Marshall launches MA Series amplifiers

PRESS RELEASE: For the best part of 50 years the sight and sound of a Marshall valve amplifier has been the envy and dream of many a guitarist. Legendary artists such as Slash, Jeff Beck and the late great Jimi Hendrix, plus rising stars like Ray Torro (My Chemical Romance) and Alexi Laiho (Children Of Bodom) continue to inspire with their raw talent and mighty valve-powered Marshall backlines. So when it comes to tone, it's clear that professional guitarists love valves.

Now Marshall invites you to experience valve tone for yourself with our most accessible range of valve-driven guitar amplifiers ever – introducing the all-new, all-valve MA Series.
Heart of tone

With a classic ECC83/EL34 pre and power amp combination at its heart, the UK designed and engineered MA range is indeed built on solid pure-valve foundations. The MA Series provides both head and combo versions in either 100 Watt or 50 Watt outputs, all sharing the same trusty feature set.

The dual channel design provides an abundance of tonal possibilities, while the straightforward front panel layout and individual EQ sections means achieving the sounds you want couldn't be simpler.

With single coil pickups the Clean channel delivers clear bright notes, whilst switching to humbuckers and cranking the volume pot leads to natural signal break up, ideal for both cutting Indie-style rhythm and vintage rock riffing respectively.

Hit the Channel selection switch and the uniquely voiced Overdrive channel lets you experience the full potential of Marshall valve power, from glorious bluesy crunch to hard driving rock and all points in-between. Engaging the Overdrive's Boost function provides extra gain for both pounding metal madness and fret-burning solos alike.
The right balance

The difference between your overdrive and 'boosted' sound is governed by the MA's Crunch Balance control. Increasing the Crunch Balance moves your normal overdrive sound closer to that of your 'boosted' tone. Alternatively, backing off the Crunch Balance control decreases the amount of gain

and volume in your unboosted overdrive tone only, allowing the jump from say crunch to metal instantly, via either the front panel or the included 2-way footswitch. Used in this manner, the Crunch Balance has the ability to create a pseudo third channel from the Boost function, further increasing the MA Series' tonal spectrum and versatility.
Finishing touches

Additional tonal fine tuning is provided by a Master section consisting of Presence, Resonance and Reverb, and if pedals, FX boards and stomp boxes are your thing, then a serial FX loop is also included across the range.

The 2x12" MA100C (UK RRP £663) and 1x12" MA50C (UK RRP £548) combos both contain the newly developed AX-75 speaker, custom-voiced to match the tone, feel and response of the whole MA Series perfectly. These speakers can also be found in the new full-sized M412A and M412B 4x12" speaker cabs.

Finally, both the MA100H (UK RRP £599) and MA50H (UK RRP £480) heads feature semi-transparent baffles and illuminated chassis, allowing your valve-powered tone to literally shine. Whether you're finally realising a full Marshall stack dream, searching for a rugged gigging workhorse, looking for your first valve amplifier, or all three, the Marshall MA Series provides the answer.

Now is the time to discover valve tone. "Information taken from official press release"

New Michael Jackson Soundtrack Single “This Is It” Out October 12th

Details about the soundtrack for the Michael Jackson documentary This Is It have been revealed, and the biggest news is that the two-disc collection will feature two versions of a brand new Jackson song titled “This Is It.” The song, which will feature in the film’s closing credits, includes background vocals by Jackson’s brothers. The previously unreleased track will be released as a single on October 12th, two weeks before the This Is It film hits theaters for a two-week limited engagement starting with advance screenings on October 27th.

“This song only defines, once again, what the world already knows — that Michael is one of God’s greatest gifts,” said John McClain, a co-producer of the This Is It film and soundtrack and a co-executor of Michael Jackson’s estate. The soundtrack, like the film, will be released on October 27th. Disc one of the This Is It album will contain the original album masters of the hit songs included in This Is It, sequenced in the order that they appear in the film. The first disc will close out with the two versions of “This Is It.”

Disc two will feature previously unreleased versions of some of Jackson’s most famous songs, plus an unreleased spoken word track of a poem written by Jackson titled “Planet Earth.” The set will also come with a 36-page commemorative booklet stocked with photos of Jackson’s last rehearsal for his planned This Is It concerts. As Rolling Stone previously reported, a brief clip of Jackson rehearsing “Human Nature” was unveiled on the This Is It official YouTube page. The trailer for the film premiered during this year’s MTV Video Music Awards.

(courtesy : Rolling stone)

Joe Satriani: how Jimi Hendrix changed my life

Joe Satriani, Thu 17 Sep 2009, 9:25 pm BST



"The day Jimi Hendrix died, I can still remember it like it was yesterday. It was a beautiful day in suburban Long Island. I was 14 years old, I was on the Carle Place High School football team, and I was standing outside the gym, all suited up and ready to go onto the field for practice. Everything was right in the world.

"Suddenly one of my teammates came up to me - he had just been home for lunch so he saw the news on TV - and he said, 'Hey Joe, you know that guy you like so much, Jimi Hendrix? I heard he just died.'

"I'm pretty sure I was about the only kid in school who knew who Jimi Hendrix even was. Through my older siblings, I was getting turned on to all the great music that was happening at the time, and I really loved Hendrix. So this kid, my teammate, thought I should know.

"The minute he told me, my whole life flashed before my eyes. I don't think this kid expected the impact it would have on me. It was such a blow. I was devastated, shattered, in a fog of emotion. Without so much as taking another step towards the field, I turned around, went back into the gym and I told my coach, 'Jimi Hendrix just died, and I'm quitting the team to become a guitar player.'

"I was anticipating an argument - the coach was a former marine and a pretty tough guy - but he just stared at me. Maybe I looked so crazy or despondent, I don't know, but he simply said, 'Well, all right. Go right ahead.'

"Jimi Hendrix died today and I'm going to devote my life to playing the electric guitar" a then-14-year-old Joe Satriani to his family at the dinner table


more

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK NEWS

Summit Entertainment, Chop Shop Records and Atlantic Records have announced the release of "THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK," the musical companion to the highly anticipated second installment in Summit's film franchise. Due in stores and online October 20th, the entire soundtrack features songs that will appear in the movie, highlighted by Death Cab for Cutie's brand new single "Meet Me On the Equinox." "THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON" is slated to open in theatres nationwide on November 20th.

In just one week, "Meet Me On the Equinox" has already exploded onto the modern rock charts, landing at No 26. The song, which is the soundtrack's first announced track, debuted in full on September 13th at MTV.com in conjunction with MTV's Video Music Awards.
The video companion to the song, which was shot in Toronto by director Walter Robot, will premiere soon.

"We wrote 'Meet Me On the Equinox' to reflect the celestial themes and motifs that run throughout the TWILIGHT series, and we wanted to capture that desperate feeling of endings and beginnings that so strongly affect the main characters," said Death Cab for Cutie bassist Nick Harmer. "This song marks the first attempt that Death Cab for Cutie has ever made at contributing new, unreleased material for a film. It just seems a perfect synergy that a band from the Northwest would create a song for a series of novels set in the Northwest. We are not only proud to be a part of the TWILIGHT legacy but also honored to join so many other fantastic artists that have leant their amazing creativity to this soundtrack." more..

Slash pays tribute to Les Paul

Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash has paid tribute to the electric guitar pioneer Les Paul, who died today (13 August) aged 94.

Slash is one of the players most-identified with the iconic Gibson Les Paul, and over the last 25 years there are few players who have done more to continue to popularise the design.

Slash has his own signature range of Gibson and Epiphone Les Pauls.

Slash said: "Les Paul was a shining example of how full one's life can be, he was so vibrant and full of positive energy.

"I'm honoured and humbled to have known and played with him over the years, he was an exceptionally brilliant man."

Les Paul passed away at 94

Les Paul, one of the most revered guitarists in history and the father of the electric guitar, passed away last night, August 12th at the age of 94. Paul’s manager confirmed to Rolling Stone that cause of death was respiratory failure, and a statement from Gibson indicates Paul was suffering from severe pneumonia and died at a hospital in White Plains, New York.

An inductee of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Grammy Hall of Fame, Paul is credited as the inventor of the electric body guitar and the pioneer of recording techniques like electronic echo and multi-tracking. Paul also had a celebrated career as both a solo artist and with singer Mary Ford, his wife until 1964. In 2003, Rolling Stone named Les Paul to our list of the Greatest Guitarists of All Time, and his influence on guitar greats who followed him is undeniable. “He was one of the most stellar human beings I’ve ever known,” Slash posted on his Twitter today, referring to Paul as his “friend and mentor.” Chickenfoot guitarist Joe Satriani released a statement that reads, “Les Paul set a standard for musicianship and innovation that remains unsurpassed. He was the original guitar hero, and the kindest of souls.”

In the early ’50s, Paul and Ford had a string of hits including Mockin’ Bird Hill,” “How High the Moon,” “The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise” and “Vaya Con Dios.” Paul also began experimenting with the electric guitar, building the Les Paul Recording Guitar, an instrument that allowed for “hot” pickups and “fatter” tone than the Fender on the market. Paul linked up with Gibson Guitars and his six-string became one of the guitar maker’s signatures.

Around this time, Paul also made the first-ever eight-track recording, as well as the dual-pickup guitar, the 14-fret guitar, and various types of electronic transducers used both in guitars and recording studios. For his achievements as a technician, Paul was also inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2005, joining Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla.

Paul was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1915, a fact noted in the name of the 1980 Les Paul documentary The Wizard of Waukesha. Last November, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honored Paul with its annual American Music Masters Concert, where Slash, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Richie Sambora and the Patti Smith Group’s Lenny Kaye paid tribute to Paul (watch footage from the event, below). Kaye told the audience, “Before Les, guitars were only amplified. Les made them truly electric.” During his acceptance speech, Paul joked, “Everybody thought I was a guitar until I played here tonight.” One thing is for certain: Les Paul is responsible for changing the way rock & roll sounds and he will be greatly missed.

11 legends of the Flying V and Explorer

Gibson's original Flying V and Explorers - and the many copies they've spawned - are some of the flashiest guitars you can strap on.

Here's MusicRadar's countdown of 11 of the guitarists who have made the dramatic shapes their own.


1. James Hetfield

On the Kill ’Em All album, Hetfield was using a V copy with Gibson truss rod cover, then the rhythm king’s white ‘More Beer’ and ‘So What’ (named after the permanent marker scrawl on their bodies) 1984 Explorers became veterans of every Metallica session from 1984’s Ride The Lightning until 1991’s Black Album.

Unlike his other guitars, neither have EMG pickups – and the ‘More Beer’ features Seymour Duncans.


2.Hendrix's psychedelic Flying V
Hendrix owned three Vs: an originally black specimen he hand-painted with a eye-catching psychedelic, floral design, and which he toured in 1967 and 1968 (reissue pictured), a sunburst example from 1969 that now resides with the Hard Rock Cafe, and a 1969 lefty version created for him by Gibson (also the first V to feature an inlaid pearl logo). Did he use one on All Along The Watchtower? Some experts believe so. MORE