Riff Tone

Redundant

Green Day

Guitarpunk1990s

Original Gear

GuitarGibson Les Paul Junior (likely 1956, Billie Joe Armstrong's main studio guitar for Nimrod era)

AmpMarshall 100-watt Super Lead (late '70s JMP, with Dookie mod, used for main rhythm/riff tones on Nimrod)

PickupsSingle P-90 (stock vintage, bridge position)

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass5.5

mid5

treble6.5

reverb2

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1997. Billie Joe Armstrong used his vintage Les Paul Junior with a single P-90 into a Marshall JMP Super Lead head (Dookie mod). No evidence of pedal use for the main riff section; amp provided primary distortion. Some sources mention a Fender Bassman was also used on Nimrod for layering, but the main riff tone is Marshall-based. Settings are estimated from era- and genre-typical Green Day tones and forum posts referencing Billie Joe's amp settings for this period.

Tone Character(10)

tight and punchymid-scoopedbright and cuttingarticulate and percussiveslightly compresseddynamic responsequick decayraw and aggressivefocused low endminimal sustain

Difficulty

The riff is built on fast, tight power chord changes with aggressive palm muting and requires consistent right-hand attack, but does not involve advanced techniques or complex rhythms.

Sources

Green Day – Nimrod - Gear & Equipment Used on the Album Green Day guitar amp settings? : r/greenday Amp settings for nimrod : r/greenday Jason White's Rig - Premier Guitar

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account