A Brief History of Electric Guitar Distortion

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  • Опубликовано: 6 июн 2024
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    00:00 Intro
    00:43 Title Card
    00:51 The Science
    01:27 40’s Guitar
    02:01 Junior Burrard
    02:32 Goree Carter
    02:57 Howlin’ Wolf
    03:20 Rocket 88
    04:12 Link Wray
    04:49 The Kinks
    05:11 Fuzzbox
    06:31 Imitators
    07:18 Grit Race
    07:34 Conclusion
  • ВидеоклипыВидеоклипы

Комментарии • 2,8 тыс.

  • @inversedopposite6913
    @inversedopposite6913 4 года назад +1965

    The 6 dollar headphones i'm watching this video with have distortion included

    • @erickminren
      @erickminren 4 года назад +4

      Cold Kt haaaaahahahahahahahahhaa

    • @fabianvanderelst9643
      @fabianvanderelst9643 4 года назад +14

      That was very funny to read so unexpectedly 😂

    • @sepes2801
      @sepes2801 4 года назад +3

      @@erickminren perfect

    • @djskullboy2871
      @djskullboy2871 4 года назад +10

      Just get some Skullcandys. They’re quality at a low price. About $10 for some good quality bass

    • @DedEternal
      @DedEternal 4 года назад +9

      _Laughs in deep-fried_

  • @amoru1012
    @amoru1012 5 лет назад +4243

    One of the real pioneers of Distortion is Marty McFly

  • @RickSanchez-of4om
    @RickSanchez-of4om 5 лет назад +2368

    You know you have reached there when people start thinking your music can start gang fights.

    • @tysonrinker5958
      @tysonrinker5958 5 лет назад +60

      They never mention this but it did start fights.

    • @MLBlue30
      @MLBlue30 5 лет назад +97

      @@tysonrinker5958 Thats how you know its good.

    • @ffjsb
      @ffjsb 4 года назад +28

      Everyone knows that it's rap music that starts gang fights...

    • @tyde4610
      @tyde4610 4 года назад +31

      ffjsb ok boomer

    • @ffjsb
      @ffjsb 4 года назад +23

      @@tyde4610 Obviously you don't get sarcasm....

  • @candykanefpv98
    @candykanefpv98 5 лет назад +700

    My cat was sitting on my lap when i started watching this, when you distorted your voice, he forcefully got up, walked away and puked. You made my cat puke with distortion.

  • @soobaroo8253
    @soobaroo8253 5 лет назад +3263

    Distortion is probably one of the happiest accidents ever.

  • @DynamiteMustDie
    @DynamiteMustDie 5 лет назад +933

    Rumble is a dead serious, it sounds ahead of its time, something like from the late 60's

    • @raiffesilva4908
      @raiffesilva4908 5 лет назад +85

      Yeah the distortion is insane, I thought i was hearing something from the 70s.

    • @utecastronoova863
      @utecastronoova863 5 лет назад +84

      Apparently it is because according to others here this is a later version of the song ......10 years later. The original is much less distorted.

    • @fododude
      @fododude 4 года назад +2

      @@utecastronoova863 Yep

    • @philliplbeard1481
      @philliplbeard1481 4 года назад +20

      @@utecastronoova863 Yeh, the drum sound, too, is a give-away--that isn't a "surf" era recording.

    • @elimalinsky7069
      @elimalinsky7069 4 года назад +54

      The version in this video is a 1969 re-recording of the instrumental track by Link Wray, which uses an actual pre-built distortion effect. The original 1958 version used the old technique of damaging the speaker or overdriving the tube in the amp. It still sounded heavy for its time but not nearly as much as the version heard here.

  • @sethadams7122
    @sethadams7122 5 лет назад +557

    Soundwaves: It's over, distortion, I have the high ground
    Clipping: You underestimate my power!

    • @TranceCore3
      @TranceCore3 4 года назад +8

      Can't clip if you just stay in the red

    • @baconbitz7937
      @baconbitz7937 4 года назад

      Don’t try it

    • @Carbon2861996
      @Carbon2861996 4 года назад +5

      *Soundwaves jumps but Clipping clips Soundwaves legs and an arm off*

    • @Someguy-ic3mu
      @Someguy-ic3mu Год назад

      This is too good lol.

  • @gunneddown2328
    @gunneddown2328 4 года назад +230

    1:14 *when that one friend with the Kinect mic joins the Xbox party*

  • @batmandeltaforce
    @batmandeltaforce 5 лет назад +1060

    I had a Maestro Distortion pedal. I learned that it sounded better when it was warm, so I put a christmas light in it and left it cracked on the back where the battery was, so the wire could come out. The bulb burnt out one day so I bought another Christmas light to put in it. That night on stage it quit. I didn't know that those lights came in different wattages and I had gotten a HOT one and it fried my pedal:) It sounded best just before it burnt up:) I was 14 yrs old and it was 1965:)

    • @7viewerlogic670
      @7viewerlogic670 5 лет назад +22

      Cool story!

    • @chrismoore7359
      @chrismoore7359 5 лет назад +51

      + StringGene
      Compared to all the tragic stories I've heard about the destructive potential of 'ol timey Christmas bulbs yours is the happiest one yet! I'm 51 and remember those fat glass bulbs well....

    • @batmandeltaforce
      @batmandeltaforce 5 лет назад +11

      @@chrismoore7359 Funny, I didn't even think that most kids would not even know what a Christmas light bulb is:)

    • @chrismoore7359
      @chrismoore7359 5 лет назад +13

      + StringGene
      My mom was terrified that a dried out Christmas tree was gonna burn the house down. I recall checking the water level in the stand seemly on the hour every hour then I suppose it was her watch after hours. My dad repeated over and over "relax honey, it'll be fine" as he sat in his easy chair watching TV... Those were the days!

    • @kenfrazee2779
      @kenfrazee2779 5 лет назад +5

      @@chrismoore7359 sigh...yes they were.

  • @w.williams2694
    @w.williams2694 5 лет назад +1170

    “Chuck! Chuck, it’s Marvin. Your cousin, Marvin Berry. You know that new sound you’re looking for? Great content as always.

    • @BreyonnaMorgan18
      @BreyonnaMorgan18 5 лет назад +33

      You're my density.

    • @KaizerMan
      @KaizerMan 5 лет назад +23

      Ah, my cousin Marvin Berry. I would’ve forgot had you not specified the ‘Berry’ last name we share :D

    • @eugeneaxe
      @eugeneaxe 5 лет назад +40

      You might not be ready for that sound yet... But your kids are gonna love it.

    • @ankitbhandari3354
      @ankitbhandari3354 5 лет назад +6

      Great Scott

    • @TALKINGtac0
      @TALKINGtac0 5 лет назад

      The Simpsons

  • @THRASHMETALFUNRIFFS
    @THRASHMETALFUNRIFFS 4 года назад +366

    Back then a gangfight was called having a "rumble"

    • @d_byrd
      @d_byrd 4 года назад +4

      Love me some Link Wray.

    • @nomine4027
      @nomine4027 4 года назад +3

      The Sharks and the Jets have to rumble to an appropriate soundtrack

    • @OriginalKingRichTv
      @OriginalKingRichTv 3 года назад

      nomine * 🤣🤣😂😂🤣😭 man if I was back then I’d fúčk them up

    • @sockswithsamdals
      @sockswithsamdals 3 года назад +4

      FYI if your name is pony boy do not get In one you will get fucked up

    • @arfansthename
      @arfansthename 3 года назад

      Yes grandpa now let's get to your bed

  • @0326Hambone
    @0326Hambone 4 года назад +302

    Stuffing a tube amp full of newspapers, yeah that's not a fire hazard.

    • @yearginclarke
      @yearginclarke 4 года назад +6

      Good point

    • @econecoff1725
      @econecoff1725 3 года назад +25

      Sure, but one hell of an ending to a concert.

    • @johnbgood52
      @johnbgood52 3 года назад +10

      You stuffed the cabinet, not the head. ;-)

    • @fuzz11111111
      @fuzz11111111 Год назад

      Especially when it's a tube amp built in the 50's, the safety of many amps was already questionable.

  • @godsfruit-official2555
    @godsfruit-official2555 5 лет назад +1020

    1940’s dirt tone is still cleaner than my clean sound damn

    • @kirkwahmmet8406
      @kirkwahmmet8406 5 лет назад +3

      God's Fruit - Official lol

    • @OscarASevilla
      @OscarASevilla 5 лет назад +1

      😂😂😂😂😂 Awww

    • @pstrokeslibsarctic
      @pstrokeslibsarctic 5 лет назад +28

      Wtf solid state clean is clean as fuck now aday

    • @pstrokeslibsarctic
      @pstrokeslibsarctic 5 лет назад +3

      James Wever yea his clean is like overdrive + tube cranked

    • @fposmith
      @fposmith 5 лет назад +1

      If you want perfection on both, buy a vintage Magnatone amp.

  • @manalad8928
    @manalad8928 5 лет назад +525

    5:34. Origins of stoner metal. Lol.

  • @nateds7326
    @nateds7326 4 года назад +120

    "they thought it would insite gang riots"
    *sounds like a rolling stones jam session*

  • @avedic
    @avedic 3 года назад +157

    Rumble _still_ sounds mean to this day. I can't imagine how scary it must have sounded to old people back in the day lol.
    Think about it. Imagine some 70 year old hearing _that_ song. A person born in the 1800s, who grew up hearing his parents talk about the Civil War....hearing THAT song. I've always loved how music is SO capable of.....scaring people. Mere sounds, when played just so, can literally _scare_ people. I fucking love that about music. I still remember the first time I heard a song that actually scared me. Oddly enough it was a Michael Jackson song...the song "Why You Wanna Trip On Me" from the Dangerous album.
    I must have been around 8 years old....and something about his vocal delivery, the gritty aggressiveness of it, the angular rhythms....it just really scared me lol. But in a titillating sort of way. I found it both kinda terrifying...but also very alluring.
    To this day, I still look for that in music. I know a song is really good if it freaks me out a bit...while also intriguing and mesmerizing me.

    • @krabuh
      @krabuh 2 года назад +8

      IKR?? when you listen to how thin the distortion on "you really got me going now" sounds versus how massive it sounds on "Rumble" it's fucking incredible

    • @MarkTiarra
      @MarkTiarra 2 года назад

      Exactly!

    • @cloroxbleach115
      @cloroxbleach115 Год назад +1

      listen to death metal or black metal

    • @EvelynSucksAtLife
      @EvelynSucksAtLife Год назад +6

      @@cloroxbleach115 Im a black metal fan but op is talking about how it still sounds mean even tho its very old and back then it sounded very evil

    • @cloroxbleach115
      @cloroxbleach115 Год назад

      @@EvelynSucksAtLife I know maybe he can get scared of the music

  • @SuperSoFlow
    @SuperSoFlow 5 лет назад +440

    "A bad time to be a speaker cone" 🔊 Lol

    • @DibIrken
      @DibIrken 5 лет назад +6

      I snorted a bit. Hahaha. *oink* 😅😅😅

    • @bobthebear1246
      @bobthebear1246 5 лет назад +1

      R.I.P. speaker cone

    • @LASR71
      @LASR71 4 года назад

      "Have you heard about the EMO speaker cone? These fuckers cut themselves to sound...distorted".

  • @jacpod2046
    @jacpod2046 4 года назад +202

    For some reason I found it unreasonably funny when he said "This was a bad time to be a speaker cone"

    • @paulh9586
      @paulh9586 4 года назад +8

      Yes sort of like "I guess I picked the wrong week to quit amphetamines"

    • @highonimmi
      @highonimmi 2 года назад

      Stop sniffing glue

  • @user-ms8km7lh1l
    @user-ms8km7lh1l 5 лет назад +320

    i agree that it's kinda weird that they showed a pic of sister rosetta tharpe without even talking about her. she's definitely an unsung god in the history of rock n roll for obvious reasons

    • @lawrencetaylor4101
      @lawrencetaylor4101 4 года назад +16

      @Marvin Bennett Everyone watched her. Why was there a British invasion? She played in an unused train station in Manchester in early 1960's and every guitarist was watching and learning from the master.

    • @auntjenifer7774
      @auntjenifer7774 4 года назад +1

      Maybe she was playing the most powerful guitar that really overdrives the amplifier. ?

    • @rustyjames2202
      @rustyjames2202 4 года назад +1

      Not weird at all just the regular practice.

    • @thebrazilianatlantis165
      @thebrazilianatlantis165 4 года назад +3

      "she's definitely an unsung god in the history of rock n roll" She was a great gospel musician who didn't participate in the invention of rock and roll.

    • @wannarewind2893
      @wannarewind2893 3 года назад +3

      Bo Diddley too.. even Tom Petty credits Diddley as "elvis' daddy"

  • @gchampi2
    @gchampi2 5 лет назад +20

    No mention of Charlie Christian, who was almost certainly the actual originator of distorted guitar, back in the mid 1930s. He was playing the embryonic electric guitar in jazz bands, where he had to keep up volumewise with brass instruments. As the amps of the time were limited to maybe 10-15W, and he was soloing, he had to be running his amp pretty much flat out just to be heard. There are live recordings dating back to 1939 of Christian soloing, and while his tone isn't as distorted as many of those who followed, it is by no means "clean".

  • @user-fr6qn9xl9e
    @user-fr6qn9xl9e 5 лет назад +397

    "This is crazy, Dewey. Ain't nobody gonna wanna listen to music like this. You're standing there playing as fast as you can singing like some sort of a punk."

    • @SentientHoodii
      @SentientHoodii 5 лет назад +2

      Is this from something?

    • @justuslimpright2388
      @justuslimpright2388 5 лет назад +31

      @@SentientHoodii it's from "Walk Hard," I suggest you watch it if you like comedy, John C Reilly, or music

    • @JaegerSuz
      @JaegerSuz 5 лет назад +6

      @@SentientHoodii yes from Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

    • @davymag3476
      @davymag3476 5 лет назад +20

      Don’t you dare try to stifle me

    • @samk418
      @samk418 5 лет назад +34

      Get outta here dewey, you dont want no part of this shit

  • @dreamywtf
    @dreamywtf 4 года назад +119

    5:34 is probably the best bass tone I've heard imo. Sounds so fkn good

    • @casesoutherland4175
      @casesoutherland4175 4 года назад +8

      Almost makes me want to buy a Fender bass VI, if I can find a left-handed one.

    • @ultimadum7785
      @ultimadum7785 3 года назад

      go listen to heartbreaker's bass line isolated. It will change your life. ruclips.net/video/vULgqDEDbiY/видео.html

    • @wornstrat5517
      @wornstrat5517 3 года назад +1

      My favourite bass tone is definitely song 2 by blur

    • @goodun2974
      @goodun2974 9 месяцев назад

      ​@@casesoutherland4175, A cheaper option would be to look for a Danelectro 6 string bass, which is actually a baritone guitar. By the way, John Entwhistle used a Danelectro bass for My Generation!

  • @himanshuhingwe7356
    @himanshuhingwe7356 5 лет назад +114

    A young man named Jimmy Hendrix picked up one of these and used it on his band's debut album. When Are You Experienced opened with the psychedelic distortion of Purple Haze.. there was no turning back...🔥🔥🔥

    • @QJ89
      @QJ89 4 года назад +2

      @7:07: Ladies & Gentlemen, Jimi's 'O' Face!

    • @MadmanDS
      @MadmanDS 4 года назад +4

      If you are interested, then research the greek bouzouki player Manolis Xiotis, he was a great inspiration for Hendrix, whom he considered the best player in the world at that time.

  • @samuellarsen6044
    @samuellarsen6044 5 лет назад +120

    When you said "length of soundwave" at 1:00 , you meant amplitude of soundwave. Length would be the pitch of the wave.

    • @fckcrustpunx1258
      @fckcrustpunx1258 4 года назад +6

      Samuel Larsen I’m watching this and realizing this dude is kinda dumb

    • @djskullboy2871
      @djskullboy2871 4 года назад +1

      Irfan Spirtovic jealousy of knowledge lol

    • @ultimadum7785
      @ultimadum7785 3 года назад

      I think he was referring to the visual aspect of the soundwave.
      Which is a much easier way to explain to people that dont know what clipping is.

  • @JawTooth
    @JawTooth 5 лет назад +573

    I love the distorted sounds that Tony Iommi makes for sabbath

    • @hedgehog1965uk
      @hedgehog1965uk 5 лет назад +67

      To get that sound, you gotta have the tips of a couple of your fingers on your fretting hand chopped off and replaced with prosthetics...seriously.

    • @richardmills5326
      @richardmills5326 5 лет назад +20

      Jaw Tooth treble booster into laney

    • @richieworrell
      @richieworrell 5 лет назад +55

      I don't care what anyone says, the riff from Into the Void is the definition of "Heavy" in my opinion.

    • @romajikaiser8450
      @romajikaiser8450 5 лет назад +3

      I see we share the same opinion

    • @jeffreyp1855
      @jeffreyp1855 5 лет назад +13

      @@richieworrell , Badass riff. Weirdly enough, I'm an old fart of 48 but didn't get into Sabbath until after I was introduced to Candlemass at about 17 years of age. I loved Candlemass and when I found out they were heavily inspired by Sabbath, I got into them, a lot! I was already a fan of Ozzy and Randy Rhodes, Yngwie, Metalicca Mega-Dave and Slayer but just didn't hear a lot of Sabbath. One of the grandfathers of metal! One of my favorites is "Supernaut". Love the heavy, bluesy riffs in that song!

  • @JC19021
    @JC19021 5 лет назад +890

    Wow Link Wray was ahead of his time.

    • @mfrican1127
      @mfrican1127 5 лет назад +108

      They didn't use the actual recording of "Rumble", the overdrive is FAR less distorted in the original recording.

    • @greglapointe1311
      @greglapointe1311 5 лет назад +23

      You can hear the distortion throughout the song, also some heavy reverb. He used a lot of distortion on other songs and played some wild lead guitar, especially for that late fifties early '60's time period

    • @mfrican1127
      @mfrican1127 5 лет назад +54

      Greg LaPointe Eeeeee. I hate being this guy, but at the end of the original track he actually employed the heavy use of the tremolo effect that was available in most guitar amps in the 1950s, reverb was being used the entire track. And yes, he did use much more distortion and effects during those periods, but I just don't like the fact that the video used a recording that sounded much more distorted and was not the original to prove a point. It's misleading. The video used original recordings for other examples, as far as I can tell, so why not use the original of "Rumble"? It is so easy to access.

    • @fezzes428
      @fezzes428 5 лет назад +9

      yea its sounds like sabbath

    • @talibnunnally1531
      @talibnunnally1531 5 лет назад +5

      @@mfrican1127 "eet gayts moore in tainse"-Jimmy Paige

  • @GTX1123
    @GTX1123 3 года назад +12

    More than any other song, Link Wray's "The Rumble" is THE SONG that influenced British guitar greats to dime up their Marshalls and change history. The story behind Link Ray's "The Rumble" is eerily similar to the sock hop scene in "Back to the Future" when the kids go nuts over Marty McFly and the "Starlighters" introduction of "Johnny B Good". Link and the Wraymen were at a sock hop in Fredericksburg VA in 1957-58 when Link's bandmates wanted to play "The Stroll" but Link didn't know it. They started to play it so Link walked over to his little combo amp and cranked the volume all the way up while someone grabbed a vocal mic and held it up to his amp while Link began power chording what became "The Rumble". The kids at the sock hop went NUTS and kept demanding they play it, so they played over and over. It was eventually recorded in the studio where Link poked holes in his speaker to emulate the dist he got from the amp overwhelming the PA system via a vocal mic. That recording eventually made its way to England where very young aspiring guitarists Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Pete Townsend, Eric Clapton etc all heard it, mixed it in with their American Blues obsession and voila, the genre of late 60's heavy blues rock was born. They have all said that more than any other song, "The Rumble" was THE SONG that influenced the loud, power chording heavy side of rock that became mainstream in the 60's.

  • @bassblaster505
    @bassblaster505 5 лет назад +73

    "Vacuum tubes would compress the sound waves so that they wouldn't break"
    ehhhhh i dont think thats how audio clipping in audio circuits work

    • @malaquiasalfaro81
      @malaquiasalfaro81 4 года назад +2

      Wait why not? I dont know anything about this stuff. How else would the sound be achieved?

    • @yearginclarke
      @yearginclarke 4 года назад +10

      It was more of a laymen's way of putting it so everyone can understand it.

    • @donrutter6765
      @donrutter6765 4 года назад

      Than you would be incorrect, especially in the rectifier tube. When you chop off the edges of the wavelegnth that *is* compression.

    • @patrickm.4310
      @patrickm.4310 4 года назад +1

      Distortion is limting a signals amplitude. Basically as shown in the animation but with more complex signals than sine waves. Doing so adds overtones to the original signal. The mathematical theory of signal analysis is rather complex, but if u wanna develop a basic understanding of how and why this is, look up foirier transformation.

    • @patrickm.4310
      @patrickm.4310 4 года назад +1

      It also means that you compress the signal, as limting is the highest form of compression.
      However distortion means not only limting the sinal. This is just one of many forms of distorting a signal/creating overtones. Distortion happens nowadays in the electrical domain, where there is no soundwaves, but voltage. Distortion circuits can be quite simple or rather complex, depends on how you want the result to be. By damgeing a cone you can prevent it from converting an undistorted electrical signal to sound signal proerly thus make it create overtones.

  • @FrankDeMarco
    @FrankDeMarco 5 лет назад +254

    I've had a "distorted" understanding of this for years. Thanks for clarifying with another excellent video.

    • @jimjamjerry
      @jimjamjerry 5 лет назад +2

      Do you happen to have a relation to Mac DeMarco?

    • @FrankDeMarco
      @FrankDeMarco 5 лет назад +1

      Nope, no musical relatives at all.

  • @Juan6Meses
    @Juan6Meses 5 лет назад +514

    Glad to see you demystify the fact the kinks weren't the creators of distortion.

    • @RudolfZ
      @RudolfZ 5 лет назад +56

      They definitly brought it mainstream.

    • @hanawana
      @hanawana 5 лет назад +9

      Rudolf Zlopasa hehe I’m down the road from their recording studio!!

    • @maxbobness
      @maxbobness 5 лет назад +35

      I think the claim isn't that he invented distortion, but that he "invented" hard rock/metal with the distorted power chords that (over)drive You Really Got Me, All Day and All of the Night, I Need You, etc. The distortion is a key factor of course, but the power chords are the key in his case. That was my understanding anyway.

    • @kriscaprani1108
      @kriscaprani1108 5 лет назад +15

      Far from the creators, but one of the first bands to emphasise the distorted guitar in terms of composition - of equal importance to the main vocals.

    • @thomasdupont7186
      @thomasdupont7186 5 лет назад +3

      "Glad to see you demystify the fact the kinks weren't the creators of distortion."
      what ?

  • @spottedsaint957
    @spottedsaint957 3 года назад +7

    I was fortunate enough to have caught a Link Wray show by accident at a local nightclub years ago just before he died. He put on a great show and he was one of best guitarists ever. His style was all business. Simple ,nothing fancy, raw and loud. The way rock n roll should be. Great video! 👍

  • @jacobchaffin2663
    @jacobchaffin2663 4 года назад +32

    Me: almost asleep
    Polyphonic: CrAnK uP mY VoIcE OvEr LiKe ThIs!!

  • @78deathface
    @78deathface 5 лет назад +127

    That Marty Robbins track is Heavy AF!

    • @stevendorie7414
      @stevendorie7414 5 лет назад +2

      Hell yeah It is

    • @StamfordBridge
      @StamfordBridge 5 лет назад +6

      78deathface Yeah, I’m amazed I haven’t heard it before. Gotta track it down.

    • @juliegoldman6778
      @juliegoldman6778 5 лет назад

      here's more of that in action:
      ruclips.net/video/mDUnDBqZsdQ/видео.html

    • @themightymcb7310
      @themightymcb7310 5 лет назад +1

      Marty Robbins is awesome, yeah. Single best country artist of all time

    • @jackstrawfromwichita6168
      @jackstrawfromwichita6168 5 лет назад +8

      *T H I S M A K E S M Y I R O N T H E B I G I R O N*

  • @billmilligan7272
    @billmilligan7272 5 лет назад +267

    Argh. There's a picture of Rosetta Tharpe but no mention? She was distorting guitar as early as 1944 that we have records of. It's out on youtube and sounds amazing. Also, Rocket 88 was 1949, not 1951, and while it was recorded as "Jackie Brenston", the band leadership and sound production was all Ike Turner. I know it's not PC to talk about Ike Turner these days but you have to give credit where it's due.

    • @robertm3951
      @robertm3951 5 лет назад +2

      It is tough to say what the 1st Rock & Roll song is, since the DJ who coined the term played mostly R & B and Jump Blues.
      The video mentions Rock Awhile by Goree Carter, which was before Rocket 88

    • @ant2011
      @ant2011 5 лет назад +1

      I also wondered the same the thing. I'm glad a photo was added at least .

    • @Adrian-ne1qn
      @Adrian-ne1qn 5 лет назад +4

      Bill Milligan dude thanks for making this comment, I knew that there was a lady who was in rock n roll back I like the 49’s but I had forgotten her name.

    • @samuelL.mackin
      @samuelL.mackin 5 лет назад +1

      Rosetta is definitely the creator of the sound but the very first rock n roll song played on the radio is Rocket 88.

    • @SlashManEXE
      @SlashManEXE 5 лет назад +1

      @@robertm3951 If you're going by the story of Alan Freed coining the term, the song that was first dubbed "rock and roll" was Rock the Joint by Bill Haley and the Saddlemen

  • @desu38
    @desu38 4 года назад +384

    Electric guitar distortion is the original deep fried meme, change my mind. ☕

  • @numerousattention103
    @numerousattention103 4 года назад +10

    The Beatles had the distortion effect on songs like Cry For A Shadow and My Bonnie in 1961 and Slow Down in 1964.

  • @billuminati3867
    @billuminati3867 5 лет назад +378

    Do a video on "_________" please!!!!

    • @LittleLion93
      @LittleLion93 5 лет назад +47

      "_________" truly revolutioned music as we know!

    • @PixelVarnox
      @PixelVarnox 5 лет назад +33

      "_________" is my idol

    • @Kiquecapo
      @Kiquecapo 5 лет назад +5

      Whales?

    • @remy7541
      @remy7541 5 лет назад +2

      Canada?

    • @MapleMilk
      @MapleMilk 5 лет назад +25

      "_________"'s first album sucks though
      "-------------" has a much cleaner discography

  • @connorpark2744
    @connorpark2744 5 лет назад +46

    That Marty Robbins Example was really cool. The Beatles Also used a Fuzz Bass on Harrison's "Think For Yourself" McCartney played a normal bass and then a fuzz bass to act as the lead instrument

    • @TheGamingEffect100
      @TheGamingEffect100 5 лет назад

      Connor Park Good example. I remember when I used to play it as a kid I didn’t have a fuzz pedal, so I would turn the volume up until it had a very fuzzy/distorted sound to it

    • @Dad-Gad
      @Dad-Gad 5 лет назад

      Most overrated band ever .

    • @TheGamingEffect100
      @TheGamingEffect100 5 лет назад +2

      Rob Phillips so?

  • @mysneaker8234
    @mysneaker8234 4 года назад +49

    3:43
    Today: Broken Amp - buy a new one
    Back then: Broken Amp - stuff newspaper in it

  • @MH5tube
    @MH5tube 5 лет назад +79

    feel like it's worth mentioning that fuzz and distortion aren't exactly the same

    • @ayelmao1224
      @ayelmao1224 4 года назад +33

      Fuzz is a type of distortion, but not all distortion is fuzz

    • @MH5tube
      @MH5tube 4 года назад +6

      @@ayelmao1224 but they came from fairly different places. Distortion is either an amp driving or a pedal mimicking that. On the other hand, fuzz has always been an effect

    • @donrutter6765
      @donrutter6765 4 года назад +11

      Because fuzz used a transistor (3 prong) which refeeds the signal back in, like a negative feedback loop in a tube), where distortion is just clipping the edge of the waveform.

    • @j.d.snyder4466
      @j.d.snyder4466 Год назад

      Thank you, Don Rutter, your reply was most helpful.

    • @goodun2974
      @goodun2974 9 месяцев назад

      The video talked about Keith Richard's use of a fuzz box for Satisfaction but didn't mention Street Fighting Man where a cheap portable tape recorder was being intentionally overdriven by an acoustic guitar, and used as a preamp/fuzz effect.

  • @elmud
    @elmud 5 лет назад +29

    So glad someone put Junior Barnard on the map, what a hell of a guitar player!

    • @jackbrown7146
      @jackbrown7146 5 лет назад +1

      The video clip of him playing is from Wills' & co. playing "Goodbye Liza Jane". Kinda mundane as far as Bob Wills tunes go, but Junior throws down one hell of a solo.

  • @21mph12
    @21mph12 5 лет назад +63

    I fully expected the knob at 1:38 to have an 11 on it.

    • @InventorZahran
      @InventorZahran 5 лет назад +2

      In my life, everything goes up to eleven!

    • @ursafan40
      @ursafan40 5 лет назад +3

      My Fender Blues Junior goes to 12.

  • @bobbob24able
    @bobbob24able 5 лет назад

    Absolutely love this channel. Glad you have sponsorships, you make incredibly high quality content. Thanks for all the effort you put into these

  • @peterptchronic9696
    @peterptchronic9696 5 лет назад +13

    I believe Hendrix's first album came with the instructions to the mixing and mastering engineers: "Distortion intentional. Do not correct."

    • @goodun2974
      @goodun2974 9 месяцев назад

      The who's Live at Leeds album, designed to look like a bootleg, had handwritten notes on the inner label which said "crackles OK ---- do not correct".

  • @RudyAyoub
    @RudyAyoub 5 лет назад +447

    High quality content.
    Memes aside tho I mean it

  • @apexone5502
    @apexone5502 5 лет назад +44

    I wish you would've mentioned Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the Godmother of Rock and Roll, since you had her picture up during the segment where you mentioned that nobody knows who started using distortion.

    • @Sthunderrocker
      @Sthunderrocker 5 лет назад +7

      I second this. Wtf!

    • @Missjunebugfreak
      @Missjunebugfreak 5 лет назад +6

      Exactly. She's rarely talked about and yet she was so influential as a guitarist.

    • @andyledger2307
      @andyledger2307 5 лет назад

      Amen to that. Also, a piece on distortion without mentioning The Godfather of Loud, Jim Marshall?

  • @erzsebetnaftalin5987
    @erzsebetnaftalin5987 5 лет назад

    Seriously, your channel IS one of the greatest on RUclips! Bloody brilliant videos.

  • @DougGrinbergs
    @DougGrinbergs 5 лет назад +4

    5:34 that bass distortion is so unique!

  • @edthesecond
    @edthesecond 5 лет назад +20

    I also like the story of Jeff Beck hooking a wire coat hanger to his guitar and using it to short out the pickups.

  • @chrispeterson9447
    @chrispeterson9447 5 лет назад +23

    I wish I could go back in time and play a modern metal song for people 😂
    They would shit a brick to hear what all of this experimentation with distortion would lead to

  • @daneguitarist1
    @daneguitarist1 5 лет назад

    yo poly, im a fan now, got that like and subscribe, you gave me some serious good feelings from jamming to some great hits and talking about pedals, i love guitar pedals

  • @j.d.snyder4466
    @j.d.snyder4466 Год назад

    Super cool job. Thanks for putting together the various strands into a neat package.

  • @Hevvvyyy
    @Hevvvyyy 5 лет назад +344

    All I want is a rickenbacker bass with distortion ...

  • @anubhavpramanik8097
    @anubhavpramanik8097 5 лет назад +275

    "A guitarist by the name of Keith Richards"
    "A young man named Jimi Hendrix"

    • @smallbeans702
      @smallbeans702 5 лет назад +138

      "An obscure band called The Beatles"

    • @gabriel77196
      @gabriel77196 5 лет назад +80

      There was a time in human history where these quotes made perfect sense.
      "I saw this band playing that had a hyperactive dwarf guitarrist on a school outfit, really strange and outputting, i dont think they'll go far...... also what the fuck were they thinking when they thought naming themselves after electricity currents was a good idea" - someone probably have said that back in the day

    • @blackphoenix8932
      @blackphoenix8932 5 лет назад +4

      Tis a bit cringe.

    • @DMSProduktions
      @DMSProduktions 5 лет назад +4

      Yes but the underground GAY scene was HIP to the name! ;o)

    • @sipenarekbecha7193
      @sipenarekbecha7193 5 лет назад

      @@gabriel77196?

  • @epierofkindoms
    @epierofkindoms 4 года назад +6

    i like how he just name drops so many legends as if they were mere mortals

  • @BalloonRace
    @BalloonRace 4 года назад

    I've always wondered about this. Thanks for making this video. Good job.

  • @DrumWild
    @DrumWild 5 лет назад +197

    My Gibson Les Paul goes up to 11.
    Chapter 11.

    • @DapperHesher
      @DapperHesher 5 лет назад +2

      Zzzzziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnng!

    • @antoniogoncalves8288
      @antoniogoncalves8288 5 лет назад

      Oh the brutality 🤣🤣🤣

    • @ChallisVenstra
      @ChallisVenstra 5 лет назад +7

      “That’s one louder, isn’t it? That’s one more. You’ve got all of these blokes, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, where do you go from there?”

    • @Riverdeepnwide
      @Riverdeepnwide 5 лет назад +1

      DrumWild it's the latest craze.
      "The Henry"

    • @josephstalin172
      @josephstalin172 5 лет назад +1

      Not cool man

  • @charliefoxtrot3980
    @charliefoxtrot3980 5 лет назад +202

    Link Wray: The John Wick of guitarists.

  • @kriegsruf4586
    @kriegsruf4586 Год назад

    I love these videos. No bait, no filler. Good stuff

  • @Hypno_BPM
    @Hypno_BPM 5 лет назад +19

    “This was a really bad time to be a speaker cone” lol

  • @daD3ATHBR1NG3R
    @daD3ATHBR1NG3R 5 лет назад +6

    This video gave me like a dozen songs to add to my library that I just never knew the name of! Solid video!

  • @hoborock007
    @hoborock007 5 лет назад +35

    Spirit in the Sky.
    ............ is worth a mention

    • @austint19
      @austint19 5 лет назад +1

      hoborock007 came here to say this! Absolutely iconic. Such a rich tone.

  • @spastikps4916
    @spastikps4916 5 лет назад

    Best music channel on RUclips. Thanks for another great lesson.

  • @SpeedyNoriega
    @SpeedyNoriega 4 года назад +5

    Marty Robbin's "Don't worry" bass solo sounds amazing

  • @thewintereaglefly
    @thewintereaglefly 5 лет назад +180

    Now, I believe we need a video on bass guitars. We, bassists, are deeply misunderstood people.

    • @spudvader
      @spudvader 5 лет назад +36

      Bass "players" aren't misunderstood, it's just that nobody wants to know about them lol

    • @dancingcheeseproductions4127
      @dancingcheeseproductions4127 5 лет назад +14

      Spudvader so theyre misunderstood then

    • @hugq14
      @hugq14 5 лет назад +2

      TheWinterEagle there’s probably a reason for it!!

    • @kutsumiru
      @kutsumiru 5 лет назад +3

      go away bassist

    • @StamfordBridge
      @StamfordBridge 5 лет назад +18

      TheWinterEagle Is it true that bassists migrate thousands of miles each year to mate?

  • @edog4153
    @edog4153 5 лет назад +22

    No speaker cones were hurt during the process of this video.

  • @TealScarab
    @TealScarab 5 лет назад +5

    7:24 That’s Ritchie Blackmore in-case anyone’s wondering.

  • @RetroPlus
    @RetroPlus 5 лет назад

    This is a fantastic video and definitely needed to be made, super interesting. I love it :)

  • @bathoryaria4127
    @bathoryaria4127 5 лет назад +94

    *OMG* You didn't mention The Sonics! ☹ They were stabbing holes in their amps way before The Kinks!
    Still; great viddy ✌❤

    • @metalheadlazz
      @metalheadlazz 5 лет назад +12

      Love Gestapo What do you mean way before The Kinks? Yea they formed 4 years before The Kinks but The Kinks released their album(which featured that razor-torn amp) in 1964 when The Sonics released their first album in 1965. People heard The Kinks first,The Kinks started it.

    • @sinjinbeatbox
      @sinjinbeatbox 5 лет назад +1

      lol. sonics were doing harder shit in 1964 than the kinks ever ended up doing. check this out: ruclips.net/video/u0abMzGylmg/видео.html

    • @ryanjones9289
      @ryanjones9289 5 лет назад +3

      Copied Link Wray

    • @chrismoore7359
      @chrismoore7359 5 лет назад +1

      + I Kill Everything I Fuck
      I swear to Lilith I've search my whole life for a woman like You! And yes, I do have a death wish...

  • @jacobjonesofmagna
    @jacobjonesofmagna 5 лет назад +60

    Why isn't this channel bigger? I've experienced nothing but enjoyment watching your videos.

    • @anthonysclafani3963
      @anthonysclafani3963 5 лет назад +5

      Jacob Jonesington because he actually cares about making quality videos and never clickbaits for views. Sad but true

    • @EclecticoIconoclasta
      @EclecticoIconoclasta 5 лет назад +2

      Because he doesn´t talk about soundcloud rappers and shit like that which the masses love

  • @karlmahlmann
    @karlmahlmann 5 лет назад

    Hey, great job. The guitar sounds of the Kinks, Stones and Hendrix were, indeed, major milestone in the 60's. And I remember when every garage band in town was trying to get that sound. Before fuzz boxes showed up at the local music store We used a another amplifier and ran it's speaker output into the input of the main amp. That over-drove the signal just fine.

  • @wjf1950
    @wjf1950 5 лет назад +3

    I nearly fell off of the sofa, when I first heard The Kinks do All Day And All Of The Night! Still love that sound a half a century later. My Telecaster says it all!

  • @SimonRobinson137
    @SimonRobinson137 5 лет назад +3

    This is an absolutely excellent video - so much to learn especially pre-1960 - cheers.

  • @TheRocknrolla12
    @TheRocknrolla12 5 лет назад +3

    Awesome episode....really appreciate history lesson on beauty of an overdriven guitar sound

  • @StayForTheFireworks
    @StayForTheFireworks 5 лет назад +5

    Link Wray was absolutely ahead of his time, that sounded so modern. Great video!

    • @389383
      @389383 4 года назад

      That's cause it is a much later version.

  • @TommyG0605
    @TommyG0605 5 лет назад

    excellent description, awesome history.

  • @razzledcroaker3678
    @razzledcroaker3678 5 лет назад +17

    Do a video on the era of the rock instrumental. Artists like Duane Eddy, the Ventures, Bill Justus and Link Wray ruled the charts in the late 50s/early 60s and, yet, the genre is almost completely forgotten today.

    • @andriealinsangao613
      @andriealinsangao613 5 лет назад +1

      And the Shadows!!!!

    • @razzledcroaker3678
      @razzledcroaker3678 5 лет назад +1

      @@andriealinsangao613 Ah, yes! I completely forgot about them! I must admit I've never gotten around to listenening to as much British instrumental rock as I have the American stuff.

    • @andriealinsangao613
      @andriealinsangao613 5 лет назад

      Pretty cool, huh?

  • @NealB123
    @NealB123 5 лет назад +13

    A related note on the history of the Les Paul. Introduced in 1952 as a jazz guitar, the LP was initially an epic failure because of its heavy weight. It was discontinued by Gibson in 1960. LP's could be picked up at second hand shops all over the US and UK for almost nothing. Around that time, a group of teen boys in England discovered that if you plug a Les Paul into a guitar amplifier and turn the volume all the way up to maximum and start playing American style Blues licks, pure magic happens. Gibson resumed production of the LP in 1968. The rest is history.

    • @gatorbuilt
      @gatorbuilt 5 лет назад +1

      The humbucker pick-ups made the LP sound what it is...Gibson held an early patent.

    • @markcheetah4960
      @markcheetah4960 5 лет назад

      @@gatorbuilt True! The early Les Paul's had P90s, didn't they?

    • @thewhitemustang
      @thewhitemustang 5 лет назад

      Gibson resumed production of the LP in 1968. And they never quite managed to make them right ever since. The rest is history. 😃

    • @johnbgood52
      @johnbgood52 5 лет назад

      thewhitemustang They make them just fine. I owned a real '55 LP back in the day, and I've played a newer reissue. The major difference was that the reissue wasn't quite as dinged up as the real one. :-)

    • @johnbgood52
      @johnbgood52 3 года назад +1

      @@markcheetah4960 Yes, as did all Gibson electrics made before before 1957, when Seth Lover's "hum cancelling" pickup was introduced.

  • @ectrl
    @ectrl 5 лет назад

    I love these videos. You should have Spotify playlists for each video.

  • @timothyhumphreys1231
    @timothyhumphreys1231 5 лет назад

    Very fun and informative video, loved watching it!

  • @aakashk597
    @aakashk597 5 лет назад +11

    A video on the genius of John Paul Jones perhaps in the future, please.
    The guy played bass with his feet while playing the triple neck guitar, I mean come on.
    He deserves massive recognition for he infused colours into Led Zeppelin's music.

    • @ddubrul
      @ddubrul 5 лет назад

      Agreed. Page gets a lot of credit for the riffs and melodies that JPJ created.

  • @mysteriousDSF
    @mysteriousDSF 5 лет назад +7

    4:20 Link Wray is the guy y'all are looking for. The first one with distortion, not just mild overdrive.

  • @vogun52
    @vogun52 5 лет назад

    Thanks, an informative bite sized chunk of goodness for the layman, that gave me some new guys to check out as well. Nice one.

  • @jav2531
    @jav2531 5 лет назад +1

    Awesome and informative! Who could dislike this?

  • @stscallop3254
    @stscallop3254 5 лет назад +5

    "Guess you guys aren't ready for that yet…but your kids are gonna love it." - Marty McFly

  • @Lurker1979
    @Lurker1979 5 лет назад +51

    Lets have a moment of silence for all the speakers that gave their lives to our music! :P

    • @donrutter6765
      @donrutter6765 4 года назад

      Most would be greenbacks since they were too underated for output watts.

  • @Frst2nxt
    @Frst2nxt 5 лет назад +1

    What an awesome video. So in depth.

  • @ruaoneill9050
    @ruaoneill9050 4 года назад +1

    ‘It was a bad time to be a speaker cone’ This line makes me so happy, it was not expected and it’s soooooo perfect!

  • @perhir01
    @perhir01 5 лет назад +34

    @1:00 it's not the length (I assume you mean wavelength) that is the limiting factor, it is the amplitude of the waveform that causes clipping.
    Unless you're talking about the length of the curve itself, but that is rarely done when dealing with the math and physics that you're talking about.
    Edit; timestamp

  • @wadeguidry6675
    @wadeguidry6675 5 лет назад +175

    Seems like the guitarists were trying to sound like a tenor saxophone.

    • @llamaman2126
      @llamaman2126 5 лет назад +8

      Can't believe they haven't mentioned Bluesbreakers. EC's solo in Have You Heard is clearly a sax solo on a guitar and he was the one who revolutionised recording of over-driven amps and thin strings to allow wild bends (yes he borrowed the string idea, but he was THE man to bring it to the fore).

    • @allanwilson8878
      @allanwilson8878 5 лет назад +8

      Yes, this is exactly what Keith Richards was after on Satisfaction. In fact, he was just laying down a demo track that was supposed to be replaced with horns later, but that isn’t the way history played out. Richards always says that Otis Redding nailed the song when he covered it ... with horns.

    • @ThinWhiteAxe
      @ThinWhiteAxe 5 лет назад +1

      And the distorted brasses on the Beatles' Good Morning Good Morning sound almost like electric guitars.

    • @rickc2102
      @rickc2102 5 лет назад

      Them's some sexy overtones...

    • @jetsamperes5762
      @jetsamperes5762 5 лет назад +1

      @@ThinWhiteAxe the "I need a fix" intro section on Happiness is a Warm Gun is hard to tell if its sax or guitar. I always loved that.

  • @hanschitzlinger3676
    @hanschitzlinger3676 5 месяцев назад

    That was really good. I wasn’t expecting to like this video as much as I did.

  • @deadmaster61
    @deadmaster61 4 года назад

    lol wasn't ready for the stereo in rumble! Goosebumps!

  • @TheKitchenerLeslie
    @TheKitchenerLeslie 5 лет назад +13

    Jimmy Page played on a lot of the studio sessions of early 60's songs listed here. He had Roger Mayer build a fuzz box for him long before he went to work for Hendrix. Page wanted a sound like the guitar on a song by The Ventures' 2000 Pound Bee. He was one of the pioneers of fuzz tone on songs by The Who, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, etc. Look it up.

  • @Jeefrs
    @Jeefrs 5 лет назад +139

    Auugghhhhh use the original version of Rumble please, that's a rerecording from like the 90s

    • @brandonio_granger
      @brandonio_granger 5 лет назад +13

      Glad I wasn't the only one that noticed that !

    • @omarbell4579
      @omarbell4579 5 лет назад +14

      So that's why it sounded odd.

    • @ImSoOld2007
      @ImSoOld2007 5 лет назад +2

      Was obviously just a fuzz pedal lol

    • @Muzikman127
      @Muzikman127 5 лет назад +7

      FUCKING YES. The original is so goddamned powerful. This upset me a bit haha

    • @milesparker557
      @milesparker557 5 лет назад +2

      I was wondering why it sounded a bit weak

  • @stevenartascos2918
    @stevenartascos2918 3 года назад

    Great video, Never knew how distortion got started ...... Rock on fuzz face!!

  • @lupcokotevski2907
    @lupcokotevski2907 5 лет назад

    One of the pioneers of electric guitar effects in the early 1960's is the great New York session player Vincent (Vinnie) Bell. He also invented a number of electric instruments such as the electric sitar, famously played on 'Green Tambourine' by The Lemon Pipers, and 'Do It Again' by Steely Dan (Denny Dias's solo). Vinnie played on New York New York by Sinatra, and that's him with his classic 'watery' guitar sound on the Twin Peaks theme. Vinnie worked with Dylan, Zappa, Miles Davis and scores of others.

  • @YoniIsrael
    @YoniIsrael 5 лет назад +139

    can you please do a video about the harmonic of Simon and Garfunkel

    • @andrewwagner9901
      @andrewwagner9901 5 лет назад +7

      Yoni The K His favorite song is Scarborough Fair/Canticle so I’m sure he will do one soon

    • @GiuliaViannas
      @GiuliaViannas 5 лет назад

      yes please!!!!

    • @LordPadriac
      @LordPadriac 5 лет назад

      Please. For the sake of all good music let that crap fest lie in the past where it belongs being slowly forgotten with the tracks gaining inches of dust, untouched and unloved, in the back closets of closed down radio stations.

  • @scotia7326
    @scotia7326 5 лет назад +39

    One of the best uses of distortion on electric guitar was The Beatles “Revolution” single, that opening gives me chills every time.

    • @fvcostanzo
      @fvcostanzo 5 лет назад +7

      Even better -- that roaring single chord Lennon hammered at the end of "Everybody's Got Something to Hide 'Cept Me and My Monkey". That Epiphone Casino sound became classic.

    • @andriealinsangao613
      @andriealinsangao613 5 лет назад +1

      True!!!!

    • @Justin-yc1ig
      @Justin-yc1ig 5 лет назад +2

      Scotia’s Channel that and norm greenbaum's "spirit in the sky".

    • @Mike-mo5yy
      @Mike-mo5yy 5 лет назад +1

      ruclips.net/video/F_HJwcKuiKs/видео.html
      1954

    • @brianbullivant4753
      @brianbullivant4753 5 лет назад

      also many neil young songs.

  • @scottbenowitz8840
    @scottbenowitz8840 5 лет назад

    Impressive- this was very obviously very thoroughly researched.

  • @paulbeahm3891
    @paulbeahm3891 5 лет назад +1

    I love listening to this imagining I'm back then hearing distorted guitar for the first time. Its freaky.