Joe Bonamassa's Vintage Telecaster Tone Tips & Tricks

[@TheGergeDIY]

The Telecaster is the polygraph of guitars. No faking it, no lies.

[@susieroberts8175]

You're right. You can't hide any shoddy playing with a Tele. I love to hear someone playing with a clean tone. Honest.

[@itguy8900]

Exactly.

[@Rygo-wk3jm]

That’s a great way of putting it!

[@stefanfyhn4668]

The fact that you have to be able to play well to make it sound good just says its an outdated tool

[@susieroberts8175]

@@stefanfyhn4668 you're serious?

[@hizo64HH]

I think the most underrated thing about Joe, is his intelligence and ability to convey so much. He truly loves and appreciates guitar and the blues so much.

[@gobigrey9352]

That's why I love listening to him talk gear. I don't even like his music but could listen to him all day long.

[@DMSProduktions]

@@crucified-music SPAMMER!

[@loupascarelli]

I do not feel he is under rated at a single thing .. He is top shelf all the way .. I could watch him or Clap on vids all day & night .. They are true Guitar Scientists..

[@jessejuno5317]

I think , the love this guy has for all guitar is contagious.

[@joeltunnah]

I've dabbled in many other guitars over the last 25 years, but I always end up coming back to a Telecaster.

[@soniah4821]

One of the best demonstrations of a vintage Telecaster . Thank you Joe!

[@stuartkennedy4570]

I love how he explains all the little differences in tones with a guitar

[@vibranttrout]

I love how his soft hands caress the neck

[@Gma7788]

Cause WE the public are WAY WAY behind in our knowledge. We are SO poorly educated in the amplification world that we don't make it onto the scale. Prior to this video, nobody's played me the telecaster guitar sound with the bridge cover on and off. That's over 50 years of no demonstrations. An let's mention it's been over 50 years and this lifestyle hasn't paid me a cent

[@jeffhale2285]

Telecasters are the Swiss Army knife of guitars. They’re my favorite guitars on the planet! Awesome vid Joe! 🇺🇸

[@benedekgabor.]

Anyone can say anything about a Tele’s neck pickup but a bit of drive, lot’s of reverb/shimmer and a pich of delay and it’s tone heaven.

[@Bluedragon003]

Thank you Joe! Please keep it up, I love these gear/tone tips(...and I think a lot of people do). I'm sayin it again, you and Mike Hickey should right a book about gear, then you could have collaborators like Dan Irwin or (Uncle) Norm etc... I bet it would become a must have for collectors as well as admirers.

[@CJRamos-jv3pb]

Such an overrated guitarist.

[@stephencammilleri270]

I totally agree!!! He has no soul and very few chops, similar to Clapton...

[@stephensmith4480]

Amazing sound as usual from The Main Man. The Solder Dot that he mentioned on the inside of The Ashtray is from when they used to solder a length of wire onto it prior to The dipping process for Chroming and it would then be removed once the job was done. I worked for an Electronics company in the 80s and we used to use exactly the same process when Powder coating certain Items.

[@robinleebraun7739]

And I’m sure the chrome plating made it a much more attractive ashtray.

[@stephensmith4480]

@@robinleebraun7739 What does that mean??

[@davidg-oo1ox]

What an insanely informative video . Thank you Mr B

[@heftosprod]

"insanely" informative?

[@jfinester]

Totally agree with you, Joe B. Teles are the best! However, I can’t play ‘em with the bridge cover on. Can’t palm-mute with it there! BTW, I saw Albert Collins in 1969, opening for Elvin Bishop and BB King at the Fillmore West in San Francisco. One of the best concerts I’ve ever seen, and Albert was incredible. They all were!

[@LRHutch]

I agree totally that a Telecaster is the best guitar. I have two plus one more that I built myself using the old wiring schematic. There is magic in a Telecaster that no other guitar has.

[@LRHutch]

@bytesurfer8651 I have a Jazzmaster. I also have a Telecaster with vintage 65 Jazzmaster pickups that one is my favorite guitar to play.

[@djross2043]

Anytime I can get playing guitar tips and or watch Mr. Bonamassa play is time well spent. TY😎🎸🎶🤘🏻

[@michaelr.4878]

Regardless if u are a fan of Bonamassa's music or not, you have to admit that he has done more for the appreciation of old guitars than just about anyone. He is probably also the most grounded or normal star..and that should be respected. Joe is all good in my opinion.

[@RickMcCargar]

Great player, humble as the day is long. Always gives props to those who came before. He's the ambassador we need.

[@INTOTHELOUD]

JOE BONAMASSA IS A DOUCHE BLUES kzbin.info/www/bejne/r5fNpWyMltCIqLs

[@64north20west]

Just casusally blows away 90% of all guitarists during a discussion of the finer points of a tele. This guy is a humble G.O.A.T.

[@SteveBrimble-u4d]

Superb video, what was the slow bluesy volume swell tune at 6:00

[@sebastiangomez5068]

Joe Knows... keep these coming....please

[@nickf2170]

Did he say "That doesn't fucking work", made me laugh! That was funny.

[@richardroskell3452]

Thanks Joe, great tips. I heard the spot of solder on the Tele ashtray is from where they attached a piece of metal that was used to dip it into the plating mix. After the coating was on they removed the metal handle.

[@soerenguitarlessons9947]

Thanks for a very informative tone tips video. Though playing the day long on my tele, I never tried theese other tonepositions . Especially the one between the middle and the back pickup sounds really good, again thanks a lot! Soeren

[@jvin248]

Guitarist: Get Joe to run through his 'knobs tone' video he did on the LP "before you use any pedals" but on the Tele. Also get Bill Kirchen on video showing all the sounds he gets from a Tele for his Hot Rod Lincoln song. There are a few good live videos of that song (the Philadelphia one I think is the best) but it would be very interesting to hear his approach.

[@handyc77]

Why? So we can be jealous of what he rubs in our face with his gear no one can afford?

[@HarmonicaGuitar]

The so-called vintage guitars are nothing more than an empty fetish, as well as a money-making business. Modern guitars are better made and sound better. And in general, there is no big difference in sound.

[@XxCorvette1xX]

Lol keep telling yourself that bro

[@HarmonicaGuitar]

@@XxCorvette1xX This is the same fetish and money-making as the so-called vintage wine. "Don't you feel the difference? You just don't understand anything about wine!".

[@1man1guitarletsgo]

I flipped my Tele's control plate, and wired it so the tone control only works when the bridge pickup is engaged. Also swapped the blade switch for a three-way toggle. I use violin-ing, but with the tone knob, to produce an unconvincing, but still useful, wah effect.

[@RBunks92]

Coming soon, the Squier "Joe Bonamassa Vintage 54 Tele" MSRP $1,999

[@KevinSmithdc]

Joe is the greatest guitar and amp salesman in the world. He conveys so much enthusiasm...makes you want to run right out and buy whatever he's pitching.

[@Guitarbuffet]

😂 exactly

[@robbergin9586]

...he's probably just sold a boatload of tele ashtray covers for Fender!

[@digitalimager4946]

Which is what he's paid to do. He speaks for the guitar (selling them) not on the guitar. All technique, no statement.

[@TheStrataminor]

Yep.....overpriced stuff too...seriously, his pickups are ridiculously overpriced marketing too.

[@alexcorona]

But he’s not playing anything modern that you can go out and get today?

[@Dang...]

JB is truly outstanding: down to earth, humble, soulful player, great sense of humor, burning picker. Here he sounds so much like Albert Collins. He worked his ass off since childhood to succeed in music, and he deserves everything he's achieved. Thank you JB! Go see him live.

[@PhpGtr]

Pretty annoying to casually drop 30-60K on any guitar he wants and have absolutely no concept of humility about it. He already said "Norm made 9K on this". "That's all I'm going to say about it" is BS. Just say how much it was. Nothing but playing coy and humble-bragging.

[@johnsmith-ug5tp]

Lets not get silly. He was born with God given talent. Playing guitar comes as easy to him as it is for everyday people walking and talking.ha

[@sl5932]

@@johnsmith-ug5tp that is a huge part of it. He probably practices a lot and has access to the best instruction available

[@citizen_d]

And where is the Les Paul video Joe is referring to?

[@joeldowdy404]

I love the older wiring like that but with a slight mod where the tone knob is a blend knob for the front and back pickups instead of setting the switch in the in between position so that the switch stays in the back position.

[@giabgr]

That's not really a mod, that's the previous wiring (1950 til about late '52).

[@stratonic]

I wondered whether this was the way Joes's guitar was wired as he seemed shocked that he could not get the tone pot working in the bridge position. Fender was always open to custom order specs so maybe original owner wanted the blend knob. Joe has so many guitars it's easy for him to get mixed up on this.

[@Ombaby]

Huh...wot's the thing he says on underside of plate?

[@ryevick]

I never thought too much about a Telecaster until I got one, and now I'll never let go of it. They're a must.

[@vintagepipesnightmares]

Why people say with a Tele you don’t get a lot of options? He said it has only 4 sounds. How many sounds a Gibson has. This a plank of wood idea is stupid but it sounds romantic

[@221b-l3t]

A Gibson has infinite sounds. Select the center position and set the volumes to get the exact blend of neck and bridge you want. It gives you any sound between both pickups seamlessly. Also set the amp too bright and roll the tone back a little. That way you can go to any ratio of neck to bridge and brighten or darken it as needed beyond what the pickups themselves can do. Usually the best sound is one PU louder than the other, very rich sound. Like mostly bridge but with a little neck in there. It's lovely and any guitar that can't do that feels quite limited once you get used to it. Also seamlessly move between the pickups. None of that "dark - click - bright". You gradually do it. Obviously all you need is a dual pickups dual volume 3 way switch guitar. Heck why even have a switch at all. PJ basses just have the volumes to blend. Gibsons should come with the switch locked in the middle so people learn to use the center position properly. It's the best part about a 3 way 2 volume guitar. I really miss that on Strats now. Been thinking about wiring it differently. There blend pots, maybe at that for positions 2 and 4 or a second switch that selects between the 5 way and neck and bridge with blend pot. That would be awesome

[@sacho747]

thank you for the "Tone influence of pickup cover" -- part, ... I never even thought about that...shit, how cool is that ;-)

[@swabee4843]

Put a flat pole pickup in it and rule the world... Damn, well said Joe

[@Ais4Drew]

5:43 well hell Joe I think there’s plenty of guitarists who’d say that about their guitar that they just picked up last week 😂

[@george-st-george]

Sometimes on the old teles ,,,when you wedge the switch ....the pickups are out of phase ,which can give you the classic James Burton/ Ricky Nelson tones !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@leonwhildenjr4483]

Hey Joe,😎👍 Good stuff man. Thanks for the Telly Talk!🌅🕊🦋🕊🙏✌️

[@metalfenderguybradwalker1916]

My AXL TELECASTER WITH the axle /EMG pickup in the bridge got this guitar for 20 bucks. Now I haven't touched the wiring. It's just as a tele should be but something is weird 1st and 2nd position are just the bridge. 3rd is the neck. I can wedge it from the 3rd and 2nd and get this awesome floored wah pedal sound. Maybe I'm alone on this one but it's cool. Also these AXL telecasters are kind of rare and if you find one get it

[@DougGoodwin]

JoBo is the man. Love hearing him play and talk guitars.

[@KimberlyBowling]

More videos with Joe! I learned a lot.

[@donnrutherford7059]

Thanks Joe for your homely reality of the telecaster that can take you anywhere Cheers always waiting to see what your gonna do next

[@Telepkr]

Joe's a good player but he puts out a lot of pointless videos and this is the top of the Heap

[@1minutecomicswalahollywood648]

Hello, I am a new subscriber. ❤

[@marksimpson2321]

Great to hear Joe is a big Albert Collins fan ! ❤

[@RA-ew8rv]

Nice! What a great talent, and at the end of the day "it's just a plank of wood".

[@JustMe-dr2ci]

Just 16 days until I see you in Columbus, Ohio! Thanks for the years of great entertainment. A friend bought me a copy of "A New Day Yesterday" in 2000 and said, "This sounds like something you'd like." She was right. And you just keep getting better. Thanks, too, for the videos like this. I'm an equipment nerd and I love them!

[@DeborahHenry-c2v]

I need you

[@Jay-bw3fl]

Tele tone is just magic

[@stefanodelstef7988]

I'd like to have half the talent Joe has. A great guitar player and guitar collector/historian/lover.

[@RARenfield]

Tele suffers from country music stigma. I finally got one and it is fantastic. Now I have two.

[@metalfenderguybradwalker1916]

It also will turn the bridge pickup off turning down the tone of in the 1st position if I. The neck it gives that lipstick pickup a crazy collective sould where the river flows tone

[@chuffa1130]

The telecaster in the hands of Joe is absolutely incredible!

[@scottsanders1960]

Great information! Thanks, Joe.

[@tlpruitt]

The switch is made by CRL, not Switchcraft

[@dbfcrell8300]

I think what he meant to say was that the selector switch is a CRL, not a Switchcraft. Switchcraft pup switches are found in LPs

[@MadMagicPaul]

Anyone know what amp he was using? It’s an epic tone.

[@sixslinger9951]

could be his '48 Dual Pro from Fender or just a Fender Twin

[@jankafka7330]

I'd bet Joe Bonamassa knows.

[@jvin248]

How about a link to that wiring diagram? Rather than relying on the 'in-between' setting, how would a 4-way switch be wired in there to do it 'properly'?

[@ryanedwardmusic]

The neck pickup with dark cap tone is awesome

[@randolphpatterson5061]

My Tele's original neck pickup was replaced early on by a Mighty Mite, hotter & no cover, which was a big improvement, but later the bridge pickup stopped working & I got a Hot Rails 'bucker, which resulted in a bit of a loss of that twangy Tele sting & snap. But I'm happy with the added beef & growl, so it's a wash. Now I'm about to install new pots & cap & a 4-way switch. Stay tuned, Joe, and BTW you're the best!

[@InGrindWeCrust2010]

There might be a Bill Lawrence pickup that can get both those sounds together for you....

[@JJGuccione]

You’re too modest JB. You nailed a few of Albert’s chops. Always fun listening to you. Thank You

[@gregberry7647]

Thanks Joe. Your helping me decide to buy my 1st tele.

[@kidntrope]

I could listen to Joe all day.

[@sdriza]

sells like hotcakes at $499.... $1200 is substantial for a lot of people - MOST people have LONG DESIRED some other specific guitar but they havent bought it because of price... So, at $1200 the thought process is: "If I'm going to spend that much, I may as well get _____" the perceived "value" of those guitars ia much less than $1200 i'd buy even a used one for $500, but won't ever spend > $1k for one

[@ZalMoxis]

That guitar sounds fantastic Joe.... if only a lefty version would be an option.

[@gregperkins7723]

Thanks for ALL of your unpretentious help to amateurs like me Joe!!!!!! You're the best.

[@richtfingers]

If Joe is talking about guitars, I’m listening! Always gives of himself, great guy!

[@harrisonhicks9697]

Thanks for the knowledge, Joe. Great stuff. Now, ... if only I could play like you!! Rock on, man.

[@brettking2800]

Albert Collins Backstroke on the 1969 album Truckin’ with Albert Collins

[@MBRMrblueroads]

Norm is so greedy

[@dtimm612]

I picked up a no-caster reissue at a shop recently and they aren't kidding when they say baseball bat necks, it was the thickest guitar neck I've ever seen. I assume this tele in the video has a similar jumbo D neck

[@RexCars1]

" Great Tele Tip " JB... Thanks Brother...

[@JJGuccione]

Your AC imitation is NOT crappy. Nevertheless, your humility is noted and appreciated.

[@stratman9449]

Right...the message of Joe is that "Norm" is a master of teles (and others) by walking forth and back 3 x and makes 9k $....haha...yep...check. and yes...i have a Mexican Tele 60 years anniversary for 360.- Euros ( special price...haha) with some new pickups and a humbucker for the neck...sounds and plays fab...cheers...sorry "Norm".....

[@ravenbom]

I LOVE hearing a guy that takes $500,000 guitars on tour saying; "you can get a Squire tele and put a flat pole reissue in it". I'm happy as can be with my MIM Strat I swapped with Seymour Duncan Antiquities Surf Pickups (after tone chasing for several years). I sold my Fender American and kept the Fender MIM. A lot of the tone is from the player, I realized as I got better. And I started with one Fender and a Squire I played more often than the Fender and had modded. Tone isn't in the age or era, it's in the player.

[@danabiondo9243]

Sounds Amazing !!! 🙏 Great Demo Smoking Joe. 🙂 Thank You ! ☀️

[@bareandmare]

"unless you're playing flamenco style, which is highly unlikely" . . . . unlikely indeed! Love my Teles.

[@kiereluurs1243]

I don't get the 4th sound. There's neck, neck & bridge, bridge, right? What would this 4th do different?

[@michaelthornburg2491]

I like my USA made Stratocaster, but I love my USA made Telecaster !!

[@bluesslider76]

I’ve always wanted to brighten up my neck pick up. I had a repair man put a higher pot in and a capacitor to keep the bridge from getting to crazy. Neck pick up improve very little. is Seymour Duncan mini 59 by the way. Rewire?

[@boogiewoogie9770]

Why do American bluesy guitarist use so much reverb and echo? Doesn't add anything. Or perhaps with this stuff it's a big part of making it sound relevant somehow.

[@TomFord-kp8fh]

9k for a 54 blackguard. Holy shit that low! Whats the price of one today...?

[@ciarraibuzz]

I can't play, but I love JB doing his thing. The guy is fucking groovy.

[@randyrich2039]

Yep, Joe's right on as usual. The picture to the left is me with my '53 I got in a trade with Johnny Meeks back in '76. The pic. is circa '91, at The Ventura Theatre. I still have the ax and I still use it on gigs. It still works just fine. It weighs 6.5 Lbs. All original except the frets, which have been 6100's since I got it (4 fret jobs and nuts have been done since '76, I used it a lot, 5 night a week house band gigs). If Joe reads this comment I'll say to him that he missed seeing and playing this ax by one day, I was teaching at Guitar Planet in Ventura, he came in there looking for vintage gear the day before I would've been there with the Johnny Meeks '53 Tele.

[@TheJP3]

Johnny Meeks that used to play with Gene Vincent? That’s crazy!!!

[@randyrich2039]

Yep, the same. He was a good cat. Kind of a mentor to me, about 8 years older than me. I took him to the Palamino to see Emylou Harris and Albert Lee was in her band at the time. Johnny wanted to tell Albert something nice about his playing and when I introduced Johnny to Albert, Albert almost fainted. He couldn't believe Johnny Meeks had been watching him play, It was hilarious. @@TheJP3

[@InGrindWeCrust2010]

Joseph Leonard Bonamassa, why, oh why do you say "front" and "back" pickup. 😩😅

[@xcx8646]

Whenever I think that I might be losing hearing in the high-frequency range I watch a Tele video. Nope - hearing all good. The bridge pickup is still an ice pick

[@Andrew-d7q]

I love my Mexican telecaster !🎸Sorry to the purists but it was cheaper & in my budget ( player tele)

[@playauthentic1082]

I'm so tired of Ol Joe bonemyassa...maybe a signature guitar Joe oh wait every Thursday you put out a signature

[@ross3818]

I'm saying to myself, Joe, why the hell don't you explain those 4 tones instead of burning our faces off instead?

[@CatharticGuitar]

I'm putting the ashtray on my 2010 Vintage Hot Rod '52 Tele tonight.

[@joaozitopolo2507]

After that John's LP tone tips, I really expected for useful tips on Tele. Or tele has no utility, or someone didn't pay John on this terrible video.

[@johneasley2377]

Sadly I will never be able to afford a 52 Fender tele but I have the closest thing a Harley Benton TE 52.

[@Zach-ls1if]

And then there’s the “telecaster through an acoustic amp tone”. Still haven’t bought an electric amp.

[@jmtab]

Believe it’s Brad Paisley that describes the Tele as a cutting board with a neck attached.

[@ryangunwitch-black]

That’s wild, now! How come I ain’t never heard nobody stickin the tele switch in-between the settings like a Strat?

[@steve_anderson]

Just wondering. When does a "Collector" become a "Hoarder", in the clinical sense? 😂

[@bobmorane3989]

2:50 "JB the first and only".... man, this guy is so conceited !

[@enricobarchi8892]

Bridge flat pole pickups of the early Teles sound louder, wilder..

[@masterWindu_01]

How the heck do you play without muting the strings tho?? Like how is he not sounding other strings left and right?