…and Save a Bundle
This cool post was submitted by WoodyTone reader and avid EVH tone-chaser Trev Morson. More about him and his band is at wolfscrossing.net.
How many of you want to own a new EVH Wolfgang but can’t afford the $3K asking price?

Human Voice-Emulating…
PremierGuitar.com had an article on its website titled “The Science of Tone.” Caught my eye, read it, turned out to be only semi-interesting. The bottom line of the article is that there really isn’t much of a science because it’s all in the ears of the beholder, and everyone’s ears are different. Duh.
Having said [...]

…and Three Van Halen Connections

Montrose, the 1973 self-titled debut album by the band of the same name, is one of those tone-pillar albums – “a pillar of tone that holds up the house of rock” (or pick a different metaphor). It likewise stands on its own as a monument of great tunes and great tone.
I [...]

Edward Van Halen has a new guitar and a new amp – new in the sense that they haven’t been recorded yet. Not sure if it’s a rumor, but conventional wisdom is that Van Halen will at least record a new album this year. Hopefully civil behavior and sobriety will win the day, and they [...]

In 1974, Edward Van Halen was 19 years old, a year out of high school. By that time he was already a monster – in fact, well before that according to people who were around in his high school years.
In September, we took a look at some of his – really Van Halen’s – super-early [...]

Bonzo! Alex!
When you’re pondering how to improve your tone and playing next year, think about this: It’s inspiring to play with a good drummer. You might play differently, you might be inspired to new heights in riff-dom and all that could change your tone – much of which is in your fingers anyway.

If you’re a diehard Van Halen fan, the only thing you know for sure is that no one can get “THAT” exact sound but Ed himself. Yes, some people’s fingers can sound like Ed’s and some people’s rigs can sound like Ed’s, but to put it all together….
You might swear it’s been done. If so, [...]

Plus Roger’s First Impression of EVH
Here’s the second part of my 3-part interview with founding Heart member Roger Fisher – who unfortunately for all of us hasn’t gotten his due over the years.
Although there’s no doubt, you can tell he’s a guitarist merely by the fact that he can recall his gear details from three [...]

If it’s worth getting to the bottom of this question – and, strangely, IMO it isn’t (assuming it’s possible) – comes the latest and maybe last unearthed fact in the “where did Edward Van Halen learn to ‘tap’?” question. (Not really tap, as those are harmonics. It’s right-handed hammer-ons, but no one uses that mouthful. [...]

Well, I guess it’s George Lynch week here at WoodyTone. Read this again yesterday and remembered that I forgot to note it at the time. Here’s George Lynch on Eddie Van Halen’s influence back in the day, from a Guitar Player interview (and other sources, below) – and remember that the “big three” players that [...]

I’ve been a Randy Rhoads fan ever since I heard the Blizzard of Ozz album. Many people can say the same thing.
I’ve read all the guitar magazine interviews (Guitar Player only?) with Randy, and while I can’t quote from them verbatim, I know the gist of his gear details. It also seems to me that [...]

For tone-heads, cheap video and the Internet came a few decades too late. So instead of having loads of video on pioneering rock bands who had real talent and real tone, we have only a few interviews, some of which might be gone and forgotten.
Luckily someone at the MetroAmp forum (I think…might have been a [...]

Did you see Edward Van Halen on the Two and a Half Men TV show last week? Naturally they left him until the last part of the show, but for Ed fans the wait was worth it – because Ed had a guitar in his hands and proceeded to whip off 10 or so seconds [...]