(ESP E-IIs, in particular, are awe-inspiring. I'd sort of taken it for granted that other guitars had that, and some did, but they cost more than these guitars do. I played a bunch of other guitars that cost about the same, looking for a lighter guitar with a trem bar and a Strat body, maybe some coil-splitting.I just couldn't find a guitar with those features, whose simple, basic clean tone, with no effects, was inspiring to me the way that Gibsons were, for $1K or so. That's one of the things that I love about them, chords make the whole thing seem to ring like I don't remember with my Studios and SG Standards (although I was even worse then, so that might be a factor). But Eddie has to come next - he changed guitar in a similar way.'įor additional information on guitar equipment and other professional audio gear, check out Loudwire's Quarantine Gear Guide: The Tools You Need for Creating at Home.Click to expand.Yeah, they resonate like crazy. 'I still don't think anyone's come close to Hendrix ever since. Next year, the group's due to join Motley Crue on a co-headlining stadium tour. Eddie Van Halen died at 65 in October 2020 Van Halen quietly disbanded after his death.įor Collen, EVH 'was the most important rock player after Jimi Hendrix, who was the first real guitarist,' he added. Hysteria brought Def Leppard monumental success in the late '80s with singles such as the aforementioned 'Sugar' and 'Animal,' not to mention 'Love Bites,' 'Rocket' and the title track. 'We put a DiMarzio in there and yeah, whenever you hear 'Animal' or any of those tracks on the radio,' Collen said, 'that's what you're hearing!' The musician continued, 'When I told him I had this beautiful Strat that I loved, he actually said, 'You know, you won't be happy until you've taken that pickup out and carved out space for a humbucker!' And I thought, Fuck! But I did it because Eddie told me to do it!' It was the main guitar I used later on the Hysteria stuff - whenever you hear anything on that record, it's probably that.' We were talking about guitars and I had this that my mum had gotten me for my 21st birthday. 'He was so humble, considering he was such a monster player. 'When I first met Eddie, it was on Van Halen's first British headline tour at the Rainbow in Finsbury Park, London,' Collen recalled. Interestingly enough, the benefit of making just such an equipment change was instilled in Collen by the Van Halen guitarist back in the day, when the pair initially encountered each other on the touring circuit.

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