What Songs Do You Associate with that Brand of Guitar?

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I'm an acoustic player, so I know nothing of this, but...

I always associated "Sultans of Swing" with a Les Paul, since that's what I've always seen Mark Knopfler play, even though I never played one.

Having owned a Stratocaster and a Telecaster, and playing a Les Paul at length today for the first time, I think that that "Sultans" sound is probably a telecaster on the middle setting.

So what is that "Strat" sound? What is that LP Sound? What is that tele sound?

What are the seminal guitar riffs you associate with guitar sounds?

(I know it's a little impossible, but I'd like to keep this focused on guitars and not amps).

TIA.
 
When I think of plain black LPs I think bland punk rockers.
When I see LPs in gold with white binding I think early classic rock.
When I see a red LP with black pickguard, I think Jimmy Page and "whole lotta love".

When I see bright color strats I think surf music.
Old worn-out paint faded strats made me think of white bluesmen like Stevie Ray and Kenny Wayne Shepard.

Most people think country when they see a Tele, and I do too when its tobacco sunburst. But having played a couple over the years I realize its quite versatile, nearly as much as a strat. Its very hard to define the Tele sound for me. You couldnt do the metal sound with it, but I have seen/heard it used in rock settings quite originally.
 
goodbyebluesky said:
When I think of plain black LPs I think bland punk rockers.
When I see LPs in gold with white binding I think early classic rock.
When I see a red LP with black pickguard, I think Jimmy Page and "whole lotta love".

When I see bright color strats I think surf music.
Old worn-out paint faded strats made me think of white bluesmen like Stevie Ray and Kenny Wayne Shepard.

Most people think country when they see a Tele, and I do too when its tobacco sunburst. But having played a couple over the years I realize its quite versatile, nearly as much as a strat. Its very hard to define the Tele sound for me. You couldnt do the metal sound with it, but I have seen/heard it used in rock settings quite originally.
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Thanks for the quick response. I'd like to point out that a lot of what you said has to do with what you see, not what you hear.

When I see a Tele, I think Bruce Sprinsteen or the Clash (Joe Strummer), but I'm a bit older than you (31 this year). It's interesting that a strat would remind you of surf music (for me it's the Jaguar that I associate with surf as well as K. Cobain, of course); brightly colored strats scream Robert Cray to me, if anyone.

But the way the visual differs from the actual sound is what I'm getting at here.

The part I colored that you finished with really gets at what my post was about, that guitars can surprise you if you go by music videos and concert footage.

I have always seen Knopfler with a Les Paul (not that I've seen him a whole lot, but he's a guitarist that plays a LP that has a style closer to mine than, say, Slash or Jimmy Paige, who also played LPs). But hearing the difference made me realize that, no, maybe that Sultans sound comes from a different beast altogether, a single coil Fender.

So, now, close your eyes, pretend (I know it's impossible) that you never saw the video. Or the guitarist.

So, tell me, what guitar plays the lead in "Wonderful Tonight"? "Layla"? "Sultans of Swing"?

(I picked these examples because I think they're all different, they have no videos I know of, and the guitar is pretty clean, so amp sound can be negligible).

Do you have better examples of that "fundamental" sound for any of these monster brands?
 
Great thread so far.

Listen to Comforably Numb, and just try to imagine any guitar other than a strat. If you can you're hallucinating.

As for a Tele, Tom Petty.
 
Valley Arts Kid said:
Listen to Comforably Numb, and just try to imagine any guitar other than a strat. If you can you're hallucinating.
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Ahhh. That's a good one. I admit little knowledge of TP, but, yes, Comfortably Numb = Strat.

Thanks.
 
Sultans of Swing is 'THE STRAT' sound.

Theres no other guitar that sounds like that.And certainly not a LesPaul. Money for Nothing....LesPaul fer sure Everything else is a Strat except the newer stuff which is probably a custom-shop Valley Arts.
 
Layla...Fender Strat...well..anything Clapton did, I automatically associate with a Strat...so that isn't using the ears...but association.:D
 
Sultans Of Swing, that's about as close to a classic Strat sound as you are likely to hear.
 
cavedog101 said:
Sultans of Swing is 'THE STRAT' sound.

Theres no other guitar that sounds like that.And certainly not a LesPaul. Money for Nothing....LesPaul fer sure Everything else is a Strat except the newer stuff which is probably a custom-shop Valley Arts.
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Yep, that's the correct answer.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...PG/411px-MarkKnopfler_060528_P5280036a_jm.JPG

And as far as I recall, there was a live version of the Sultans of Swing from the time it came out - I don't have the DVD of all the videos with me, but my brother has it... perhaps I'll try and nab it and make sure :D
 
The epitome of the Les Paul sound to me are riffs like Heartbreaker and Whole Lotta Love. Page just embodied the Les Paul bridge pickup sound.

The strat neck pickup sound to me is Stevie Ray Vaughn. If I ever want to tell a non-musician what a Strat sounds like, I point them to SRV.

The Strat bridge pickup is Jimi Hendrix doing Voodoo Child. That's totally Strat + Marshall.

The Gibson SG sound is owned by Angus Young. That's totally SG + Marshall.

The Tele sound is Keith Richards. If you ever want a reference point for a Tele, pick a song off of Exile On Main St. Or more recently, the song Start Me Up.
 
bpr103 said:
I'm an acoustic player, so I know nothing of this, but...

I always associated "Sultans of Swing" with a Les Paul, since that's what I've always seen Mark Knopfler play, even though I never played one.

Having owned a Stratocaster and a Telecaster, and playing a Les Paul at length today for the first time, I think that that "Sultans" sound is probably a telecaster on the middle setting.

So what is that "Strat" sound? What is that LP Sound? What is that tele sound?

What are the seminal guitar riffs you associate with guitar sounds?

(I know it's a little impossible, but I'd like to keep this focused on guitars and not amps).

TIA.
Click to expand...
I'm convinced he used a Strat on that. He lived local to me before they made it big with the re-release of Sultans of Swing. Can't for the life of me remember the exact model just that it was red!! but it was an early one had a very distinctive sound live as well. I remember the live video as well and that was the guitar I remember him playing at the time. We supported them once on a small pub gig before they hit the big time. My best mate reversed into his car and did quite a bit of damage we were never asked back:mad: To think what might have happened.:rolleyes:

Boy do I feel old now that was in the seventies.
 
I've always associated a lot of the guitar tones on "Sultans Of Swing" with classic, switch position-2 and position-3 strat tones . . .

Paj
8^)
 
If I want to show somebody what a Les Paul can do I go to The Allman Brothers "Live At Fillmore East" That's as Les Paul as it gets.

Some nice LP work in "Carry On Wayward Sun"

"I'd Love To Change The World" by Alvin Lee, or "Crossroads" by Cream, showcase the Gibson ES-335 series nicely.

Signature Strat work on "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Up On Cripple Creek" by The Band

For a Telecaster I'll go with "Soul Man", "Amos Moses" by Jerry Reid, "Rock The Casbah", "Ohio" by the Pretenders, and "Gimme Shelter"
 
AC/DC simply wouldn't be AC/DC without the SG. all i can picture is that tiny little guitar sounding so huge. especially live.

a lot of them are pretty obvious....jimi and the strat, or clapton with the strat. tele and country music, although i agree that thats not so true anymore.

i'll never forget matt belamy of muse's crazy guitars. theyre pretty sweet.

also rivers cuomo played a hideous strat with humbuckers. a medium bright blue with a brown tortoise pick guard. ugly as hell, but he always had a unique sound that ive always enjoyed.

Adam
 
Any Jimmy Page stuff sounds like classic Les Paul tones--although the first Led Zepplin album was all done with a Telecaster-so you know those tones are in his hands for the most part.

Jeff Beck can do stuff on a Strat or a Tele that can sound like its from another planet.

For a couple of classic tones from 2 guitars, check out the lead guitar on the Cars song 'Shake it up'. Elliot Easton used a Tele for the first part with some 'chicken pickin' then an SG for the 2nd part with classic humbucker tones.

Randy Bachman used a Gretsch quite a bit on the Guess Who's tunes like American Woman and numerous others-theres a distinctive tone!

Still though the player's hand hold most of the magic~;)
 
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An SG always makes me think of Angus. Les Pauls make me think of Slash although there's only a gazzilion others that it could remind me of.

Strats? Why Stevie Ray of course. Oh, and that black dude who played one upside down. What was his name again?
 
Telecaster:
Anything put out on Stax-Volt labels in the 60s
Anything with James Burton
SG:
"Summertime Blues" by either Blue Cheer or the Who
Strat:
"All Along the Watchtower" by Jimi Hendrix (or anything else he did--but his whammy bar technique on this song is phenomenal)
Ric 360/12 or 370/12:
Anything by Jim/Roger McGuinn
Ric 325:
early John Fogerty (up to the "Green River" album--after that he switched to a Les Paul)
 
Strat - Charles Hardin Holley (Buddy Holly) - the king of the strat sound then Jimi hendrix the king of the strat effected to allgetout sound.
Les Paul - Les Paul then Paul Kossoff
SG - Don't know - no one seems to have stayed with one too long.
tele - I always think of Loose Windscreen & Born to run - not a good answer but an honest association.
 
Sirnothingness said:
An SG always makes me think of Angus. Les Pauls make me think of Slash although there's only a gazzilion others that it could remind me of.

Strats? Why Stevie Ray of course. Oh, and that black dude who played one upside down. What was his name again?
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You're not talking about Albert King are you? Because he played a Flying V. Are you thinking of Eric Gales?
 
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