Round Wound Strings and Jazz

[christianm77]

I don't think Metheny was able to roll off his tone much because he had a '58 175, and the tone controls on those things are largely ornamental (that's coming from an interview with him BTW, but my '68 doesn't have a huge amount of treble cut compared to a modern guitar....)

In any case, Metheny's tone is not lacking in treble. Most of his sound - I think - comes from where he picks and how he holds the pick. He sounds the same on an acoustic guitar (check out that album he did with Gonzalo Rubalcaba.)

(IMO budding Jazz guitarists BTW should be banned from touching their tone control until they have mastered right hand positioning. When they can do that, they may be permitted to EQ depending on the room, or if they have a 335, it's acceptable.)

[christianm77]

Off the top of my head, players younger than Pat with a non-Pat kind of sound:

Lionel Loueke
Julian Lage
Chico Pinheiro (influenced but much more aocustic and old-school in a way.)
Pasquale Grasso
Peter Bernstein (if he counts.)
Kurt Rosenwinkel

Any more?

[guido5]

Non-Pat sounding players
Miles Okazaki
Oz Noy
Nels Cline
Martin Taylor
John Pizzarelli

Also, to my ear, a lot of folks like Peter Bernstein, Lage Lund, GHex come out of Jim Hall rather than Pat Metheny. Guys like Russell Malone, Bobby Broom are from Kenny Burrell...

[jorgemg1984]

This discussion is way off-topic and not even in the right part of the forum. But I'll say 1) Metheny's tone on "Bright Size Life" is quite open, but on "Rejoicing" or "Question and Answer" is VERY dark and I would sat ir's quite hard to ahcieve without rolling the tone off. Lately, he seems to have found a middle ground, that I enjoy more. 2) I do think Kurt is a much bigger influence these days than Pat. Much, much bigger. But, as I said, not the right place

[christianm77]

This discussion is way off-topic and not even in the right part of the forum. But I'll say 1) Metheny's tone on "Bright Size Life" is quite open, but on "Rejoicing" or "Question and Answer" is VERY dark and I would sat ir's quite hard to ahcieve without rolling the tone off. Lately, he seems to have found a middle ground, that I enjoy more. 2) I do think Kurt is a much bigger influence these days than Pat. Much, much bigger. But, as I said, not the right place

I think Kurt is a HUGE influence conceptually on the present generation guitarists, but name me one player who sounds like him tonally. And I'm not talking about delay/echo.

Off topic? Do you hang out here much lol :-D

[christianm77]

Anyway, Roundwounds vs Flatwounds?

I've used both. When I have used rounds it's generally because I wanted a more acoustic sound, which is kind of how this thread is going. A mixed acoustic/electric sound

Interestingly, I chose rounds for a more EARLY jazz sound. Flats are very much the sound of the 1950s, so it's interesting that fashion has swung back to rounds. And I don't think it's just the influence of rock guitar.

That said, chord articulation really depends on the instrument. A laminate guitar will respond differently to a carved guitar, and a solid body or semi-acoustic is different again.

But I like experimentation in general, and using one's ears. No-one hears sounds exactly alike and that's why we all have different voices on our instruments.

That's it for tedious gear talk. Now let's get to talking about to the much more interesting off-topic music stuff! ;-)

[mr. beaumont]

"Ever since young Stiggs coming from that unfort'nt v'y'ge of his, when he was gone four years and a half, with only three barrels of ile, was found dead in my first floor back, with his harpoon in his side; ever since then I allow no boarders to take sich dangerous weepons in their rooms at night. So, Mr. Queequeg"(for she had learned his name), "I will just take this here iron, and keep it for you till morning. But the strings; FLATS or WOUNDS to-morrow for your guitars, men?"


"Both," says I; "and let's have a couple of smoked herring by way of variety."


Melville, Moby Dick, 1851