Tag: features

  • Fretprints: Billy Duffy

    Fretprints: Billy Duffy

    Billy Duffy onstage with a White Falcon in 2011.

    Co-founder of The Cult, Billy Duffy was Britain’s last ’80s guitar hero, with an attitude and sound that embodied the essence of rock guitar. While lauded, that X factor was misunderstood by critics.

    Historically, Duffy bridged gaps between hard rock, melodic metal, punk, and alternative in an era fraught with conformity by adhering to the audacious mindset and swagger of rock, in the process giving music a much-needed kick in the bum.

    William Henry Duffy, born in Manchester, England, on May 12, 1961, began playing guitar at 15 and was bred on hard rock and glam before gravitating to punk in ’76. He played with local punk band The Nosebleeds, which also included Steven Morrissey, in the process inspiring neighborhood guitarist Johnny Marr to pursue greater aspirations and encouraging Morrissey to become a frontman. Morrissey and Marr subsequently realized their goals in The Smiths.

    Duffy moved to London in ’79 and immersed himself in its alternative scene while joining Theater of Hate. He met vocalist and future songwriting partner Ian Astbury when Astbury’s band, Southern Death Cult, preceded Hate at a gig. They became a musical team and by ’83, as co-leaders of the abbreviated Death Cult, and finally, The Cult, built a following on post-punk/goth-rock circuits and recorded an EP, Death Cult. Dreamtime, their debut album, was released on Beggars Banquet in August ’84. Laced with psychedelia, Duffy’s textural processed guitar parts (drawing favorable comparisons to U2 and Big Country) and references to mythology and shamanism, the record reached #21 in England and sported the single “Spiritwalker,” which hit #1 on the indie charts. Their power-rock sound and ostentatious guitar solos were at odds with alternative-inclined critics and peers but created momentum toward Love (1985), a breakthrough album produced by Steve Brown that reached #15 in the U.K. Despite subliminal goth elements and Duffy’s vestigial jangle-pop tones, Love made no pretensions about being anything other than a guitar-dominated rock effort. Viewed as anachronistic by the British music press, it nonetheless was a commercial success and trumpeted Cult’s evolving sound with the popular singles “She Sells Sanctuary,” “Rain,” and “Revolution,” and fan favorites “Love” and “Phoenix.”

    Duffy is a formidable arranger. These excerpts from “Love Removal Machine” (Electric) present three aspects of his guitar-layering approach. 1) The main riff played in verses is a tight rhythm figure made of triad-based voicings and sus4 suspensions on D and C. G5 is rendered as a larger power-chord sonority exploiting open strings. Note the effective use of space (rests) throughout. 2) The chorus riff conveys a lead/rhythm approach with his mixture of first-position open chords and lower-register single-note melody. Check out Duffy’s emblematic Csus2 in the phrase. 3) His lead solo is filled with definitive Duffy elements. This sample features a cycling ostinato pattern of repeated blues-rock bends and pentatonic melody contrasted by a languorous tortured bend and a zigzagging intervallic line in D minor pentatonic that twists his blues content into a modernistic shape.

    Electric (1987) continued their ascent and cemented inclusion in the ’80s classic-rock renaissance. Sessions that started in England with Brown proved unsatisfying and Duffy and Astbury found more sympathetic ears with Rick Rubin, an American producer known for rap and hip-hop but relatively inexperienced with live drums and rock guitar. Enamored of Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, and AC/DC, Rubin found common cause with The Cult’s increasing heaviness and primal rhythms; opting for a straightforward sound with less coloration completed their shift to hard rock. They also shifted to a classic British quartet a la Zep and The Who (albeit with rotating bass/drums sidemen) and arena stars with landmark pieces like “Love Removal Machine,” “Lil’ Devil,” “Wild Flower” and remake of “Born to Be Wild.” The aptly-titled album hit #4, spending 27 weeks on U.K. charts, and cracked the U.S. Top 40.

    Sonic Temple (’89) enlisted the production services of Bob Rock and proved to be their masterpiece, the realization of Duffy’s aim to “capture the essence of what a power chord felt like,” depicted boldly with the cover’s emblematic guitar-hero stance.

    A balanced opus combining punk sensibilities and classic-rock intentions with improved sonics and heavier timbres spread across the stereo spectrum, it epitomizes how a Les Paul could be used, with only hints of Duffy’s previous signal processing. The album rankled critics but propelled the band into mainstream rock circles, yielding a string of hits, selling more than 1.5 million copies in the U.S., cracking Billboard’s Top 10, and reaching #3 in England, all while sidestepping hair-band formulas and misogynistic cliches in songs like “Sun King,” “Fire Woman,” “Edie (Ciao Baby)” and “Sweet Soul Sister.”

    Ceremony (’91), produced by Richie Zito, reflected tensions between Duffy and Astbury and portended The Cult’s waning popularity, exacerbated by the arrival of grunge and a lawsuit over cover art delaying release. Nevertheless, it garnered Gold status in America, with Astbury’s story lines revisiting the Native-American mythos of Dreamtime while Duffy’s guitar bombast and diversity were reprised on “Hearted Son,” “If,” “Heart Full of Soul,” “Sweet Salvation” and “Ceremony.”

    The Cult (’94) reinstated Rock as producer and made greater use of sonic diversity, terraced dynamics and light/dark shades. The juxtaposing of hard-rock timbres with retro and acoustic sounds reinforced the Zep connection, emphasized by the acoustic-driven “Sacred Life,” layering in “Saints Are Down,” uncommon instrumentation, wah, and fuzz in “Gone,” and heavy riffing of “Be Free.” The album reached #69 in the U.S. and #21 in Britain, prompting Duffy and Astbury to disband in ’95. With varying personnel backing, Duffy and Astbury reunited for a run (1999-2002), toured, and released three albums spaced several years apart (’07, ’12, ’16), and returned with Under the Midnight Sun in 2022.

    “Sun King” is the powerful opening track on Sonic Temple. A masterful example of Duffy’s riffmaking in song context, it embodies his strategy of harnessing guitar parts to build a rock arrangement with forward motion to the chorus. 1)The verse figure is made of simple power chords and emphasizes syncopation and space. 2) The pre-chorus shifts gears with a driving hard-rock pattern of power chords broken into dyads posed above bass notes in steady eighth rhythm. 3) The chorus riff is a contrasting jangley affair with more-animated sustained arpeggiations and thematic melody lines woven into a textural phrase.

    INFLUENCES
    Duffy enjoys numerous influences. His playlist includes The Who, Mott the Hoople, Status Quo, Sweet, Slade, Thin Lizzy, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Be Bop Deluxe, Roxy Music, Led Zep, Queen, AC/DC, Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, New York Dolls, Montrose, and guitarists who “weren’t so obvious” including Mick Ralphs, Mick Ronson, Bill Nelson, Paul Kossoff, Johnny Thunders, Steve Jones, and James Williamson.

    STYLE
    In the age of high-gain noodling, two-hand-tapping, and neoclassic shred, Duffy stood as a proud emissary of classic rock. His riffs and power chording are definitive nods to the genre, while his lead lines re-shaped the stylistic DNA of Chuck Berry, Jimmy Page, and Angus Young. Consider the relentless wah assault of “Phoenix” (Love) reminiscent of Clapton’s live-Cream solos in “White Room” and “Brave Ulysses.” Or the AC/DC-inspired rhythmic pocket of “Wild Flower” and dynamic Zep-like riffs of “Automatic Blues.” The Cult was a riff-driven band since its earliest post-punk incarnations, but Duffy’s transcendent thrashing was guided by his credo that a riff must function within the song’s context and took many forms, like the ethnically-tinged theme of “American Heroes.” Self-evident are the driving rhythm phrases and punchy bass-register figures in the repertoire, but what about his strong melodic hooks played over intros, verses and choruses of songs like “Rain” and “Fire Woman”? Solid rhythm playing is a cornerstone of Duffy’s style extant in power chording, decorative (often droning) chordal arpeggiations, and single-note theme riffs – each representing a central facet of his ensemble work. He often expands root-5th power chords with colorful suspended or add2 voicings, as in “Sun King,” “Fire Woman” and “Love Removal Machine.” An evolving player, by Electric, Duffy had moved past his punk/goth influences to exploit the ethos of AC/DC, Free and Zep, eschewing the processed texturalism of Love in favor of leaner, drier hard-rock tones.

    As a soloist, he is blues-based like rockers Page or Kossoff rather than a scholarly disciple of B.B. King or Buddy Guy. His solos incorporate requisite pentatonic cliches and idiomatic string bending of blues guitar, but convey an alternative attitude informed by punk and hard rock underscored by his aggressive attack, pinch harmonics, and whammy-bar dips and dives. He modifies his pentatonic mannerisms with extensions (typically adding tones from the Dorian mode), chromatic passing tones, and diatonic scalar content, all present in his “Sun King” solo. Many solos harness purposeful repetition as ostinato patterns (“Love Removal Machine”) and cycling double-stops, a tactic synonymous with rock improvisation.

    Reflecting a period of deliberate practicing, Duffy’s lead work on Sonic Temple flaunted L.A.-honed technical advances, faster runs, expanded whammy-bar zaniness, and more-conspicuous metal harmonics mingled with blues-rock staples.

    Onstage, he prefers to be sole guitarist, but in the studio regularly multi-tracks parts to produce his trademark wall of sound and develop orchestrations, which necessitated adding a rhythm-guitar sideman on some tours. Saturated distortion and high volume versus clean electric and lighter acoustic colors are shades he alternates consistently and thoughtfully. Case in point is the web of harmonized melody guitars, overdriven rhythm guitars, chorused lead soloing, and acoustic timbres in “Edie (Ciao Baby),” woven into a driving rock arrangement containing string parts. Also notable is his layering of three processed guitar voices in “Fire Woman”: electric arpeggiation (with slap-back echo) in the intro, 12-string chording (with modulation and delay) and slide guitar (with echo effects).

    “Fire Woman” contains one of Duffy’s most emotional and memorable solos, and was a highlight of the Sonic Temple sessions. This example, played over a half-time change in feel, demonstrates technical advances permeating his lead work on the album. Notice the faster, more-complex passages incorporating the hexatonic sound (E added to expand D minor pentatonic) as well as variations in phrasing: blues-rock strandedness and vibrato, slippery legato lines contrasted by choppy staccato articulation, and extensive slurring on a single string. The transition from 2/4 to 4/4 meter and return to tempo are emphasized with a quick flurry into the highest register, producing a dramatic climax to the solo.

    Effects play a substantial role in Duffy’s style. The intro to “She Sells Sanctuary” is a definitive early example with its background sci-fi soundscape featuring a heavily processed orchestration created with opulent distortion and modulation/delay effects over which he plays a chiming arpeggiated theme colored with delay and modulation.

    ESSENTIAL LISTENING
    Sonic Temple, Electric, and Love are undisputed Cult classics of the ‘80s. Pure Cult is a serviceable collection while Rare Cult provides a deeper dive.

    ESSENTIAL VIEWING
    Cult fans will want to compare two live versions (MTV awards ’89 and Milwaukee ’22) of “Fire Woman” online. Also recommended are Live at the Ritz (’85), Live on BBC (’87) and Duffy’s 2014 Sweetwater interview.

    SOUND
    Duffy adopted and exploited a hollowbody Gretsch with Bigsby tailpiece as a hard-rock instrument on The Cult’s early albums, when his sound emanated from a ’75 White Falcon acquired in ’81. He stuffed its body with cloth or foam, taped the sound holes from inside to reduce feedback, and pinned the floating bridge. By ’89, he favored Gibson Les Paul Customs (some with Floyd Rose vibrato systems) fitted with Duncan Jeff Beck pickups. His primary instrument was a stripped-finish ’78. More recently, he has preferred a black Les Paul Custom, reissues of a ’58 Standard, TV Junior, and ’57 goldtop, silver-sparkle Gretsch White Falcon and Black Falcon G7593T Duffy signature models, or Stephen Stern-built copies of his “Sanctuary” Falcon, all strung with Ernie Ball .011-.048 Power Slinkys. His recording guitars include an early-’60s Strat for clean tones, Nash relic Esquires, a Performance Guitar “Stonehenge model” superstrat for alternate lead sounds, and Gibson J-200 and Guild F-412 acoustics.

    Duffy has used a variety of amps. Early on, Marshalls were the norm for distorted tones while cleans (“Fire Woman”) came from a Roland JC-120. On The Cult, he employed gems from Rock’s collection – a Gibson Skylark, Fender Champ, tweed Bassman, Matchless DC-30, Peavey 5150, and modified Marshall JCM 800s. In 2015, he played a Marshall 1973X combo in the studio, and onstage incorporated a Chinese-built Vox AC30 along with his JC-120 (miked for stereo chorusing) and favored Friedman heads with Marshall slant cabs.

    An exponent of effects pedals (analog and digital), Duffy employed Boss and MXR delay/phasing/modulation stompboxes and Crybaby wah during Dreamtime, Love, and Electric. After Sonic Temple, he consolidated effects in a Bradshaw system, using only a Boss Super Overdrive, Crybaby and Morley wahs (the second as an EQ/filter) and other processors for clean/dirty amp signal paths with a MIDI switcher. His distortion came from a Harry Colby-modded 100-watt Marshall head and 4×12 cab while his clean path utilized a stock Marshall head and 4×12 into racked units – two Korg 2000 delays, two Yamaha SPX90s, TC chorus, Boss Flanger, MXR Phase 100, and 400-watt H&H power amp driving four cabinets in stereo. In ’94, he experimented with vintage Vox wahs and Fuzz Face (prominent on “Gone”), and in the 2000s reverted to a simpler pedalboard with Boss stompboxes, Dunlop Duffy Cry Baby wah with 10db boost, Uchida treble booster, Ibanez Tube Screamer and Kalamazoo overdrives, and a Tripler amp selector.

    Wolf Marshall is the founder and original editor-in-chief of GuitarOne magazine. A respected author and columnist, he has been influential in contemporary music education since the early 1980s. His books include 101 Must-Know Rock Licks, B.B. King: the Definitive Collection, and Best of Jazz Guitar, and a list credits can be found at wolfmarshall.com.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Have Guitar Will Travel 090 – Happy Fits and Greensky Bluegrass

    Have Guitar Will Travel 090 – Happy Fits and Greensky Bluegrass

    In Ep 90 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with band members from Happy Fits and Greensky Bluegrass. Happy Fits discusses forming their indie rock band in high school, songwriting, and touring while Greensky Bluegrass talks about their formation in Kalamazoo, gear, and improvisation. Listen Here!

    Each episode is available on Stitcher, iheartradio, Tune In, Apple Podcast, YouTube and Spotify!

    Have Guitar Will Travel, hosted by James Patrick Regan, otherwise known as Jimmy from the Deadlies, is presented by Vintage Guitar magazine, the destination for guitar enthusiasts. Podcast episodes feature guitar players, builders, dealers and more – all with great experiences to share! Find all podcasts at www.vintageguitar.com/category/podcasts.

  • VG Q&A: Jimi Flip

    VG Q&A: Jimi Flip

    Jimi Hendrix rips on a custom-color Strat in 1967. Monk Montgomery displays the form Leo Fender intended when players grabbed a Precision Bass. Dominick Trupia’s Galliano (below).

    I’ve never read why Jimi Hendrix played and set up a right-hand Strat to play left-handed. Surely, he could’ve found a lefty model. Does anybody know? – Garry Curry

    The easy answer is that like a lot of lefties, Jimi learned on a right-handed guitar because that’s all he had as a kid. But it goes deeper. Albert King, Otis Rush, and Doyle Bramhall, II learned on a right-handed guitar that they simply flipped upside-down and left strung with the low E at the bottom. Hendrix, though, re-strung his to be correct – low E on top.

    He later could have bought (or been given) all the lefty guitars he wanted, but his philosophy was that since guitar companies made hundreds of right-handed guitars for every one lefty, they were likely better at making righty guitars. We can’t know if that holds water, but it’s what he said.

    Even when Fender supposedly sent him lefty guitars (suspicious items that turned up at auctions years ago without much provenance), he didn’t use them. And, he even played re-strung righty versions of symmetrical guitars like Flying Vs and SGs. In fact, the 12-string Zemaitis acoustic he played on “Hear My Train a-Comin’” for A Film About Jimi Hendrix was a right-handed model flipped over and re-strung. – Dan Forte

    I started playing guitar more than 60 years ago, using my father’s 15″ Galiano; he immigrated to New Jersey around 1910 and purchased it thereafter. I’ve been especially curious about its origin since reading Peter Kohman’s “Neapolitan New York Enigma: The Mystique of Galiano” in the October ’19 issue. The label in mine is different from those Peter describes; it says “Angelo Galliano – Guitar Mandolin – Manufacturer New York.” Also, stamped in red ink is “Signature – Angelo Galliano” – the last name spelled differently. So, is it a true Galliano (or Galiano)? – Dominick Trupia

    It’s difficult to determine with certainty without an in-hand inspection, but your Galiano looks similar to many other 1900-1920s flat-tops we’ve seen labeled with that brand, and appears to be earlier than most. It may have possibly been made in the Oscar Schmidt factory for resale under that brand, or hand-made in Little Italy. The “blacked” neck is more commonly seen on 19th-century instruments, but may have persisted into the 20th. The body is artfully grained in faux rosewood, very well done. I have not seen that exact label before; the addition of “Angelo” is also new to me, as is the rubber-stamped signature. This is likely a very early use of the Galliano brand and was possibly sold through Angelo Mannello’s operation, one of the first big Italian-American firms operating in New York City from the 1890s. He died in 1922, and is mostly known now as a mandolin builder.

    The mechanics of how the Galiano trade name came to be used by multiple builders/sellers seems lost to history. Still, yours is an interesting guitar, historically. – Peter Stuart Kohman

    Why are the thumbrests on some vintage basses under, not above, the strings, like on the Vox Symphonic (VG, November ’22). This placement seems useless for right-handed players. – Peter Wojtiuk

    That rest is intended for how Leo Fender envisioned people playing the electric bass – remember, he had no one to copy!

    The original Precision was designed for the player to rest their palm on the center pickup cover and play with the thumb while gripping the “tug bar” with their fingers. In practice, very few players used it that way, as most either plucked with fingers (like an upright) or used a pick (like a guitar).

    Monk Montgomery – one of the first “name” Fender players – did play that way for a long time and defended the thumb technique in interviews into the ’70s! Other makers (like Gibson and Vox) were simply copying Fender, presumably assuming that since Leo ruled the bass market, he knew what he was doing. – Peter Stuart Kohman

    This column addresses questions about guitar-related subjects, ranging from songs, albums, and musicians to the minutiae of instrument builds, manufacturers, and the collectible market. Questions can be sent to ward@vintageguitar.com with “VG Q&A” in the subject line.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Pop ’N Hiss: Humble Pie’s Smokin’

    Pop ’N Hiss: Humble Pie’s Smokin’

    Steve Marriott with a Dwight guitar, Clem Clempson with his ’58 goldtop.

    British rockers Humble Pie were steeped in blues and R&B influences that coursed through vocalist/rhythm guitarist Steve Marriott.

    When they finally broke with 1971’s Performance: Rockin’ the Fillmore, Marriott, guitarist Peter Frampton, bassist Greg Ridley, and drummer Jerry Shirley were on fire. The nine-minute scorcher “I Don’t Need No Doctor” is the highlight from one of rock’s best live albums.

    After Frampton suddenly (and shockingly) for a solo career, David “Clem” Clempson was brought aboard after being in several bands including blues-rockers Bakerloo and, more notably, Colosseum, which blended jazz-rock and progressive rock (he is now part of a reunited version of that band).

    Clempson recalls that joining Humble Pie was a surprise.

    “Our paths had crossed, but I didn’t really know any of them very well,” he said. “I knew Peter had left and Colosseum was falling apart, so I decided to give Steve a call and see what was going on. He then went and bought Colosseum Live and was very excited by what he heard. He called me later and asked if I could go to his cottage in Essex, where we had a nice evening jamming on unplugged electric guitars. He also played some records he liked and said, ‘Come to our rehearsal in London tomorrow and meet the guys.’ I turned up expecting an audition, and the press was there! Apparently, me joining had been announced, or at least word had been passed to certain friends in the press that the new guitarist in Humble Pie was going to be putting in an appearance. It was a bit of a shock, really.”

    The re-shaped band played warm-up shows in Europe before entering London’s famed Olympic Sound Studios in February, 1972, to record what would become Smokin’.

    “We’d played some of those songs at those first gigs,” said Clempson. “I remember doing ‘The Fixer’ and ‘Sweet Peace and Time’ in particular. We definitely didn’t do ‘Hot ‘N’ Nasty’ because that was a jam in the studio – a completely spontaneous thing, not written and rehearsed.”

    The album became their biggest seller, reaching #6 on the Billboard chart; “Hot ‘N’ Nasty” became a modest hit (#52) and “30 Days in the Hole” proved to be a rock-radio favorite.

    With its loose feel and covers, Smokin’ was full of songs the band had loved for years.

    “‘I Wonder’ was obviously one,” Clempson noted. “We were all huge fans of Ray Charles. To be honest, I hadn’t heard (Charles’ version) when Steve said, ‘This is one we could do.’ There was another – (Junior Walker & the All Stars’) ‘Road Runner’ – which was a jam in the studio and Steve sang the words over it, so we called it ‘Road Runner’s ‘G’ Jam.’ Eddie Cochran’s ‘C’mon Everybody’ was another one we’d been doing before we went into the studio.”

    The sessions were straightforward. Clempson and Alexis Korner, legendary father figure of British blues, sang “Old Time Feelin’” while Korner played a Martin tiple. Stephen Stills, who also happened to be recording at Olympic, added backing vocals to “Hot ‘N’ Nasty.”

    “We just played as if we were onstage,” said Clempson. “Vocals were usually overdubbed, of course. I may have re-done one or two solos. Mostly, it was us playing live and having a great time. It was the most-fun album I’ve ever done, and I’ve had great times with a lot of different musicians. But in terms of fun, nothing ever beat that one.

    “Another thing was that wonderful feeling – especially in the Smokin’ sessions – that I was just so free coming from Colosseum, where we were confined by complicated arrangements. Suddenly, I could wail – and that’s exactly what I did through that whole album!”

    Clempson primarily played a ’58 Les Paul goldtop (which he still has) and a Martin D-28. He might’ve used a different Gibson more, had the British government not intervened.

    “I played a white SG Custom, which a guitar dealer brought from America. He turned up at the studio with a bunch of guitars. I bought one, and Steve bought one. I can’t remember what Steve bought, but we used them for two or three days in the studio before Her Majesty’s customs turned up and said the guitars had been smuggled into the country. They arrested the guy because hadn’t paid duty on them, so they took them.

    “Anyway, I used the SG on ‘Hot ‘N’ Nasty’ and ‘Road Runner’s ‘G’ Jam,’ which were recorded the same evening, with Steve on organ.

    “To be honest, I don’t think I would’ve kept that guitar for long because the middle pickup drove me crazy. I’ve never really got on with three-pickup guitars [because the middle pickup interferes with picking]. I don’t mind Strats because they have lots of space between since they’re only single-coils. But when you’ve got three humbuckers next to each other, there’s no space.”

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Breedlove Organic Performer Pro Concert Aged Toner CE

    Breedlove Organic Performer Pro Concert Aged Toner CE

    Price: $1,149
    www.breedlovemusic.com

    With climate change on the minds of so many, guitar builders have started to offer more instruments that are good tone tools and sustainable for the planet. Breedlove’s Organic series uses tonewoods certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), like the Performer Pro Concert Aged Toner CE.

    Designed in Breedlove’s Oregon headquarters and built in China, the Performer Pro uses solid wood – not Richlite, resin-infused, or plywood. The Pro Concert has a solid European spruce top that makes itself known with one strum of a chord; ringing loud and true, it’s particularly surprising for a cutaway. You can’t fake that kind of projection.

    Back and sides are African mahogany in “Suedeburst” gloss, with tortoise binding. The 25.3″-scale neck is mahogany, and other materials include black-stained ovangkol for the fretboard (20 frets) and bridge, plus a 1.69″-wide Tusq saddle. Gold tuners with black buttons and offset 3mm brass dots top off the accoutrements. For gigging, there’s a Fishman Flex Plus-T electronics package. Breedlove gets bonus points for its unique and attractive headstock, inlaid with their logo.

    In hand, the Performer Pro Concert has that much-desired combination of volume and warmth, without being shrill or obnoxiously loud. There’s an even level of dynamics that is admirable, making this a useful tool for strumming chords or playing fingerstyle. Our tester had a comfortable neck and was well set-up for fingerpicking and strumming. If you need a quicker setup for lead work, lighter strings and lower action may be needed.

    Plugged in, the Performer Pro Concert sounds big, clear, and bright; the Fishman preamp responds well to subtle EQ adjustments. Perhaps the coolest feature is the built-in tuner, which works whether or not the guitar is plugged in. Hold down the Volume knob until the circular tuner window (mounted on the side) illuminates. If it’s blue, the string is out of tune; turn it until the digital meter hits center and it turns green. The Fishman Flex Plus-T pickup, preamp, and tuner are a standout feature.

    Add its included plush hard case, and the Breedlove Performer Pro Concert Aged Toner CE is a solid mid-price winner, boasting tone, looks, FSC tonewood, and spiffy electronics for live work and recording. The market for cutaway acoustics is crowded, but the Pro Concert’s excellent construction and earth-friendly materials make it a worthwhile contender.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Warm Audio Centavo

    Warm Audio Centavo

    Price: $179
    www.warmaudio.com

    Most pedal enthusiasts consider a vintage Klon Centaur the pinnacle of overdrive boxes. With originals now approaching $10,000, it makes sense that Warm Audio has created a cost-effective reproduction with its Centavo.

    At first glance, the Centavo looks similar to a Klon, with its gold box, three knobs, and graphic borrowing from Greek mythology. The obvious difference is the addition of a Mod switch along the top edge.

    Pushing the pedal with a ’63 Strat and ’59-reissue Les Paul through a vintage Marshall 50-watt amp produced a variety of excellent tones, all transparent and organic – less like a stompbox and more like an overdriven amp. The Centavo is easy to use, with controls for Gain, Treble and Output. As we increased distortion with Gain, both guitars retained their full body without thinning out – a very useful feature that differentiates the Centavo from other overdrives. Treble provides high-end sparkle that was particularly useful with humbuckers. Conversely, the Mod switch added welcome low-end with the Strat. Overall volume is controlled by the Output knob, and in the 12:00 position, the pedal didn’t alter overall volume. Beyond distorted tones, the Centavo offers a functional clean boost with the Gain dialed in at 9:00 with Output at 2:00.

    The Centavo is a versatile and great-sounding pedal that will be especially at home on the pedalboards of blues and rock players.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Cordoba Stage

    Cordoba Stage

    Price: $699
    www.cordobamusicgroup.com

    With a 1.5″/fully chambered mahogany body, the Stage – Cordoba’s first foray into the world of nylon-string electric guitars – brings a pleasing, ergonomic single-cut shape dressed with a beautiful flamed-veneer top.

    Because its 48mm nut and 16″ fretboard radius are slightly thinner than a traditional nylon-string, the Stage should ease steel-stringers transition to the world of classical-style guitar. Whether sitting or standing, the Stage is comfortable in every respect, and produced plenty of volume when played acoustically. And when plugged in, Cordoba’s new Stage pickup system, designed with Fishman, is designed specifically to enhance the guitar’s nylon-string sound while providing a welcome end to the feedback issues that often plague guitars of this type. With controls for Volume, EQ, and Body Blend, it’s a snap to dial-in commendable acoustic/electric tones; tuned to DADGAD, modal runs and riffs were particularly satisfying. The system runs on a 9-volt battery accessed at the back of the guitar.

    The Stage is an impressive instrument that ships in a nifty recycled-nylon-shell denim gig bag. Overall, it’s a classical gas.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Maestro Electronics Titan Boost and Arcas Compressor Sustain

    Maestro Electronics Titan Boost and Arcas Compressor Sustain

    Price: $159 (Titan Boost), $149 (Arcas Compressor Sustainer)
    www.maestroelectronics.com

    Maestro Electronics has been around for 60 years and is best known for creating the FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone used by Keith Richards to play the legendary lick on “Satisfaction.”

    Maestro recently introduced five pedals in a new Original Collection that includes the Arcas Compressor Sustainer and Titan Boost, each purporting to deliver secret sauce for any guitar rig.

    The Titan Boost is great for beefing up an amp with natural overdrive or making guitar solos pop. Its Hi-Pass Filter knob tweaks low-end frequencies while Flat mode maintains transparency. There’s also a Tone knob to adjust high frequencies, and Level increases output volume up 25db. All help dial up oomph with sizzle and warmth without sounding piercing or muddy, no matter if you’re using humbuckers or single-coils. Construction is solid and includes true-bypass switching and a colorful LED indicator.

    The Arcas Compressor Sustainer tightens single notes, fattens funky rhythm parts, and works as a clean boost to punch through a stage mix. It’s great for any style of music and offers two modes of compression – Hi for lower-output pickups/single-coils, Lo for humbuckers. The Sustain knob sets compression level from mild to intense, Attack controls response time (how quickly the compression engages), and Level alters overall output. The LED indicator lets the user know when the pedal is engaged, which is great for onstage use. The result is a tight, punchy sound that adds sweetness or a thicker attack to single notes or complex chord voicings.

    The Titan Boost and Arcas Compressor Sustainer both create a lo-fi earthiness that maintains an amp’s character while adding tonal flexibility and volume. Though they boast retro aesthetics, their function is state-of-the-art sweetening.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • PRS Fiore

    PRS Fiore

    Price: $2,749
    www.prsguitars.com

    If you’ve seen guitar wizard Mark Lettieri (VG, November ’22) at work, you know how expressive he is. Whether laying down deep funk rhythms with Snarky Puppy or whipping out a fluid fusion solo, he’s a virtuoso who requires a versatile axe. To achieve his personal nirvana, Lettieri collaborated with PRS to create the Fiore model, a variation on the HSS design built to the high standards of Paul Reed Smith.

    The Fiore (Italian for “flower”) is a high-performance solidbody meant to cover all the bases at a session, gig, or rehearsal. For tone, it pairs humbuckers and single-coil pickups with a swamp-ash body, offering sounds from Gibson to Fender and most everything in-between. The swamp ash adds a distinctive sonic snap and quack, well within Lettieri’s funky wheelhouse. The axe sports a highly figured maple neck with scarfed headstock (a separate piece of wood joined at the lower frets). A bolt-on design, the neck sports a 22-fret maple fretboard (10″ radius) with silhouetted bird inlays and a floral inlay on the truss rod cover, and familiar 25.5″ scale. Hardware includes PRS locking tuners, a two-point vibrato bridge, five-way pickup selector, and three black knobs with one Volume and two Tones.

    In hand, this PRS does not disappoint. Pay attention to its special Fiore neck carve, which is deep like the best old Strats and Teles. It’s not a thin shred neck; it sits in the palm like a well-aged baseball glove. The rounded edges of the fretboard add comfort, and fret dress is expert-level. Unlike heavy poly finishes, its lightly finished neck offers a natural wood feel.
    While the Fiore is a passive plank, there’s epic wiring under the hood; it looks like the standard HSS scheme of a superstrat, push/pull pots under the Tone knobs allow for upward of 15 pickup combinations. These choices will keep any player busy for days and adds to the massive versatility of the Fiore. Tone-wise, you can get whatever you need out of the Fiore. In its myriad pickup combinations, you’ll find all sorts of Strat quack, jazz roundness, and fat or razor-edged tones for lead work.

    Sure, this PRS is a pricey plank, but you get what you pay for. Like co-developer Lettieri, the Fiore is a top-of-the-line performer.

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

  • Xotic Effects RC Booster Reissue

    Price: $172
    www.xotic.us

    Twenty years ago, Xotic Effects unleashed its iconic RC Booster. With variable Gain, EQ, and Volume controls, it was a mainstay on pedalboards the world over for players seeking top-shelf transparent boost tones. To celebrate the company’s 20th anniversary, it just released an updated version of that classic.

    While Xotic has produced more-elaborate versions of the RC, many guitarists have a soft spot for the original. Versatile, transparent, and edgy, the active Treble, Bass, Gain, and Volume controls of the reissue produce all the best features. With up to 20dB of Volume boost and +/-15dB of treble and bass, the RC Reissue offers a range of textures to push a rig into low-gain ecstasy. True-bypass switching takes it out of the signal path when disengaged, and it’s powered by a 9-volt battery or 9-/18-volt AC adapter with a new top-mounted input.

    The RC Booster Reissue shines in its ability to sculpt volume, sustain, and overtones without coloring overall sound or changing the personality of a rig. It’s also great for stacking – pushing overdrive pedals to greater glory with nuanced transparency and dynamics. It’s one of those pedals most players will “leave on.”

    This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.