What effect is used on this song? I Got A Line On You by Spirit

[jguitarman]

The solo comes in at about the 1 minute mile marker.

I'm thinking a Chorus or Phaser and am experimenting with those but would appreciate others' input.
Help me nail this. I have the guitar parts down but could use help with the effect(s).



Thanks

 

[suave eddie]

What effects were available in 1968? Not much besides fuzz and Uni-Vibe.
I'm not that into effects, but I'm not really hearing anything.

 

[Timbresmith1]

It’s double-tracked.He played the same solo on two different tracks. Sounds like neck pickup tone.

 

[regularslinky]

I don't hear a phaser. I hear the "chorus" effect you are referring to, but I think it's just a doubled guitar part. Besides, I'm not sure an electronic chorus effect existed when that was recorded. That said, a chorus pedal would probably get you closest to that sound.

 

[brookdalebill]

It’s double-tracked.He played the same solo on two different tracks. Sounds like neck pickup tone.

This, IMHO.

 

[Timbresmith1]

You could try a very fast delay time with short repeat setting and pretty high 50/50 mix setting to do it live

 

[GGardner]

You could get a double tracker pedal.

 

[Peegoo]

Sounds to me like a fairly clean sound that's doubled by a heavily-reverbed single delay, about 150ms or so.

 

[schmee]

I dont hear any effects other than a tiny bit of studio reverb.
I liked that group (for the time period) Remember having that album and playing a couple of those...

 

[Lowerleftcoast]

I agree with the others but I wonder if a 12 string guitar might be coaxed into sounding similar with a little delay.

 

[nojazzhere]

The solo comes in at about the 1 minute mile marker.

I'm thinking a Chorus or Phaser and am experimenting with those but would appreciate others' input.
Help me nail this. I have the guitar parts down but could use help with the effect(s).



Thanks

I agree that it's likely just the double-tracked guitar solo.....but will add Randy California was an early user of certain effects when he played live, particularly an echo unit, likely an EchoPlex. He had something that gave him extreme sustain, as well. I saw Spirit once at Panther Hall here in Ft Worth. He was using Acoustic amps. He had a speaker cab way off to the left of the stage, on what was essentially a balcony. Several times he would have a sustained note going, and then "pan" back and forth between his onstage speakers and that extension speaker. He was a very innovative guitarist.....gone far too young.

 

[Ed Driscoll]

What effects were available in 1968? Not much besides fuzz and Uni-Vibe.
I'm not that into effects, but I'm not really hearing anything.

As others have noted, the Spirit solo is likely manually double-tracked. At about the 1:20 mark, the two guitars start playing slightly different lines.

That said, while there weren't many different pedals effects for guitarists in 1968, lots of mostly time-based effects were available in the recording studio by then -- the first record to really featuring flanging was likely Toni Fisher's "The Big Hurt" from 1959:



Engineer Ken Townsend had invented ADT (Automatic/Artificial Double Tracking) at EMI's Abbey Road studios in 1966 by lashing up an extra tap recorder while mixing down. The following year, after the Beatles recorded "All You Need is Love" at Olympic Studios, George Martin asked them to add ADT to John Lennon's voice. When Olympic's engineers were embarrassed about initially not knowing how to do this, they went off and stumbled onto their own flanging techniques on such tracks as the Small Faces' "Itchycoo Park" and Jimi Hendrix's "Axis: Bold as Love."

 

[bholder]

Just wanted to say great tune. Hadn't heard it in way too long.

 

[guitarsophist]

Back in the day it was widely believed that he used a Jordan Bosstone. Don't know if it was true, but we all thought that.

https://www.vintageguitar.com/19030/jordan-boss-tone/

As I remember, it produced a smooth, sustaining fuzz, not too nasty. It wasn't very durable however.

 

[KokoTele]

I definitely hear a fast chorusing effect, particularly on the high notes in that solo. I don't think double tracking by itself would do this.

I think you could create this effect by running the second guitar track through a Leslie. Mabe just the high frequency horns.

 

[codamedia]

I agree with @KokoTele .... there is definitely an effect applied beyond the double track. It's pretty obvious at the start of the solo just after the 1 minute mark. Given the time period, I suspect at least of the guitars was run through a Leslie. If the univibe (or similar) existed at the time, it could be that.


Using modern effects I'd reach for a rotary/vibe variant.

 

[saleake]

I can’t add anything either, except to say, thank you for reminding me of this great song. I was in a lot of bands that covered this.

 

[That Cal Webway]

and r.i.p. Randy California (Wolfe)

He died in Hawaii, rescuing his son from being pulled out to sea during rough waves.

Hendrix gave him that last name moniker.

 

[nojazzhere]

and r.i.p. Randy California (Wolfe)

He died in Hawaii, rescuing his son from being pulled out to sea during rough waves.

Hendrix gave him that last name moniker.

Anyone know what happened to Randy Texas?
(referring to how Randy California got his name from Jimi)

 

[kLyon]

I love Randy California and Spirit; The Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicas is an amazing piece of work, as advanced as anything in the world of popular music at the time. And beautiful.
RIP.