Premier Guitar features affiliate links to help support our content. We may earn a commission on any affiliated purchases.

Rig Rundown - Yes' Steve Howe and Chris Squire

Premier Guitar's Shawn Hammond is on location in Omaha, Nebraska, where he catches up with Yes' Chris Squire and Steve Howe to check out their vintage gear, including old Rickenbackers, Gibsons, Fenders, and more.

Premier Guitar's Shawn Hammond is on location in Omaha, Nebraska, where he catches up with Yes' Chris Squire and Steve Howe to check out their vintage gear, including old Rickenbackers, Gibsons, Fenders, and more.



Guitars
Steve Howe’s main guitar for the current Yes tour—on which the band is playing The Yes Album, Close to the Edge, and Going for the One albums in their entirety—is his No. 2 1964 Gibson ES-175 (which he only uses in the U.S.). For ā€œParallelsā€ off of Going for the One, he uses a mid-’80s Fender Stratocaster modified to use just one volume and tone knob (the original volume-pot position is vacant). And for Close to the Edge tracks he uses this 1970 Gibson ES-345 with stereo wiring and a Gibson Byrdland tailpiece.

Also on tour is a 1955 FenderĀ Telecaster with added neck humbucker and a 3-way upper-bout switch and individual string saddles (also for ā€œAwakenā€) and Portuguese 12-string acoustic tuned E–B–E–B–E–Ab (for ā€œI’ve Seen All Good Peopleā€ and ā€œWonderous Storiesā€). Not pictured is a Gibson Steve Howe signature ES-175 with middle humbucker and ES-5 Switchmaster-style switching (functions as a standby to No. 2 and for Fragile tunes that originally featured a Gibson ES-5 Switchmaster), double-neck Fender steel guitar with one neck in E-major tuning and the 6th string tuned to the same pitch as the 4th and another neck in E9 tuning (used on ā€œGoing for the One,ā€ ā€œAwaken,ā€ and ā€œAnd You and Iā€), 1956 Gibson Les Paul Custom ā€œBlack Beautyā€ (for ā€œTurn of the Centuryā€), and 24-fret Steinberger 12-string with EMG SA single-coils (for ā€œAwakenā€). Martin MC-38 Steve Howe signature model (for ā€œClapā€ and ā€œTurn of the Centuryā€)

Howe also uses a Line 6 Variax 600 (for Danelectro Sitar, Guild 12-string, and Martin 0-18 sounds).

Chris Squire brought a number of basses on this tour, including a Kid’s Guitars replica of a Bob Wal triple-neck bass (left), which he uses on ā€œAwakenā€ from Going for the One. Its 6-string top neck is tuned A–D–G (with octave strings for each), while the middle neck is fretted, and the bottom neck is fretless. In the middle is Squire’s legendary 1964 Rickenbacker 4001, which has powered ā€œRoundaboutā€ and countless other Yes classics. The 8-string Ranney (right)—which Squire plays on ā€œGoing for the Oneā€ā€”has a 5-piece body and active electronics.

He also travels with a ’70s custom Jim Mouradian green bass with J-style pickups and dual volumes and tones for each, spare Rickenbacker 4001 with custom graphics from Squire’s 1975 Fish out of Water solo album, an early-’70s Fender Jazz bass (played on ā€œParallelsā€ from Going for the One), and, not pictured, a custom Tobias 5-string normally tuned to B–E –A–D but tuned to C–E–A–D for ā€œTurn of the Century,ā€

Amps
Squire has relied on the same two vintage Marshall heads for decades, though his main one—the 1965 JMP on bottom head—has never broken down so he’s rarely used the top one. (Wondering about those mods? For the 1978 Tormato tour, it was customized to work with a separate power amp feeding two custom 6x12 cabinets in which each driver was angled to fire in a different direction.)

Squire blends his Marshall signal with one from a pair of Ampeg SVT-2PRO heads (bottom). An SWR Bass 350 head (middle) amplifies the Moog Taurus bass-pedal tones generated by his E-Mu ESI 2000 (second from top).

Though he long famed for using two Fender Twin Reverbs, Howe is now relying on a Line 6 DT50 amp, which works in tandem with his painstakingly programmed Line 6 PODHD500.

Effects
Howe and his tech have spent many hours programming true-to-the-record tones into his Line 6 PODHD500—his only effects device. He uses the Morley A/B pedal to switch between acoustic and electric guitars.

Squire’s pedal drawer features an ancient vibrato pedal custom-built for him in the ’60s (top middle). Also on the top shelf are a 1960s Maestro Bass Brassmaster fuzz (front left), a TC Electronic Chorus+ (right), and a rarely used Boss OC-3 Super-Octave (back left). The bottom drawer is stocked with a TC Electronic

Classic counterpoint techniques that work for surf.

Intermediate

Intermediate

• Learn some time-honored guidelines of classical composition.

• Apply revered rules to more modern styles.

• Create interesting and complex surf lines.
{'media': '[rebelmouse-file-pdf 80034 original_filename="Bach+to+the+Beach.pdf" site_id=20368559 expand=1]', 'media_html': 'Bach to the Beach.pdf', 'id': 80034, 'type': 'pdf', 'file_original_url': 'https://roar-assets-auto.rbl.ms/files/80034/Bach to the Beach.pdf'}

The term counterpoint scares many people who think it is a carefully devised process that strips you of creative freedom. This is partly true, because some individuals have pushed the practice of counterpoint as strict rules at some point without explaining its purpose. I disagree with the view that music theory is a rule. Counterpoint, like serialism or any other principle of harmony, is simply a recipe for an expected result. These music theory recipes are not baking recipes where exact measurements must be made; music theory is more like cooking, which is more malleable and open to in-the-moment modifications.

Read MoreShow less

See and hear Taylor’s Legacy Collection guitars played by his successor, Andy Powers.

Read MoreShow less

The Oceans Abyss expands on Electro-Harmonix’s highly acclaimed reverb technology to deliver a truly immersive effects workstation. The pedal is centered around dual reverb engines that are independently programmable with full-stereo algorithms including Hall, Spring, Shimmer and more. Place these reverbs into a customizable signal path with additional FX blocks like Delay, Chorus, Tremolo, or Bit Crusher for a completely unique soundscape building experience.

Read MoreShow less

Our columnist’s silver-panel Fender Bandmaster.

How this longstanding, classic tube amp design evolved from its introduction in 1953.

Read MoreShow less