fbpx

Old Slow Hands


National Lampoon’s This is Spinal Tap (1984) is a mock-rockumentary that follows British rock band Spinal Tap as it endeavors to survive past its prime. In one of the film’s most famous scenes, the guitarist, Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest), explains a special feature of his amplifier to the documentarian. Both “Volume I” and “Volume II” nobs go all the way up to eleven. As funny as this is, it is not too far off from how some musicians like to play: loudly. Legendary blues-rock guitarist Eric Clapton is of this school of volume. As if straight from a scene in Spinal Tap, Clapton, while with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, reportedly told the sound engineer after a complaint that his amp was too loud in the studio that, “That’s the way I play.”

Born on March 30, 1945 in England, Eric Clapton is British blues-rock of the 60s and 70s. He was a pioneer guitarist of The Yardbirds, worked with Steve Winwood in Blind Faith, played in, and survived, the heartbreak that hit the members of Derek and the Dominos, and established Cream as a monster of a power trio. Clapton is a master of 12-bar Blues, a blues progression predominantly based on the I, IV, and V chords in a key. The lyrical structure of 12-bar is AAB, specific chords falling on each measure of the stanza. Each stanza is 12 bars. The Bo Diddely song “Before You Accuse Me,” famously covered by Clapton, is in the key of E. The I chord is E major, the IV is A major, and the V is B major.*

A (introduction of idea/situation):  

I                                                 IV                 I                I

Before you accuse me, take a look at yourself.

A (line repeats):

IV                                      IV                          I               I

Before you accuse me, take a look at yourself. 

B (new phrase, progresses the story/retort to A):  

V                                                                                          IV                                                         I I

You say I’m spending my money on other women, you takin’ money from someone else.

Writing 12-bar blues is not just investing in the structure and history of the form, but an appropriate emotion as well. Success in one’s songwriting is subjective, but objectively speaking, the structure of 12-bar should help convey emotion, not hinder it. Don’t force blue feelings on a structure that has the word “blues” in it. Perhaps the most sobering moment of Clapton’s career was the accidental death of his four-year-old son Conor in 1991. In what is one of the most memorable MTV Unplugged performances in 1992, Clapton performs a reworking of “Tears in Heaven,” the song written for Conor. In anticipation of the upcoming documentary about his life Eric Clapton: Life in 12 Bars, Clapton reveals in an interview with Rolling Stone that he didn’t write this as a blues song because there is an “anger and self-pity” to the blues that was not appropriate for how he felt. Sometimes 12-bar is not the way to go.

Guitar, for Clapton, is what he goes to in times of turmoil; it has always been a place of peace for him. Like many artists, Clapton went through a dark period in his career that sparked controversy and lead to sobriety: he kicked heroin in the 70s and alcohol in the 80s. Throughout this time he produced hit after hit: “Promises,” “Lay Down Sally,” “Layla,” not to mention his covers of “I Shot the Sheriff” and “Cocaine.” One of the great paradoxes of rock n’ roll is this idea of finding peace caught up in loud amps and speakers. Amps are, as amplifier professional Ritchie Fliegler writes, the other half of rock n’ roll.

Thanks to their popularity with mainstream musicians, Marshall amps have achieved notoriety among aspiring musicians. However, there are more amps out there than just Marshalls, as Clapton’s gear list shows. He’s used Selmer Futurama III; Vox AC-30; Fender Dual Showman; Fender Champ; Music Man; Soldano SLO-100; Cornell; Fender Custom Shop Tweed; and of course, Marshall. Like guitars, there are different makes and models of amplifiers, all with their own pros and cons.

Clapton used mostly tube amplifiers. A tube amplifier uses vacuum tubes to help boost the sound of the guitar. More volume into the tubes increases an overdrive effect, giving a natural, warm distortion. Quality tube amps tend to be more expensive and need more volume and power to get the natural distortion. The tubes have to be replaced every few years and are sensitive to warmth. This means the sound will change the longer the amp is on. Yet, it is this warm tone and flexibility of tube amps that make them so popular and ultimately why Marshall amps are employed so often. A decent Marshall combo tube amp costs about $600.

However, don’t be fooled by names when purchasing an amplifier. Clapton and other musicians who use name brands can afford top-of-the-line equipment—and a team of technicians and roadies who can lug around stacks of amps and speakers. The best thing to do if on a budget is to figure out the physical setting the amp will be in, and test the amplifier before purchasing it. In other words, don’t spend extra money on 250W amplifier if all you need is enough power to fill a small coffeehouse (about 140W). Solid state amps use transistors and tend to be cheaper. They don’t give off the tube amp tone and are not as musically flexible, but solid state amps are reliable. Solid state amps have their own sound. Compression and limiter pedals can never truly modify the sound enough to replicate a tube amp.

Hybrid amplifiers try to offer the pros of both the tube and solid state amps: warmth and technical reliability. Orange Micro Dark 20-watt has positive reviews and runs $189.00.

The fact is, it’ll be hard to find and afford what is now considered the “vintage” gear Clapton used—like his 1962 Marshall stacks—but if you want to achieve the Clapton tone, invest in a quality tube amp—and turn it up to eleven.