Riff Tone

Sick As a Dog

Aerosmith

Guitarrock1970s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Esquire

AmpMarshall Plexi (likely 1959 Super Lead, as used by Aerosmith in mid-1970s)

PickupsSingle-coil (Fender Esquire stock bridge pickup)

Amp Settings

gain5.5

bass6

mid7

treble6.5

reverb1

presence5.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1976 (Rocks album). Tom Hamilton wrote and played the main riff on a Fender Esquire. Marshall Plexi is inferred from Aerosmith's known studio rig for this era; no evidence of pedals or effects on the riff section.

Tone Character(10)

crunchy and rawbright and bitingtight and percussivemidrange puncharticulate chord definitiondynamic and responsiveslight edge-of-breakup driveclassic British amp voicingminimal sustainquick decay

Difficulty

The riff requires tight, syncopated rhythm playing with dynamic picking and precise muting for clarity, but does not involve advanced techniques or high speed.

Sources

Tom Hamilton on why Aerosmith still have a future | Guitar World Amp Settings for Walk This Way by Aerosmith (gear and tone tips)

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