THE SG ON RECORD: MUST-HEAR ALBUMS
Along with its cousin the Les Paul, as well as Fender’s Strat and Tele, the Gibson SG arguably makes up the big four classic electric guitars. Here’s a selection of albums across the decades that put it to good use
THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND Hittin’ The Note (2003)
Duane Allman is a crucial player in the SG canon, as is Derek Trucks, whose clear and precise blues sound is revered the world over. Hittin’ The Note is especially notable here since it’s the final Allman Brothers Band album and the only one to feature Trucks. His mellow juicy lines work well with Warren Haynes’ guitar work on an enjoyable and solid record. Standout track: Instrumental Illness
BLACK SABBATH Paranoid (1970)
Left-handed riff king Tony Iommi is responsible for many teens purchasing SG guitars (and rupturing their own eardrums). His band’s second album continued the band’s eponymous debut’s theme of a dark and heavy low sound, and is considered a benchmark in heavy metal music. The title track is key, but War Pigs is a standout, too. Standout track: War Pigs AC/DC High Voltage (1976)
AC/DC’s first proper release also featured Angus Young’s first SG, a 1970 model (‘probably’, says Angus himself ) bought that same year. It was used exclusively throughout most of the 70s – and even on 2020’s Power Up. High Voltage was famously slammed by Rolling Stone magazine, but it’s hard to argue with its energy and the quality of material and performances. Standout track: T.N.T.
THE BEATLES Revolver (1966)
The hints of experimentalism heard on the previous year’s Rubber Soul went on to be further realised on 1966’s Revolver. For the studio sessions, George Harrison relied heavily on his 1964 Gibson SG Standard, which he later gave to Pete Ham of Badfinger. The tone achieved on the track She Said She Said is just stunning.
Standout track: She Said She Said
CREAM Disraeli Gears (1967)
Fair enough, Cream’s second effort isn’t considered the most consistent record, but when it got it right it absolutely shone – and Clapton’s spellbinding playing on his 1964 ‘Fool’ Gibson SG is all over it. Plus it also goes down in history for introducing Clapton’s coveted ‘woman’ tone; just check out the opening riff to Sunshine Of Your Love.
Standout track: Sunshine Of Your Love
FRANK ZAPPA & THE MOTHERS Roxy & Elsewhere (1974)
Zappa’s ‘Baby Snakes’ SG of the late 70s was actually an obscure custom copy, but the ‘Roxy’ model he used for this album was a Gibson, albeit modified with various switches and preamps. His son Dweezil has since stated that Frank’s tone is impossible to emulate; and even the briefest of listens to this rollercoaster album will back that claim. Standout track: Cheepnis
SISTER ROSETTA THARPE Live In Paris 1964 (1988)
This remarkable guitarist has been cited as a key influence for many a star player over the years, including Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix. Later in her career, the good sister acquired her classic white early 60s SG model, bearing the ‘Les Paul Custom’ nameplate (which subsequently disappeared at the end of ’63) and was showcased well in this live set.
Standout track: This Train
THE DOORS L.A. Woman (1971)
The last studio album to feature Jim Morrison at the helm, the Doors’ sixth studio release was also a return to a stripped-back, more bluesy sound for the Californian band – and what a resounding success it was too. Robby Krieger’s 1968 SG Standard features throughout, but really starts hitting its stride when the cracking Been Down So Long kicks in.
Standout track: Been Down So Long
HAIM Days Are Gone (2013)
Danielle Haim has quickly become a modern icon for the SG, and this tightly performed, highly listenable, wellproduced debut album from her LA band is chock-full of spikey, accomplished pop songs, with Danielle’s jagged picking on her 2005 Cherry Red Standard a key element. Check out live footage of the band for the full experience. Standout track: Falling
THE WHO Live At Leeds (1970)
Live At Leeds is well up there with the best ever live rock albums, and it’s also a cracking example of the power of the SG. Just hear Pete Townshend’s fretboard-surfing during My Generation for unquestionable proof of its muscle. And talking of strength, the modified SG in question is also famous for surviving being smashed to smithereens on stage.
Standout track: My Generation