GEAR / BACKGROUND:

EQUIPMENT USED ON MAMBO SONS "RACKET OF THREE" SESSIONS (2005)

 

ALBUM BACKGROUND:

When Scott Lawson and Tom Guerra began writing for "Racket of Three", the two started under the assumption that the record would be largely acoustic. With the success of "Play Some Rock & Roll!", the two felt that the last thing they wanted to do was stay in one place as far as genre. Scott Lawson elaborated: "We started out thinking we would do an acoustic record (Like Led Zeppelin 3) but we reconnected with Joe the Cat (who played a cameo role on the 1st CD) and then I found a demo of 5 songs that Tom had made riffs of back in 2001. Out of those riffs came the songs "Mister Rebound", "Sidewinder", "Valentine" and "Play Some Rock & Roll" (She's Comin' Over) the great, long lost track that we would have included on the last record, had I not packed it all into boxes and moved out of the apartment I was living in at that time."

According to Tom Guerra, he and Lawson wrote 20 songs for the disc, and chose the dozen that fit the best together. "We spent alot of time with the sequencing of this record, since the last one was a total rocker. We want to be viewed as growing and branching out rather than mellowing with age. As such, we started with the tune "Play Some Rock & Roll" which was sort of a logical bridge between the last album (which bore that same name) and acousticness of 'Valentine'." Adding to the sound was drummer Joe Lemieux, whose use of percussion and cymbals helped to make the music groove. The Sons were also fortunate to have Matt Zeiner from Dickey Betts' band join them on a number of cuts, on Hammond B-3 and piano. "Matt's Hammond gelled so well with the acoustic stuff...I'd love to play more with him in the future" said Guerra. "He's an absolute monster and it was an honor to play with him."

(T. Guerra tracking for "Racket of Three")

THE SONGS:

Play Some Rock & Roll! (She's Comin' Over)
Tom: "This tune was the last song we completed for the album. We had the progression and words, but the arrangement needed tweaking. We knew we wanted that "Lust for Life" groove, but not throughout the song, so we bashed it around until we had three distinct parts, the riff, the verse and the chorus. This, like many of the other rockers, was recorded live with few overdubs. Joe's rat-a-tat drumming makes this a great song to play live." Guitars and amps: Fender Telecaster through 50 watt smallbox Marshall, Brian Moore through Marshall PA20.

Scott: "It's a great "go-go" beat... like "Are You Gonna Be My Girl". I wanted to combine that bouncy beat with a something more soulful like Van Morrison... before turning into Mott The Hoople on the chorus."

Valentine
Tom: "'Valentine' was a tune where the "less is more" philosophy worked. Initially it was intended to be an all-acoustic track, but I kept adding guitars till it bore little resemblance to the original demo. After going back and hearing that demo, I decided to strip the tune back to just acoustic guitar and one electric. I added the bells, and then Matt added some piano, and we included Scott's original scratch vocal and off we were." Guitars and amps: 1958 Fender Stratocaster through 22 watt DST-Engineering UV6, Gibson J45 and J200 acoustics.

Scott: "Tom obviously can play alot of heavy notes, and has been doing so for over 20 years. When I first met him, he had an SG and was playing thru a giant Ampeg combo he somehow managed to haul upstairs into his college dormroom. I wanted to hear Tom play acoustics and focus on melodies and light stuff on the guitar... as opposed to going backwards into Tony Iommi territory with the electrics."

Man of Steel
Tom: "Another tune that was originally all-acoustic...our friend Jim Chapdelaine called this 'your nah-nah song - everybody has at least one nah-nah song.' Matt's Hammond added so much to the tune, it just sort of rocks it like you rock a small boat from side to side anticipating the waves." Guitars and amps: 1956 Les Paul TV Special through Fulltone Soul Bender, into 50 Watt smallbox Marshall, Gibson J45 acoustic.

Scott: "I wanted a gospel chorus to sing the opening chorus, but we decided we wanted something breezy and folk rockish instead. The gospel-like sprituality is all still there, as the lead character in the song testifies his love for the one person who willingly accepts and embraces his oddness."

Brandy on the Shelf
Tom: "The one tune that stayed totally acoustic from a guitar perspective. Joe hangs out the first verse, then comes in following Scott's bass riff in verse two. We played this out live for a year before recording it, and it came out totally different from the live version, much more laid back. Scott's doing a Berry Oakley thing on the bass." Guitars: Gibson J45 and J200 acoustics.

Scott: "I dedicate much of this record to Ronnie Lane, and this song has that world worn, fresh country air feel of "One For The Road", and that old man to young man advice like in "Ooh La La". Part of the inspiration for an acoustic album was the great vibe that he and Van Morrison managed to radiate."

Be On Time
Tom: "This one came together in the studio, sort of has a Beatle-y vibe to it. Its got alot of tracks on it, but the slide and lead guitar parts were put together in one take, with a Les Paul through a Vibratone (leslie) powered by a DST UV6. This is my favorite tune off the cd at the moment." Guitars and amps: 1956 Les Paul TV Special through an MXR Phase 90 into a 50 Watt smallbox Marshall, Gibson J45 acoustics, 1959 reissue Les Paul through a Fender Vibratone / DST.

Scott: "To me, it sounds better than any song Oasis has ever recorded, with the possible exception of "Cum On Feel The Noize".

Sidewinder Walk
Tom: "This was another one that we did live with the trio in the studio. I added a direct guitar to give it a bit more presence. The end bit was a spontaneous thing we included, which was originally a tune called "Cyanide Hole." Featuring some nice drumming by Joe, and some "Overend Watts" bass playing by Scott, this is our obligatory 'big dumb rock' tune, definitely something that wasn't originally planned for an acoustic album." Guitars and amps: Fender Telecaster into a 50 Watt smallbox Marshall, Gibson 1959 reissue through Blockhead 18 First Born, Fender Stratocaster through Colorsound fuzz unit.

Scott: "This was one from the lost demo tape, obviously. We nurture our inner Muscle Car rockers.... one more time!"

You Broke My Mind
Tom: "Here's one that was all-acoustic and the first time we played it we were doubled over with laughter, cause of the trailer vibe to it. Scott's singing with that whiskey voice 'hhhuuu broke my mind'. I really enjoyed playing this in the studio, the electric guitar is a 1963 Gibson ES300 with a factory Bigsby, through the '66 Vibrolux reverb amp, with a tad of slapback. Acoustic is the Gibson J45."

Scott: "The anti 'O' Brother Where Art Thou?'"

Delta Slide
Tom: "Here's our dobro tune, another all acoustic thing, with some heavier sounding drums. I played the organ on this - it was meant to be a scratch track but Matt Zeiner never got around to replacing it so we left my part on there. Hammond by numbers I guess..." Guitar: 1930's Dobro 90.

Scott: "The sparsness of John Hiatt's 'Bring the Family' inspired me on this one"

Mr. Rebound
Tom: "This is sort of our NRBQ tribute tune. I played my buddy Nightmare's Danelectro baritone guitar for the riff to give it sort of a rockabilly, cowboy feel." Guitars and amps: vintage Fender Stratocaster into a DST-Engineering UV6, Danelectro baritone guitar into '66 Vibrolux Reverb.

Scott: "This one changed a lot from the demo. Joe brought a lot to the table on this one."

Rummy Hop
Tom: "One we've played live for a few years now...this was recorded live with minimal overdubs. Scott's monkey noises are disturbingly accurate..." Guitars and amps: 1954 Gibson Les Paul Custom into a 50 Watt smallbox Marshall.

Scott: "I reference the Beatles on this one (as well as Wing's 'Wild Life') but in lyric only. Obviously very tongue in cheek, as it is a total party song... complete with Monkey Boy & Spring Break crowd noises.

Been Outta Touch
Tom: "Another fun tune to play live. Really shows our garage rock roots, ki nd of reminds me of Rory Gallagher a bit." Guitar and amp: Brian Moore into DST U18CN.

Scott: "This was the last song we recorded, and we went for it with a devil may care attitude."

Safe With Me
Tom: "We knew this one would be the last track on the album before we even knew there was going to be an album. A combination acoustic/electric tune that I had lying around for years." Guitars and amps: 1963 Gibson ES330 into MXR Phase 90, into DST UV6, Gibson J45.

Scott: "I sort of turn into Tom Petty on this one... but it has more to do with the humble nature that the songs main character assumes than anything else. It's about old vinyl records in the bin of a used record store, and all the memories that seeing those album covers again can bring back."

SCOTT ON REVISITING THE BASS

Scott: "I started out playing the bass when I was 13 years old... it weighed a ton, had horrible action and the neck felt like it was 10 feet long. I gave up playing the bass in favor of guitar, but always had one lying around, and would play and now and then. I always think different musically when playing the bass, as the approach often requires a sort of counter placement to the guitar, as well as the support of the kick and snare on the drums. I have a Danelectro Longhorn Bass that is light, loud and very playable, so I eventually found myself playing to all of the demo tracks that Tom was sending to me. I felt so connected to these songs, that I could not give them up to anybody else just to tell them to play the same notes I would. Tom has always had the guitar parts under control. He doesn't need me around to muck things up! But I was drawn to the bass for this record and it was a true revelation for me as a musician. I simply plugged the Danelectro into a San Amp direct box, handed the line out to Tom, and played non-stop thru all of the songs."

THE PLAYERS ON MAMBO SONS "RACKET OF THREE"

 

TOM GUERRA - Guitar and Vocals

SCOTT LAWSON - Lead Vocals

JOE "THE CAT" LEMIEUX - Drums


WITH VERY SPECIAL GUEST

MATT ZEINER - GOFF PROFESSIONAL B-3, PIANO

BACK TO TOP | BACK TO GEAR