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Here's
an article I wrote a while back for our local jazz guitar society.
Purely personal views, of course, but I wanted to put down the conclusions
of 35 years looking for the 'ideal' sound, for me.
JAZZ GUITAR TONE - WHAT IT IS AND HOW TO GET IT
INTRODUCTION TO PART I
One of the most fascinating things about the guitar is the range of sounds
it can produce. The best players, armed with the instrument and
amplifier of their choice, can produce a tone as unique as their signature
or fingerprint.
Much has been written in guitar magazines about tone production andindividual
style, particularly in the context of rock, R&B and popular music.
But what about the jazz guitar ? The personal voice and expression
of the improvising jazz guitarist is arguably one of the pinnacles of
musical aspiration. Many commentators have dealt with the playing
styles of the jazz guitar masters. But what about their tone ?
Is it just a matter of acquiring a vintage arch-top and a Polytone or
valve-powered amplifier ?
As an aspiring jazz guitarist many years ago, I thought this was all there
was to it, but I could not afford the hardware. What I now know
is that all arch-tops aren't the same, construction, woods and pick-ups
matter as much as for any guitar; and that much fine jazz guitar has been
produced on other guitars. Even more importantly, I know that most
of the tone comes from the fingers and soul of the player.
The goal is a tone which is attractive in itself, so that it will enhance
and not detract from what you are actually playing in terms of notes.
Secondly, for a jazz musician, a `personal' voice is an
asset. There's no `standard' tone, as can be the case in other types
of music.
To explore jazz guitar tone in more detail, let's look in Part I of this
article at guitars. In Part II, , we'll look at everything else
which affects tone, including amps, of course.
PART 1 - GUITARS
The Arch-tops
The arch-top guitar, with its large curvaceous body, f-holes and superficial
resemblance to classical stringed instruments was designed in the twenties
by Gibson's Lloyd Loar.
The design goal was volume. Dance bands of the day featured a rhythm
guitarist, and to be heard without amplification they required a bright
penetrating tone. The large resonant body and top produced this
in plenty, especially when strung with heavy strings.
But the laws of physics dictate that, in terms of energy, you can only
get out what you put in. So if the note is going to be loud it will
not last for long. Sustain, the holy grail of the contemporary guitarist,
was not considered so important, and the stylistic developments which
required it were decades away.
These early arch-tops produced little memorable music in the hands of
the dance-band guitarists, but there were some fine players who used them
for solo and small group music of great sophistication. We will
never know, because high fidelity recordings were not then possible, how
those early arch-tops really sounded in the hands of such masters as Eddie
Lang, Carl Kress or Dick McDonough. But don't let this stop you
checking them out for their musical content, as their recordings are readily
available.
The first Gibson arch-top was the L5, with the L50 and L7 following soon
after. These guitars featured large bodies and carved solid spruce
tops. The L50 was made until 1968, the L7 survived until 1970 and
the L5 is still made to this day. These guitars have been used by
such notables as Jimmy Raney, Bamey Kessel, Kenny Burrell and Wes Montgomery.
They produce a warm punchy tone with great depth, perhaps a little too
much when it comes to controlling feedback.
Feedback with a jazz guitar is highly undesirable, and is different from
the controllable kind used to great effect by Carlos Santana, Jeff Beck
and Jimi Hendrix. Likely as not the strings which are feeding back
with an uncontrollable and un-musical boom are not the ones you're playing.
Because of the low frequency resonance of the large body, the lower strings
are the most vulnerable. Arch-top players have solved the problem
in a number of ways. Some have used
a George van Eps string damper, which is a damping pad which presses down
on the strings between the nut and first fret, thereby stopping open string
feedback. Others have resorted to taping up the f-holes, which lowers
the resonant frequency of the body, or of filling the
body with foam or cotton wool. Another way is to use the heel of
the right hand to damp those strings not being played.
Other Gibson arch-tops of note are the ESI50, used by electric jazz guitar
pioneer Charlie Christian, the ES175, and the Super 400.
There were also many signature models. The Johnny Smith, The Tal
Farlow, and the Barney Kessel models featuring in sixties catalogues but
not selling in large numbers. The thin bodied Byrdland and the round-holed
Howard Roberts arch-tops introduced in the seventies are also worth mentioning,
as are some contemporary models by Epiphone,Aria, and Heritage.
Just as with Fender's Telecaster, one of the most successful and best
sounding Gibson arch-tops was the cheapest - the ES175. The list
of users of this model reads like a who's who of jazz guitar and includes
Jim Hall, Joe Pass, Kenny Burrell, Herb Ellis, Pat Metheny and avant garde-ist
Derek Bailey. Its shorter scale simplifies the fingering of many
jazz chords.
The ES175 doesn't feature the awe-inspiring craftsmanship or beautyof
the L5, L7 or Super 400, but it has a more even and thicker tone.
Its stiffer laminated top was cheaper to build than the solid carved ones,
but to many ears actually sounds better when amplified, although not acoustically
Back in the thirties makers such as D'Angelico, Stromberg and Epiphone
vied with Gibson to produce bigger and louder arch-tops.
The Super 400 was Gibson's answer. Longer by 1 1/2", and wider
at the lower bout by nearly 2" than an ES175, it's a huge guitar.Players
of Super 400s include Larry Coryell, Louis Stewart and Kenny
Burrell.
Another maker to feature in the arch-top market is Guild. Their
X500 model is a fine instrument but with the two important exceptions
of Johnny Smith and George Benson (in his earlier years), it neverachieved
the same level of star endorsement as Gibson. Both Guild and Gibson
still produce arch-tops, but today's aspiring jazz playershave some other
alternatives which don't require a second mortgage.
The Ibanez Joe Pass and George Benson models are excellent instruments
as is the Aria Pro II played by Herb Ellis. But stay clear of the
cheapest oriental makes which have little to offer other than pose value
(although, an exception proving the rule is Jim Mullen's Aria, as he gets
a great tone from it).
So, to sum up, if you're looking for sustain don't buy an arch-top.
Also, if you like the acoustic tone of a Martin or Guild flat top you'll
probably find the un-amplified arch-top overly hard and bright in comparison.
Plywood topped guitars like the ES175 can sound positively `clanky', but
plugged-in, those short firm notes, provide the building bricks of the
fluid horn-like lines jazz guitarists love so much.
A spruce-topped L5, L7, Super 400 or Johnny Smith will give you the best
deep "woody" tone, but be prepared to spend some very serious
money for, second-hand, these are now rare collectors' pieces.
Laminated top models may well give a tone you prefer. A new or second
hand ES175 is a more reasonable buy but still expensive compared to a
top flight solid guitar. Watch out for new or secondhand Ibanez
Joe Pass and George Benson models, which are outstanding value.
The Heritage Company, founded by ex-Gibson employees are also producing
new arch-top guitars of a comparable quality to Gibson's original ranges.
They are not cheap, but do manage to capture much of that real arch-top
tone.
Alternatives to an Arch-top
You can, however, get a good jazz tone without recourse to an expensive
arch-top.
Try the neck pick-up of a Telecaster with a fair amount of treble rolled-off.
It's a warm thick tone used by Joe Pass on his early records, and also
by the under-rated Canadian guitarist Ed Bickert.
Don't forget also our own Jim Mullen, who got a superb tone from his Telecaster
during his days in the Morrissey-Mullen band. One of the most individual
contemporary guitar sounds is that of Mike Stern His guitar?
A Telecaster, with neck-position humbucker fitted.
The Gibson ES335 (Larry Carlton) and ES330 (Grant Green) produce an excellent
bluesy jazz tone, but older models can be very expensive.
Besides Gibson's Semis, look out for similar models by Aria, Epihone,Yamaha
and Ibanez, the latter being popularised especially by top contemporary
jazz guitarist, John Scofield. His Ibanez AS200, is a great
sounding and playing instrument, and Ibanez should make and sell many
more of them. Scofield's signature sound is commented on by all
who appreciate his playing, even non-guitarists. He has been quoted
as saying that the AS200 enables him to do things he can do on no other
guitar. But don't expect it to sound like a Gibson 335 - it's totally
different. Not better or worse, just different.
An overview of guitar tone in jazz would be incomplete without a look
at the acoustic players. I've already mentioned the arch-top acoustic
pioneers such as Eddie Lang. Then of course there's Django
Rheinhardt. Django's genius flowed out of a flat-top guitar built
by Mario Maccaferri in 1932. It featured an inner resonating chamber
to boost volume.
Little was seen of the acoustic guitar in jazz until Charlie Byrd and
Antonio Carlos Jobim popularised the Bossa Nova in the early sixties.
But this music has never been widely recognised as topflight jazz and
this, perhaps, has something to do with the nature of the classical instrument's
sound.
A decade later saw the emergence of more acoustic jazz as new technology
pioneered by the Ovation company produced good sounding acoustic guitars
which could be amplified without major feedback problems. John McLaughlin,
Larry Coryell and Bill Connors have all produced interesting jazz on these
instruments, and many more have experimented with the `un-plugged' sound.
Finally, what about those giants of guitar music outside the field of
jazz - the Les Paul and the Stratocaster. Amazingly, these guitars
feature hardly at all in the inventory of guitars favoured by the major
jazz players, perhaps for the following reasons. Firstly, it is
well known that Strats and Les Pauls sound best played loud.
Guitar volume in jazz has often been constrained, quite rightly, by the
need for balance with acoustic instruments such as the piano, the saxophone
and the double bass. Played at lower levels these guitars just don't
sound that good.
Secondly, the sustaining qualities of these instruments, which have made
them so popular in rock and blues, seem to work against the production
of clear chord punctuation and the well articulated jazz "line".
In Part II we'll look at everything else which effects tone - strings,
picks, pick-ups, tone and volume controls, cables, amplifiers, speakers,
and effects - and you thought getting a great
guitar was all you needed !
JAZZ GUITAR TONE - WHAT IT IS AND HOW TO GET IT
INTRODUCTION TO PART II
In part one we looked at the role of the guitar itself in producing a
good and individual jazz guitar sound. In part two, we'll look at
all the other factors affecting tone, including amps.
PART II - STRINGS TO SPEAKERS
Strings, picks, controls, and leads
Strings - the first choice is round-wound, flat-wound, or half- round.
Round-wound are brighter, warmer and retain these qualities longer than
flat-wounds. They can sound squeaky with lots of treble, but this
is not the reason many jazz guitarists prefer flat-wounds.
Flat-wounds, compared to round-wounds, sound acoustically `dead' right
out of the packet, but jazz guitarists often prefer their fuller sound
and clean articulation on fast runs. Half-rounds are a compromise
- the best, or worst, of both worlds depending on your point of view !
The other choice is gauge. Jazz gauges start where rock leave off.
Rock/Blues Light, Medium and Heavy sets are 9, 10 and 11, whilst Jazz
Light, Medium and Heavy would be 11, 12 and 13 (or higher, if you like
Wes Montgomery !). For round-wounds, 11s are a good place to start,
12s for flat-wounds. Yes, manufacturer makes a difference too -
they aren't all the same. Different alloys and winding techniques
are used which affect sound and `feel'. There's no `best' here -
you need to experiment until you find what's right for you.
Picks - here, also, heavy is better, and material makes a huge difference.
You cannot go wrong with Jim Dunlop Jazz IIIs, but `Pick-Boy' do an old
fashioned `mock' tortoiseshell pick which can sound good, too. Gibson
and Fender picks tend to be too thin and hard for a good jazz tone.
Controls - both Volume and Tone affect tone, Volume especially if you
have a long lead. Aim to have it on about `7' for your maximum volume,
rather than full on. This loses a bit of treble, but more gently
than using the Tone control. Use a bit of that too, but not
with full treble cut if you want to retain any individuality in your tone
!
Leads - all hi-fi buffs know leads affect sound, and guitar leads make
a difference too. Choose a good quality make - ones with `Klotz'
cable are especially good as this cable has a special
construction which sounds good. Not too short or too long, about
10' is ideal.
Pick-ups
A guitar pick-up is basically a magnet surrounded by a coil of wire So
they should all sound the same, right ? Not so, pick-ups sound
hugely different. Single or double (`humbucker') coils, method of
winding, number of turns, type of wire, type and shape of magnet all affect
the sound. Placement of pick-ups also matters - screwed to neck,
floating on pick-guard, or mounted on the body of the guitar near the
neck or bridge also affects the tone.
The first leading voice of the electric Jazz guitar was Charlie
Christian. The Gibson arch-top he used was fitted with one of the
first pick-ups, and it's a unique one which was named after him.
The pick-up was constructed from two L-shaped magnets, the long arms of
the "L" being bolted to the underside of the guitar's top.
The short arms of the "L" form the pole-pieces, protruding through
a hole cut in the top of the guitar at the usual neck position.
A coil surrounds these and is covered at the top by a black plastic rectangle
triangulated at each end. There's a notch in the pole-piece under
the B-string, to improve the balance of the sound.
These pick-ups gave a huge output of several volts, not in order to produce
the "full-shred" some players require now, but to drive the
relatively insensitive amplifiers of the day.
They are rare and no longer made, but those around are prized for the
special sound they produce. Apart from Christian himself the best
known user of this pick-up is Barney Kessel, who has one fitted to his
Gibson L7.
The pick-up which superceded the Charlie Christian, and which was fitted
to most jazz guitars until the hum-bucker was invented, was the Gibson
P90. These can still be obtained, but seem to sound best when found
on vintage instruments. They have a thick but sweeter tone than
the Charlie Christian, their only disadvantage being susceptibility to
hum.
When Seth Lover invented the hum-bucker in 1957, Gibson began immediately
to fit them to the electric models of their arch-top range. The
"Patent Applied For" (PAF) sound is one manufacturers have striven
to duplicate. Models from Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, Bartolini, Ibanez,
Schaller and Kent Armstrong have been used by jazz players, on jazz instruments,
and offer a warm clear tone free from background noise.
Another popular pick-up from Gibson is the Johnny Smith model. The
PAF - type hum-bucker usually requires holes to be cut in the top of the
guitar. Not surprisingly, many owners of arch-tops not factory fitted
with pick-ups have been reluctant to do this. The Johnny Smith pick-up
is attached either to the neck, or, at the bridge position, to the pick-guard.
These "floating" pick-ups are scaled down hum-buckers designed
for a very even response. They sound different, partly because of
this, but also because a hum-bucker mounted on the guitar top moves relative
to the strings as the top vibrates. This combination of both string
and top vibration contributes to a tone preferred by many players.
A modern equivalent of the Johnny Smith pick-up is made by Bartolini,
and is now the pick-up of choice on the best arch-tops.
For those unwilling even to screw a pick-up to the neck of their cherished
instrument, the De Armond company manufactured a pick-up with a control
assembly which clamped to the strings between the bridge and tail-piece.
A thin rod was connected to this clamp and ran parallel to the strings
up as far as the neck. The pick-up was mounted on this and can slide
up and down for optimal positioning.
Although De Armond pick-ups are noted for their fine jazz tone the clamping
arrangement doesn't work well and the rod is often found in modified form
screwed to the neck.
Amplifiers and Speakers
When it comes to amplifiers jazz guitarists are relatively undemanding
in terms of wattage, but more so in respect of tone. Valve powered
combos used to be the norm, with models from Gibson, Ampeg and Fender
predominating. Single channel units with basic tone controls are
adequate and have been used nearly always in combo form with one or two
12" speakers or sometimes two or four 10" speakers.
Modern valve amps recreate the retro look, but use modern components for
better reliability. There is also a big market in replacement speakers,
these being specially constructed using the `old-fashioned' techniques
and materials in order to get the sought-after vintage tone which rock
and blues players love. They can sound good for jazz too, although
the amplifiers of some of the best players have been loaded with very
`high-tech' speakers from JBL and Electrovoice.
Personal taste rules here, and it's worth experimenting. In recent years
transistor amplifiers emerged with models from Roland, Yamaha and especially
Polytone being popular with jazz
players. So many guitarists use these Polytones now that a same-ness
of tone has emerged. They are a safe bet, but not a good choice
if you are looking for a more personal tone (see SJGS January issue for
a controversial view on these un-deservedly popular amps). The early
advantages of transistor amplifiers - size, weight, higher power, and
better reliability have been eroded by modern valve designs with the same
attributes, except for wattage, and jazz players don't need that.
In any case, watt for watt, a valve amp will sound louder than a tranny.
Effects
The use of effects by jazz guitarists is very much a generation thing.
The older players such as Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis, Joe Pass and Jim
Hall appear to have a loathing of any kind of signal
processing, although 1 have heard Jim Hall use chorus on a recent Eddie
Gomez album and Wes Montgomery used a tremolo effect on a few occasions.
The younger players have, however, embraced new technology with open arms
and use it to great effect.
Jim Hall has commented that the stage at a Pat Metheny concert "looks
like mission control". But if you like his playing you'll agree
that his use of modulated stereo delay is instantly recognisable.
Other guitarists using stereo set ups are Mike Stem and John Scofield.
Mike Stem uses a deep and fairly rapid stereo chorus effect derived from
a Yamaha SPX 90 sound processor augmented by a Boss digital delay.
It sounds beautiful, especially when comping behind horn players such
as Michael Brecker or Lew Soloff. When he kicks-in his overdrive
pedal on top of this he can wail like the best of the rockers, but with
the harmonic sophistication of a jazz
musician.
Scofield's tone is much more bluesy, and like Metheny, is recognisable
after just a few bars. He uses an Ibanez stereo chorus, on a slower,
shallower setting, coupled with a Pro-Co Rat distortion pedal set at a
low "crunch" level.
Once you've tried stereo guitar, the usual sound seems very flat.
Any budding contemporary player should seriously think about buying two
second hand amplifiers instead of one new one. Remember you're getting
twice the power so 25/50 watt combos will do, and two of these are more
portable than say a Fender Twin or Roland JC 100 for the same wattage.
Heavy distortion in jazz guitar playing is unusual but John McLaughlin
in his Mahavishnu period, and with Miles Davis, relied on it to produce
"sheets of sound" based on a Gibson twin-neck SG derivative,
Marshall amplification and a formidable technique.
The Future
For
guitarists, it seems, the future is in the past. The innovations
are in recreating `vintage' tones more effectively, and ventures into
new sounds using guitar synths have not really taken off.
Guitar synthesizers extract pitch and other information from special pick-ups
mounted under each string on a conventional guitar. The pitch and
attack/decay characteristics of the original note are used to generate,
or synthesize, a completely new note with the tonal characteristics of
any other instrument or imaginable sound. Allan Holdsworth, Pat
Metheny, Bill Frisell and other contemporary players have experimented
with guitar synthesis, but it has never really taken-off.
In conclusion, many would maintain that a Gibson 175, fitted with a P90
or hum-bucker, and amplified via a vintage Fender or Gibson valve combo,
is a difficult tone to better for jazz. The roll-call of great players
deploying this combination testifies to personal tonal variation shining
through what is fundamentally the quintessence of modern jazz guitar tone.
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