The Texas force of nature who dragged the blues back into the mainstream.
Heavy strings, Tube Screamer into loud Fender and Marshall amps, massive attack
The gear associated with the sound. Each item opens a live Reverb search — vintage examples where they exist, modern equivalents where they don't.
Almost no pedals — a Vibroverb pushed hard, with all the grit coming from string gauge and attack.
The shuffle tone: bridge-and-middle Strat position, slight Tube Screamer push, and a right hand doing double duty.
Clean-to-edge tone with a Univibe wash; the Hendrix arrangement recast with a heavier, wider low end.
Neck pickup, clean Dumble-style headroom, played at conversational volume — the counterexample to his loud reputation.
The In Step-era sound: tighter, less scooped, with the Tube Screamer used as a mid-boost rather than a distortion.
Not really a distortion — a midrange lens. Set the drive low, the level high, and it turns a decent amp into a focused one. Half the blues and metal tones you love have one in front of the amp.
The most adaptable electric guitar ever designed. Three single coils, a five-way switch and a vibrato that rewards a light touch — it covers Hendrix, Gilmour, SRV and Mayer without ever pretending to be more than a plank, a neck and some wire.
The most recorded clean amp on earth and a pedal platform that flatters almost everything you put in front of it. Breaks up early enough to be musical, loud enough to be a problem.
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