january 2012

With 1978’s Some Girls—one of the Stone’s biggest-selling studio albums—and its resulting US tour, the band reconnected with their gritty, groovin’, and brash roots.

The Rolling Stones
Some Girls Live in Texas '78
Eagle Rock Entertainment

During the mid ’70s, the Stones had lost much of their raunchy, charismatic zeal. They had released Goat’s Head Soup, It’s Only Rock ’n’ Roll, and Black and Blue—albums that were commercially successful, but tepidly received by critics who claimed the rockers had become stale and predictable compared to the punk and disco music that had taken over the airwaves. However, with 1978’s Some Girls—one of the Stone’s biggest-selling studio albums—and its resulting US tour, the band reconnected with their gritty, groovin’, and brash roots. Here again was the group that first swaggered out of London in the late ’60s and early ’70s, and the album’s songs and attitude restored the lads to their rightful place in rock ’n’ roll royalty. This rowdy energy powers the DVD and Blu-ray concert film Some Girls Live in Texas ’78.

The action starts with a burning cover of Chuck Berry’s “Let It Rock” and an equally overdriven rendition of Exile on Main St.’s “All Down the Line.” On the latter, Keith Richards uses a ’50s blonde Tele, although for most of the concert he relies on a black ’75 Telecaster Deluxe driving a Mesa/ Boogie Mark I. From there, Live in Texas offers up blistering takes on “Tumbling Dice,” “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” and “Star Star.” During the latter, Mick Jagger ad-libs “Jimmy Page is quite the rage, I couldn’t see the reason why.”

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In essence, the Tone Hammer 500 is based on Aguilar’s popular Tone Hammer pedal, combined with a class-D power amp.

What is the Aguilar sound? To some ears, it is a unique combination of vintage warmth and modern clarity. And since 1995, bassists of all styles have relied on Aguilar gear, both onstage and in the studio. The evolution of Aguilar’s creations began with their renowned DB680 preamp and the DB728 power amp. This all-tube duo would establish the foundation for future Aguilar amplifiers, from the mighty DB750 (now upgraded to the DB751), to Aguilar’s latest offering, the Tone Hammer 500.

Tools in the Forge of Bass Tone
In essence, the Tone Hammer 500 is based on Aguilar’s popular Tone Hammer pedal, combined with a class-D power amp. The amp’s rugged exterior protects a clean and well-organized interior, ensuring that the Tone Hammer 500 could certainly handle an accidental drop.

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What’s remarkable about the EC Twinolux is how, like so many great Fender amps, it can be a beautiful blank slate for anything.

Fender’s relationship with Eric Clapton has been fruitful beyond the clout that comes with comfy star associations. As anyone who has played a good Clapton signature Stratocaster can attest, the dividends are musical too. Until this point, however, Fender’s relationship with Clapton, or any of their high-profile player endorsees, has been about guitars—an odd situation given that Fender’s amps nearly rival the company’s 6-strings in terms of historical importance.

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