60 SECONDS WITH...
A minute’s all it takes to discover what makes a great guitarist tick. Before she jumped into her limo for the airport, we grabbed a quick chat with British blues dynamo, Joanne Shaw Taylor
Night Ranger’s phenomenal rocker, Brad Gillis.
GT : Do you have a type of pick that you cannot live without - make, gauge, etc?
JST: Dunlop Jazz III plectrums.
GT: If you had to give up all your effects pedals but three, what would they be?
JST: Tubescreamer TS9. I inherited this pedal from my older brother when I was 14. I have tried multiple different overdrive pedals, but I keep coming back to this one. It gives a nice clean overdriven boost but is not too distorted and gives me the right amount of high end. Aqua Puss delay. I tend to leave this pedal running through most of the show for a little slap-back echo (a trick I learned off a few country players) and then I have an additional delay that gives me a longer delay effect on guitar solos. Dimebag Darrell signature model wah-wah is my favourite wah-wah I’ve used so far. I don’t tend to use a great deal of this but it’s a cool effect to have in the arsenal. I tend to use it more for rhythm than lead. I may kick it on to give me a deeper sound for rhythm parts on certain songs.
GT: Do you play another instrument well enough to do so in a band and, if so, have you ever done it?
JST: I play a little piano and drums but certainly not well enough that I would ever consider playing them live. Though I am working on my piano playing a lot of late.
GT: If a music chart were put in front of you, could you read it?
JST: No way.
GT: Do guitar cables really make a difference? What make are yours?
JST: Apparently so, but I can’t say I really notice too much. I have used Planet Waves cables for several years and I find them to be reliable.
GT: Is there anyone’s playing (past or present) that you’re slightly jealous of?
JST: Paul Kossoff. I fell in love with his vibrato the first time I ever heard him play The Hunter. Great tone, feel and phrasing. He really did have it all.
GT: Your house or studio is burning down: which guitar do you salvage?
JST: My 1966 Fender Esquire. It was my first guitar and regardless of its value I just couldn’t replace it. I have too many memories I created with the help of that guitar.
GT: What is your favourite amp and how do you set it?
JST: I don’t use them too much live any more but I’m still a huge fan of the Fender Bassman. Volume depends on the show - treble 5, bass 6.
GT: What strings do you use - make, gauge and why?
JST: Ernie Ball, skinny top, heavy bottom. I used to use 11s but the strain of doing as many shows as I do every year, it was worth going a step down. ‘Tis the burden of small girly hands. New set every show!
GT: Who was your first influence to play the guitar?
JST: Stevie Ray Vaughan. My father introduced me to his Live From Austin, Texas DVD when I was 13. It wasn’t my first introduction to blues, as my dad played a lot of older country blues artist such as Mississippi Fred McDowell, Bukka White etc, but for some reason Stevie was the first that really inspired me to start playing.
GT: What was the first guitar you really lusted after?
JST: 1972 Telecaster Thinline. I think I’d seen Jonny Lang playing one and thought it looked cool.
GT: What was the best gig you ever did?
JST: In terms of career highlights, I opened for BB King when I was 17 in Switzerland. It was a dream come true.
GT: And your worst playing nightmare?
JST: You name it. How about playing on a moving train, or playing outdoors in Memphis as a tornado rolled in. I once performed a show in a maximum-security prison in Germany. That one was a little interesting.
GT: What’s the most important musical lesson you ever learnt?
JST: You never play as good or as bad as you think you did. I think that’s kept me in a good frame of mind. Always be aware of the importance of improvement but without being too obsessive or anxious about it.
GT: Do you still practise?
JST: I go through phases. I’ll start a new practice regime and be disciplined about it for a few months, but then I’ll take a break. That way I don’t wear myself out physically and mentally with the combination of all the playing I do on the road.
GT: Do you have a pre-gig warm-up routine?
JST: For an hour before showtime I’ll sit backstage and do some warm-up exercises and scales to make sure my hands are as loose as possible. I spend most of that time doing vocal exercises.
GT: If you could put together a fantasy band with you in it, who would the other players be (dead or alive)?
JST: That’s a tough one. Paul McCartney on the bass, Keith Richards rhythm guitar, Booker T Jones on keyboards, and Benny Benjamin on the drums. Maybe the Memphis Horns, too.
GT: Present company excepted, who’s the greatest guitarist that’s ever lived?
JST: That’s down to personal opinion obviously, and the problem with opinions is everyone has one. My favourite of all time would probably be Gary Moore.
GT: Is there a solo you really wish you had played?
JST: Cliffs Of Dover – Eric Johnson, from Ah Via Musicom.
GT: What’s the solo/song of your own that you’re most proud of?
JST: Diamonds In The Dirt is the song I’m most proud of. My favourite solo of mine would probably be on Soul Station.
GT: What would you most like to be remembered for?
JST: For being myself.
GT: And what are you up to at the moment - album, gigs, etc?
JST: My new album, The Blues Album, is released on Joe Bonamassa’s new independent label, KTBA Records, on September 24th. It’s an album of blues covers, recorded in Nashville. Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith produced the album. I’m on tour in the UK from November 2-19 2021.
“I’ll start a practice routine and be disciplined about it for a few months, then I’ll take a break. That way I don’t wear myself out with all the gigs I do”