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Riff Tone

Deacon Blues

Steely Dan

Guitarjazz1970s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Stratocaster (1965, with PAF humbucker in neck position)

AmpAmpeg SVT (bass amp, mic’d with AKG 414)

PickupsPAF humbucker (neck), Fender single coils (middle/bridge)

Amp Settings

gain0

bass6

mid6

treble6

reverb3

presence5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1977. Guitarist: Larry Carlton. Gear confirmed for the solo, but the riff section is rhythm guitar and likely used similar or identical setup. No evidence of pedal use for the riff. No evidence of live rig for this section.

Tone Character(10)

warm and smoothrounded attackclean and glassyarticulate chord voicingstouch-sensitivesubtle compressionstudio clarityno audible effectsslightly rolled-off highsfull-bodied neck pickup sound

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level chord knowledge, clean technique, and dynamic control to achieve the studio clarity and articulation characteristic of Steely Dan's recordings.

Sources

5 songs you need to hear by Steely Dan: "Like a lot of kids in the ’50s, we were looking for some kind of alternative culture, an escape from where we found ourselves" | MusicRadar The Secret Sauce of Legendary Blues Tones: From Amp Settings to Overdr – Ploutone

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Guitarjazz1970s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Stratocaster (1965, with PAF humbucker in neck position)

AmpAmpeg SVT (bass amp, mic’d with AKG 414)

PickupsPAF humbucker (neck), Fender single coils (middle/bridge)

Amp Settings

gain0

bass6

mid6

treble6

reverb3

presence5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Sources

5 songs you need to hear by Steely Dan: "Like a lot of kids in the ’50s, we were looking for some kind of alternative culture, an escape from where we found ourselves" | MusicRadar The Secret Sauce of Legendary Blues Tones: From Amp Settings to Overdr – Ploutone

Notes

Studio recording, 1977. Guitarist: Larry Carlton. Gear confirmed for the solo, but the riff section is rhythm guitar and likely used similar or identical setup. No evidence of pedal use for the riff. No evidence of live rig for this section.

Tone Character(10)

warm and smoothrounded attackclean and glassyarticulate chord voicingstouch-sensitivesubtle compressionstudio clarityno audible effectsslightly rolled-off highsfull-bodied neck pickup sound

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level chord knowledge, clean technique, and dynamic control to achieve the studio clarity and articulation characteristic of Steely Dan's recordings.

Create Free Account

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Deacon Blues by Steely Dan — Riff Tone Settings | ToneAdapt