The ENWorld Electric Bard Gear (Etc) Thread

[R_J_K75]

You don’t get a rep as a hot, in-demand songwriter without making significant contributions to the stuff you’re credited with.

I know who he is, but I haven't followed his career. I'm not questioning or demeaning the guy's talent, but I do wonder what contributions he made to the songs he co-wrote. Looking at his Wikipedia page there is a long list of songs he co-wrote; above that list is a link titled songs written by Desmond Child, but when you click on those individual links (at least the 10-15 I looked at) there are other people with writing credits on them. I'm asking because I honestly don't know, was/is he typically brought in by record labels to help artists write songs, or is he sought out by the artists themselves? I just find his comment odd seeing as it appears the closest he came to working with any grunge artists was with Weezer in 2010 and 2022 (well after the decline of the grunge genre) according to his Wikipedia page.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I know who he is, but I haven't followed his career. I'm not questioning or demeaning the guy's talent, but I do wonder what contributions he made to the songs he co-wrote. Looking at his Wikipedia page there is a long list of songs he co-wrote; above that list is a link titled songs written by Desmond Child, but when you click on those individual links (at least the 10-15 I looked at) there are other people with writing credits on them. I'm asking because I honestly don't know, was/is he typically brought in by record labels to help artists write songs, or is he sought out by the artists themselves? I just find his comment odd seeing as it appears the closest he came to working with any grunge artists was with Weezer in 2010 and 2022 (well after the decline of the grunge genre) according to his Wikipedia page.

I don’t know his particular business story, but songwriters are often- but not always- record company employees. But if you’re a hot enough writer, you don’t need a label- people will seek you out. That’s what happened with people like Babyface, Nike Rodgers, Lady Gaga, Michael Bolton and others.

That said, the main ways writers and musicians connect are:

1) the musician needs help and asks for it
2) the songwriter has something cool and seeks out someone to perform it
2a) the songwriter writes a song for someone in particular, and tries to get them to perform it
3) a producer or other executive has an idea, and puts his chosen songwriters & musicians together.
4) the writer & musician happen to meet and form a partnership. This most often happens within the context of a band.

FWIW, the most amazing example in the 3rd category was the partnership of Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Both had been signed to a label, but neither had really done anything notable. Then one executive decided to pair them up, and they just clicked.

 

[R_J_K75]

I don’t know his particular business story, but songwriters are often- but not always- record company employees. But if you’re a hot enough writer, you don’t need a label- people will seek you out. That’s what happened with people like Babyface, Nike Rodgers, Lady Gaga, Michael Bolton and others.

That said, the main ways writers and musicians connect are:

1) the musician needs help and asks for it
2) the songwriter has something cool and seeks out someone to perform it
2a) the songwriter writes a song for someone in particular, and tries to get them to perform it
3) a producer or other executive has an idea, and puts his chosen songwriters & musicians together.
4) the writer & musician happen to meet and form a partnership. This most often happens within the context of a band.

FWIW, the most amazing example in the 3rd category was the partnership of Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Both had been signed to a label, but neither had really done anything notable. Then one executive decided to pair them up, and they just clicked.

A few examples I saw on that list musicians he worked with, being Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Kiss, and Bon Jovi at certain points seemed to be looking to revitalize their careers, and then there were artists in the last decade or two where it appears he may have worked with artists looking to start or were in the formative years of their careers. Probably in those cases a bit of 1 and 3 in your examples. I was surprised to see Weezer on his list of credits, so probably example 4 on that one.

Another partnership that comes to mind is Meatloaf and Jim Steinman, which ironically the latter didnt work on Bat Out of Hell III which Child produced.

 

[R_J_K75]

Chris Cornell wrote this song sitting in a Toronto, Ontario, Canada hotel room. Total "A Clockwork Orange" vibes from the video
And you got Cornell playing a Supro and Thayil playing a Tele...Atypical....

 

[R_J_K75]

So, I'm on a wah kick lately. Looking for 1, maybe 2 to put on the not so new pedalboard I've been working on. I got a Crybaby mini self-returning model, and it sucks. The kicker is that you cant leave it open in the heel position to get that filter effect that Slash does quite well I might add. So that ones out.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that this pedal was discontinued for about 30 years. I owned this old Ibanez Wah years ago. This is the model that Jon Fruciante plays. Story goes that he ran out of them because he'd break them from use, he played no other model of wah. His guitar tech says to him, let me make a phone call I might know someone that has a couple. They get in the car and pull up at the foot of a Hollywood driveway. Out comes Edward Van Halen with 3 of them, "Here you go man". RIP

Sorry I got lost in my own brain, anyhow, I think Im going with the Boss and the Ibanez wah on this borad. Putting a Raviah Sitar on it too, going to have to bone up on my modes. I can barely say Mixolydian let alone play it

Old Ibanez Wah

New Ibanez Wah

Boss PW-10 V Wah

Hilarious - Drunken EVH v. Limp Bizkit

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I’m not much of a wah guy…but I own two.

I had an idea for an original composition that- as I heard it in my mind- absolutely required a wah. So I set about shopping for one. Ultimately, I settled on a T.Rex Gull wah, for a variety of reasons. Problem was, by the time I found the product, it was discontinued. I found 2 websites selling their final ones. I ordered one…but couldn’t tell if my order went through. I tried again, but it was gone. Their website had automatically updated their inventory, but I STILL couldn’t tell if I had been the purchaser or some else. So I ordered the one from the other website.

They both arrived on the same day.

Thing is, I’ve never even taken either of them out of the box! So unfortunately, I can’t say if it’s parkable.

And the cherry on top: a short time after retirement of The Gull, T.Rex released the Shafter wah, which, AFAICT, is the identical pedal but in a more traditional appearing housing*.

All that said, one of my axe-slinging friends has a Fulltone Clyde that he loves, and one of his main methods for using it is in a parked position.





* just saw a comment on another thread in which someone at T.Rex said the Shafter is based on the Gull, but isn’t identical. Didn’t illuminate anything further.

 

[R_J_K75]

They both arrived on the same day.

Isnt that always the way things work out? Never heard of that brand of Wah pedal.

 

[TarionzCousin]

All that said, one of my axe-slinging friends has a Fulltone Clyde that he loves, and one of his main methods for using it is in a parked position.

What does that sound like?

Or, alternatively, why?

 

[R_J_K75]

What does that sound like?

Or, alternatively, why?

I can't attest to the sound of that particular wah but when you leave a wah pedal "open" in the heel position it adds a filter sound, it's hard to explain but kind of a whooshing sound without the delay or regeneration that you get with a delay, flanger or any other modulation or time-based effect.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

What does that sound like?

Or, alternatively, why?

He’s primarily a classic rocker, and when he described it to me (we live hundreds of miles apart), his main compliment was its parked wah sound. But I haven’t heard one in person.


And most reviews of it are relentlessly positive.

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Wah Pedals: Discuss

So I've kinda decided I am interested in a wah pedal. Now, in the past, I've used Crybabies, old Morleys and a Vox wah. They've all been... fine, I guess. While they all "wah," they also all suck tone when they're not on (I know, I know--true bypass mods are no big deal), and the pots tend to get...

forums.musicplayer.com

Hell…all this talk about the Clyde is making me want to get one.