The Late Great Danny Gatton

[ben_brown]

I've seen this guy play so many times....from backyard parties to formal concerts.
No one could ever touch his abilitiy and style...living or dead....Enjoy...








You see there was really nothing that Danny couldn't play....

[charlyg]

Interesting! He plays blues on a Tele, and the country piece on a Paul!

Not many Blues guys on Telecasters....

[winston]

Not many Blues guys on Telecasters....

IIRC Jeff Beck started off in the big leagues with a Tele, so did Clapton. See what I dug up on the net that supports my notion about Eric.

ERIC CLAPTON’S GEAR SET UP

Clapton began his stint with the Yardbirds playing Fenders, but then switched to Gibsons, which he played during his Bluesbreakers, Cream and Blind Faith days (and he played George Harrison's Les Paul on the Beatle's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps.") Sometime around 1970 he switched to the Fender Stratocaster® and hasn't stopped playing Strats ever since, although he still sometimes plays Gibsons.

Yardbirds:
Guitar: Fender Telecaster®
Amp: Vox AC-30

Bluesbreakers:
Guitar: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard.
Amp: 1962 Marshall 2X12 45-watt combo. (output tubes changed to KT66's)

Cream:
Guitars: 1959 Les Paul Standard (stolen 1966 or 1967), 1964 Gibson Les Paul SG
Standard, Gibson ES-335, Gibson Firebird.
Amps: Two 100-watt 1959 Marshall heads, two 4x12 cabinets. Settings: volume, treble, bass, and presence all on highest setting; guitar controls turned up all the way. Sometimes he used both stacks (guitar plugged into both with a Y-splitter cable), and sometimes just one. Amps were known to have broken down several times during concerts.

To achieve the Cream "woman tone," Clapton turned the tone all the way down on either the bridge or neck humbucking pickup, turned the volume all the way up, and used heavy strings, with a bass-heavy amp turned all the way up, and the wah-wah pedal at three-quarters back from the forward position.

Effects: Vox wah-wah pedal, fuzz pedal.

[ben_brown]

Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin started with a Telecaster.

[winston]

That's true Steve. Not that I believe that I am in the league of those mentioned, but I play blues on a beautiful 62 RI Tele as well. They are extremely versatile guitars.

[ben_brown]

I agree.

[peewee]

I saw Danny a number of times as well; you could always tell the guitar players from the rest of the crowd - they were the ones with their jaws on the floor! Phenomenal musician and very missed here by all those that played with or knew him.

As for people who play or have played Blues on a Telecaster, here's just a few -

Gatemouth Brown
Mike Bloomfield
Roy Buchanan
Jimmie Vaughan
Muddy Waters
Rick Holmstrom
Albert Collins
Arlen Roth
Bob Margolin
Johnny Winter
Kid Ramos (Esquire)
Jim Weider
Lonesome Sundown
Tom Principato
Kenny Neal
Duke Robillard
B.B. King (Broadcaster)
Carl Weathersby
Brewer Phillips

[captsandwich]

What's that line in the movie Crossroads (starring the embodiment of the blues, Ralph Machio)
'Muddy Waters invented electricity' and Ralph starts playing a Telecaster.

[charlyg]

I was just trying to say very few use it as the main axe. A lot of folks have used it and moved on. Albert Collins for sure!

[tamborineman]

If I could only pick three guitar players in the history of electric guitar Danny Gatton would be one of them. Simply brilliant!
What is it about these special talents that bring out the devil

P.S. Charly...Tele...try it you'll like it!

[leftybass]

Both Danny and Roy Buchanan were kind of 'local boys' in our neck of the woods (DC area), and now they are both gone. Two of the greatest that ever played a note on the electric guitar.

[ben_brown]

Both Danny and Roy Buchanan were kind of 'local boys' in our neck of the woods (DC area), and now they are both gone. Two of the greatest that ever played a note on the electric guitar.

And strangely enough they both took their own lives!

[kenposurf]

Albert Collins played a Tele also..
Danny was great...I have some live tracks he did with Robert Gordon that smoke!
Would have been interesting to see Danny and Jeff Beck play together.
R.I.P. Danny G