Riff Tone

White Wedding, Pt. 1

Billy Idol

Guitarrock1980s

Original Gear

GuitarHamer S-Style (custom, 1980s, white, single-coil pickups, as pictured with Steve Stevens in 1986)

AmpMarshall Plexi (likely 1959 Super Lead, as referenced by Steve Stevens and forum consensus for clean/edge-of-breakup tones on this recording)

PickupsHamer S-Style single-coil pickups (exact model unspecified, likely DiMarzio or Seymour Duncan single-coils typical for Hamer S-Style of the era)

Amp Settings

gain4

bass6

mid6.5

treble7

reverb2

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

chorusBoss Boss CE-2 Chorus

Notes

Studio recording, 1982. Guitar World and LickLibrary both show Steve Stevens using a Hamer S-Style for this era. Premier Guitar and forum sources confirm Marshall Plexi as the main amp for clean and edge-of-breakup tones. Settings estimated based on typical Marshall Plexi clean setup for early 80s studio. No evidence of live rig or alternate guitars for the clean riff section.

Tone Character(10)

bright and articulatetight and percussivechorus shimmerclear note separationslightly compressedwarm neck pickup toneno audible distortionstudio-cleandynamic response to palm muting80s pop-rock clean

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level palm muting, precise rhythm, and clean articulation with effects. The technical challenge is in maintaining tight timing and clarity while using chorus and palm muting.

Sources

Rig Rundown - Billy Idol's Steve Stevens - Premier Guitar What to Remember When Performing Billy Idol's "White Wedding" | Guitar World Learn to play White Wedding by Billy Idol | LickLibrary Billy Idol Members, Gear & Sound | Equipboard White Wedding? - Helix - Line 6 Community

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account