paul mccartney sound

[rockyraccoon]

i was wondering if anyone out there knows what i need to get the sound that paul mccartney does with most of his songs. what pedals do i need?

[Stumbo]

You need a Hofner pedal.

[ColtBass96]

Most of the time no effects. You might want a overdrive or something to boost your sound a little. His tone is usually straight though, running into 2 Mesa 400+ and some old school diesel cabinets.
Hope this helps!

[strke-fender]

Originally Posted by ColtBass96

Most of the time no effects. You might want a overdrive or something to boost your sound a little. His tone is usually straight though, running into 2 Mesa 400+ and some old school diesel cabinets.
Hope this helps!

Actually, I saw him on his last tour and he was playing an 400 (non plus) and a 400+


But who's counting.

[Floyd Eye]

Originally Posted by rockyraccoon

i was wondering if anyone out there knows what i need to get the sound that paul mccartney does with most of his songs. what pedals do i need?

Which songs? Beatles, Wings or more recent? I would say there isn't a pedal. Get a Hofner and a Ric, string them with flats, use a pick.

[Chronicle]

*face palm picture insert*

[ben12390]

unless hes speaking of songs such as Mean Mr Mustard, and Think for yourself(i think)

[SactoBass]

Originally Posted by Stumbo

You need a Hofner pedal.

That was good!

[JimmyM]

mccartney sounds like mccartney no matter what equipment he's used throughout the years. flats are probably the only real requirement other than playing like mccartney. heard him with hofners, a ric, a yamaha, a wal 5 string, and a jazz, and he always sounds like mccartney.

[Mark Olson]

In all fairness I think the OP is inquiring about the tone associated with McCartney, not the note choices, techniques, and idiosyncrasies that are responsible for Sir Paul "sounding like" Sir Paul. There is a definite line between the two, and the former does require the right gear.

[Marty Forrer]

If it's the recorded tone of the Beatles the OP means, then a TON of compression is needed. According to that wonderful book on the Beatles recording sessions, the engineer (Geoff Emerick?) used to run the bass track through a compressor and repeat that three or four times before mixing with the other tracks.

[tomhanzo]

Yeah OP give us a youtube example and we should be able to help

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by Marty Forrer

If it's the recorded tone of the Beatles the OP means, then a TON of compression is needed. According to that wonderful book on the Beatles recording sessions, the engineer (Geoff Emerick?) used to run the bass track through a compressor and repeat that three or four times before mixing with the other tracks.

i once heard a soloed bass track from with a little help from my friends, and it sounded like a youtube video recorded with a cam mic. very compressed, very noisy, but brilliant in a mix.