Guitar Gear Collection

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I have always loved the guitar, both as an instrument and as a work of art. I view them as tactile pieces of art, to be honest. As a guitarist for hire, I've had the privilege of accumulating a small collection of useful guitars. I've come a long way from my early days when I would scrounge for whatever guitars I could find and tinker with them to get them to work. I even once stumbled upon a guitar that had been smashed and was scattered in three pieces in the middle of the road.

I'm particularly fond of Gretsch guitars, but I have been having an affair on the side with Gibson and PRS. These are my electric instruments at the moment:

- Gretsch Hot Rod, Lime Gold "Tequila"

- Gretsch G6120-1959LTV CA LTD QLT - "The Admiral"

- Gretsch G5135GL G. Love Electromatic Corvette

- Gretsch G6129T-RDSP-LTD15 Sparkle Duo Jet

- Gretsch 6136DSBK Black Falcon

- Gretsch G5265 Electromatic Jet Baritone

- Gibson Les Paul Historic Reissue '57 Gold Top

- Gibson Les Paul Historic Reissue '57 3-pickup Custom w/ Bigsby

- Gibson Les Paul Historic Reissue '58 Plain Top Sunburst

- Gibson SG Historic Reissue '64

- Gibson Explorer Antique

- Gibson Billie Joe Armstrong Les Paul Junior

- Fender Standard Strat

- Fender Jeff Beck Sig Strat

- Fender Musicmaster

- Fender Telecaster Custom

- Epiphone Casino Worn Denim

- PRS Santana 1

- PRS Custom 22 12-string

- PRS Custom 24 w/ Floyd Rose

- PRS Custom 24 Piezo

- Kramer 1986 Baretta

- Kramer 84 HH

- Steinberger Spirit Pro

I also have a number of acoustics:

- Martin HD28

- Guild F512e 12-string

- Ovation nylon string

- Gretsch G9310 New Yorker "Supreme" A-Style Mandolin

- Gretsch G3373 Historic

- Ovation Celebrity CC65 12-string

As a session guitarist, I often use my collection during recording sessions, bringing various sounds and styles to life.

I have been on a roundabout journey back to using Marshall-voiced amps, after a long period of using Mesa Boogies and Fender amps.  I still really like them - but for me nothing beats a Plexi-style amp.

Here is a list of what I'm currently using - live and in the studio.

Friedman PLEX: Dave Friedman's take on his fave 50-watt plexi.  It is like the best Marshall I ever played, but with the modern convenience of a great master volume.

Friedman JEL-20: Does the JCM 800 thing really well.  Nice and light, for when I don't want to take the bigger Friedman

Friedman 212: Really well made, loads of bass and projects nicely live

Mesa Boogie Mk III "green stripe": A really great amp, it can get raw and nasty but can also produce really great cleans.  Incredibly loud (and heavy)

Mesa Boogie TA-30: Boogie's take on a Vox, plus a tweed channel (plus two modern modes).  It does the Vox thing better than my last real Vox!

Mesa Boogie Fillmore 25: A great little amp, does the Fender blackface thing really well but then also has a nice rich overdriven channel.  Super light too.

Mesa Boogie King Snake: A modern take on Carlos Santana's Mk I Boogie, finished in faux snakeskin.  A really cool (and heavy) amp

Mesa Boogie 112 cabs (x2): Finished to match the Fillmore 25, I've replaced the stock Celestions with Alnico Blues

Fender Super Sonic 60: An underrated amp that has a really cool overdriven channel and also a clean channel that can emulate Bassman and Vibrolux tones. 

Zvex Nano Head: A tiny pedal-sized amp that runs on micro valves and has one half watt of roaring tone.