Tremolo or bust

TINMAN82

Other current threads bring to mind something I’ve pondered recently. I often see tone and alternate tunings sighted as a reason for that 2nd, 3rd guitar etc. The humble strat tremolo seems rarely mentioned.

I appreciate that the tremolo, even unused, affects tone to some degree. But how many of you can’t live without it? If so, what songs are you playing on strat type axes that absolutely necessitate a functioning tremolo?

Im thinking mainly in terms of good old fashioned SSS  strats and players within the blues and rock genres (like myself). Not so much dive bombing shredders.

pintspiller

The Bigsby option was obviously the one I had to get when I ordered my Peavey Rockingham. I'm not much of a lead player, but any sustaining chords obviously get a bit of a wiggle.

JerkMoans

The song that really *springs* to mind is ‘Wicked Game’.

Voxman

Lenny by SRV, and of course Hank Marvin Shadows stuff. More recently I've been playing the Power Station version of 'Get it on' with my 611. Great fun. 

I currently use 3 guitars that have trems.. PRS Cu24, 2010 USA Standard Strat (SSS), and Yamaha Pacifica 611vfm.  

TINMAN82

Voxman said:

Lenny by SRV, and of course Hank Marvin Shadows stuff. More recently I've been playing the Power Station version of 'Get it on' with my 611. Great fun. 

I currently use 3 guitars that have trems.. PRS Cu24, 2010 USA Standard Strat (SSS), and Yamaha Pacifica 611vfm.  

Yeah this is kind of what I was getting at. Other than Lenny I’m not actually sure there’s a song (outwith the metal genre) that justifies the purchase of a new tremolo strat. I’ve had 3 strats in the past that might as well have been hardtails.

guitars4you

I never use it on single notes - But great to add some texture to chords at times

Teetonetal

Anything that Gilmour wrote. Can that man actually do a vibrato without one?

Sassafras

Too much trem makes me feel sick. Like all those YouTube demos where they cling on to the trem as if their lives depended on it. Pisses me right off.

JMP220478

Listen to Jeff Beck and Scott Henderson  -  integral part of their playing and they're both a bit good :-) 

ESBlonde

There is  plenty of wobble available on a hardtail strat. Ok you cant be hank, but I don't want to be.

p90fool

I just avoid the songs which require one, there are millions of others. 

I do have enough spare guitars to have a functioning trem but I do a lot of bent notes with another one held, which goes flat without a fixed bridge. Plus on most of my guitars a Bigsby or similar would get in the way of the volume knob, which is far more important to me. 

I might chuck a Les Trem on something soon though, I do kind of miss it. 

Fishboy7

J Mascis always used the Jazzmaster trem quite a bit. Listen to Out There.

slacker

I've generally played without a tremolo (vibrato) bridge on a guitar. Mainly because I would over do it.

However last year I rearranged things and got a gretsch and a strat. Here's the songs I'm working on at the moment that like a trem...

Apache
Battle without honour or humanity
Peter Gunn
Wicked game.

SNAKEBITE

I have always been a big Hank Marvin fan and love Surf music (trying to play more of it at the moment) so basically I need a trem as much as I need fingers

guitars4you

JerkMoans said:

The song that really *springs* to mind is ‘Wicked Game’.

and Sleep Walk

prlgmnr

Was noodling about with my tele yesterday, faffing about trying to set up 3 amps with stereo effects and the number of times I held a chord and reached out my arm for the non existent trem bar...well, it was a couple of times.

TheBigDipper

I've never owned a guitar with a trem. Not a personal policy, but that's just how it turned out.

Stevepage

3 of my guitars have Floyd Roses. 1 has a typical Strat bridge and the other is a hardtail.

Funny thing is, I never ever use them. There are pros to them (changing string gauge easily, tuning stability) but they're so fiddly.

Overall, I don't need them and prefer the hardtail guitar. So I don't know why I have them lol

ICBM

guitars4you said:

I never use it on single notes - But great to add some texture to chords at times

This. I never use it on single notes either, but often on chords.

While it's true that you can bend the neck to get a bit of the same effect, not as much (even not counting divebombing) and not as controlled.

Teetonetal said:

Anything that Gilmour wrote. Can that man actually do a vibrato without one?

Considering that he also plays a Tele, obviously yes...

Fishboy7

I like giving it a little shake at the top of a bend