Gear used for Close To The Edge?

[Cygnus X-1]

Hi everyone!

I'm in love with Close To The Edge sound. It sounds perfect to me!

I admit that it's a king of "geek" thread but maybe some others people here are gear geeks :D

Anyway, I'm searching for information about the gear used for Close To The Edge: Instruments, guitars, effects, recording gear, etc

Studio pictures could be great as well to know more...

Thanks for your help :)

[Kevin Still]

Hi everyone!

I'm in love with Close To The Edge sound. It sounds perfect to me!

I admit that it's a king of "geek" thread but maybe some others people here are gear geeks :D

Anyway, I'm searching for information about the gear used for Close To The Edge: Instruments, guitars, effects, recording gear, etc

Studio pictures could be great as well to know more...

Thanks for your help :)

This is from a YESSONGS music book from the era. I can't say how accurate it is but from looking at it I think it is pretty close to what would have been used on stage and studio at that time.

Best wishes.

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/4672/yes1972gearlist.jpg Shot at 2009-03-15

[Cygnus X-1]

Oh my god! Thank you so much for this scan!!!!! That's absolutely great!!

[Ig]

The main electric guitar used on CTTE was the Walnut Gibson Es-345, not listed on the scan above. The 12-string acoustic part (on And You and I) was played on Chris Squire's Guild 12 string. Steve later bought an identical model but decided he didn't like the fingerboard and bought a Martin 12 string.

Gleaned from "the Steve Howe Guitar Collection" book


Dan Hedges' book " Yes- the authorised biography" has quite a few shots taken in Advision studios around the time of the recording of CTTE

[BrianD]

The Six Wives vinyl album has Rick's instrumentation which is pertinent as it was recorded at the same time as CTTE (Feb-Oct 1972)

The list is
Mini moogs x 2
Steinway Grand
Custom built Hammond C3 organ
RMI Electric piano & harpsichord
Mellotron 400D x 2 - one for vocals, sound effects & vibes, the other for brass strings and flutes
Thomas Goff Harpsichord
ARP synthesizers

He also had a custom mixer & frequency counter, a custom built oscillator, fuzz & wahwah pedal, & Binson echo unit.

[bjlevine]

Didn't Steve use the Portuguese guitar tuned to open E on The Preacher The Teacher (in studio)?

[Cygnus X-1]

Great!! But are you shure about the Gibson Es-345?

[Ig]

Great!! But are you shure about the Gibson Es-345?

Straight from the horse's mouth. "The Steve Howe Guitar Collection" page 17.

Something I never realised until I read the book was the way each album "stars" a different guitar:

TYA- ES-175

Fragile- ES-5 Switchmaster (except on HOTS, ES-175)

CTTE-ES345

TFTO- side 1 ES-345, sides 2-4 Les Paul Junior

Relayer-Telecaster

[Ig]

Didn't Steve use the Portuguese guitar tuned to open E on The Preacher The Teacher (in studio)?

yeah, the intro and first section is mainly on CS's Guild 12 string. The Preacher the Teacher uses the Laud, but as well as the 12-string, I think ? I know it's a difficult passage to get to sound right despite being fairly straightforward to actually play!

[Ridvan]

I don't think a laud was used during the "preacher" segment. Some of the notes sound too low to me to be in range for the laud. I'll have to try it tonight and see if it can be done. I've only played it on the 12 string because that's all I've ever seen Steve do it on.

Interesting thread......

[rmig68]

What about these puppies?: Not sure of the exact model, but Steve used a Danelectro Coral Sitar Guitar on the song Close to the Edge and Siberian Khatru:
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/7/7/0/275770.jpg

Also, the "debut" of his steel playing on And You and I, if you're talking about the album Close to the Edge

http://www.fender.com/news/news_images/20//SH_2.jpg

[Cygnus X-1]

Straight from the horse's mouth. "The Steve Howe Guitar Collection" page 17.

Something I never realised until I read the book was the way each album "stars" a different guitar:

TYA- ES-175

Fragile- ES-5 Switchmaster (except on HOTS, ES-175)

CTTE-ES345

TFTO- side 1 ES-345, sides 2-4 Les Paul Junior

Relayer-Telecaster

Excellent, thanks! I love too how each album stars a different guitar but I always wondered which one it was on CTTE :beerchugr:

[Ig]

I don't think a laud was used during the "preacher" segment. Some of the notes sound too low to me to be in range for the laud. I'll have to try it tonight and see if it can be done. I've only played it on the 12 string because that's all I've ever seen Steve do it on.

Interesting thread......

Have a go and tell us how you get on!

I don't have a Laud but have a Bandurria which is the same thing but smaller.... certainly wouldn't work for this part!

It mentions in the Howe book that the Laud was used on AYAI ,and as that's the bit that never sounds quite right on 12-string, I'd always assumed it's the 3rd movement. but then again it could be on the closing moments of the song? going to listen carefully to this later.

Over in some other thread there's mention of "constructed" guitar parts such as the studio solo on Wurm. Maybe "The Preacher the Teacher" is an acoustic part constructed multi-instrumentally?

[90125yes]

What about these puppies?: Not sure of the exact model, but Steve used a Danelectro Coral Sitar Guitar on the song Close to the Edge and Siberian Khatru:
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/7/7/0/275770.jpg

Also, the "debut" of his steel playing on And You and I, if you're talking about the album Close to the Edge

http://www.fender.com/news/news_images/20//SH_2.jpg

---

great stuff - i will hunt out my steve howe guitar collection book right now
:beerchugr:

[Cygnus X-1]

Feel free to post more about his gear!! :beerchugr:

[crotale2112]

I'm sure you would have found this type of gear also..

http://777bongs.com/images/ru45_200.jpg (http://affiliates.grasscity.com/shop/clickthru.cgi?id=allpotseeds&page=http://www.grasscity.com/ceramic-waterpipe-28.html)

[BillGuitar]

yeah, the intro and first section is mainly on CS's Guild 12 string. The Preacher the Teacher uses the Laud, but as well as the 12-string, I think ? I know it's a difficult passage to get to sound right despite being fairly straightforward to actually play!

:dunno:

Really? We play it in the band, and it sounds dead-on.
And I use a steel guitar + electric sitar, for CTTE/AYAI/SK and have been playing the AYAI intro on my 000-18 - not a 12...

:confused:

[crotale2112]

Feel free to post more about his gear!! :beerchugr:
I would love to see steve howe play close to the edge on this guitar. I'm shocked that steve howe doesn't have one of these in his collection.

Very sad.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSu6FbNQTh4

[Parish]

Weed
Satin
VO-5
Beer
Incense
Candy Necklaces
Gold Lame'

[Yes.2]

This thread rocks!!!!:popcorn:

[Cygnus X-1]

Any ideas about which effects/overdrive he used?

[crotale2112]

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possible Effects and overdrives used for close to the edge.

I'm sure that this "overdrive" was used more on the big generator tour than most other tours.

[Cygnus X-1]

Ok the drug joke has been done three times, maybe we could go on a guitar talk?
Thanks :beerchugr:

[cary]

The leslie tone cabinet was used often as well as actually twirling a microphone on a length of cable during the "dat dat.. dooo dah doo dah" part.

[Ig]

Well I revisited all the guitar parts from AYAI. And I still haven't found the place where the Laud fits in...

Ridvan, over to you on that one...

But I have got things sounding better in the preacher the teacher!

[Cygnus X-1]

Hi!

Any idea about which drumkit Bill Bruford used on Close To The Edge?

Thanks

[Cygnus X-1]

Well, I just found some interesting stuffs on his official website : http://www.billbruford.com/equipment/index.html

So it should be Ludwig or Hayman drums :)