Niel Young guitar sound - help!

[hdi]

Help! I have been trying to get the lead guitar sound from Niel Young's song "Cortez the Killer" from his Zuma album. I have a GT-6 and a Washburn DL-64. It seems like a pretty straight ahead sound, just some distortion and some occasional feedback but I can't seem to get it out of my setup. Oh, yeah, Laney amp....

Thanks!

Charlie

 

[M.Brane]

Neil uses his trusty Les Paul and Deluxe. It's one of those combos that creates a very complex tone if done right. The dark sound of the Paul and the midrange growl of 6v6's will be hard to emulate with your setup. Real easy to end up with mud.

 

[JohnWaynesTeeth]

Here's what you do -

Put some liquor in a brown paper bag next to your amp. Make your guitar strap as long as possible so your guitar is down at your knees. Fret your b-string at 5 and hold with your wrist real loosley. Drink some of the liquor. Get this crazy look on your face. Drink the rest of the liquor. Start your pick up at your ear and attack the strings repeatedly like you're killing some old man. Don't worry about fretting other notes, and don't worry if the open strings are ringing. Just keep killing that man for like 2 minutes. That, my friend, is a bad ass Neil Young solo.

 

[Lopp]

Also, tweak your tuning knobs to knock your guitar out of tune.

 

[Even]

These tips apply to any and all solos Niel Young plays in any song in assorted keys (only the other guys in the band actually play alternate keys). If you still have technical problems getting just the right sound... mic the cat as you slam her tail in the door.

 

[Tom Hicks]

Lest we drift away too far in parody,the Bigsby vibrato is a big part of the sound.As to Neal's impact as a soloist,anybody see the Dylan tribute in New York a couple years back?That was when Sinead O'Conner got booed off the stage in tears for her comments at the time about the Pope.
Anyway,all the big guys were there.When Neal Young did his number I was watching Clapton and George Harrison's faces in the background as he played his solo.They were clearly amazed and delighted at how (with minimal actual technique) he was wringing a very emotional performance out of that old guitar.By the way,in Buffalo Springfield days,Neil Young was the lead man and Steve Stills was the rhythm guitarist.

 

[JohnWaynesTeeth]

What Parody? That's the only style of solo I know how to play.

Actually, I like Neil Young alot. When I used to actually care about the MTV music awards, I remember when Neil Young came out with Pearl Jam and they did "Rockin' in the Free World." That was freakin' awesome. He definately puts all his soul into that one note, and he just keeps hitting it, and hitting it, and bending and letting that e ring on top of it, till that old man is dead.

Pete

 

[gibs]

Technique is everything ....and Neil has.....uh.....like.....uhhhh....a technique thing going on......


Yeah......that's it......


Clapton and Harrison were probably.....uhhh.......amazed........uhhhh.....at Neil's.......technique .....and stuff.........


Ok, I'm a sarcastic bitch, but I remember when Neil wrote and played such good songs as "I Am A Child".........and some great stuff on "After The Gold Rush)......


Some players evolve.....some don't....

Some just go into a hinterland of banality.....gibs

 

[hdi]

getting back on subject

By 'deluxe' I assume your refering to an amp? Is deluxe the manufacturer or model? Also, as far as Les Paul is concerened, a quick look as some of the pictures I have of Neil playing show him using, well, several types of guitars, although Les seems to be the most frequent. I'll try his website although now I heard is mostly just promos for his newest album.

 

[Tom Hicks]

Fender Deluxe,bigger than a princeton and smaller than a twin.His is a 50s model.His always has a box on top of the amp,perhaps one of those old stand-alone Fender reverbs.

 

[ruebarb]

it's worse then that

Old black is his main guitar with that tone...as it stands...I believe it had a Gretsch pickup in it...

And I understand that some of his effects (like his reverb) come from a sensitive unit that has to be left under the stage out of vibration's way.

I had Shakey (the biography) - maybe there's more in it when I get it back...

RB

 

[powderfinger]

Use your bridge pickup. Turn up the gain all the way on the amp...........to 11 so to speak. Neil gets his sound from volume, not gain, but the best way to emulate without burning out your ears is to overdrive the amp w/ gain rather than volume......a overdrive or compression pedal wouldn't hurt either.

 

[ozraves]

On Cortez, I play an old Electra MPC (Les Paul copy) plugged into a Music Man HD 150 head into a 412 GS cab. I use the neck pickup (a humbucker). The thing about Neil's playing is his understanding of the guitar and amp as one instrument. I think everyone after Hendrix forgot this connection except for Neil and Pete Townshend. You can overdrive the amp but the real sound is just the loudness of the amp interacting with the guitar. You play to avoid feedback essentially.

A loud amp with good distortion and a guitar with humbucker pickups are the minimum needed for the sound.

Steve
http://www.piemusic.com