Question for all you guitar players

[Ian J]

I went to see the Eagles earlier in the week and noticed that Joe Walsh changed his guitar for almost every song and must have used at least a dozen different guitars during the evening.

They were all the solid type guitar and I only noticed the frequent changes as they were all different colours but is there really much difference between the sound produced by different guitars and would the audience hear any differences under concert conditions ?

[Commander Shepard]

Originally Posted by Ian J

I went to see the Eagles earlier in the week and noticed that Joe Walsh changed his guitar for almost every song and must have used at least a dozen different guitars during the evening.

They were all the solid type guitar and I only noticed the frequent changes as they were all different colours but is there really much difference between the sound produced by different guitars and would the audience hear any differences under concert conditions ?

Technically yes there is a difference because its a complete electrics change as that is where the sound comes from, different pick ups, wiring, circuitry all affect the sound on an electric guitar so does the wood, thickness, thin-ness, type, and even string thickness.

But under concert conditions and to the untrained ear, not many people will hear the difference.

BTW, lucky lucky you

[Ian J]

He's still a brilliant guitarist at 61

[unique]

sometimes guitarists change guitars between songs so they are always in tune and the techs can wipe the sweat off etc, but most times i've seen that it's the same 2 or 3 guitars used

they might also just want to show off or use some of their guitar collection, or use the same guitar they did in the studio when the recorded the song

[Commander Shepard]

Different tuning too, some songs need to be lower some higher in in dropped d some in open g.

[technoman28]

Whether you can tell the difference in a live environment depends on the quality of the PA system, if it is particularly good system ( I would imagine it would be for The Eagles), then yes, you can tell. You also need to be able to pick an instruments sound out of the music and almost just listen to that sound.

It's easier done from a record, and with a clean sound ie. minimum of effects, listen to country type music, typically Fender Telecasters, blues usually Fender Strats, rock Gibson Les Pauls. They all have their unique sounds and are fairly easy to tell apart.

[Ian J]

Originally Posted by technoman28

They all have their unique sounds and are fairly easy to tell apart.

I'm not sure that the average man would agree with that comment. I recall about 20 years ago listening to a Richard Marx CD and on one track there was a very familiar sounding guitar solo. Reading the cover confirmed that it was Joe Walsh playing on that track in his inimitable style but never in a million years would I have been able to tell you which guitar he was playing

[technoman28]

Try these:

Strat



Telecaster



Les Paul



Gibson SG




Hopefully from these you can see that there is a definate difference between the clean sound produced by different makes and models. The sound it produces is also affected by other factors such as the amp and speakers it is played through, and of course any effects and enhancements that are applied to the sound. In the case of The Eagles, I would imagine that the guitar would be kept fairly clean, but it may be hard to pick out the subtle differences between guitars in a live situation.

I seem to recall that Joe Walsh tended to favour Strats, but most professional players tend to have a collection of makes to enable them to have a bigger sound palatte to work with. Who knows IanJ, you may go back to that song and recognize the guitar now.

[pmc]

Yeah, it varies. As mentioned, there is a dramatic difference between certain guitars, a Les Paul and a Strat for example. However most guitarists have one preferred guitar, in this example they're either a Strat player or a Les Paul player. It's actually quite rare to see a guitarist switch guitars deliberately to get different sounds, at least on every song. Most will have their #1 guitar and maybe switch switch 2 or 3 times in a set for different sound in a specific song. David Gilmour is a good example of this. 90% of the time he uses a Strat (and the same Strat for the whole show) but for one or two songs he'll use a Les Paul or a Tele.

Also the sort of equipment a top pro will be using and the fact that they have a dedicated guitar tech means that tuning really shouldn't be an issue. Put it this way, if you need to change guitars every song because your going out of tune you should either a) learn to play properly or b) sack your guitar tech

Most of the time when people switch every song it seems to be an ego thing. Maybe they just want to get use out of their collection, or maybe they're just showing off. Matt Bellamy of Muse is good example. He NEVER plays the same guitar two songs in a row. He does use different tunings (Drop D vs Standard) but its just ridiculous.

[Ian J]

I've no idea whether the other Eagles swapped guitars as it wasn't quite so obvious but all of Joe Walsh's guitars were different colours which is why I noticed it

[Toasty]

There could be a simpler answer, he could have used a single white guitar and the gel lights shining on it changed colour for each song

[Philly112]

Originally Posted by Ian J

I'm not sure that the average man would agree with that comment. I recall about 20 years ago listening to a Richard Marx CD and on one track there was a very familiar sounding guitar solo. Reading the cover confirmed that it was Joe Walsh playing on that track in his inimitable style but never in a million years would I have been able to tell you which guitar he was playing

I remember seeing a Steve Howe interview where he was saying that he spent years with different guitars looking for the 'sound'. He then realised he already had it. It was 'him'.
I have 3 guitars, all totally different. But I still sound like me (ie rubbish).
By the way, Howe still has and uses 3 zillion guitars

Most of my 'heroes' - McLaughlin et al - just tend to use the one guitar for whatever band they are playing in. Jimmy Page only really used Les Paul's, and when he changed, still sounded like Jimmy Page.
Saw Lenny Kravitz a few weeks ago. His twiddly diddly guitarist used all sorts, but essentially sounded the same. But it is probably down to a guys feel for the particular track he is playing, and how it was recorded in the studio.
And of course, if you can afford a guitar tech to tune up between songs, you might as well play different ones.
Joni Mitchell (when she was still performing live) alternated guitars for almost every track, as her tunings were so obscure she let her guitar guy retune after each song. In her later years she used a Parker Fly and some nifty electronics to dial in a new tuning so she could continue with the same instrument.
But for most non professionals, I would suggest that it would be better to buy a pretty cheap guitar and spend any extra money on guitar lessons.
Or beer.

Phil

[Lordoftherings]

Hi Ian,

For different tunings is one reason.
For different sounds is another.
For showmanship is a third one.

All musicians are different.
Willie Nelson exclusively used the same guitar.
Some other rock musicians used several from their few hundred in their collection.
Folk singers generally used less guitars than rock musicians.

Joe is not alone at switching guitars for almost each song.
Not only each guitar has a unique sound, but it also has a different feel to it, how it feels in your hands and soul.

I played guitars for over 40 years now, and I owned several.

Bob

[Azazael1984]

Ultimately it is because he can, however certain songs need certain things.
Some songs will need a certain tuning for...

• lower the key of the song to make it easier for the singer
• Joe likes slide and likes to use alternate tunings
  
  or....
• some guitars suit certain songs better
• different bridges, tremolo, hardtail, b-bender, floyd rose
• broken strings
• doesnt like the feel of 'old' strings with live sweat
• endorsement deals... have to show face for that freebie...
• different pickups, woods, wiring, nuts,

There is lots of reasons

I own a fair amount of guitars myself and lots of people dont understand - guitar is an addiction!