pharrell

“Pharrell has been asking for older sounds recently,” says guitarist Brent Paschke. “He’ll say ‘Chuck Berry’ or someone in that style. I know that usually means a semi-hollowbody, and that was my excuse for getting a good 335.”

The in-demand session and touring guitarist reveals what it takes to play for chart-topping artists.

Speed. For most guitarists, the word is synonymous with shredding. But for Brent Paschke—the longtime session and touring guitarist for the Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and producer Pharrell Williams—speed means something else: It’s about delivering the right part and perfect sound at a moment’s notice.

“With Pharrell, time is very limited,” says Paschke. “We can be bouncing from room to room quickly, so I have to adjust to his workflow. If I had to tell him I need five or 10 minutes to adjust mics and check out different amps, I’d totally kill his vibe—and that’s the first thing to keep intact.”

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