Riff Tone
Mississippi Queen (Live)
Leslie West
Guitarrock1970s
Original Gear
Guitar1956 Gibson Les Paul Junior (single-cutaway, sunburst)
AmpSunn Coliseum PA head (solid state, KT88 tubes) into two 4x12 cabinets loaded with Eminence speakers
PickupsP-90 single coil
Amp Settings
gain7
bass6.5
mid7
treble7
reverb0.5
presence6.5
Effects & Signal Chain
No effects used for this tone
Notes
Live performance, early 1970s. Leslie West used his Les Paul Junior into the Sunn Coliseum PA head, no pedals, amp set for natural distortion. No evidence of effects pedals or amp reverb/delay in the live riff section. Pickup selector fixed (single bridge P-90).
Tone Character(10)
big, fat, punchy rhythm toneraw and biting attackaggressive, percussive feeltight, focused low endpunchy midrange presenceBritish-style crunchsinging sustainminimal compressionno reverb or delaydirect, unprocessed amp sound
Difficulty
The riff is iconic and requires strong rhythmic precision and aggressive picking, but uses straightforward power chords and moderate tempo, making it accessible to intermediate players.
Sources
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Create Free AccountGuitarrock1970s
Original Gear
Guitar1956 Gibson Les Paul Junior (single-cutaway, sunburst)
AmpSunn Coliseum PA head (solid state, KT88 tubes) into two 4x12 cabinets loaded with Eminence speakers
PickupsP-90 single coil
Amp Settings
gain7
bass6.5
mid7
treble7
reverb0.5
presence6.5
Effects & Signal Chain
No effects used for this tone
Notes
Live performance, early 1970s. Leslie West used his Les Paul Junior into the Sunn Coliseum PA head, no pedals, amp set for natural distortion. No evidence of effects pedals or amp reverb/delay in the live riff section. Pickup selector fixed (single bridge P-90).
Tone Character(10)
big, fat, punchy rhythm toneraw and biting attackaggressive, percussive feeltight, focused low endpunchy midrange presenceBritish-style crunchsinging sustainminimal compressionno reverb or delaydirect, unprocessed amp sound
Difficulty
The riff is iconic and requires strong rhythmic precision and aggressive picking, but uses straightforward power chords and moderate tempo, making it accessible to intermediate players.