“I used [the Phenix 1954 Gibson Les Paul Custom] for the solo at the end of ‘Reckoner,’ ” Frampton says. “It’s all over the album, actually”
PETER FRAMPTON’S NEW album — brilliantly titled Frampton Forgets the Words — sees the British guitar legend tackling songs by Radiohead, Lenny Kravitz, George Harrison, and David Bowie, using his instrument to replace the well-known vocal melodies of the originals. As he explains, there’s an art to making the guitar talk. And he should know; it is, after all, what he’s been doing for decades.
One of the covers is “Isn’t It a Pity” from George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass, an album you played on. Harrison, along with Pete Drake, is sort of responsible — even indirectly — for introducing you to the talkbox.
That’s true. It’s on YouTube, actually, the audio from when Pete Drake put that tube into his mouth after setting it all up, and the pedal steel started singing to us. You can hear George talking and me laughing, I think. It was just jaw-dropping. When I first heard Stevie Wonder’s Music of My Mind, he was using The Bag, made by a company called Kustom, for background voices and ad-libs. I thought, “Now there’s a sound!” Then I heard Jeff Beck do a Beatles number [“She’s a Woman”] with it, and after that, I was sitting in front of Pete Drake at Abbey Road — and I see it. He completed the circle for me. And of course, the next thing out of my mouth was, ‘Where do I get one?’”
This story is from the July 2021 edition of Guitar World.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the July 2021 edition of Guitar World.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
KIM THAYIL
The mighty Soundgarden guitarist looks back on his most iconic riffs and solos, as well as the gear and tunings that guided him deep into the creative superunknown
ANDY BELL
The U.K. shoegaze pioneer discusses the recording of Ride's classic Nineties albums and his 10 years as a member of Oasis
MARC FORD
The respected SoCal guitarist explains why he chose the Black Crowes over Guns N' Roses - and how the Crowes' internal friction helped make them a compelling alternative to grunge
BRIAN VANDER ARK
Determined as he moves out of the shadow of his past, the guitarist recounts the origins of the Verve Pipe and the recording of a definitive Nineties anthem, \"The Freshmen\"
VERNON REID
From Vivid to Time's Up to Stain: How Vernon Reid's expressionist shredding juiced Living Colour through the grunge era
ART ALEXAKIS
The tenacious Everclear frontman/guitarist discusses the music, moments and \"dangerous\" amps that changed his life and maybe ours - in the Nineties and beyond
DAYS OF FUTURE PAST
The retro designs, digital innovations and misfit toys that defined guitar gear and technology in the Nineties
IT'S ALL A BLUR...
The rise and fall of Britpop, the Nineties' other massive, guitar-based movement
NEVERMIND NEVERMIND!
10 overlooked rock albums from the Nineties that are worth a second listen
A GRUNGY GUITAR GUIDE TO THE '90S
Guitar World