Today, GuitarWorld.com presents the exclusive premiere of "Whim," a new music video — and new single — by Aly Tadros.
Since the release of her latest album, The Fits, earlier this year, New York-based (by way of Austin) Tadros has gained plenty of momentum, which has led to endorsements with Fender and Guild.
Her recent success is well earned, considering she spent the past four years playing more than 700 stages across North America and Europe, venturing as far as Egypt, Turkey and Mexico.
Now Tadros returns with "Whim," an intricately layered, surprisingly dark collaboration with Ben Balmer. On the track, and in the video below, Tadros plays her vihuela, a mariachi instrument.
"'Whim' was intended to be an old folk duet," Tadros says. "We originally wrote it on Ben's resonator, but once we got into the studio, my Guild D-55 sounded too crisp not to use. The intricate fingerpicking is on Juanita, my vihuela. She's a traditional five-string mariachi instrument from Michoacan. I'm pretty sure I almost died three times driving across Mexico to get her."
Today, GuitarWorld.com presents the exclusive premiere of "White Wine," a new song by the Vernons. The track is from the Australian blues/rock band's debut EP, Volume 1, which will be released September 6.
The EP, which was produced by Yanto Browning (the Medics, the Jungle Giants, Kate Miller-Heidke), will coincide with an extensive tour in September.
The Vernons are Jonny Nyst (lead vocals/rhythm guitar), James Nikiforides (lead guitar/backing vocals), Hugh Tait (bass/backing vocals) and Elliot Gooch (drums/backing vocals). They've been treading the live music boards since their conception in early 2012. They've supported Wolfmother, the Rubens and Wolf & Cub, to name just a few, and were featured on the lineup of the Big Day Out Festival 2013.
“Volume I is our first EP, but in just four songs it basically tells the story of our lives over the past two years," Nyst says. "Whether they were written just to have fun and party, or to remember meeting a pretty girl at one of our shows, or something much more deep and meaningful, each song is directly related to our journey, working together every day on the road.
"Obviously, there are good times and there are bad times, and this EP basically captures all those emotions and tells the tale of a hard-working bunch of rock ‘n’ rollers.”
Avenged Sevenfold have released the music video for the lead single and title track off their new album, Hail to the King, which will hit stores August 27.
Check it out below and let us know what you think in the comments.
Avenged Sevenfold appear on the cover of the current issue of Guitar World, which is available now on newsstands and at the Guitar World Online Store.
Drummer Bill Ward, who has been estranged from his former Black Sabbath bandmates, has revealed plans for a new solo album.
As Ward recently told Joel Gausten blog, his upcoming solo album, Accountable Beasts, is heading into the mixing stage.
"I'm doing a load of writing right now," Ward said. "Every day I get up at eight o'clock in the morning [and] I'm writing. I'm just inside songs right now."
"I'm waiting to go into the studios to finish mixing Accountable Beasts, which is [my] new [solo] album. While I'm waiting, I'm writing something else for further down the line," he added. "I'm very loose about everything, and that's not such a bad thing."
Ward also mentioned Black Sabbath, touring and his desire to continue playing drums:
"I'd like to be playing more drums in a band," he said. "If it could be Black Sabbath, wonderful. But if it isn't Black Sabbath, I do have something else in mind where I can still get to play drums. As much as I love writing and everything, I miss being out on the road. I miss playing live and I miss traveling. As much as I like everything else I'm doing, it would be very nice to be there in a year's time, being busy on a stage somewhere."
"I've had some very, very tough emotions; I've been very, very sad about some of the things that have happened. I know I've had to be kind of close-mouthed about the things going on with Sabbath. For me, it's been a very difficult time, as I'm sure [it's been] for a number of other people. I'm not discounting the other people in this, but for myself, it's been very, very tough."
Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl recently told XFM that the Foos have finished writing their new album and should be releasing it in 2014.
The album, the followup to 2011's successful Wasting Light, will be part of what Grohl predicts will be a huge year for the band.
"We have been in our studio writing, and in the past few weeks we've written an album and we are going to make this album in a way that no one's ever done before, and we're pretty excited about it," Grohl said.
"It's a little ways off; it's not ready to happen right now, but I think next year is going to be a really big year for the Foo Fighters without question. It's going to be great, I can't wait."
As Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins recently told Billboard, the band is looking forward to diving into the new material — and he believes the Foos still haven't delivered their biggest tune.
"Dave has his brain working overtime, like usual, and he's got a lot of great ideas, both musically and conceptually," Hawkins said. "Although some people may feel we have, I still think we haven't written our 'Hotel California' or our 'Bohemian Rhapsody' or whatever."
Wasting Light landed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with 235,000 units sold in the US during the first week.
If a musician grew up in the South during the '70s, it was almost impossible for him or her to avoid falling under the spell of Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Such was the case for bassist Johnny Colt, who was born in North Carolina and spent his early years in Georgia.
Colt got his break as a member of another huge band from the South, the Black Crowes. After a stint with Train, Colt now finds himself onstage with his childhood heroes, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the band he joined after the death of longtime bassist Leon Wilkeson.
We recently caught up with Colt as the band celebrates its 40th anniversary.
GUITAR WORLD: You're one of the newer members of Lynyrd Skynyrd. How did you get introduced to the band and wind up replacing Leon Wilkeson?
The story of me joining is a little strange. I had left the music business and became a conflict journalist. The conflict journalism started for me in the Gulf and the oil spill. When Skynyrd needed a new bass player, they knew me from the Black Crowes. They had seen footage of me in the Gulf in a steam boat being chased by a police. [Lynyrd Skynyrd's] Rickey [Medlocke] and Gary [Rossington] were sort of like, “That’s rock and roll, we need that guy playing bass for us!” — and they called me.
I had a deal with CNN and had no intention of going back to the music business, but you know, it’s Lynyrd Skynyrd. When you grow up in Atlanta, joining Lynyrd Skynyrd is like joining the Rolling Stones.
They’re just legends, just incredible musicians, and as you know, musically you get better as you get older. It’s not a sport. So when I visited them the first time in the studio, I wondered how they would be, what kind of shape they'd be in, what was happening with Lynyrd Skynyrd at that point. They were in the studio working on Last of a Dying Breed at the time. I saw Gary play guitar and I just hung with them. It sounds kind of corny, but in a way it was just kind of like coming home.
You mentioned being a kid from Atlanta — and now you're playing with Skynyrd, which happens to feature the singer from Blackfoot [Rickey Medlocke]. It doesn’t get much better than that.
It really doesn’t.
In terms of the Black Crowes, did you play with them from the beginning through Three Snakes and One Charm?
Yeah, through I guess that live box set that came out. That’s me on that. On most of the records people know, I’m in the band. I was with them for 10 years.
You also did a stint with Train, which is a bit different, musically speaking. How did that happen?
What happened with Train is, the guy who produced their records at the time was Brendan O’Brien. He produced Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Bruce Springsteen and Stone Temple Pilots. I had met Pat [Monahan], who is the singer for Train and an exceptional singer. I mean the guy has all the talent you can ask for in a singer. Because he comes from Pennsylvania, he’s got a work ethic. He comes from Erie. You know, it’s lunch pail; he’s just got this drive.
I had met him before, and I really respected everything about the way the band functioned: how they toured, they kept it real, they were bringing their money home, they had kids, they were grown-ups, they were professionals. That means a lot to me after what I had gone through with the Crowes. So I already liked the talent in the band and I liked the work ethic and the attitude. The music was definitely very different. So basically what happened was they lost their bass player unexpectedly and they had an entire fourth quarter of the year touring set up, so they needed a guy who could show up and play their whole set without a rehearsal.
Not easy.
No, it’s not. So I was busy at the time, again. I leave the music business and do something else and I just get pulled back. It’s like the mob. I was out doing something else, and Brendan called me and said can you help these guys out? For Pat and Train, I said sure. And what happened was I showed up and I played the whole set, and it is different music, but there’s a lot of Train music I love. I’m a huge fan of their first record.
But the truth is, we walked out, I hit the first note, Pat opened his mouth and started singing and it was like wow, he’s so much better live than he is on his records. That doesn’t happen very often. Then I looked out at the audience and it was like 4,000 women, and you know what occurred to me? We’re talking about all kinds of women. These are attractive people, smart people, people you want to date. And I said to myself, damn. At that point I’d been married like 15 years. And I was like, why couldn’t I have played in a sweater rock band when I was 20 and I could have done something about this? This is awesome.
So I intended to just stay for four weeks of touring. But they were great guys, and I ended up staying for six or seven years. But I’ll tell you what: My days in the Black Crowes took a few brain cells, so the amount of time, I’m not certain, but definitely more than five years in Train. It kind of flew by, really.
You mentioned you grew up in Atlanta, and now you're a member of Skynyrd. Was there a time where you went from hero worship to being colleagues or buddies? Was it hard to make that transition?
I’ll tell you, I hope this doesn’t sound arrogant, but the way it is, when we started in the Crowes, you have hero worship, definitely. There’s no way around it. But we opened for Aerosmith and I was around Joe Perry. I spent time with Jimmy Page. In the early days I spent some serious time with Robert Plant. He was a super-cool guy that wanted to spend time with you on tour. Keith Richards, you know, we did an entire Stones tour in Europe. So I was a little desensitized to that part.
But this is the part I wasn’t prepared for. I wasn’t prepared for the songs. Some Lynyrd Skynyrd songs are literally the backdrop of America. Songs like “Simple Man” and “Free Bird” and “Alabama." I wasn’t prepared for how emotional the crowd gets during the songs. I wasn’t prepared for how emotional I became playing them the first few times. Nor was I prepared for the heaviness of the legacy to where you’re playing “Free Bird” and there’s Leon’s name on the backdrop, Steve’s name, obviously Ronnie, Steve Gaines and Allen Collins, of course, and everybody else.
When it comes to being around the people themselves, Gary is an incredibly humble and likeable kind of guy, and he doesn’t have to be. That guy has been through it all, has done it all, and he couldn’t make you feel more at home. Between Johnny, Rickey and Gary, they’re Southern in a way I grew up with. It kind of feels like I’m around my family, my relatives. They are almost 20 years older than me, Gary and Rickey. It feels like family.
Gary’s slide guitar playing gives me goosebumps. I stand right next to him. I’m playing some of the most important songs of my life, and obviously the most important songs of many people’s lives, standing next to the guy who wrote them, and the guitar playing is better than ever. It’s pretty incredible.
You can catch Johnny Colt on tour with Lynyrd Skynyrd through October, culminating with the second Simple Man Cruise in Miami on October 20. For more information, visit lynyrdskynyrd.com and johnnycolt.com.
John Katic is a writer and podcaster who founded the Iron City Rocks Podcast in 2009. It features interviews with countless rock, hard rock, metal and blues artists. In 2013, he started Heavy Metal Bookclub, a podcast and website devoted to hard rock and metal books.
This is an excerpt from the October 2013 issue of Guitar World magazine. For the rest of this story (and more photos of Mars and his many guitars), plus a Dimebag Darrell poster and features on Avenged Sevenfold, Buddy Guy, the Mayhem Festival, Yngwie Malmsteen, a guide to 15 fantastic electric guitars for less than $500 and more, check out the October 2013 issue at the Guitar World Online Store.
Guitars, Guitars, Guitars: Mick Mars shares his vast collection of rare Gibsons and Fenders, including a ton of vintage Strats.
The number of guitars that Mick Mars has gone through over the past three decades in the limelight with Mötley Crüe probably rivals the total amount of porn stars that Charlie Sheen has dated.
Literally hundreds of instruments passed through his hands in the Eighties alone, from the trusty black 1972 Les Paul Custom that he used to record the band’s early albums to various Kramers, Charvels and Hamers in every imaginable shape.
“I’ve gone through a lot of ups and downs over the years,” Mars explains. “The ’72 Les Paul Custom that I used to play in the early days is now hanging in a Hard Rock Café somewhere in Florida. I didn’t want to let go of that guitar, but I was forced to do it. I don’t miss the pointy guitars. They all sounded really bad to me, and I hated all of them. They just didn’t work for me. Companies kept giving me all of these different guitars to try, and I would end up trying to break them. Now they’re all either kindling or I sold them off long ago.”
Although Mars acquired a few vintage instruments during the Eighties, he began to pursue them in earnest during the early Nineties, around the time that the band recorded its 1994 Mötley Crüe album with singer John Corabi.
“That’s when I started playing Fender Strats,” Mars says. “I owned a few vintage Stratocasters by then, and I loved how light a real Strat felt. One of the first real Strats that I ever owned was pieced together using ’63, ’64 and ’65 parts. I bought it for $1,200 while we were on the Girls, Girls, Girls tour in 1987. The pickups didn’t work, so I put humbuckers in it and installed a Floyd Rose. Even though it’s really beat up, it’s a player’s guitar. I still use it onstage and in the studio.”
When Mötley Crüe hit a rough patch during the late Nineties, Mars was forced to sell off many of his prized vintage guitars. Thanks to the band’s recent resurgence in popularity and much more efficient (and honest) management team, he’s been able to build up his collection once again.
“I’ve slowly and carefully rebuilt my collection,” he says. “I got really serious about collecting guitars again about 10 or 12 years ago. I now have about 100 guitars. I managed to keep some really cool instruments, but I like to have a lot of different things to play around with, so I’m always adding something new to my collection.
"I have guitars from the Fifties and Sixties as well as a few Seventies guitars. Some are really cool, and some are my player guitars. I don’t have very many guitars that I don’t play much. Even if I don’t take a particular guitar on tour because it’s too valuable and difficult to replace, it usually gets played in the studio.
“In the studio I go for a lot of different tones,” he explains. “I never record an album using just one guitar and one amp. Sometimes I’ll start a track with a stock Strat and do overdubs with something funky, like an old Harmony. I like to put something that sounds trashy behind something that sounds really good. That makes the track jump. I’ll use just about any guitar you can imagine in the studio. It’s all about what you do with the different tones and how you mix and match them.”
Photos: Kevin Scanlon
For the rest of this story (and more photos of Mars and his many guitars), plus a Dimebag Darrell poster and features on Avenged Sevenfold, Buddy Guy, the Mayhem Festival, Yngwie Malmsteen, a guide to 15 fantastic electric guitars for less than $500 and more, check out the October 2013 issue at the Guitar World Online Store.
"Everything" follows the recent premieres of "Copy of A" and "Came Back Haunted."
Check out the song below (via Antiquiet) — and be sure to tell us what you think in the comments! If you'd like to backtrack, you can check out "Copy of A" here and"Came Back Haunted" here.
Not long before his tragic death on December 8, 2004, Guitar World asked Dimebag Darrell to choose the songs that would make up his ultimate compilation CD.
The story, which appeared in the February 2005 issue of Guitar World, was part of the recurring "60 Minutes" feature, where artists were asked to compile a list of "an hour of music that rocks my world."
Although "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott was killed in a nightclub shooting during a Damageplan performance on December 8, 2004, his legacy lives on in the millions of Pantera fans who still draw inspiration from his music. Guitar World is happy to give his fans a chance to check out some of the music that inspired Dime.
As you will see, his taste in music was as good as his guitar playing. Check out the photo gallery below. All the comments below the album cover photos are Dime's.
In the 14-minute-long video below, Bloodstock Radio's Michelle Livings chats with Dream Theater's John Petrucci and James LaBrie.
The trio discuss the band's new self-titled album, which will be released September 24 by Roadrunner Records. They also discuss what it was like recording with new drummer Mike Mangini, the concepts behind the album and its cover artwork.
Also, be sure to take note of what might be hints about an upcoming world tour announcement.
Petrucci and LaBrie also throw in some handy nutritional advice. Enjoy!
A new Guns N' Roses song has surfaced online, and you can check it out below.
That said, because it wasn't accompanied by any sort of official announcement, we don't know much about it. In fact, it might even be deleted soon, so take a listen now!
Note that bassist Tommy Stinson is singing the track, with Axl Rose offering backing vocals. Take a listen — soon! — and let us know what you think of the song in the comments below.
Bass Player Live! 2013 is scheduled for November 9 and 10 in Hollywood. The annual event will feature musician clinics and exhibitors at S.I.R. Studios and will be highlighted by the November 9 Bass Player LIVE! Concert & Awards Show presented by Hartke.
This all-star concert will take place at the historic Fonda Theatre and will honor heavy metal legend, Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler and rockabilly bass legend Lee Rocker, while jazz-rock phenom Tal Wilkenfeld will be presented with the “Young Gun” award.
Tickets are on sale now at bassplayerlive.com. Weekend package tickets that include the concert and awards show along with all clinics and exhibits are available for $90. Tickets for the Bass Player LIVE! Concert & Awards Show also can be purchased separately as follows:
Day Pass for Saturday OR Sunday: $37.50 Day Pass for Saturday AND Sunday: $52.50 Bass Player LIVE Concert general admission: $42.50 Bass Player LIVE Concert balcony seat: $45 All-Inclusive Day Pass for Saturday and Sunday, plus general admission concert ticket: $90
NOTE: Each day pass purchase includes a complimentary subscription to Bass Player.
The Bass Player LIVE! concert will feature an all-star band of rock luminaries performing with Geezer Butler, including Lee Rocker (Stray Cats), Billy Sheehan (The Winery Dogs, David Lee Roth), Blasko (Ozzy Osbourne), Buzz Campbell (Lee Rocker), Charlie Benante (Anthrax), Corey Taylor (Stone Sour, Slipknot), David Ellefson (Megadeth), Frank Bello (Anthrax), JD Deservio (Black Label Society), Kerry King (Slayer), Rex Brown (Kill Devil Hill, Pantera), Rudy Sarzo (Blue Oyster Cult), Tal Wilkenfeld, Zakk Wylde (Black Label Society) and more.
Doors for The Fonda Theatre open 6:30 p.m. Saturday, November 9. The concert begins 7:30 p.m.
The Bass Player LIVE! clinics and exhibitors will be located at S.I.R. Studios on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, November 9, and Sunday, November 10. Bass players of all ages, levels and styles are invited to attend.
“Bass Player LIVE! is the biggest and baddest bass event of the year,” says Bass Player editor Brian Fox. “And this year’s lineup is our heaviest yet. When it comes to hard rock bass playing, Geezer Butler wrote the book. That he continues to perform with every bit the raw intensity of his early days in Black Sabbath is an inspiration for players of all ages and all styles. With the Stray Cats, Lee Rocker took the upright bass—already one of the coolest instruments ever—and somehow made it even more hip, slapping the snot out of it to codify the sound of rockabilly bass.
"To our ears, Tal Wilkenfeld personifies the bright future of rock bass. From her work with Jeff Beck, Herbie Hancock and Joe Walsh to her fleet-fingered solo work, Tal’s refreshing fusion of jazz, soul, funk, and rock is something we’ve had our ears and eyes on for a long time now. We’re thrilled and honored to have these three artists anchor an evening of amazing performances.”
The daily schedule of clinics and panels is as follows (subject to change):
Saturday, November 9
10:30-11:30 AM
Room A: David Ellefson (Megadeth) & Frank Bello (Anthrax)
Room B: Carlos Del Puerto, Jr. (Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Chris Botti)
12:30-1:30 PM
Room A: Lee Rocker (with guest guitarist Buzz Campbell)
Room B: Billy Sheehan (Winery Dogs, solo artist)
2:30-3:30 PM
Room A: Michael Manring (solo artist)
Room B: Artists to be announced soon
4:30-5:30 PM
Room A: Changing Face of L.A. Session Bass
Room B: Janek Gwizdala (solo artist, Randy Brecker)
Sunday, November 10
11:00 AM-Noon
Room A: Nathan East (Toto, Fourplay, Eric Clapton)
Room B: Artists to be announced soon
12:45-1:45 PM
Room A: Jerry Jemmott (Gregg Allman, Aretha Franklin)
Room B: Artists to be announced soon
2:15-3:15PM
Room A: Conversation Series Hosted By Hartke With Rex Brown (Kill Devil Hill, Pantera), Billy Sheehan (Winery Dogs), David Ellefson (Megadeth) & Frank Bello (Anthrax)
Room B: Hadrien Feraud (Chick Corea, John McLaughlin)
4:00-5:00PM
Room A: Nate Watts (Stevie Wonder)
Room B: Artists to be announced soon
Additional musicians expected to attend Bass Player LIVE! include Ariane Cap (Lara Price), Bakithi Kumalo (Paul Simon), Bernhard Lackner (solo artist), Brandino (Robbie Krieger), Brian Bromberg (solo artist), Chris Chaney (Jane’s Addiction), Damian Erskine (Gino Vanelli), Divinity Roxx (Beyoncé), Igor Saavedra (solo artist), Jeff Hughell (Six Feet Under), Jimmy Earl (The Jimmy Kimmel Show), Juan Alderete, (The Mars Volta), Mike Merritt (The Conan O'Brien Show), Phil Chen (The Doors), Ready Freddie Washington (Steely Dan), Scott Reader (Kyuss), Sean Hurley (John Mayer), and Tim Lefebvre (Rudder), among others.
From “Dazed and Confused” to “You Shook Me” … from “Tangerine” to “The Lemon Song” … from “Trampled Under Foot” to “Stairway to Heaven” … Guitar World presents a critical analysis of the classic-rock group’s best tracks.
With the recent release of Celebration Day, the concert film immortalizing Led Zeppelin’s historic and most likely final reunion concert at London’s O2 Arena on December 10, 2007, guitarist-producer Jimmy Page reminded the world just how profoundly great and enduring his band’s music is.
In homage to what is arguably hard rock’s most innovative group (and certainly its most influential), what follows is a tour of 50 of the most celebrated Led Zeppelin songs, with a focus on the guitar playing, songwriting and arranging genius of the quartet’s visionary founder.
Compiling such a finite list presents tough choices for anyone, as the band’s recorded output of great music during its heyday was impressively prolific by any standard and includes well over 50 gems.
50. “D’yer Mak’er” (Houses of the Holy)
This lighthearted but heavy-sounding song, the title of which is intended to be pronounced “D’you Make Her,” was conceived as a playful melding of a Fifties doo-wop-style repeating chord progression and the quirky, syncopated rhythms of Jamaican reggae.
Page makes good use of sliding sixth intervals on the song’s verse riff, providing a thin-textured but catchy and harmonically effective accompaniment to Plant’s vocals. His guitar solo, like so many of his others, is noteworthy for its tasteful, lyrical phrasing and emotive use of bends and finger vibratos.
49. “Tangerine” (Led Zeppelin III)
Like “Thank You,” this folky ballad, written exclusively by Page, offers good bang for your musical buck, in terms of packing a lot of expression into a handful of melodically embellished open “cowboy” chords.
Jimmy achieved a rich texture by performing the song’s main guitar part on a 12-string acoustic and handsomely decorated the chorus with authentic country-style pedal-steel licks, for which he used lots of oblique bends and a wah pedal to accentuate their weeping sound.
The chorus, played in the happy-sounding key of G, provides a welcome contrast to the somber feel of the verse and solo sections, which are in A minor. Also noteworthy is Page’s short and sweet slide solo, played with a thick, overdriven tone that effectively sustains his vibrato-ed notes and enhances their singing quality.
He thoughtfully describes the underlying chord changes in his slide melody by closely following the chord tones as he works his way up to the highest note on the neck.
48. “Custard Pie” (Physical Graffiti)
This opening track from Physical Graffiti features a punchy, Les Paul–through-Marshall–driven “crunch riff” behind Plant’s sexually euphemistic lyrics, many of which were borrowed from songs by early American bluesmen of the Robert Johnson era, specifically “Drop Down Mama” by Sleepy John Estes, “Shake ’Em on Down” by Bukka White, and “I Want Some of Your Pie” by Blind Boy Fuller.
Like “Houses of the Holy,” “Custard Pie” is built around a repeating two-bar riff based on an open A chord.
As in other songs, Page makes great use of rests in the song’s main riff, which allows it to “breathe” nicely and draws attention to the vocals and drums. Jimmy’s penchant for jazz/R&B harmony is manifested in the G11 chord he plays—in place of the perfectly acceptable straight G chord—near the end of each of the song’s verses, which are loosely based on the 12-bar blues form.
The guitarist makes clever use of the wah pedal in his solo, which he begins with a repeating oblique-bend phrase that, with added wah-wah inflections, sounds like a toddler throwing a tantrum. The solo is also noteworthy for the way Page melodically acknowledges the chord changes by touching upon their chord tones as opposed to simply riffing away on the key’s major and minor pentatonic scales.
47. “That’s the Way” (Led Zeppelin III)
Like “Bron-Yr-Aur,” this mellow acoustic song was inspired by the serenity and pastoral beauty of the Welsh countryside during Page and Plant’s working vacation at the remote Bron-Yr-Aur cottage in 1970.
The band performed the song live in open G tuning, but the studio version sounds in G flat, which is most likely the result of the instruments being tuned down a half step (or a possible manipulation of the tape speed in the mastering process, similar to what Page did with “When the Levee Breaks”).
Jimmy strums the song with a pick and makes great use of ringing open strings within his chord voicings, even as he moves away from the open position. Particularly cool are the reverb-soaked pedal-steel licks that Page overdubbed, for which he alternates between major and minor pentatonic phrases—again, a fine example of “light and shade.”
Also noteworthy is the climbing outro progression, for which Jimmy again combines open strings with notes fretted in the middle region of the neck to create unusual, lush-sounding chord voicings.
46. “In the Light” (Physical Graffiti)
Jimmy broke out his violin bow once again and put it to great use in this song’s extended intro, providing a low, eerie, sitar-style drone as a backdrop to Jones’ mystical, echoing “bagpipe” melodies, creatively conjured on a synthesizer.
Also particularly cool is the ominous-sounding descending blues-scale-based guitar riff that comes crashing in at the end of the intro (at 2:45) and the menacing, angular verse figure that follows, against which Page overdubbed a twangy, ringing open G note, played in unison with the D string’s fifth-fret G and treated with a shimmering tremolo effect.
The song’s bright, triumphant-sounding final theme, introduced by Jones on a Clavinet at 4:09, stands in stark contrast to the hauntingly dark minor key-based sections that precede it—another example of “light and shade.”
Also worth noting is the ascending major scale-based lead melody Page plays over the theme’s repeating progression at 4:25 and the way it moves in contrary motion to the descending bass line, a compositional technique regarded as one of classical music’s slickest moves.
45. “For Your Life” (Presence)
Page broke out his 1962 Lake Placid Blue Fender Stratocaster for this darkly heavy song about the excesses of drug use in the L.A. music scene, tastefully employing its whammy bar to create well-placed, woozy sonic nosedives.
The song’s midtempo groove features sparse and restrained but fat-sounding guitar-and-bass riffs that include wide, dramatic “holes of silence” that are crossed only by the drums, vocals and a shaken tambourine.
The arrangement really starts to develop at 2:07, as Page introduces a more ambitious new riff in a new key that’s propelled by a short machine-gun burst of triplets that further enhances the tune’s earthy midtempo groove. Jimmy’s solo, beginning at 4:17 is noteworthy for its melodic inventiveness, quirky phrasing and wailing, drooping bends.
44. “Friends” (Led Zeppelin III)
As mentioned earlier, Page employed the same open C6 tuning on this song that he used on “Bron-Yr-Aur” (low to high, C A C G C E), again employing the open strings as drones to create a mesmerizing, hypnotic effect.
In this case, Jimmy is strumming heartily with the pick, as opposed to fingerpicking, and plays double-stop figures against ringing open notes to create hauntingly beautiful melodies, making extensive use of the exotic-sounding sharp-four interval (Fs in this case), as well as the bluesy flat-three (Ef) and Arabic-flavored flat-nine (Df), conjuring an intriguing East-meets-West kind of vibe.
As he later did in “The Rain Song” and “Kashmir,” the guitarist moves a compact two-finger chord shape up and down the fretboard, played in conjunction with ringing open strings, in this case to craft an enigmatic-sounding octave-doubled countermelody to Plant’s vocals. As a finishing touch, a string ensemble, arranged by Jones, was brought into the studio to double and dramatically reinforce the countermelody.
43. “Trampled Under Foot” (Physical Graffiti)
Inspired by the cleverly euphemistic lyrics of Delta blues legend Robert Johnson’s 1936 composition “Terraplane Blues” and the funky grooves of James Brown and Stevie Wonder, this muscular song features Jones stretching out on a Hohner Clavinet keyboard and a hard-stomping, almost relentless one-chord vamp that’s broken up periodically by a brief string of accented chord changes, over which Page plays wah-inflected, Steve Cropper–style sixth intervals.
Jimmy uses his wah pedal very creatively throughout the song and creates exciting aural images by treating his guitar with ambient reverb, backward echo and stereo panning effects, especially toward the end.
42. “Houses of the Holy” (Physical Graffiti)
Built around a fat-sounding strut riff, this song is nothing but a good time. Particularly cool is the way Page and Bonham shake up the riff’s solid eighth-note groove throughout by playing off each other with quirky, syncopated 16th-note fills, such as those at 0:38 and 0:42.
Also noteworthy is Page’s resourceful use, during the verses, of progressively descending triad inversions on the top three strings (not unlike those used by Pete Townshend in the Who’s “Substitute”), which provide an effective contrast to both Jones’ angular bass line during this section and the meaty main guitar riff.
41. “The Rover” (Physical Graffiti)
This song’s sexy main riff, introduced at 0:23, embodies that trademark “Led Zeppelin swagger,” resulting from Page’s clever application of pull-down bends on the lower four strings, which he uses to “scoop up to” target pitches from a half step below and make his guitar sing, just as he had done earlier on the low E string in his main riff to “Dazed and Confused” and with whole-step bends in the previously mentioned “Over the Hills and Far Away” inter-verse riff.
The effect is accentuated in this case by the use of a phaser, which makes Jimmy’s guitar sound almost as if it’s played through a talk box.
Also noteworthy are Page’s elegantly crafted, flamenco-flavored solo and the decorative second guitar part heard during the song’s choruses, for which Jimmy arpeggiates the underlying chord progression, in the process adding an attractive countermelody to the theme without obscuring Plant’s vocals.
40. “Dancing Days” (Houses of the Holy)
Page takes a riff-building approach on this light-hearted yet powerful rocker similar to that used by Keith Richards on many Rolling Stones classics, such as “Brown Sugar,” “Honky Tonk Women” and “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking.”
Making great use of open G tuning (low to high, D G D G B D) and the convenient one-finger major barre-chord shapes it affords, he uses his fret hand’s available middle finger, ring finger and pinkie to add harmonic “extensions” and embellishments to index-finger barre chords.
Page’s fascination with the Lydian mode, specifically its s4 interval, manifests itself in a musically compelling way in both the song’s sassy intro riff and its punchy verse and chorus riffs, all three of which convey a strong feeling of tension-and-release, as the harmonically turbulent s4 resolves downward in each case to the stable major third.
Particularly cool is the soaring slide melody, a neatly executed overdub first appearing at 0:56, which requires quick position shifts and carefully attention to intonation (pitch centering).
39. “Bron-Yr-Aur” (Physical Graffiti)
Conceived during Page and Plant’s legendary 1970 retreat to Bron-Yr-Aur cottage in rural Wales and recorded during the sessions for Led Zeppelin III, this ingenious fingerstyle-folk instrumental is performed in the same open C6 tuning as “Friends” (low to high, C A C G C E).
Page weaves the tune’s melodic themes into an impeccably uninterrupted stream of forward and backward 16th-note arpeggio rolls across the strings, with lots of droning open notes and unisons creating a rich natural chorusing effect and a lush, pastoral soundscape that puts the piece on par with the works of renowned late 19th-century impressionistic composers Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.
38. “No Quarter” (live version, The Song Remains the Same)
This fully realized, extended performance of John Paul Jones’ keyboard showcase piece packs the same kind of dynamic punch and slow-jam rhythmic drama as “Since I’ve Been Loving You” and demonstrates both Jones’ and Page’s penchant for modal jazz and their respective skills at building extended, story-like solos over a one-chord vamp. (Incidentally, it is performed in standard tuning, a half step higher than the studio version from Houses of the Holy, for which the instruments sound a half step below concert pitch.)
Also noteworthy are the two jarring, prog-rock-flavored chords in the song’s pre-chorus, Bfadds11 and Efadds11, first heard at 0:58 and 1:06, respectively.
37. “The Wanton Song” (Physical Graffiti)
Like “Immigrant Song,” this composition’s main riff demonstrates how alternating octaves combined with a strong, syncopated rhythm can create a compelling, heavy-sounding riff, and it’s safe to say that it probably inspired bands like Living Colour and Rage Against the Machine to pen their similarly styled riffs.
And like “Out on the Tiles” and “The Ocean,” the use of wide, recurring “holes of silence” in the guitar and bass parts while the drums and vocals continue, creates pronounced dynamic and textural contrasts, which add to the song’s appeal.
The instrumental interlude section that ensues after the second and fourth verses (at 0:59 and 2:03, respectively) provides a stark contrast to the raw power of the alternating-octaves riff and introduces a surprisingly jazzy chord progression within such a heavy rock song, with overdriven diminished seventh chords—something few other rock guitarists outside of Yes’ Steve Howe or Dean DeLeo from Stone Temple Pilots would have the vision and daring to use—employed as harmonic pivots to modulate to new keys.
Page’s Leslie-treated minor-seven chord riff that ensues brings to mind the Isley Brothers’ 1973 R&B hit “Who’s That Lady” and further demonstrates the breadth of Page’s stylistic influences.
36. “How Many More Times” (Led Zeppelin)
This lengthy final track from Led Zeppelin’s debut album and live set-closer in their early days was a favorite improvisational vehicle for the band, with open-ended jam sections that allowed Page to stretch out with scorching lead licks, reverb-drenched violin bow excursions and wah-wah-inflected chord strumming.
As Jimmy told Guitar World in 1993, the song “was made up of little pieces I developed when I was with the Yardbirds, as were other numbers, such as ‘Dazed and Confused.’ ” He adds, “It was recorded live in the studio with cues and nods.”
Embodying an eclectic blend of stylistic elements, the song features an interesting variety of rhythmic grooves, from a jazzy swing feel, to a straight-eighths funk beat, to a Latin bolero rhythm somewhat reminiscent of the previously recorded Jeff Beck instrumental “Beck’s Bolero,” on which both Page and Jones had played.
35. “Gallows Pole” (Led Zeppelin III)
Led Zeppelin’s creative arrangement of this sardonic, centuries-old, storytelling Celtic folk song titled “The Maid Freed from the Gallows” begins very modestly, with Plant’s pleading vocals accompanied solely by Page’s quiet acoustic strumming.
It builds in stages to a full-blown bluegrass-style “hoe-down,” with a mandolin and acoustic 12-string joining the fray midway through, followed by bass, drums and, finally, banjo (played by Page) and overdriven electric lead guitar, on which Page cleverly plays major pentatonic licks to conjure the sound of a country fiddle.
The arrangement’s ambitious development is not unlike that of “Stairway to Heaven” in its magnitude and creates a similarly dramatic effect.
34. “Out On the Tiles” (Led Zeppelin III)
This “forgotten classic” features another of Led Zeppelin’s signature octave-doubled, single-note “stomp riffs,” this one played at a faster tempo than most of their other similarly crafted songs, with Bonham grooving on one of his favorite funky drumbeats as Page and Jones lock-in on a tricky bass melody that drops an eighth note at the end of the first and third verses (at 0:24 and 1:40, respectively).
Particularly cool- and powerful-sounding are the accented pulled bends on the low E string between the A power chords in the intro riff. It’s also worth pointing out that this is one of the very few uptempo Led Zeppelin songs that does not include a guitar solo; it doesn’t need one.
33. “You Shook Me” (Led Zeppelin)
Led Zeppelin’s convincingly worthy cover of this Chicago-style slow blues song (written by Willie Dixon and J.B. Lenoir) showcases their thorough assimilation of and deep adulation for the style and ability to take it to the next level of intensity through each band member’s musical virtuosity and artistic depth of feeling.
Page’s slide work, performed in the challenging and potentially unforgiving mode of standard tuning, is impeccable here, as he shadows Plant’s vocal melody with spot-on intonation and coaxes sublime vibratos from many of his sustained notes.
Equally laudable is Jimmy’s wailing guitar solo, played without a slide, for which he employed tape echo and epic reverb effects to create breathtakingly soaring trails of cascading, screaming licks during the solo’s and song’s climax.
32. “Celebration Day” (Led Zeppelin III)
This playful, uptempo rocker was built around a slinky slide riff conceived by Jones, the genesis of which he described in his column in Guitar World July 1997: “I came up with the intro/verse riff to “Celebration Day” while playing and old Danelectro baritone guitar like a lap steel, using an unusual, low open A7 tuning (low to high: A A A E G Cs), a steel bar and a nut saddle to raise the strings.” When performing the song live, Page would adapt this riff to standard-tuned guitar.
On the recording, Page crafted a complementary and similarly slinky bend lick to play over the song’s main A-riff following each verse (initially at 0:24).
Similar to what he later did between the verses in “Over the Hills and Far Away,” the guitarist uses pulled bends on the bottom two strings to reach up to the last note of each phrase he plays, in this case adding a bold, shimmering vibrato to each bend.
31. “Four Sticks” (Led Zeppelin IV)
Named after Bonham’s literal use of four sticks on the track (two in each hand), this tribal dance–like song features exotic rhythms and harmonic modalities that conjure images of Near Eastern and North African wildernesses from an earlier century.
The arrangement is built around three guitar riffs, each incorporating an open-string bass pedal tone, or drone. As mentioned previously, Page used, for the song’s primary riff, the same “bending away from a unison” trick he employed in his “Whole Lotta Love” riff, with equally haunting results. In this case, he strums the open G string together with that note’s fretted equivalent on the D string’s fifth fret and pushes the fretted G slightly sharp by bending it upward (away from the palm).
30. “Thank You” (Led Zeppelin II)
Before “Stairway to Heaven” or “The Rain Song” were ever conceived, this well-written, timeless love song displayed, along with “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You,” a sensitive, emotional side of Led Zeppelin, one that didn’t have to do with sexual lust or scorn. (Gee, what was George Harrison complaining about in commenting to Led Zeppelin that their songbook was lacking ballads?)
Layering tracks of acoustic and clean 12-string electric guitars, Page weaved a tapestry of warm harmony behind Plant’s tender, low-key vocals and crafted an elegant single-note acoustic solo, one often celebrated and emulated for its melodic appeal by players such as Slash.
Also noteworthy in “Thank You” are Page’s melodic 12-string runs behind Plant’s vocals during the song’s final two verses, specifically at 2:31 and 3:14.
29. “Bring It On Home” (Led Zeppelin II)
Like their other blues covers, Led Zeppelin’s reading of this Willie Dixon blues song has their unique artistic, stylistic stamp all over it, from its funky bass-and-drums groove, octave-doubled single-note riffs and Page’s soulful use of string bends, which, incidentally, Jones aggressively mirrors an octave lower on bass during the song’s main riff.
Page added to the riff, at 1:54, a decorative high harmony line, as he would later do with riffs in “Black Dog,” “The Ocean” “Achilles Last Stand” and other songs, in each case further building the arrangement and enhancing its appeal. His harmony notes here form sweet-sounding sixth and third intervals based on the E Mixolydian mode.
The song’s middle verse sections sport a particularly bad-ass guitar riff, first appearing at 2:04 and built around sixth-interval double-stops, again based on the decidedly bluesy-sounding E Mixolydian mode. Notice how Page divides and orchestrates this riff into two separate guitar tracks, which he pans hard left and right in the stereo mix, accentuating the riff’s call-and-response quality.
28. “Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman)” (Led Zeppelin II)
Following on the heels of “Heartbreaker,” this playful and more light-hearted rocker features some of Jimmy’s most tasteful “power-pop” guitar parts. He recorded the song’s primary rhythm tracks on his Fender electric 12-string (the same guitar he used in the studio on “Stairway to Heaven” and “The Song Remains the Same”).
As in “Heartbreaker,” “Good Times Bad Times,” “Communication Breakdown” and other songs, he liberally employs his go-to “Hendrix-style” thumbed chord “grips,” which, lacking the low fifth of a conventionally fretted major barre chord, add sonic clarity to his chord voicings.
Jimmy’s solo in this song is short and sweet, featuring emotive bends and vibratos and culminating in one of his trademark chromatic climbs up the B string.
27. “Going to California” (Led Zeppelin IV)
Page also used open strings and unison notes to great effect on this acoustic folk masterpiece. Tuning both his low and high E strings down to D (in what is known as double drop-D tuning), the guitarist plays dreamy hypnotic arpeggio figures that feature lots of ringing, repeated notes played on different strings.
With its blend of English and American folk-guitar styles (think Bert Jansch meets Merle Travis), “Going to California” is a finger stylist’s delight. Particularly compelling is the dramatic bridge section beginning at 1:41, played by Page in the parallel minor key, D minor. If you listen closely, you’ll hear two acoustic guitars fingerpicking different inversions of the same chords, thirds apart.
26. “What Is and What Should Never Be” (Led Zeppelin II)
Like “Ramble On,” this song is another masterwork study in dynamic and textural contrasts. Page begins each verse by strumming a breezy two-chord vamp using jazzy, George Benson–approved dominant ninth and 13th chords with a clean, mellow tone, as Jones plays one of his celebrated brilliantly lyrical, complementary bass lines.
Taking advantage of the wide range of gain and overdrive afforded his Les Paul/non-master–volume Marshall tube amp pairing, Page cranks up his guitar’s volume on the choruses, resulting in a beefy crunch tone that perfectly suits the powerful riff he crafted for that section.
The song also features one of Jimmy’s most tasteful slide solos, carefully executed in standard tuning and thus without the harmonic safety net that an open tuning affords.
25. “The Ocean” (Houses of the Holy)
On par with “Heartbreaker” and “Black Dog,” in terms of embodying that trademark Led Zeppelin octave-doubled single-note “stomp groove,” this song’s iconic intro/main riff demonstrates just how effectively heavy-sounding rests, or “holes of silence,” can be when sandwiched between notes in just the right places.
This riff, as well as the power-chord-driven and similarly punctuated verse figure, are made to sound even more dramatic by the ambient room sound surrounding John Bonham’s drums, to which Page, the producer, rightfully deserves credit for his visionary use of distant miking techniques.
24. “Rock and Roll” (Led Zeppelin IV)
The ultimate hot rod–driving song and tribute to Chuck Berry, this uptempo, straight-eighths blues-rock anthem features irresistibly boogie-woogie-like rhythms and a killer guitar solo that begins with Page playfully pulling off to open strings before ascending the neck with a daringly acrobatic chromatic climb somewhat reminiscent of his climactic lead in “Communication Breakdown.”
Particularly artistic is the way Page lays back rhythmically during the song’s verses with sustained power chords, providing an effective, welcome contrast to the relentless eighth notes of the bass and drums.
23. “The Lemon Song” (Led Zeppelin II)
Borrowing from Howlin’ Wolf’s 1964 blues hit and eventual standard, “Killing Floor,” Led Zeppelin created a derivative work that became a classic unto itself, showcasing their own renowned Memphis soul–style interactive blues-rock jamming, dynamic sensibilities and each individual musician’s fat tones.
Not content to just play the song’s climbing intro riff on his low E string, Page employs hybrid picking (pick-and-fingers technique) to pair each low melody note with the open B string, creating a pleasing midrange “honk.”
Also noteworthy in this arrangement is Page’s substitution, on the five chord in the song’s repeating 12-bar blues progression, of a minor seven chord, Bm7, for the customary dominant seven chord, which would be B7 in this case, creating a darker, more melancholy sound.
22. “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” (Led Zeppelin)
Another acoustic masterpiece, this song features a bittersweet circular chord progression presented as ringing, fingerpicked arpeggios. Particularly noteworthy is the way Page spins numerous subtle melodic variations on the theme throughout the song (check out the one at 3:40), sweetening the aural pot with dramatic dynamic contrasts.
This may be one of the most perfectly recorded and mixed acoustic guitar tracks ever. Notice how, in the song’s intro, the “dry” (up-front and un-effected) acoustic guitar is in the left channel while the right channel is mostly “wet,” saturated in cavernous reverb.
21. “When the Levee Breaks” (Led Zeppelin IV)
This track is revered for, among other things, its epic drum sound, resulting from the cavernous acoustics of Headley Grange and Page’s ingenious distant microphone placement, as well as his decision, as producer, to slow down the tape speed in the mastering process.
Led Zeppelin’s cover of this blues song, written and first recorded in 1929 by Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie, also features great slide playing by Page in open G tuning (low to high, D G D G B D). Due to the slowing of the tape speed, however, the pitch of the recording was lowered by a whole step, so the song actually sounds in the key of F.
Page performed this song’s two guitar tracks on his Fender electric 12-string. Its additional strings, in conjunction with the open tuning, enhanced the unison and octave-doubling effect of many of the notes in the guitar parts, which already incorporate unison notes. The result is a huge wall of droning G and D notes with a natural chorusing effect that mesmerizes the listener in a way akin to the chorus chords in “Kashmir.”
20. “The Battle of Evermore” (Led Zeppelin IV)
For this mystical-sounding folk-rock gem, Page and Jones traded the instruments they play on “Going to California,” with Page taking up the mandolin and Jones strumming acoustic guitar. According to Page, “ ‘The Battle of Evermore’ was made up on the spot by Robert and myself. I just picked up John Paul Jones’ mandolin, never having played one before, and just wrote up the chords and the whole thing in one sitting.”
Page’s mandolin sound on this song is epic, which is partially the result of his taking advantage of the cavernous, majestic natural reverb of the location where he recorded his tracks, which was in the foyer of a large, old stone house in rural Wales called Headley Grange. (This location, by the way, is where several other tracks on Led Zeppelin IV and Physical Graffiti were recorded, most notably Bonham’s drums on “When the Levee Breaks.”)
Page additionally doubled/layered his mandolin tracks on this arrangement and employed a tape echo effect, with a single repeat, timed to echo in an eighth-note rhythm relative to the song’s tempo, resulting in a continuous stream of percolating eighth notes.
19. “Immigrant Song” (Led Zeppelin III)
With its fiercely galloping rhythms, jagged backbeat accents and ominous-sounding flat-five intervals, this ode to Viking pillage no doubt helped fuel the lustful creative fire behind hordes of heavy metal bands like Iron Maiden, Celtic Frost and Mastodon that came of age in the years following the song’s 1970 release.
Particularly sinister-sounding is the way Page plays, during the song’s outro, an atypical second-position G minor chord shape over Jones’ C-note accents, in the process creating a highly unusual voicing of C9(no3).
18. “Good Times Bad Times” (Led Zeppelin)
This punchy opening track from the band’s debut album set the stage for Zeppelin’s juggernaut conquest of the world of hard rock. Page octave-doubles Jones’ nimble, angular bass line on his slinky-strung Fender Telecaster, adding shimmering finger vibrato at just about every opportunity.
The guitarist’s scorching, Leslie-effected lead licks, with their gut-wrenching bends and tumbling triplets, convey a man on fire and poised to win the West.
17. “Nobody’s Fault but Mine” (Presence)
Led Zeppelin’s turbo-charged reinvention of this traditional American gospel blues, or Negro spiritual, song was inspired primarily by singer and acoustic slide guitarist Blind Willie Johnson’s 1927 recording of it. Zeppelin’s version is built around a mesmerizing, laser beam-like guitar melody, which Page played with distortion and a flanger effect and doubled, both in unison and an octave higher, with Robert Plant additionally scat singing the line, adding to its mesmerizing, bigger-than-life quality.
Page’s aggressive exploitation of string bending and vibrato techniques, in both the main riff and his solo, adds to the soulfulness of the band’s arrangement. Also noteworthy are Jones and Bonham’s lock-step bass-and-drum syncopations, which further add to the power and drama of the band’s arrangement.
16. “Black Dog” (Led Zeppelin IV)
“Black Dog” was built around a snakey blues riff, initially written on bass by John Paul Jones and doubled an octave higher on guitar by Page. The rhythmic orientation of the song’s main riff to the beat has been the subject of heated debate among working musicians over the years, the point of contention being specifically where “one” is.
When pressed for an explanation, Page was vague. But Jones, in his Lo and Behold column in Guitar World December 1996, states that this deceptive riff should be counted with the first A note — the root note of the song’s key and the fourth note of the riff—falling squarely on beat one. (Drummer John Bonham’s big cymbal crash on beat two is one of the things about this riff that throws a lot of people off.)
Page enhanced the riff later in the song, at 3:18, by overdubbing a parallel-thirds harmony line. In the 1993 GW interview, the guitarist noted, “Most people never catch that part. It’s just toward the end, to help build the song. You have to listen closely for the high guitar parts.”
Page and recording engineer Andy Johns tried a novel and ultimately successful experiment by triple-tracking the song’s rhythm guitar parts. As Page explained, “Andy used the mic preamp on the mixing board to get distortion. Then we put two 1176 Universal compressors in series on that sound and distorted the guitars as much as we could and then compressed them. Each riff was triple-tracked: one left, one right, and one right up the middle.”
15. “Ramble On” (Led Zeppelin II)
This song is all about contrasts, or as Page likes to say, “light and shade.” It begins with a mellow, folky acoustic strum riff pitted against a highly melodic Fender bass line for the verse sections, which lead up to a hard-hitting and highly inventive electric guitar–driven chorus riff.
Page broadened the definition of the term “power chord” here by using the seemingly odd two-note combination of root and flatted seventh (Fs and E, respectively, played right after Plant sings “Ramble on!”), a pairing made even more unlikely by the fact that he plays it over John Paul Jones’ E bass note. The theoretical discord notwithstanding, it sounds great.
14. “Black Mountain Side” (Led Zeppelin)
Page spices up this traditional Celtic folk melody with East Indian musical flavors, hiring a bona fide tabla drummer to accompany him on the track and injecting his own fiery Indian-style acoustic lead break into the arrangement.
Check out the January 2013 issue of Guitar World to learn the secrets to this iconic song.
13. “In My Time of Dying” (Physical Graffiti)
This 11-minute track was inspired chiefly by Blind Willie Johnson’s reading of the traditional blues-gospel song “Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed” as well as a similarly titled rendition from the same era by Delta bluesman Charlie Patton.
Zeppelin’s inspired interpretation of the song features some of Page’s best slide guitar work (performed in open A tuning: low to high, E A E A Cs E), as well as one of the fattest-sounding drum tracks in this or any other band’s catalog, the result of Bonham’s unique touch and feel and Page’s miking and mixing techniques.
12. “Kashmir” (Physical Graffiti)
Played in DADGAD tuning, which Page had previously used to great effect on both the Yardbirds’ “White Summer” and Led Zeppelin’s “Black Mountain Side,” “Kashmir” is built around four mesmerizing riffs, three of which involve the use of open-string unison- and octave-doubled notes, which create a natural chorusing effect and a huge wall of sound.
Particularly noteworthy is the way Jimmy overlaid, at 0:53, the song’s menacing, ascending riff—the James Bond–theme-flavored part—on top of the recurring descending sus4 chord sequence.
Page explained in the previously mentioned GW interview, “The descending chord sequence was the first thing I had—I got it from tapes of myself messing around at home. After I came up with the da-da-da, da-da-da part, I wondered whether the two parts could go on top of each other, and it worked! You do get some dissonance in there, but there’s nothing wrong with that. At the time, I was very proud of that, I must say.”
11. “Over the Hills and Far Away” (Houses of the Holy)
This song is another study in contrasts, specifically between English/Celtic-flavored acoustic folk and Les Paul–driven hard rock. It begins with a playful, folk-dance–like acoustic riff, which Page initially plays on a six-string and then doubles on a 12-string, that gives way, at 1:27, to crushing electric power chords and a clever single-note riff, for which Jimmy incorporates pulled bends on the bass strings (first heard at 1:37).
Particularly cool is the way the guitarist reconciles this electric riff with the strummed acoustic chords previously introduced at 1:17.
Also noteworthy is the grooving James Brown–style funk riff behind the guitar solo and the rhythmically peculiar, harmonized ascending single-note ensemble melody that follows at 3:00. To top it all off, Page, the producer, concludes the song with a “false ending.”
As the band fades out, at 4:10, a lone guitar emerges with a final variation of the folk riff from the intro, but all you hear is the 100 percent “wet” reverb “return” signal, which creates a mystical, otherworldly, “faraway” effect.
10. “Heartbreaker” (Led Zeppelin II)
With its menacing, octave-doubled blues-scale riffs and sexy string bends, this song epitomizes the “Led Zeppelin swagger.” Interestingly, the verse riff features Jones strumming root-fifth power chords on bass, treated with overdrive and tremolo, while Page alternately lays back on decidedly thinner-sounding thumb-fretted octaves — a signature technique heard in his and Jimi Hendrix’s rhythm guitar styles — and punches barre-chord accents together with the bass and drums.
Page recorded the song with his 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard, which he had recently bought from Joe Walsh, playing the guitar through his newly acquired 100-watt Marshall amplifier. The song also showcases some of Jimmy’s most aggressive, inspired soloing, including a free-form, tantrum-like a capella breakdown section.
Page recorded the breakdown while the band was touring the U.S., using a studio different from the one where the rest of the song’s tracks were cut. He was unaware that his guitar on that particular section was tuned slightly sharp of the rest of the tracks, which are at concert pitch. The discrepancy goes unnoticed to most listeners and only becomes obvious if one goes to play along with the entire recording.
09. "The Rain Song" (Houses of the Holy)
Performed in an unusual tuning (low to high, D G C G C D) with lots of ringing open strings and unison-doubled notes, this beautiful song features a sophisticated chord progression that was initially inspired by Beatle George Harrison, who challenged Page to write a ballad.
After playfully evoking the verse section of Harrison’s “Something” on the first three chords of “The Rain Song,” Page veers off into an ultimately more ambitious and original progression. Particularly inventive and cool sounding is the Hawaiian-flavored dominant-ninth chord slide that precedes the first lyric line of each verse.
When asked to explain why the studio version of “The Rain Song” is in the key of G while the live version, as heard in the film The Song Remains the Same, is in A, Page replied, “It surprises me to hear you say that, because I thought they were both in A. Okay, the [live] tuning is [low to high] E A D A D E.
The only two strings that change are the G, which goes up to A, and the B, which goes up to D.” Page explained how he arrived at this unusual tuning. “I altered the strings around so that I’d have an octave on the A notes and an octave on the D notes, and still have the two Es,” he said. “Then I just went to see what finger positions would work.”
08. “Ten Years Gone” (Physical Graffiti)
Like “The Rain Song,” this heart-warming yet heavy ballad demonstrates Page’s intuitive harmonic depth and sophistication, as he employs jazzy, “expensive”-sounding maj7, maj13, min9, dim7 and maj6/9 chords as effortlessly as Burt Bacharach, minus the associated schmaltz.
The song’s instrumental interlude, which begins at 2:31, is particularly sweet and rich sounding. It features a laid-back, phaser-treated lead guitar melody with soulful double-stops over a bass, drums and clean, jangly rhythm guitar accompaniment. Also noteworthy is Page’s doubling of the chorus riff, first heard at 0:32, with an electric sitar.
07. “Communication Breakdown” (Led Zeppelin)
With its down-picked “pumping” eighth notes and syncopated power-chord stabs, this song’s urgent verse riff embodies the spirit of Chuck Berry–style rock and roll. Not surprisingly, it served as the quintessential prototype for both heavy metal and punk rhythm guitar.
Page’s piercing, well-crafted solo, with its climactic, chromatically ascending unison bends, is like Berry on steroids and demonstrates that Page, on his new band’s freshman outing, was already thinking “outside the box,” both figuratively and literally (the physical “box” being a pentatonic fretboard shape).
06. “Since I’ve Been Loving You” (Led Zeppelin III)
Jimmy’s impassioned guitar solo in this highly dramatic Chicago-style slow blues song is among his most inspired and emotive.
The song’s chord changes and structure are truly original, and in his rhythm guitar part Page plays an inventively slick turnaround phrase at the end of each chorus (initially from 1:06–1:12) that mimics a steel guitar, with a bent note woven into and placed on top of two successive chord voicings.
What makes this phrase so interesting and enigmatic is how, over the second chord, Dfmaj7 (played on organ by John Paul Jones) Page bends a C note up to D natural—the flat nine of Dfmaj7—and manages to make it sound “right.” It’s something few musicians apart from Miles Davis would have the guts to do.
05. “Whole Lotta Love” (Led Zeppelin II)
This song has one of the coolest intro and verse riffs ever written. Not content to play it “straight,” as his blues-rock contemporaries might have done, Page inserts a subtle, secret ingredient into this part, giving it that x factor and a spine-tingling quality.
Instead of playing the riff’s second and fourth note—D, on the A string’s fifth fret—by itself, he doubles it with the open D string (akin to the way one would go about tuning the guitar using the traditional “fifth-fret” method), then proceeds to bend the fretted D note approximately a quarter step sharp by pushing it sideways with his index finger.
The harmonic turbulence created by the two pitches drifting slightly out of tune with each other is abrasive to the sensibilities and musically haunting, but the tension is short-lived and soon relieved, as Page quickly moves on to a rock-solid E5 power chord. “I used to do that sort of thing all over the place,” said Page. “I did it during the main riff to ‘Four Sticks’ too.”
04. “The Song Remains the Same” (Houses of the Holy)
Like a getaway chase on a stolen horse, this ambitiously arranged song, with its galloping rhythms and fleet-footed solos, is guaranteed to give you an adrenaline rush. Particularly noteworthy is Page’s decision to overlay two electric 12-string guitars during the song’s opening chord punches, each playing different and seemingly irreconcilable triads, such as the pairing of C major and A major.
“I’m just moving the open D chord shape up into different positions,” Page told Guitar World in 1993. “There actually are two guitars on this section. Each is playing basically the same thing, except the second guitar is substituting different chords on some of the hits.”
He adds, “ ‘The Song Remains the Same’ was originally going to be an instrumental, like an overture to ‘The Rain Song,’ but Robert [Plant] had some other ideas about it! I do remember taking the guitar all the way through it, like an instrumental. It really didn’t take that long to put together — it was probably constructed in a day. And then of course I worked out a few overdubs.”
03. “Stairway to Heaven” (Led Zeppelin IV)
Jimmy Page trampled over two rules of pop music with this masterpiece: it’s more than eight minutes long, a previously prohibitive length for pop radio formats, and the tempo speeds up as the song unfolds.
“Stairway” is the epitome of Page’s brilliance as not only a guitarist, but also as a composer and arranger, as he layers six-string acoustic and 12-string electric guitars throughout the song in a gradual crescendo that culminates in what many consider to be the perfect rock guitar solo, performed on his trusty 1959 Fender “Dragon” Telecaster (his go-to guitar in the early days of Led Zeppelin).
02. “Dazed and Confused” (live version, The Song Remains the Same)
Clocking in at more than 28 minutes, this marathon performance marks the apex of this song’s evolution and showcases some of Led Zeppelin’s most intense jamming and collective improvisation in a variety of styles. Page is at the height of his powers here, in terms of both chops and creative vision, never at a loss for a worthwhile musical idea.
The otherworldly violin-bow interlude, beginning in earnest at 9:10 and spanning nearly seven minutes, is particularly inspired, and Page’s use of tape echo and wah effects in conjunction with the bow is absolutely brilliant.
01. “Achilles Last Stand” (Presence)
This epic, 10-minute song is Page’s crowning achievement in guitar orchestration.
The ensemble arrangement, bookended by a swirling, unresolved arpeggio loop, really begins to blossom at 1:57, and from this point on, Page spins numerous melodic variations over top of the jangly, plaintive Em-Cadd9s11 chord progression that underpins most of the composition.
Interestingly, Page previewed this chord vamp in the 1973 live version of “Dazed and Confused” that appears on The Soundtrack to The Song Remains the Same, beginning at 5:52.
Thoughtful consideration was put into the stereo image of each guitar track, which keeps the entire recording crisp despite the dense arrangement. The song also features one of Page’s most lyrical guitar solos (and one of his personal favorites).
The gang at GJ2 Guitars have created a video that provides an inside look at what goes into designing and making their guitars.
Viewers can hear about the company directly from co-founders Grover Jackson and Jon Gold, who show you around their Orange County, California, facilities and introduce the team of craftsmen who build and assemble GJ2 Guitars.
The eight-minute video includes an overview of the guitar-building process, from design and construction to painting and assembly. Technological advances in CAD and CNC manufacturing are mentioned, as well as how the company makes its own Habanero pickups.
Guitarists will appreciate learning about the differences in how each model is made, such as the neck-through-body construction of the Arete and Concorde guitars, the bolt-on neck of the Glendora and the set-neck technique used for the Zora.
Gold and Jackson also discuss the genesis of the company and the inspiration behind the name. After decades of making quality guitars for everyone from Randy Rhoads to Jeff Beck, and developing innovations such as the compound radius fingerboard and neck-through-body construction, Jackson is applying a lifetime of experience to raise the standard of electric guitars even further:
“GJ2 Guitars is a company that was formed to make the highest-quality USA-made guitars available,” he says.
The video was shot, directed and edited by Geoffrey Funk with still photography by Ashley Andrea Beliveau. Music was composed and performed by No Doubt guitarist Tom Dumont using a GJ2 Glendora.
For more about GJ2 Guitars, visit the company's official website.
Periphery have announced a fall North American tour with Born of Osiris, Dead Letter Circus and Twelve Foot Ninja, dubbed “This Tour Is Personal.”
You can check out all the confirmed dates — and a new video advancing the tour — below.
The tour, which is sponsored by Jackson Guitars, ToonTrack, Guitar World and All In Merch, kicks off October 11 in Baltimore and wraps up November 20 in New York City.
“We have been having a hard time keeping the details of our upcoming headlining tour package under wraps because of how excited we are about it," says Periphery guitarist Misha Mansoor. "This is mainly because for this trek we will be joined by Born of Osiris, Dead Letter Circus and Twelve Foot Ninja. We felt that having those three bands would add some nice variety, virtuosity and, of course, virility to the package.
“We will be doing some different tiered VIP packages for this headliner as well, with more specific details on those in the coming weeks. You should make it out to a show because we have not one, but two, Australian bands on this package and we all know what a rarity that is. Also, this will be the last tour on this current album cycle for us, so we won't be back around for awhile. See ya there.”
Periphery released their latest offering, This Time It’s Personal, earlier this year. To keep up with Periphery, visit them on Facebook.
Periphery — This Tour Is Personal Dates
10/11 - Baltimore, MD @ Rams Head Live
10/14 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
10/15 - Tampa, FL @ State Theatre
10/16 - Mobile, AL @ Alabama Music Box
10/18 - Ft. Worth, TX @ Tomcats
10/19 - San Antonio, TX @ White Rabbit
10/20 - Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald's
10/23 - Phoenix, AZ @ Martini Ranch
10/24 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy
10/25 - San Diego, CA @ Soma
10/26 - Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
10/27 - San Francisco, CA @ DNA
10/29 - Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
10/30 - Vancouver, BC @ Tom Lee Music Hall WITHOUT BOO
11/01 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Club Sound
11/02 - Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall
11/04 - Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre
11/07 - Chicago, IL @ Mojoes
11/08 - Minneapolis, MN @ Cabooze
11/11 - Toronto, ON @ Opera House - WITHOUT BOO
11/12 - Quebec City, QC @ Dagobert - WITHOUT BOO
11/16 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
11/20 - New York City, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
A few years ago, the editors of Guitar World compiled what we feel is the ultimate guide to the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time.
The list, which has been quoted by countless artists, websites and publications around the world, starts with Richie Sambora's work on Bon Jovi's “Wanted Dead or Alive” (100) and builds to a truly epic finish with Jimmy Page's solo on "Stairway to Heaven" (01).
On June 10, we kicked off a summer blockbuster of our own — a no-holds-barred six-string shootout. We pitted Guitar World's top 64 guitar solos against each other in an NCAA-style, 64-team single-elimination tournament. Every day, we asked you to cast your vote in a different guitar-solo matchup as dictated by the 64-team-style bracket. Now Rounds 1 and 2 have come and gone, leaving us with 16 guitar solos and eight matchups.
So ...
WELCOME TO THE SWEET 16 ROUND, where all 16 still-standing solos will go head to head before your eyes! As always, you can vote once per matchup, and the voting ends as soon as the next matchup is posted.
In some cases, genre will clash against genre; a thrash solo might compete against a Southern rock solo. But please get real, people! They're all guitar solos, played on guitars, by guitarists, most of them in some subset of the umbrella genre of rock. When choosing, it might have to come down to, "Which solo is more original and creative? Which is more iconic or important? or Which one kicks a larger, more impressive assemblage of asses?"
Today's Sweetwater Sweet 16 Matchup (6 of 8) "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" Vs. "Whole Lotta Love"
Today and tomorrow (Monday and Tuesday), we'll see Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (11) go head to head with Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" (38), which features a guitar solo by Jimmy Page. Both Jims started off with multiple solos in our Sweet 16, but now that "Little Wing" was defeated by "Eruption" over the weekend, "Voodoo Child" is Hendrix's last gasp in our poll. If things go south for Page in this matchup, he still has "Stairway to Heaven" to rely on — and let's not forget the upcoming battle between Page's "Since I've Been Loving You" and Randy Rhoads'"Mr. Crowley."
HOW THEY GOT HERE
• "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" defeated Smashing Pumpkins'"Geek USA" (54) in Round 1 and Dire Straits'"Sultans of Swing" (22) in Round 2.
• "Whole Lotta Love" defeated Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Pride and Joy" (27) in Round 1 and Guns N' Roses'"November Rain" (06) in Round 2.
Get busy! You'll find the poll at the very bottom of the story.
Jimi Hendrix’s publicist, Michael Goldstein, had successfully arranged for ABC-TV to produce a short news feature based primarily on the Experience’s triumphant success in America. Filming began on May 3, 1968, with 16mm cameras capturing the recording of “Voodoo Child (Slight Return),” which, like many Hendrix songs, borrowed both musical and lyrical themes from Muddy Waters and other Delta bluesmen.
“ ‘Voodoo Child’ was something Jimi brought in, and we learned that song right on the spot in front of the cameras,” recalls bassist Noel Redding. “We ran through it about three times, and that was it.”
It is not known whether ABC ever used any of the footage. And, unfortunately, all the camera originals were stolen from ABC’s archives sometime after Jimi’s death. The reel also included footage of the group performing at the Fillmore East and the Miami Pop Festival.
Engineer Eddie Kramer recalls: “ ‘Voodoo Child (Slight Return)’ was recorded the day after Jimi tracked ‘Voodoo Chile,’ the extended jam on Electric Ladyland featuring Traffic’s Stevie Winwood on organ and Jefferson Airplane bassist Jack Casady. Basically, Jimi used the same setup—his Strat through a nice, warm Fender Bassman amp. Jimi’s sound on both tracks is remarkably consistent, leading some to think they were recorded at the same session.”
38. "Whole Lotta Love” Soloist: Jimmy Page Album: Led Zeppelin—Led Zeppelin II (Atlantic, 1969)
“I used distant miking to get that rhythm guitar tone,” says Jimmy Page. “Miking used to be a science, and I’d heard that distance makes depth, which in turn gives you a fatter guitar sound. The amp was turned up very high. It was distorting, just controlled to the point where it had some balls to it. I also used a depressed wah-wah pedal on the solo, as I did on ‘Communication Breakdown.’
"It gets you a really raucous sound. The descending riff that answers the line ‘whole lotta love’ was created using slide and backward echo. Backward echo has been used a lot now, but I think I was the first to use it.”
Gov’t Mule have premiered a new track, “Whisper In Your Soul,” and you can stream it — and an alternate version of the song featuring Grace Potter — below.
Both tracks are from the band’s new double album, Shout!, which will be released September 24 via Blue Note Records.
Shout! will feature 11 new songs plus a bonus disc with an all-star lineup of vocalists re-interpreting the songs. Guests include Elvis Costello, Dr. John, Ben Harper, Toots Hibbert, Glenn Hughes, Jim James, Myles Kennedy, Dave Matthews, Grace Potter, Vintage Trouble’s Ty Taylor and Steve Winwood. Shout! is available for pre-order now at iTunes and Amazon.
Gov’t Mule will embark on a North American fall tour beginning September 5. See below for the full itinerary and visit mule.net for specific ticketing details for each show.
Gov’t Mule have released nine studio albums, an assortment of DVDs and live albums and have sold more than 3 million downloads through MuleTracks. In August and September, Haynes will be touring with the Allman Brothers Band.
9/5 Arrington, VA @ Interlocken Festival (w/ Gov’t Mule AND The Warren Haynes Band in one day)
9/13 Fredericton, NB @ Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival
9/14 Hampton Beach, NH @ Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
9/15 Burlington, VT @ Grand Point North Festival
9/17 New York, NY @ Best Buy Theater
9/18 Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
9/19 Detroit, MI @ Fillmore Detroit
9/20 Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues Cleveland
9/21 Northampton, MA @ Calvin Theatre & Performing Arts Center
9/26 Atlanta, GA @ The Tabernacle
9/27 Louisville, KY @ Brown Theatre
9/28 Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
10/1 Indianapolis, IN @ Murat Theater
10/2 Columbus, OH @ LC Pavilion (indoor)
10/4 Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
10/5 Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
10/24 Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theatre
10/25 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
10/26 Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
10/27 Eugene, OR @ McDonald Theatre
10/30 Los Angeles, CA @ Fonda Theatre
10/31 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
11/1 Las Vegas @ House of Blues
11/2 Tahoe, CA @ Harrah’s Tahoe
11/4 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
11/5 Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
11/7 Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom
11/8 Austin, TX @ Stubb’s
11/9 Houston, TX @ Bayou Music Center
11/10 Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
The following content is related to the October 2013 issue of Guitar World. For the full range of interviews, features, tabs and more, pick up the new issue on newsstands now, or in our online store.
The L-00 (along with similar L-0 and L-1 models) was one of the best flattop acoustic guitar bargains, from its introduction during the Great Depression all the way through the mid Nineties, when collectors discovered how truly incredible these “budget” guitars are.
Though the guitar had a small body, its light X-bracing, thin finish and high-quality materials added up to provide sweet tone, assertive output and incredibly even balance, which made L Series flattops a favorite of blues and fingerstyle guitarists like Robert Johnson and Norman Blake. In recent years, the price of an original L-00 has soared to the $4,000 to $7,000 range, but the new Epiphone EL-00 Pro brings the model back to its original low-cost/high-performance status and includes the modern upgrade of a built-in Fishman Sonitone preamp and Sonicore pickup system.
Today, GuitarWorld.com presents an exclusive video by Five Finger Death Punch.
It's an extended clip featuring the band's track-by-track recap of their entire new album, The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell Volume 1. Check it out below!
The album, which was released July 30 on Prospect Park in North America (Eleven Seven in all other territories), debuted at No. 2 in the US on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart (selling 113,000 albums in its first week), as well No. 3 in Canada, No. 4 in Germany and No. 21 in the UK.
Now the band are gearing up to release their next album, The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell Volume 2, on November 19. Stay tuned for more news about that!
Here's the complete Volume 1 track listing:"Lift Me Up" (featuring Rob Halford of Judas Priest) | "Watch You Bleed" | "You " | "Wrong Side Of Heaven" | "Burn MF" | "I. M. Sin" | "Anywhere But Here" (featuring Maria Brink) | "Dot Your Eyes And Cross Your Teeth" | "M.I.N.E. (End This Way)" | "Mama Said Knock You Out" (featuring Tech N9ne) | "Diary Of A Deadman" | "I.M. Sin" (featuring Max Cavalera) | "Anywhere But Here" (Duet with Maria Brink) and "Dot Your Eyes And Cross Your Teeth" (featuring Jamey Jasta).
The group — Ivan Moody (vocals), Zoltan Bathory (guitar), Jeremy Spencer (drums), Jason Hook (guitar) and Chris Kael (bass) — will kick off their fall North American headline tour September 15 in Sacramento, California, at the Aftershock Festival. Check out all their currently scheduled tour dates below the video!
9/15 Sacramento, CA, Aftershock Festival
9/17 Medford, OR, Armory
9/18 Eugene, OR, McDonald Theater
9/20 Kennewick, WA, Toyota Center
9/21 Post Falls, ID, Greyhound Park
9/22 Missoula, MT, Wilma Theater
9/23 Lethbridge, AB (CAN), EnMax Centre
9/25 Prince George, BC (CAN), CN Centre
9/26 Dawson Creek, BC (CAN), Encana Events Center
9/28 Calgary, AB (CAN), Mac Hall
9/29 Saskatoon, SK (CAN), Credit Union Center
9/30 Edmonton, AB (CAN), Shaw Conference Center
10/2 Regina, AB (CAN), Brandt Centre
10/4 Fargo, ND,Concert Hall @ The Venue
10/5 Milwaukee, WI, Eagles Ballroom
10/6 Grand Rapids, MI, Orbit Room
10/8 Detroit, MI, Fillmore
10/9 Niagara Falls, NY, Rapids Theater
10/11 Providence, RI, Lupo's
10/12 New York, NY, Best Buy Theater
10/13 Lancaster, PA, Freedom Hall
10/15 Raleigh, NC, The Ritz
10/17 Bossier City, LA, Century Tel Arena
10/18 Tulsa, OK, Brady Theater
10/20 Springfield, MO, Shrine Mosque
10/22 Corpus Christi, TX, Concrete Street Pavilion
10/23 Pharr, TX, Pharr Event Center
10/25 Grand Prairie, TX, Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie
10/26 Lubbock, TX, Lonestar Amphitheater
10/27 Colorado Springs, CO, City Auditorium
