Rig Rundown – Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Article and photos: http://bit.ly/JoanJettRR
Premier Guitar’s Shawn Hammond met with Zach Nagy, guitar tech for Joan Jett, lead guitarist Dougie Needles, and bassist Hal Salzer before the Blackhearts’ show at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on March 21, 2015.
Joan Jett’s Gear
Guitars
Jett’s primary guitar for most of her shows for the last 20 years is a battered and sticker-bedecked Gibson Melody Maker with a single Red Rhodes Velvet Hammer humbucker. For her spring 2015 tour opening for Heart, she’s also been playing a brand-new signature Melody Maker prototype with a Burstbucker 3 pickup, a metallic redburst finish, and red dot inlays. A black-finished 2011 signature Melody Maker with a Velvet Hammer that was a gift of the late Brian Farmer (guitar tech for Warren Haynes) serves as yet another backup. The volume knobs on all her guitars are wrapped with the hooked side of a piece of Velcro to increase their grip-ability, and each instrument features D’Addario .010–.046 string sets. Nagy says that a big part of Jett’s sound comes from using the broad, serrated edge of her D’Andrea Delrex Sharkfin 1.0 mm picks.
Amps
Since her breakout years in the early ’80s, Jett has relied on a Music Man HD-130 2×12 combo with JJ EL34 power tubes and Electro-Voice speakers. She plugs into input 1 of the rhythm channel and cranks the volume all the way up. An HD-130 head comes along as backup.
Effects
Jett’s sole effect is an Ibanez TS9DX Turbo Tube Screamer that sits atop her Music Man combo. It’s set to turbo mode, with drive and level at 9 o’clock, and tone at 3 o’clock. Her only other onstage gear is a can of Tone Finger Ease string-lubricant spray, which is Velcro’d to the top of her amp alongside a tin of black-currant-flavored Grether’s Pastilles throat lozenges, and a cup full of unwrapped pieces of gum.
To continue learning about the gear behind Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, visit: http://bit.ly/JoanJettRR
#Rig #Rundown #Joan #Jett #Blackhearts
Originally posted by UC5J-hZ4wNf7OlkzIn49LHoQ at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGyHLxI3bDI
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Joan likes them used and abused
Hey, does anybody remember or know where Brett went?. He was Joan's guitar tech in the early 90s.
Just acquired a black face music man 210 that I suspect may have been one of Joans.. Has several cigarette melts along the front edge and a very strong scent. Is it?
I used a Music Man HD 130 for yrs , these days I use my Rivera modded fender twin reverb 2 I still have my HD 130 but dont use it much anymore. I also use some vintage EV speakers. Great sound.
Joan turned me on to the Velvet Hammer back in '81 I've used them on my strat ever since.
So, "awesome", and, so, "rock-and-roll" !!!
As, Always !!! ❤
To be honest it's cant believe how much a guitar tech really knows! Rattles the info off …oh 3 pickup burstbucker z cobalt….hmm
.
Joan Jett is rock n' roll!
Okay kiddies, take note. Her guitar, when built, was inexpensive student model, the whole band uses minimal pedals and she uses the same amp she's had for years. And she and they have killer tone. I've seen her live a couple of times and it's totally rock n roll, no monkeying around. It's not the gear as much as what you do with it.
RIP Zak Godwin. Killed by a hit & run driver Dec 10th 2022
I had a Cherry 1965 double cut, dual pick up, Melody Maker, that I gigged with in the 60's. …I sure wish that I still had it.
cool to see Joan Jett running those Velvet Hammer pickups, they were invented and produced by my Uncle Red Roads,
9:18 Got it backwards. They have a solid state pre and a tube power section.
Get this guy a glass of water.
The guy who wrote the song AND wrote the exact guitar riffs,,,,died of covid,,,,
14:50 Gary & Kasim both played bass with their fingers rather than using a pick.
Why did Joan stop playing her original white Melody Maker and her old Epiphone Melody Maker?
I like that the treble knob on the bass amp is missing.
What a great guy Zack is
I appreciate hearing that Joan doesn't like to change strings and will them until they're dead. Not I don't feel like I'm just lazy.
I met Joan and her Runaways back in 77 or so. I was on my way to my lounge gig at the Elyria Holiday Inn, when the elevator stopped and in walked the girls. I had my LP GoldtopmDeluxe with Grover’s, and Joan’s like, “Dude, I have the same guitar”! I let her check it out, but they had a gig to get to as did I. They said they were going to hook up with us later, but the girls got “involved” somewhere else, but we did party with their road crew till the sun came up. The next nite Sandy West, R.I.P., hung out with us at our gig.
Oww!
fire glow burst
Joan is my hero.
I love the fact that Joan is still old school after all these years….✌????✌????✌????
i found the same amp to be a perfect rocker.
boss flange is one of the greatest pedals ever made
Menos é mais ????☠????????
D'Addario 1046 seems to be the most popular strings in a lot PG Rig Rundowns.
I love them.
Yep that's what they used last weekend in Brookhaven Georgia. See on the videos I recorded. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGzNIo8kJks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdGNbnaYj5I&feature=youtu.be
Saw an interview where Ted Nugent said he didn’t respect Joan Jett as a musician. Ahahaha you know you’re really cool when Ted Nugent craps on you! Joan Jett Rocks and is an excellent musician and guitarist! Period.
The tech didn't like that the interviewer having his hand on his shoulder for a Lil tooo long.
Excellent! No fake excitement or endless Awesomes and Cools. More Shawn!
Always been my favorite guitar body shape. I think my dream guitar would be basically an aged silver burst like the Adam Jones signature Les Paul except double cutaway.
You can tell Zach's an easy going dependable tech. That's like a stripped down military rock setup. No messin' around.
A lot of bands have the same gear from 50yrs ago, another Century even. If any parts need replacing they might have to go to a Museum!
Basics. Where rock n roll started. Perfect.
What about her vocal effects???
man this guy is awesome, he has a lot of passion for the music and the band, awesome video
kiss, always the best moto
I don't like American rock, but Joan is a hard working, smart musician.
if this interviewer was expecting "showroom" quality geetars? He went to see the wrong band. most snobbery.
Love the ampeg svt played them most of my career. I use 2 8×10 & 1 4×10. Recently switched from rack mount svt 4 to old svt tube heads.
It’s good to see a simple set up. My board only has 4 effects. You can get lost in the gear.
Bunch of cringe in here, that shark tooth pick almost killed me????
REAL RELICS. And for the life of my i cant understand how Harry Kolbe doesnt rent space in a building with an elevator!
Solid state pre amp w/tube power amp