Post by cw on Mar 5, 2009 10:11:46 GMT 1
The Jan28 2009 edition of Hotpress Magazine contained an article on electric guitars with comments from 3 of Ireland's leading guitarists ....... which naturally included a certain rather large gentleman known to us all.
America has given the world countless iconic designs: the Harley Davidson motorcycle, the Cadillac and the Coke bottle. But it's the guitar - specifically the electric guitar - that, culturally, has had the widest impact around the world. Though the guitar had it's origins elsewhere, it was America that gave us names like Fender, Gibson, Gretsch, and Rickenbacker - brands that have stood the test of time for over half a century. Without these and others, it's no exaggeration to say that roll 'n 'roll, as we know it simply would not have existed.
"Anto Drennan, probably best known for his work with the Corrs and Moving Hearts, is a huge fan of American guitars, especially the Fender Telecaster, the very first of the Fenders to be produced back in 1949."
"When you think about it, the Telecaster has outlived the VW Beetle as a classic design," he said. "It's still pretty much the same instrument that it was fifty years ago. I've had several guitars over the decades but the Telecaster is still my favourite guitar to play. I think the reason I love Teles so much is that they only have those couple of sounds, and there's no trickery involved. It's so much more primitive than most guitars."
Like most guitarists, Drennan has gone through a whole range of instruments over the years as he explains.
"When I was growing up, I loved Jan Ackermann from Focus - I saw them at the Stadium and was knocked out so the first guitar I bought was an Ibanez Les Paul copy - a beautiful gold one and I've never got a better sound from a guitar. Of course I loved Rory Gallegher too back then so I got rid of the Ibanez and somebody offered me a Stratocaster. Eventually I got a black Les Paul . But more recently, I've gone back to thinking that a Tele is my favourite. I've noticed bands like Coldplay and Snow Patrol using 1970's custom Telecasters."
Drennan was lucky enough to see one of the best known Telecaster players, Keith Richards, up close when The Corrs supported The Rolling Stones.
"It was incredible to watch him and what he could do with that guitar," he says. "The other thing I found funny was that on tour, people would bring suitcases of customised guitars in the hope that he might play them live."
Despite the growth of computer based sounds, guitars have maintained their dominance as "the" rock and roll instrument of choice, and they show no signs of retreating. And the best thing about them is how relatively cheap and accessible they have become.
Anto Drennan: "When Hank Marvin played his red Stratocaster with the Shadows in the early 1960's, it probably cost the equivalent of a year's wages back then. These days you can get a guitar that you can play anywhere for a few hundred quid."
This article was shown on a CC thread. There was an ensuing discussion with regards to his acoustic instruments.
The following was my response with regards to Anto's instruments during his Corrs service.
To answer the earlier comments, Anto's acoustic guitars have primarily been Avalon's. These are a maker from Northern Ireland (previously known as Lowden) with a few Guild models. Re Unplugged, he played Little Wing and So Young on a steel resonator guitar. These are commonly called "Dobro's" but actually "Dobro" (now a division of Gibson) are just the best known model of resonator guitar. The steel resonator Anto played at Unplugged is actually a Style O model made by National Steel Guitars.
On electrics, Anto has generally played a wide range of "axes" during his Corr's service. Using the "big gigs" as a guide; here is a guide as to what he was playing.
During TOC days, Anto WAS playing quite a bit of Telecaster with the famous opening riff from OWIS being one of the most notable examples. During his Genesis sojourn, his main axe was a blue Music Man Silhouette Special and he continued to play a Silo for quite a while afterwards (as late as the Concerto Basico gig in May 99). In the later part of the year (for gigs such as Solidays, Glastonbury & Lansdowne Road), he continued to open on a Telecaster but switched his main axe to a fiesta red Fender Stratocaster.
During the IB tours, his prime axe continued to be a Strat (that rather pretty silver number seen on the IB doco and LIL) with some numbers on a Gibson Les Paul and Gibson SG. In the later IB tours, he was playing more SG (the cherry red guitar) and that was his main axe for the BBC Radio 2 gig. He had @ zero on camera time at LID so I have no visual confirmation of what he was playing but sound-wise, it sounded like Strat & SG.
For the BH tour, he returned to Silhouette Specials as his primary weapon (this time the sunburst number seen at LIG) with the final numbers continuing to be played on an SG. Looking at clips of Moving Hearts gigs from 2007, that Silo has continued to be a favourite as regards to "gigging"; from personal experience they ARE a very user-friendly axe and he amply demonstrates the beautiful tone that can be coaxed out of one.
Keith has generally played Lakland basses, primarily a 55-94 Classic 5-string and a Glaub signature model 4-string. He has also played Aleva Coppolo basses in recent years. In the Unplugged recording, and the acoustic EPK for Borrowed Heaven, he was playing a Guild acoustic bass.
Further to the Tele theme, they have been Jim's chief stage guitar since 97, playing both the standard model as well as the 3 pickup Nashville Tele. In the earliest days, he was primarily playing Strats and was still playing an occ Strat number as late as LIL. Through the years, he has also been seen playing Yamaha Pacificas (a Strat copy), Gibson ES-335, Gibson SG (esp for numbers like TTF) and Gibson Les Paul Studio models (BH tour). He has also been spotted having a "loan" (permitted or otherwise) of one of Anto's vintage Tele's and even his chief axe (the Silhouette Special).
Below are pictures of some of the guitar models mentioned.
Tele
Strat
Les Paul
SG
America has given the world countless iconic designs: the Harley Davidson motorcycle, the Cadillac and the Coke bottle. But it's the guitar - specifically the electric guitar - that, culturally, has had the widest impact around the world. Though the guitar had it's origins elsewhere, it was America that gave us names like Fender, Gibson, Gretsch, and Rickenbacker - brands that have stood the test of time for over half a century. Without these and others, it's no exaggeration to say that roll 'n 'roll, as we know it simply would not have existed.
"Anto Drennan, probably best known for his work with the Corrs and Moving Hearts, is a huge fan of American guitars, especially the Fender Telecaster, the very first of the Fenders to be produced back in 1949."
"When you think about it, the Telecaster has outlived the VW Beetle as a classic design," he said. "It's still pretty much the same instrument that it was fifty years ago. I've had several guitars over the decades but the Telecaster is still my favourite guitar to play. I think the reason I love Teles so much is that they only have those couple of sounds, and there's no trickery involved. It's so much more primitive than most guitars."
Like most guitarists, Drennan has gone through a whole range of instruments over the years as he explains.
"When I was growing up, I loved Jan Ackermann from Focus - I saw them at the Stadium and was knocked out so the first guitar I bought was an Ibanez Les Paul copy - a beautiful gold one and I've never got a better sound from a guitar. Of course I loved Rory Gallegher too back then so I got rid of the Ibanez and somebody offered me a Stratocaster. Eventually I got a black Les Paul . But more recently, I've gone back to thinking that a Tele is my favourite. I've noticed bands like Coldplay and Snow Patrol using 1970's custom Telecasters."
Drennan was lucky enough to see one of the best known Telecaster players, Keith Richards, up close when The Corrs supported The Rolling Stones.
"It was incredible to watch him and what he could do with that guitar," he says. "The other thing I found funny was that on tour, people would bring suitcases of customised guitars in the hope that he might play them live."
Despite the growth of computer based sounds, guitars have maintained their dominance as "the" rock and roll instrument of choice, and they show no signs of retreating. And the best thing about them is how relatively cheap and accessible they have become.
Anto Drennan: "When Hank Marvin played his red Stratocaster with the Shadows in the early 1960's, it probably cost the equivalent of a year's wages back then. These days you can get a guitar that you can play anywhere for a few hundred quid."
This article was shown on a CC thread. There was an ensuing discussion with regards to his acoustic instruments.
The following was my response with regards to Anto's instruments during his Corrs service.
To answer the earlier comments, Anto's acoustic guitars have primarily been Avalon's. These are a maker from Northern Ireland (previously known as Lowden) with a few Guild models. Re Unplugged, he played Little Wing and So Young on a steel resonator guitar. These are commonly called "Dobro's" but actually "Dobro" (now a division of Gibson) are just the best known model of resonator guitar. The steel resonator Anto played at Unplugged is actually a Style O model made by National Steel Guitars.
On electrics, Anto has generally played a wide range of "axes" during his Corr's service. Using the "big gigs" as a guide; here is a guide as to what he was playing.
During TOC days, Anto WAS playing quite a bit of Telecaster with the famous opening riff from OWIS being one of the most notable examples. During his Genesis sojourn, his main axe was a blue Music Man Silhouette Special and he continued to play a Silo for quite a while afterwards (as late as the Concerto Basico gig in May 99). In the later part of the year (for gigs such as Solidays, Glastonbury & Lansdowne Road), he continued to open on a Telecaster but switched his main axe to a fiesta red Fender Stratocaster.
During the IB tours, his prime axe continued to be a Strat (that rather pretty silver number seen on the IB doco and LIL) with some numbers on a Gibson Les Paul and Gibson SG. In the later IB tours, he was playing more SG (the cherry red guitar) and that was his main axe for the BBC Radio 2 gig. He had @ zero on camera time at LID so I have no visual confirmation of what he was playing but sound-wise, it sounded like Strat & SG.
For the BH tour, he returned to Silhouette Specials as his primary weapon (this time the sunburst number seen at LIG) with the final numbers continuing to be played on an SG. Looking at clips of Moving Hearts gigs from 2007, that Silo has continued to be a favourite as regards to "gigging"; from personal experience they ARE a very user-friendly axe and he amply demonstrates the beautiful tone that can be coaxed out of one.
Keith has generally played Lakland basses, primarily a 55-94 Classic 5-string and a Glaub signature model 4-string. He has also played Aleva Coppolo basses in recent years. In the Unplugged recording, and the acoustic EPK for Borrowed Heaven, he was playing a Guild acoustic bass.
Further to the Tele theme, they have been Jim's chief stage guitar since 97, playing both the standard model as well as the 3 pickup Nashville Tele. In the earliest days, he was primarily playing Strats and was still playing an occ Strat number as late as LIL. Through the years, he has also been seen playing Yamaha Pacificas (a Strat copy), Gibson ES-335, Gibson SG (esp for numbers like TTF) and Gibson Les Paul Studio models (BH tour). He has also been spotted having a "loan" (permitted or otherwise) of one of Anto's vintage Tele's and even his chief axe (the Silhouette Special).
Below are pictures of some of the guitar models mentioned.
Tele
Strat
Les Paul
SG
A lot of my favourite musicians seem to use these older guitars out of a desire to achieve a more classic sound with maybe a bit more "soul".