Riff Tone

No More Tears

Black Label Society

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

Guitar1981 Gibson Les Paul Custom

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 100-watt head (6550 tubes), Marshall 1960B 4x12 cabinet with Celestion G12T-75 speakers

PickupsEMG 81 (bridge), EMG 85 (neck) active humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain9

bass8

mid5

treble8

reverb0.5

presence4.5

Effects & Signal Chain

overdriveBoss Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive

chorusBoss Boss CH-1 Super Chorus

Notes

Studio recording, 1991. Bridge pickup used for riff. Heavy-gauge strings (.060, .052, .036, .017, .013, .010) in C# standard tuning. Boss SD-1 and Boss CH-1 in signal chain. No wah or Rotovibe used for riff section.

Tone Character(10)

bone-crushing crunchtight and percussiveboosted bass and trebleample midrange for definitiontighter attackextended treble and bass responsehigh output, aggressivestereo width from chorusheavy low endarticulate palm-muted chugs

Difficulty

The riff requires tight, aggressive palm muting, precise picking, and control of heavy-gauge strings in a down-tuned setting, making it moderately challenging for intermediate players.

Sources

Zakk Wylde's guitar tone on Ozzy Osbourne's No More Tears: how he got his sound | Guitar World No More Tears: I recreated the studio setup of Ozzy/Zakk.

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account