kinda doubt Jimi would want people to hear those performances.
Same goes for some of the demos or unfinished recordings. Maybe he would be ok with the “New Rising Sun” releases, as those songs were, AFAIK, almost done. Then again, who is to decide, other than Jimi? Would it be better to just let this stuff rest in those reel boxes, to not put out what isn’t done, to not put on sale what wasn’t meant to be sold yet? Eddie Kramer got a lot of flak for taking rough takes from the studio and having studio musicians add drum-, bass- even guitar parts that were missing, then having all that officially released.I wonder how Jimi would feel about that… whether he would appreciate that someone finished what he couldn’t finish because he passed away way too early, or whether he would want those demos, outtakes, alternate takes etc. to be kept in storage or even destroyed.

Would he like to be represented by way of those recordings? Imagine some kid wanting to get into Hendrix, getting one of those bootlegs at first, or one of those “never before heard studio recordings” compilations with unfinished ideas… shouldnt an artist be represented by the recordings he decided to be published, instead of stuff thats being dragged out of the studio vaults after he passes away?

So… even though as a Hendrix-fan, one might LOVE to hear some never before heard stuff, but then again… wouldnt it be kind of a question of respect for Jimi to not listen to it? What would you feel like if suddenly, youd find some of your bedroom-recordings or unfinished songs or studio jams with out of tune guitars available at the store?
I dont really have an answer, but I am thinking about those things occasionally, wondering what he would think and whether he would be happy about all this… whether he would appreciate fans going out of their way to hunt down that stuff and his family releasing those things… just my opinion though…

The next step in boutique pedals…

Must have taken quite some research… I wonder whether it’s true bypass though…

New GUITAR issue (May 09)

The new issue of GUITAR is out. Other than a lot of cool articles, TABs and lessons, it features my review of the new Mesa Boogie Mark V, two LTD guitars and a new episode of my “Talking Hands” series, this time dealing with the mixolydian scale and how to use it. So check it out!

Another NP-list

Yet another NP-list, stuff I currently am listening to a lot. As always, I added Amazon-links so you can listen to samples there or purchase the CD (some of them are available as digital downloads as well).

Derek Trucks Band- Already Free

The more I listen to it, the more I get into it. Derek is one of the most interesting players of the current generation of young players, I love his attitude (guitar straight into the amp), his slide-playing and how fresh and unpredictable his lines are. This is a very alive sounding album with lots of great playing, with a serious 70s vibe. Amazon-link

Wilson Hawk – The Road

Wilson Hawk is Richie Kotzen’s new band. Richie seems to focus more on Soul and R´n´B with this band… music he has always loved. I remember old interviews with him where he talked about how much he loved the Stevie Wonder albums from the 70s like “Talking Book”. Also, one of my favorite RK-performance is his singing on the song “I Don’t Wanna Be With Nobody But You” from Stevie Salas’ “Electric Pow Wow” (awesome album!!), very soulful. This album has great songs, great singing and some great guitar-playing. Perfect soundtrack for a nice spring! Amazon

Gov’t Mule – High & Mighty

I just rediscovered this album… great songs and some insanely tasteful playing by Warren Haynes and his band. I remember reading some rave reviews of this when it came out, and I checked it out and enjoyed it a lot. Just started listening to it again, and its just a great album especially for relaxing in spring- or summer weather. Amazon

Joe Bonamassa – You & Me

This is an older album by Joe… I enjoy pretty much every album he did, and I also listen to “Live From Nowhere In Particular” and “The Ballad Of John Henry” a lot too, but right now, I prefer this one. Great songs, and I love Joe’s playing and singing. Amazon

Heaven & Hell – The Devil You Know

I was lucky enough to get a promo copy of this, and I find myself listening to it quite often. I didnt know what to expect, but as soon as I heard the opener, I loved it. You can tell its Dio, Iommi, Geezer Butler and Appice from the sound, but then again, they don’t sound outdated or whatever… its a very powerful-sounding production with some very cool, Sabbath-like riffs, not sounding old-fashioned at all… the guys sound as if they have a lot of fun. I think not only Sabbath- or Dio-fans will enjoy this one. Amazon-link

Off The Rails

I recently had a chance to read “Off The Rails” by Rudy Sarzo. It was quite a wonderful experience. As you probably know, Rudy was the bassist for Ozzy in the early 90s, starting in between the release of “Blizzard Of Ozz” and “Diary Of A Mad-Man”, and during the time when Randy passed away.
Rudy wrote about this time, starting with how he met Randy and Quiet Riot (Randy was still playing with them back then), to the phone call by Sharon, and then goes on to write about the audition, tour rehearals, the concerts and what the band did in between.
Of course there are some of those “Ozzy shocker stories” in there, told from Rudy’s perspective, but I think the important thing about this book is: not only does it show that Rudy is a really cool person (I hope I get to meet him some day) and its a heart-felt tribute to Randy.

Rudy wrote that it was almost as if Randy was back while he wrote the book, and that he dreaded getting to the chapter about the plane accident that killed Randy, he didnt wanna lose Randy again… very touching, and you can tell how much Rudy admired Randy.
THis is a great read not only for fans of Rudy or Ozzy, its a very special treat for fans of Randy, because it gives you an idea of what he was like off stage, as a person.

So if you are interested, check it out, HERE is a link to the amazon-page… I recommend this book very much

Radio updated!

Thanks to Dan, who “adopted” my blog radio and updated it, creating a new playlist, based on the original playlist. He removed all the broken links, added some new tracks based on my recent blog-posts (so you can i.e. hear tracks from the Sfogli-album I wrote about below) etc.
Just click the link to the left to open the player and start listening. I recommend to switch on the “shuffle”-mode, as the list is kinda sorted by artists. Its your choice. I hope you will enjoy listening! And THANK YOU, DAN!

Supergroups

Seems like it will be an exciting summer for rock-fans… on the cover of the most recent issue of Guitar World, you see Chickenfoot (a super-group feat. Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Chad Smith), who are releasing their debut album in early June, and also, according to PaulGilbert.com, Mr. Big has reunited and will tour too!
Awesome, quite exciting, I cant wait to hear the album, and it would be great to see Mr. Big live again, saw them in the mid 90s, and love their classic line-up, especially the “Lean Into It”-era. So there’s a lot of great music headed our way!

Now Playing, April 2009

Hey everyone… time for another NP-list, stuff I am currently listening to. I added amazon-links to each entry, just click the cover of each album or the link at the end of the respective description to go to the Amazon-page for that album to listen to samples and/or purchase it (some of them, like the Sfogli-one, are available as MP3-downloads as well!)

“There’s Hope” – Marco Sfogli
I just rediscovered that album, I listened to it a lot about this time last year, too. Marco’s an amazing guitar-player from Italy, and you might have heard his very tasteful playing on the most recent solo-album by Dream Theater’s James LaBrie (I hear Marco will play on the next one too).
This is an all instrumental album with some amazing playing, combining taste, great melodies and amazing chops. Which makes sense, as Marco claims Kee Marcello (formerly the guitarist for Europe, check out the “Out Of This World” album) as a big influence, and Kee too was able to combine those factors as well.
I love Kee as well, so I know exactly what Marco likes about him.
Check out “Still Hurts” and “Sunset Lights”, those are my current two favorites on this album, just beautiful… insanely melodic! Amazon-link

“United States” – Paul Gilbert & Freddie Nelson
There’s no Amazon-link for this one yet, as its not available on Amazon-yet… it was only released in Japan so far, but should be out in other countries soon. Thanks, Marcus, for letting me hear it!

Freddie Nelson is a singer/songwriter/guitarist from Paul’s hometown, so now, they collaborated on an album, with Freddie singing and Paul focussing on the guitar-work, which absolutely rocks (as usual). Great stuff, a lot of fun to listen to!

“Soundscapes, Vol.2: A Blessing Of Tears”- Robert Fripp

This is part 2 in a series that Robert Fripp did a few years ago. As the name suggests, this is a very “soundscapey” album, very dreamy. It has a certain soundtrack-quality to it, like perfect music for a trip through space or something. Very atmospheric, lush, relaxed, mysterious-sounding. The perfect soundtrack to sit outside and look at the stars at night. Amazon link

Kind Of Blue – Miles Davis

Its been 50 years now since this album was released, and of course, its a total classic, probably the most successful jazz-album ever. For good reason too, because the playing on here is amazing, and the use of modes was quite trail-blazing for its time, kinda creating a new trend. I recently read a very good book about the making of the album, and reading that made me listen to it again. Even if you ignore the “theory” side of it, its a wonderful, relaxing album to listen to… I love to do so, closing my eyes, and can almost imagine watching the recordings in NYC back in the late 50s. Amazon-link

Mysterious Mountain – Alan Hovhaness, performed by the Seattle Symphony

I wasnt familiar with this composer before, but heard a bit of the “Mysterious Mountain” on classical radio. It was quite amazing, because the work sounds so mysterious and strange (in a very good way), a bit like a soundtrack, and you can easily imagine a huge, mysterious mountain with all its beauty and danger while listening to this. Amazon link
Well, that’s it for now, I hope you’ll like some of those choices!

A heart-felt thank you…

…to everyone who participated in the annual GUITAR reader polls and voted for “Talking Hands”. It turns out that it was voted the most popular instructional column, and that means a LOT to me! I am glad that you like the series, and I hope it helps you to develop your skills and get some new ideas for your soloing!
It was quite a surprise to see the results, and i am eternally grateful to everyone who gave their vote to TH. THANK YOU!

Its also very very cool to see Eddie on the cover (I always loved the Frankenstrat), and there’s a long article about him and his playing in this issue, so check it out! Also, there are reviews by yours truly about a Framus guitar and a new Seymour Duncan pedal. And, the mag comes with a free issue of the new magazine by PPV Media, Guitar Dreams!

More random thoughts on effects…

I posted thoughts on effects before, but today, when I was teaching, some more thoughts came up. I hope some of these will be interesting to you…

I do love effects. Most guitarists do… so many of us constantly change their pedalboard around, new pedals are added, old ones go back into the storing crate (or on Ebay). While that is a quite normal thing (sometimes resembling toys… its almost cute), one thing I always stuck to is: you can spend SO much time constantly changing your rig, time you could invest practicing and playing, so try to stick to something for a while…

Effects really can bring you new ideas, unleash your creativity, enable you to get sounds you couldnt usually get. I am quite glad that the old cliché “Ahh, you dont need any effects, they just cover up bad playing, the less effects, the better” almost disappeared… some players are quite legendary for their use of effects… think of Robert Fripp, David Torn, The Edge… anyway, one thing that I really recommend to try with pretty much any pedal: try all of its options!

For example, there are SO many things you can do with a good delay pedal… whether its Brian May-style layering, Nuno/Albert Lee/Yngwie-type “delay lines” (runs with notes added by a delay), or crazy stuff like the intro to PGs “Get Out Of My Yard”. I remember seeing Vai live during his “Sex & Religion” tour, and he did this whole little song with delays, had several guitars on stage, all hooked up to delays…

Now, other than just using a delay for a slapback-sound or some of that ambience-type delay, try to go extreme. Try to come up with riffs based on what the pedal does. Or, something that works with quite a few pedals like the Boss-delays or the new Satriani Time Machine Delay by Vox: turn up the feedback and then play with the delay time-knob… you can get some insane, crazy, and very inspiring sounds that way.

And that works for other pedals too! Take i.e. the Whammy Pedal. A lot of guys take that and just do the same thing they do with a whammy bar, like doing divebombs. But listen to i.e. the “chorus” of Joe Satriani’s “Searching”, or the chorus of Dave Martone’s “Four Horseman”, Bucketheads “King James” or Steve Vai’s “Touching Tongues”… where the whammy is used on just a few notes of a line, creating huge interval leaps and a crazy sound…very inspiring. You can do so much more with it too.

So whenever you get a new pedal, play around with it, dont stick with the recommendations in the manual, go wild and see what happens!

On the technical side: experiment with the placement of the pedal! Some pedals sound better in certain positions in the signal chain. A compressor is a good example… you wanna put that first into your signal chain. Or a Wah… there has been that age-long discussion on whether to put it before any distortion (thats what I do, too), or put it behind a fuzz/drive-pedal (I think thats what Zakk Wylde does, for example). Matter of taste, but you should try both. Some pedals even require a certain position to work… kinda. There are some fuzz pedals that need to be early in the signal chain, with no compressor or anything in front of it. Then again, some pedals sound even better with a compressor before it. So that is something you should try! There are some quite general guidelines like “compressor first”, or “delay and rvb into the loop”, but you can get some nice results by trying something different. As far as I know, Tom Morello puts (or used to) his Whammy pedal into the loop of his amp… I saw other guys do that too, while I would use it in front of the amp.

Effects are more than toys or little tools to make it sound “more puhrdy”… they can be musical tools that can help you to express yourself, achieve sounds you couldnt get any other way, inspire songs…
Of course, its not mandatory to use them… if you look at Derek Trucks, he plugs his guitar straight into the amp and thats that, but I recommend to try things out, experiment and you might just find something that gets you started on a new tune…

Guitar sound epiphanies

Is “epiphanies” the correct plural of epiphany? I sure hope so. Well, anyway, I hope you get the idea.
I had the idea for this post sometime this week, when I was teaching… I introduced a rather new student (he’s 13) to Van Halen. He only knew like 2 or 3 songs, and wasn’t familiar with the first album. So of course, I played him “Ain’t Talking Bout Love”, “You Really Got Me” and… “Eruption”.
Now, the second he heard the first powerchords of YRGM, his eyes lit up and he said “Wow, how does he get the guitar to sound THAT awesome??!?!”

Well, first of all, I thought it was awesome that he was that intrigued by the “brown sound”. I mean, how could he not be, but then again, this is 2009, and that student had mainly been listening to stuff like Disturbed, Metallica, SOAD etc… so he was familiar with some heavy and distorted sounds. People in 1978 were so blown away by Eddies sound because you didnt get to hear a hot-rodded awesome sound like that very often back then, but today…

Anyway, I figured Id list a few of those “wow” moments that I had throughout the years. Some of those sounds have become benchmarks for me, and whenever I feel kind of in a rut playing- or sound-wise, listenening to them always is an eye-opener. So here I go, starting of course with…

Eruption – Eddie Van Halen
I remember hearing this the first time. I was like 11 or so, had just gotten a tape of the first VH album, and when I heard Eruption, I was just blown away. It wasnt only the playing, it was the power and aggressiveness and fire of the guitar sound… I mean, take for example the very end with that harmonic slap and the dive-bomb… so powerful, and what a great sound. I could list many moments like that having to do with Eddie, but for now I am gonna settle for this one and focus on sounds by players other than Eddie.

Mutha (Don’t Wanna Go To School Today)- Extreme, Nuno Bettencourt
It was a really tough decision whether I should list this one or the whole Pornographitti-album… I love the sounds on that too. But this one… it starts with an insanely hot, aggressive solo, and I love the sound of that. Not sure whether he was using the ADA MP-1 already (which was the main-amp on Pornographitti), but whatever it is, I love this sound.

Cliffs Of Dover- Eric Johnson
Even before I actually heard Eric, I had read someone describe his sound as “a 1.000 pound violin”. And once I heard the intro of this song, I knew what that meant and how well the description fit. Beautiful, just like his amazing clean sound… for a great use of all his sounds back then, check out the amazing intro of his “Total Electric Guitar” video.

Frenzy – Paul Gilbert
He was still using more gain than he is using now, but to me, its already that aggressive, trebly, stinging (in a good way!) PG-sound…

Remember When – Blues Saraceno
His albums blew me away, not only because of his taste and phrasing, but also because of his guitar sound. So juicy and tasty. One day, I’d love one of those amps his dad built for him (which is what he used on those albums).

Texas Flood – Stevie Ray Vaughan
What an awesome, raunchy, warm and fat blues sound…

Deliver Us – Andy Timmons
I can’t praise that album enough, and the guitar sound on this is so tasty and beautiful. And the Wah-sound in this song became kind of my benchmark for a great Wah-sound.

Seven Friends – Abi von Reininghaus
The german tone ranger. What a juicy, warm and singing sound. And the crushing sus2-chords in between the verses sounds like a wall of amps with the biggest guitar in the world.

Superstitious – Kee Marcello
The playing on Europe`s “Out Of THis World” album is awesome, some of the best 80s-metal-soloing ever, and the sound is perfect as well. Kee definitely ran the whole 9 yards on that album.

Friends – Joe Satriani
Joe had a lot of nice sounds throughout the years, but just like “The Extremist” is my favorite Satch-album song- and vibe-wise, the sounds on this are my favorite Satch-sounds as well.

Rumblin’ Train – Badlands
Jake E. Lee had an insanely gutsy, dry and heavy sound on this, and that, combined with the incredibly bluesy and tasteful playing on this album, makes this another favorite.

I will prolly think of a gazillion more, so I am gonna stop for now…

New Bugera amps about to hit the market

Bugera clinic Nov 08

I am sure you have heard about it, or read some reports on it, or have seen those amps at NAMM:
Bugera presented two new guitar amps there, the 1960 and the 1990.

The 1960: Vintage-style ECC83/EL34-equipped 100 W head. Even though its designed kinda 60s style (at least regarding layout and features, it has an FX loop, which Im sure a lot of people will appreciate)  (click the image or this link to go to the product page at bugera.com)

The 1990: More modern style 2-channel head with ECC83/5881 tube setup. This is switchable from pentode (full power) to a more compressed, lower-volume triode mode (60W instead of the full 100). Click the image or this link to go to the product page.

They’re about to hit the market, and I can’t wait to try them out. I wouldnt be surprised if I’ll  be playing those at future clinics, as the first sound files I heard sound awesome, so Ill try them out asap.

Rant: Signature stuff and special promo-methods

Warning: rant ahead!
One of the things that bother me sometimes, for sure… I just read about a new signature amp being released (the Joe Bonamassa one by Carol Ann amps), and there is a special thing available there: they will only make and sell 12 of the 6L6-version during the first year, and each one of them will be played at one concert by Joe, then signed, and sold to the future buyer with a certificate signed by Joe.  (there will be an EL34 version without signature etc available too, and if people would prefer the 6L6s, I wouldnt be surprised if they could order that option when they buy, or have the tubes changed by a tech)
Well, at a popular guitar website, I read a news report about that, and then checked out the comments about it by some of the readers. And as usual, there were quite a lot of people complaining about this, calling it a rip-off, making fun of the whole idea and saying that it wasnt worth the money etc.
Now, regardless of what I think about this whole thing (its not the point), what bothers me is how people flak away at ideas like this (same thing happened when a guitar company released those EVH-style guitars that he played at shows and signed for the future buyer, and there are a gazillion other examples of special limited edition stuff etc.). Because: my approach to stuff like this is: if you don`t like it, don’t buy it, but also, don`t complain about it and spoil it for people who love the idea.
The thing is, there ARE people who love ideas like that, and don’t mind paying for it. Maybe they just want it as a piece of memorabilia, maybe they are enthusiastic fans and buy it because of that, maybe they love the amp (or those guitars) and have the means to afford it without having to think about it too much. In any case, its their right to buy it without being ridiculed for it, or having the product or idea being shot down by others. Its not like those amps (or guitars, I am not only talking about the Carol Ann-thing, but all these kind of promo-ideas) are the only amps available.
This is for collectors, or players who like the sound of the amp and like the extra-kick of it being “test driven” and signed by Joe B. (or Eddie). If they decide they want it, than that should be respected and not complained about. There seem to be a lot of people who dislike stuff like this, or consider those amps or guitars to exxpensive. Well, boutique amps are never really as affordable as some mass-produced stuff, and limited editions often are expensive whether its by a boutique-company or a big manufacturer. They are for a selected amount of people, and I have met some people who have bought stuff like this, and love it, are glad they did. Some of them worked hard to afford it, and would do it again if they’d have to (and no, I am not talking about myself).
So instead of spreading a lot of negativity and shoot down a product while not even being interested in buying it, just spoiling it for others, I wish some people would just accept its not meant for them, or is just a special treat for fans or collectors or whatever. Sure, everyone has a right to express his or her opinion (after all, that’s what I do here), but also, the future buyers of stuff like that have the right to make that decision, and sure don’t need anyone acting as if they have to, I dont know, uncover some conspiracy or whatever. Whoever buys stuff like this sure knows the prize and made the decision to buy it anyway, and is free to do so. There ARE buyers for it, if there weren’t, companies wouldnt put this stuff out.

Just to make clear: I havent bought stuff like that yet, and I am not affiliated with Jackson, Carol Ann or other companies who offer stuff like this. My point is: even if I am not interested, I leave the decision to buy it or not to everyone, and dont belittle the company or people who buy it, and sometimes I think it would make sense if others would do the same. Just my opinion though =)

Joe Bonamassa – The Ballad Of John Henry

I find myself listening to the new album by Joe Bonamassa (“The Ballad Of John Henry”) a whole lot recently, and I recommend it to everyone who’s into blues and blues rock… and great guitar-playing (of course, the songwriting rocks as well). I enjoy this album even more than his last studio album, this one, to me, has even more vibe, and I love the versatility… from laid-back, New Orleans style stuff to straight blues rock and harder-rocking stuff (reminding me of some 60s and 70s stuff), there’s a lot of great music on this album. The guitar sounds, tone and playing rock, as usual.
I also recommend to check out Joe’s recent cover story in Guitar Player magazine… not only should give that gear-heads something to really drool about, but some of the stuff Joe says really is worth reading. For example his view on success and his attitude regarding “I’ve seen many people climb the mountain to the top as quickly as possible and then falling. I rather prefer to climb up 3/4s of the way and stick there, instead of falling and ending up in base camp” (I’m paraphrasing). I really wish him a lot of luck and success, and I love his attitude there.

He seems to be a great, down to earth guy, a great entertainer, and someone who just loves to play, loves music and does his thing… very inspiring.
Check it out (click the cover or this link to go to the amazon-page for that album)

Random thoughts on…pickups

Writing about Dave Hunter’s book on pickups in the “book recommendations” post made me think of some things regarding pickups. After all, I was interested in that subject early on, ever since my guitar teacher back then introduced me to the concept of replacing the pickup in your guitar in order to get a different sound:
At first, I did so to “get a bit more out of the guitar”… I couldnt afford any decent guitars back then, so I bought a cheap one and then added a different pickup in order to get a slightly (or rather way) different sound out of it.
Now, here is one of the truths I learned throughout the years: Not even the best pickup will turn a really crappy guitar into an awesome one. If it could, you could just slap a good pickup onto a 2×4 and have a good sounding guitar. Thats not so… of course the instrument you put your pickup in is a big part of the equation (same goes for the amp etc, of course).

However, you may be able to get a more appropriate sound (for your style of music) out of a low budget guitar… or fine tune an instrument thats not exactly meant for your style to make it a better fit… think of Iron Maiden and their use of humbucker- and FR-equipped Strats for their brand of classic metal.
Sometimes, even a mid- to upper-prized guitar might sound better with a different pickup, and it surely depends on your taste. If you like the feel of a vintage-style Strat, but love distortion and metal-style sounds, you might wanna replace the vintage-style pickups with humbuckers (like, SC-sized ones).

Another thing that I learned and that still seems to confuse people: the impedance will NOT always tell you what a pickup sound like. If you take i.e. a pickup with 8 KOhm and one with 12 KOhm, the one with the lower value might still sound hotter and louder than the other one. Sure it might be a good way to get a general idea (say you look for vintage output and have a choice between a humbucker with 19 KOhm and one with 5K, you will prolly prefer the second one).
However, there are other important values and data, not all of them measurable as the impedance.

One of the other factors of course is the magnet material used. There seems to be a common prejudice about Alnico vs. ceramic magnets. It seems as if a lot of people think the ceramic one will automatically sound louder or more aggressive or more sterile, with the Alnico being the more “classic style”, more “musical” magnet. Not so! There are some great ceramic-based pickups that can get you great vintage sounds, warm and full musical vibes, while there are some Alnico-based pickups sound exactly like the “bad ceramics”-cliché.
Also, not all Alnico-alloys do sound exactly the same, so an Alnico 3 alloy by one company might bring different results than the same alloy by another one.
There are a LOT of factors involved, like what wire was used, what pole-pieces, how many windings, how far/close are the pickups to the string.

Example: for a while I always put all pickups as close to the string as possible. Of course I knew about “Stratitis” and wolf tones, so I watched out for that. However, I eventually learned that putting the pickups (or one of them) further away from the string might result in a bigger, warmer sound, and some pickups actually don’t “shine” unless you lower them a bit. I once tried a rather popular set of singlecoils that were installed in a students guitar (a decent one). At first I was kinda shocked because those pickups didnt sound all that great (I knew the sound of the guitar before the pickup-change). Then, just for the heck of it, we experimented with pickup height and lo and behold, suddenly the pickups started to deliver the sound that was promised by the manufacturer.

You should experiment with that, for sure! And keep in mind that even half a millimeter can make a huge difference! And even if you use the same pickup model in each guitar, you might wanna experiment, as a certain pickup-string-distance might work in one guitar and might not in another.

Another thought? In order for the best noise-cancelling effect of a humbucker, both coils should be as symetrical as possible. However, a lot of times, humbuckers with non-symetrical coils might sound better than ones with almost absolutely symetrical ones. There are some humbuckers with coils that are not symetrical at all that sound just awesome even though they might not be that successful when it comes to “bucking the hum”.

Or, while we’re at it: Potting a pickup will sure make the pickup more resistant to microphonic feedback, but then again, potting it can change the sound as well!

Some of this might be nit-picking, some of it definitely is not. I have tried out so many different pickups, have done shoot-outs, tried bunches of different pickups in the same guitar, or one particular one in different guitars, and there is a lot to discover! And before you subscrie to some of those “cliches” or “golden rules”, try them out and use your ears!

Book recommendations

If you are a guitarist and you haven’t checked on books by the Backbeat Publishing House (by the way, I am not affiliated with them!), I really recommend you DO take a look at them, especially at the books written by Dave Hunter (you might be familiar with his work already, among other things he is writing articles for GW magazine).
Dave really is a great writer… he puts things in an easy-to-understand way even if you are not a total gear-head, he approaches stuff as a PLAYER, and he does great interviews too!

Here are some of the books by him that I read, click on each cover to go to the Amazon-page for it…

The Guitar Pickups Handbook

THis, I believe, is his most recent book. Its quite similar in structure to some of his other works, like the Effects-book. He starts with some general information on pickups, describes how they work and gives us some history (some very interesting details in there!), then goes ahead and describes pickups by some of the major manufacturers… Fender, Gibson, DiMarzio, Seymour Duncan, plus some smaller companies, like Joe Barden. Each manufacturer-section has a very handy short description of the most popular pickups by the respective company, with tech details and a quick description of the sound. Very cool, might be handy when you look for new pickups.
THe part I enjoyed the most (same as with the book on FX) were the interviews (“Meet The Makers…”) at the end… Larry DiMarzio and Steve Blucher, Seymour Duncan, Joe Barden and others. The interview with Barden has some cool stories about Danny Gatton and Bonnie Raitt, which is a great read.
To sum it up, a very well-written book on pickups, not only for gear-heads, but for pretty much every electric guitar-player! Amazon link

Guitar Effects Pedals – The Practical Handbook

As I said, very similar to the pickup-one. History and general info on effect pedals, then Dave goes through some legendary and more recent pedals by some of the major makers as well as some smaller companies, and at the end, there again are some great interviews with some of the “makers”, like Michael Fuller and Mike Matthews. By the way, most of Dave’s book come with CDs where you can hear some of the items described, like the effects in this book! Amazon link

The Guitar Amp Handbook

The topic itself (amps) can be quite complicated, especially if you don’t know much about electronics in general or how an amp works in particular. This book is a great starting point if you wanna get into it, not only a great resource to learn about how amps work, but also has a lot of great info on how to get the most of your amp, and of course, interviews with some of the makers. Unless you are already very familiar with the topic, you might wanna look at this, it’s more than a great starting point! Amazon link

The Electric Guitar Sourcebook

This is another great one… it starts with general information on the components of the electric guitar… different kind of woods and how they affect the sound, hardware, etc. Then, Dave walks us through different kinds of guitars, from legendary and more recent solidbodies to semihollows and jazz boxes. The CD is great, as you get to hear i.e. different starts (vintage ones and a new one) played through the same amp, so you can get an idea about how different they can sound. Very interesting read, and some great pictures in there too!
Amazon link

Guitar Rigs

This is a fun read, and the pictures in here are awesome! Dave writes about some classic guitar/amp combinations, like the “Hendrix-rig” (Strat and the Marshall-stack he used which was reissued a while ago), or a jazz setup, or a classic blues-setup. Not only do you get info on those rigs, but also some great historical infos on the companies that made them. And its fun to just look at those great photos too! Amazon link

Well, that’s it for now. However, Dave Hunter has written some other great book. I just recently checked out his “Totally Interactive Guitar Bible” (comes with two books, 2 DVDs and some great lessons especially for beginners) and “Play Acoustic“. He has written even more, and based on the books I have read, those should be worth checking out too!
I might post another recommendation list with titles by other authors in the near future, and I hope the ones in this post were interesting to you. Oh, and once again, I am in now way, shape or form affiliated with Dave Hunter or Backbeat Books!

While we’re at it…

…I’d like to share some more thoughts on Jeff Beck. Listening to the album reminded me of how I discovered the “Blow By Blow” album, and especially “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers”. That ballad is just so beautiful, and not only is it like a blueprint for so many instrumental guitar ballads, its just a beautiful lesson on phrasing and tone.
I even found myself picking up a guitar and playing along to it again. I had learned the song back when I first got into the album it is on, and one thing I quickly realized back then: even though the melodies themselves are not all that complicated, the way he plays them is amazing. If you really pay attention to how exactly he plays them, you’ll hear how many different things he uses to play them.
He might take a simple 3 note figure, and play them “the regular” way the first time, then use slides or a chromatic passing tone the next time, and then use a bend or pre-bend the third time.
Of course you might ask “Why should I learn all those details and play it just the way he did? After all, it’s HIS statement, his version, and he plays it a little different every time he performs this song anyway!”
Well, you are right, and of course, if you play this, you should also try to interpret it YOUR way, taking those melodies and play them your own way, put your voice, your spin onto it.

BUT!

Playing it as closely to Jeff’s way as possible, using his way of phrasing it is just a great lesson! There are so many little details in it that you might miss when first hearing it, so it might take some time to figure out how he does all that, but when I learned it back then, it really was a great lesson in phrasing for me, and gave me a bunch of new ideas and things to work on. Also, back then, I at first thought learning it would be so easy compared to some of the other stuff I was working on (like some shred-stuff).
Well, it took just as long, maybe even longer (don’t remember, it’s been a while) because of all those little things he put in there. It’s amazing to notice all that, and I really recommend to a) try to play some parts or the whole song the way Jeff does and b) learn the tune anyway and play it your way. Sit down with it and try to play those melodies in as many ways as you can think of, use your own way of phrasing, your voice, turn it into a personal statement!
And most of all, if you are not familiar with the song, check it out, whether it’s the original version on the “Blow By Blow” album or the most recent one on the live-album I mentioned in the listening recommendations.

New Guitar Issue (3/09)

As usual, a bit late… my announcement regarding the newest issue of GUITAR magazine, this one being the March-issue 2009. I wrote a review about two Jackson Dinkys plus one about the all new Morley Kiko Loureiro signature Wah/volume/distortion pedal for it. Also, the newest episode of my “Talking Hands” series is about modes again, and also deals with modal pentatonics. And of course, lots more cool stuff in there, so check it out!

Back to basics

One thing that I really do enjoy every once in a while is to go “back to basics”. What I mean by that is: when you dabble with gear too much, its quite easy to forget about tone (as always, I separate SOUND, which is the equipment-side, and TONE, which is your personal tone, your hands, your “voice”). I have seen a lot of people fiddling with the gear so much that they hardly got to actual play. There of course is nothing wrong with doing that, after all guitarists love that stuff, and its always worth it to try to optimize your gear to get the best out of it.
However, every once in a while I love to just lean back, grab one guitar, plug it straight into an amp through a good cable, and just play with that for an hour or two. Doing that, leaving out everything between your guitar and amp, forces you to actually focus on your tone and phrasing, and might bring out more details of your tone and playing. Imagine you have to play a whole show with just that one guitar and the amp… can you imagine that you’d have to use the controls (volume and tone, plus the pickup switch) more, and in order to get different sounds, to have to actually create them with your hands, i.e. by switching your attack position or using dynamics?
Thats a great experiment.
I recommend to my students to practice with just a very basic setup, leaving out stuff like reverb, delay or modulation FX, in order to hear details better and make sure their playing is accurate. If you sound good through such a basic setup (or even through some crappy-sounding old practice amp), you will sound good through an elaborate, huge setup as well.
But it doesnt only work for practicing… just sitting there, zoning out, playing a guitar straight into the amp, experimenting with all the little details of your playing, using the controls of the guitar, can be a fascinating experience and teach you quite a bit… or help you find all new things to try out and use in your playing.
It can bring you back to earth, and you might even like a simple setup like this. I mentioned Derek Trucks before, who usually sticks to an SG plugged straight into a tube-amp… it doesnt have to be THAT simple, but then again, trying to work with something like that, focussing on the bare essentials can be quite interesting. Try it out!

Listening recommendations, Feb 09

Here are some albums I have found myself listening to a lot recently…

Jeff Beck – Performing This Week… Live At Ronnie Scotts
This is a new live-album by Jeff, recorded when he played a series of concerts at Ronnie Scotts in London. I liked the live album they released last year, but this one is even better. The band sounds fresh and obviously is in a jamming mode, as they change quite a few parts about the songs, and throw in lots of cool little solo parts. Jeff is amazing, maybe even more so than usual. Its amazing how vocal-like his playing is, and some of the stuff he plays is just amazing in terms of “Where does he GET those notes and sounds?!?” (Click to go to the amazon-page)

Derek Trucks – Already Free
This guy is amazing… great, bluesy stuff with a seriously “earthy” vibe. I love his approach… just an SG into a Marshall amp, no fx, just tone, phrasing and great playing. Wonderful album. (click to go to the amazon-page)

Jimmy Herring – Life Boat
I have heard so much great stuff about Jimmy throughout the years… this guy created a lot of buzz among guitarists… I remember my buddy Tommy in Delaware talk about him, bbeing amazed by his playing. Unfortunately, I never got to hear much of his playing (some Jazz Is Dead, and Project Z), so its great to hear his first solo-album. Great vibe to it, and the playing is amazing. This guy not only has a load of chops, but also is just a great improviser, with awesome melodic ideas and such a vast amount of theoretical knowledge, never sounding too “theory-heavy” or boring. Check it out! (click here to go to the amazon page)

Dave Martone – Clean
I have loved Dave’s playing ever since the “A Demons Dream” album, and this one is great too. Very versatile, and one review I read said something along the lines of “This is what the guitar will sound like a hundred years from now”. And its true, too. Reminds me of Satch’s “Engines Of Creation” at times. Amazing chops, and some great guest contributions by Joe Satriani, Jennifer Batten, Billy Sheehan and Greg Howe. (click here to go to the amazon page)

Gary Moore – Bad For You Baby
I saw Gary on TV in a late night show a couple of weeks ago, playing the first single from this album, and I liked it a lot. I used to love his 80s-stuff, like the “Wild Frontier” and “Victims Of The Future” albums. I really liked the first 3 or 4 blues albums too (up to “Blues For Greenie”), but just couldnt get into the stuff he did afterwards. This is a more down-to-earth blues album again, with a lot of great playing, like on “I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know”, where he really seems to play his heart out. Amazing player, and I think this is the music he really loves to play… it shows. (click here to go to the amazon-page)

Joe Bonamassa – Live From Nowhere In Particular
The more I hear of this guy, the more amazed I am. I have been listening to Joe since like 2006 (ok, I got into his music rather late), and he has always impressed me with his honesty, chops, sense for great melodies, and the energy he puts into his music. This is a live-album, and he truly shines, improvising a lot, and sounds great throughout. He has got quite a reputation for being a great live-performer, and this album will show you why. Looking forward to his new album, too. (click here to go to the amazon page)

Brad Paisley – Play
I love Brad, and I think it took a lot of guts to release an album that is mainly instrumental after all the success he has had recently. Sure, “Start A Band” (the duet with Keith Urban… check out the solos at the end!) is a hit, and its a vocal-tune, but other than that, its mostly instrumental stuff, and Brad not only shows off a lot of chops, but also a load of versatility… jazzy stuff, a beautiful acoustic tune, and his tribute to Eric Johnson, “Cliffs Of Rock City”. Of course most of this is country, but whatever he plays, he rocks, and he blurs stylistic edges quite easily, putting together all those styles quite seamlessly. Amazing player, great guy! Check it out! (click here to go to the amazon-page)