Great Leads - Terrible Tone?

[amiller]

...

Okay... a few of the guys who I think have good leads, but lame tone are:

John Mclaughlin
Steve Howe
Frank Zappa
George Harrison
John Lennon
Jimi Hendrix
Frank Gambale in the 80's eewwww
Guthrie Govan

I can't argue with any on your list.

 

[SLOgriff]

Richie Kotzen.....killer player, CRAP tone!

 

[paulyc]

Eric Johnson...I don't get his tone at all for all the hoopla about batteries and cord length...Cliffs of Dover sounds like a reed instument to me. No attack on the front of the note at all...

 

[BC Audio]

Funk #49.

 

[Zachman]

Hey Zachman btw..Great avatar! The guy doing the flip is funny...but the freaking Cat is HILARIOUS!

 

[MARK1970]

Anything from Pantera!

THERE!!! I said it! Shit tone but damn ol' boy could play!

I really hate to say this... as much as I admire dime's playing.. I honestly think he's a bit overrated. I guess for metal, he was a great player.. but to say he was a great guitarist.. and I know that you did not say it here, but I have seen many people call him the greatest and this and that.. I don't think so.

I agree with you. I never cared for his solos, but his riffs were great.

 

[MARK1970]

really? no ones gonna say it? SLASH !!!! worst sounding lead and rhythm sound. can't believe anyone would want to replicate that weak marshall les paul sound. should have run a stomp box to fatten it up. and don't get me started on his "bending just below the key" november rain makes my ears cry blood.

I don't mind his tone overall, but his lead tone is just nasty. I would not consider him a great guitarist, but high respects as a musician and song writer.
I caught the George Lopez show and Slash had a guitar duo with George Lopez's house band guitarist. Slash was terrible.

 

[paulyc]

Appetite for Destruction is really good...everything after that is shitty...although Velvet Revolver sounds great too.

 

[electrophonic.tonic]

I can't believe no one has mentioned any of the solos on Sap. I happen to love the lo-fi tone and feel, but I figured at least a few dudes on RT would be down on them.
Maybe no one considers them to be great leads either

I think the contrast is great, but there ya go.

 

[Red_Label]

While I get the point of this thread... I do have to chuckle at it a bit.

On the one hand, we have players who've laid-down their memorable tracks and left legacies that will long outlive them.

On the other... guys who may (or may not) be playing through nicer gear than was used to lay down those memorable tracks, discussing those immortal phrases and tones like a bunch of chicks in a bar on a powder break -- "OMG! did you see what she was wearing???"




Btw... I dig Randy's tone on "Diary of a Madman".

 

[Racerxrated]

Yeah this is kinda like "I really don't have anything better to do"....but it is interesting that tone I might like is something that is horrendous to others. I'm 46 and I tend to like things a bit brighter than in my youth..hearing loss maybe? I'll also throw in Ty Tabor's tone on Gretchen as one of my favorites..I think that was a solid state rig? Saw King's X back in '91 in MPLS and I saw what Ty was playing through and went up to him after the show and Ty's tech threw a blanket over his rig..to "protect" the secret lol!!

 

[thiswaythatway]

Until recently, just about anything from Paul Gilbert. His Laney tone is thin and lean. His Marshall tones are much better.

Yeah, Gilberts 80's tone had LA studio rack written all over it. Aweful. Kinda like Petrucci's tone on that live album where he does the big medley. His tone is so thin.

One guys, who is an incredible player, but who has terrible tone to me is Michael Romeo. It always sounds like he's playing through one of those little Line 6 1x12 combos set to the metal setting with the mid on zero.

 

[amiller]

...On the other... guys who may (or may not) be playing through nicer gear than was used to lay down those memorable tracks, discussing those immortal phrases and tones like a bunch of chicks in a bar on a powder break -- "OMG! did you see what she was wearing???" ...

Yeah, well, I guess that's why this site is called Rig-TALK...

 

[Rushtallica]

how about worst calls in rock?
"yeah Klaus why don't you take a breather. I'll handle the vocals on this track and Rudy can take the solo."
= uli fail.

Yep. Uli has got to be one of the best guitarists with the worst vocals ever.

 

[lettmusic]

Randy Rhoads' live tone, like on the "Tribute" album, that was like a buzzsaw. I had a Boss Heavy Metal distortion pedal when I was 15, came pretty close to that tone Speaking of GTR, Steve Hackett used the very same pedal, again, shit tone.