Great amp tones - Reference thread

[Sappy]

Hey guys,
I had an idea for a thread that might make a handy reference for some of us, and also might introduce some of us to some great stuff we've overlooked musically. How about a thread of music for tone reference?

For instance, I love the Matchless Clubman tone, so if I know of an artist I really enjoy listening to who uses it; or some great classic like EVH+Variac'd Marshall), I post that. Noting as much as you reasonably can about what is producing the tone in that particular clip. Sound clips, youtube clips... or heck just say "Listen to Dire Straits Sultans of Swing for the Jim Kelly amp tone" or "Listen to Tom Petty - Breakdown for great AC30 tone witha Rickenbacher guitar" etc.

I got this idea after being introduced to Rory Gallagher thanks to mention of him on AC30 thread on this site as I was lurking the other day. Finding something so great that I'd managed to overlook has been like Christmas day for my ears the past few days. (Thanks for that, whoever made that mention in that thread... can't recall at the moment!).

It might introduce some of us to some new artists and tones we'll enjoy like that Rory Gallagher mention did for me.... it might also serve as a nice reference in the future for those of us who haven't had the years, exposure, budget, and experience to play through every great amp out there from Tweed Fenders, Blackface Fenders, old Marshalls, old Vox amps, Matchless, Trainwreck, and many others. Likewise, it might help some of us learn what was used by a particular artist on a track we love the sound of... but don't know what he was using.

Some of my favs to kick this off, including a few very obvious ones just because they must be mentioned in any such discussion of good, definitive tube amp tone:

EVH
Equipment: PAF humbucker, 1959 Marshall Variac'd. (Much debate about finer details of how he got his tone though):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZTOskJha8c

Mark Knopfler: "Sultans of Swing" - Supposed to be using a Jim Kelly amp to record this track from what I've heard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo-J1wf2KHc

Ian Moore: "Blue Sky" from his bootleg '96 video, using a Matchless Clubman. Great song, and it's worth the time to track down the rest of the clips from Bootleg 96 if you want to watch a great show from a great guitarist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNbPCCy8d_Q

Nuno Bettencourt: "Cynical" - Well documented that he used an old Fender Vibroverb with every control dimed in the studio for the entire "Waiting for the Punchline" album. The studio had two of them, one had a preamp tube that was just slightly microphonic but had a "magic mojo" sort of effect on the tone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxhAptpgcrI

Ian Thornley of Big Wreck: He was using Matchless amps on their first album, I was lucky enough to see them at the House of Blues in Chicago, opening for Dream Theater. Bought this CD the very next day. I'm not sure which Matchless amp he used to record the album and tour with, but he was using a Matchless combo at the House of Blues, because I loved his tone so much that's also the night I started lusting for something Matchless. Might be a DC30, but I'm not sure. If anybody else knows more please chime in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbG4VJj3Cko

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: "Breakdown" Famous for his use of the AC30 and Rickenbacher guitars, of course.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jck--Pm3h0

[Sappy]

Aerosmith's Joe Perry - Walk this way

Article that discusses the song:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-aerosmi ... 1410275586

Joe's comments about his rig for that song:

Mr. Perry: "I wanted my guitar to sound like an electric razor. For "Walk This Way," I used a late-'50s Stratocaster Tobacco Sunburst with a stand-alone Ampeg V4 amp on top with a Marshall 4-by-12 speaker cabinet on the bottom. I also used a Gibson Maestro Fuzz-Tone to give the notes a little distortion. At some point, Steven suggested the double-kick drum, which gave us our trademark sound."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKttENbsoyk

[Sappy]

Interesting article on some classic tones from small amps, mostly Champs but Valco and Deluxes get a mention or two:

http://archive.gibson.com/en-us/lifesty ... orded-521/