Favorite RAWK Guitar Tones

[Jerjo]

Just working in my office and felt like hearing something with some grit to it. I started with Ian Gillan/Tony Iommi and then moved on to Purple itself, enjoying as always Ritchie's guitar tone. I can appreciate a lot of different guitar tones but there's just something great about that fat sound that some rockers found in the 70s. Yesterday I was playing a lot of Mick Ronson and damn, there was another guy that just nailed it.

(I had to make this about rock to avoid Yuppets claiming Howe's tone was a beautiful thing)

[frinspar]

Nuno Bettencourt's on the Waiting For The Punchline album. Big part of what makes it a Top 5 album for me.

[No Pride]

Nuno Bettencourt's on the Waiting For The Punchline album. Big part of what makes it a Top 5 album for me.

Hmmm, I liked his tone on the previous albums better. Of course, he's still playing his ass off on this one!

My vote: Brian May!

[Lopez]

One of my favorites is that of Henry Vestine of Canned Heat. His solo in "Refried Boogie" from the Livin' the Blues album is full of fat and sustained tones.

[dropforge]

A few guys with great tone: Iommi, Blackmore, Rik Emmett, and yes, the late Ronnie Montrose. The first two Montrose albums sound awesome.

[at least 100 dead]

(I had to make this about rock to avoid Yuppets claiming Howe's tone was a beautiful thing)

Wot? You no dig The Ancient?

If we’re talking RAWK, Eddie Van Halen’s tones on the first six with DLR never cease to amaze these cloth ears (and I recoil from most shredder/80s hair metal). Bob Drake has tons of incredible tones all over his solo records too, but they’re not all-out RAWK. Incredible player.

[frinspar]

Hmmm, I liked his tone on the previous albums better. Of course, he's still playing his ass off on this one!

No argument he's always sounded great, but after the very large-scale production values on the III Sides album, the stripped-down, gritty approach on Punchline was refreshing, and it is, to me, truly a guitar album.

[Scott Bails]

My vote: Brian May!

Seconded.

I'll add Boston's Tom Scholz, too.

[WHORG]

Tommy Bolin
Dimebag Darrell
Billy Gibbons

[mogrooves]

Clapton with Mayall
Hendrix at the beginning of "Gypsy Eyes"
Mick Taylor
Fripp's early sound
Kim Simmonds
Jeff Beck, Truth era
Peter Green, vintage

[arabicadabra]

Leslie West
Mick Ralphs (Rock And Roll Queen, Thunderbuck Ram)
Paul Kossof
Steve Marriott

[JJ88]

Going back a bit, Scotty Moore- check out the solos on 'Baby Let's Play House' and 'Hound Dog', that growling sound. Also liked Cliff Gallup in the Blue Caps, with that echoey sound.

Agreed on Mick Taylor ('Love In Vain' is a show-stopper, with that gorgeous tone on his solo) and Jeff Beck ('Beck's Bolero', for instance).

[BaldFriede]

In addition you get a rawk violin as well.

[nosebone]

Buck Dharma on the Agents of Fortune album

Duane Allman & Dickey Betts on the live Fillmore album

Ritchie Blackmore on Machine Head

[Jerjo]

Love that snarl that Mick and Ian get on this track

[GuitarGeek]

Well, Dr. Brian May has already been mentioned, but I'll just add that he has probably the best guitar tone ever. Proof positive you don't need a big 100 watt monolith of a guitar amp to get cool guitar tone.

David Gilmour always had cool guitar tones, too. His clean tones, like on Shine On You Crazy Dimaond pt. II, are always exquisite, and he had great distorted tones too, like on Dogs, Comfortably Numb, Let's Get Metaphysical, Mihalis and Sorrow.

Robert Fripp's "laser beam" solo tone is another favorite of mine, like on the end of Lizard itself, Exiles, The Night Watch, or the live versions of Starless from 74.

Pete Townshend usually had great guitar tones during the 60's through the early 80's, too.

Jerry Garcia had a great clean tone circa 72-74. In 72 and most of he 73, he was playing a Stratocaster (a heavily modded late 50's model usually, but he sometimes used other ones), before switching to the Wolf guitar that Doug Irwin built him in late 73. Later on he had a good fuzz sound too, from an MXR Distortion+.

Adrian Belew's early 80's lead tone (usually a Strat through a Foxx Tone Machine octave fuzz, sometimes in conjunction with an A/DA Flanger) is another favorite.

And I also love Steve Hackett's tone too. I think he said he that sound he used on all the Genesis records and his early solo records came from combining two distortion pedals together, but I forget which ones they were.

And sorry to the OP, but Steve Howe's guitar tones on Close To The Edge , Tales From Topographic Oceans, Relayer and Going For The One are all great.

[The Dark Elf]

Gilmour and May, of course, but the fuzzy warm tone of Ritchie Blackmore circa Made in Japan was special. Throw in Hendrix's Electric Ladyland-era as well.

[Zeuhlmate]

Hendrix - Band of Gypsys

[BaldJean]

The little known but excellent Roman Bunka (one of my absolutely favorite guitar players). Here an example:

[jake]

Paul Kossof

Correct - plus Randy California and Eric Bell

[Jerjo]

Well, Dr. Brian May has already been mentioned, but I'll just add that he has probably the best guitar tone ever. Proof positive you don't need a big 100 watt monolith of a guitar amp to get cool guitar tone.

David Gilmour always had cool guitar tones, too. His clean tones, like on Shine On You Crazy Dimaond pt. II, are always exquisite, and he had great distorted tones too, like on Dogs, Comfortably Numb, Let's Get Metaphysical, Mihalis and Sorrow.

Robert Fripp's "laser beam" solo tone is another favorite of mine, like on the end of Lizard itself, Exiles, The Night Watch, or the live versions of Starless from 74.

Pete Townshend usually had great guitar tones during the 60's through the early 80's, too.

Jerry Garcia had a great clean tone circa 72-74. In 72 and most of he 73, he was playing a Stratocaster (a heavily modded late 50's model usually, but he sometimes used other ones), before switching to the Wolf guitar that Doug Irwin built him in late 73. Later on he had a good fuzz sound too, from an MXR Distortion+.

Adrian Belew's early 80's lead tone (usually a Strat through a Foxx Tone Machine octave fuzz, sometimes in conjunction with an A/DA Flanger) is another favorite.

And I also love Steve Hackett's tone too. I think he said he that sound he used on all the Genesis records and his early solo records came from combining two distortion pedals together, but I forget which ones they were.

And sorry to the OP, but Steve Howe's guitar tones on Close To The Edge , Tales From Topographic Oceans, Relayer and Going For The One are all great.

man, you had me nodding in agreement...right up until that last sentence

I do love Howe's playing but gawd, that tone is too tinny, too shrill.

Another couple that don't get enough mention, Gary Moore and Roy Buchanan

[Progbear]

Hate to get all obscure on you, but Kim Kwang-Hyun of South Korea’s Magma just slays me with his tone. I’m not generally into power trio rock, but his guitar timbres just make that album for me:



Good call on Roman Bunka, clean and tasteful.

[Garden Dreamer]

Roine Stolt

Bill Nelson (in Be Bop Deluxe)

[dropforge]

How could I forget the late, great Edgar Froese?

[Jerjo]

Buxton and Bruce in the original Alice Cooper band.