Guitarist Joe Bonamassa shows us the guitars, amps and effects he is currently using onstage. In part one Joe shows us his signature Gibson Les Paul, his amp rig and pedalboard. www.musiciansfriend.com/
Is it not OK for a guitar player to be influenced by the likes of Eric Johnson? Damn... a lot of haters! The man can flat out play - he is genuinely passionate about guitar - has found his own niche and fan base - and doesn't let the music industry steer him wrong. Respect and nothing more Joe B! For all you saying "Eric Johnson wants his riffs back" - all I can say is thank god there are still guys around willing to dig into such a bag of riffs because most of the music biz today sucks major balls. Stop hating - Joe B is an animal!
if we take it like that 90% of us, guitar players, should be "sued" because we all took pentatonic liks from Eric Clapton...geez..what a world of haters we live in...and it's even worse now in 2020...
It's so interesting to see how much Joe has changed over the years, more calm, more "calculated", more profound, and down to the bone with his rig, he really perfected himself into only using guitars-amps and an overdrive. He really is the Blues phenomenon of his generation! So glad to be able to listen to his music!
I think Joe has a good public appearance,i have been following his career since i saw him at the age 15 or so when he played with Danny Gatton he has worked very hard to get where he is, I've seen him twice in the last 2 years and each show was absolute perfection i can't imagine what that must feel like to be able to do, so rock on Joe we love seeing you play with the world's best musicians
Technically speaking, probably the best guitarist I've ever seen. I've been to a dozen shows and I honestly can say, I've never heard Joe make a mistake. If you can see him at a guitar clinic with an acoustic guitar in his hands, you'll leave with your lower jaw scraping the floor!......Roy
I know Joe personally and he was always hyper. He moves constantly, talks nonstop and genuinely enjoys being the center of attention. I asked him to autograph my telecaster when he was about 22, and he practically wrote a whole paragraph on the back.
Saw him last night in Reading Pa. Absolutely stunning performance. I think this current tour with Joe and his band will go down in rock history as the greatest Rock/Blues tour ever. Best concert I've ever been too. And, I've seen them all. If you get a chance to see him don't miss it. It's history in the making.
saw joe a couple of nights ago. he was fantastic and so were the band. all musicians steal from others. so what? isn't imitation the highest compliment you can pay??
I get if you don't like his playing (although why you're on this video to begin with is beyond me) but why are people calling him a douchebag and an asshole? Joe has never been anything but genuine and nice in any video I've seen and in this one he happens to sound like a little kid talking about his toys. The world isn't made of sunshine and farts but why the fuck does everyone have to be so mean (not that he really cares) to a guy that does nothing but give back to the musical community.
Well said L; I bought an bonamassa album a few years back that I really didn't care for. Since then I've been soaking these videos up. The dude can play! I love he puts out a lot of videos, helping me to get back to the fretboard more often....keep them coming, Joe!
Not for nothing guys but when your in the spotlight you have to be open to critique. He definitely has incorporated some of EJ's style into his playing. To me it seems more recently, his older stuff doesn't seem to have as much EJ style. Most of us are guitar players here and we all feel strongly about our opinions and views. We should all keep an open mind to that and respect others thoughts whether we agree with them or not.
Love this guy. Great player, awesome attitude and he gets to do what he loves almost every night! I mean how awesome is that?! God bless you JB, God bless you
Hes the one who made the MXR Fet Driver happen: just bought 3 in a weeks time, the 3rd one black JB signature box!!! with a Strat its T H E JAZZ Pedal!!! every note just pure velvet!!!
This is a great interview / gear walkthrough and I've found it to be very informative and interesting. I'm only left wondering what, if any, effects from the pedalboard were used on the Marshal Silver Jubilee.
@BigDDe Well, RAH may have been a "precursor" as you said, but I was there in London sitting in the first row and it sure was one heck of a special night. Then Joe introduced Clapton and that pretty much put it over the top. That is, until he and his family came to a private party that I was at that was thrown in his honor after the show. That really was a great time! :)
See how when first fired up the fuzz face is smooth and a little articulate but as he rolls off the volume of the guitar it comes to life and really opens up and then its SUPER articulate. I probably would NOT run this pedal if I didn't run 2 distorted amps and 1 clean. My Ampeg Gemini for small shows will get cranked with a H and K tube factor run through it and NOW my other side is a Tweaker 15/40 and I have a marshall if it comes to it/ Either of those amps run the Fuzz face. Sounds amazing.
I'm surprised everyone is commenting over the past few months about a video from 5 years ago. If you're a musician, you'd understand people go through phases. He studies players and he was probably on an EJ fix that day. EJ was inspiring to him and everyone plays based on what inspires them. Not trolling. Not hating. Making a point that he sounded like that 5 years ago. He's probably different now. Famous or not, talented or not, take what you got from it and make your own.
+Sean Albertson You are right!!! I think,the time of the really great guitar-heros like Hendrix,E.Clapton,Rory Gallagher,Jeff Beck,John Mclaughlin is gone. I see no really good innovative guitarists of a new generation come. Maybe the time is over!!!
been playing guitar for about 3 years now but im fairly new to the world of effects - could anyone tell me wht type of foot pedal he's using to change wht amps are on. And how does he plug 4 amp heads in to 2 cabinets?? Thanks. JB's awesome :D
Hey any one know if the Epiphone J Bonamassa guitar is worth buying. It has the same pickups as the guitar on this video. Please anyone I wanna buy one, Thanks
Its really sad that hes not as popular as he is in Europe in America because he is really amazing. I just saw him live last week and it was the most amazing thing evar!!!! I love guitar and Joe Bonamassa's my favorite guitarist!! He ROCKS!!
100w Silver Jubilee. Can you get those in a 50w with the same basic tone? I just play in my bedroom and don't need 100w (in fact, 50w is probably too much)
Will someone please tell me the song/riff that is playing at the beginning before he starts actually playing those licks. I'm just getting in Joe and I think he really cool.
@stratocasterfranck The JBF3 were specially designed by George Tripps and Joe Bonamassa, Hand built, and Hand wired and the reason they put them out is they found a good size ration of the NOS russian Germanium transistors somewhere, probably some businesses storage units that lost them or something but they are the real deal. Had mine about 3 or 4 days now and I LOVE IT. Now with that said the average guitar player would probably not like it at all. It can be dark and not like you think.
@UberNoobtard Thanks for getting back to me :) so you can plug one head into two speakers? Then how do you plug all 4 in? Are there multiple sockets on the speakers? And if he uses one whirlwind for a and b, how does he change between the other two heads (theoretically, c and d)? Thanks
@beannie60 - He plays a lot of different guitars in a show so each of them works best with different Amp combos. Also some Amps 'clean up' better than others so for songs with quiet dynamics you use the one(s) that sound best with a clean tone or when you roll off the volume on the guitar. Unfortunately great tone doesn't come straight out of the box - if you take iconic sounds like Van Halen's 'brown' sound that involved rewiring the amp or Robin Trowers sound was down to custom pedals..
Joe Bonamassa is one of the greats. He has incredible execution ... He plays since he's a child .. This is dedication ... He's a master. If you don't like him or his playing ... could you tell me WTF are you here ??
olystercrowley why do you think Joe is one of the greats? A great has his own sound such as Eric Johnson who Joe cops quite well BUT it still is Erics riffs/style just a observation?
Badaxxe Well it's not Eric Johnson 100 % He admits that he picked some EJ along the way but he masters the blues and other styles. Do you really think Gibson would put out 3 signature models and that he'd fill the Royal Albert Hall if he was just a copy cat ? I don't think he has an impact as big as EVH, Jimi, or Page but he's a guitar master.
+Badaxxe to be fair, Clapton was one of Johnson's inspirations. So, Eric Johnson isn't 100% if you continue the additive that he's copping some of Clapton's phrases.
Joe is a good player but a guy like Guthrie Govan that hardly gets any press is one of the best new guitarists on the planet. Guthrie has his own "thing" Joe emulates others. I am here because Bonamassa has an incredible guitar collection and I am jealous!
Come on Gibson and Fender have so many signature models and there are way too many, the competition isn't like the 1960's early 70s when there were less than what I can count on my hands of quality guitar manufacturers! Gibson and Fender are NOT the same companies when the Original Les Pauls Strats, Teles, SGs,. ES series.Today everyone and their dog build good guitars.
@stratocasterfranck You hear it here and it sounds bright and full and rippin. Thats because he built it to go hand in hand with a mid gainey tube amp. It itself (fuzzface) Doesn't have a ton of fuzz or a ton of volume but it is buttery smooth tone from top to bottom. I run a multi amp rig anyway and have for years and this was what I was missing from my dirty side. On a clean amp it is pretty bland, on a well overdriven tube amp THATS EQ'D in the same ballpark..Words can't explain the sustain.
@whynottalklikeapirat I completely agree. Live, he is so much more blues based. Maybe he just likes the EJ style for these demos. But when I saw him live last month, I didn't hear a single one of these EJ licks.
stereo cabinet, Stereo mode separates the 4 speakers into 2 pairs. One head will work with one pair while the other head will work with the other pair.
Wow... such a lot of hate from a bunch of jealous non guitar players. Now THATS original (not). Joe sounds great, good tunes, always positive. Some of you should take a leaf outta his book
To all you folks that are way too critical of Joe Bonamassa and seem to have nothing nice to say about him, or at best you say he stole all his licks and tone from Eric Johnson, let me ask you this: Can any one of you play half as good as Joe? Would I want to spend $100 to come hear you play? Would I even want to spend $10 to hear you play? I'm 100% sure the answer from every single one of you should be "No." to all of those questions.
Joe makes a statement toward the end of this video say that views would say it all sounds the same. I guess its because experienced but i can tell a huge difference.
I can get all that on my Gt-10! Only joking, JB is obviously awesome, I just love at the end when he says you're gonna tell me it sounds the same but it feels different to me... spoken like a true guitar nerd and star.
