Alvin Lee's Tone

[Edwood]

Anyone have any ideas? Was it the 335 with the single-coil between the Humbuckers, His Marshall, Or his fingers? Thanks'

 

[michael patrick]

Yes

 

[Tele-Vision]

plus volume…loads of volume

 

[Franktone]

Went to see Ten Years After at Maple Leaf Gardens in the mid 70's. The Marshall's were cranked and he had glorious sound. Great voice too.
But the whole band was really good and supported him very well. Great humbuckers through those old Marshall's has got to sound really good no matter.
The review in the Toronto Daily star the next day talked about Alvin's jazz influences and suggested that much of his lines played were heavily influenced by Dizzy Gillespie. That kind of knocked me out at first, but realized that that type of playing may be somewhat apparent in earlier albums like Stonehenge for example on certain songs. So I suppose that it is not a huge stretch that this knowledge was transferred to his later stuff such as seen on numbers such as "I'm Going Home" when Ten Years After was at the top of their game. And it was much to do with his phrasing as pointed out in the Toronto Daily Star.

 

[Edwood]

Thank you!

 

[rburkard]

Saw him several times. Plenty of Marshalls and plenty loud. He was really good and I always liked his playing.

 

[Verne Andru]

Stonehenge still rocks my world.

 

[chrisr777]

Saw Ten Years Later at the Long Beach Arena in the theater set up (a curtain cutting the place in half) and it was really loud. The opening band was Blackfoot and they were pretty loud, but it got louder. It was glorious, but loud. So yes, I would say the cranked Marshalls had everything to do with it.

 

[Guitarworks]

It was only the loud Marshalls...and stickers. He could've plugged anything into that rig and got that big sound.

 

[blues]

Saw Ten Years Later at the Long Beach Arena in the theater set up (a curtain cutting the place in half) and it was really loud. The opening band was Blackfoot and they were pretty loud, but it got louder. It was glorious, but loud. So yes, I would say the cranked Marshalls had everything to do with it.

Was that in 1991?

 

[chrisr777]

Was that in 1991?

1979

 

[blues]

I saw Alvin Lee in 1991. Blackfoot opened, Nazareth, and Alvin Lee

Alvin had two Marshall stacks. One was a Silver Jubilee. Played a 335.
It was loud. I remember him raking the guitar string across his mic stand.
It was outside. We were about ten feet from the stage.

The guitar player for Nazareth played Alvin's guitar for their whole set.

 

[Anachronic Gearhead]

Loud amps from the era vibrate the strings sympathetically, that's where/how that incredible live Gibson into Marshall magic tone/sustain happens. Even better with a semi hollow.

I would think in heaven, you get three full stacks like Jimi did ;]

 

[Go Cat Go!!]

I love the big brash tone he gets on the live version of Woodchopper's Ball.

 

[Anachronic Gearhead]

Warning, shocking rock star action figure footage ;]

 

[Anachronic Gearhead]

Three stacks for thee



Wife is of the opinion this is what caused Punk Rock to happen ;]

 

[Anachronic Gearhead]

Here it looks like he's been Experienced ;]

 

[vortexxxx]

A friend saw and taped them in Toronto in the 70s at least once. I remember he said they don't play the I'd Like to Cange the World song live - at least when he saw them.

 

[Average Joe]

I think his tone had more to do with the amp and his technique than the guitar, cause the one time I saw him, late 80s, the 335 copy he played sounded just like AL.

Dunno what that guitar was, but the headstock looked sorta like a Heritage or Aria one

 

[Wound_Up]

Loud amps from the era vibrate the strings sympathetically, that's where/how that incredible live Gibson into Marshall magic tone/sustain happens. Even better with a semi hollow.

I would think in heaven, you get three full stacks like Jimi did ;]

It doesn't take a loud amp. I can do it with my 15w combo with a single 12" by barely even turning it up.