INSIDE Tthe the Rev Delivers the Goods from the Player’S Guide to Ultimate Tone TMTM the Woodshed ! $10.00 US, October 2002/VOL.3 NO.12 Report Billy F
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Mountainview Publishing, LLC INSIDE tthe The Rev Delivers the Goods from The Player’s Guide to Ultimate Tone TMTM the Woodshed ! $10.00 US, October 2002/VOL.3 NO.12 Report Billy F. Gibbons 10 Lighten Your Load with a classic Les Paul Special 11 The Radiators’ Dave Malone on Tone from the Bayou! 19 The Electro- Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb www.tonequest.com cover story WWelcome, Señors and Señoritas. We resume our exploration formed a feisty combo The Jazzy Five, followed by The into the mysterious realm of tone, and this month our journeyy Gibbons Brothers Band , appearing in the upstate New York begins midway between Houston and San Antonio in a little resorts. Full out 30’s elegance… and a bit of ragtime, shabby town called La Grange. You know how that story goes... The sheik to boot. creepin’n’ shuffle boogie intro to “La Grange” exploded into one of the most unique and recognizable guitar tones on the TQR: Jimmy Reed is credited as a most important influ- planet, compliments of Billy F. Gibbons and that Little ol’ ence. Why Jimmy Reed in particular? Band from Texas. YYou gotta hand it to the Rev... with just one note stroked from Pearly Gates, there is no absolutely no The JR simplicity is nothing short doubt who’s in charge,ge, and that’s a high wire act matched by of infectious. It grabs you quick. A a mere handful of players in the long and colorful history of pure and accessible sound, which the guitarr.. is always still around. Two guitars and drums is the ultimate trio. We caught up with Mr. Gibbons in his hometown of Houston, Jimmy Reed, and also the Big Beat and it was a good hang. ZZ Top has ridden high on the charts Master , Bo Diddley… Street-sim- with a ton of hits over the past 30 years, yet the band and ple and elemental, with an unex- crew are a completely down-to-earth outfit lacking any of the pected complexity of the inner hubris that often infects successful artists and their ‘people.’ workings of tremendously toneful We spent two days in Houston talking about Billy’s unique trios. Bo Diddley on guitar, vibe and how he nails it,, and as you might expect,ect, many sur- Clifford James on his solid snare, prises await, so let’s get to it!! and Jerome Green’s propelling maracas. All quite intriguing. Loud electric guitar became the move. TQR: What was the first exposure to this strange music that set ya’ll on the path to play the blues? TQR: So LOUD electric guitar was next? BB King, Jimmy Yeah… single cut, single pickup Gibson Melody Maker with Reed, Muddy a Fender Champ amp. Waters, Little Walter, Howlin’ TQR: Damn… you got right on it, didn’t you?? Wolf, Elvis, and Houston blues Yessir… That was ignition! radio! It started way early… these TQR: I suppose your garage band scene was not far are just a few of the behind? many that stand as the inventors of this fine American art form. The challenge Yeah. At first, just bangin’ and jangin’ things after school, remains to attempt a refreshed interpretation of the magnet- chasing blues records. Some buddies also picked up the gui- ism of the blues. tar, and a guy a couple of streets over with a set of well-beat drums, well, that was it. It was on. The unlikely aggregation TQR: YYour dad entered the picture about that time, yes? The Saints started runnin.’ Indeed. He enjoyed entertaining, spanning a remarkable TQR: WaWas there any particular mentor, or was it picking career, from concerts through the motion picture business, things up on your own? and all points in between. He developed quite a wide range of creative expressions… The back rooms blaring the likes of Chuck Berry and Little Richard took over. TQR: A house full of music,, no doubt! TQR: SoSo The Saints provided a genuine beginning! Si, Señor! Most certainly… neighborhood parties, always out of control TQR: YYou’ve got ties from England, correct? – always real gone. Truly reckless. The Stones suddenly jumped on the scene, playing their version of classic R&B Yes. My poppa and his five bro’s hangin’ in New York with their different twist, and providing even more influ- -continued- 2 TONEQUEST REPORT V3. N12. October 2002 cover story ences. I organized a new group and recorded a tune, “99th at Gazarri’s Floor,” released on a local Houston label, which fortunately on The Strip. caught on over the region’s radio stations. Out of town calls I saddled up and bookings started showin’ up. We loaded up a station along side wagon and headed out of town. Nuthin’ but a blast. the drummer to redesign TQR: Is “99th Floor” still available? the lineup back in Yeah, the original version is to be included in a new ZZ Top Houston, boxed set. It’s furious and fuzzy. Texas. After looking TQR: And the name of this new band was… around a bit, we found a The Moving Sidewalks. By that time we were guitar, bass, friend of drums, and keyboards. There was a brief time when soul ours who was an accomplished Hammond B3 specialist. He music was the rage and we briefly added horns to the band, also kicked bass pedals, which filled out the sound, and that’s but the tough sound of a combo was tighter. all we really wanted. TQR: What kind of guitar were you playing? TQR: What kind of music were you playing? A white ’63 Jazzmaster . Stabbin’ at that cool look … match- We kept all the blues influences, and then the psychedelic ing stuff … Fenders and blonde piggybacks. scene captured us. One of the first psychedelic bands ever – The 13th Floor Elevators – actually coined the term psyche- TQR: Definitely a style, Amigo. delic. Their first record was called The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators , and they followed that with an Oh, yeah… two blue album called Easter Everywhere. frame 12’s behind maroon grill cloth – full TQR: We’ll check that out. Another heavy acid band from volume. Then Vox started that period were Blue Cheer , and that was a direct, making an appearance on 4-way hit. the scene. Vox were the biggest things we experi- Oh, man… I loved that band. When was that… 1967? enced. From the rare Vox tube models moving on TQR: Yes, when they broke out with “Summertime to the super chrome- Blues…” framed towers. Meanwhile, I switched Loved that song. We went out to see them one night, and not the Jazzmaster to Fender only were they the loudest band we had ever heard, but that Esquire. And with the was the first time we had ever seen a drummer use cut-off inherently thin, cutting broomsticks for sheer power (laughs). Esquire, Vox made the sound pretty hairy. Those circuits could really bark. TQR: You retained your 3-piece organ trio? TQR: What happened on the heels of “99th Floor” and Yeah, we changed the name from The Moving Sidewalks to the subsequent Moving Sidewalks releases? ZZ Top, and we cut a single in 1969 titled “Salt Lick,” backed by a track called “Miller’s Farm.” It was named after a ranch we’d been given access to. We set up at the ranch house and We continued performing throughout Louisiana and you could play as loud as you wanted and bothered no one. Mississippi – mostly southern stuff – and in 1968 we were signed to appear on the Jimi Hendrix tour along with the TQR: Did you come up with the idea for the name of the band from Paris called The Soft Machine. We played a num- band? ber of shows in Texas and a few in Arizona, and wound up in California twisting off on our own for awhile. We’d play a Yeah… we practiced and wrote material for about six or so, middle of the week gig at this joint or that, then Friday nights and the drummer and I decided on recruiting our buddy from -continued- TONEQUEST REPORT V3. N12. October 2002 3 cover story Dallas to play bass, Billy Etheridge. He originally was ning. Marshalls and humbuckers. rhythm guitarist in one of Jimmy Vaughan’s first groups out of Dallas called The Chessmen. And then, Etheridge intro- TQR: Is that when you began to really hone in on what duced me to drummer Frank Beard, who quickly established we would consider to be “your sound?” the now famous backbeat. And Frank then recommended auditioning another Dallas bassist, Dusty Hill. Frank and Pearly Gates Yes. Things took another Dusty worked together in Dallas, and made for a solid step up a month later rhythm section. when a friend called and said he knew a farmer TQR: Rock solid and tight, indeed… with an original Les Paul. He kept it under Yeah, Dusty did a few pickup gigs around Houstontown, and his bed and rarely took Mr. Beard’s offer to join an afternoon jam session. We played it. At that time I did a simple blues shuffle and it lusciously lasted for three was driving an old 1930s full hours. We looked at each other and said, “Man, this feels Packard automobile, and pretty good.” That’s what went down. I gave it to a girlfriend so she could get out to TQR: What gear was on the deck at this time? California to audition for a part in a movie. She We still had Vox, the old made it and got the part, Esquire, an Oyster Pearl and swiftly sold the Packard and sent a check to me.