Recently, supergroups
have been springing
up like it’s the late
’70s again. Them
Crooked Vultures
(Dave Grohl, Josh
Homme, and John
Paul Jones) and Black
Country Communion
(Glenn Hughes, Jason
Bonham, Derek
Sherinian, and Joe Bonamassa) have been
garnering headlines lately, but Chickenfoot
was one of the biggest to spring up in the last
couple of years.Formed unofficially in February 2008 when former Van Halen members Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist Joe Satriani met at a Hagar concert in Las Vegas. In the words of Anthony, "It was just too much fun to pass up." That attitude drove both their self-titled debut album and this live DVD. Chickenfoot is about having fun and putting on a great show. Even though the members have a whopping 46 platinum albums between them, they manage to put their successes behind them and put on a good show by simply rocking. It’s not pretentious art rock, and there’s nothing too sophisticated about the music. It feels and sounds like four friends just jamming in their garage—even when they’re playing in front of a giant crowd.
The main drawback to this DVD is that Chickenfoot has only one album, so there’s not a lot here that isn’t on the CD. The only exceptions are the band’s show-closing covers of Montrose’s "Bad Motor Scooter" and the Who’s "My Generation" (Hagar plays slide on the former). If you’re looking for a great rock concert, check this one out, but if you’re looking for new music you might be better off waiting for their next album. Chickenfoot doesn’t cover a lot of new ground on this DVD, but they do show that the road forward is already paved—and it looks like a great trip. —BB
List $17.98
dc3global.com
Judas Priest – British Steel: 30th Anniversary Edition
If you’re a metal
fan, you probably
can’t count how
many times you’ve
sat through arguments
over whether
Megadeth is better than Metallica, who was
the best shredder of the ’80s, or what is the
greatest heavy metal album of all time. For
a lot of people, that album is Judas Priest’s
1980 monsterwork, British Steel. The incredibly
influential album still rings in the skulls
of metalheads everywhere, and to commemorate
the 30th anniversary of its release the
band has rereleased the record with a bonus
DVD containing a very special treat for fans:
video of the band performing the entire
British Steel record—from start to finish—for
the first time ever.The recording is of the August 17, 2009, show in Hollywood, Florida—the concert that kicked off Priest’s 30th-anniversary tour. It’s pretty incredible watching a band in which most members are nearing 60 but they still rock harder than most bands today. And they played the album perfectly, with fluid ease. Vocalist Rob Halford proves he is still one of the greatest singers in rock ’n’ roll by consistently hitting every falsetto note with precision and hair-raising emotion. The sound and video quality is extremely clear, without any visual artifacts from transfer or conversion processes, too.
After watching this DVD over and over, I can only hope that I can be this cool when I finally reach that age. What’s funny is that, even with a track list that’s 30 years old—Judas Priest can still bring out your 16-year-old metalhead. An absolute must for the hardcore Judas Priest fan. —JW
List $15.98
judaspriest.com
Guitar Player Wanted, Vocals a Plus
Karan Andrea is a guitarist,
songwriter, and singer
who has distilled several
years of vocal training into
a two-disc set (DVD and
CD) that covers things
like vocal anatomy, breath
control, vocal exercise, and
warm-ups for use in singing
a multitude of musical styles. She states right at
the beginning that she’s teaching only technique,
exercise, and control—not style—so that you can
apply your own style to your vocal instrument.Andrea cleverly takes what we already know as guitar players—melody, chord structure, harmonization, pitch, time, and tone—and helps us apply that knowledge to the instrument that we haven’t spent years mastering. The DVD starts out a little slow, but soon digs into the heart of the matter. Using detailed drawings of the entire vocal system, she offers easy visualizations that help you understand the system you’re learning to control. Breaking it down to two simple concepts—the vocal cord "zipper" and the "low or relaxed larynx"—Andrea offers a set of exercises designed to help people who think they can’t sing become real singers.
I think we can all agree that vocal exercises are incredibly silly things that make you feel ridiculous, embarrassed, strange, goofy, and all kinds of uncomfortable. But once you get past the embarrassment and get to the incredible improvements that can come about with training and exercise, you’ll gladly look a little silly. The initial exercises are pretty elementary, but even experienced singers who have no actual training will find insight and improvement here.
The CD with has the same 25 exercises as the DVD, so you can use it in your car or in your home. Fantastically helpful for anyone wanting to improve their vocals at any point during the day. —GDP
List $39.95
soulhousesound.com
Cort Essence Series ES-GA4 Grand Auditorium Cutaway Acoustic Electric Guitar, Natural Semi Gloss (GA4NSG)
Epiphone Slash J-45 Acoustic Guitar - November Burst
The classic J-45 has been the choice of legendary musicians ever since it was first introduced in 1942. Known as The Workhorse, it is Gibson's most famous and most popular acoustic guitar model. Now Epiphone has released a new Inspired by Gibson"' J-45"' with all of the features players want, including all solid wood construction, a comfortable rounded C neck profile, 20 medium jumbo frets, the 60s style Kalamazoo headstock shape and a gorgeous Aged Vintage Sunburst finish. The Fishman® Sonicore under-saddle pickup and Sonitone preamp make this Workhorse stage-ready too. Optional hardshell or Epilite"' case available separately. A battery is not included. To power your pickup, you will need a 9-volt battery.
Gold Tone The Bell Acoustic-electric Guitar - Natural
Gold Tone’s Festival Series: The Bell stands out by blending classic craftsmanship with stage-ready versatility. Its all-solid wood construction—featuring a Sitka spruce top and mahogany back and sides—produces a rich, balanced tone that shines in any setting. The slope-shoulder design offers both comfort and clarity, perfect for fingerstyle or strumming. With a slim "D" neck, Fishman electronics, Grover tuners, and D’Addario strings, The Bell is crafted for players who demand tone, playability, and reliable performance—on stage or in the studio.
The Gibson EH-185, introduced in 1939, was one of the company’s first electric guitars.
It’s hard to overstate the importance of electric guitar in shaping American popular music over the last half-century. Its introduction was a revolution, changing the course of modern musical styles. Today, when we think of the guitars that started the revolution, we think of the Stratocaster and the Les Paul, guitars held against the body and fretted with the fingertips. But the real spark of this musical mutiny was the lap-steel guitar.
In the early 20th century, guitar music was moving out of the parlors of homes and into public spaces where folks could gather together and dance. Guitarists needed to project their sound far beyond where their wimpy little acoustic instruments could reach. Instrument manufacturers began experimenting with larger body sizes, metal construction, and resonators to increase volume.
Around this time, George Beauchamp began experimenting with electric guitar amplification. He settled on a design using two U-shaped magnets and a single coil of wire. Beauchamp was in business with Adolph Rickenbacker, and they decided to stick this new invention into a lap steel.
If we put on our 1930s glasses, this decision makes perfect sense. The most popular music at the time was a blend of Hawaiian and jazz styles made famous by virtuosos like Solomon “Sol” Hoʻopiʻi. Photos of Hoʻopiʻi with a metal-body resonator abound—one can imagine his relief at being handed an instrument that projected sound toward the audience via an amplifier, rather than back at his own head via resonator cones. Beauchamp and Rickenbacker were simply following the market.
As it turned out, the popularity of Hawaiian music gave way to swing, and electric lap steels didn’t exactly take the world by storm. But Beauchamp and Rickenbacker had proven the viability of this new technology, and other manufacturers followed suit. In 1937, Gibson created a pickup with magnets under the strings, rather than above like Beauchamp’s.
“When I plugged in the EH-185 I expected to hear something reminiscent of Charlie Christian’s smooth, clean tone. But what I got was meatier—closer to what I associate with P-90s: warm and midrange-y.”
The first page of Gibson’s “Electrical Instruments” section in the 1939 catalog features a glowing, full-page write-up of their top-of-the-line lap steel: the EH-185. “Everything about this new electric Hawaiian Guitar smacks of good showmanship,” effuses the copy. “It has smoothness, great sustaining power, and an easy flow of tone that builds up strongly and does not die out.”
Picking up the 1940 EH-185 at Fanny’s House of Music is about as close as one can get to traveling back in time to try a new one. It is just so clean, with barely any dings or even finish checking. Overall, this is a 9/10 piece, and it’s a joy to behold. Speaking of picking it up, the first thing you notice when you lift the EH-185 out of the case is its weight. This is a much heavier instrument than other similar-sized lap steels, owing to a length of thick metal between the body and the fretboard. The catalog calls it “Hyblum metal,” which may be a flowery trade name for an early aluminum alloy.
This 1940 EH-185 is heavier than other lap steels in its class, thanks to a length of metal between its fretboard and body.
Photo by Madison Thorn
There are numerous other fancy appointments on the EH-185 that Gibson didn’t offer on their lesser models. It’s made of highly figured maple, with diamond-shaped decorations on the back of the body and neck. The double binding is nearly a centimeter thick and gives the instrument a luxurious, expensive look.
Behind all these high-end attributes is a great-sounding guitar, thanks to that old pickup. It’s got three blades protruding through the bobbin for the unwound strings and one longer blade for the wound strings. When I plugged in the EH-185 I expected to hear something reminiscent of Charlie Christian’s smooth, clean tone. But what I got was meatier—closer to what I associate with P-90s: warm and midrange-y. It was just crying out for a little crunch and a bluesy touch. It’s kind of cool how such a pristine, high-end vintage instrument can be so well-suited for a sound that’s rough around the edges.
As far as electric guitars go, it doesn’t get much more vintage than this 1940 Gibson EH-185 Lap Steel. It reminds us of where the story of the electric guitar truly began. This EH-185 isn’t just a relic—it’s a testament to when the future of music was unfolding in real time. Plug it in, and you become part of the revolution.
Sources: Smithsonian, Vintage Guitar, Mozart Project, Gibson Pre-War, WIRED, Steel Guitar Forum, Vintaxe
