SR: Maybe more than any other guitarist ever, you’re inextricably
linked to the Gibson SG? What was the evolution that brought
you to this particular instrument? AY I started playing on
banjos and re-strung them up with six strings. [But] an acoustic
guitar, an old bang up little ten-dollar job, that was probably
the first thing I started playing on. Me brother Malcolm got
a Hofner off of one of me other brothers and he got a Gretsch
and passed the Hofner on to me after much squabbling. It was
semi-acoustic and had all been packed with cotton. But I never
used to really take it as a serious thing; I just used to
fool around with it. When I was about 14 was when I really
started playing it seriously. I got an amplifier for about
sixty bucks that used to distort all the time. It was a Phi-Sonic.
After that I got out and got a Gibson SG that I played until
it got wood rot because so much sweat and water got into it.
The whole neck warped. I bought it second-hand, it was about
a ’67. It had a real thin neck, really slim, like a Custom
neck. It was dark brown. After about a year, you lose about
half the power in the pickups so you either get them re-wired
or put new ones in. Just ordinary Gibsons.
SR: Did these early instruments still have that tremolo arm
attached?
AY: They did but I took it off. I used to fool around with
them but you begin sounding like Hank Marvin.
SR: And why did you remain loyal to the Gibson SG for the
remainder of your career?
AY: It was light [weight-wise]. I’d tried the other ones,
Fenders, but you’ve really got to do a number on ‘em. They’re
great for feel but the wiring just doesn’t got the balls.
And I don’t like putting those DiMarzios and everything because
everyone sounds the same. All the other sort of Gibsons I
tried like the Les Paul was too heavy. Hip displacement.
When I first started playing with the SG there was nothing
to think about. I don’t know how this came about but I think
I had a lot thinner neck. Someone once said to me they [Gibson]
make two sized necks, one was 1 ½ and one was 1 ¼ and this
was like 1 ¼, thin all the way up. Even now I still look all
over and I still haven’t found one; I’ve been to a hundred
guitar shops and I found the same guitar [model] but with
different necks.
SR: Did you ever experiment with the Gibson SGs when they
were called Les Pauls [Eric Clapton’s graphically appointed
Cream-era guitar is probably the most famous representative
of this model]?
AY: Yeah, I had a really old one I bought, a 1962. But it
had a very fat neck; it was good to play but it felt heavier
than all the other ones. That’s why I stopped using it. And
when you’re running around a lot, it weighs you down.
SR: So from High Voltage on it’s always been the SG. Have
you ever tried using more modern types of instruments?
AY: Yeah, I tried a Hamer but I wouldn’t buy an expensive
guitar – especially in my case. It’s always getting beaten
around. With the SG, you can do plenty of tricks with them.
SR: And you’ve been faithful to Marshall amplifiers as well?
AY: Ever since I’ve been in this band I’ve been using Marshalls.
I’ve tried Ampeg and they weren’t too good for the sound I
wanted.
On stage I have four stacks going, all hooked up with splitter
boxes. 100-watt stacks … it’s good for your eardrums. I use
a real lot of volume, I turn that up; I turn the treble and
bass on about half and middle, the same. I don’t use any presence.
If I don’t think it’s putting out enough top, I will kick
up the presence.
With Marshalls, if you’re using a fair bit of volume, if
you whack the treble and bass at half, that’s where they’re
working. We get them from the factory, that’s what we do.
We go down there and try them out and fool around with amps
and tell them what we want and they doctor them up. At the
moment, they’re all back to the old style of Marshalls, they’re
very clean. They don’t have these master or preamp settings.
SR: You have entered the modern age of electronics in your
use of a wireless system.
AY: Yeah, I use the Schaffer-Vega. I’ve been using that since
’77. On the receiver you’ve got like a monitor switch you
can boost the signal and in the transmitter you’ve got the
same sort of thing. You can really give a guitar hell with
‘em. I have used the remote in the studio and it worked really
good. I don’t believe I’ve ever had a wah-wah or a fuzz box.
It’s just the guitar and the amp and if I need anything, if
someone says they want a different approach to the sound,
then I’ll get it with the guitar.
About The Author
Steven Rosen is a Rock Journalist. Since 1973 he has accumulated
over 1000 hours of audio content and 700 articles and interviews...all
now available for licensing or purchase.
