PREPARE YOURSELF FOR -ON YNGWIE!

JOHN LENNON
(WITH GEORGE HARRISON)
GIMME SOME TRUTH
ZZ TOP
SHARP DRESSED MAN
LED ZEPPELIN
THE LEMON SONG

A M T H E AT E R’S FIERCE NEW ALBUM!

INSIDE DRE
TREMONTI
UNLEASHES
PLU
EXCLUSIVAENLSE!
WITH SSON
THE METAL! HIMSEL NAIA IZUMI
BLACK
CROWES
F!
JACKIE VENSON
SETH LEE JONES
31 YEARS NEW ACOUSTICS
OF A CLASSIC! & MORE!
DEREK TRUCKS
TAKES ON LAYLA!
 CONT E N T S
VOL. 42 | NO. 12 | DECEMBER 2021

FEATURING John Petrucci performs

with Dream Theater
in Milan, Italy,
February 12, 2020
24 TRUCKS & TREY TAKE ON LAYLA
Derek Trucks fills us in on Layla Revisited.

36 THE LATEST IN ACOUSTIC GEAR

Our editors’ favorite recent-vintage acoustic guitars, amps
and more.
44 YNGWIE IN THE EXTREME
The shred legend takes a truly DIY approach!
50 A JOHN PETRUCCI EXCLUSIVE
A new Dream Theater album — and an exclusive lesson
by the man himself! 50
66 MARK TREMONTI
The prolific guitarist talks Eddie Van Halen, Troy Grady,
Eric Johnson and a bold new album.

72 THE BLACK CROWES

Rich and Chris Robinson recall the making of their massive
debut album, 1990’s Shake Your Money Maker.

TRANSCRIBED DEPARTMENTS
“Gimme Some Truth” 13 WOODSHED / MASTHEAD Standard
by John Lennon (featuring George Harrison)
PAGE 15 TUNE-UPS 86 COLUMNS
86. String Theory
93 Meet bluesy new slide/bender Seth Lee
Jones, owner of Tulsa-based SLJ Guitars,
by Jimmy Brown
87. In Deep
plus NPR Tiny Desk Contest winner Naia by Andy Aledort
“Sharp Dressed Man” Izumi, Austin’s Jackie Venson, Volbeat’s 88. The Gristle Report
by ZZ Top Rob Caggiano and slide guitar master by Greg Koch
PAGE Ariel Posen. There’s also a new playlist by 89. Melodic Muse
96 Illuminati Hotties guitarist Sarah Tudzin. by Andy Timmons
79 SOUNDCHECK 118 TONAL RECALL
SEGAMI YTTEG/INODNARP OCSECNARF

“The Lemon Song” 79. Hughes & Kettner AmpMan The secrets behind Randy Rhoads’
by Led Zeppelin Classic and Modern tone on Ozzy Osbourne’s late-1980
8. Fender ’68 Custom Pro Reverb single, “Crazy Train.” Got a classic song
PAGE 8. Jackson Pro Series Dinky DK you’d like us to investigate? Let us
103 Modern HT7 MS
83. Baldacci Guitars Bighorn
know — write to GWSoundingBoard@
futurenet.com.

COVER PHOTO: RAYON RICHARDS/RAYONRICHARDS.COM

12 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 WOODSHED
VOL. 42 | NO. 12 | DECEMBER 2021 EDITORIAL
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Damian Fanelli
(damian.fanelli@futurenet.com)

KEEPIN' UP
SENIOR MUSIC EDITOR Jimmy Brown
TECH EDITOR Paul Riario

WITH JONES
ASSOCIATE EDITORS Andy Aledort, Chris Gill
PRODUCTION EDITOR Jem Roberts
MUSIC TRANSCRIPTIONIST AND ENGRAVER Jeff Perrin
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Richard Bienstock, Joe Bosso, Greg Koch,
Adam Kovac, Joe Matera, Mark McStea, Joshua M. Miller, Alan Paul,
I JUST FINISHED judging a music competition John Petrucci, Amit Sharma, Andy Timmons
called “Unsigned Only,” which is designed for ART
SENIOR DESIGN DIRECTOR Mixie von Bormann
solo artists and bands around the world who are FREELANCE ART EDITOR Andrew Cottle
looking for exposure, recognition and a chance to ADDITONAL PAGE DESIGN Damian Fanelli
CUSTOM COVER TYPEFACE Steve Mitchell
get noticed by industry pros. This year, I judged IMAGE MANIPULATION MANAGER Gary Stuckey
the Rock and Blues categories. PHOTOGRAPHY
First of all, in case you’re worried about “the CONTRIBUTORS Future, Getty Images and other individually
state of guitar,” have no fear; I heard so many credited photographers, public relations firms and agencies.
All copyrights and trademarks are recognized and respected.
great solos, clever new sounds and original ap- VIDEO
proaches — it’s safe to say the guitar is in good VIDEO EDITOR Alan Chaput
hands, figuratively and literally! Secondly, we ONLINE
judges were asked to comment on individual DIGITAL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Michael Astley-Brown
songs, and this gave me the opportunity to whip out an old chestnut I’ve been DIGITAL ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jackson Maxwell
preaching since the great Stevie Ray Vaughan walked the earth: “If you’re gonna CIRCULATION
play a I-IV-V tune, you have no choice but to keep it interesting via an amazing guitar HEAD OF NEWSTRADE Tim Mathers
solo, an unique guitar tone or some truly powerful, intriguing vocals.” Which — in a PRODUCTION
very roundabout way, I admit — brings me to Seth Lee Jones, the guitarist covered HEAD OF PRODUCTION Mark Constance
PRODUCTION PROJECT MANAGER Clare Scott
in our lead Tune-Up on page 15, who meets all three criteria. Tech Editor Paul Ri- SENIOR AD PRODUCTION MANAGER Jo Crosby
ario (who’s not easily impressed) sent me the stream of Jones’ new album, Flathead, DIGITAL EDITIONS CONTROLLER Jason Hudson
PRODUCTION MANAGER Vivienne Turner
with a few rare raves attached, and... Let me just get to the point: Jones is probably ADVERTISING
the most ear-catching, head-turning blues/roots guitarist since Derek Trucks (who DIRECTOR OF U.S. MUSIC SALES Jonathan Brudner
happens to be interviewed on page 24). Do yourself a favor and check out “I Can’t 845-678-3064, jonathan.brudner@futurenet.com
Be Satisfied,” “Half a Mind,” “Desiree” and “Tulsa Time,” which — as it seems ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Jason Perl
646-723-5419, jason.perl@futurenet.com
when you read our story by Adam Kovac — is semi-autobiographical for Jones, even
though the song was written by Danny Flowers and covered by both Don Williams CONSUMER MARKETING
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT Sheri Taubes
and Eric Clapton way back in 1978. MANAGEMENT
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT — TECH, GAMES & ENTS Aaron Asadi
BY THE WAY: Sounding Board and Performance MANAGING DIRECTOR, MUSIC Stuart Williams
GROUP EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Scott Rowley
return in the next issue (Holiday 2021). Also, SUBSCRIBER CUSTOMER SERVICE
Guitar World Magazine Customer Care, P.O. Box 2029,
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SINGLE-ISSUE SALES: www.magazinesdirect.com/guitarworld
DAMIAN FANELLI
for about a decade! Stay tuned for what’s next... Editor-in-Chief PRINTER Fry Communications
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guitarworld.com 13
 TUNE-UPS 16
SARAH
TUDZIN
NAIA IZUMI
17
ROB
CAGGIANO
18
19
ARIEL POSEN
JACKIE VENSON
21
Seth Lee Jones
with one of his own
custom SLJ Guitars
creations

It’s Tulsa Time!

BEEN ON THE HUNT FOR A FRESH NEW APPROACH TO ELECTRIC
BLUES GUITAR? LOOK NO FURTHER THAN TULSA’S SETH LEE JONES
By Adam Kovac
SETH LEE JONES knows the world guitarist dipped deep into the well for Flat- names like Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter
doesn’t need another take on “Born head, the debut studio album by his epony- and Howlin’ Wolf are represented. It’s the
Under a Bad Sign.” Ditto with “The Thrill mous trio. kind of setlist that would be put together by
Is Gone,” “Crossroads” or “Little Red “I feel like somebody should put together a band that’s put in the hours, learning how
Rooster.” Great songs, all; a tune doesn’t a list of the top 10 blues songs you should to give blues aficionados what they want
become known as a standard for nothing. never play,” Jones says with a laugh. “We through years of gigging. Which is exactly
The problem with blues standards, though, kind of just picked our favorites. I run a what the trio is: they’ve spent years as a
is they get covered and re-interpreted over democratic ship in my band. We just picked house band at Tulsa’s popular venue The
and over, to the point there’s no fresh take the ones we like the best amongst the three Colony.
NIKRALC LIHP

to be offered. Odds are, the Rolling Stones of us.” Given the sheer number of gigs under
would’ve beat you to it by half a century. The nine tracks that made it onto the their collective belt, it made sense to record
That’s why the Tulsa-bred singer and album aren’t all totally obscure — familiar Flathead the old-fashioned way: set up
guitarworld.com 15
 NEWS + NOTES
the instruments and bash ’em out live on
the floor. Total number of hours spent in
the studio recording: seven and a half.
“I just like working that way. I’ve got
buddies who will spend months on records.
You drive those so many times a week for
so many years, it becomes like autopilot.”
If the goal was to capture the raw, dirty
and intimate vibe of a well-worn band
doing their thing in front of a booze-soaked
crowd, Seth Lee Jones and his crew suc-
ceeded wildly on Flathead, with Jones’
gritty vocals and sleazy, overdriven open-
D tuned slide playing capturing most of
the attention (though much credit should
also go to bassist Bo Hallford and drummer
Matt Teegarden, whose father David not
only owns the studio in which the record
was made, but is also an accomplished side-
man to guys like Bob Seger and Eric Clap-
ton).
Making the album quickly wasn’t just a
means to an end; it was also something of
a necessity. The sidemen have their own
projects going on and Jones is a bit busy
with his own day job: he’s the proprietor of
SLJ Guitars, a boutique shop that produces
high-end, one-of-a-kind instruments and
does the type of tough restorations on vin-
tage guitars that’d give most big-box guitar
store employees some very weak knees.
Among the pieces he’s built is the Tele-
type that’s played throughout Flathead.
Built during his starving luthier days in
Venice Beach, it’s the result of a lot of
experimenting and some happy accidents,
resulting in an axe with benders built into
the A, G and B strings.
“I was putting that guitar together
because I wanted to learn some B-bender
licks, like Brad Paisley licks, but I couldn’t
afford one of those benders like he has. It
would have been $1,200 or something.
“The original neck I built for that was
completely backwards and I couldn’t get
it to straighten out. I’ve been playing lap
steel since I was a teeanger; what I did was
put the biggest set of strings I could find on
it and started playing slide on it. I started
pushing on that level when it was tuned to
open D and found I could go from a I chord
to a IV chord if I push the bottom two
levers at the same time. It was like, ‘Oh, this
is actually cool!”
The guitar does feature some strings that
would be a hand-killer for conventional
bends: a set of .12s, but the high E and B are
swapped out for 17s.
SE GAMI YTTEG/HTIMS .A D IVAD
Wacky strings and bending contraptions
aside, there are other modifications.
“I’ve modified it to work with that tun-
ing. I’ve got the base plates cut a little bit on
the bottom side to extend the range on the
A string and then I’ve got handles that are
16 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1
PLAYLIST
If the goal was to WHAT'S ON MY
capture the raw, dirty
and intimate vibe of a
well-worn band doing
their thing in front of a
booze-soaked crowd,
Seth Lee Jones and his
crew succeeded wildly
on their new album,
Flathead SARAH TUDZIN
OF ILLUMINATI HOTTIES
custom made to make it more ergonomic 1
for your hand to sit on it. It’s not adjustable, “Sick of Spiraling”
too. That neck has got no truss rod in it, just Bachelor
a carbon fiber bar in it.” The new Bachelor album is truly Jay Som
Like the blues, guitar building is an art and Palehound at their most shreddingest
that’s best learned at the knees of the mas- yet! Cruising indie rock for the poet’s soul.
ters. During a stint in Los Angeles, Jones
found himself working for noted luthier 2
John Carruthers and picked up tips from “Didn’t Want It”
guys like Ron Thorn (now of the Fender Glitterer
Custom Shop). An anthemic rocker with a whole lot of
With his hard-won knowledge, Jones sunburnt fuzz left on the driveway after
returned to Tulsa in 2010. last night’s house party.
“I started building on the side back in
2008 but I didn’t get the time to do it until I 3
moved back here. It’s just really expensive “Bat Macumba”
to live in Los Angeles, and the cost of living Os Mutantes
here is incredibly low, so I have a lot more The inventors of all things psychedelia.
time to focus on my art.” Groove, style and tone for days.
After over a decade in business, he’s now
making between 25 and 30 guitars per year, 4
from the truss rods to the bodies to even the “Spiderlegs”
dots. He even used to make his own pick- Danny Malone
ups but explains that he “stopped doing that Acoustic glitter and homemade break-
because there’s way too many guys who are beats for songwriters who dream in tape.
just killing that game.”
Between his band and his shop, Jones
has found himself in an interesting spot:
5
“I Was a Lover”
playing tight blues takes commitment, but TV on the Radio
so does building high-quality gear. At the Chopped-up, razor-sharp ruminations
end of the day, burning down a club gig from the celestial realm. No moment
can’t compete with the need to pay the bills, on Return to Cookie Mountain goes
which sounds like a pretty good basis for a unnoticed.
blues song.
“Unfortunately, there’s a bit of a squeaky
wheel thing that happens, where it’s like
what needs to get out first, as far as who’s
complaining,” he says. “I can’t really be
away from the shop for more than five to 10
days. Because there’s a lot of work that gets
done, and that keeps my lights on. As far as
music goes, I generally make tens of dollars
playing, but I love doing it.”
You can get a good look at Jones’ gear,
playing style — and cooking utensils — in ILLUMINATI HOTTIES’ NEW ALBUM, LET
the official “Tulsa Time” music video on ME DO ONE MORE, IS OUT NOW.
YouTube.
 NEWS + NOTES
“The most important part isn’t
about the chord voicing, it’s about
the melody and bassline,” Naia Izumi
says. “Everything else is, you just
take what feels good in between”
Naia Izumi
THREE YEARS AFTER WINNING NPR'S TINY DESK CONTEST,
THIS SINGER/GUITARIST IS TAKING HIS DECIDEDLY UNIQUE
VOICE — AND CHORD VOICINGS — TO THE BIG TIME
By Adam Kovac
IT’S BEEN THREE short years since
Naia Izumi won the NPR Tiny Desk
contest, bringing his brand of smooth,
soulful and incredibly virutosic singing,
guitar playing and songwriting to the
masses. The Columbus, Georgia, native-
turned L.A. resident, who once earned his
money by busking, was suddenly the toast
of the music press: “unparalleled” and
“undeniable talent” were just some of the
descriptors being tossed around.
But as Izumi prepares for the release of
his major-label debut, A Residency in the
Los Angeles Area (which is out now), he
claims his life hasn’t been terribly altered
in the past 1,000 or so days.
“It’s changed, but it really hasn’t
changed. I still do the same stuff, making
music. Obviously, being on Sony, it’s kind of
messed up my typical way of doing things,
which is putting out a song at a time and
playing them on social media to promote
them. It’s much more spaced apart, so
I don’t even know about doing content
anymore. But that’s probably the only thing
that’s really changed.”
Well, there’s one other thing that’s
changed — as a Fender artist, he’s getting
some new gear. Recent social media posts
have seen him fiddling with his trusty
Jazzmaster, as well its new equivalent in
the company’s Acoustasonic line. It’s the
type of gear he wouldn’t have had access
to in his old life, as he admits it’s “too
expensive.”
If anyone deserves access to the full
Fender arsenal, it’s Izumi, as on the new
album, he takes his prize-winning playing
even further. The focus might be on his an-
gelic falsetto and the sweetly melancholic
melodies, but make no mistake — there’s
a guitar hero barely hiding behind all the
pop, jazz and soul trappings. Just witness
the multi-string tapping runs under the
vocals on “Natural Disaster.” Even when
Izumi’s playing veers toward the more con-
ventional, he finds ways to mix it up with
surprising chord extensions and voicings —
as he points out with a laugh, “There’s one
song on the entire album that has a minor
chord.”
“It’s finding what feels good. The most
important part isn’t about the chord voic-
ing, it’s about the melody and bassline.
Even when Izumi’s
playing veers toward
the more conventional,
he finds a way to mix
it up with surprising
chord extensions and
voicings
Everything else is, you just take what feels
good in between. Chances are you’re going
to find something that compliments the
lowest note. A lot of times I don’t use the
root note in the lowest part. It’s just what
feels good.”
Since his big NPR win, Izumi has
become one of the most famous musicians
with autism in the world. Despite his will-
ingness to talk about autism, he says he’s
not anybody’s spokesperson.
“I don’t consider myself anybody, I’m
just a regular old dude, making music. I
would honestly rather not be making music
because it’s not important. People argue, ‘It
is important,’ but no, it’s a luxury. There’s a
lot more important things in life than doing
this. I’m doing it because it’s turned into
ENILEUQCAJ TEVS
my job. And the momentum is there. I can’t
stop now.”
guitarworld.com 17
 NEWS + NOTES
Rob Caggiano performs
with Volbeat, October
9, 2019, in Madrid
INQUIRER
ROB CAGGIANO
THE VOLBEAT GUITARIST AND FORMER ANTHRAX SIX-STRINGER
RECALLS HIS EARLIEST GUITAR-PLAYING DAYS, THE IMPORTANCE
OF SONGWRITING AND HIS NEWEST TOYS
My early influences…
There were two main guys for me; Eddie
Van Halen and Angus Young. Angus was
the first to get me really crazy excited
about the guitar when I was a kid. I got a
copy of Back in Black when I was about
8, and it really hit me and connected
with me right off the bat. I was already
dabbling with the guitar prior to that, but
once I got that album, I began to take it
seriously. A few weeks later, I got a copy
of the first Van Halen album and that was
it!
I got my first real six-string...
It was a red mini acoustic guitar that I
S N R E F D E R /O D A G A R B R E I V A J
used to bang around with when I was
5. Right aer that I got my first electric,
which was a cheapo Montoya. It was
a weird guitar that had all these crazy
switches on it.
18 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1
The importance of songwriting…
The first songs I learned to play were the
Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and
“Yesterday” by the Beatles. It’s kind of
cool that I learned those two songs first
because it made me appreciate certain
things like songwriting and melody, espe-
cially with the Beatles song, which is just
hauntingly beautiful.
Feels like the very first time…
I used to play at parties when I was a kid,
but my first official gig was when I was
about 4. It was at an outdoor festival in
the Bronx, playing with my first band,
Wild Heart. It was an Italian festival
called the Feast of San Gennaro that also
had bands playing on an outdoor stage.
Falling in reverse…
I had an embarrassing moment that
“When you start to
copy other people,
you’re really chasing
your tail”
occurred very recently, and it was with
Volbeat at Knotfest in New Jersey. It was
my first time ever falling on stage. I had
all my friends [at the] side of the stage.
Jerry Only from the Misfits was there too,
filming it all. [Laughs]
Volbeat vs. Anthrax...
I think Anthrax is probably a bit more
technically demanding, and I wouldn’t
say one-dimensional, but it’s a thing and
it’s that thing the whole time. Whereas in
Volbeat there’s a lot of different elements
and sounds and textures, so it’s a lot more
fun as a guitar player because there’s a lot
more colors to add to the music.
Being objective…
I’m used to it as I’ve been doing it for
a long time, so you’ve got to separate
yourself from being the guy in the band. I
always look at it from the big-picture per-
spective when I’m making music — even
when I’m not producing.
My favorite piece of gear…
It is my new signature Jackson guitar,
the Shadowcaster. It’s an amazing guitar
that’s based on an old guitar I used to
have called the Outcaster, which was
a Jackson too. They basically
Hedrastook thatin
shape and that kind ofdowntown
vibe andRamos
totally
L.A. with
tweaked it out. The pickups areLarada
his Abasi my sig-8
nature DiMarzio pickups, and the thing
totally screams. I’ve been using it for
everything.
My advice to young guitar players…
I’d ask them this: What do you want to
get out of music and what do you want to
accomplish? The long and short of it is,
you’ve always got to play from your heart
and do stuff that means something to
you. When you start to copy other people,
you’re really chasing your tail.
I’ve gone virtual…
I recently made my first venture into the
whole plug-in world with my STL Tone-
Hub preset packs. It is basically a virtual
amp. I recorded more than 6 different
tones with all my amps, all my mics and
all my outboard gear and with different
heads. I think all the tones came out
amazing, and I’m really proud of it all.
— Joe Matera
 NEWS + NOTES
Ariel Posen
FIVE QUESTIONS WITH THE CANADIAN SLIDE-GUITAR DYNAMO
By Mark McStea
SLIDE WIZARD ARIEL Posen’s new
album, Headway, builds on the buzz
created by his debut record, 2018’s How
Long. Although Posen is often pigeonholed
as an Americana artist, Headway shows off
the full range of his influences while
showcasing his soulful vocals, magnetic
songs and stellar slide work. Constantly
busy, there’s another solo album, Mile End,
scheduled for release at the end of 2021.
How much of Headway was informed by
the process of recording How Long?
For my first solo record, I was questioning
everything I was doing; it was such a new
experience. It turned out great, but it was
definitely stressful. Two years later, I feel a
lot more comfortable; this time I knew what
to expect so I went in feeling a lot more sure
about my choices.
You have an instantly identifiable sound.
What’s your secret?
I recommend recording yourself all the
time so that you’re only comparing your-
self to yourself. Careful listening and analy-
sis of your own playing is the key to finding
things that you do that are not just a retread
of what you’ve heard others do. Remember
that less is more; make a statement, give it
space then make another. If you’re playing
something great all the time, it has a lot less
impact; if you play sparingly then you really
notice what is going on.
What are the key ingredients of your
tone?
Guitar-wise, a StratoMule, a Josh Williams
Mockingbird, a Collings SoCo Deluxe and a
Jazzmaster. For amps, Two Rock, and while
I do use a lot of effects, a good overdrive is
my go-to. I have a lot of gain on the amp
and keep the guitar volume around 7, con-
stantly adjusting it as I play. I use a “com-
promise” action to enable slide and stan-
dard playing.
You’re left-handed but play right-handed.
Ariel Posen with his
Mule Resophonic
Guitars StratoMule
“Remember that
less is more; make
a statement, give
it space then make
another”
How did that come about?
When I first picked up my mom’s right-
handed acoustic, I was strumming it left-
handed, just making noise. When I started
to take lessons, my teacher said just flip it
around, it’ll be much better for you in the
long run. I took her advice and I’m so glad,
because it opens up a whole world of cool
vintage guitars.
You have a number of ways for fans to
interact with you on your website. Do you
feel that’s essential as it becomes even
harder to make money through music
these days?
Yeah. I have masterclasses that fans can
sign up for, tabs for sale — and Patreon,
which has been a fun experiment. It’s
another great way to engage with fans, a
lot of whom are avid guitar players. This is
going to be a big year for me; I’ve got a lot of
new music to share and if I can hit the road
E L P O N I T N AP K C A J
again near the end of the year, that’ll really
top things off.
guitarworld.com 19
 NEWS + NOTES
Jackie Venson
performs
in Austin,
October 3, 2019

Jackie
Venson
AFTER CIRCLING IT FOR YEARS,
THE AUSTIN-BASED GUITARIST
GIVES IN TO THE UNDENIABLE
POWER OF THE BLUES
By Joshua M. Miller
THE BLUES HAS been an essential part
of Austin-based Jackie Venson’s
repertoire since she started playing guitar
almost a decade ago. She specifically
embraced the sheer intensity of electric
Texas-based blues.
“Every time I hear a Texas blues player,
it’s just really strong,” Venson says. “They
have a way of just commanding the entire
room and just melting your face off. But it’s ed working on a blues album together, she
not a shreddy kind of melt your face off. “Like a Texas blues decided it was time to finally commit. They
It’s an intensity that only Texans have — I
swear.” musician, I wanted recorded at Austin-based Arlyn Studios.
“It’s nice to kind of reel it in for a little
Despite this, she hadn’t made a strictly to kick down the bit of time,” Venson says. “I can do a lot of
blues-centric album until her latest offer- doors and burn down different stuff, but I wanted to keep this
ing, Love Transcends. After a few years of
playing the guitar, she had started “hap- the building” album real traditional, so I didn’t bring in
any of my wacky effects like I usually do. I
S E G A M I Y T T E G A I V P F A /O R I E D R O C E N N A Z U S

pily” wandering sonically, incorporating
and blending more genres. She likes how
one can push the boundaries of any genre
by “introducing little facets of others.” It
was a special challenge for her. At the same
time, there was substantial interest in hear-
ing her more bluesy side. Fans — and other
musicians — kept asking her, “Why don’t
you have a blues record?”
“They’ve always been curious as to what
would have been on my [blues record],” she
says. “I’ve never been totally unopposed to
it, but I just never really had the kindling to
actually go forth and do it. When it comes
to creative projects, it’s nice to follow my
gut in my spirit. And if I don’t think to do a
blues album, I’m not going to do it.”
But when producer Tim Palmer suggest-
kept it real simple — clean tone, distortion
and reverb.”
She credits her custom-made Epiph-
one Les Paul for allowing her to channel a
“balls-to-the-wall Texas blues” intensity.
“It has more presence, more intensity and
just more oomph than the Strat I used to
play,” she says. “Like a Texas blues musi-
cian, I wanted to kick down the doors and
burn down the building.”
guitarworld.com 21
 DOMINOEFFECT
Derek Trucks explains how Tedeschi Trucks Band
teamed up with Phish’s Trey Anastasio to rock
a classic Eric Clapton/Duane Allman creation,
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY DAVE VANN

Guitar World
December 2021

Virginia’s LOCKN’ Festival
is famous for putting together one-of-a-
kind collaborations. In 2019, that included
Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio joining the
Tedeschi Trucks Band to perform Derek
and the Dominos’ only studio album —
1970’s Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
— in its entirety. Frequent TTB collaborator
Doyle Bramhall II, who has played with Eric
Clapton off and on for 20 years, also joined
the band. The performance ended up being so
strong that Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi
decided to release it as an album, Layla
Revisited (Live at LOCKN’), which concludes
with an acoustic studio version of “Thorn
Tree in the Garden,” performed as a duet by
Tedeschi and Trucks. It was the only song
they didn’t perform on stage.
“We skipped the song because we were
playing the record in order, and I couldn’t
imagine following the massive crescendo of
‘Layla’ with an acoustic guitar and the least-
known tune on the record,” says Trucks
with a laugh. “When we decided to release
this thing, it just seemed right to add it — and
it’s such an interesting tune; the tuning and
the feel are great, and there are a few bars of
weird harmonic overdubs. And Sue just sang
her ass off. It was one of the first things we
“BY THE TIME I STARTED PLAYING GUITAR,
THE SOUND OF DUANE ALLMAN’SSLIDE
WAS ALMOST AN OBSESSION. MY DAD
WOULD PLAY LAYLAFOR ME AND MY
BROTHER TO FALL ASLEEP TO AND
FURTHER SEAR IT INTO MY DNA”
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW DerekTrucks
did after not working for a while, so her voice
is completely rested, and there’s something
really, really beautiful about it.”
“Thorn Tree” wraps up the album
beautifully, but the focus of the disc remains
the blistering electric interplay between
Trucks, Anastasio and Bramhall. The
performance was so strong that it jumped to
the front of TTB’s archival pile, ahead of the
2015 performance of Mad Dogs & Englishmen
[Joe Cocker’s 1970 live album] the band did
with Leon Russell and other survivors of the
original tour. Laylahas always had a special
resonance for Trucks; he was actually named
after the band — and the album was propelled
by guitar greats Eric Clapton and Duane
Allman, who have loomed large in his life
and career. Trucks’ uncle, Butch Trucks, was
a founding member of the Allman Brothers
Band, with whom Derek played from 1999 to
2014. He also toured the world with Clapton
in 2006 and 2007.
“By the time I started playing guitar, the
sound of Duane Allman’s slide was almost an
obsession,” Trucks says. “My dad would play
Laylafor me and my brother to fall asleep to
and further sear it into my DNA.”
A lot of us were expecting Mad Dogs & Eng-
lishmento come out, but you surprised us
with Layla Revisited. What went into that?
At the beginning of the lockdown, we had rare
time in our studio. We had two projects we’ve
been wanting to get to work on: the Mad Dogs
show with Leon and this Laylaproject. We
really just started working to see what they
sounded like, if they held up. We spent two
or three weeks finishing Mad Dogs, even get-
ting the vinyl acetates cut. Then we pulled up
the Laylastuff and immediately the sound
was even more focused; we had honed in our
recording more and the sound was really
incredible, so we just dug into it. It was a good
place to put our energy during a time when
there was nothing happening live. The further
we dug into it, the more we realized there’s
some pretty extraordinary stuff on there.
Once it was decided that you were going to
play with Trey, who came up with the idea
of playing Layla?
We had one call early on, and I had the idea
of leaning into a handful of Dominos tunes.
We were at Red Rocks and I was about to call
Trey back to discuss this. I mentioned some
of the tunes we were thinking about to my
friend Julie, and she said, “You should just do
the whole fuckin’ record.” That was immedi-
[from left] Derek
Trucks, Trey Anastasio
and Susan Tedeschi
perform Layla at the
2019 LOCKN’ Festival
in Arrington, Virginia

“BEING SLIGHTLY UNSURE OF HOW TREY WORKED, I LEARNED
ALL THE GUITAR PARTS MYSELF… WHEN WE GOT TO THE FIRST
REHEARSAL, [IT TURNS OUT] TREY HAD DONE THE SAME THING!”
ately the most obviously correct thing in the
world. [Laughs] As soon as I mentioned it,
Trey talked about how important that record
was to him and that he’s never learned all
those tunes and he’d love to. There’s so many
connections that we all have to that record —
including that it was released on the day Sue
was born — but for me, it goes right back to
the genesis of even playing music and my fam-
ily. Since the Allman Brothers Band ended,
this almost felt like one undone thing. It didn’t
even fully hit me how important that record
was to what I do until we really got into it.
You were named after the band! Was that
because the album was so important to
your parents?
Basically. The Duane connection made it
more mythical because it connected my dad
to Eric and a whole other musical world that
he loved but didn’t have a direct connection
to. Like, Eric’s connected to Hendrix, who
my dad saw and loved. One of the first images
I remember as a kid is Layla, along with a
B.B. King record, At Fillmore Eastand a Joni
Mitchell record leaning up against the peach
crates that held their records. My parents
had a daughter named Jessica after the song;
she was born before me but didn’t make it,
because she had a rare genetic disorder. The
music is my dad’s religion.
Once you decided to do this, did you imme-
diately hone in on the Duane parts? Was
there a straight split of Trey playing Eric
and you playing Duane?
26 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
No. Being slightly unsure of how Trey
worked, I learned all the guitar parts myself,
just so I could bob and weave. When we got to
the first rehearsal, [it turns out] Trey had done
the same thing!
That’s great. You were like middle lineback-
ers who know every defensive assignment.
Yeah — it’s a game changer when somebody
can take on the different parts. A lot of times,
people show up having done the bare min-
imum, but everyone drilled down with this
project. Certainly Trey did his homework and
then some. It made the thing so much more
fun because once you have the material locked
in, you can move on to the next phase: mak-
ing it your own thing and deviating from the
script. It’s one thing to branch off and impro-
vise if you don’t know the stuff, but it’s a totally
different thing if you know what the variation
means. And Doyle also knew the songs inside
out after playing with Eric for so long, and
when his parts fell in, it was perfect. We had
one day of rehearsal before Doyle arrived and
it felt good, but “Layla” seemed a little under-
cooked next to the other tunes, but as soon as
he took that role, it was off to the races.
Do you anticipate working with Trey again
in the future?
I would imagine so because it was so much
fun, but when a one-off like this goes so well,
there’s a part of me that wants to just let it live
in that space. [Laughs] Like, we talked about
redoing the Mad Dogsthing, but there was
something that felt so special about it that I
Trucks [left] and Anastasio in action in 2019.
“As soon as I mentioned [the Layla project],
Trey talked about how important that record
was to him and that he’s never learned all those
tunes,” Trucks says
didn’t want to dilute it at all. It’s kind of the
same with this. There’s something beautiful
and powerful about something actually exist-
ing once… but I’m sure we’ll end up playing
together again somehow.
Have you discussed this project with Eric?
No. We stay in contact and I thought about
bringing it up to him, but I felt like I would just
leave it alone. Maybe he’ll hear it and enjoy it.
You’ve been recording a new album. What
is the timing looking like?
I have a feeling it’ll be early next year. I don’t
know exactly how it’s gonna play out, but it
feels more like it’s going to be a project in four
parts, because we ended up with so much
material. It was rejuvenating for everyone
to not have a clock ticking. It was a luxury to
be able to spend that much time writing and
recording and just creating without knowing
we have to be on the road in three or four days.
Having the time to create for the first time was
the one huge upside of not touring. No one has
that luxury these days.
That’s also made possible because you
have a studio in your back yard, right?
Absolutely. We certainly wouldn’t have been
able to pony up cash for all that studio time.
Before the end of the year, we’ll be spending
all of our free time finishing that up and figur-
ing out the best way to present it, but it’s excit-
ing. Everyone was really creative, there’s a lot
of inspired writing and it’s a different feel and
different sound and it feels like a new band —
which it is! It’s the first real thing we’ve done,
since Kofi [Burbridge, keyboardist] passed
and JJ [Johnson, drums] and Tim [Lefebvre,
bass] left, so it’s a new feeling. It would be dis-
ingenuous to try to keep the sound the same;
you have to change and grow, and every-
one’s been really open to that. So that’s been
refreshing and rejuvenating.
STEEL I
G U I TA R W O R L D • D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 • S O U N D A C O U S T I C S

T REALLY DOESN’T matter how much of an

electric player you consider yourself to be.
P.28 Having an acoustic lying around is always
a good conduit for creativity. Even some of
the world’s heaviest metal bands — includ-
ing those who’ve never been seen in the wild
with anything but a black, pointy-headstocked
war machine — will admit to using Martins, Tay-
GW lors, Gibsons and their ilk at home for songwrit-
ing or in the studio for layering.
There’s a certain naked honesty to acoustic
sounds that’s uncorrupted by other tools of the
trade — and they’re a great way of seeing if your
ideas hold up on their own before being “ef-
fected” and amplified or introduced into a band
setting. The sound they produce is as pure as
it gets: strings vibrating through a soundboard,
echoing through a hole, which then projects
waves through the air and into the ear.
If that sounds a bit primitive, that’s perhaps
because it is; the modern acoustic comes from a
Some of our editors’ favorite recent-vintage long progression of stringed instruments, such
acoustic guitars for most budgets — as the Arab oud, the medieval lute and the Span-
plus amps, DIs and more ish vihuelas of the 16th century. Now, thanks to
advances in technology over the last century,
acoustic guitars aren’t limited to the sounds
BY AMIT they create naturally — there are pickups and
SHARMA preamps to make sure you can be heard in just
about any setting. Which is why we’ve dedicated
this month’s (slightly expanded) gear roundup
to all things acoustic, from amps and on-board
effects units to the guitars themselves.

AER
Let’s get started!

COMPACT 60/4
$1,199, aer-music.de
German acoustic specialists AER are well versed
in hi-fidelity designs and jaw-dropping sounds,
and this fourth version of their Compact 60
is yet another firm reminder of
exactly why. Featuring two in-
dependent channels with their
own dedicated EQ — one for
your instrument and the other
for voice — and options for
phantom power, plus digital ef-
fects like reverb, delay and cho-
rus, it’s hard to see where you
can go wrong. It packs 60 watts
of RMS output power, which is
enough for most rehearsal and
club settings, and there’s a high-
end DI out for those wanting to
go through FOH systems. All in
all, with sophisticated sounds
and a classy all-black aesthetic,
it’s one of the best acoustic am-
plifiers out there for the modern
singer-songwriter.
 Gibson’s new
Generation models
[from left]: G-00, G-45,
G-Writer EC and G-200

GIBSON
EC, all of which include
a Gibson Player Port
[shown below], an idea
from the early Sixties
that was refined for
this brand-new series
GENERATION
COLLECTION
G-00, $999
G-45, $1,199
G-Writer EC, ,
G2 EC, ,,
gibson.com
In the 1960s, Gibson experiment-
ed with various designs to make
their acoustics project as wide for the
player as they did the audience. Some of the blueprints
have been resurrected and refined into the Player
Ports seen on the new Generation Collection, which
launches with four models: the parlor-sized G-00, the
round-shouldered G-45, the G-Writer EC cutaway and
the G-200 EC jumbo cutaway. The two EC instru-
ments will come with an L.R. Baggs Element Bronze
pickup system, which responds to the vibrations of the
soundboard itself rather than the attack of the strings,
and is therefore able to produce amplified tones that
are naturally faithful to the guitar. All of the instru-
ments in the range will feature a Sitka Spruce top
with Walnut back and sides, and a Striped Ebony
fingerboard — with the sound port found on
the upper side of the body, projecting up
into the player’s ears for more clarity
and dimension. When Gibson claims
these instruments will help players
hear more of themselves, they
mean it quite literally! Given their
commitment to nourishing and
promoting young talents — the
Generation Collection being
launched by Amythyst Kiah,
Nikki Lane and Scary Pool Party
(Alejandro Aranda), for example
— it’s worth noting that these will
be the most affordable acoustics
handmade by Gibson’s luthiers in
their Bozeman, Montana, factory.

guitarworld.com 9
G U I TA R W O R L D • D E C E M B E R R 2 0 2 1 • S O U N D A C O U S T I C S

FENDER
ACOUSTIC SFX II
$699, fender.com
Launched at the end of last year as part
of Fender’s revised acoustic line, the SFX
II boasts an 8-inch main speaker, a 6-inch
side-firing SFX speaker and compression
tweeter, with further enhancement courtesy
of its Stereo Field Expansion — ultimately
meaning its stereo dimension can be felt
anywhere in the room. At 100 watts, it’s
powerful and still portable, with two chan-
nels for instrument and microphone use,
each offering its own studio-quality effects.
And it doesn’t end there: the SFX II also has
Bluetooth wireless audio streaming and a
90-second looper, which is perfect for solo
artists hoping to fill out more sonic space.
That’s a lot of power and versatility at an
affordable price.

L.R. BAGGS
VENUE DI
$299, lrbaggs.com
If you’re the kind of player
who likes to turn up and
go, making good use of the
venue’s PA system wherever
you perform, this DI pedal
could very well be the thing
for you. It’s a studio-quality
floor unit that can boost
your signal going to the
mixing desk, personalized
to your own five-band EQ
settings. There’s a notch
filter to limit feedback — a
common problem when
acoustic instruments are
used at louder volumes — as
well as controls for phase
inversion, a series effects
loop, a chromatic tuner and
options to power via battery
or DC adapter. All of these
considerations, along with a
chromatic tuner and battery
status gauge, make it one of
the most practical acoustic
products available today.
 FISHMAN
AURA SPECTRUM DI
$399, fishman.com
Although Fishman has been ven-
turing into the world of electric
guitar pickups in recent years —
with great success, might we add
— their legacy is predominantly
associated with acoustic guitar
preamps and pickups. So rest
assured they know what
they’re doing with products
like the Aura Spectrum DI,
their all-in-one solution
for the touring musician.
There’s a three-band
EQ, one-knob com-
pressor, an automatic
feedback suppressor
and 128 pre-loaded
“images” that can be
blended with your acoustic’s
pickup sound — with more avail-
able through their website library
via USB. A very clever unit for the
modern-day acoustic performer.
P.31 Fishman’s Aura Spectrum DI offers
128 preloaded “images” that can
be blended with your acoustic
guitar’s pickup sound

TAYLOR
214CE
$999, taylorguitars.com
In terms of affordability, it’s a fair old jump from
Taylor’s 200 series to their 300 models, which
they say is where their all-solid wood experi-
ence starts. While they both share solid tops, the
more affordable grand auditoriums have layered
back and sides — a perfectly understandable
concession given the price difference. But more
importantly, do they still manage to provide the
legendary Taylor experience? Very much so, we’re
pleased to report. The 214CE has the same ES2
electronics system and Venetian cutaway, so
there are a fair few similarities at half the cost,
which ultimately make it a great instrument for
amateurs and pros alike.

guitarworld.com 31
G U I TA R W O R L D • D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 • S O U N D A C O U S T I C S

The ToneWoodAmp genuinely

MARTIN
D-28 STANDARD
feels like one of the most
innovative products ever to have
$2,999, martinguitar.com
This world-famous dread-
nought, first released way
been made for the acoustic guitar
back in 1931, has become
one of the most highly
coveted acoustics of all
time. And there’s some real
musical heritage behind
them, given their usage in
timeless recordings by the
Beatles, Bob Dylan, Johnny
Cash and many more.
The new models feature
forward-shifted bracing
to allow greater vibration
onto the Sitka Spruce top,
East Indian Rosewood back
and sides, antique white ac-
cents, a dovetail neck joint
and Style 28 mother-of-
pearl fingerboard inlays —
catering features from the
instruments of old to the
modern-age player. If you’re
looking for one premium
guitar to last you a lifetime,
this could very well be it.
P.32

TONEWOODAMP
$259, tonewoodamp.com
Revolutionary is a word you’ll hear a lot of
guitar brands using to sell their products — and
while in many cases it’s not always strictly true,
the ToneWoodAmp genuinely feels like one of
the most innovative products ever to have been
made for the acoustic guitar. The device attach-
es magnetically to the back of your instrument
and uses patented technology to “amplify”
your sound with a whole host of onboard ef-
fects, including delay, reverb, chorus, overdrive,
autowah and tremolo — removing any need for
amps, cables and pedals. It’s basically a one-stop
shop that will cover just about any need. Best of
all, ToneWoodAmp preserves the natural sound
of your acoustic guitar without any coloration
at all, expanding the capabilities of your instru-
ment for “an unparalleled playing and listening
experience.”
 YAMAHA
A5R ARE
$1,399, usa.yamaha.com
Yamaha is known for many things, from motor-
cycles and boats to speakers and pianos. They’ve
also been at the forefront of acoustic guitar
designs for more than 50 years, and that success
led to them developing electric guitars like the
Revstar and Pacifica — though they’re arguably
less widely used than the Japanese giant’s siz-
able acoustic range. The Japan-made A5R ARE
models are among the best Yamaha produces
today, featuring solid Sitka Spruce tops they’ve
treated with an Acoustic Resonance Enhancement
process — using heat, humidity and atmospheric
pressure — for better looks and, most importantly
of all, bigger tones. The back and sides are made
from solid Rosewood, and the SRT2 system offers
piezo and simulated mic sounds that can be
blended and balanced as you see fit. The perfect
all-rounder.

The Japan-made A5R

ARE models are
among the
best Yamaha
produces
today

FENDER
AMERICAN ACOUSTASONIC JAZZMASTER
$1,999.99, fender.com
Until the recent invention of the Acoustasonic, guitarists were forced
to pick between holding an electric or an acoustic in their hands.
We’d be the first to admit piezo pickups have certainly gotten bet-
ter at mimicking acoustic tones on electrics over the years, though
technically speaking, they’re more of an emulation than the real
deal. That all changed in 2019 with the introduction of the Acousta-
sonic Strat and Tele models — and this year The Big F have added a
Jazzmaster to their game-changing lineup. The first to be equipped
with a humbucker, it’s even more versatile than its predecessors, of-
fering 10 different voices in total — four to simulate different styles of
acoustics and six making use of the Tim Shaw-designed bridge pickup.
Better still, the blend knob allows users to merge different voices togeth-
er — making this less of a hybrid and more of an instrument in its own right.

guitarworld.com 33
Yngwie Malmsteen —
“From day one, the first
time I picked up a guitar
when I was 7, in my
head I thought I was a
performer, you know?”

STORY BY PHOTOS BY
RICHARD BIENSTOCK AUSTIN HARGRAVE
 dec 2021 Page 37

E VA R G R A H N I T S U A

iyD
Guitar World

Yngwie
On his new album, Parabellum, everyone’s
favorite Ferrari-driving guitar legend
tackles all the vocals and instruments
(except drums). The result?

D
An Yngwie-on-steroids shred extravaganza!
By Richard Bienstock
ID I EVER tell you the story
about when I first came to
America?” Yngwie Malmsteen
asks a few minutes into his con-
versation with Guitar World.
The Swedish neoclassical shred legend is
calling from — where else? — his Ferrari
(“Sun’s up, top’s down”), and as the wind
whips by in the background, he unfolds
a tale from his past to illuminate how he
approached the insane guitar work that
characterizes his new album, Parabellum.
 “I was a little kid, like 18 or 19, and I was new in the
country — I spoke English but I didn’t know some of the
terminology,” he begins. “And right away I recorded
one album with [Los Angeles-by-way-of-Nashville
metal band] Steeler. We did it in one day, in a barn. Then
right after that, I did the Alcatrazz album [1983’s No
Parole from Rock ‘n’ Roll], and we had a producer there.
It was really proper. I did a solo, and I’ll never forget it
— the producer goes, ‘Oh, yeah, that was really good.
Let’s do one more, but a little slower — remember, less
is more.’ And I honestly looked at him and went, ‘You
mean more is more, right? You made a mistake!’ ”

Malmsteen lets out a laugh, but he’s

also deadly serious. “That wasn’t a joke,”
he says. “To me, more is more. And that
became my thing.”
Indeed it did. To be sure, these very
pages have chronicled plenty of excep-
tionally creative, incredibly proficient
and mind-bogglingly speedy guitar shred-
ders over the past four decades. But none
of these players is Yngwie Malmsteen. The
58-year-old virtuoso has always been, and
will likely always remain, in a class of his
own. And Parabellum will only serve to fur-
ther cement the Malmsteen legend, and
maybe even nudge it a bit further along.
From the unaccompanied shred salvo that
kicks off the fierce album opener, “Wolves
at the Door,” to the neoclassical romp
“Presto Vivace in C# Minor,” the majestic
note spirals that punctuate the power ballad
“Eternal Bliss” to the pummeling rhythms
and lightspeed harmonized lines of “Toc-
cata,” and the staccato, flamenco-esque
acoustic picking of “(Fight) the Good Fight”
to the kitchen-sink six-string indulgences
of the eight-minute instrumental closer,
“Sea of Tranquility,” the new record is an
Yngwie-on-steroids shred extravaganza,
and light years away from its predecessor,
the bluesy (though, admittedly, still pretty
shreddy) Blue Lightning.
“This time,” Malmsteen says, “I told my
record label, ‘I’m going to give you an album approach, where there are really no bound- Also, I’ll say it’s been quite a while since
that is what I am all about. Prepare your- aries. There’s no, “Oh, maybe that’s a little I’ve even attempted to do something that
selves!’ ” And so, once again, the fury has too much...” This is what it is, you know? would please a certain audience or fit into a
been unleashed. Much like Malmsteen’s certain format or whatever. And that’s true
record label, you’ve been warned. What led you to go in this direction? for this record, too. I just did what felt nat-
With this one I had a full year of doing noth- ural to me. I didn’t say, “Oh, I’ve got to do
Your last album, Blue Lightning, was a ing. Normally I’m touring, but I was in the this, I’ve got to do that.” What you hear is
bit of a departure from what we’ve come studio 24/7 for nine months. It was crazy. what you get. That’s me right there on that
to expect from an Yngwie Malmsteen The only time I remember doing something record. I’m not trying to be something or
record. But I’d say that, with Parabellum, similar was when I did [1986’s] Trilogy. trying to add something different. It’s a very
we get the “full Yngwie.” You come out Because normally you’re on tour, and you natural thing, you know?
with all guns blazing. cut the drums somewhere and then you do
I guess it was all balled up, huh? [Laughs] vocals somewhere else, that type of thing. Did you not feel that way about Blue
I can’t explain to you what happened. But And I don’t say that to mean it’s bad or good. Lightning?
I think that, you can listen to shit I did in But what I am saying is that this time I I thought Blue Lightning was really cool.
1979, 1980, when I was like 16 years old, became extremely meticulous about things. But you know, I was kind of requested to do
and, I mean, I don’t think it sounds as good And also I was very inspired and very pas- it. I don’t really take requests, but that one
as this, but you could say it’s similar in sionate about what I did. I hope that shows. was a request, more or less [from Malm-
SSIEW KRAM

38 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021

steen’s label, Mascot Records]. And I said,
“Yeah, shit, I’m game, why not?” Some of
the songs that I covered, or did my varia-
tions on, rather, are songs I’ve always loved.
And then I also wrote a bunch of songs
that were in the same bluesy vein. And that
didn’t feel weird to me because my first ini-
tiation with guitar was the blues. I got my
first guitar when I was 5, and my whole
family was musical. I would hear jazz and
classical and all that stuff. But I didn’t want
to know about that — I just wanted to play
rock. And blues. Because that was what was
cool to me. But the reason I diverted from
that to do what now is my style is because I
felt extremely limited with those five notes.
Having said that, I love B.B. King and
Angus Young and all those blues players.
Yngwie Malmsteen
does it all: “The
painter paints the
foreground, he paints
the background… he
doesn’t go, ‘Oh, can
you do this part for
me?’ It’s the same with
a classical composer...
And that’s just the way I
approach it”
I think they’re amazing. But for me, I felt
more intrigued and more challenged and
more fascinated with linear patterns and
harmonic minors and diminished scales
and all that stuff. That’s why I got away
from the blues. At the same time, the blues
was never a stranger to me.
You mentioned the benefit of having a
lot of time in the studio for Parabellum.
What did that bring to the songs?
One thing is that once I found a melody or
a theme or riff or some crazy arpeggio sec-
tion, I would record it, and then go, “Fuck,
this is amazing. Now what am I going to do
with it?” And I could do anything I wanted
with it. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve
listened to one of my old records and said,
“Oh, man, I wish I had done it like this.”
This time, I haven’t thought that yet. Maybe
I will later but… [Laughs] But now it’s like,
“No, that’s exactly what I wanted to do.”
And that was a luxury of time.
I think almost all the songs transformed
one way or another, as far as tempos and
timing, half time or double time, arrange-
ments. Again, that’s the luxury of time.
Like, the song “Wolves at the Door,” I had
four different versions of that one. Then I
said, “I need to put something in the mid-
dle.” So I came up with a G minor arpeg-
gio thing. But after I listened back to it in my
car I said, “No, I’m starting the song with
this!” So I moved it. And “Relentless Fury,”
at one point that was an uptempo song. Or
the ballad [“Eternal Bliss”], I came up with
the melodies on guitar, but then I decided to
sing them instead. Because the melody will
hold itself no matter what you do with it.
The more time you can live with something,
the more you can change things around, get
them exactly how you want.
I’ve heard you mention that there’s a gun-
shot on the record.
[Laughs] Okay. So, back in ’86 I was record-
ing the Trilogy album and I had just dis-
covered sampling and triggering, right? It
was a new thing then. I had a Magnum pis-
tol and I wanted to have it triggered by a
snare drum, so that every time the drummer
hit the snare a gunshot would go off. Like,
pow! pow! So I brought the gun into the stu-
dio, and we put up the mics and we put a
big piece of wood there. “Okay, roll tape.”
We pull the trigger. Boom! Then we listen
back. And all you hear is a little pop. Because
the microphones couldn’t handle it. So
that was ’86. Now, on this album I tried it
again, and we got it. I used a Berreta 92,
the army pistol. And you can hear it a cou-
ple of times. It’s at the beginning of “Relent-
less Fury,” and it’s in the middle of “Wolves
at the Door.” And there’s one more, I think,
on the last song, “Sea of Tranquility.” It’s
such a cool effect, you know? It’s something
I wanted to do 35 years ago, and we finally
got it right.
Let’s talk about some of the other, um,
gear on the record. When it comes to gui-
tars and amps, are you basically just using
your signature models?
Yes. It’s a little bit boring because I use
my Yngwie Malmsteen [Fender Strato-
caster] guitars, I use my Yngwie Malmsteen
YJM100 Marshalls, I use my Yngwie Malm-
steen [Fender] strings and Yngwie Malms-
teen [Seymour Duncan YJM Fury] pickups.
Even the acoustic guitar on the record is the
Ovation Yngwie [Viper] model. Although
guitarworld.com 39
 Malmsteen with his
signature Ovation Viper
for the bass parts I used a Fender through a
SansAmp. And I used a Roland [guitar] syn-
thesizer to do all the keyboard parts. All the
fast piano parts, that’s all on guitar.
You’re playing everything except drums.
Yes. The drums were played by Lawrence
Lannerbach. I played all the other instru-
ments. I sang all the vocals. Everything.
When you have so much time, that’s when
you can go, “Hey, let me do 50 vocal over-
dubs.”
In the last few years you’ve taken on
more and more of the workload yourself.
What do you like about that approach?
It’s a very bizarre thing to try to explain,
because in rock ‘n’ roll it’s embedded in
people’s minds that it has to be a band play-
ing everything, right? And I’m not saying
there’s anything wrong with that — I love
the Rolling Stones and Deep Purple and so
many bands. And 99.9 percent of the songs
in those bands usually come about when
the guitar player comes up with a riff, the
drummer starts playing along with it and
finally the singer comes in and starts sing-
ing over that. Which is great. But for some
reason I tend to approach things more like a
writer or a painter would. Like, the painter
paints the foreground, he paints the back-
ground… he doesn’t go, “Oh, can you do
this part for me?” It’s the same with a clas-
sical composer, for that matter. And that’s
just the way I approach it. Even when I
SSIEW KRAM
40 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
was a little kid, if the drummer wasn’t in
the rehearsal room I’d just put the record
button on. Like, the demo tape version of
“Black Star” that I did in 1982, that’s me
playing drums, bass, keyboards and guitar.
So this is nothing new for me.
Do you still sit down and practice and try
to learn new things?
Well, practice, the true meaning of the
word, I’ve never done that. Ever. Because
practicing is taking something and repeat-
ing it over and over. But from day one, the
first time I picked up a guitar when I was
7, in my head I thought I was a performer,
you know? I never, ever, ever felt like, “Oh
yeah, let me play this repetitiously until it’s
right.” I said, “No, I’d better get it right now
because I can’t accept being substandard!”
It’s a very strange approach, but that’s what
I’ve always thought. And you know, I play
quite a lot. If I’m watching TV, I play guitar.
And looking back, most of the time I’m tour-
ing or recording, so it’s like I’m never not
doing it. It’s always active somehow. And if
I don’t play for a little bit, I notice.
I once had a conversation with [former
Steeler vocalist] Ron Keel, and he told
me that, when you first came to the U.S.,
you were always playing guitar. He said
you would wake up and grab your Strat
before you even got out of bed. Then
you’d pour a bowl of cereal with one hand
and continue playing guitar with the
other. Is this an accurate description of
Yngwie Malmsteen circa 1983?
It is. But it’s funny because it’s almost like
he’s talking about me when I was even
younger. In the 1950s in Sweden, my uncle
built a recording studio in a building that
was owned by my grandfather. I got to use
that facility when I was a kid. I was lucky.
But it was in the city, and my mom’s house
was 45 minutes out by train and a bus. So
I would walk to the bus, and while I was
waiting for the bus I would take a guitar and
start playing. As soon as I was on the bus, I
would start playing. When I got to the train
I would play guitar on the train. Then I’d
change trains and I’d go to my last stop —
still playing — and I would walk to my stu-
dio and play guitar until it was time to catch
the last train back, which was at 2 a.m. Then
when I got home, I would start playing until
I fell asleep. When I woke up in the morn-
ing? My guitar was still on me. And the first
thing I would do is play. I would do this
over and over and over and over.
That’s commitment.
The most bizarre thing is, I didn’t know
why I was doing it. Because it wasn’t like,
“Oh yeah, if you do this you’re gonna get this
reward or that reward.” It was just some
sort of relentless drive to prove something
to myself. So I don’t know that I was quite
like that by the time I got to the States, but
yeah, I was definitely like that. I was always
committed.
Dream Theater’s
John Petrucci with
a limited-edition
Ernie Ball Music
Man Majesty 6
20th Anniversary
model in Honey
Butter

Gui tar
World
DECE 2021
MBER
Page 42
 John Petrucci — who’s been anything
but dormant during the pandemic daze —
has capped off his recent burst of mad
creativity with a blazing new Dream Thea
album, A View from the Top of the Worldte. r
Below, he fills us in on the challenges of
producing, his first-ever recordings with
an eight-string guitar — and exactly how
he remembers his parts on stage when
a song cracks the 20-minute mark

By
Photo by Rayon RICHARDS

guitarworld.com 43
 Dream Theater
on stage in Barcelona
in January 2020
[from left]: John
Myung, James LaBrie,
Mike Mangini and
John Petrucci; not
shown is keyboardist
Jordan Rudess

FOR JOHN PETRUCCI, the question

“What didn’t you do?” Ever since glo isn’t so much, “What did you do du
much of 2020 and well int bal lockdowns kept musicians ofrin g the pandemic?” Rather, it’s
eve
o thi s
than ever. He wrote, recorded andyear, the Dr eam Theater guitarist has beery n
stripe off the road for
bus
rel eas ed his second solo album, Terminal Vel ier and more prolific
he got together with his Liquid Ten
Dream Theater keyboardist Jorda sion Experiment supergroup members (bassioci st
ty; soon after,
Liquid Tension Experiment 3, their Rudess and former DT drummer Mike Portnoy)Ton
n
to
y Levin,
ban g out
Iron Smoke Distillery to introduce fir st rec ord in 22 years. The guitarist also
his fir st signat par
ure bourbon whiskey (Rock the Bar tne red wit h
even came out with his own brand rel ), and he
Petrucci’s Nebula line, developed of gro om ing products. Yes, you read that right:

B
includes beard balm, beard oil and
etween work, whiskey and
hair care, has he had time for
anything else?
“Oh, sure,” he says. “Like
everybody else, we’ve been watch-
ing a bunch of Netflix. There’s so many
good shows nowadays, although we did
recently rewatch The Sopranos. That was
a lot of fun.”
He admits the past year and a half
hasn’t been without its challenges. In fact,
Dream Theater were deep into a world
tour that was slated to stretch to the end
of 2020 when they were forced to can-
cel the remainder of their dates. “For us,
the economics of staying off the road were
no small thing,” Petrucci says. “Our liveli-
hoods come from touring. We established
SNREFDER/LADIV IDROJ
in collaboration with Ca ptain Fawcett,
mustache wax.
and radio hits. While we’re fortunate to
have that loyal fan base that comes to our
shows, to see that suddenly shut down
was pretty tough.”
Not only did the band (which also
includes Rudess, singer James LaBrie,
bassist John Myung and drummer Mike
Mangini) have to worry about their own
hides, but they also had to consider how to
keep their touring crew intact. “It wasn’t
like other years where they could jump
on another tour to stay afloat,” Petrucci
says. “There were no tours out there at all.
The entire business was shut down.” In
an effort to support their crew, the band
recorded a medley of Christmas classics
released the track on Bandcamp, with all
proceeds going to their touring person-
nel. “Thankfully, everybody was able to
get some money from that,” he says. “And
what’s great is that we were able to hold
on to everybody who works for us. They’re
all coming back when we go out and tour
again.”
Oh, yes, Petrucci did manage to
squeeze another project into his burst-
ing schedule — a new Dream Theater
album titled A View from the Top of the
World. It’s the band’s 15th full-length stu-
dio record and the first disc they recorded
at their brand-new, Long-Island-based

that years ago, because we’re not the kind
of band that relies on massive record sales
44 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
called “The Holiday Spirit Lives On” and facility (combination recording studio,
rehearsal space, equipment storage and
creative hangout) called Dream The-
ater HQ. On previous albums, Petrucci,
 A View from the Top
of the World is the
band’s 15th album and
the first disc recorded
at Dream Theater HQ
who also operates as the band’s producer,
would usually bring in fleshed-out demos
created either by himself or in partner-
ship with Rudess. And even if he didn’t
have full demos, he would invariably have
something up his sleeve — even stray riff
ideas he’d recorded into his phone. This
time, however, he went into the studio
totally cold.
“It was a little frightening for me at
first,” he says. “Because I had written so
much music, what with my solo record
and Liquid Tension, I thought, ‘I hope I
don’t run out of ideas.’ Thankfully, that
didn’t happen. Everybody was so charged
up and happy to be in the studio for the
first time in a while. The ideas started fly-
ing around right away, and we were off to
the races.”
Because of COVID protocols, record-
ing the album was a far different under-
taking from past go-arounds. The band
members wore masks in the studio for
a time, and the group’s studio manager,
Maddi Schieferstein (who also doubles as
Petrucci’s guitar tech) had Plexiglas par-
titions and an air-filtration
system installed. “We were
very safe,” Petrucci says.
“Nobody was traveling, and
we had our hand sanitiz-
ers. After a while, we all got
tested and the masks came
off. Everybody was fine, and
nobody got sick.”
As he resides in Can-
ada, singer LaBrie, however,
was unable to travel to the
States at the time, so he joined his band-
mates in the studio, for both writing and
tracking sessions, from his own home stu-
dio via Zoom. “We had a big TV monitor
in our live room, so James was basically
right with us, listening and comment-
ing, the whole time,” Petrucci says. He
points out that the first new song the band
wrote together, “The Alien,” a nine-min-
ute crusher that features one daredevil riff
after another, was partly inspired by the
peculiar circumstances they found them-
selves in. “Everything felt a bit odd at first,
how we were coming together after being
apart for so long. I think that song really
speaks to our collective frame of mind:
‘Here we are. Everything feels new again.
OK, let’s make some music!’”
Indeed, there’s a palpable sense of dis-
covery throughout A View from the Top
of the World. Nothing feels overcalcu-
lated — there are no extended storylines;
each song is its own free-floating vehicle
— and the music comes at you in sponta-
neous, exuberant bursts. On the lowdown
grinder “Awaken the Master,” Petrucci,
playing an eight-string guitar for the first
time, sounds as if he’s having a wick-
edly good time coaxing monstrous rasps
and roars from the instrument during the
song’s hair-raising solo section. And on
the similarly angsty “Invisible Monster,”
he changes the mood abruptly — almost at
random — peeling off deliciously smooth
and supple leads that lend a lighthearted,
freewheeling contrast to the song’s omi-
nous air. “Transcending Time,” a hook-
filled tip of the hat to Eighties-era Rush,
offers the guitarist another opportunity
to go far and wide, and he takes off rap-
turously, filling the air with spiraling dou-
ble-tracked lines that glisten with radi-
ant beauty.
What can one say about the extrava-
gant, 20-minute album-closing title track?
Summersault riffs, gargantuan rhythms,
odd-time volleys, guitar-and-keyboard
unison frenzy, a few more riffs, and more
Petrucci standout solos than any song
has a true right to bear — it’s instrumen-
tal grandeur in Cinemascope view. Call
it the Lawrence of Arabia of Dream The-
ater pieces.
“I think this record really encapsulates
what Dream Theater is about,” Petrucci
says. “To me, it reaches back to our roots
in a lot of ways, but it also incorporates
some of the new stuff we’ve learned and
developed in our career. I think you can
really hear how high our energy level was
at all times. This is a band that really val-
ues being able to play our instruments,
but we also just love being together. Like
everybody else, we had that taken away
from us for a while, so to get that back and
be able to do what we do, we treated it like
a celebration. I think that really comes
across on the record.”
Normally, you would have toured quite
a bit during the past year and a half.
By being home so much, are you a bet-
ter player? I have to imagine you’ve had
more time to practice.
A lot more time, sure. In some ways I’m
a better player. Being at home and prac-
ticing has certainly improved my chops
and skills — no question about it. Along
with that, there’s recording and being in
the studio, which requires a high level of
concentrated playing for hours a day. I've
been doing that since March 2020, so it’s
really kept me on my game.
Here’s the interesting part.
Even with all the home and stu-
dio practicing I’ve been doing,
there’s nothing that brings you
to a high level like playing in
front of people. At the camp
I did recently, I played a con-
cert at the end, and it was amaz-
ing how different it felt — the
energy level. You can practice
all you want at home, but per-
forming before an audience is a
whole different ball game. It’s as if you use
different muscles.
How is the finished album different
from what you initially envisioned?
Even though you went into the writing
cold, did you have any preconceptions
about what it would be?
I did have some preconceptions going in.
I wanted to do things more stripped down
as far as the production. I always dou-
ble track guitars, and I thought, “Maybe
I’ll single track guitars and really make it
sound like we’re playing live.” And… that
sort of went out the window. [Laughs]
Once we got together and started writing,
I went back to doing things as I normally
do, double tracking guitars and really pro-
guitarworld.com 45
ducing the music. That’s just the way I am.
I heard an interview with former Major
League Baseball pitcher CC Sabathia,
and he said something interesting.
He said it was too big for him to think
about winning the World Series, so he
approached each game just trying to
win inning by inning. Is making a record
the same kind of thing? You just try to
make each moment count?
That is interesting. What you’re talking
about and what he said reminds me more
of developing skill and craft on the gui-
tar. I hear from people all the time who get
overwhelmed about guitar playing; they
have skill, but they just don’t know how
to tackle everything all at once. Which,
of course, you can’t do. Once you break
everything down into small pieces and
you realize everything comes from each
piece, you gain knowledge easier and can
expand on it.
I can relate to what CC was saying.
When we’re making a record,
I do like to have a bigger pic-
ture in mind because it kind
of helps get the whole band
on the same page, as opposed
to just sort of going on with
no direction. But having
said that, when we’re writ-
ing and recording, I want
to make sure each sec-
tion is meaningful. Make
each moment count. Those
moments become songs, and
songs become an album. I
try to remember that stuff,
but it’s so easy to get caught
in the weeds, especially
for me because I’m producing. I have to
change hats all the time: “Are we achiev-
ing our goal? How do we need to adjust?
Is this coming out the way we envisioned
it sounding?” It comes with the territory,
I guess.
You’ve been producing for a while. Do
you look back at when you started and
go, “Man, I really didn't know anything
about record making back then”?
In some ways, sure. I started producing
with [1999’s] Scenes from a Memory. Mike
Portnoy and I did that as a partnership,
which we continued until he left the band.
At that point, I started producing our
records myself. I admit I had a lot to learn.
There was a lot of responsibility on my
shoulders. Between all the records we’ve
46 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
done since then, I’ve grown a lot. You can’t
help but learn. You learn from your mis-
takes and what you should have done dif-
ferently.
What’s an example of a mistake you
used to make?
I would say I didn’t always listen to peo-
ple when they would bring up certain
ideas or concerns. When you’re produc-
ing, you’re steering the ship, but you have
to be careful not to be close-minded. If
somebody brings up something, you can’t
just shut them down. James might say,
“The mix sounds good, but the drums
are a little too processed.” And I might be
like, “No, they don’t. They sound great.”
You almost get defensive because you’ve
put so much work into it. Or Mike might
say, “You know this is really good, but I
feel like there’s too many ballads.” My gut
response might be to disagree, but I can’t
be dismissive. I have to listen to those
comments because they’re not in it as deep
as I am.
And, of course, they might be right.
They might be right. So I’ve learned to
really listen to the guys and have an open
mind. A good example on the new record
is when Mike said, “There’s a lot of energy
on the record, but we didn’t do a ballad.
I feel like we need a mid-tempo kind of
song.” Instead of saying, “I don’t think so,”
I said, “Let’s try it.” We ended up writ-
ing “Invisible Monster,” and it’s one of the
coolest songs on the record. [Editor’s note:
Check out Petrucci’s “Invisible Mon-
ster” lesson on page 50.] It’s important to
maybe have the last word and steer the
ship, but it’s also important to really listen
to people, because they might be right and
you might learn something.
I have another sports-analogy question.
You're into weight lifting, and you also
play the guitar a bit.
[Laughs] Yeah, a little bit.
Is there any correlation between the
two? For your level of playing, you need
stamina and dedication. The same is
true for weight lifting.
Absolutely. I’ve always felt as though
there was a connection between them. Of
the two things that stand out, one of them
is consistency. People who become profi-
cient on their instruments or get in really
great shape are doing so because they
practice or work out on a regular basis.
Whether it’s every day or four or five
days a week, you can’t get there by being
a weekend warrior. It doesn’t work that
way. You need to be consistent to achieve
gains and see results.
The second thing is form.
You see it with guitar play-
ers who have really great
technique — or bodybuild-
ers who are in fantastic phys-
ical shape. If you’re lifting
weights, you can’t just throw
stuff around willy-nilly; you
need to work out with struc-
ture and discipline. You need
a plan. With guitarists, you
need to focus on specifics —
how your fingers are mov-
ing, picking angle, conserving
motion. It sounds all nerdy,
but it works. Guitar playing
and weight lifting are very related in my
book.
Let’s get into some of the new songs.
“The Alien” is fast paced and has a lot of
super-charged riffs, but also there are
some beautiful moments of David Gilm-
our-esque lead lines. You like that con-
trast, don’t you?
Sure. I love mixing the two approaches.
You know, the guitar is such a beauti-
ful and expressive instrument. It allows
you to be the melody cat in so many ways.
When you solo, you’re the vocalist in the
band for those moments. In that way, I’ve
always been influenced by guys like David
Gilmour, Neal Schon and Gary Moore.
They’re phenomenal at that kind of thing.
You hear it on the album. If a song is
really energetic and has a lot of riffs, I put
in the contrast of a beautiful melodic sec-
tion. That side comes out in “The Alien”
and “Awaken the Master.” That juxtapo-
sition has always been very important to

me. I’ll give you my own analogy: If we
were in a speedboat going full bore for a
while, sometimes it’s nice to slow down
and just admire the water. We would look
at the scenery, the mountains; we’d just
take a moment to breathe. That’s what
those melody sections do. I love how the
guitar allows you to experience those con-
trasts.
“Sleeping Giant” has an extended solo
section in which you and Jordan really
go at it. You shift moods and sounds,
and there's even a part where he plays a
wild honky-tonk piano solo. How do you
guys work that out? Do you reject as
many ideas as you keep?
A lot of it is improvisation. I think what we
do is allow each other to shine. We love
trading solos and playing unison lines,
and we have fun trying new things son-
ically. The great thing about our style of
music is, we have the freedom to do that
“When you solo, you’re
the vocalist in the band
for those moments,”
Petrucci says. “In that
way, I’ve always been
influenced by guys like
David Gilmour, Neal
Schon and Gary Moore”
to the fullest extent. We’re not confined
by song length or stylistic preconceptions.
We shred and solo and improvise. We can
kind of do whatever we want. It’s very
stream-of-consciousness, but it’s also very
mapped out. A lot of times, it’s like, “You
take the first solo. Then I’ll come in, and
then you’ll come back. Then at the end,
we’ll do a unison thing.” It’s great. Every-
body gets involved and has a chance to
shine. We do that with all the instruments:
“Mike, this is your part. You go for it. This
is going to be a great drum moment.” It’s
really just having fun with the music.
You mentioned “Awaken the Master”
before. You’re using an eight-string gui-
tar for the first time on that one.
I’m really excited about this. Throughout
my 20 years with Ernie Ball Music Man,
we’ve done six- and seven-string models,
but never an eight-string. I’ve never even
played an eight-string before, but I wanted
S D R A H C I R N OYAR
to develop one and actually get into the
guitarworld.com 47
 studio and write a song on it. The tim-
ing never worked out till earlier this year.
I got a prototype and started playing it,
and right away I wrote “Awaken the Mas-
ter” with the band. Just like it was with a
seven-string, playing the eight-string felt
like a cool new breakthrough. That extra
string broadened the range of the instru-
ment. Think of it as a keyboard player hav-
ing more keys so he can go lower — that’s
what it’s like with this guitar. Things like
scales and arpeggios translate beautifully
because their shapes stay the same; I don't
use any sort of weird tuning. With chords,
you have to adjust and figure out how that
added range is going to extend, but that
came pretty quickly. There was a bit of
learning how to work the sound a bit, but
it’s been so much fun.
So now we come to the title track —
over 20 minutes of music.
[Laughs] We did that on purpose. We
had to scratch the itch of creating an epic,
because on Distance Over Timethe song
lengths were a bit shorter than what we
normally do. This time, we went in and
said, “We’re going to write this song, and
we don’t care how long it’ll be; in fact, it’ll
probably be at least 20 minutes.”
It’s a great feeling writing an intro and
knowing it doesn’t have to be over in 15
seconds. It can be three minutes, five min-
utes — it’s part of a bigger picture. From
there, you start to see the song take shape
before your eyes. At a certain point, you
know how it’ll end, but you have to figure
out how to get there. As you see your way
to the end, you get into recurring themes
and melodies. Because there are no bal-
lads on the album, we brought things
Guitar
World
Page 48
down a bit in the middle. It’s a big, epic
story, and you can’t just be full bore for 20
minutes. There has to be some ebb and
flow. I love that middle section, with the
cello solo and how we bring things down
to almost a very Floyd-like way.
The other part is making sure there are
enough vocal sections in which you can
tell a story, but before that you need to
have a big enough concept where lyrically
that story will be appropriate for such
a long song. After you have that down,
you finally say, “There’s going to be a lot
of moments where we can really go for
it.” Whether that’s trading solos or crazy
instrumental parts, it’s no-holds-barred.
It’s one thing to record a 20-minute
song — you can always track parts in
sections. Playing it live is different.
People are always curious about that.
Obviously, we rehearse a lot. There’s
nothing like going over something again
and again to help you get the stuff dug in.
But you also need to know the roadmap
of the song and where a section is leading;
that gives me the signal for the next part
that’s coming up. Sometimes it happens
rhythmically. There might be a drum fill
or a rhythmic figure that sparks my mem-
ory. But there’s no substitute for playing a
song over and over before a tour. It’s rep-
etition. If I were driving from New York
to Boston right now, I wouldn’t need a
map because I’ve made that drive a bunch
of times. I know how to get there. I don’t
need to know every little detail along the
way; I know the general roadmap.
Guitar-wise, did you record the whole
album with your Majesty models?
Yep. The Ernie Ball Music Man Majesty.
I used the Purple Nebula, which is just a
beautiful-sounding guitar. For the seven-
string stuff, I used my Ember Glow Maj-
esty 7, and on “Awaken the Master” I was
playing the prototype of the eight-string. I
might have done some layering on “Sleep-
ing Giant” with the eight-string. The
acoustic stuff was done on a Taylor Build-
er’s Edition.
I imagine you didn’t stray from your sig-
nature Mesa/Boogie amps…
I’ve used my signature Mesa/Boogie JP-
2Cs since they were made. That’s the
amp. It sits there, we mic it up, I plug in,
and there’s my sound. It’s great not hav-
ing to search for different amps anymore.
There’s a real comfort in always know-
ing you’re going to sound great. That amp
never lets me down. I do use a few pedals:
a Darkglass compressor, some Boss Waza
Craft pedals and, of course, I always use
my signature Dunlop JP95 wah and my
TC Electronic Dreamscape pedals. I have
fun making cool sounds with them.
Do you have a favorite guitar moment
on the record?
One of my favorite moments is in the intro
to “Sleeping Giant,” when the first guitar
comes in on the left side. That’s the sound
I get when I plug the Majesty into my
JP-2C. You hear me play the riff, and it’s
really raw on one side. I love that. It’s like
my quintessential sound. I hear that and
I’m like, “Yeah, that’s the shit!”
Petrucci in action
in Oslo, Norway,
January 21, 2020
PER OLE HAGEN/
REDFERNS
John Petrucci calls
“Invisible Monster”
“one of the coolest
songs” on Dream
Theater’s new
album, A View
from the Top of
the World
John Petruccibreaks down his main riffs
in “Invisible Monster,” as featured
on the new Dream Theateralbum,
A View from the Top of the World
By
Photo by Rayon Richards

I N THIS LESSON, I’d like to

demonstrate how I play all
the signature themes, riffs and
rhythm parts in the new Dream
Theater song “Invisible Monster,”
which appears on our latest album, A
View from the Top of the World. The
track was born out of our desire to
compose a song that’s played at mid-
tempo. After we had written a lot of
songs for the record that were very
proggy, very dark, instrumentally
driven, long and bombastic, with lots of
playing from each band member, it was
drummer Mike Mangini’s idea to write
a mid-tempo piece that would balance
well against the rest of the material. So
this song is intended as a shift in gears
to another side of the band’s music.
That said, the song came naturally for
us as soon as we found and locked into
the right tempo.
A big part of this song is the main
theme. There’s a recurring theme that
moves through different incarnations
as the arrangement progresses. This is
not the kind of song that would be on a
“concept” record, with multiple parts Gui tar
and being really involved and long.
Rather, it’s a shorter, more succinct World
type of song, but it is also thematically DECEMBER2021
driven, which sets the whole mood of Page 51
 FIG. 1 the track.
Esus2 E( b5) E( b5)
~~~~~~ E5
~~~~~
Em C/E E5
~~~~~ Ultimately, we present this

11 . 12 .
theme in a few different ways.
T
A 8 8 9 10 10 9 8.
‰ We had a main melody, presented
in FIGURE 1. Harmonically, the
B melody describes an E minor
tonality, including some colorful
chromaticism and passing tones
FIG. 2 that include the flatted 5th, Bb. The
Esus2 E( b5) E5 Em C/E E5 E( b5) melody appears in different ways:
P.M. P.M. P.M. | P.M. | sometimes the guitar is playing
T 11
97
| |

12 Πa riff, and the melody is sitting

on top of that, played by Jordan
B 7 7 87 87 97 7 7 97 7 7 10
7 10
7 97 7 7 87 [Rudess] using a string sound on a
synthesizer, forging a cinematic,
orchestral approach. At other times,
FIG. 3 the melody only appears in the
Esus2 E( b5) E5 Em1/2 C/E guitar riff, via inclusion in the chord
~~~~~
19 . 15 15
~~~~~~ ~~ ~~ voicings, as shown in FIGURE .
There are other moments where
T
A 16 19 19 17 17 16 1716 15 Πthe guitar presents the melody in a
single-string incarnation, as shown
B in FIGURE 3, where it’s played in
a high register and is given a lot
of emphasis at that point of the
FIG. 4 composition. When this theme
Esus2 E( b5) E5 Em C/E E5 E( b5) C(# 11) C C5 appears early in the song, it serves
P.M. | P.M. P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | to set the entire mood, but later on
..
|
T it acts akin to an additional chorus,
A 11
97 7 7 87 87 97 7 7 12
97 7 7 10
7 10
7 97 7 7 87 2 2 3 3 3 43 3 3 23 23 3 3 53
as it is a melodic sequence that the
B listener has become acquainted
J with. When the vocal tag, “Invisible
monster…” happens, that melodic
FIG. 5 theme always follows.
Several years ago, I wrote a
C(# 11) C C5 F(# 11) F B5 E5 column for Guitar World on how to
P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | use two-note chords to create riffs in
T
A 43 .. 43 3 3 23 23 2 2 42
Πthe Dream Theater/Queensryche-y
genre, and we explored virtually
B 3 3 23 23 53 20 every kind of two-note diad and the
great variety of implied harmony
that one can make reference to with
FIG. 6 just a two-note chord. For this song,
I incorporated that basic approach
C(# 11) C5 D5 D G5 E5 but expanded to broader chords
1 P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | here and there.
T
A 43
ΠThis was accomplished by taking
the melody and integrating it into
B 3 3 23 23 3 3 53 5 5 75 5 5 45 45 5 5 55 20 the chord voicings. I start with an E5
chord and include that first melody
note, F#, which is the 2nd, or 9th,
C5 C(# 11) C F5 G5 F5 E5 of E. Playing the notes E, B and F#
together creates an Esus2 chord,
4 P.M. P.M. | P.M.
.. Πwhich is a signature progressive
| |
rock sound. Something that appeals
53 3 3 43 43 3 3 23 0 0 33 55 55 33 22 to me about the 2nd/9th is that it
J
3 3 1 0 sounds like it needs to resolve to a
triadic chord tone, and in E minor
those chord tones are E, G and B.
FIG. 7 That F# melody note creates tension
Esus2 E( b5) E5 Em C/E E5 E( b5) right from the get-go.
P.M. P.M. FIGURE 4 illustrates how I
.. 119
1 P.M. P.M. | P.M.

87..
| |
weave the melody into two- and
T
| |

A three-note chords, à la the previous

7 7 87 87 97 7 7 12
97 7 7 10
7 10
7 97 7 7 lesson I referenced. Following
B 7 2 2 3 33 each chordal accent, I play palm-

52 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
 For video of this lesson, go to
1. 2.
C(# 11) C C5 C(# 11) C C5 F(# 11) F B5 E5
..
4 P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. |

43 3 3 23 23 3 3 53 43 3 3 23 23 3 3 53 43 3 3 23 23 4
222 20 0 0

FIG. 8
~~~. ~~~~ ~~~. ~~~~
* E5
~~~ ~~~~ ~~ ~~~~
10 10 9 10 9 8. 11 11 9 11 12 1114 14
Œ
B4
T 11 12
8 8 9
J
*Chord symbol reflects overall harmony.
FIG. 9
~~~ ~~ ~ ~ ~~~
A 4 16 17 19
T 15 19 Π14 12 10 8
141617 17 121416 15 111214 13 91112 12
B

. ~~~
FIG. 10
≥
A4
T
14 12 13
12 14 12 12 13 12 12 1312
14 Œ
B 15
5
FIG. 11
muted low root notes in a 16th-note Gm D/F # Em7 b5 Cm/E b Gm D/F # E b E b( b5)
rhythm, which serves to fortify 1 10
the rhythmic element of the guitar
part. After kicking off the part with
Esus2, with the F# note being the
T
B
4 11
12
12
10
77
79
87
87
45
56
11
12
12
10
77
79 86 76
highest pitch in the voicing, I begin
bar 2 by moving that F# up one half FIG. 12
step to G. Playing the notes E, B
and G on adjacent strings like this B b/D Cm B b Am Gm
≥≤≥≤≥≤≥≤ ≥≤≥≤≥≤≥≤
A 44 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8
provides us with a very useful and 8
rich-sounding Em chord voicing.
This is followed by a chromatically 45 57 T
85 53 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10
descending figure on the 4th string
that is played in tandem with the E 6 75 B
root note on the 5th string. When I
move down to C in bar 4, I allude to
a Lydian-type melody by playing F# FIG. 13
Gm D/F #
over C. The entire melody is played
≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤≥ ≤ ≥ ≤
A 44
using these two- and three-note
chords.
The song then moves to the
T Œ
second theme, or “B” section, which B 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 9
begins with a restatement of the
melody, but instead of ending on
C, the goal was to resolve to Em, FIG. 14
D/F #
which is where the verse begins.
Two ways to set up a resolution to 1 Gm
A4
Em are either from F, one half step T
above — F functions at the b9 (flatted
9th) which is a classic “metal-type”
way to resolve to the tonic — or B 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9
from B, which is the 5th. A V - i (five
“INVISIBLE MONSTER”
S BY JOHN PETRUCCI
MUSIC BY DREAM THEATER
© 2021 WC MUSIC CORP. AND YTSE JAMS, INC.
ALL RIGHTS ADMINISTERED BY WC MUSIC CORP.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. USED BY PERMISSION. guitarworld.com 53
 5 Em7 5 b Cm/E b
- minor one) resolution is the most
7 5 8 7 5 8 7 5 8 7 5 8 7 5 8 7 6 5 8 6 5 8 6 5 8 6 5 8 6 5 8 6 common resolution of all. So we
decided to use F and B, as illustrated
in FIGURE .
FIG. 15 FIG. 16 When composing and arranging,
Gm Gm my bandmates and I always
≥≤≥ ≤≥≤≥≤ ≥ ≤≥≤≥ ≤≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤≥≤≥ ≤≥ ≤ investigate many different options.
T4
1 In this case, we could have used any
A 4 10 81210 81210 8 A 4 10 8 1210 8 1210 8
T of the different sequences shown
1210 81210 8 1210 12108121081210
B B in FIGURE 6. We opted for the
“double-Lydian” type sound, by
alluding to the Lydian mode over
FIG. 17 both C and F. The entire part that
D/F # E b P.M. B b/D C5 A5 encompasses sections A and B is
T4
3 shown in FIGURE 7.
A4 ..
|
Once again, stating the melody
11 11 22 is essential to the composition,
9 7 12 9 7 9 7 12 9 7 9 7 12 9 B 86 6 6 76 76 85 53
6 6 0 J and so there are also places where
I play the melody along with the
keyboards. The riff happens twice,
FIG. 18 so I decided to play it in a different
D/F #
octave each time. FIGURE 8
1 Gm illustrates the melody by itself. I
A 4 10 8 1210 8 1210 8
T then move the entire line up an
octave, and I’m always looking for
12 10 8 12 10 8 12 10 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9 7 12 9
B little things to add when restating
a melody in a different octave like
5 Em7 5
b Cm/E b this. One twist here appears toward
the end of the song. Instead of just
picking the high F#, I play a run up to
the note. FIGURE 9 begins with this
75875875 87587587 65865865 86586586
riff. You can devise a great exercise,
in the manner of an etude, by taking
FIG. 19
this pattern and moving it down
positionally through the E Aeolian
E b P.M. B b/D C5
~~~~ A5 Em9 Em9 mode, as shown in bars 2 and 3.

A 98 14 1612 14 gg 775 ‰
13 Right after this section, when
.. T
|
the melody is played again, I devised
86 6 6 76 76 85 53
J
7
6 6 75 B 0 12 12 15 14
g7 an alternative way to get to the high
F# note, by playing a sweep-picked
C major arpeggio. This is shown in
FIGURE 10.
FIG. 20 The first pre-chorus of “Invisible
Em9 Monster” features an interesting
P.M. guitar part. The chord progression
A 8 14 161214 ‘ 4 Œ
|
T ‘ ‘ ‘ here is very “classical” sounding,
and I wanted to come up with a
B 012 12 1514 0 way to play it that would add to that
approach, which immediately leads
me to arpeggios, while also driving
FIG. 21 the music forward and leading us
Em9 to where we are headed, which is
1 P.M. P.M. P.M. P.M. the chorus of the song. The pre-
T
| | |
chorus is in G minor, and we are
161214 161214 1612 10 16 trying to get to Am for the chorus,
B 0121412 15 14 0121412 1512 0121412 1514 0121412
transposing up a whole step in
minor keys, with the goal of creating
a sense of “lifting” the music by
modulating up from G minor to A
FIG. 22 minor. This can be a little tricky to
5 P.M. Bm9 accomplish, so all of these chords
A 98
1
Œ
|

T are purposeful in creating a melodic

12 16 11 7 9 11 7 9 sequence that the vocals will work
15 14 12 B 0 7 9 7 10 9 0 7 9 7 10 9
over. Ultimately, I found the way
to do this, via voice-leading and the
use of chromaticism.

54 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
 For video of this lesson, go to
FIG. 23 GuitarWorld.com/December2021
FIGURE 11 illustrates the 3 A9 Am Em9
T9
1
progression of Gm - D/F# - Em7b5
- Cm/Eb, followed by Gm - D/F#
- Eb - Eb(b5) - Bb/D - Cm - Bb - Am. 957 957 A 8 14 16 12 10 ‘
As you can see, it’s a tricky way 0575 97 0575 87 B 0 12 12 15 10
to get from Gm to Am, via voice-
leading that does not sound too
jarring. I then took this progression 3 Bm9 A9 Am
and stated it in chordal arpeggios.
FIGURE 12 illustrates the initial
G arpeggio, which is played using 11 7 9 ‘ 957 957
alternate picking. As the triads are 079 7 10 9 0575 97 0575 87
built from three-note shapes, using
alternate picking “flips over” the
picking every other time it’s played, 7 E9 E/G #
so be sure to work on the picking
technique. FIGURE 13 shows how 6 4 5 ‘ 54
2
‰
the Gm arpeggio is played twice
before the switch to D/F#. The entire 0 4 7 4 7 5 4 4
sequence is shown in FIGURE 14.
This part evolves slightly, in that
I add a higher note when the riff is FIG. 24
repeated, as shown in FIGURE 1. Em9 Bm9

A 98
FIGURE 16 illustrates how I then 1 P.M. |
“transpose” this approach to the
D/F# chord. The section then wraps
T ‘ ‘
16 12 14 11 7 9
up with a series of two-note chords,
shown in FIGURE 17, that land us
B 0 12 14 12 15 14 0 7 9 7 10 9
on a big A5 power chord. The entire
guitar part through this section is A9 Am9 E9
shown in FIGURE 18. 5
The next part I’d like to dissect
occurs under the second verse of the
song. Overall, the song has a dark, 957 957 645 ‘
“Metropolis”/ “Pull Me Under” 0575 97 0575 87 0474 75
type of sound to it, but at the second
verse, it departs from the metal Em9 Bm7
vibe and gets really proggy, and 9 P.M.
this is one of my favorite moments |

on the album, in the way that the

vocal melody interacts with the 16 12 14 ‘ 11 7 9 ‘
instrumental backing parts. 0 12 14 12 15 14 0 7 9 7 12 9
What I like about this section is
that, once again, I’ve used a chordal
arpeggio approach to present the 13
Fmaj9 D ~~
harmony, but the twist here
this
is that
section is played in 98 meter (or
94, depending on the way you choose 1714 ‘ 1410 ‘ Œ‰
to count it). 98 can be divided up in 0131513 151715 0101210 121412 10
many different ways — four eighth
notes followed by five eighth notes,
or a five and a four, or three groups FIG. 25
of three notes. In this instance, I Em
went with a four and a five. What ≥≤≥≤≥≤≥≤≥ ≤≥≤≥≤≥≤≥≤ ≥
makes it sound4 “tricky” is that the
drums play in 4 over the riff, which T9 Œ ‰
not only sounds cool but also serves 16 12 14 16 12 14
to lock into the groove and provide B 0 12 14 12 15 14 0 12 14 12 15 14 12
a solid foundation for the vocalist to
sing over.
As shown in FIGURES 19 and FIG. 26
20, the arpeggios “bounce off” the ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥
open low E string. Harmonically,
T9
the part alludes to an Em9 sound (E,
G, B, D, F#). As I move through the A8 16 12 14 16 12 14
progression, I always start with the B 0 12 14 12 15 14 0 12 14 12 15 14

guitarworld.com 55
 FIG. 27 For video of this lesson, go to
open low E note and then play the GuitarWorld.com/December2021
G
T9
root-fifth-root of the next chord.
These figures show the riff as played
in 98 , but against the straight 44 drum 4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0 5 4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0 5
pattern, the part actually feels
like what’s illustrated in FIGURE B
21. That phrase then follows the
progression down to Bm, A and Am, FIG. 28
as depicted in FIGURE 22.
G A
A 98
When we combine the two parts,
T ‘
we get FIGURE 23, which also
includes the switch to E9 in bar 7,
which also can be thought of as a B
4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0 5 ‘ 6 0 7 0 9 0 6 0 7
reference to E/G#. Now let’s put all
of the pieces together, as shown in
FIGURE 24.
Using strict alternate picking FIG. 29
with an odd number of notes,
like nine, creates moments in the G A
T9
pattern where we have to begin a 1
phrase on an upstroke instead of a
downstroke, as detailed in FIGURE A8 4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0 5 ‘ 6 0 7 0 9 0 6 0 7 ‘
25. Another approach would be to B
utilize consecutive downstrokes
each time the pattern repeats, as Cm G
demonstrated in FIGURE 26. Many 5
guitarists prefer this approach,
as it strengthens the attack on
the downbeat of 4“one” in each
5 0 7 0 8 0 5 0 5 ‘ 4 0 5 0 7 0 4 0 5 ‘
bar. Against the 4 time, the riff
sometimes repeats on the upbeat
and sometimes on the downbeat, FIG. 30
so be aware of the manner in which
the guitar and drums sync up with 1 G A
each other.
A4
The riff played over the next T 4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0
part is based on a repeating pull-off 5 4 0 6 0 7 0 4 0 5 6 0 7 0 9 0
technique on the G string, as shown B
in FIGURE 27. Parts like these
are easy to play, and I’ve utilized Cm G
this approach in other songs, such 4
as “Paradigm Shift.” I follow up
the G riff with a similar riff in A, 60760709 06075070 80505507 08050540
as, as shown in FIGURE 28. The
song then modulates to C minor,
and I apply the same approach, as
illustrated in FIGURE 29. As shown 8
in FIGURE 30, the riff reverts back
to G at the end of the pattern, with a
slight alteration in the use of C, the 5 0 7 0 4 0 5 4 0 5 0 7 0 5 0 4 0 5 Œ
4th of G, instead of the previously
used C#, the raised, or “sharp,” 4.
The melody then moves down to
E, implying Em7b5, after which we FIG. 31
move to the D string and “bounce Gm Em7 b5
T9
off” the open string in the same 1
manner as we had done with the
open G string. This arpeggiated
sequence, outlining the progression B
3 0 5 0 7 0 3 0 5 ‘ 3 0 5 0 7 0 3 0
7
‘
Gm - Em7b5 - Eb - Gm - D, is
illustrated in FIGURE 31.
There it is! I hope you enjoy
playing through these guitar parts, 5
Eb Gm D U~~
and I really hope everyone digs the
new record. See you out on the road,
hopefully soon!
807050506 ‘ 807050505 705040405
ASSUID TTOC
S

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one-of-a-kind PRS that
was hand-painted
by Joe Fenton
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with M
Amit
Sharma

guitarworld.com 59

IS a busy man. The longtime PRS Guitars endorsee
and signature artist has only just finished
wrapping up the fifth Tremonti record, Marching in Time, and he’s already
in the process of switching gears for early work on the next Alter Bridge
album. “It’s almost like the sessions never stop!,” he says, speaking to Guitar
World from his home studio, where stacks and stacks of pedals are neatly
lined out on the many shelves behind him.
The newest effort from the Tremonti band,
in which he sings while sharing guitar duties
with Eric Friedman, packs in plenty of the
metallic crunch out of which he’s built a mag-
nificent career. And though his recorded out-
put in this group has almost caught up with
his main band — at least in terms of albums
released — he admits there has been a small
amount of cheating involved. “I think we
barely skipped a beat between [second album]
Cauterizeand [third album] Dust,” he says.
“I kinda think of those two as one record,
because it was really just one long record-
ing session. So this feels more like our fourth
album, at least in terms of the workload.”
Talk us through the writing process for the
record. When did you start building this
new body of work?
Pretty much immediately after [2019’s] Walk
the Skywith Alter Bridge, I kinda hit the
ground running. I was probably a year and
a half into the writing before I got together
with [co-guitarist] Eric Friedman. He’s the
guy I count on for demos and bouncing ideas
with. He’ll just come stay at the house and I’ll
break out my laptop and play him a few hun-
dred ideas. Those are some of my most fun
moments as a songwriter. Sitting there, we’ll
break out some beers and go on until four in
the morning going through all this material.
I like to get that first reaction. Eric’s always
been great to bounce ideas with. You need
60 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1
Tremonti [left] performs
in Copenhagen, Denmark,
June 21, 2018, with fellow
Tremonti guitarist Eric Friedman
to have a comfort spot with your bandmates.
The same goes with Myles [Kennedy, Alter
Bridge]; both of us are very open with one
another on our creativity. You have to let your
walls down. It’s the same with Eric. I know
what I like, so once I’ve bounced all these hun-
dreds of ideas, it’s good to hear another review
of what I’ve done. Once I get the second opin-
ion, I haul ass with arranging the ideas that
seem like they’re at the forefront.
How exactly do you choose which songs
end up in Alter Bridge and which ones are
for Tremonti?
The most obvious way of knowing is if there’s
any kind of speed metal influence in the song.
I’ll tend to keep that for Tremonti. When-
ever I bring speed metal to Alter Bridge, Scott
[Phillips, drums] and Brian [Marshall, bass]
kinda look at me like I’m crazy. [Laughs] I
think that’s one of the main reasons I started
this band. I got tired of coming up with riffs
that I loved playing and those guys would be
like, “Aaah!” I probably reminded them of the
days when we started the band — I’d bring
out my Metal Master distortion pedal and do
horse gallops. They thought I was nuts. I get to
live those moments through this band. So it’s
mostly the metal stuff. As far as what works
for Alter Bridge, I find it’s usually the more
drawn-out, atmospheric stuff. It probably fits
that band more, though I love doing songs
like that with Tremonti. One of the longest
songs we’ve done is the title track on this new
record, and that definitely crosses into that
grey area of what could work in either band.
The subject matter of that song I needed to
sing; it’s a song from a father to a child, and my
perspective singing it to my daughter. Hav-
ing your wife being pregnant through 2020
was sketchy, so it was the sentiment a father
would have speaking to his child.
The opening track kicks off with some of
the heaviest sounds you’ve ever dialed in,
though you still somehow find the right
melodies to follow through.
I think the balance I’m always searching for is
finding things that are fun and exciting to play,
but carry emotive melodies that mean some-
thing. That’s the most important part of any
song, the vocal melody. You can strum camp-
fire chords and sing great melodies, but that’s
not fun night after night. I want it to be musi-
cally challenging and fun to play. Sometimes
the heaviest and most brutal riffs are the hard-
est things to write a great vocal melody over!
Your solo in “The Last One of Us” has a
wide interval arpeggio that gets played
twice and really catches the listener’s ear.
It’s that old trick of playing something and
then repeating it to make it a theme. That
arpeggio that starts it off is the theme, but the
second half is actually my favorite part of the
solo. There’s a lot of space to phrase; you can
do a lick and stop before doing the next one.
The heavier stuff is more intense and flashy,
but I like the dramatic stuff a bit more.
And in other parts of the solo, it sounds like
you’re playing pentatonic runs in five.
Yeah, that’s one where I’m using fives. I fell in
love with fives a while ago. I’d listen to other
players and whenever someone would use
those patterns, it would turn my head and I’d
say, “That’s badass!” I love that sound, espe-
cially when Eric Gales, Eric Johnson or Joe
Bonamassa pull it off. I’d always think, “I’ve
gotta learn that thing!” And I tried for years
to do it like Eric Johnson does it. I watched a
million videos and can do it when I’m sitting
at home with nobody watching me. As soon as
I get any adrenaline flowing, I just can’t! That
little sweep between the two strings every
time you reset that phrase of five is tough.
I play hard, so I’m not good at it when I’m
amped up. But I finally found a pattern of five
where I could pick every note and I’m abus-
ing it on this record… I love it maybe a bit too
much. [Laughs] It’s my new go-to picking pat-
tern.
Perhaps the hardest thing about those Eric
Johnson runs is keeping time when switch-
ing from alternate picking to economy for
that one note.
Yeah! It’s a strange new reflex to learn as a
guitar player. It’s not only hard to keep in time
but it’s also hard to keep the same velocity
to the picked stroke when striking through.
You don’t want it too soft or hard, or slipping
through too quickly. I think Eric Johnson has
such a soft touch and so much control when
he does it. Like I said, I’ve spent hundreds of
hours playing that stuff, putting on the met-
ronomes and learning all the licks he’s known
for. I watched Troy Grady’s stuff, the guy
who mastered picking, who teaches incredi-
bly well. You can trust what he’s showing you.
When I was growing up, a lot of the teach-
ers would teach you things wrong or the tabs
weren’t right, so it’s good to find people like
that. You can trust what he’s teaching you is
correct because he’s done his homework and
shows you the original video and then him
playing it with close-ups of the picking. I went
through all of that and there were moments
where I felt I had it and then I’d pick up a gui-
tar somewhere to show someone and I’d
screw it up every time. I got it when I sat there
for 45 minutes playing the same thing over
and over again, but never to the point where
it could be part of my live arsenal. I kinda gave
up on it! And you should never be a quitter as
a guitar player, but I’d spent too much time on
it, so I found my own secret trap-door to doing
it picked, but without that sweep.
“Now and Forever” features some serious
modulation on some of the guitars. What
are we hearing?
The one I used at the end of the song is
wicked. It’s called The Carrier by Hexe Guitar
Electronics, and it has this really cool, trippy
sound. You have it either rise or decline in
tone and it ramps up or down with this kick-
ass swell. And then when it hits the top or bot-
tom, it goes blub blub blub, almost like a mus-
cle-car engine. When it comes to recording
sessions, I’m usually the meat-and-potatoes
chunky rhythm guy. Myles and Eric are pedal
nerds; they’ll sift through boxes until four in
the morning with [producer] Michael “Elvis”
Baskette. There’s one pedal I loved using for
these sessions, and that’s the EarthQuaker
Devices Transmissor. It’s really cool and
“I love that sound,
especially when
Eric Gales,
Eric Johnson or Joe
Bonamassa pull it off.
I’d always think, ‘I’ve
gotta learn that thing!’”
vibey, so I used it for this trancey atmosphere
here and there. There was a hand-wired Tube
Screamer for overdrive, my Morley wah, a
Phase 90 and a Guitar Systems Vibe Tool.
What amps did you end up using?
I wanted to focus mainly on the PRS MT 100.
We’ve gone through a lot of different versions
of it now. The one I used on the record was
a two-channel version and it’s very close to
what the final product will be. We’ve actually
dialed back the gain because it had so much. I
noticed I never went past two o’ clock on the
amp; I never needed to. I wanted this to sound
quiet at bedroom levels if needed. The clean
channel had a push/pull, now we have a lit-
tle bit of gain boost — you can dial that back,
but it’s probably my favorite clean from a
non-combo amp. My favorite of all-time is a
Fender ’65 Twin. This, for a 100-watt head,
is the best clean I’ve heard. So that’s the main
tone. For cleans, I always brought in a Vic-
tory V40, which always makes me bring in my
Cornford RK100. I think I got a special one.
Back when they were still making me amps,
they offered to send me one while they were
making mine. I liked that one but when they
sent the new one, it was a whole other animal.
Everyone I know who has tried it absolutely
loves it. You can dial the knobs any way you
want, it will still sound great.
It’s interesting how composed some of
these leads feel, like “If Not for You,” which
has very distinct jumps around the neck.
I come up with my solos by improvising and
then stumbling upon something that I dig. But
by no means do I ever worry about making
mistakes. If I’m improvising in front of people,
sure, I might be more pentatonic and stay safe.
But when writing solos, I’ll try to go for sour
notes, open strings, overbends, things that
might not make any theoretical sense what-
soever. And that’s how I stumble upon the
things I dig. About 90 percent of it goes away
and 10 percent turns into the solo. On this one,
I also got to use an Yngwie lick I learned when
I was a kid; it’s the first fast run in that solo.
I also got to use one of my favorite descend-
ing legato things, but I’d say my favorite thing
about this solo is the use of open strings. I
do it twice, just like in “The Last One of Us,”
where you have that repeating theme. In this
one I do the lower octave for the first half and
then a higher one for the second, but it’s the
S E G A M I Y T T E G A I V P U O R G S E G A M I L A S R E V I N U / N O L A V A / A C M Y P /T S E O R T R E T E P / O T O H P S E L A Z N O G : E G A P G N I C A F
same notes played the same way. The rest is
just experimentation and finding which notes
speak to me more. A lot of times the hardest
thing with writing a solo is coming up with the
S E G A M I Y T T E G A I V P U O R G S E G A M I L A S R E V I N U / N O L AVA/O T O H P S E L A Z N O G / N E K K O D E J R E T : W O L E B
first four notes. Once I’ve done that, it kinda
floats. My weakness, probably, is the blues
jam stuff. I feel a bit like when I play the blues
it’s pretty typical stuff and not very inventive.
That’s kinda why I get out of the box and do
stuff that hopefully you haven’t heard a mil-
lion times.
We’ve spoken a lot about the solos, but
some of the riffs on tracks like “In One
Piece” are tricky in places too.
I’m using a combination of open strings and
fretted, on the 12th fret. I was doing my best to
make it not a simple riff, with something extra
weaved in there. When you’re a young guitar
player and the first things you learn become
your home base for the rest of your life. For
me, that’s metal rhythm playing — palm-mut-
ing and galloping rhythms. That’s my com-
fort zone. The lead stuff is harder for me. I
practiced a lot of the fast Paul Gilbert patterns
when I was younger, but when it came to stuff
like Stevie Ray Vaughan, I was terrible at it.
My bending and vibrato was nowhere good
enough. I attacked the guitar so hard with that
rhythm stuff, it didn’t translate well to picking
higher strings and bending during solos.
Tremonti on stage
in Oslo, Norway
 “Eddie [Van Halen]... walked
through hundreds of people
to say, ‘Hey, I forgot to tell you —
you need to take out two springs
to make it play right — sorry I
forgot to tell you that earlier!’”
What kind of exercises helped you most
with your down-picking and triplets?
When I was in school, I would challenge peo-
ple to draw the letter “n” continually on a
piece of paper. I would bet them a dollar I
could do twice as many in a minute. I’d prac-
tice that all day in school! [Laughs] The best
way to get the right hand ready is to set a met-
ronome for 104 or 105 bpm and see how long
you can survive doing just downstrokes. Try
to get that going for a minute. If you can last
three minutes, you’re a champ. Downstrokes
are the core of metal rhythm guitar. Once
you’ve gotten that down, do the exact same
thing with gallops. Those things are workouts.
It’s not something you can just instantly get;
you have to build up that muscle and make it
part of your technique. Growing up listening
to Metallica, Testament, Slayer and Exodus,
I couldn’t care less about most of the leads.
There was no way in the world I was going
to learn a Slayer solo. I don’t know if I’ve ever
seen anybody play a Slayer solo note for note.
It’s funny — I went to see them live and saw
Kerry King playing a solo from one of their
records. I thought he would wing it but no, he
played it exactly as it was recorded.
You recently shared a cover of “Another
Day, Another Idea” by Brazilian guitarist
Mateus Asato, which uses some really col-
orful ways to link through chords.
I found this guy called Darryl Syms online
who taught that song. It would take me weeks
to sit and learn it by ear, watching videos of
Mateus. There was a guy who had done the
work for me! It took a few days to get under
my fingers and a few more to get closer. It’s
those things that might not sound difficult
but are difficult, little slides and switches here
and there, that I like. The reason I learned that
song is because he uses his thumb like Hen-
drix and does some fingerstyle stuff in the sec-
ond half. I wanted to incorporate some of that
and find new ways of using fingerstyle in my
clean playing. I’m always going through You-
Tube looking for new ideas to pick up, at least
one thing a day. It’s funny… my in-laws are
staying here right now and my mother-in-law
came in asking me the name of that beautiful
62 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
thing I’d been playing all day. And it is a beau-
tiful piece. I think Mateus is an incredible gui-
tar player, one of the best on earth. There’s so
much feel because of that rhythmic side, the
way he slaps the guitar as he’s going along. He
always finds nice, big-sounding chords and
knows how to intertwine them.
You had Wolfgang Van Halen playing bass
in this band for a number of years. It must
be nice to see him enjoying all the success
with Mammoth WVH.
When you take away the Van Halen name,
he’s just a really nice, down-to-earth kid —
and he’s super talented. When you hear him
sing live, he’s incredible — plus he’s great on
drums, guitar and bass. I found he was really
good at learning stuff and memorizing parts.
Writing a record is a different skill; it’s very far
away from being a shredder or killer drum-
mer. I know so many great guitar players who
don’t write. I was blown away when I heard
the album. It’s an amazing record and one
that I’d wanted to hear for a long time. He and
Elvis had been working on it for a few years,
maybe even three years. I was online the other
night and saw a clip of him playing in Her-
shey [Pennsylvania], opening up for Guns N’
Roses. I think he’s doing a little better than
playing bass for the Tremonti band right now!
[Laughs] I’m happy as hell for him.
And you were also lucky enough to meet
Eddie a few times, too.
I have some really special memories. One of
ASSUID TTOCS
Tremonti is “happy
as hell” for his
former bass player,
Wolfgang Van Halen
them is when we were opening for Van Halen
at Madison Square Garden and Wolfgang
was there. He must have been 6 — he was just
this tiny kid! His mom was there too. Eddie
had given me one of his guitars backstage; he
tapped away on it and said, “Yeah, feels good,
here ya go!” and obviously that’s become one
of my most prized possessions. When the
show was over, we were backstage under-
ground and there was 300 crew, guests, press
everywhere, just swarming the place. We saw
Wolf, his mom and Eddie walking out. Eddie
saw me out of the corner of his eye and walked
through hundreds of people to come over
and say, “Hey I forgot to tell you — you need
to take out two springs to make it play right
— sorry I forgot to tell you that earlier!” Then
he gave me a kiss on the cheek and walked
right through all the people clamoring for him
again. He did that for me?! He had his kid and
his wife with him and knew he’d get caught up
by everybody, but he took his time out because
he gave a shit about his products and pass-
ing on knowledge. I got to see him at his core a
handful of times and I was lucky. It was a very
cool thing.
 ye a rs , T h e B la c k C ro w e s’
After 3C0h(OrisK,R3o1)binson revisit their milkeesrtone
Rich anbdut album, Shake Your Money Ma
de
By Joshua M. Miller But the Robinson brothe
rs did
They teamed up
Drakoulias to crewi th original prodn’tucsiteridl y by.
George
Photos by Getty Images ate a rem ast
the album — which featur ered version of
es the
0, Chris
Again,” “Twice
and a cover of OtAsis ReHard,” “She Tahitlkss “JtoeaAnlous
H E STA RT ofb2r0o2ther Rich wertoeur — and dug into the vault dding’s “Hard to Handgele”ls”
T T son and his assive world early days. s for material from their
Robineparing for a mersary of their Expanded versions of 20
pr niv Shake Your
an sblyrate the 30thuat,n19
x io u
90’s ciled Crowes Prese Shake Yo 21’s The Black
to platinum brothers had reoctotan lking to
c ele d eb also include ant: ur Money Maker
u lti- he
m y Maker. T everal yea over band rs n unreleased macoterlleialcti—onsom
of B-sides, demo s and
Mone ar prior after s ue to a dispute version of early incarnati as Mr. e dating back to their
the yeother, mostly dsembled a new appeared well as a recordon Crowe’s Garden — as
each rship. They as performances g once again their hometowning of their spirited 1990 sh
ow in
owneand, and initial sion for playin VID swiftly The extra timeofgaAtvelantheta.
the b ffirm their pas . However, CO reminisce further on the m a chance to
to rea Black Crowes ns. far they’d co . As Chrisalbum and see how
as the oned future pla realize “howme say made them
azing and s,kyitwe
64
GuitarWorld Decembe
r 2021
postp created someam music and beluc are to have
en in a band tha t has
 n ree decaanddes.
e on foruthr m
r th at’s go o usic
ate d a careebe interested in y

SEGAMI YTTEG/NEREP
e rp etu
p eople would of
That p ou have to say. d and passionate baeblioeuft rock
what yreaffirmed my lou t the way we feel ny too —
“It e same,’ bu “And it’s fun the
‘nothinllgisisththe same,” he salyy,s.the joyous, the lan zthy,e outside.
and ro od, the bad, the ugck Crowes were o ing from…
the go ver — that the Bla h and I were comproper…

I NAV SLEIN
whate inside, where Ricg the music in its
On theere] always puttin its weight.” re they
[we w it proper gravity, considerably fromtwthheeend
g n
givin band has grow lbum’s sessions. n’t have a A
The start of the a n a label, did year
were aEt thigehties, they weresnsc’t aorce. Rich wasp19are, ants. Chris
of the er, and money wa ill living with his way.
managhigh school and st trying to find his gry, like
out of his early 20s, still t all. We were hun this was an
was in e had no money a ut I think we knew orking very
“W ris says. “B We’d been w ars,
literallyu,”nCithy that was spepcitoal.that. A couplewofayneted to
opport e years leading ut in the game. We record. We
hard thWe wanted to ge anted to make a shot.”
really. the field, and we wd. We wanted ourke that was
get on d to tour the worl ed at the record li
wante s Rich, “We look
Add

The Black Crowes’

Rich Robinso
on stage in n
Amsterdam
May 1990 in

guitarworld.com 65
 everything. Like we had arrived. We were all so
excited just to be able to get into the studio and
record thes e song s.”
They credit Drakoulias for taking a chance on
a young ban d and beco min g thei r point man for all
things busi ness .
“George really believedlyinimp us when no one
else did. And that was real ortant back then. 1990’s Shake Your
Money Maker
Befo re you mad e anyo ne any mon ey in the music
ness , very few peo ple real ly gave a shit,” Chris
busi
says . “Ge orge did, and he saw som ethi ng in us and believed in
And he also inst illed a wor k ethi c that we have to this day,
us. and when you have goodessong s, it makes
about the songwriting, Son iting alwa ys com first . No matter
everything a lot easier. t itgwr seem ed like. ”
what, and no matter wha e introduced around 1986
Drakoulias and the band wer doing for A&M. Drakou lias heard
through demos the band was ersa tion s with in the labe l. On a whim,
about them through convr show at a New York City club.
he decided to catch thei he really liked the coversosm we chose,”
“We met him there, and n in the Stre ets’ and an Aer ith song The Black Crowes in
Rich says. “We did ‘Dow e.’ And George was like, ‘Wow, that’s a Amsterdam in June
Mor
called ‘No More No k he really saw something in the music 1990; “What Rich didn’t
have as a flashy lead
cool combination.’ I thin we chose to add. I don’t kno w how much guitar player, he had
we liked and the musicsong s, but I thin k he saw som ething there in spades as a rhythm
player,” Chris says
own
he thought of our wing, and tried to sign us to A&M.
and took us und er his t could be,
“We were all really you ng and excited about wha wha t we were
idea that anyo ne wou ld real ly like an Otis Redding song… So, it wa
but we had no t was hap pening in s more jus really for the love
doing,” he cont inue s. “If you look at wha
bands like Warrant andds.Slau ghter and
of music and for the
studio and make a recexc itement of us to betabl e to get into the
music at the time, it was e kind s of hair met al ban We were doing The remastered verord .”
Poison, and all of thes sio n of the alb um is
for the brothers. e band wa like time machine
rediscover songsTh s pleasantly surpria sed to
suc h as “Ch arm ing Me ss,”
“One thing that wa be the band’s first single but wa
“It’s like digging up the time vau s left off the
which was slated to
album.
important to us was really school in the year 205
surprised about how
lt in
3. Like, ‘Oh my godfro,’”ntChofristhesayelementary
guitar tones that w s to have Lennon’s] ‘Jealo Guam bitious we we try to plays. “I was
the demos for ‘Frus y’ and ‘30 Days inre,thetoHo [John
They were probab e loved. sincerity of what we ont Porch Sermon’ and ‘Angelle.’ I love to see
s.’
were trying to do. And it’s jusI love the
out of touch. We didly seen as
to see something that’s not fully formed. I mean, oftcou interesting
record is fully forme d, but all the little par rse, the
like a heavy metal ba n’t sound
the year before, the yea ts lea din g up to it, in
just cool to see where ther and a half before we’re in the
jectory ends up ing us.”studio. It’s
Adds Rich, “I nk thetra
sound like hair meta nd. We didn’t on the box set wathi
I totally forgot weshad
version of ‘She Taltak
the demo version we had sen ks to Angels’ that’s
sound like this or thal. We didn’t rec ord ed t to George….
Guy.’ I remember us playing [an early version of] ‘Jealous
t”
Chris Robinson
were younger, but don’t eve it a few times at shows when we
I heard it and I wasIlike r remember recording it, and the
can be pretty funny sometim It just came straight back… Itn
, ‘Oh yea h.’
in time, like a little flash in tim es to kin d of check out a moment
e wh
something and wh ere it ends up.” ere you see the start of

66 G U I T A R WORL D • D EC E M B E R 2021
 2021’s The Black
Crowes Present:
Shake Your Money
Maker

S N R E F D E R /T S R O H R E V
BOR
GuNita rs Take Flight hers knew they
EVE IN THEIR early days, the Robinson brot in rock ’n’ roll band, ar
disposal and really working har
While he late rned to playd to make what you have work.”
, to be a “guitar-basedwrit
wanted, as Chris saysthe
At time , Rich wou ld e most of the guit focused on songwr lea guitar, Chris was solely
the classic sens
Chr is
e.”
wou ld add lyric s and mel odie s. Drakoulias and “I’m the frontman.ritiI
ng for the band’s ear
hav e to open for Roberlytalb ums. Says Chris,
parts and rien, who has experieJeff nce as a guitar player, Tyler within four months of
engineer Brendan O’Band orig inal guitarist Cease in getting deal with.” each other. So, I Pla nt and Steven
had my own trip to
were help ful for Rich
the righ t tone s. guitar For Rich, the sessions helped
“One thing that was realislysays important to us was to have “difference in how guitars sou him be able to tell the
love d,” Chr . “Th ey were probably, at the time, they’re going to bring nd and how y feel and wh
the table.” He wrotetheriff at
tone s that we
didn’t sound like a heavdy like metal band. whatever guitar he hadtoava s for songs on
seen as out of touch. We metal. We didn’t sounloved AC/ this or that. ilab
“I was always more focused le.
We didn’t sound like hair Stones and the Face s. We DC I’ve never been to obsess on writing songs at the time, but
We loved the Rollingand Humble Pie. Mick Ralphs and Mott the do these things,”one or to laboriously go over scales
and Aerosmith, Free ted thes e guitar tones. I was moved to picRic h says. “I always pic
guitar up, and theked up guitars whenor
Hoople. And we wan concerne with it being different,” he adds. moved to write a sonk the refore
“We weren’t really with peod ple sayi ng, like, ‘Oh, that’s like every time I picked upg…a wh en I felt inspired to doIso.
was always
“We weren’t concerned ies or whatever.’ We just were trying to do and inspired, and that’s how gui tar , it alw ays made me feeTh l
erefore,
happy
the Seventies or the Sixtmoment.” I
He had four gui at the tim ay.” am tod
the best we could in the d’s gear was much mora lot e limited Telecaster that hadtaransove e — a black custom Fender
In those days, the banases . “We didn ’t have of gear, so we a Blonde Teleca r that hersiz e humbucker in the neck pos
compared to future rele itio
ng wor k in the dyn ami c that we possessed,” Martin D-28 thaste t his
traded for a Goldto p and a 1953 n,
had to make everythi idea of not having everything at your fath er
bought him a Silver Jubilee hal had loa ned him. His parents also
Chris says. “I liked the f-stack amp after gra duation.

guitarworld.com 67
 “Each one ser
mainly the BlovenddeaTedifleferent purpose,” he says. “I wound up
Regardless of the guitaanr,d the Goldtop.” using
he excelled in keeping the

EGAMIERIW/NIE
“What Rich did n’t ha ve rhyth s.
as
spades as a rh m playe a flashy lead guitar player, he ha m. n really do,” RiIchussay
composition,”yth r, and as the person respo d in “It had that thingmotha t only Teles canin g stu ff, and e my
Ch
Adds Rich, “Onerisofsaymys.
nsible for the
“I use the Tele for stly the open-tu and ‘Could I’vthee Been
younger, wa gus [Y first guitar heroes, when I was mu ldtop for thi ng s like ‘Hard to Handessle’the Tele held
Go I gu
to Shake Yours An atever reason, im

SSUH RIMAS
oung]. And the funny thi ch So Blind.’ Forlewh ly, the sound of thorkse
ng like, listen ate
than I remembeMr.onAeylotMaker, there is a lot more ACis, /DC on thereing tunings a litt nts bit be tte r, bu t ult
n’t be further apdart , but they wo ty.
other instead of more [ofof the rhythmic parts were do two instrume ethcoer.uld s jus t kin of out of needcethe ssi
later records, e South the ] guitar interplay that weubling each So , it wa
really well togwe brought, so that’s what we record
Ford and I wolik ern Harmonya
uld d of break off an nd Amorica where Markon
got into
That’s what but they worked.”
The songs on Shkin d do the se thi songs with —
thanks to the ’sakuseeYour Money Maker are richlyngtex s.”
“Jealous Againba”nd
Rich playing in opfeaentur
of several different types
es Rich’s Blonde Tele. “S guitars. of
tured,
LaIRstTYin-OgNEImYEpARacS latt er, Rich and hiswobrork the on
r have
Sh ake Your
-G tuning to achieve, as tare it Cold” finds TH ct
an impa ians. the ir
strings.” He’d ying open G for about Ch ris puts it, “ring come to realizehahoswhabig mu sic
For “She TalksbetoenAnpla
gels,” Rich used the Mart six or eig ht months.
y other
Money Maker me offdguonard in a good way, just to hencaredthat
echoes his early folk da
ys. But the Tele was the in D- 28 , which “It catches or the way I wrote actually influe er “[our]
star. the way I playechdsays. Chris is excited to see whenpeevople can
someone,” Ri ained any of that kind of shine that ng.
music has ret d then make a little more shining thirk in,” he
pick up on, an imately that’s the tradition we wo ed by things
“I think ult pired, and we’re influenc that’s
e o f m y fi rs t g u it a r heroes says. “Becauseemweoti’reoninsal level. And then, realisticallisyjus
we feel on an to put out there. All the other stuff t, lik
e,
“On o u n g e r was Angus e, what we want world.”
h e n I w a s y e me. We
w nny thing is, likker,
the way of the en 30 years to realize it, but Rich is lik ething,”
[Young]. And athkee fu
“W e’v e tak e ma kin g som
ff an d songs are lik d with their engine
ur Money Ma bo th lik e to ma ke stu k aroun
ple like to go fuc
listening to Sh oreYAoC/DC on there
Chris says. “Peo use or whatevetha r. We
the ga rag e, or bu ild a deck on their ho re’s gre at cra ft in t.
in wr ite son gs. And the at kind of time and
there is a lot mber”
lik e to wo rk an d wh
I think we hatvethaant cra understanding of
takes.” me to the
commitmen ir favoriftte moments is when Princepecarfo
than I remem
Rich Robinson
One of the Atlanta in the early Nineties and rmed
Fox Theatre in .”
“Jealous Again
“To have him y one of our
was far out,” Richpla songs
amazing — to hearsay s. “Those things are
Rich [left] and and appreciated. Befpeo ple that we lov
ore George Harrisedon
Chris Robinson
in London in
passed away [in 200 1], he had said some
early 2020 complimentary things abo ut us, which
was incredibly hum blin
yeah, those things are alwg and flattering. So
ays amazing.”
While the band’s main foc
back on the road (and they areus is to get
booked through mid indeed
writing), Chris and RicNohvemhav
ber as of this
e begun to
work on sketches t have the
become new Blacktha Cro we s son
potential to
“Rich and I started working on gs.
music, and Georg new
us. It’s been amazienghastobee
hav
n working with
e Ge
have his ear, to hav his knowle orge, to
depth about the sonegs,” dge and
Chris says. “We’re
not in a hurry. We have no pla ns
anything. We’re just writing to record
and wr g.
It’s really come full circle in terms ofitin that

68
as well.”

ber 2021
Guitar World Decem
 DECEMBER 2021

Hughes &
Kettner's
AmpMan
Classic

the gear
in review

73
FENDER
’68 Custom
Pro Reverb

74
JACKSON
Pro Series Dinky
DK Modern HT7 MS Man of the Hour
HUGHES & KETTNER AMPMAN CLASSIC AND MODERN
GU
W ITAR
G ORLD
A WOA RLDD
75 By Chris Gill already great thing. RF
EP

ORM
BALDACCI THE INDUSTRY’S VERY first “amp in a box” So, here we are 30 years later, and ANCE

GUITARS products (i.e. sophisticated devices in a pedal- Hughes & Kettner has introduced an entirely
Bighorn Standard format that provide a wide variety of tones for direct new generation of these products: the AmpMan Clas-
recording or plugged into the front of an amp) starting sic and AmpMan Modern. Simply put, all those years
appearing on the market just about three decades ago. of experience truly show as the AmpMan is a bril-
Introduced in 1991, the Hughes & Kettner Tubeman liantly conceived product filled with useful features.
was a highly acclaimed product that proved that a Perhaps most importantly, the AmpMan Classic and
small, compact device could truly deliver genuine amp Modern provide much more than amp simulation and
tones. The Tubeman was the first of several “amp in a are actually bona fide amps that can drive a speaker
box” products introduced by Hughes & Kettner over cabinet on their own, in addition to sounding great
the years, with each new product improving upon an for direct recording applications, plugged into a live
guitarworld.com 71
 SOUNDCHECK

CHEAT
SHEET
Hughes &
Kettner's
AmpMan
Modern
STREET PRICE:
sound mixing console or as a standalone headphone a compact pedalboard-friendly format. While its $399
amplifier. control and feature layout has more in common MANUFACTURER:
with a traditional guitar amp than today’s amp Hughes & Kettner,
FEATURES The AmpMan Classic and AmpMan simulators and modeling products, both the Classic hughes-and-kettner.com
Modern share identical features with the exception and Modern models provide a dazzling variety of
of cosmetics and the voicing and tonal personality tones similar to many popular and desirable amps. A built-in 50-watt amplifier and
of Channel B. Both models provide two fully The AmpMan’s single tone knob instead of speaker output jack allows the
independent channels. Channel A on both models individual treble, mid and bass EQ controls is not AmpMan to drive an external
provides a range of tones from clean to overdrive as limited as it may seem, as it can dial in a wide speaker cabinet.
crunch. Channel B on the Classic model is voiced to variety of tones ideal for electric guitar, ranging Two fully independent chan-
provide classic rock and hot rodded British tones, from a thick midrange sweet spot to scooped mids nels allow users to instantly
while the Modern model delivers even higher with boosted bass and treble. The Presence and switch between clean/over-
amounts of gain, saturation and distortion. Resonance controls allow users to fine tune treble drive and classic rock (Classic)
Controls on both models consist of two fully and bass response respectively, and the Sagging or saturated high-gain distor-
independent sets of Volume, Sagging, Presence, control can also refine the perceived bass response tion (Modern).
Resonance, Tone and Gain knobs. The white knob and midrange body while also altering the overall
on the far left controls master volume, while the tightness or looseness of dynamic response. The Red The built-in Red Box provides
red knob below dials in the Solo setting. Four Box’s amp cabinets also greatly expand the range eight separate speaker cabinet
footswitches control Solo, FX Loop, Boost and of tones and dramatically shape the overall tonal simulation settings, with dif-
Channel A/B selection. The rear panel is fully personality. ferent settings stored for each
loaded with pro features, including an adjustable The clean and overdrive tones of Channel A are channel.
noise gate, mono FX loop, Hughes & Kettner’s world simply stellar. This channel delivers ample clean
class Red Box DI with eight speaker cabinet types, headroom for fat, punchy country or blues solos as Pro-quality features include a
balanced XLR output and line/mic level switch, well as rich, dynamic rhythm work. Pushed into built-in adjustable noise gate
1/8-inch headphone output with volume control, overdrive, Channel A pumps out satisfying “plexi” and footswitch-selectable FX
1/8-inch aux input and 4-16 ohm ¼-inch speaker grind with three-dimensional harmonic complexity. loop with individual on/off set-
output that allows the built-in 50-watt amplifier to Channel B on the AmpMan Classic builds upon tings in Smart mode.
drive an external speaker cabinet. A Smart mode Channel A’s rich character to provide aggressive THE BOTTOM LINE:
stores independent Boost and FX Loop settings grinding power chords or smooth, singing solos. The Hughes & Kettner Amp-
for each channel. The AmpMan also automatically The AmpMan Modern’s Channel B is the better Man Classic and Modern are
recalls noise gate and Red Box cabinet settings for choice for high-intensity high-gain tones with equally at home on the perfor-
each channel. tight bottom end and sizzling upper midrange mance stage and recording stu-
punch. My sole criticism is that the Classic model’s dio, providing a wealth of excel-
PERFORMANCE In addition to being a highly sliver-gray housing can make the white lettering lent tones and highly versatile
powerful and versatile direct recording tool, the difficult to read in exceptionally bright or low light performance features
AmpMan is truly a dual-channel 50-watt amp in environments.

72 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 Hi-Ho, Silver!
GUITAR
SOUNDCHECK
WORLD
PLATINUM
AWARD
EX
CELL ENCE FENDER ’ CUSTOM PRO REVERB
By Paul Riario
IN ADDITION TO offering a panoply
of popular digital and tube amplifi-
ers, Fender’s amp team has been firing on
all cylinders by keenly reenvisioning many
of their legendary tube amps, much less
some overlooked original models. Speaking
of which, guitarists won’t have to dig much
further for these buried treasures than
Fender’s ’68 Custom Pro Reverb and ’68
Custom Vibro Champ Reverb — two silver-
paneled combo amps that have been totally
revamped from their vintage counterparts
in distinguishing ways that will appeal to
many gigging musicians and the home-
recording cognoscenti respectively. While I
haven’t had the opportunity to check out
the diminutive Vibro Champ Reverb, I did
have the pleasure of reviewing the work-
horse 40-watt ’68 Custom Pro Reverb,
which combines the clean headroom of
Fender’s Twin Reverb with the tonal sweet-
ness of the Deluxe Reverb — making it an omission is a tube rectifier, but don’t panic; flexibility into a singular channel, I can’t
inspired combo that strikes the perfect Fender has built that desirably compressed help but say the amp is now a far more
power-to-portability balance as well as one rectifier “sag” into its power transformer, focused affair. But let me be clear: the ’68
of the finest pedal-platform amps. along with reducing the output stage’s Custom Pro Reverb is a moderately clean
negative feedback for greater dynamics and combo with ample headroom — much like
FEATURES The improved ’68 Custom Pro touch-sensitivity. Since their introduction, a vintage Pro Reverb — but even better. It’s
Reverb noticeably departs from an original Fender’s silverface models were met with richly complex and glassy, which makes it
2x12 Pro Reverb by being condensed to a a tepid response compared to their black- tremendously satisfying to run your pedal-
single-channel 1x12 combo and adding a panel siblings, but it seems right now the board through this amp. Its clean tone is
middle tone control for the EQ. The sole silverface aesthetic has aged well, and per- not the kind you’ll dismiss as “that’ll do”
12–inch Celestion Neo Creamback is a sonally, I find the brushed aluminum panel but more of “that’s it!” because it’s clear
thoughtful speaker choice; in addition to with black skirted knobs, bright-blue jewel whatever guitar or pedal you feed into its
being warmly voiced and musical in the light and silver-turquoise grille cloth evokes input will be met with marked definition
mids, it also drastically reduces the weight a visually striking seriousness to the combo. and boldness. Turning up the volume past
of the amp to a manageable 35 lbs. The 4 will get you that unmistakable Fender-
concise control panel includes dual inputs, PERFORMANCE While I never owned one style breakup — a gritty snap that’s pointed
bright switch, Volume, Treble, Middle, (because they were hard to come by), my in the highs and mids, and sounds great if
Bass, Reverb, Speed and Intensity (for recollection of original 2x12 Pro Reverbs you groove on any number of Stax and R&B
the tube-driven grid-bias tremolo). The was their ability to serve up red-hot Texas licks. Fender is often praised for their built-
tube-driven reverb and tremolo are foot- blues or Marshall sizzle (depending upon in reverb and vibrato circuits, and that’s
switchable with the included vintage-style the right guitar and pedal combination) at still the case for the amp’s spacious reverb
footswitch. Peeking around back you’ll find a reasonable volume, which made these and drippy “vibrato,” where both of these
the power and standby switches, internal amps incredibly sought-after when you tube-driven effects smoothly get the job
and external speaker jacks, footswitch jack, didn’t want to break out the full-powered done and enhance the tone once engaged.
two 6L6 power tubes, three 12AX7 and half-stack. Now, having the ’68 Custom Pro Kudos to Fender for redefining this version
two AT7 preamp tubes, and custom-made Reverb’s cabinet reduced to an easily trans- of an almost forgotten classic that many
Schumacher transformers. An interesting portable size and encapsulating all its tonal will consider a powerhouse of an amp.

CHEAT STREET PRICE:

$1,399.99
The single Celestion Neo
Creamback speaker utilizes
SHEET MANUFACTURER:
Fender, fender.com
a neodymium magnet that
greatly reduces weight but
offers up plenty of shimmer
and growl in its focused voice.
The reimagined ’68
Custom Pro Reverb
THE BOTTOM LINE
The updated Fender ’68 Custom
reduces the cabinet size
for portability and weight,
and is now a single-chan-
Pro Reverb is an impressively
refined combo that meets the
needs of guitarists who want
nel combo with an added half the firepower but all of the
middle tone control. tone of higher-headroom amps.

guitarworld.com 73
SOUNDCHECK

Comfort Zone
GUITAR
WORLD
PLATINUM
AWARD
EX
CELLENCE JACKSON PRO SERIES DINKY DK MODERN HT7 MS
By Chris Gill Jackson’s standard six-string Dinky models, controls include master volume and a three-
EVEN THOUGH MOST seven-string so right off the bat it feels familiar. Although position blade pickup selector with stan-
electric models basically just add an the 47.6mm (1.875-inch) nut width is about dard bridge/both/neck settings. Hardware
extra string to the traditional six-string for- 5mm wider than an average six-string neck, consists of a Hipshot 7 slanted fixed bridge,
mat, many guitarists find the seven-string as the slim, flat profile helps make the extra Gotoh locking tuners, Dunlop Dual-Locking
foreign and awkward as a nuclear-powered width less unwieldy. The multi-scale length strap buttons and metal dome-style knobs,
Mongolian yak bazooka. Ergonomics is a key design translates to a 25.5-inch scale length all with a satin black finish.
factor of any good seven-string guitar de- for the high E string and a 27-inch scale
sign, particularly for more technical players length for the lowest string (B, A or what- PERFORMANCE The Jackson Pro Series
seeking an instrument that can expand their ever tuning you prefer), with each string Dinky DK Modern HT7 MS is by far the
performance capabilities. Oddly enough, in between of varying scale lengths that most comfortable seven-string solidbody
more traditional seven-string designs can increase as the pitch goes down. A 12- to 16- model I’ve ever played. Whereas some
actually feel more clunky and awkward than inch compound radius also enhances play- slanted fret necks can take a bit of adjust-
instruments that look more radical, like the ability up and down the neck. The three- ment, this neck feels natural, with fretting
Jackson Pro Series Dinky DK Modern HT7 piece maple/wenge/maple neck is bolted to fingers falling right into place perhaps
MS. With its ultra-slim, multi-scale length the body and features an ebony fingerboard, even more instinctively than they do on a
neck featuring slanted frets, this model is 24 jumbo frets, satin finish, white binding standard neck. The weight is comparable
impressively comfortable to play, making it with Luminlay side dots and offset pearloid to a six-string solidbody, but even with the
surprisingly easy to play chords and solos dot fretboard inlays. added mass of a seven-string neck the gui-
across the entire range of the fretboard. The pickups are a pair of Fishman Flu- tar stays perfectly balanced with the neck
ence Modern PRF-MH8 ceramic bridge and remaining in an ideal playing position when
FEATURES The lightweight basswood alnico neck humbuckers that each provide the player is standing. The body contours
body of the Dinky DK Modern HT7 MS active and passive voices engaged with the enhance comfort in standing or seated posi-
features the same compact dimensions as master tone knob’s push/pull switch. Other tions, and the deep cutaways and rounded

74 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1


heel provide unrestricted access to the
uppermost frets.
The Fishman Fluence Modern PRF-
MH8 pickups are a perfect match for
this guitar’s extended range, providing
crisp, articulate attack even on the low-
est notes. The active setting provides
outstanding clarity, retaining impressive
note-to-note definition when using an
amp dialed to extremely saturated
distortion. The passive setting sounds
great too, with clean tones, providing
enhanced warmth and body across the
entire tonal range and powerful punch
on the lower register. The tone control
provides useful tones across its entire
sweep, producing sweet, singing voice-
like midrange when dialed all the way
back. Ultimately, whereas many 7-string
models are little more than 6-strings de-
signs with an added string, the Dinky DK
Modern HT7 MS was carefully refined to
perform at its very best as a 7-string first
and foremost.
CHEAT
SHEET
STREET PRICE: $1,799.99
MANUFACTURER:
Jackson Guitars,
jacksonguitars.com
The multi-scale length neck
with slanted frets ranges from
25.5 inches (high E string) to 27
inches (low B string) to provide
accurate intonation and ideal
string tension.
A pair of Fishman Fluence
Modern PRF-MH8 ceramic
bridge and alnico neck hum-
buckers provide active and pas-
sive voices activated with the
master tone control’s push/pull
switch.
THE BOTTOM LINE:
Designed from the ground
up as a high-performance
7-string model, the Jackson
Pro Series Dinky DK Modern
HT7 MS delivers stellar seven-
string tones, outstanding play-
ing comfort and a surprisingly
familiar feel that will surely
appease six-string players.
GUITAR
WORLD
PLAT INUM
AWAR D
EXC E
ELLENC
Buzz Bin
Baldacci Guitars
Bighorn Standard
“WHY THE BIGHORN?” It’s a fair question posed by owner
and builder, Connor Baldacci, about his flagship guitar in
his online blog for his nascent company, Baldacci Guitars.
Having worked the Cheyenne Frontier Days festival in
Wyoming, Baldacci noticed that generally, most artists
played either Teles or a combination of Les Pauls and
PRS guitars, and this observation eventually became the
impetus for his design of the Bighorn Standard — a sleek,
offset guitar that merges the simplicity of a Telecaster but
also gracefully possesses the double-cut, carved maple
top refinement of a PRS. But if I were to answer Baldacci’s
initial query, I know that there are players who want the
real deal (and there’s nothing wrong with that), but there
will always be players who want something familiar yet
bespoke, and that’s where the Baldacci Bighorn Standard
fits in.
There’s no denying that the Bighorn Standard reviewed
here is similar to a PRS rather than a Tele, but Baldacci has
undoubtedly added his own flair for design and injected
some clever tweaks that make this guitar a truly enriching
custom instrument for those who want the best of both
worlds of those aforementioned classic guitars.
Baldacci handcrafts each of his guitars in small batches
in Mesa, Arizona. What’s interesting about the Bighorn is
it doesn’t have the typical scale length of a Fender-style
guitar (25 ½) or a Gibson Les Paul (24 ¾); instead, Baldacci
employs a novel 25 1/8 scale length for the Bighorn
Standard, which adds a pleasant balance of brightness
along with sustain and resonance. The guitar boasts a
one-piece mahogany body with a book-matched figured
maple top and a one-piece, quartersawn mahogany set-
neck with a comfortably slim C-profile, 22 jumbo frets,
rosewood fretboard and Baldacci’s signature “mountain”
inlay on the 12th fret. Other top-notch features include
a PureTone output jack for a solid connection with your
cables, 500K CTS volume and tone pots, “Mountain”
bridge and neck pickups (custom-voiced by Darkmoon
NYC pickups), custom tremolo bridge, and custom 16:1
ratio Buffalo locking tuners. Baldacci Guitars also has a
host of upgradeable options if you’re so inclined.
What sets the Bighorn Standard from other factory-
made guitars is its fast-and-fluid feel, with just the right
amount of string tension and elasticity — which I attribute
to the unconventional scale-length — that makes your
fingers fly. It certainly has a familiar design, but there’s
something about its offset, user-friendly build that
elevates it from other custom shop guitars. The medium-
output Darkmoon pickups are voiced for fat articulation
and are sonically pleasing no matter what amp they’re
pumped through. But altogether, the Bighorn Standard is
just a beautiful, custom-made instrument that aims to be
a brand-new classic. — Paul Riario
STREET PRICE: $2,449 – $2,469
MANUFACTURER: Baldacci Guitars,
baldacciguitars.com
guitarworld.com 75
 2 FOR $24
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START YOUR SUBSCRIPTION

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 S N M U L OC STRING
THEORY For video of this lesson, go to
GuitarWorld.com/December2021
by Jimmy Brown

I GOT RHYTHM, FIG. 1

PART 3
Fun with compound meters
LAST TIME, WE learned about 68 and 128 me-
ters,2 which are basically eighth-note triplets
in 4 and 44, respectively. These are known as
compound meters, for which the time follow-
ing each main, or “strong,” beat — where you
tap your foot — is divided into three equally
spaced triplets that are counted numerically. FIG. 2
In 68 you12count “one two three, four five six,
and in 8 you count “one two three, four five
six, sev eight nine, ten lev twelve.”
Today, we’ll look at another compound
meter — 98 — and also a cool, popular drum
groove that combines two rhythmic elements
that we explored previously — the triplet- FIG. 3 FIG. 4
driven shuffle feel and cut time, also known as
a “half-time feel” — to render what’s known
as the “Purdie shuffle,” named for its creator,
legendary
98 meterdrummer Bernard Purdie.
is like eighth-note triplets in 34. Ex-
cept instead of counting “one trip let, two trip
let, three trip let,” or “one and uh, two and
uh, three and uh,” you count “one two three, FIG. 5
four five six, sev eight nine.” It’s similar to a
jazz waltz, which is a swing feel in 34, but it
has a preponderance of triplets. An example
that comes to mind is the “tumbling triplets”
drum groove played by Mitch Mitchell in the
Jimi Hendrix song “Manic Depression,” al-
though the guitar and bass parts in that song
are best counted in 34 with a swing feel, due to
the brisk tempo. The popular classical piece
“Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” by Johann
Sebastian Bach, which is at a much slower
tempo, with a chord change on just9 about
every beat, is a prime example of 8 meter in the same “deep pocket” groove for “Fool in URES 35 offer examples of how this
action (see FIGURE 1). the Rain,” as did Toto’s Jeff Porcaro on the groove may be conveyed, or “aped,” on gui-
Another semi-famous song in 98 is “Blue chorus of “Rosanna,” which is at a quicker tar. For ease of reading and counting, I’ve
Rondo à la Turk,” written and recorded by tempo. As I mentioned earlier, the Purdie notated each example in cut time with the
jazz pianist Dave Brubek and later covered Shuffle is based on a triplet-driven groove indication “swing eighths, half-time feel.”
by singer Al Jarreau, the melody to which with a half-time feel. The way it differs Alternatively, you could instead count swing
features cleverly shifting accents, as in FIG- from a regular blues shuffle is, instead of the 16th notes at half the tempo, emphasizing
URE 2. Notice how, due to the line’s melodic snare drum hitting on the usual backbeats — the backbeats: “one ee and uh, two ee and
contour, the nine eighth notes in each of the on “2 and 4” — it hits only on beat 3, which uh, three ee and uh, four ee and uh.”
first three bars are grouped into a sequence effectively creates the half-time feel. (The Hey, this is my last column for the time
of shorter counts — “1 2, 1 2, 1 2, 1 2 3.” In bar kick drum pattern is also more syncopated.) being. I hope you’ve enjoyed and benefited
4, it switches to “1 2 3, 1 2 3, 1 2 3.” Inspired by a few of these songs, FIG- from these lessons! See you down the road.
Bernard “Pretty” Purdie popularized his
signature beat, the Purdie Shuffle, on the
Steely Dan song “Home at Last” and later Senior Music Editor “Downtown” Jimmy Brown is an experienced, working
reprised it, more famously, at a slower, more musician, performer and private teacher in the greater NYC area whose
laid-back tempo for “Babylon Sisters.” Led mission is to entertain, enlighten and inspire people with his guitar playing.
Zeppelin drummer John Bonham copped

78 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 S N M U L OC
IN DEEP For video of this lesson, go to
GuitarWorld.com/December2021
by Andy Aledort

WAHS UP!
Anatomy of a slide solo
FIG. 1
in open E tuning, part 3
IN THE LAST two columns, we’ve been
analyzing a slide guitar solo I played in open
E tuning over a great backing track by gui-
tarist Jim Oblon, examining two choruses
at a time in each column. After playing the
first two choruses of the solo, I engage a
wah pedal for the next two choruses. This
month, we’ll take a look at the fifth and sixth
solo choruses, which also feature the use of
the wah.
To review, my guitar is in open E tun-
ing (low to high: E, B, E, G#, B, E), and I
use a glass “bottle”-style slide, in this case
an original Coricidin bottle from 1970, for
nearly the entire solo, with brief use of fin-
ger fretting. The combination of a wah pedal
and a slide is one used to great effect by such FIG. 2
legendary guitarists as Jeff Beck (“Definitely
Maybe”) and Earl Hooker (“Wah Wah
Blues”), among many others.
The chord progression of the backing
track is interesting in that, while based on
an eight-bar blues form, the chords are ar-
ranged in a creative manner. The progres-
sion begins with one and a half bars on the
tonic, or I (one) chord, E, then switches
to the IV (four) chord, A, for the last two
beats of bar 2. Bars 3-5 and the first half
of bar 6 are on the V (five) chord, B, with
the last two beats of bar 6 shifting to the
b7 (flatted 7th) chord, D. The progression
wraps up with two bars back on the tonic,
E. Throughout all of the soloing, I “play the
changes,” with improvised lines that relate
to each specific chord as it arrives in the
progression.
FIGURE 1 presents the fifth chorus of
the slide solo, and here I begin with three
and a half bars of tremolo fingerpicking.
Using my thumb and middle finger, I rap-
idly alternate between notes on the G and B
strings, picking the G string with my thumb A), additionally including the major 3rd of FIGURE 2 depicts the next eight-bar solo
and the B string with my middle finger, B, D#. The last two beats of bar 6 are played chorus. Here I follow the same formula for
while using my ring finger as a fulcrum by over a D chord, and here I modulate the devising phrases that relate directly to each
anchoring it to the pickguard. The first six melodic lines up one and a half steps, using chord in the progression. As the solo comes
beats sound the 5th and b7th of E (B and D) notes from D minor pentatonic (D, F, G, A, to a close, I switch to conventional fretting
over the E chord, after which I slide up two C) with inclusion of the major 3rd of D, F#. for the final bar.
whole steps to the notes D# and F# over the
B chord. Relative to B, these notes are the
major 3rd and 5th, respectively. Guitar World Associate Editor Andy Aledort is recognized worldwide
Bars 4 and 5 and half of bar 6 are played for his vast contributions to guitar instruction, via his many best-selling
over the B chord, and I base my lines here instructional DVDs, transcription books and online lessons.
on the B minor pentatonic scale (B, D, E, F#,

guitarworld.com 79
 S N M U L OC THE GRISTLE
REPORT For video of this lesson, go to
GuitarWorld.com/December2021
by Greg Koch

STROLL
WITH ME
FIG. 1

How to play the slide-

infused “Soul Stroll,” part 2
LAST MONTH, WE examined the “A” sec-
tion of a tune I wrote and recorded with the
Koch-Marshall Trio called “Soul Stroll,”
which is one of the tracks on our latest
release, From the Up’Nah. This time, we’ll
look at the “B” section. FIG. 2
“Soul Stroll” is built from a two-guitar
part, one that lays down the rhythm track
and the other adding a single-note melody,
which I perform with a slide. FIGURE 1
shows the underlying rhythm part. In bar
1, while holding a B5 power chord on the
A and D strings, I add a little descending FIG. 3
bass figure on the low E string and repeat-
edly play the same one-beat figure, which is
based on a 16th-note rhythm.
In bar 2, I switch to eighth notes and
move from B5 to a 1st-inversion (3rd in
the bass) E chord on the upbeat of beat 2.
I perform this chord with a double-stop
hammer-on: after initially barring my index
finger across the 4th fret, I strike the strings
and immediately hammer my ring finger
onto the D string’s 6th fret and my middle
finger onto the B string’s 5th fret. FIG. 4
Bar 3 recalls bar 1, and in the second half
of bar 4 I play B/F# to F#. The first three bars
repeat for bars 5-7, and the rhythm pattern
wraps up in bar 8 with a chordal arpeggia-
tion of E/F#, followed by Bmaj9 and a re- FIG. 5
prise of the tune’s “A” section.
Another way to articulate this B5 pattern
is with fingerpicking, as shown in FIGURE
2. Here, I use my thumb to pick the notes
on the bottom two strings and my index
and ring fingers to pick the D and G strings.
When fingerpicking the part like this, I like
to keep all the notes short and staccato,
which adds definition to the steady rhythm.
FIGURE 3 presents the “B” section melo- higher, at the 19th fret, which sounds a B often turn it on a diagonal angle to perform
dy. Using a slide, I begin on the high E string harmonic one octave higher. I then move the quick vocal-like movements up or down
and play a line based on the B major hexa- the slide up to the 19th fret, which makes a string, as shown in FIGURE 4 and 5. Good
tonic scale (B, C#, D#, E, F#, G#), wrapping it the harmonic ascend another octave. intonation (pitch centering) is essential here,
up with a few notes on the B string before For much of the slide melody, I like to so listen closely and strive to stay in tune as
returning to the high E. In bar 4, I resolve keep the slide parallel with the frets, but I’ll you move up and down each given string.
the melody with a brief reference to the B
Mixolydian mode (B, C#, D#, E, F#, G#, A). Greg Koch is a large human who coaxes guitars into submission in a way
The initial melody then repeats, and I end that has left an indelible print on the psyches of many Earth dwellers.
the line with an artificial harmonic (A.H.).
KIVON MOT

While striking the B note played on the high Visit GregKoch.com to check out his recordings, instructional materials,
E string's 7th fret, I touch the string 12 frets signature musical devices and colorful hats.

80 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 S N M U L OC MELODIC For video of this lesson, go to
MUSE GuitarWorld.com/December2021
by Andy Timmons

SIXTH SENSE
Using two-note forms based
FIG. 1

on 6th intervals to solo over

“Electric Gypsy”
THIS MONTH, I’D like to take a look at my
approach to soloing on “Electric Gypsy,” a
tune I wrote and originally recorded for my
1994 album, Ear Ecstasy, as a tribute to one
of my biggest musical influences, the im-
mortal Jimi Hendrix.
The chord progression of the tune’s
“verse” section is a simple, repeating four-
bar pattern utilizing the chords D, A, Bm,
and G, one chord per bar. As you can see,
these are pretty straightforward chord
changes, but sometimes it can be a little
tricky playing over a progression built pri-
marily from major chords. So let’s take a
look at some note choice and phrasing pos-
sibilities.
FIGURE 1 illustrates a 16-bar solo played
over the four-bar form four times. For each
chord in the progression, I target the 5th
and 3rd as my “destination” notes, as these
specific chord tones allude to each chord in
the progression in a very clear way. The in-
tervallic relationship between the two notes
for each chord is that of a 6th: the notes are FIG. 2 FIG. 3
six scale degrees apart, in regard to the sev-
en-tone diatonic structure for either a major
or natural minor scale.
Over the D chord, the 5th and 3rd are A
and F#; over the A chord, the 5th and 3rd are
E and C# (two and a half steps below A and
F#); over the Bm, the 5th and 3rd are F# and
D (also notice that D is the minor 3rd, as
we are playing over Bm at this point in the
progression); and over G, the 5th and 3rd
are D and B.
Across bars 5-8, I move these same note
pairs to different areas of the fretboard and
weave lines that resolve to the appropriate
pairs of 6ths relative to each chord. Notice
that the pairs of 6ths through bars 6-8 are
an octave higher than those played in bars diatonic to (within the scale structure of) approaching each chord with a little more
2-4. In bars 9-12, I tried to move even more the D major scale (D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#). inventiveness and creativity.
freely through the series of double-stops, by FIGURE 3 represents an eight-bar solo, Now that you have the idea of focusing
shifting to different octaves more often, and played over the four-bar progression twice. on 6ths as a means of creating improvised
in bars 13-16 I switched things up by utiliz- I begin with D and A major chords before solos, try devising some phrases and pat-
ing the interval of a 5th over A, via the notes reverting to the use of 6ths for each of the terns of your own that employ this same
A and E, followed by single-line improvisa- four chords in the progression, this time approach.
tion through the rest of the example.
A good thing to do right here is to think
ITTEHCEC ENOMIS

about 6ths as played over just the tonic, D;
this is illustrated in FIGURE 2. Sounding
notes on the D and B strings only, I move
up the fretboard in pairs of 6ths that remain
Andy Timmons is a world-renowned guitarist known for his work with the
Andy Timmons Band, as well as Danger Danger and Simon Phillips.
Visit andytimmons.com and guitarxperience.net to check out his recordings
and many instructional releases
guitarworld.com 81
 TRANSCRIPTIONS

“GIMMEJohn
SOME TRUTH”
Lennon
As heard on IMAGINE
Words and Music by JOHN LENNON • Transcribed by JEFF PERRIN

“GIMME SOME TRUTH”

WORDS AND MUSIC BY JOHN LENNON
COPYRIGHT © 1971 LENNON MUSIC. COPYRIGHT RENEWED.
ALL RIGHTS ADMINISTERED BY SONY MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, 424 CHURCH STREET, SUITE 1200, NASHVILLE, TN 37219.
INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT SECURED. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
REPRINTED BY PERMISSION OF HAL LEONARD LLC. guitarworld.com 85
TRANSCRIPTIONS

86 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

“GIMME SOME TRUTH”

guitarworld.com 87
TRANSCRIPTIONS

“SHARP DRESSED
ZZ Top
MAN”
As heard on ELIMINATOR
Words and Music by BILLY F. GIBBONS, DUSTY HILL and FRANK LEE BEARD • Transcribed by DALE TURNER • Bass transcription by ANDY ALEDORT

“SHARP DRESSED MAN”

WORDS AND MUSIC BY BILLY F GIBBONS, DUSTY HILL AND FRANK LEE BEARD
88 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1 COPYRIGHT © 1983 MUSIC OF STAGE THREE.
ALL RIGHTS ADMINISTERED BY STAGE THREE MUSIC (US) INC., A BMG CHRYSALIS COMPANY.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. USED BY PERMISSION.
REPRINTED BY PERMISSION OF HAL LEONARD LLC.
“SHARP DRESSED MAN”

guitarworld.com 89
TRANSCRIPTIONS

90 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

“SHARP DRESSED MAN”

guitarworld.com 91
TRANSCRIPTIONS

92 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

“SHARP DRESSED MAN”

guitarworld.com 93
TRANSCRIPTIONS

94 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 TRANSCRIPTIONS

“THE LEMON SONG”

Led Zeppelin
As heard on LED ZEPPELIN II
Words and Music by CHESTER BURNETT, JOHN BONHAM, JIMMY PAGE, ROBERT PLANT and JOHN PAUL JONES • Transcribed by CHRIS AMELAR

E7 9 A5 Bm7 A7 E5 D5/E G5/A B5 B7VII A5VII A B7 E7 A7V E B Em7

6 fr 7 fr 7 fr 7 fr 7 fr 7 fr 5 fr 7 fr 7 fr

2134 11 1 24 2 144 111 144 1314 14 111 1314 14 13 1444 1444 1 24

A Intro (0:00)
Moderate Rock = 92
N.C.(E) E7 9 N.C.(E)
Gtr. 1 (elec. w/dist.) w/pick
1 w/pick and finger and finger
0 0 0 0 0 8 8 8 14 0 0 0
7 X 7 7 13
6 X 6 6 12
7 X 7 7 13
0 0 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0

E7 9 N.C.(E) E7 9
Gtr. 1 let
4 * w/pick and finger ring
8 8 12 0 0 0 0 0 8 8 8 3
7 X X 7 7 12 7 X X 7 7 0 2 4 2 4 2 0
6 X X 6 6 12 12 6 X X 6 6 2 0
7 X X 14 7 X X 7 7
0 0 34 4 5 5 7 0
*repeat previous chord 3 3 3 3
Elec. Bass
0 7
12 12 12 9
7 7 7 (7) (7)
0 4 4 5 5 6 7

B 1st Verse (0:23)

I should’vequit you
N.C.(E) w/pick and E7 9 N.C.(E)
7 finger cont. simile
0 0 0 8 8 8 8 0 0 0 0 0
7 X X 7 7 7
6 X X 6 6 6
7 X X 7 7 7
0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0

0 7 7 7
9 9
7 0 7 X 7 (7) 7 0
4 4 5 5 6 7 4 4 5 5 6 7
a long time ago Ooh
E7 9 N.C.(E) E7 9
10
8 8 8 0 0 0 0 8 8 8
7 X 7 7 7 7 X 7 7
6 X 6 6 6 6 X 6 6 5 (5)
7 X 7 7 7 7 X 7 7 5 7 5 7
0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0

0 9 7 9
9 0 7 9 0 8 9 (9) 9
7 X 7 (7) 7 0 7 X 7 (7)
4 4 5 5 6 7
oh yeah yeah Long time ago
N.C.(A) A5 N.C.(E)
13 full
0 0 0 0
0 0 2
2 2 2
0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 X X
X 3 3 (3) 3 0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0
0
7 7 X 7 (7) 5 (5) 0 6 6 7 7 8 9
0 4 4 5 5 6 7 5 6 7

“THE LEMON SONG”

WORDS AND MUSIC BY CHESTER BURNETT, JOHN BONHAM, JIMMY PAGE, ROBERT PLANT AND JOHN PAUL JONES.
COPYRIGHT © 1969 (RENEWED) BY ARC MUSIC CORP. (BMI).
WORLDWIDE RIGHTS OWNED BY ARC/CONRAD MUSIC LLC (ADMINISTERED BY BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT (US) LLC).
INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT SECURED. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
USED BY PERMISSION. guitarworld.com 95
TRANSCRIPTIONS

I wouldn’t be here my children down on this killin’ floor

E7 9 Bm7 A7
let ring
16
8 X 8 8 3 3 3 2 5 (5) 8 10
7 X 7 7 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 (0) 0 0
6 X 6 6
7 X 7 7 0 1 2 (2) 2 2 2 0 0 0 0
4

9 11
9 6 X 7 8 9 9 0 9 9 5 7 5
7 7 (7) 9 4 5 6 7 7 7 0 5 6
7 7 0 5

C 2nd Verse (0:56)

I should have listened baby
N.C.(E) N.C.(E)
*
full 1/2
19
15 (15)15 15 15 (15)15 12 12 0 0 0
14 12 12
14 12 13 14 14 12 (12) 12
12 13 14 14
0 0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0
*doubled by Gtr. 2 (elec. w/dist.)
Bass 1/4
9 (9) 9 9 7
9 0 7 9 5 5
7 7 5 6 7 7 5 (5) 5 0 5 6
5 6 7 7 0 4 4 5 0 6 7

to my second mind Oh
E7 9 N.C.(E) E7 9
22
8 8 8 8 0 8 8 8 3
7 0 7 7 7 7 0 7 7 0 2 4 2420
6 0 6 6 6 6 0 6 6 2 0
7 7 7 7 7 7 7
0 0 4 4 5 5 7 0
3 3
0 9 7
9 0
7 X 7 7 0 0 7 5 7 5 7 5 7
7 4 4 5 5 6 7 7 7 7 6 6

I should’ve listened baby tomy second mind

N.C.(A) A5 N.C.(E) E7 9
25 full
0 0 0 0 0 8 8 8
0 0 2 7 0 7 7
2 2 2 6 0 6 6
0 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 X X 7 7 7 0 1
0 X 3 3 (3) 3 0 0 34 4 5 5 7 0 4

9
0 7 7 0 6 6 7 7 0 8 9 0 6 X7 8
4 4 5 5 6 7 7 4 5 6 7 X 7 (7)
5 5 5 5 (5) 5

Faster = 150
Everytime I go away and leave you darlin’ you send metheblues right down the line Oh
Bm7 A7 N.C.(E)
Gtrs. 1 and 2
let ring full
29 1/4
0 0
3 3 3 3 2 5 5 5 15 (15) 15 15 15 15 12 12
2 2 2 2 0 0 0 14 12
14
2 2 2 2 0 (0) 0 0 0
0
1/2
11 13 11 9 11 9 7 9 (9) 9 9 7
9 9 13 11 9 0 9 11 11 11 9 7 7 0 5 5 0 9 7 9 5
7 7 5 6 7 (7) 5 6

96 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 “THE LEMON SONG”

D 1st Guitar Solo (1:28)

E5 D5/E E5 D5/E
33 16Gtr. 2 (w/dist. and slapback echo) 16 14 12 12 14 15 16 16 16 14
15 X X X X X X
16 X X X X 16 16 14 13 13 13 14 15 16 16 16 16 14

Gtr. 1
9 7 9 7
9 7 9 7
7 7 7 7

Bass 7 8
6 X 7 X 8 9 0 6 6 7 7 7 8 9 6 6 7 7 7 9
7 7 7 7 7 7

E5 A5 G5/A A5
36 12 16 21 21 19 17 12 14
X X X X X
13 18 18 19 21 21 21 19 18 13 13 14

9 2 0 2
9 0 2 0 2
7 0 0 0 0
0

9 9 7
9 9 (9) 9 8 5 6 5 7 7 5
7 0 0 4 0 5 (5) 6 7 7 7 (7) 0 5 4 4

E5 D5/E E5 B5
let ring
39 15 16 16 14 12 17 17 17 (17) 17 17
X X X X 16 16 16 16 16
15 16 16 16 14 13 6 20

9 7 9 4
9 7 9 4
7 7 7 0 2
0

7 9 9 7
6 X 7 8 9 9 9 X 7 6 7 9 7
7 7 9 7 X 6 6
7 6

A5 E5 B7 VII
42 let ring
15 15 15 (15) 15 15
let ring
10 10 10 (10) 10 10
let ring
5 5 5
14 14 14 14 14 9 9 9 9 9 4 4 4 12 12
14 14 12

2 9 8 8
2 9 7 7 0
0 7 9 9 9 0
0 7 7 7

6 6 6 6 7 7 8 8 8
6 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9
4 4 5 (5) 6 X 6 6 7 7 7
5 5

guitarworld.com 97
TRANSCRIPTIONS

E (1:47)
E5 D5/E E5 D5/E E5 D5/E
45 full 1/4
12 12 12 12 12 12
12 14 14 14 12 14 12 14 12 12 14 14 12
14 (14)

9 7 9 7 9 7
9 7 9 7 9 7
7 7 7 7 7 7

9 9 7
9 9 (9) 0 7 6
7 (7) 7 5
7 7 (7) 5 5 3 2 0 0 0 4 4 5 5 5 6 7

E5 D5/E A5VII G5/A A

48 full full full full full
12 12 12 12 12
15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12
14 14 (14) 14 14 (14) 14 14 12
14 12
14 12 10 10 12 10 13 10 10 12 14
12 12

2
9 7 9 0 2 2 0
9 7 7 0 2
7 7 0 0 0

5 5 7 7 8 0 7 7 5 5
7 7 X 7 (7) 0 5 4 4 X 5 (5) 6 6 7
5 5

E5 D5/E E5 B5
51 1/2 1/2 full full 1/2 1/2
12
12 15 15 (15) 15 15
12 14 12 14 12 14 14 12 12 12 14 14 14 14 (14)
12 13 14 14 14

9 7 9 4 4
9 7 9 0 4 4
7 7 7 0 2 2 0
0 0 0 0

7 8 9 9 7 8 9 (9) 10 11
6 X 7 (7) 8 8 9 7 9 (9) 0 6 7 8 9 9 X X 9
7 7

A E5 B7
54 full 1 1/2 full full 1 1/2
15 15 17
13 13 13 13 13 14 14 (14) 13 14 12 (12)
14

2 4 4
2 2 9 0 X 2
2 2 9 9 0 4 4
0 0 0 7 7 0 2 2
0 0

6 7 (7) 8 9 9 7 7 6 6 5
7 7 X X 7 9 9 9 7 7 7 8 9
7 9

98 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 “THE LEMON SONG”

F (2:06)
E7 grad. bend 1 1/2 2
57 1 1/2 1 1/2 1 1/2 1 1/2 full 2 full 2 full 2 full
17 17 17 17 (17) 17 (17) 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 15 15

9
7 X X
X X
X X

9 (9) 7 9
6 X 7 (7) X 8 9 9 6 6 7 9 9 6 7 (7) 8 9
7 7 7 7 9
7

A7V
60 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 16 0 15 12 15 12
(15) X X X 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15

1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2

0
6 6 6 6 0 6 6 0 6 6 0
5 5 5 5 0 5 5 0 5 5 0
0 0

7 7 7 5 5
4 4 5 5 6 7 7 (7) 0 4 5 6
0 0 0 4 4 4 5 5 5 7 7 5 5

E7 B5
1 1/2 2 2
63 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 12 14 15 (15) 15 15 15 (15) 15
15 15 15 15 15 15 15

9 X X X X
7 X X X X 0 0 4
X X X X 0 0 4
X X X X 0 0 2 0

9 9 9 8 9
6 6 7 7 7 8 8 9 7 8 (8) 9 9 9 7
7 7 9 (9) 9 7 6
7

A5 E5
66 (15) full gradually slower
12 15 12 15 12 (12) (12) 12
14 14 15 12
14 14 12
14 12
14 12 10 12
12 12
3
gradually slower
2 9 9
2 9 9
0 5 7 7
0
gradually slower
6 6 X 7 7 8 8 9
4 X 5 (5) 5 6 6 7 7 4 4 5 6
5 5 5 7 7 7

guitarworld.com 99
TRANSCRIPTIONS

G Original Tempo (2:26)

Babe yeah
69 N.C.(E) E7 9 N.C.(E)

10

8 8 8 12 0 0 0 0 0
7 X 7 7 12
6 X 6 6 12 12 12
7 X 7 7
0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0

9 7 0
6 6 6 7 7 8 9 0 0 6 6 7 7 8 9
7 7 7 X 7 (7) (7) 7

yeah See memy baby

E7 9 N.C.(A) A5
Gtr. 1 full
72
8 8 3 0
7 0 7 0 2 4 2 4 2 0 2
6 0 6 20202 2 2 2
7 7 0 4 4 5 5 7 0 0 X X
X 3 3 (3) 3
3 3 5
Bass
9 8 7
9 0 7 6 5 0 5 6 7
7 0 5 6 7 0 4 4 5 0 6 7 X 0 (0) 0 4 X 5 6

Ooh oh whoawhoa My my my
N.C.(E) E7 9 Bm7 N.C.(A5)
let ring
75 grad. slide
0 0 0 0 0 8 8 8 3 5 5 5 5
7 X 7 7 2 0 0
6 X 6 6
7 X 7 7 2 (2) 2 2 (2) 0 0 (0) 0 0
0 0 3 4 4 5 5 7 0
3
0 9 11
0 6 6 7 7 8 9 0 6 X7 8 9 9 9 9 0 9 7 7 5 7
7 7 (7) 9 9 0 4 5 6 7 7
7 7 0 5
H 3rd Verse (2:58)
my Nowtake it down a little bit Peopletell me baby Can’t be satisfied
N.C.(E) N.C.(E)
Gtrs. 1 and 2
full
79 1/4 Gtr. 1 (w/echo repeats)
15 (15)151515(15)15 12 12
14 12 12
14 121314 1412 (12) 12
121314 14 X
0 0 0 (0)
Bass 1/4
09 9 9 7 9 7 (7) 7 7
9 795 5 6 7 89 0789
7 7 567 7 5 (5) 5 7 9 7 X
567 7 7

Trytoworrymeb-babybut Inever end upgetyoutomyself People worrybaby Can’t keepyousatisfied

(A)
83 Gtr. 2 Gtr. 1 (w/echo repeats)
10 12 (12)
X

Bass 98 7
06 6 7 7 8 90 09076 056 7 7
7 70 7 4 4506 7 7 7 04 5 6
7 6 5 5 5 5 (5)

100 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 “THE LEMON SONG”

(E) (B)
87 Gtr. 1 w/echo repeats
19

Bass 9 11
0 6 6 6 7 7 7 8 8 8 9 0 0 6 7 0 8 9 9 9 9 9 (9) 9
7 7 0 7 7 0 9 9

but a two-bit no good jive

(A) (E) full
90 Gtr. 2 grad. bend
10 10 10

1/4
9 7
7 4 5 6 7 9 7 5
0 4 5 6 7 4 4 5 6 7 7 5 7 7 5 5 6
7 7 5 3 5 6 7
I 4th Verse (3:30)
I went tosleep last night Iworkedashard asI can I bringhomemymoneyyoutakemymoney
N.C.(E)
93 Gtr. 1 Gtr. 2 full full
15 (15) 15 15 (15) 15
X 14 (14)
X

Bass N.H.
9 9 7 7 12 9
9 7 0 5 6 12 9 7 8 9
7 7 7 5 5
7 5 3 5 7
pitch: D
give it to another man I should’ve quit youbaby oh such a longtime ago
(A)
full full
96
(14) 14 16 (16) 16 16 14

9 7
9 7 0 5 7 4 5 6 7 5 5 7 9
7 7 0 4 5 6 7 0 4 4 5 5 6 7 7 7

ho I wouldn’t be herewith all mytroubles

(E) (B)
Gtr. 2 full
99 Gtr. 1 (w/echo repeats)
14 14 14
X
Gtr. 1 pick scrape w/echo repeats
Bass 0 9 9 7 11
9 7 0 5 6 0 6 X 7 8 9 8 9 9 9 9 9 0
7 7 5 6 7 0 7 9 9 9
7

mm down on this killin’ floor

(A) (E)
102 Gtr. 2
9 7 79 7 7 7

Bass
9 9 7
7 7 5 7 9 7 5
7 4 5 6 7 7 7 7 5 0 1 2
5 7 5 3 2 1 0 2 3

guitarworld.com 101
TRANSCRIPTIONS

J 5th Verse (4:02)

Squeezemebaby ’til thejuice runs down my leg
N.C.(E) 1/2 1/4
105 Gtr. 2
14 (14) 12 (12) 1514

Bass 9 9 7 7 7 7 9
2 0 6 6 7 7 8 9 9 7 0 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9
7 8 7

Oh please squeeze mebaby until thejuice runsdown my

(A)
108 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4 full
12 151412 151412 151412 1514 (12) (12) (12)

5 6 7
7 7 5 5 5 0 4 4 5 6 7 7 4 (4) 5 6
7 7 5 0 3 4 5 5 5 (5) 5
leg The wayyou squeeze mylemon I
(E) (B)
111 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4
12 12
151412 151412 151412 1514 12 151412 151412 14 12
14 14 14 12
14

7 8 9 12 9 9 9 12 9 9 9 7
0 6 6 7 8 9 12 12 9 7 9 7 8 9
7 9 9 9 6
7 7
I’m gonna fall right outof bed bed bed bed yeah
(A) (E)
1 1/2
114 P.H. full *
full
15 15 15 12 15 15 (15) 15 15

*Bend and release string behind nut with picking hand while trilling with fretting hand.
9 (9) 7 9
5 9 0 8 11 (11) 9
4 5 6 7 7 7 9 11 10 9 7 7 (7) 0 5
0 5 7 9 7 5 3 (3) 5
K (4:34)
N.C.(E) full full 1/2
117
12
9 9 9 11 11 (11) 11 (11)9 11 11
(9) 11 11 11 11

3
7 9
7 7 5 X 7 7 7 0 7 7 5
0 7 5 3 3 3 0 7 5 0 (0)
(A) full 1/2
full full full full
120 12 12
12 15 12 15
9 (9) 14 14 (14)12 14 12 12 14 14 14 (14) (14)14 (14)12 14 12 14 14 (14)14
14 14 14

3
9 9 7 6
8 4 5 6 7 7 9 7 0
0 7 7 0 7 0 0 4 5 6 7 4 7 0 0 7
(0) 6 6 5 5

102 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 “THE LEMON SONG”

Yeah
(E) (B)
123 full full
12 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 11 9 9 11 (11) 9 11 9 11 (11) (11) 9 11 9
1414 (14) 9 11 11 11 11 11 11 11

3 3
9 9 7 11
9 9 7 6 7 6 7 6 7 6 9 11 13 13 11 9
0 7 7 5 6 7 9 11
5 5 6 0 7 X

(A) (E)
Gtr. 2 1/4 full 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/2
126 12
12 15 12 12
14 14 (14)1214 12 12 12 12 12 12 14 14 12 12 12 12 12 12
1412 14 14 (14) 14 14 14
14
Gtr. 1 *

9 7 9 9 9

*Gtr. 1 holds note until section M .

Bass 1/4
9 11 9 9 7 (7)
7 9 11 11 11 9 9 7 (7) 5
9 11 7 7 5
7 5 3 2 1 0 4 7
L (5:05)
Hey Hey Hey hey
N.C.(E)
129 Gtr. 2 full 1/2
2 11 14 (14) 12 14 (14) 12
0

Bass 9 7 7 9 9 9 9 9 9 (9) 7
9 7 7 8 9 9
7 7 7 7 7 0

hey hey hey hey you Baby baby baby baby baby baby baby baby
(A) let ring
1/2 full full full full full
132 12
12 15 15 15 15
14 (14) 12 14 14(14)12 14 12 14 (14) 14 (14) 14 (14) 14 14 14 14
14 14

3 3 3
5 6
5 5 6 6 7 5 7 5 7 5 5
7 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 7 7 0 0 0 4 4 5 6 7 7 5 6

baby baby baby Hey hey Hey hey

(E) (B)
full full full full 1/4 1/2 full full
135
15 15 15
14 14 14 14 14 14 14 (14)(14)1214 12 14 12 14 12 14 (14)12

3
9 7 11
9 7 5 6 5 7 0 9 9
7 7 5 6 7 7 7 5 6 7 9 9
0 5 6 7 7 7 7 6

guitarworld.com 103
TRANSCRIPTIONS

Faster = 150
babe Huh uh oh
(A) (E) (B)
138 full full
14 (14) 14 (14) 79 7 7

6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9
7 5 7 7 2
5 X 7 9 9 7 5

M (5:36)
E5 D5/E E5 D5/E E5
141 16Gtr. 2 14 12 14 16 16 12
15 X 12 14 15 15 15 12 17
16 14 13 14 16 16 (16) (16) 16 14 13 18 19

Gtr. 1
9 7 9 7 9 0
9 7 9 7 9 0
7 7 7 7 7 0

Bass
7 9 9 7
6 6 7 (7) 7 8 9 6 6 7 (7) 7 8 9 X 9 (9) 9 7 4 6
7 7 7 7 7 7 5
7 7 7 (7) 7 5 3 4

A5 A5/G A E5 D5/E
let
145 ring let ring
21 19 17 12 14 16 16 14
18 X X X X X
20 21 (21) 21 21 19 18 13 13 14 16 16 (16) 16 16 14

2
2 0 2 2 0 9 7
2 0 2 2 0 0 9 7
0 0 0 0 0 7 7 7
0 0

7
5 7 7 7 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9
4 4 5 (5) 5 6 7 7 7 (7) 7 5 4 5 7 7 7
5 5

E5 B5 A5
let ring
148 12 17 17 (17) 17 17 17 15 15 15 (15) 15 15
X 1 (1) 15 16 16 16 16 16 14 14 14 14 14
13

9 4 2
9 4 2
7 2 0

9 9 7 8 9 (9) 10 11 6 6 7 7 8
X 9 (9) X 7 6 7 9 9 X X X 9 7 7

104 G U I T A R WORL D • DECEMBER 202 1

 “THE LEMON SONG”

N (5:55)
E5 B5 E
151 10 10 10 (10) 10 10 5 5 12 12
9 9 9 9 9 4 4 4 12 12 12
14 13 X
14

9 X X X X X X X X
9 4 0 9 X X X X X X X X
9 4 0 9 X X X X X X X X
7 2 0 7 X X X X X X X X
0

9 9 7 7 7 7 6 6 5 5 5 5
9 9 8 8 8 8 7 7 8 9
7 7 5 5
7 5 5 3 2

D5/E E D5/E
154 12 12 0
12 12 12 12 12 12
X 13 X 14 13 14 12 14 12 14 12
14 0 14

X X X X 9 X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
X X X X 7 9 X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 7 0 0
X X X X 7 9 X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 7 0 0
X X X X 7 7 X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 7 0 0
0

7 9 9 9 7
6 6 7 (7) 8 8 8 9 9 X X 7 5 6
7 7 7
0 0 4 4 4 5 5 6 7
A G5/A E5
157 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 12 (12)
12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 14 12 14 12 14 12 14 12
12 12 12 12 12

2 X X X X X X X X X X
2 X X X X X X X X X X 0 9 X X X X X X X X X
2 X X X X X X X X X X 0 9 X X X X X X X X X
0 X X X X X X X X X X 0 7 X X X X X X X X X

7
6 7 (7) 8 9
0 0 4 0 5 (5) 0 6 X 7 X 9 X 10(10) X 11 X 12 X 4 5 7 7 X

I’m gonna leave my children down onthis killin’ * floor

B A Em7
full 1/2 full
160
15 15 15 12
14 (14)12 14

*
4 2 8
X X X 4 2 7
X X X 0 4 2 X
X X X 0 2 0 7
0
*
9 9 7
X 9 (9) X 7 6 7 9 7
9 7 6 7
9 7 6 5

guitarworld.com 105
TONAL RECALL
THE SECRETS BEHIND
“CRAZY TRAIN”
FAMOUS GUITAR
SOUNDS
OZZY OSBOURNE | BLIZZARD OF OZZ, 1981 | GUITARIST: RANDY RHOADS | STORY BY CHRIS GILL
ALTHOUGH RANDY RHOADS had
previously played on the Hol-
lywood club scene for sev-
eral years and recorded two
albums with Quiet Riot (released only in
Japan), most of the world did not discover
the phenomenal young guitarist until after
he started working with Ozzy Osbourne in
1980. “Crazy Train,” the first single from
Osbourne’s debut solo album, Blizzard of
Ozz, introduced Rhoads to millions of new
fans, and the guitarist made a great first
impression with his blazing technical solos
and buzzsaw riffs.
The midrange-heavy tone of Rhoads’ gui-
tar on “Crazy Train” divides many metal gui-
tar tone aficionados, with detractors arguing
that it sounds small and boxy while support-
ers counter that it fits the track perfectly and
brings Rhoads’ playing rightfully front and
center in the mix. I personally agree with the
latter, having heard the guitar part absolutely
explode from an AM radio with tiny speakers
that made Metallica sound like buzzing mos-
quitoes in comparison. It’s a guitar tone that
can make the wrong player sound shrill and
obnoxious, but in the hands of the right player
(like Rhoads) it can sing like a symphony.
Rhoads is famous for using a modified
Marshall 100-watt head covered in white
tolex that he custom ordered from the Mar-
GET THE SOUND, CHEAP!
Epiphone Les Paul Custom
Marshall DSL20CR
MXR M104 Distortion +
MXR M108S Ten Band EQ
TONE TIP: Like Rhoads, you’ll want
to dial the Marshall to just a slight
amount of overdrive and use the
Distortion + for grit and grind, with the
output at 10 and distortion between
4 to 6. The new MXR Ten Band EQ
has gain and volume
controls not found on
the original, so keep
both controls at 0.
shall factory, but, as proven by photos taken Randy Rhoads
by Fin Costello of the Blizzard sessions, that (and his Les
amp had not arrived yet when Blizzard of Paul) during the
Blizzard of Ozz
Ozz was recorded. Instead, Rhoads used a sessions
stock mid-Seventies Marshall JMP model
1959 Super Lead MKII 100-watt head that
was rented for the sessions, with the head
driving a pair of 4x12 cabinets loaded with
Altec 417-8H speakers. Rhoads preferred
Altecs over the standard Celestions as the
Altec speakers delivered higher clean head-
room and brighter tone.
Rhoads ran the Marshall with only a
slight amount of overdrive and relatively flat
EQ settings, generating the bulk of his dis-
tortion and EQ with his custom pedalboard
built by Pete Holmes. The crucial effects
in the pedalboard were an MXR Distor-
tion +, which Rhoads almost always kept on,
and an MXR Ten Band Graphic Equalizer,
which provided a significant signal and mid-
range boost centered at 500Hz. Producer/
engineer Max Norman enhanced Rhoads’
rhythm tracks with a subtle chorus effect
generated by an AMS DMX 15-80S Digital
Delay with different short delay and slight
detuning settings for the right and left chan-
nels. Rhoads also triple-tracked his solos,
with one part panned to the center and the
other parts panned hard right and left at
lower levels.
ORIGINAL GEAR
GUITAR: 1974 Gibson Les Paul
Custom (bridge pickup), Bridge
Volume: 10, Bridge Tone: 10
AMPS: 1975-76 Marshall JMP
model 1959 Super Lead MKII 100-
watt head (Presence: 5, Bass: 2,
Middle: 6, Treble: 7, Volume I: 6,
Volume II: 0, Input I top) into two
Marshall 1960A and 1960B 4x12
cabinets with Altec 417-8H 12-inch
speakers
EFFECTS: MXR Distortion + (Out-
put: 10, Distortion: 4), MXR Ten
Band Graphic EQ (31.2: -2, 62.5: 0,
125: +3, 250: +7, 500: +10, 1k: +6,
2k: +3, 4k: -2, 8k: 0, 16k: +3), AMS
DMX 15-80S Digital Delay (added
during mix, settings unknown)
S N R E F D E R /OL L E T S O C N I F
STRINGS/TUNING: GHS Boomers
.010-.046/Standard
PICK: Fender Medium (351 shape)
guitarworld.com 110