Other people's tones

[Tone2TheBone]

I was reading a thread at another forum that I thought was interesting. The subject of the thread was whether the SRV tone was overdone. If you wanted to talk about that you could also ask the question of whether Jimi's tone is overdone...or Angus's tone etc. etc. depending on your heroes. Lets think about this for a moment.

Basically you have the guitar. If everyone is playing guitar then I'm pretty dang sure that you might end up sounding like someone else sooner or later even if you aren't TRYING to sound like anyone else. I think this comes from the inherent properties of the instruments and amps themselves. Plug a Gibson of some type into a Marshall and you might squeak out a few Angus Young sounding tones. Plug in a vintage Fender Strat into a vintage tweed or blackface Fender amp and you might sound a little like Buddy Holly or Kenny Wayne or maybe even Stevie Ray? Sometimes you might not even need a vintage guitar or amp to sound like these guys. You might have regular equipment and still manage to sound similar to someone else. I guess my opinion about this is that it doesn't really matter. I mean how can you NOT sound close to Stevie when you're plugged into a sweet OD pedal on a Strat or sound like Gilmour using the same rig? A Strat is going to behave that way when played with OD! Some people commented that they're tired of that sound but I think that sometimes it can't be helped and there's nothing at all wrong with that.

What do you guys think?

 

[SuperSwede]

I really dont understand why some people try so hard to sound like other guitarists. For me its all about originality, to find MY tone.
But of course, if you plug in a strat into a TS-808 and a good fender amp you will sound similar to SRV and the likes.

 

[Tone2TheBone]

Anymore I don't think you can find something that really is your own tone. Your own way of playing yeah...but you're still gonna sound like someone. This is ok though.

 

[Big_Rob]

Mimicking someone else tone is unavoidable. A Stratocaster always sounds like a Stratocaster, A guitar with vintage type humbuckers will always sound like a Gibson. Its just a matter of time before you stumble on someone else tone.

 

[Tone2TheBone]

Yup Rob that was my point exactly. So why do some people complain that someone is sounding like Stevie Ray? Is that such a bad thing? I think it's awesome if I hear someone with say a Hendrix fuzz tone slamming down some funky riffs. Been done before sure but it still sounds good.

 

[Spudman]

Yup Rob that was my point exactly. So why do some people complain that someone is sounding like Stevie Ray? good.

I think maybe that complaint comes from playing SRV licks ALONG WITH the tone. Call it lack of originality. The complaint may be that someone is trying to play AND sound like another artist.??

I have never tried to copy anyone's sound. I could never figure out how to do that. All I could do was to get something that I liked and worked for what I was playing. I usually sounded like ME. That said, people would come up to me and say 'that sounded really Satrianish' or 'like Brad Gillis' or 'like SRV'. That tells me that the mechanics of the physical elements of electric guitar playing are so similar that some similarity is probably unavoidable. But I was doing SRV licks with a Satriani sound, so go figure.

Originality really is the key. Who wants to be like everyone else anyway? Still, sometimes you'll probably sound similar to something that has come before. I mean, well, look at Eddie Van Halen. He sounds just like....um, er. Get my point?

 

[Plank_Spanker]

I play in a cover band, so I'm always trying to match "tones". An interesting thing is that, try as I might, I still sound like me. Even covering solos, I put my own feel and mojo into it and, while most of the notes might be in the right order D ), I put my own stamp on it just by the way I play it.

What amuses me are the guys that need to play the exact rig of their heroes, expecting to sound just like them..........................not going to happen.

We, as players, are all the sum of our influences and, if you listen well enough, you'll hear them. But that does not make each of us a clone. We are all unique in the way we play.

 

[kerc]

I sound just like myself. I dunno if that's good, but....Hehehe. Some friedn tell me I have a definite Buddy Guy influence in my playing, which is pretty natural since Guy is one of my heroes (although I don't try to imitate him).

To get back into subject, tonewise, I dunno...I just got a sound that I like a lot. I don't know if it's similar to any artist...Could be, but I don't know.

 

[jpfeifer]

Good topic.

As guitar players I think that it's natural to want to imitate your heros from time to time. You can learn a lot by trying to imitate someone else's tone that you admire. If you really want to nail someone's sound you will realize that it has lot more to do with the "way" you play rather than just duplicating their rig. I think that Stevie Ray would have been just as impressive on a cheap Strat as he was on his prized vintage one. So much of the sound from those guys like Stevie Ray was in their hands and basic approach to guitar playing. There are certain players that I admire so much that I find myself imitating them more than I should.

But with that being said, I think that you have to use these people as inspriations to find your own sound. If your whole approach to playing is based on imitating one specific guitar hero then you will be pretty limited and sound like a clone of that player.

But if you have a collection of guitar heros and try to imitate a little bit from each one of them, then you will be more likely to develop your own sound, because you will have your own unique mix of these influences. Also, your influences don't necessarily have to be guitar players.

I remember reading about George Harisson's unique way of playing slide. He was not a blues guy at all. He said that he developed that because he was trying to imitate Indian sitar players and the only way he could approximate that was with a slide.

-- Jim

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I tend toward slightly off kilter things, like a Godin Radiator rather than a Strat or a Les Paul. I have no TS type pedal & I'm not overly inclined to get one. I like the Tonelab because I can mess with different amp tones. I don't think in terms of O! I need a plexi to cop so & so's tone, but more in terms of EQ, compression, & harmonics. Who would be the one player I'd like to copy anyhoo?

I listen to so many completely different types of music that I never run into the 101 licks of SRV. Who are these folx all sounding like SRV anyway? These guyz must have a bunch'a boring guitar playing friends.

That said if a get a descent vibe going that I recognize from somewhere a warm smile crosses my lips....& then I lean right over & twist some knobs to see what else lives in the 'hood.

I guess this explains why I never save a patch.

 

[Robert]

I just play. If I sound like somebody else, so be it!

I like the sound that guys like SRV and Jimi had, and I don't want to avoid playing similar gear - they had great tone, which is what I (we?) all want in the end.

I would never start avoiding plexi Marshalls or Fender Super Reverbs + Strats just because Jimi/SRV used them - that just seems dumb to me.

 

[Tone2TheBone]

Excellent points of view you guys thanks! Keep the comments coming.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

I am still pretty close to just begnning this whole thing. I am influenced by tones I like, and I guess when I play songs I know, I tend to try to get a sound that is at least complimentary to my view of the song. Hopefully, because my taste in music is quite diverse, that will lead to my own sound(s). I hope to have more than one. My equipment choices I suppose influence it some, and tonewise, I suppose I am living primarily in the arena of overdriven clean tones right now, but I am not sure I have the attention span to really "copy" someone's sound entirely.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I see no reason to avoid a tone.

On the other hand if you gave me a coupl'a REALLY cool sounds that were new & just rang bells that have never been rung before I'd be ALL over them.

ring, rang, rung

ding, dang, dung.


So where does one dig up a new tone anyway.

Oh well, back to playing subpar versions of overdone tone. Rest in peace SRV.

 

[Jamie O]

Funny you mentioned Kenny Wayne in this post, he's someone I've always thought of as an SRV sound alike, as Spudman said, in both his tone AND licks. But thats only from what Ive heard on the radio so I'm not too informed on his overall work. I think 2 guys with the same tone playing different stuff wont sound the same at all.

Myself, my problem has always been writing songs that sound like someone else, as opposed to tone or licks.

 

[R_of_G]

Plank_Spanker illustrates an interesting point

... An interesting thing is that, try as I might, I still sound like me.

Plank_Spanker's post illustrates perfectly a point that i have made in a few posts, that guitars and amps and pedals have a definitive sound that can be tweaked to [seemingly endless, but still finite] possibilities, but most of the tone of a given guitarist comes from their hands, not their gear. This is likely why to his own ears, Spanker sounds like he is referencing other players' tones, but still using his own. For me Spanker, that's the key to a guitar player in a cover band. If i wanted to hear it played the way the orig artist played it, i can listen to that. when i am out, i don't want a "live jukebox" i want the cover-bands' interpretation of the song. this doesn't have to be completely changing it, it can be exactly what you said, playing the same notes but in your own style. sounds to me like you are on the right path Spanker.

 

[Plank_Spanker]

Thanks, R of G.

I never get hung up on trying to exactly duplicate a hook, sound, or solo. I try to stay within the spirit of the piece, but what you'll be hearing is me.

 

[R_of_G]

Thanks, R of G.

I never get hung up on trying to exactly duplicate a hook, sound, or solo. I try to stay within the spirit of the piece, but what you'll be hearing is me.

Hey you've gotta Zappa for an avatar Spanker, so I can guess you're all about originality. I find most fans of Frank are, myself included. So what kind of stuff does your band play? I'd be interested to hear any of it if you have or have thought about recording any. Playing with a band is something I have never done, and I'm not altogether sure I can do. I have played with several other guitar players, and I have played extensively with my friend Curtis who is a phenomenal bass and guitar player, but never with a drummer, or any other rhythm section per se. Most of my own interest lies in solo playing, or other instruments recorded separately and pieced together in post [as i am a studio geek as well being a former radio operations person]. that said, like every other guy my age, i'd love to rock it with a full band at least once, so more power to you and the rest of the guys here who do it frequently.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

Hey you've gotta Zappa for an avatar Spanker, so I can guess you're all about originality. I find most fans of Frank are, myself included.

If it was winter, I'd go right out & pee in the snow in honor of the good Dr Zappa.

 

[Plank_Spanker]

Hey you've gotta Zappa for an avatar Spanker, so I can guess you're all about originality. I find most fans of Frank are, myself included. So what kind of stuff does your band play? I'd be interested to hear any of it if you have or have thought about recording any. Playing with a band is something I have never done, and I'm not altogether sure I can do. I have played with several other guitar players, and I have played extensively with my friend Curtis who is a phenomenal bass and guitar player, but never with a drummer, or any other rhythm section per se. Most of my own interest lies in solo playing, or other instruments recorded separately and pieced together in post [as i am a studio geek as well being a former radio operations person]. that said, like every other guy my age, i'd love to rock it with a full band at least once, so more power to you and the rest of the guys here who do it frequently.

Interestingly enough, I'm now the lead guitar player in a 90's rock cover band, after 6 years as a second banana in a southern rock band. I just love playing in bands and playing gigs - it's what I live for. I love the adrenaline rush of being on stage with a band at full throttle. There's nothing else like it......

I do write, but my original stuff is far removed from stoked up rock - I write spacy, atmospheric acoustic pieces. It's my "personal space" that I get to visit once in a while.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I do write, but my original stuff is far removed from stoked up rock - I write spacy, atmospheric acoustic pieces. It's my "personal space" that I get to visit once in a while.

You can't say that & not give us a taste!


.....puhlease....

 

[sunvalleylaw]

You can't say that & not give us a taste!


.....puhlease....

I was thinking the same thing. Do share if you don't mind.

 

[Plank_Spanker]

I just might have to dust off the old Roland machine and record some bits and pieces one fine day..........