Brian Bell's equipment: Difference between revisions
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Bleed0range (talk | contribs) (New page: thumb|400px|The original (now stolen) '63 SG Melody Maker. '''Brian Bell's Equipment''' has gone through many changes over the years, this page exists to list in d...) |
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==Equipment History== | ==Equipment History== | ||
===1993 - Blue=== | ===1993 - Blue=== | ||
[[Image:Brian1993-SGMelodyMakerDetail.jpg|thumb|]] | [[Image:Brian1993-SGMelodyMakerDetail.jpg|thumb|A closer, more detailed shot of the SG.]] | ||
Brian joined the band in the fall of 1993, halfway into the recording of the Blue Album. Originally they attempted to get him to play the backup guitar parts that jason had originally laid down, but in the end there wasn't time to get them learned and re-done, so Rivers played the back up parts. So none of Brians equipment is present on the Blue album. Brian did sing the back up vocal parts on the album. At this point he was playing a red 1963 Gibson SG Melody maker. Anyway, Brian has said it was a '63, while some folks insist its a '66. in any case it had a very low 4 digit serial number (possibly #1030?) so it was old. The headstock was the early rectangular shape, which came before the more familiar curved style. The tremolo bar assembly was missing, but you'd never know it unless you knew it was supposed to be there. This guitar was all original except for the tuning pegs, which Brian had replaced with locking ones to help keep the thing in tune (which was an uphill battle). The pickups were the original ones, but what they were remains unknown at this writing ('hotrails' have been suggested, but perhaps they are recognizable fromn the picture below). He soon bought an extremely unreliable but awesome looking yellow Kapa "Challenger", a cheap 50's guitar, that was sort of a Fender Stratocaster copy. The thing was simply unsuited for live performance, and Brian later gave this guitar to his sister. I did some digging and learned the following: There is a 70's Kapa Challenger that looks like a big Rickenbacker, this is not it. There is also a: "USA Made (in Maryland) '63 or '64 model. Volume and tone along with 3-way selector. 2 double coil p/u's. Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. Has Jazzmaster like tremolo tailpiece, 22 frets. Cool kind of mini Strat solid body." That sounds right from my memory. | Brian joined the band in the fall of 1993, halfway into the recording of the Blue Album. Originally they attempted to get him to play the backup guitar parts that jason had originally laid down, but in the end there wasn't time to get them learned and re-done, so Rivers played the back up parts. So none of Brians equipment is present on the Blue album. Brian did sing the back up vocal parts on the album. At this point he was playing a red 1963 Gibson SG Melody maker. Anyway, Brian has said it was a '63, while some folks insist its a '66. in any case it had a very low 4 digit serial number (possibly #1030?) so it was old. The headstock was the early rectangular shape, which came before the more familiar curved style. The tremolo bar assembly was missing, but you'd never know it unless you knew it was supposed to be there. This guitar was all original except for the tuning pegs, which Brian had replaced with locking ones to help keep the thing in tune (which was an uphill battle). The pickups were the original ones, but what they were remains unknown at this writing ('hotrails' have been suggested, but perhaps they are recognizable fromn the picture below). He soon bought an extremely unreliable but awesome looking yellow Kapa "Challenger", a cheap 50's guitar, that was sort of a Fender Stratocaster copy. The thing was simply unsuited for live performance, and Brian later gave this guitar to his sister. I did some digging and learned the following: There is a 70's Kapa Challenger that looks like a big Rickenbacker, this is not it. There is also a: "USA Made (in Maryland) '63 or '64 model. Volume and tone along with 3-way selector. 2 double coil p/u's. Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. Has Jazzmaster like tremolo tailpiece, 22 frets. Cool kind of mini Strat solid body." That sounds right from my memory. | ||
