OC Pro Guitars Blog

Glenn Pearce is an incredible musician that has played on hundreds of albums/sessions and toured with many artists such as Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, and many others.  Please enjoy this interview and feel free to post comments and questions!

How long have been doing music full-time? I forget.  I have a Tyler Classic that is 20 years old, so maybe that long.  I suppose I felt like a real musician then because all the L.A. studio players were using them.

I didn't really think about music until after high school because I was always playing sports and breaking bones.  I broke my legs, ribs, and most of my fingers.  I had to tape my fingers up because they would get jammed and sprained from playing basketball - look at what Kobe or Rafael Nadal have to do to their hands when they play and you get the idea.

Then I was accepted to UCLA and was going to get a business degree, but had to drop out because Michael Landau and Dann Huff were always booked - for good reason - and people asked me to play recordings and tracking sessions.

You've traveled the world on various tours, what's your favorite spot to visit? Anywhere they speak English.  I try to get out and run wherever I am in the world and I usually end up completely lost, so it helps if someone speaks English.  And anywhere they make great coffee.  Europe is awesome.  I could definitely disappear in Switzerland.

You're sort of a food snob and you know a good drink...  Favorite food/drink place in Nashville, and favorite in Orange County? If you travel at all, you find out pretty quickly that you will crash and burn if you don't eat healthy and go running.

Nashville - Boundry downtown, J Alexanders for food, Drakes in Cool Springs.

OC - Yardhouse, Gulfstream

Anywhere in Napa Valley.

Any relation to Mick McGuire?  :) Mick was invented in a pub when were doing a recording.  The pub was called McGuires, so we all used McGuire as a last name.  A guitar player once told me "You play ok, but you need to hear Mick McGuire - he plays much better than you."

Having played on hundreds of albums, tours, and gigs, how do you stay interested? I have a lot of other interests.  Any sport that involves the ocean or snow on the mountains.  Training for marathons and triathlons.  Road biking and mountain biking.  Riding motorcycles.  Collecting surfboards.  I have all the fly fishing gear I need.

Not that I don't enjoy playing, I just would generally be doing something outside than spend my life in a room with padded walls and no windows.

When I'm on the West coast I try to get in the ocean every day if possible. Even in the winter I'll throw on a wetsuit and jump in.  It's a spiritual experience - you come out of the water a different person than when you went in.

When I finally pick up a guitar again it's fresh.

Jeff Beck collects and works on his own cars.  Last time I heard him he was playing as good as ever.  He's figured out how to have a balance in life and it shows when he plays.  His passion for cars is inspiring to me - not just his playing.

Do you realize how influential you've been to other players (myself included)?  How do you feel about that? I don't have copies of anything I've done on my iPod.  I would rather listen to other players and try to learn something new.

If you've ever seen Jon Brion at Largo in L.A. then you know there's a lot more to learn about music.  We would go see him play at the old club every Friday.  Those were great days.

Some guys try to be all things to all people when it comes to playing style, and you've done a good job being yourself - how intentional has that been? My heroes who influenced me all had a distinct individual style.  Hendrix, Beck, Gilmour, band like Led Zeppelin...  I never thought about it in terms of styles, I always wanted to know how they got their identifiable sound.  The ones that if you only heard a few notes, you would know who they were.  Those are the geniuses that strike true emotion in music.  I recently saw Daniel Lanois in Chicago.  He is brilliant and has a totally identifiable sound, and all he used was a tweed 1x12 and a Malekko delay (Ekko Dark).

People who master numerous styles and knew from an early age that they wanted to be studio musicians are usually very serious, focused and intense.  I don't think anyone would ever use those words to describe me.

I love it when I see interview footage of Hendrix.  He was always so laid back, but then unbelievable when he played live.  That's the right combination.

The music industry is always changing.  How have you adapted over the years and what would you say to young guys just starting out? I don't think about it.  I just play what I can and hope it sounds good.  I view sports and music similarly.  You get to "play" sports and music.  Everything else is called work.  Sure, there's a lot of practice that is involved in both, but at the end of the day you should be doing something you get to play because it's fun.

Talk about why you don't obsess over gear like some.  Having owned all of the vintage guitars and amps, why have you chosen to scale down and simplify? I tried to be a collector, but it became overwhelming.  I had dozens of vintage amps that I didn't even flip the switch on in years.  So I decided to sell most of my vintage gear and buy some cars that were fun to drive.  It's a good thing I did that before the 100 year Nashville flood, or it would have all been lost anyway.

Fortunately I've had good people like Fred from Divided By Thirteen and Joe Morgan from Morgan Amps building me amps that sound as good, if not better than any of those vintage amps.

What guitars and amps are you currently using? Anything that's not broken or whatever has the newest strings.  When people ask me what gear I use, I tell them whatever's closest to the door.

Walk us through your current pedalboard. I never hardwire anything and I'm constantly switching pedals out.  If I've been staring at the same pedals for too long I'll switch them out for no reason.

I always have an Octavia, way, univibe, low gain overdrive, high gain overdrive, volume pedal, delay, and a tremolo.  Sometimes I'll add a boost, compressor, fuxx, and chorus if I have room.

If you had to choose one guitar, one amp, and one overdrive... Not possible.  I really think there is no magic combination.  It's all good.  One of my favorite guitars is an old 60's Silvertone, and it's probably the cheapest guitar I own.

There's so much great new gear out there now, literally everything I try sounds good to me.

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I'll go ahead and answer some of the gear questions that Glenn left out :)

Glenn is most commonly seen playing James Tyler Guitars, Gibson Les Paul Goldtop, 60's Silvertone 1449 through Morgan and/or Divided By 13 amps.  His pedalboard is constantly changing but often uses a Mojo Vibe or MoFaux Vibe for the univibe sound, Boss DD-5 w/ Hi-Cut mod and Malekko Ekko Dark for delays, and a plethora of other pedals...

We also have a few items for sale that belong to Glenn Pearce... Divided By 13 LDW 17/39 Jerry Jones 12-String Sunburst

We are big fans of Jessica Dobson and her band Deep Sea Diver.  Please enjoy this interview and post your comments!

  How is it being in a band with your husband?

At times, it's pretty similar to the scene in Kubrick's "Space Odyssey" where the ape-men are battling for control of the water hole.  It's totally comical.  There's always an ongoing battle of whose ideas are the best and why one of us should have the last word on an arrangement or whatever.  Peter is one of the best musicians I've ever met, and he's constantly throwing ideas my way.  When we get past the childish antics, that's when the sweet stuff comes to fruition.

Talk about what you're up to with Deep Sea Diver and The Shins.  Anything new coming? So, last October, I made the decision to part ways with The Shins to pursue Deep Sea Diver full-time.  Since then we've been able to do a ton of touring and have started writing our second record.  We are throwing around the idea of releasing a single in the Fall.  I love that more and more bands are releasing music that way again, without the pressure of a 4 month album promotional setup and a huge block of tours attached to it.  I'm just very excited about the prospect of releasing a lot of music these next few years in both creative and not over-thought ways.

Still enjoying Seattle?  What has been the best part of moving there from LA?  Favorite Seattle restaurant? The Northwest was my home away from home when I was a kid.  My grandmother lived on Whidby Island and my time was spent roaming around the forest and pretending I was in the movie E.T., leaving a trail of peanut butter M&M's behind, which left me with a pretty dreamy impression of the place.  Even experiencing Seattle as an adult is equally as adventurous.  I walk and bike ride much more than I ever did in LA, and find myself still geeking out every night when the sun sets over the Cascades.  Seattle honestly is one of the most beautiful places in the Country.

My favorite restaurant in the city is probably Thai Tom.  It's a hole in the wall joint that only seats about 15 people and the chef cooks right in front of you.  I 100% believe that it's the best Thai food in the country.  There's always a line, but it's well worth the wait.

Photo Credit: Martin Franco Vielma

You've had the opportunity to play with many great artists.  Who has been influential to you when it comes to guitar? Playing with Beck was definitely the most musically formative time in my life.  I had to learn 6 different albums in 4 weeks, and no two albums are alike.  My pedalboard went from an overdrive and delay to a playground of fuzzes, delays, phasers, and overdrives.  Learning both Beck's guitar parts and all the guitarists he collaborated with (Smokey Hormel's playing on "Sea Change" is my favorite) forever changed the way I approached songwriting and how to get unique guitar tones.

Name some artists people should know about that they may not... Delicate Steve!!  Their music reminds me of Rat Tat Tat and Peter Gabriel.  It's just one big adventure and an instant mood booster.  If your friend is being a crotch, just play them the song "Wally Wilder" off of the album "Positive Force".

How long have you been doing music full-time, and how do you stay inspired? I've been playing music full-time for 6 years now and a quote that has always stuck with me is Nick Cave's where he says "Inspiration is a word used by people that aren't really doing anything".  At first glance, the quote comes off as condescending and pretentious.  What I believe he's getting at though is if you wait around for "inspiration" to come, you are devaluing the hard work and discipline it should rightfully take to hone your craft.  If you stay stuck in your own isolated world and stop listening to people and asking questions, I believe that's also a stagnant place to be.  Most of the songs from "History Speaks" that I wrote came from sitting and listening to other peoples stories and then trying to enter their mind and write from their perspective.  It was much more freeing than just writing about myself and my own, sometimes limiting, view of reality.

We've seen varied setups from you in the past, what guitars are you playing these days? My Fender Jazzmaster will always be my third arm.  It's the Elvis Costello custom shop reissue and I think best looking out of all the Jazzmasters ever released.  It has a walnut stained body and a tortoise shell pick guard.  It looks and sounds unreal.  I also have a Silvertone Jupiter that I bought when I was touring with The Shins that I love.  I hear that Fender is reissuing the Starcaster sometime this year and I'll definitely be grabbing one of those.

What do you love about Benson Amps?  Is the Benson Tall Bird your primary reverb?  As a fairly low wattage amp, do you find it to be enough live? I do well with very limited options concerning gear in general.  I really like that the Benson Monarch is just Volume, Tone, and a Mid-range boost switch.  It pairs really nicely with my Jazzmaster too.  

The Benson Tall Bird is by far my favorite reverb that I've ever used and I use it all the time.  It's all tube and really rich sounding.  You can get some pretty huge cavernous sounds out of it without losing any volume (that's the biggest downfall of the Holy Grail) and it's never splashy or thin sounding.  If I had to go with a pedal instead of the Tall Bird, I would definitely pick up a Strymon Blue Sky.

I personally don't mind that it is a lower wattage amp, but I'm sure that if I joined Swans I wouldn't be bringing it with me.

Walk us through your current pedalboard... For Deep Sea Diver, I use an older DOD overdrive with a mid-range mod, a JHS Banana Boost (which is my favorite of all time), a Zvex Fuzz Factory, Electro-Harmonix POG 2, and a Memory Man.  Sometimes I'll throw a Boss chorus pedal and a Stone Phaser on the board, but I usually keep it pretty simple and try to get more sounds out of the pedals that I already have.

At OCPG we're all about the mix of boutique and vintage gear.  Can you speak to that balance and what way you lean? I like what I like.  My Jazzmaster was brand new when I first bought it, but it felt and sounded just as good as a vintage Jazzmaster.  I like owning both vintage and new gear because every era has had something amazing to offer and would be silly to swing the pendulum just one way.  All the gear that I do own serves a very intentional and unique purpose and I try not to hoard gear, so if I don't use it I'll sell it or trade it for something that I know I'll use.

What is the creative process with DSD, and how does it differ with The Shins? Usually a song is sparked by an image or a word, or a simple melody that I'll hum into the phone.  Peter and I try to have a pretty solid direction for where we want to take the song musically, because if we are just shooting in the dark all the time we just end up in the dark 8 hours later with no song and kind of frazzled.  Peter is constantly asking me to try ideas that I would usually scoff at, just to get me to stop thinking too hard about songwriting and to loosen up.  I'm more of the arranger type and I think I do a pretty good job of getting him to simplify his ideas or drum beats and making sure that we have really strong melodies.  

With The Shins, most of the songs were already written when I joined and James was so great about trusting me with all the lead parts and giving me a ton of creative freedom to bring the songs to life live.

You've been on Austin City Limits, which is very cool.  Would you rather be on that again or Breaking Bad? Breaking Bad all the way.  Breaking Bad ALL THE WAY.  I would elaborate more on this, but the new episode is coming on in 2 minutes and I have to ride my bike to my friends house to watch it.  I'm obsessed!

Photo Credit: Martin Franco Vielma

We recently interviewed James Duke, who has played with many great artists including John Mark McMillan, All The Bright Lights, and Matt Redman to name a few.  These days he is even more busy doing sessions.  You can follow his blog at http://www.jamesduke.wordpress.com to see what he's up to.  Please enjoy and feel free to ask questions/leave comments below.

You have a daughter and you live in the South.  Do you own a gun? I have 1 daughter and 0(zero) guns. I like guns though. I'm not against guns, let's get that straight right now. One day i'll own a nickel plated Desert Eagle and I will be so proud.

Who all are you playing with these days? I've been traveling a little bit here and there, but I have been really busy playing on records. We just recorded the new Elevation Worship record, which was really fun. I played on the new Josh Baldwin record. He's an amazing songwriter. Also very funny. I played on the new Chad Lawson record. Which was a great experience. Chad is an amazing instrumental pianist. I also played on the new Matt Redman record...

How was it playing on the new Redman album?  What are you excited about with that album? It was a really great experience. Getting to be in the studio and demo songs with Matt and watch how he writes his songs was really cool. He works very hard on his songs. Right up until the day we were doing the live recording he was tweaking lyrics and melodies. I really think these songs are some of his best ever. My favorite is "Mercy".  There's some great guitar stuff on the record. Daniel Carson and Matt Podesla played as well.  It was such an honor to be a part. Bucket list kind of stuff.

Your thoughts on the fiscal cliff? May or may not be googling "fiscal cliff"...

You pretty much threw down on JMM's "Who Is This".  How many passes did you take on that in the studio?  Don't say one to be cool. I think i played it 3 or 4 times. I played it a couple times and thought it was good. But the 3rd solo part I sort of went a little over the top and the producer, Jeremy Griffith, was like, "yeah… maybe we shouldn't do that", so I was like "FINE, JEREMY." and did that sad, bendy thing. I was pretty self conscious about that song when it dawned on me that it was actually going to be on an album and people were going to listen to it. But you know what? Sometimes you just gotta play a couple solos, man. 

Who should people listen to that they probably don't? Daniel Lanois. Anything he produces is amazing. And his solo albums are so good. He's the best.  The Edge aside, what other guitar players do you listen to for inspiration? Joe Perry, Ryan Adams, Robert Smith, Buddy Miller, Lindsey Buckingham, Willie Nelson, Stu G. and Mike Campbell.  Who influenced your slide playing? I think probably The Edge, Stu G, Whoever played slide on that Natalie Imbruglia song Torn, and Duane Allman. And Mike Campbell. Guilty pleasure artist you listen to…? I don't actually feel guilty about any of the music I listen to... when I was 18, after a particularly unpleasant breakup, I got really into Savage Garden for a couple weeks, though. What's more important, a good overdrive or a good pair of boots? A good pair of boots, for sure. 

You tend to favor single coils - talk about that. There's something about the articulation of single coils that I love. You can always hear the strings. I love the brightness and the punchiness... but I probably just need a good Les Paul and my opinion will change. 

Your gear is viewable on your blog - any new additions to speak of? I'm always swapping things out. I think my old Dyna Comp is dying, so I'm trying out a JHS Pulp and Peel. I also really like their Super Bolt pedal. Cusack was kind enough to upgrade my old Tap a Whirl to the newer, version 3 Tap a Whirl. I've got an old MN3005 chip Boss Dm-2 that I love. I have been using a Strymon Timeline as well. I'm still deciding if I like that though...

You have a few delays, talk about the different ways you use them, and how often they're stacked. I usually have 3 delays on my board. For the most part the DD-20 or the Timeline will be the basic delay. Then I just sort of add to that with the other analog delays. The DM-2 is great for slapback and making freak out sounds. It also just sounds good when it's on. It really adds a sparkle to your tone. The Memory Man is good for all kinds of things. I think the Deluxe Memory Man is the best delay ever made. I use it constantly. I'm using the Tap Tempo version now and I really like it a lot. If I had to only take one pedal, I could get by with just that pedal probably. It does so much. I stack delays all the time. I just kind of tweak until I get what I hear in my head. 

What do you make of this whole P&W boutique gear phenomenon? It's funny to me, but I'm guilty of joining the party as well. For years all I used was a TS-9, a DD-5 and a Memory Man. So I still kind of lean towards the old companies. I think Boss and Electro Harmonix makes the best delays and Ibanez makes the best overdrive. But there are some new companies that are coming out with some very interesting stuff. I'm really impressed with companies like Death By Audio and Earthquaker Devices. 

How long have you been playing the Line 6 Flextone live? Man, since the 70's probably. 

When back line is provided, what amp(s) do you request? I think I always ask for Matchless. But I never get it. Then I ask for Fender stuff. Like a Hot Rod, Deluxe, Twin… whatever. I'm not picky. Everybody has Fender stuff so that's easy and you know it's usually going to be ok with those. I think Vox is the 3rd option. Whatever makes noise is fine though. But don't tell the promoter that. 

What's one guitar, amp, and pedal you'd like to own? I'd like to have a nice Les Paul. Maybe a white Custom or a  '57 VOS Goldtop. Or a 50's with that super wide flame. But those are like $250,000. I've never owned a Gibson. Isn't that so crazy! I'd love a early 60's AC30. They are so nice to look at. As for pedals, I just want a Klon Centaur. I should have bought one way back when.

Morgan Amps interview

As a young aspiring guitarist, I never considered the concept of owning more than one or two guitars.  My goal was to buy the best electric guitar I could possibly find and then I'd be all set.  Back in the day, I thought if I could only afford a PRS, I would be set for life :)  

It wasn't until I read a book on session guitar playing that I learned the need to cover all of the bases with your gear.  It was at that point that I set out to own several guitars, several amps, and many of the classic pedals.  At the time I only had a couple of items: a James Tyler Classic and a vintage Fender Deluxe, and I was a young musician with a limited income.

Here are some tips for those wanting to be a session player on a limited budget…  at least how I did it.

Start by listing the basic categories you want to have covered - Obviously this list could end up very long, so set a realistic goal.  For me, I wanted to have a Strat, Tele, Les Paul, and Hollowbody.  For amps, I wanted a Vox-style, Fender-style, and Marshall-style amp.  Your list may look different, make a list that best suits your style and future.

Simplify what you already have - When I started, I had one nice guitar and one nice amp that I used, and a bunch of random pedals and recording gear.  I scaled down to a basic pedalboard and sold the rest of my pedals, and any other gear that I didn't need.  This gave me a small pot of money to get started with. 

Make a plan - For me, I wanted to get the bases covered as quickly as possible, knowing that I could always upgrade each piece down the road.  So, I quickly bought a cheap Tele, later borrowed a friends Les Paul, and eventually bought a cheap Gretsch Hollowbody.  This didn't take very long as each guitar was well under $1,000.  Down the road I upgraded each of those guitars, and will probably continue to do so.  For others, you may prefer to save up for each piece - whatever works for you.  

Maintain your base - This is starting to sound like a bad seminar or sermon…  Now that I have the bases covered, I am committed to keeping them, aside from the rare upgrade.  Those guitars and amps are basically untouchable so I can maintain what I set out to do.  I may not play on sessions at all anymore, but I love knowing that I have plenty of options for whatever may come up.

10 years later, and still on a limited budget, I am thankful for the gear that I have acquired.  I have all of those bases covered with very good guitars and amps for each.  Now I get to play around with other gear I don't really need!

(This is one way and opinion - my next blog post will discuss another way that I admire)

VIEW COMMENTS

Caleb 

We recently had the unique opportunity to interview Peter Stroud, the influential guitarist for Sheryl Crow, Sarah McLachlan, Don Henley, and others...  Please enjoy and leave some comments!

Photo by Mark Weaver

  Any new artists you're into? Well sorta old, but new to me... Masters Of Reality. They ultimately became the fathers of the desert stoner rock scene. As far as new bands and artists... Rival Sons. And Jason Isbell. Jason has a brilliant new album out. Both Jason's new album and Rival Sons produced by Dave Cobb, who's production style I really appreciate. There’s an up and coming band band from UK called rumHoney. There are some outstanding players in the country world, as we all know. Charlie Worsham is one to look out for. He has a great new album. Stellar multi-instrumentalist singer/songwriter. Have you been to Stroud Brewery in the UK? Perhaps if the guitar thing doesn't work out, there's a career in making craft beer... Hah! No. But I'm there!! There's nary a beer I won't at least try.  This might feel overly personal, but a lot of young musicians are trying to learn how to balance being a full time musician, while building and maintaining family and friendships. How have you done this, or, any tips/warnings for guys just starting out?  I know how difficult it can be. Sometimes I think musicians can be or at least come off as the most self absorbed personalities out there. Be it the drive aspect or simply the constant striving to get better, let alone make a career out if it. It's difficult to strike that balance between family and music career goals. Then when opportunities arise they can separate you for long periods of time and tug at the threads. I guess all I can say is be persistent and not give up. It's no more difficult pursuing a music career than most any other profession. You just have to keep an eye out for the opportunities that are unexpected and can come out of left field. You may not become that big Walmart CD bin rockstar, but just like in anything, the hard work and effort will be rewarded in ways you don’t always expect. Along the way you can’t neglect or ignore family..the inspiration and true purpose of it all. 

Talk about what you're currently up to with Big Hat, Sheryl, and other stuff we may not know about… BIG HAT is an on going project...maybe more interruptions than I'd like, but it only allows for more time to come together. My concept for the band has been to bring in songwriter friends we’ve played with or would like to play with and see what comes out of the collaboration. And that’s a healthy list of folks. Our first EP reflects that perfectly with Keith Gattis who's dyed in wool country roots mixed in beautifully. So well, that we actually considered it “the band” for a while. On the other end you’ve got Ike Stubblefield’s Detroit R&B and jazz B3. He’s one of the last true Jimmy Smith rooted Hammond players. The rest of us fall somewhere in the middle! Really incredible playing with Audley Freed. Robert Kearns on bass and Fred Eltringham on drums. The ultimate band for me. Our recording session for the EP was one of the coolest musical high’s ever. Nick DiDia producing.  As of late, we’ve all been a bit scattered...in a good way, but we’ll rally back around. Keith recently has had his songs recorded by Kenny Chesney, Willie Nelson and Randy Travis. Ike is constantly out touring. The rest of us are now playing with Sheryl Crow who has a new album coming out. A killer band behind Sheryl, along with Josh Grange on pedal steel and Jen Gunderman on keys. Sheryl just signed to Warner Nashville and has a single climbing the country charts. Our BIG HAT EP is available thru iTunes and elsewhere. CD available mid June. www.BigHatBand.com How do you continually stay fresh and inspired musically? Does songwriting and/or producing take a role in this? Never running short of stuff to keep inspired. Lately it has been playing these acoustic shows with Sheryl, which has helped improve my singing and acoustic playing. Many of our performances have been with no PA. Surprising how much of a different slant that puts on your approach to singing and playing.  I'm writing or recording in my studio every chance I get. Always something to learn there.  The other day I worked up Steely Dan's "Kid Charlemagne" just for the fun of it.  One of the biggest eye openers recently has been playing with the XTC tribute band, Nigel's With Attitude. Dave Gregory and Andy Partridge's guitar playing and arrangements are ridiculously brilliant. Worth studying for sure. Producing is something I'd like to do more of when time allows. I recently produced a couple of songs for Yacht Rock Revue. Their original songs arranged and recorded late 70's “smooth rock” style, which was a complete blast. Stellar band and players.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8crT4UEcyNQ&feature=player_embedded

At OC Pro Guitars, we're all about representing a good mix of modern boutique as well as vintage gear. Over the years you seem to have always had a nice mix of modern and vintage. Can you speak to that balance? In my earlier touring days, I always took out vintage gear. Later as I needed more guitars for different tones and tunings I sorta set a threshold that if I didn't use a particular vintage guitar for at least 3 songs I’d leave it at home. The wear and tear from the touring alone just isn't worth it. As well, new guitars and pickups available these days are of such higher quality that they often suit better for live. In the studio is where the vintage guitars really stand out.  With amps, my early touring rig was a 50 watt Marshall A/B'd with a Fender Super Reverb. But as stage volumes have dropped over the years I found my amps surrounded w plexiglass and clamped down with attenuators. Hence, one of the main goals with 65...creating great sounding low powered amplifiers that have same impact as the higher powered amps I had been using. I'm still a nut for my vintage gear and use my old Marshall's, Fenders and Ampeg's right alongside the 65's in the studio. I may bring a few old guitars out on tour this summer just for fun. My '76 Tele Custom is always out...it was a ‘tool’ when I first bought it in the early 90's. Now it's vintage!  As your gear has evolved over the years, are there a few items that have remained fairly constant?  Yeah, the Tele Custom has always been there. It's now fitted with a Fishman acoustic bridge/pickup and I'll swap out the rear pickup here and there. Currently it has a Ron Ellis' '50 Bridge pickup. He's pretty much nailed the blackguard Tele sound. And his humbuckers are the best I've personally heard and played. Closest to that sweet PAF tone. Ron is sort of under the radar at the moment, but you'll be hearing more from him soon as he's able to ramp up production. Currently he's a scientist by day - pickup designer and builder nights and weekends!  Also the Eventide TimeFactor and ModFactor units have become constants on my pedalboards.  The 65-London and Monterey heads still remain on remain on tour with Sheryl. Lately I've cut down to using only one speaker in each 212 cabinet. Again to reduce stage volume. Currently my fave new speaker is the Celestion Heritage G12H-30 75hz Lead cone. 

Walk us through your current pedalboard... The chain in order: Moollon Wah - Boss TU2 Tuner - Moollon Buffer/DI - Carl Martin Compressor - JHS Pulp n Peel Compressor - Moollon Z.O.D. Overdrive - Keeley Nova Wah Filter - Ernie Ball Volume Pedal - Eventide TimeFactor & ModFactor - Framptone Amp Switcher. I use an Electro Harmonix Black Finger Tube Compressor before the DI for my acoustic guitar. Just recently picked up a Nobels Overdrive that I’ll add to the chain when we’re back out this month.

65 Amps/Elliott Guitars - there are lots of articles, interviews, and demo's surrounding 65 amps and the guitars you've created - so I won't ask what's already out there… anything new on the horizon? The latest is from Duesenberg. A Signature Dragster with Multibender. I've been using it principally for slide, but now using it as well in standard tuning. Inspired by the Bigsby Palm Pedal it bends the B and G strings a whole or half step. For slide I tune to open E with the B bender whole step and G string a half step. Catch chords ala pedal steel. Really great guitar and very honored to have a Signature model with them.  Andy Elliott’s guitars are still my workhorses. His craftsmanship is impeccable. Lastly, one guitar and amp you've dreamed of owning that you don't yet. One?? ha ha!! Let’s see... A late ’60’s large guard white Gibson SG Custom or a ’55 Les Paul Goldtop. A proper plexi Marshall 100 watt head. Every one I’ve ever played has been different. There was a head that came through our 65 shop a few years back that was a lower B+ voltage 100 watter. You could actually stand in front of it. Beautiful sounding. Haven’t heard another one like it since since or have been able to replicate it.

We have a few friends in L.A. and Nashville that are primarily session players, and it's always fascinating to see what pedals they favor.  Today we feature four pedals that will often be found in the studio, some of which are surprising to the average gear fanatic.

First up, the Ibanez SD-9 Sonic Distortion.  The SD-9 made in the 80's is a popular choice for distortion and it has been a staple for players such as Michael Landau and Scott Henderson.  

Next up, the infamous Nobels ODR-1 Overdrive.  The original version of this pedal was easily found selling for under $50 10 years ago.  Then people like Jerry McPherson and Pat Buchanan (Amy Grant) started using them, and now they sell for much more.  

The Arion SCH-1 Stereo Chorus has been a favorite of session players for many years.  The list of users is long, but has included Michael Landau, Scott Henderson, Shawn Tubbs, Glenn Pearce, Bob Hartry, and many more.  In recent years, several modded versions have surfaced, but the original SCH-1's are still a great find.

Lastly, and newest to the game is the Vemuram Jan Ray.  Controversy aside, this is a fantastic sounding overdrive pedal.  Michael Landau has made this central to all of his new Vertex pedalboards, and when you hear it you'll understand why.  

Check out all of these featured products on our homepage today!

We have a few JHS Super Bolt's on the way, check here to see when they have arrived!  http://www.ocproguitars.com/category/effects-jhs-pedals

Unless North Korea wipes us out, OC Pro Guitars will be up and running on May 15th.  

No longer will you need to wait for 7 days to buy the piece of gear you want on eBay.

No longer will you need to wake up before dawn, trying to find a steal of a deal on Guitar Center's used site.

No longer will you need to keep Craigslist minimized on your work computer, incessantly refreshing throughout the day.

No longer!

OCPG is a strict curation of both new and used guitar gear.  We like to think that we have great taste when it comes to selecting gear.  We only select and stock what we like.  Yeah, we're pretty much awesome.  If you don't see it on our site, we can probably get it.  But then you should ask yourself why you don't see it on our site...  (take a hint)