Attention tone-chasers, Grammy Award-winning producer, engineer and guitarist Larry Mitchell will show you how to sculpt the perfect guitar tone when he teaches a masterclass as part of his upcoming Australia tour.
From the studio to the stage, Larry's work is par excellence whether it's in his original compositions or supporting the likes of Tracy Chapman, Billy Squier, Miguel Bose and the late-great Ric Ocasek.
The only thing admired by guitarists more than Larry's skill and technique is his aptitude for guitar tones, with much of his time devoted to sharing the secrets to sculpting that ideal sound.
What have you been working on in 2019?
I’ve been producing quite intensely whenever I’ve had breaks from my shows. I’ve been producing Katie Martin out of Georgia. She’s great. We’ve done two fully produced CDs before, one of which ('Hope') is one of my favourite productions.
And I’ve been producing guitarist Federico Miranda out of Costa Rica. We met when I was teaching at Steve Vai’s academy last year. It’s a guitar instrumental record. I don’t normally produce other guitar albums, but I really like Federico’s work and this one’s a bit different for me; having a great time working on it with him.
I’ve also started writing with a singer, Mercedes Scarletti, for more of a band project for her and I to do next year. It’s got the kind of funk-rock thing going on. I’m gonna love playing it live. Other than that, I’ve been travelling a tonne for shows in and out of the USA, and also recording little clips of ideas for a new acoustic record. Just have to make time to work on it now.
How are you feeling about your upcoming Australia visit?
I’m very excited to come to Australia. It’s been on my list of places I must go to for at least 20 years. Everyone I’ve met from Australia over the years has been wonderful to talk with and all have said I need to go there and play. I was just in Italy touring a month ago and I kept meeting Australians almost daily who were excited that I was coming.
This whole process from running into Leon Todd from the band Ragdoll this May in Texas of all places, and saying I’d love to come to Australia to play. . . to him saying he might know a way. . . to getting to call from Dan White of the West Australian Guitar Festival to my friend Michael Turner who said 'well if you’re coming over, we should do a few things on the east coast'. Four days has turned into eighteen days. I’m excited. Very excited.
What do you hope to take away from your time here?
A lot. To take in the beauty and scenery. The difference in the culture, the ability to hopefully come back next year and play more places. I’d love to go to as many places there as I can.
One of the beautiful things about working as a musician is the travelling part. Not necessarily the long flights, but the ability to visit places and meet people, how others dream too. Meeting new people, discovering how much we are all the same and how much we are different too. Sharing music with new people is always great; connecting on the musical, spiritual frequency highway. Leaving people with a lasting smile is the ultimate for me.
Part of the tour includes masterclass sessions; what will audiences learn from this class?
Part of it will be on connecting with music and connecting with your instrument.
What made you start playing guitar in the first place?
I remember when I got my first guitar. And every first guitar as a youngster. When you open that case and just stare in disbelief that this is yours. That you’re gonna play it. The love, the awe and excitement, which can disappear years later and we find ourselves just opening the case, pulling it out to start playing. The wonderment, the flood of possibilities has been dampened. I don’t think we should ever let that go away. Cherish the moments we get to pick up beautiful instruments and create wonderful noises. Don’t just start playing. Respect it a bit.
Any day you can play guitar is a wonderful day. Any day you can play guitar in front of a captivated audience who are waiting to hear what you have to say. . . is truly amazing. . . no matter how many times you do it. We all have technical stuff that needs to be right to pull off the show of course, but you still have to be present in the moment and connect, cherish, respect and share the love.
Masterclasses: tone and techniques, effects and the use of, shaping and sculpting. How just the right sound can affect the overall mood of a piece and then the people. Sometimes you want the effect to stand out, sometimes you want people to notice something’s changed but not really know or understand what and why, but it has altered the mood. Both are equally important.
Tell us about your favourite guitar 'Passion' and what makes it special to you in terms of the sound and tone it allows you to achieve?
That guitar came about because of the C.I.T.E.S (Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species) wood issue.
I go to Europe every year so I was concerned about travelling with my other Knaggs guitars that have rosewood finger boards. I have been working with Knaggs guitars now for five years. I asked Joe Knaggs, who is a master builder, if he could make me another of my model Severn LM but with a Maple fretboard so I can travel to Europe easily without the worry of losing my guitar.
I went through every last photo I could find to pick the look. The look and vibe of a guitar to me is just as important as the feel and sound. It all needs to be in harmony together (I do have guitars that sound amazing but they are not performing guitars for me). I found colours I resonated with and I also asked Joe if he could tint the neck to match the pick guard. I didn’t want the normal bright pale maple fretboard.
At WinterNAMM 2018 in LA, Joe and Peter Wolf from Knaggs Guitars presented this guitar to me! I was blown away when I saw it in person and played it for the first time. It’s extremely lively acoustically, it really rings. It’s a bit brighter plugged in than my other Severn LM guitars, probably partly due to the maple fretboard which makes it snappy.
Also maybe the whole guitar’s wood that Joe picked out. It sounds great and the look itself inspires me to pick it up and play. What started out as a guitar I would use for maybe two, three months out of the year became the guitar I have a hard time putting down. I use it for Europe, the USA and very soon for Australia. It has a vibe and an amazing feel. Everyone who has played that guitar has immediately said how friendly it is to play.
Common mistakes guitarists make when they start to refine and sculpt their guitar tones?
Hmm. That’s funny. When I did my first, big tour with Spanish/ Italian artist Miguel Bosē I went out and spent 12 grand on a guitar rig. I had the Mesa Boogie quad preamp and Boogie power amp, a TC Electronic 2290 delay (I love that delay) and a bunch of other really cool gear; 'THE' gear of that time (1988).
After the tour I came back and played a local show and a good friend and great player himself, Mitch Diamond came out to see me and afterwards I said: 'Hey Mitch, what did you think of the tone?' and he said 'you sounded great man, but maybe a little lacking in the low end.' I said 'was it too bright and trebly out front?' He said 'no, not really. Didn’t have a lot of high end either.' I said 'was it just all midrange?' He said 'no, you didn’t really have much mids either'. I said 'Mitch, if I didn’t have much low end, much high end and much mids then there’s no sound'. He said 'yeah, it was there but not really'. I remember that day well, I went home and worked hard on my sound for a long time.
The main thing I came away with was I needed to figure out in my head the sound I was looking for first. Without that I was wandering the quantum tone realm searching for something I didn’t know what I wanted. Over the years since, I have defined what’s in my head and since then I’ve plugged into many different rigs and my friends and colleagues will ask how come I sound the same through whatever amp or rig I play.
No matter how different a rig is, when I plug into something I immediately try to figure out how to turn the knobs to get the sound in my head instead of the turning to find a sound, if that makes sense. The gear helps of course but it’s not the only thing in the tone equation. It’s in the hands and the mind too.
Now a frustrating thing to me is when I get when talking with players about the modelling world (I love amps too; I have a few great tube amps in my studio as well). For example when someone complains that such-and-such modeller’s Plexi doesn’t sound like a Plexi and they are asking me for help with the patch.
So I ask which Plexi are you trying to get it to sound like? I have a 1973 Plexi that I love, but sounds different than a close friend's Plexi. In fact, almost every Plexi I’ve played through has a Plexi vibe to it but they all sound pretty different. Some have been modded, some need new tubes etc. etc. People's response to my question is often 'I don’t know, I’ve never played through a real Plexi before'. Their expectations haven’t been met but they really have no idea of what to expect in reality.
An unlikely or uncommon piece of equipment you own?
I have a banjo. I have a long, long story about the first time I played a banjo. It was not a good experience but I have one now and have used it on a few productions.
Advice/ suggestions for guitarists trying to improve their speed and fluency?
Practice. Practice slowly. Let it build speed naturally. Practice some more. And speed is not everything.
You've worked with many big-name acts; were there any that challenged you as a musician?
Playing with Tracy Chapman. She’s a great acoustic player, perfect night after night, and I was very new to playing acoustic. It was inspiring and a bit intimidating watching her play night after night with NO mistakes.
A fellow guitarist you admire?
I’m a huge Andy Timmons fan, and Eric Johnson. I’m also blown away by flat picker Molly Tuttle. And Tommy Emmanuel! What a joy to see and hear him play. I had the pleasure of playing before him once in Canada, a humbling experience.
When you go on tour, what do you never leave home without?
Ha. I have to have my iPad for biz, entertainment and capturing ideas. Effects-wise, my Fractal AX8 and if I have my acoustic with me, then the Tonewood amp.
Larry Mitchell Australia Tour 2019
Thu 3 Oct - The Lounge (Brisbane)Fri 4 Oct - Greaser Bar (Brisbane)
Sat 5 Oct - Masterclass, Riffs & Licks Music (Brisbane)
Sun 6 Oct - Masterclass, HOTA (Gold Coast)
11-13 Oct - The West Australian Guitar Festival (Margaret River)
