Fornicatron
18th May 2004, 06:37 AM
:cool: :cool: http://www.guitarworld.com/gearreviews/axology/0703.page.html
http://www.guitarworld.com/gearreviews/axology/art/0703.page.jpgTHE GUITARSREMAIN THE SAME
Although Jimmy Page takes great pride in Led Zeppelin’s liberal musical spirit, he was quite conservative when it came to his axes and amps. After assembling a small quartet of electric guitars in 1970, Page rarely strayed from it.
Prior to that time, however, Page was still discovering the magic formula that would produce his famed tone. In 1968, when Zeppelin formed, he regularly played a 1958 Fender Telecaster that was a gift from his guitar buddy Jeff Beck. His other guitar from this period was a Gibson “Black Beauty” Les Paul Custom that featured three pickups and a Bigsby tailpiece. Unfortunately, the Custom was stolen in April 1970 while Zeppelin were traveling to Canada. Page offered a reward for it in Rolling Stone magazine, but the guitar was never recovered.
It was during the Led Zeppelin II sessions, in 1969, that Page discovered the lethal combination of a 1959 Les Paul Standard with a 100-watt Marshall, and promptly retired his Telecaster from the road. The sunburst ’59 Standard, which Page refers to as his “Number One,” quickly became his favorite concert guitar and was used during virtually every Zeppelin show in the Seventies. The instrument features such modifications as a shaved neck, push-pull knobs that tap the coils on each pickup and a missing bridge pickup cover. According to Page, the cover came off after years of “whacking it with my violin bow on songs like ‘Dazed and Confused.’ ”
In addition to the ’59 model, Page also rocked out regularly on a 1958 Les Paul Standard, which also sported a sunburst finish. Not surprisingly, given the similarities between the two guitars, there has been confusion as to which was actually Page’s main instrument. The trouble was fueled by an erroneous report in the 1991 issue of Guitar World and by contradictory interviews given by Page himself. In a recent conversation, Page’s guitar technician assured us that the ’58, which was purchased from Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh in the early Seventies, was indeed Page’s backup guitar. In addition, Pat Foley, Gibson’s director of entertainment relations worldwide, tells us it was the ’59 Standard that Page allowed Gibson to copy when it created its Jimmy Page Signature Les Paul.
Like the ’59 Standard, the “Number Two” guitar features push-pull pots. In addition, it has a pair of “secret” spring-loaded buttons located beneath the lower edge of the pickguard. Reportedly, one of the buttons determines whether the pickups are in series or parallel, while the other lets the guitarist toggle between standard and phased tones. However, Page’s guitar tech confesses that the buttons “really didn’t do much of anything.”
Pagey will be forever linked to his two Les Pauls. (Coincidentally, Page and guitarist Les Paul share the same birthday.) However, he was also closely associated with the EDS-1275 Gibson double-neck, an instrument he used onstage to dramatic effect on showstoppers like “Stairway to Heaven” and “Rain Song.” The guitar’s A/B selector switch, located in the upper corner of the pickguard, allowed for the inclusion of one or both guitars in the circuit. In order to produce sympathetic resonances, Page would often leave both guitars active. The EDS-1275 was used primarily as a stage guitar from 1971 to ’80, but it made a recorded appearance on “Carouselambra” from In Through the Out Door.
Another important part of Page’s electric guitar army was his black-and-white Danelectro. Assembled from the best bits of two Sixties guitars, and fitted with a Quan Badass bridge, the ax was constructed of Masonite, a brand of manufactured hardboard. The Danelectro was used on songs that required unusual tunings like “Kashmir” and “In My Time of Dying.” For the band’s acoustic sets Jimmy relied primarily on his 1971 Martin D28, which he played in the studio and on tour after 1970.
Onstage, in the band’s early days, Page played through a variety of amps, but he quickly settled down to using a reliable and roadworthy Marshall SLP-1959 100-watt amp. The Marshall was modified with KT-88 tubes, which boosted its output and provided a crisper, cleaner sound. Zep fans will notice that Jimmy also used Orange amps onstage, but they were primarily for his Theremin, an electronic device he used to create otherworldly sounds in “Whole Lotta Love.”
Given Page’s modest assortment of guitars, it’s perhaps not surprising that, when performing with Zeppelin, he kept his effects to a minimum as well. His astonishing array of sounds can be attributed to a Roger Mayer Tonebender fuzz box, a Vox Cry Baby wah, a Maestro Echoplex, a violin bow and his fertile imagination. He used Herco Flex 75 picks and Ernie Ball Super Slinky (electric) and Ernie Ball Earthwoods (acoustic) strings. —B.T.
http://www.guitarworld.com/gearreviews/axology/art/0703.page.jpgTHE GUITARSREMAIN THE SAME
Although Jimmy Page takes great pride in Led Zeppelin’s liberal musical spirit, he was quite conservative when it came to his axes and amps. After assembling a small quartet of electric guitars in 1970, Page rarely strayed from it.
Prior to that time, however, Page was still discovering the magic formula that would produce his famed tone. In 1968, when Zeppelin formed, he regularly played a 1958 Fender Telecaster that was a gift from his guitar buddy Jeff Beck. His other guitar from this period was a Gibson “Black Beauty” Les Paul Custom that featured three pickups and a Bigsby tailpiece. Unfortunately, the Custom was stolen in April 1970 while Zeppelin were traveling to Canada. Page offered a reward for it in Rolling Stone magazine, but the guitar was never recovered.
It was during the Led Zeppelin II sessions, in 1969, that Page discovered the lethal combination of a 1959 Les Paul Standard with a 100-watt Marshall, and promptly retired his Telecaster from the road. The sunburst ’59 Standard, which Page refers to as his “Number One,” quickly became his favorite concert guitar and was used during virtually every Zeppelin show in the Seventies. The instrument features such modifications as a shaved neck, push-pull knobs that tap the coils on each pickup and a missing bridge pickup cover. According to Page, the cover came off after years of “whacking it with my violin bow on songs like ‘Dazed and Confused.’ ”
In addition to the ’59 model, Page also rocked out regularly on a 1958 Les Paul Standard, which also sported a sunburst finish. Not surprisingly, given the similarities between the two guitars, there has been confusion as to which was actually Page’s main instrument. The trouble was fueled by an erroneous report in the 1991 issue of Guitar World and by contradictory interviews given by Page himself. In a recent conversation, Page’s guitar technician assured us that the ’58, which was purchased from Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh in the early Seventies, was indeed Page’s backup guitar. In addition, Pat Foley, Gibson’s director of entertainment relations worldwide, tells us it was the ’59 Standard that Page allowed Gibson to copy when it created its Jimmy Page Signature Les Paul.
Like the ’59 Standard, the “Number Two” guitar features push-pull pots. In addition, it has a pair of “secret” spring-loaded buttons located beneath the lower edge of the pickguard. Reportedly, one of the buttons determines whether the pickups are in series or parallel, while the other lets the guitarist toggle between standard and phased tones. However, Page’s guitar tech confesses that the buttons “really didn’t do much of anything.”
Pagey will be forever linked to his two Les Pauls. (Coincidentally, Page and guitarist Les Paul share the same birthday.) However, he was also closely associated with the EDS-1275 Gibson double-neck, an instrument he used onstage to dramatic effect on showstoppers like “Stairway to Heaven” and “Rain Song.” The guitar’s A/B selector switch, located in the upper corner of the pickguard, allowed for the inclusion of one or both guitars in the circuit. In order to produce sympathetic resonances, Page would often leave both guitars active. The EDS-1275 was used primarily as a stage guitar from 1971 to ’80, but it made a recorded appearance on “Carouselambra” from In Through the Out Door.
Another important part of Page’s electric guitar army was his black-and-white Danelectro. Assembled from the best bits of two Sixties guitars, and fitted with a Quan Badass bridge, the ax was constructed of Masonite, a brand of manufactured hardboard. The Danelectro was used on songs that required unusual tunings like “Kashmir” and “In My Time of Dying.” For the band’s acoustic sets Jimmy relied primarily on his 1971 Martin D28, which he played in the studio and on tour after 1970.
Onstage, in the band’s early days, Page played through a variety of amps, but he quickly settled down to using a reliable and roadworthy Marshall SLP-1959 100-watt amp. The Marshall was modified with KT-88 tubes, which boosted its output and provided a crisper, cleaner sound. Zep fans will notice that Jimmy also used Orange amps onstage, but they were primarily for his Theremin, an electronic device he used to create otherworldly sounds in “Whole Lotta Love.”
Given Page’s modest assortment of guitars, it’s perhaps not surprising that, when performing with Zeppelin, he kept his effects to a minimum as well. His astonishing array of sounds can be attributed to a Roger Mayer Tonebender fuzz box, a Vox Cry Baby wah, a Maestro Echoplex, a violin bow and his fertile imagination. He used Herco Flex 75 picks and Ernie Ball Super Slinky (electric) and Ernie Ball Earthwoods (acoustic) strings. —B.T.