Riff Tone

Same Old Song and Dance

Aerosmith

Guitarrock1970s

Original Gear

GuitarGibson Les Paul Standard (likely 1959 or 1960, as used by Joe Perry and Brad Whitford on early Aerosmith recordings)

AmpMarshall 100-watt Super Lead half-stack (vintage, loaded with Celestion greenbacks)

PickupsGibson PAF humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain6

bass6

mid7

treble6.5

reverb1

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1973 (Get Your Wings sessions). Both Perry and Whitford have confirmed in interviews that the classic Aerosmith riff tones of this era were recorded with Les Pauls into vintage Marshall 100-watt heads, straight in, no pedals. No evidence of effects loop or outboard effects for the riff section.

Tone Character(10)

classic British crunchtight and punchy rhythmmidrange-forwardarticulate note separationwarm but bitingdynamic response to pickingpercussive attackdry, in-your-face soundno audible reverb or delayclassic 70s rock riffing

Difficulty

The riff requires solid timing, muting, and dynamic picking to nail the classic Aerosmith groove and punch, but does not involve advanced techniques or high speed.

Sources

Brad Whitford on 50 years of Aerosmith and his Joe Perry chemistry Joe Perry's guitar rig secrets, revealed by his tech Darren Hurst

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