Being Waylon Jennings...any takers?

[DavyA]

What stands out about Waylons playing to me is how understated it is. It just fits so nicely in the mix as to just be a really really nice piece of the rhythm section. Nice and funky!

[Gringo13]

Speaking of phasers, on the "Lonesome, Onry, and Mean" video KennedyCaster posted, if you watch as the camera pans for Moon's first solo, you can clearly see an orange box on top of Waylon's amp. I'm guessing that is an MXR Phase 90 or 100. Does anyone know his effects in the early 70s, such as the Waylon Live recordings? The "swirling" phase sound... amps in stereo? Reverb + phaser? I'm guessing he was using Phase 90 or 100 or was it something I'm missing???

His sound changed a lot over the years... someone could literally use nothing but a Bassman and say they want Waylon's tone. Or they could run a chorus flanger, phaser, reverb, and a compressor. Or they could just use a phaser. Hell, he was like the rest of us... on a constant hunt for the best tone. I still would like to know what all he was using between '72 and '78. Any info???

Love this thread!

[getbent]

I think his sound is about syncopation. it is a rhythmic thing that wasn't dependent on a phaser or an effect (heresy!) or gear.

I've always wondered (well maybe not always, but for many years I've wondered) if the paradiddle thing that Buddy Holly liked with drums and if the way Buddy played rhythm had an influence (not in substance but in concept) to Waylon developing his syncopated, funky sound.

In the Cash movie, there is an interesting scene where Waylon is talking to Cash and he essentially offers up his guitar style to Cash and Cash waves it off because he has the Luther thing going on.

I think the tonequest thing used to be different among pro/touring musicians... I think they used to just try stuff for awhile and kind of run with it.... I know I didn't really know the difference in brands back then, there were fewer choices and a lot LESS discussion about it all... Generally, you knew some guy who was the 'guru' and he'd get you set up and you went out and played.... I know in one band I was in I used a boss delay and some weird blue DOD chorus box... I, honest to god, cannot remember why I Liked the DOD or even how I used it, but I did.... I always set it real light unless I was bored at the end of the evening and then I'd dick around with it....

In Waylon's case, the 'around the horn' phaser sound added to his percussive, syncopated thing so it served it well... and I'd bet that he was open to trying things that would help him achieve that...

What I always forget is that while a legend is being a legend... they are just being themselves and being 'normal'.. they don't know they have some legacy to live up to...

I"m sure Phil Baugh had no idea that some folks would be freaked out by his playing all sorts of weird guitars... he was just playing and trying new stuff...

So, I don't know if it was a tone quest for waylon or plugging in different stuff just to see what it did... and if he liked it... or if his old one broke, plugging in what the local shop had...

[bargoedboy]

i saw waylon at hammersmith, i think in NOV 83. great concert. no real introduction , just walked out and started playing. jessie and the whole band were there too , i think it was later released as a video.

[bargoedboy]

this is the london gig i was at .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hI_OcW9wxGk
couldn`t believe how laid back it all was. no fuss just get on stage pick up tele and play. me and my father and brother were there together, too far back and to be honest didn`t care what pedals he used as i was so caught up in the show.

[Gringo13]

Getbent... You may be right regarding Waylon just trying out different things and seeing if he liked it. After all, a lot of effects and gear were in their primitive stages in those days... especially in country music (just adds to his mystique). Being able to find "the tone" would be impossible with music beginning to get extremely diverse. I, too, have thought about the notion that he wasn't trying to be a legend. He was just trying to make some damn good music and do something every other cowboy singer wasn't doing. I think it's the same with his amps. People try to dial in Waylon's settings and get Waylon's amps, but he changed those out a lot and I seriously doubt he gave a damn about a "master volume" on a Silverface or if it was a modded to Blackface specs. If it sounded ok and was loud, then that was probably fine with him. If not, then he probably used a different amp til he found it. There was probably a tech somewhere that showed him the newest mods and gadgets every so often and Waylon's sound then changed, being the open mind that he was.

With all that said, whether he was aware or not, Waylon was a revolutionary figure and a legend. True, he may have been figuring out the gadgets and tinkering with stuff that sounded cool, but to people who are influenced by a certain tone he found (whether for one show or for 10 years) it is cool to try to figure out how in the hell he did it! So back to that swirling, phased, hot twang.........

haha Gotta love the Hoss!

[threadbare]

So anybody know the licks for Loving Her was Easier...(than anything I'll ever do again) or The lick for Nashville Rebel?

[cnunn30]

Hello Fellas,

I love this thread and I to am a huge Waylon fan and have been in search of the "Waylon sound" for over a year. I don't know if it would help anyone or not, but I just purchased a DVD called guitar in the "Style of Waylon" on ebay for less than $10 bucks. I've only looked at the first song "Are you sure Hank done it this way" and it's really detailed. He shows how to play every note of the song. I'm not that good of a picker and I can follow it. It shows the accoustic and electric rhythm and lead. The downside is that it only has 5 songs, but what's cool is you can download the lessons immediately and he will send you a DVD also.

I sent the guy that made the DVD and email and asked about a Luther Perkins DVD and he said he was working on it and would be available soon.

I'm not associated with this guy in anyway. I just know that I've been looking for some instruction on playing Waylon songs for over a year and thought that this might help someone like me. Also, I'm not endorsing his stlye to be exactly like Waylons because I'm not good enough to tell the difference, but it sounds like Waylon to me.

[threadbare]

I found this dvd over the weekend and it's great. He shows every lick for Are you sure Hank done it this way, Ramblin' Man, Luckenbach, Only Daddy that'll Walk the Line, and I've Always Been Crazy!
That last one is what sold me on buying the dvd. I emailed him about doing a Vol. 2 and he said he's had serval request for another Waylon dvd already. I hope he sales a ton of these dvds! He also has them for Merle and Buck with a Johnny Cash one coming out really soon!

[JTM45blues]

Boy I am really diggin me some Waylon lately. Just today I went out and got the boxed set at Best Buy, $36.99 and I had a $30 gift card so that was a great deal. The booklet alone is worth the price IMHO.

Thinking of buying a phaser but not sure if I'm ready for the ridicule from other guitarists. I've always made fun of phasers, to now own one would be total hypocrisy.

We do Only Daddy and Good Hearted Woman, for the solos, I just fake it and try to play some steel bends and a couple Don Rich licks that I learned from Lerb21

[Wingherder]

Gotta keep it alive. Bump!

[mojotele65]

Any one have a link to the DVD?

[threadbare]

I got mine off of ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/Waylon-Jennings-...item4838cc3977

[mojotele65]

Thanks for the link. Looks like Scott has a lot of videos out there.

Can one shed some light on Waylons use of Drop D tuning? When I use it, just comes out sounding like metal.... :(

[Telecowboy52]

Old thread, I know, but I just came across it and felt inspired to add my thoughts.

As mentioned, Waylon's tone itself was ephemeral and difficult to capture. It seems like every show, his sound is a little different. I think he dialed up his amps according to how he felt each night. However, the most important part of his sound is definitely his style. I've listened to a lot of his recordings to try and mimic it, and have come pretty close, but not really exact.

Like someone said, he's always messing with his tone knobs on the Tele, usually right before he steps up to solo, you can see him ramp up the volume knob, and sometimes tweak the tone one. I've found that during rhythm parts, backing off the volume a little and strumming quickly with my thumb (with the phaser of course) gives that swirling sound he's famous for. Then when leads come up, crank the volume and switch to your flatpick. If you watch him play live, you'll see him drop his pick into his palm and strum with his thumb instead.

I figure if he's playing in D--and he plays in D a lot--then he's playing with his low E dropped to D, and doesn't change his playing much to accommodate that. A solo might bounce off the low string from time to time, but I don't think he makes it really dramatic like those metal guys do. Just provides a fuller sound when he's playing all those D chords.

As for leads, I don't play any of them exact, because he's too hard to emulate note for note. You can get pretty close with a lot of hammer-ons from open notes and short slides at the top of the neck. He likes to play a quick bass line on the 5th and 6th strings (usually D and A, which he seems to play a lot in) and chickenpick melodies on the higher strings. that's the hardest part to wrap one's head around, and I think that's what gives him that distinctive Waylon style. He also does a lot of quick shuffles between two notes, which gives his playing that cool syncopated sound.

I'll check to see if I have any tabs of my interpretations on my computer, and if I do I'll post them. Heh, I doubt it though, his stuff is too hard too tab.

[Ridgewalker]

Originally Posted by bigrinwv

Love Waylon's music, I'll be following this closely. Does anybody know the little solo in Amanda. It sounds simple but I can't get it.

I know this post is old, but I just saw it. here is how I've played this riff...

e|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
G|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
D|--------2------4---2----------4---2---0---2---------------------------|
A|--2h4----------------4-----0---0---0----0-----------------------------|
E|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|

e|----------------------------------------------------------|
B|----------------------------------------------------------|
G|----------------------------------------------------------|
D|--------2------4---2--------------------------------------|
A|--2h4----------------4-----4----2----0----0--------------|
E|--------------------------0---0----0----0-----------------|

[oceanman2]

Great thread! My personal fave is Honkytonk Heroes. The pickin' he does about 1:00 in just rips.

[Woz05]

Agreed if anyone could figure out what he plays at the end of this version of "Big Ball in Cow Town" from the Waylon Live album that would be awesome.
Like from 2:15 on...

[BedspreadPicnic]

It doesn't get much cooler than Waylon. I bet I listen to Honky Tonk Heroes every other week and when the disc is done I listen again. My band does Are You Sure Hank Done it this Away and You Asked Me To. I've just decided we need to learn some more.

[oceanman2]

Wish I could talk my band into doing "Are you sure..." They weren't all that jazzed about it, because it's pretty much a two-chorder. But to me it's all about that beat, that sound, the attitude, the whole package. I bet it goes over great live. We do Ain't Livin' Long Like This, Good Hearted Woman, and Good Ol' Boys, and people just eat 'em up. But if I had my way, we'd be a shameless Waylon cover band.

[twangquest]

Does anybody know where I can find someone who makes the leather guitar covers like Waylon had? I want to do a tributr guitar in honor of my hero. A few years back, I saw someone advertise them, and it might have even been the guy who made them for Waymore. Anybody got an idea?

[threadbare]

Google Cody Hixon or Guitars n things.

[BedspreadPicnic]

Originally Posted by oceanman2

Wish I could talk my band into doing "Are you sure..." They weren't all that jazzed about it, because it's pretty much a two-chorder. But to me it's all about that beat, that sound, the attitude, the whole package. I bet it goes over great live. We do Ain't Livin' Long Like This, Good Hearted Woman, and Good Ol' Boys, and people just eat 'em up. But if I had my way, we'd be a shameless Waylon cover band.

It goes over great live. You have no idea. Even if people don't know the song the beat brings em in. When I holler "Take it Home" the madness begins.

[oceanman2]

That's cool! I love the subtle work on drums and guitar, and the harmonies help make it such a great song.

[GoldieLocks]

How do you get that unique Waylon sound and style?

I'm still trying to figure out where to buy a hat like his...
Then I'll work on his tone.


I got the Nashville Rebel Boxset: Wow!
I also picked up the Waylon Live: expanded edition C.D.. Probably one of the coolest live albums of all time. Has 42 songs on it. Everyone of them great.

[oceanman2]

Let me know if you find the hat. As for the tone, I think it's in the fingers more than anything else, but a tele or nocaster + Fender amp + a phaser dialed in subtly helps.

[blad51]

Originally Posted by oceanman2

Wish I could talk my band into doing "Are you sure..." They weren't all that jazzed about it, because it's pretty much a two-chorder. But to me it's all about that beat, that sound, the attitude, the whole package. I bet it goes over great live.

You ain't lying!! Last Friday I played it live in CHICAGO!!!

It went over big time.

My favorite line is: "I've seen the world with a five piece band
looking at the back side of me."

The two solos are a blast to play. Just dig in and let 'er rip.

Tell your band if they can't sell a two chord tune to a crowd, maybe they should switch to an easier going past time such as wood burning or stamp collecting.

[oceanman2]

Originally Posted by blad51

You ain't lying!! Last Friday I plyed in live in CHICAGO!!!

It went over big time.

My favorite line is: "I've seen the world with a five piece band
looking at the back side of me."

The two solos are a blast to play. Just dig in and let 'er rip.

Tell your band if they can't sell a two chord tune to a crowd, maybe they should switch to an easier going past time such as wood burning or stamp collecting.

Haha! Touche.

[BedspreadPicnic]

Originally Posted by blad51

Tell your band if they can't sell a two chord tune to a crowd, maybe they should switch to an easier going past time such as wood burning or stamp collecting.

Agreed. It goes over great EVERYTIME we play it.

[mechaman327]

Love Waylon! this is great!!

[WVMountaineer]

this is the best thread EVER and my first post here

I found this forum looking for more details on pickin like waylon

although i don't have a tele, my goal is to in the next year, playin the acoustic right now

GREAT Help guys

my personal favorite concert is the one he did at the opry, the lost outlaw vhs, trying to find it on dvd, but can't, anyone know where?

my favs:

[threadbare]

That concert is on dvd, it's just been repackage with a new name. It also contains a biography on Waylon that aired on A&E. The Name of the Dvd is "Waylon Jennings Rennegade, Outlaw, Legend"

[Charlesinator]

Hey threadbare any kin to Bobby Bare?

[dan1952]

I saw Waylon in Indianapolis in about '76 and he was using one of those Maestro phasers with the multi-color rocker switches on it, and it was on a mic stand (Had an adaptor on the bottom through a tall Fender amp, maybe a Super Six).