Comfortably Numb '1st solo' tone!

[Ben C.]

The thing I love about Gilmour solos, you don't need his tone to play them...they sound beautiful using any tone.
Les Paul, Strat, Marshall, Fender, whatever, an overdrive and Delay pedal, that's it... IMO.

"Quoted For Truth"!
Absolutely... I decided to finally actually learn that solo, and I did it with my Les Paul into my Fetto with some delay. Beautiful!
:AOK

 

[dB]

This may help to keep some things in perspective too... sometimes very different Gilmour tones are in our heads. So I put together a little compilation of David's "1st Solo"s in Comfortably Numb from different albums. Here's a link to the file:

http://home.comcast.net/~bcoutu/numbcomps.mp3

In order, the solos are from:

1) The Wall: Under Construction (demos)
2) The Wall
3) Is There Anybody Out There? (Live, 1981)
4) Delicate Sound of Thunder
5) Pulse
6) Remember That Night

Very different sounds over different times, and even in a small period of time! And who knows which one is stuck in your head or how you've changed your perception of it over time. I'm as guilty as anyone; although for the studio album tone, I still think the BJF PGC + D*A*M Ram Head fuzz + Analogman Chorus + DD-6 Delay (w/ Hi-Cut) = that tone the best for me.

BTW, if this is totally uncool I can remove the file. I figure, it's not the whole song (or even 1/2 or 1/3), and it's for 'educational purposes', not file-sharing type stuff. But I'm no lawyer... I'm just a simple cave man.

-Ben

Great post. I think I am partial to Delicate Sound of Thunder - but that's when I was able to see them live, so I may be biased. It's also interesting to hear how his voice had changed over the years. I'd say it's held up quite well.

 

[sinasl1]

Cool thread! Love that compilation, awesome... makes me want to go buy a muff (one pedal that I've never owned)...

 

[fr8_trane]

And I'm not sure I hear a chorus, more of a vibe I think - but I'm sure it depends on his mood.

I hear the same effect on every track to varying degrees and now I am convinced its the EH electric mistress.

 

[Ben C.]

I hear the same effect on every track to varying degrees and now I am convinced its the EH electric mistress.

Could verily well be true!
I know earlier GuitarTone was mentioning not having to use the exact gear, or in some instances, not even close gear to get in that Gilmourish zone. And I agree with that. So, for those looking for current and relatively inexpensive gear to use to approximate the Gil, I ran across this little piece on what Dave Kilminster used on Roger Water's 2007 tour. What's nice is that it isn't simply a list of gear, it's the gear used, broken down by song. Link:

http://home.comcast.net/~bcoutu/kilminster.jpg

-Ben

 

[SittinIdol]

I was 9th row for the recent Waters show. All three guitarists had great tone and played the hell out of those songs...

 

[Waxhead]

Thanks for putting the compilation together Ben C - good work.

So what have I learned from that ?

a) Gilmours knows exactly what tone he's wants for that solo and has varied it very little over the years in gigs.

What did this confirm yet again -

1) a large part of DG's exceptional tone comes from his playing technique. No-one can emulate that.
2) he's got possibly the best and most expensive live rig ever assembled;
3) he's the master of innovation for effects and has employed the world's best recording engineers for his studio CD's.
4) attempting to obsessively copy someone else who's on a totally different level talent & resources wise is a futile exercise.
5) your time will be far better spent developing your own style and your own tones. People will then view you as a unique artist in your own right and not a 2nd rate clone of someone else

just my 2c

 

[Ben C.]

4) attempting to obsessively copy someone else who's on a totally different level talent & resources wise is a futile exercise.
5) your time will be far better spent developing your own style and your own tones. People will then view you as a unique artist in your own right and not a 2nd rate clone of someone else

That's completely true!
However, I don't think anyone in this thread is attempting to be a clone or not develop their own style. It was a simple question: "How do I get the tone on this particular section of this one track?". Not, "Can I please base my life and playing on David Gilmour and how can I best achieve this goal?".
For example, I sound nothing like Gilmour and have my own style. But if I'm thinking of sounds in my head, it's nice to know how to make them a reality. And it's good to know gear, tones, and how to get what you are hear in your head. And yes, sometimes I'm hearing Belew in my head. Or Balsac. Or Gilmour.

 

[swankmotee]

What I find really interesting about Ben's clips is how the "Remember The Night" tone sounds almost identical to the original "Wall" track where he used the same black Strat with stock pups. For a purist like me, I think the stock style pups sound more interesting than the EMG rig which I like a bunch as well but like Ben pointed out that original album track gets stuck in your craw and becomes the penultimate Gilmour tone to aspire to. Oh and by the way, that poster that said earlier that he used the in between bridge/middle tone fore this solo is incorrect... it was always the treble by itself.

 

[cloudnine]

I usually use the ST-2 post overdrives/distortions/fuzz, before modulation units. I haven't played with it much that early in the chain. Might have to give it a whirl.

I also recall that Gilmour routes his delay signals into a separate amp head, leaving his original signal untouched.

Just bumping this one hoping g.griffith sees it. What's tha thing sound like meng? Ever tried it with any fuzzes?