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Wolf Marshall >> Guitar F/X Licks >>
Instructor - Wolf Marshall

Wolf Marshall: Welcome to our class on FX licks. Here's our first lick:

Wolf Marshall: Here's Lick 1 for tonite. See if you can guess the sound

Jimmy: some sort of envelope filter

Wolf Marshall: Good Jimmy, this is a bluesy lick using the auto wah of an envelope follower

Jimmy: that song by Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians has one of my favorite guitar solos using that effect

Wolf Marshall: It was a real popular sound on funk records too. The Edge of U2 used one as well. The point is to add the effect to YOUR LICKS. This first lick is in the A Blues Scale, the riff is a standard blues theme. Try all these licks with the jam track tonight:

Wolf's Mutron 3 envelope follower

Wolf Marshall: This was done with a Mutron. MUTRON III ENVELOPE FOLLOWER (1978 model) Controls (left side top to bottom): 3-position rotary knob for filter Mode. LP (low pass), BP (band pass) and HP (high pass). Peak and Gain controls (0-10). Switches (right side top to bottom): Low-High Range, Drive Up or Down, Power On-Off. Effect On-Off switch. Pictured also is the matching Mutron PS-1 Battery Eliminator.

jerry: do they still make the Mutron?

Wolf Marshall: I think they are reissued by some company

Jimmy: is that a digital effect, or analog

Wolf Marshall: Analog

Wolf's Dr. Q envelope follower

Wolf Marshall: DOCTOR Q ENVELOPE FOLLOWER by Electro-Harmonix (1977 model) Controls: Bass-Normal slide switch, Range knob. Effect On-Off switch. This is another famous envelope follower, Pat Martino the jazz guitarist used one of these on his fusion record

jerry: what is an "envelope filter" anyway?

Wolf Marshall: Jerry--the effect is a variable filter that works with input signal to shape notes--most commonly like an automatic wah wah. You make your typical licks sound very different with these babies. Here's another lick for y'all

Wolf Marshall: This one has some jazzy modal notes in it. Again note the envelope follower. The thing about this lick is the use of the 9th tone: B, gives it a Wes-Benson vibe. The arpeggio is raked backwards--sweep picked, it's an A minor 9th arpeggio, again try placing it into the blues context and you get something original

jerry: what notes are in the min 9th arp?

Wolf Marshall: In this case: A C E and B Jerry, played descending: B A E C B A

jerry: isn't it 1, b3, 5, b7, b9?

Wolf Marshall: Jerry that's the basic chord---this is specific melody, the arpeggio is A C E G plus B, in this melody you omit the G, It creates that jazzy sound with those intervals selected

Wolf Marshall: That's what you guys have to do...take parts of scales and chords and make new licks with them

Jimmy: I have trouble with arpeggios for some reason

Wolf Marshall: Jimmy--they are chords played as single notes. What kind of problems?

Jimmy: just remembering all of them

Wolf Marshall: That's familiarity--takes time. Think of them as chords in a key, Jimmy--it also helps to see them as fingered shapes moving up the neck

Wolf Marshall: Here's another lick to chew on

Wolf Marshall: This lick has a different vibe---pun intended. Roto-Vibe! The lick is in the guitar-organ style, these types of licks are used by guitarists who like to mimick Hammond Organ licks. The double stops and Leslie sound are the ticket


Jimmy: isn't a roto-vibe expensive?

Wolf Marshall: No actually it's reasonable Jimmy, made by Dunlop, it's a Leslie simulating pedal like a wah, it has two modes: vibrato and chorus, but thru the right amp it's Leslie to the bone. The UniVibe is similar, both are reissued by Dunlop

Dunlop RotoVibe

jerry: what's a leslie?

Wolf Marshall: It's a Leslie rotating speaker cabinet


Wolf Marshall: Guitarist used it a lot in classic hard rock and before, as you all can see, these were BIG and HEAVY

jerry: how heavy?

Wolf Marshall: Like moving furniture at every gig--how about carrying it up stairs?!!!

jerry: isn't that an organ cab?

Wolf Marshall: Jerry--right

jerry: it looks like there are two slots for sound

Wolf Marshall: Lots of guitarists plugged into them--Dave Gilmour, Clapton, Harrison, it has a rotating speaker inside. Grol--like a sideboard, I mean a large piece of furniture

gman: I heard Hendrix used one for "Little Wing," before he had the Uni-Vibe

Wolf Marshall: I think you may be right--GMAN--in the studio, Stevie Ray used one too--a Fender Vibratone

Jimmy: I think I'll just get an digital effects processor that does it instead

Wolf Marshall: Some sound good these days Jimmy

jerry: are the Fender's as big as the Leslie?

Wolf Marshall: Jerry--no much smaller and lighter, about size of a combo amp

Jimmy: do the pro's use the real thing nowadays?

Wolf Marshall: Jimmy--a lot do in the studio

grolschie: Joe Perry of Aerosmith's "What it takes" solo?

Wolf Marshall: That's another GROL

jerry: kind of like the "droppler effect"

Wolf Marshall: Exactly Jerry, Stevie Ray on Cold Shot

jerry: you know when you're a kid and you swing a hose around your head to get the 360 sound

Wolf Marshall: Right--that's the idea Jerry, here comes the next lick:

Wolf Marshall: This one has a combo of Leslie and envelope follower, this lick really imitates that blues organ riffing style

Jimmy: is an envelope filter and envelope follower the same thing?

Wolf Marshall: Yes Jimmy, it is most often called the envelope follower though

Jimmy: ok, my digital processor calls it a filter so I was confused

Wolf Marshall: The sound is probably the same Jimmy, all envelope followers are basically variable filters

Wolf's Heil Talk Box

Wolf Marshall: Here's another way to get the filter---WITH YOUR MOUTH!! HEIL TALK BOX Signal path: Guitar--> Amp head (50-watts 8 ohm) speaker out--> Talk Box output--> Speaker cabinet. The mouth tube is attached to a microphone stand and is picked up by mic. This signal goes to PA, mixing board or to a second amp.

Wolf Marshall: So--three ways to wah. With wah pedal, envelope follower and Talk Box, the Talk Box is also reissued by Dunlop

Dunlop - Heil Talkbox

Jimmy: so what are you saying into the box?

Wolf Marshall: Anything you want--you are shaping the tone with vowels usually

jerry: that's the effect Peter Frampton uses in "Do You Feel" and Joe Walsh uses in "Rocky Mountian Way"!!!

Wolf Marshall: Right Jerry. Also Sweet Emotion or She's A Woman by Jeff Beck, they are doing good with classic reissue boxes

grolschie: Is that a relative of the vocoder?

Wolf Marshall: Actually Vocoder is more like a synthesizer, the Talk Box is purely a physical thing. Tube in your mouth

Jimmy: are you saying anything into the box?

Wolf Marshall: Depends on the song, on the sample those are just basic vowels: oohs, ahs , and etc

stobocore: can you mimic notes to

Wolf Marshall: Strobo, you basically speak with your guitar notes, as you play you sync words to the lick

jerry: hey Wolf, what effect does Alice in Chains use on "Man in a Box"?

Wolf Marshall: That's a Talk Box, Talk Boxes sound good with a distorted amp, with distortion you get growl on the notes along with wah, I guess it's adios time, see you all soon. Come on back

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