Facing a mandatory shelter-in ordinance to limit the spread of COVID-19, PG enacted a hybrid approach to filming and producing Rig Rundowns. This is the third video in that format, and we stand behind the final product.
In this episode, fast-picking singer/songwriter Cory Branan virtually welcomes PG’s Perry Bean into his home where he covers the iconic guitar staples (Tele, Strat, SG) in his quiver, explains the bliss of playing a one-off creation built by 3rd Power’s Dylana Nova, and illustrates what pedals have proven to be utilitarian and inspirational.
If you’ve seen Cory on an amplified gig in recent years, you’ve probably seen him bend the strings on this 1993 Fender American Vintage ’52 reissue Tele. Some surgeries on the T have stuck, others have not. The pickups were upgraded to Lindy Fralin Blues Special Tele models and he added a 5-way wiring scheme that gives him the three standard Tele slots, an out-of-phase Strat setting, and setting that runs the neck pickup through an Orange Drop capacitor that cuts off about 10 percent of the bass. Carter Vintage in Nashville placed jumbo frets on the neck. At one point, Cory opted for a Bigsby, but it finagled too much with the old-school “ashtray-style” bridge and he felt it lost some of the Tele magic, so he reversed the procedure. And possibly its coolest spec, his deceased Father paid for half the instrument.
Next up is Cory’s Nash S63 that has an alder body and maple neck. It’s stock, but he does vow that one day it will have a tortoiseshell pickguard like the in the Fine Young Cannibals video for “She Drive Me Crazy.”
The third staple in his stash is this 2000 Gibson Pete Townshend SG Satin Cherry that had the Vibrola tailpiece removed, but the first owner swapped out the original pickups for a set of P-90s from the early ’50s.
After losing a beautiful Bourgeois flattop to a 30-foot fall from a plane’s cargo bay (watch the video at 14:49), Cory was gifted a Martin OM-28 Authentic 1931 by friend and fellow picker Jason Isbell. Cory loves to fight with his guitars, but since this model doesn’t have a truss rod, he’s had to use only light-gauged strings to remove any unnecessary tension on the neck, so it doesn’t move or bow.
While guitars have and will continue to come in and out of Cory’s life, his search of tube tone is over thanks to Dylana Nova at 3rd Power. Based on her Clean Sink platform, Cory’s souped-up requests included more power (original Clean Sink maxes out at 28 watts whereas this one hits 40 watts) and he wanted a switch that toggled between blackface and brownface voicings on top of the blendable American and AC (with optional boost) voicings. The single speaker of the mean machine is an American-made 12" Warehouse Guitar Speaker Green Beret.
Here are Cory’s go-to settings on his custom 3rd Power Clean Sink (notice the added brown/blk toggle in between the volume and voicing knobs).
Cory plays electric sets in a trio, a hybrid set with acoustic and electric ensembles, and sometimes he’ll just go full busker and hit the stage with just an acoustic. Whatever may come up, if he has an acoustic in his hands, trust that he’s going through this Grace Design FELiX 2 Channel Mic Preamp.
Just like change of a season, Cory’s board is always fluctuating. His current pedal lineup includes an unknown Klone, a Benson Preamp, a Lumpy’s Tone Shop 7 Series Overdrive (company is now called Electric Majik), a pair of Blackstrap Electrik fuzzes—an angry custom 3-knober and a Red Sam MkI Tone Bender (both off board but in chain), and a Prescription Electronics C.O.B. (Clean Octave Blend). Off the board he has a Dunlop DVP3 Volume Pedal, an Analog Man Buffer cleans the signal, a TC Electronic PolyTune 2 Mini keeps his guitars in check, a Strymon Zuma juices the stomps, and the Boss ES-5 Effects Switching System gets everything on the same page.
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Perry Bean cut his teeth touring and playing in punk rock and hardcore bands, before he got his start in film. He worked his way up from lowly production assistant to become a producer, art director, and most recently, a music video director nominated for ACM, CMT, and CMA awards. Being Premier Guitar's Chief Videographer was a perfect fit for him, combining his two favorite things—guitars and cameras. Perry doesn't have free time, but his massive dog Beef pays his rent by being Perry's intern.
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