Name: Jon Attwood
Bands: Yellow6
Websites: yellow6.com

QRD – What was your first guitar & what happened to it?

Jon – It was a 3/4 size acoustic which came from a flea market & cost less than the new strings it needed.  I had it for about 15 years (mostly unplayed for the last 14 of those) & finally gave it to a friend’s son who wanted to start playing.

QRD – What’s your typical set-up from guitar to effects to amplifier? 

Jon – Volume pedal
Boss TU-2
MXR Super Comp
Boss FZ-5 Fuzz
EHX Holy Stain
Pigtronix Philosopher’s Tone
ZVEX Distortron
Diaz Texas Tremodillo
Boss DF-2 Super Feedbacker
EHX Freeze
T-Rex Replica
T-Rex Roommate
Boss RC-50 Loop Station

QRD – What’s the most important part of your rig – guitar, amplifier, or effects? 

Jon – Guitar. I couldn’t make the sounds without the guitar (though the looper comes close second).

QRD – What’s your main amplifier & why? 

Jon – Carr Hellraiser II.  It’s got a lovely clean & warm sound.

QRD – What’s your main guitar & what are the features that make it such? 

Jon – Gretsch Black Phoenix.  Has a volume control, pickup selector, Bigsby & it feels just right.  So comfortable to play & it sounds great.

QRD – If you had a signature guitar, what would it look like & what would some of its features be? 

Jon – It would either be a simplified Jazzmaster with no rhythm circuit or tone control (very like the Sonic Youth Signature Models) or a Gretsch Silver Falcon with no tone control, but added kill switch (basically a Black Phoenix).

QRD – If you had a signature pedal, what would it be & what would some of its features be? 

Jon – It would probably be based on the EHX Freeze sound retainer pedal, but with built in looper & swell pedal.

QRD – How many guitars do you own? 

Jon – 8.

QRD – How & where do you store your guitars? 

Jon – Either on wall hangers or in cases at home.

QRD – What do you wish guitar cases had that they usually don’t? 

Jon – Stabilisers.

QRD – What features do you look for when buying a guitar? 

Jon – Playability - must feel right.

QRD – How much do you think a good guitar should cost? 

Jon – A fair price for the materials & workmanship… you get what you pay for & cheap materials should be cheap to buy & expensive should be what it’s worth, not half the price for the name not the quality.

QRD – Do you upgrade & customize your guitars or just stick with what you get? 

Jon – Stick with what I get - if I didn’t like it I wouldn’t buy it.

QRD – How thoroughly do you research or test a piece of equipment before buying it? 

Jon – Generally very thoroughly, but there’s been the occasional eBay buys for things that just look good.

QRD – Do you change your rig around often? 

Jon – Yep.

QRD – Are you after one particular guitar tone & locking into it, or do you like to change your tone around a lot? 

Jon – I like to change around every now & then so I don’t get stuck in a rut.  I’ve sold effects that have defined my sound a couple of times, just so I have to find another new sound.

QRD – What are some guitars, amps, & pedals you particularly lust after? 

Jon – I would love a Les Paul Junior (like Johnny Thunders’) or Gibson 335, a Shergold Masquerader (maybe a 12-string), the perfect reverb (still hunting), ZVEX Lo-fi Loop Junky, Fender Twin.

QRD – What do you think are some important features to be on a person’s first guitar that aren’t always there? 

Jon – Playability… it should always be something that has a good tone & a good action so it is encouraging rather than be off-putting.

QRD – What have been the best & worst guitar related purchases you’ve made? 

Jon – Best: Gretsch Black Phoenix, Fender Jazzmaster, Fender Bass VI, Fender John5 Triple Tele Deluxe, Texas Tremodillo, Freeze, any looper
Worst: Fender Jazzmaster AVRI (eBay - didn’t feel right), MXR EVH Flanger, Lap Steel

QRD – What are some effect, amp, & guitar brands you particularly like or dis-like & why? 

Jon – Like: Gretsch guitars, T-Rex pedals, Carr amps
Dislike: Stratocasters, Marshall amps, Line6

QRD – What’s the first thing you play when you pick up a guitar? 

Jon – An odd sort of A chord that I don’t know the name of.

QRD – How old were you when you started playing guitar? 

Jon – 14.

QRD – At what age do you think you leveled up to your best guitar playing? 

Jon – 30.

QRD – Why do you think a guitar fits you more so than other instruments? 

Jon – It’s the only one I ever really wanted to learn & put in the time & effort.  I tried trumpet & violin, but didn’t take to either.

QRD – Do you think guitar should be people’s first instrument as often as it is? 

Jon – No - some people are put off by the fact it isn’t that easy to get a good sound quickly.  Start with piano & take up guitar if you love music enough.

QRD – Do you see your guitar as your ally or adversary in making music? 

Jon – My ally…. It’s the creativity (or lack of) that is the adversary.

QRD – Who are the guitarists that most influenced your playing & sound? 

Jon – In no particular order:
Steve Jones
Sterling Morrison
Bernard Sumner
Daniel Ash
John McGeogh
Alan Sparhawk
Ron Asheton
Robin Proper Sheppard (God Machine/Sophia)
Graham Sutton (Bark Psychosis)
Adrian Utley

QRD – Do you think people anthropomorphizing their guitars is natural or silly (e.g. naming their guitar)? 

Jon – I guess you spend a lot of time with them, so why not… people name their cars.

QRD – What’s the most physical damage you’ve done to a guitar & how did you do it? 

Jon – Broke a headstock off a Les Paul copy throwing it across a rehearsal room at a band manager (I missed!).

QRD – What do you do to practice other than simply playing? 

Jon – Nothing… just play.

QRD – How many hours a week do you play guitar & how many hours would you like to? 

Jon – About 3-4, but would prefer double.

QRD – What type of pick do you use & why? 

Jon – For years I only ever used a white shark fin (perfect weight & blunt/sharp edges), but then they weren’t available for a long time so I switched to the pink Tortex which are a good weight & I don’t break them.

QRD – What gauge strings do you use & why? 

Jon – Mostly 11-49 as the heavier strings give a fuller sound.  I use an 009 gauge on the John5 as that’s what it came with.

QRD – How often do you change strings? 

Jon – When they need it… every couple of months depending on use.

QRD – How often do you break strings? 

Jon – Almost never.

QRD – Which do you feel is more proficient, your strumming hand or fretting hand & how does that effect your style? 

Jon – Strumming… makes playing a bit more rhythmical & I’m not so good with the fiddly fretwork.

QRD – Do you set-up your guitar yourself or send it to a guitar tech (or not set it up at all) & why? 

Jon – Mainly not set up at all… if it feels good when I buy it then why mess around (& I’d buy it because it feels good).

QRD – What tunings do you use & why? 

Jon – Standard for most things as I can’t get my head around other tunings.  Open E used for lap steel & occasionally drop-D tuning.  A-A tuning on the baritone.

QRD – Do you prefer tablature, sheet music, or some other notation system for writing down your own ideas? 

Jon – I can’t read or write music, so I use own form of tab/chord charts.

QRD – How high do you hold your guitar when playing (strap length)? 

Jon – Medium to low.

QRD – What’s a bad habit in your playing you wish you could break? 

Jon – Hitting tops of fingers on strings when playing more aggressively.

QRD – Playing what other instrument do you think can most help someone’s guitar playing? 

Jon – No idea…. I only play guitar.

QRD – What’s a type of guitar playing you wish you could do that you can’t? 

Jon – Flamenco.

QRD – What’s a guitar goal you’ve never accomplished? 

Jon – Learning scales.

QRD – What’s the last guitar trick you learned? 

Jon – Proper use of a Jazzmaster tremolo arm.

QRD – What’s your favorite guitar gadget (ebow, capo, slide, string cutter, etc)? 

Jon – E-Bow, but I don’t use it much any more as everyone uses them… getting into slide more recently.

QRD – What’s a guitar technique you’d like to master, but haven’t? 

Jon – Slide guitar.

QRD – Did you ever take guitar lessons & if so, what did you learn from them? 

Jon – Nope.

QRD – What would you teach someone in a guitar lesson that you don’t think they would generally get from a guitar teacher? 

Jon – Absolute perfection in technique is not as important as having a feel for the instrument.

QRD – What’s something someone would have to do to emulate your style? 

Jon – Un-learn proper technique.

QRD – What’s your take on tremolo systems? 

Jon – Love-hate… love Bigsby & Jazzmaster trems as they can give a subtle effect, but hate dive bombs etc.

QRD – How often do you adjust your tone knob? 

Jon – Very rarely (& the Black Phoenix doesn’t have one).

QRD – What do you see as the difference between lead guitar & rhythm guitar players? 

Jon – Application, confidence, & desire for the limelight (or maybe a good right versus left hand).

QRD – If a band has good guitar work, can you ignore the rest of the band not being good? 

Jon – No.

QRD – What famous musician’s guitar would you like to own & why? 

Jon – Quite happy with what I’ve got.

QRD – Who do you think is currently the most innovative guitar player & why? 

Jon – Mike Timmins (Cowboy Junkies) as he’s not afraid to do something different & unexpected.

QRD – Where can people hear your best guitar work? 

Jon – CUT (2010 album release) & Painted Sky (2007 release)… www.myspace.com/jonyellow6 & www.yellow6.com 

QRD – Anything else?

Jon – No, but thanks for asking.