Vintage Guitar - September 2017 - open - 102

I have a sort of magic paint box for
a studio, where I have many guitars,
many effects pedals, a couple sets
of electronic drums, and a bunch
of loopers including a Roland 505.
My standard working guitar is an old
Strat - I always start with that to make
the tracks, then later see if I want to
change it to a Les Paul, 335, a Gretsch,
or whatever. Generally, when I have the
overall picture of a track, I'll get specific
about the guitar, the tones, and just see
if the solos are really where I want them
to be. In terms of gear, most of the last
two albums started from a sound - a
slight quality created by whatever pedals
I marry to get something interesting and
idiosyncratic. I'll find something like
that and record 16, 32, or 48 bars, then
play against it and see if it creates a spark.
That's basically what I do.
Tell us a bit about the Telecaster
you used in the Police.

Summers onstage in
1979 with his fameed
Telecaster Custom; here's
how it looks today.

"WE MADE REGGATTA IN 10 DAYS AND
AT THAT POINT WE HAD A MUSICAL
IDENTITY; WE WERE FULL OF FIRE
AND COULDN'T WAIT TO PROVE IT."
not a tourist - I go into a very different mode. I think my sensibilities are informed in a different way than the average tourist, and
photography gets me into it. But, music is part of it. One of my
great experiences of the past couple of years was in West China,
photographing this amazing orchestra that played old Chinese
instruments - incredible 11th-century music that sounds sort
of 21st-century avant-garde. So that's more my participation.

I think it's
a '61.
And what
about your
red Strat?

Not so much "You're the guy from the Police!" It's more like
"You're a white guy with blonde hair. What the hell are you
doing here?" But I get it occasionally. The world, as we know,
is shrinking. They have internet even in far parts of Western
China. There isn't much they haven't seen.

I acquired
t hat ver y
early on in the
Police, when
we were touring
the States; it's a

What gear did you use on Triboluminescence?

102

September 2017

Summers '79: Richard Galbraith.

What year is
it?

Do you get noticed when you visit out-of-the-way places?

VINTAGE GUITAR

I bought it off a kid in Los Angeles
prior to the Police for like, 200 bucks. He
wanted the money and I needed a guitar.
I was very fortunate; I realized later that
night, "This is a really great guitar. It's
magical." And I offered to give it back,
but he didn't want it. For me, it was a
life-changing instrument. I still have
it, obviously - I can't get rid of a guitar
that changed everything for me and I
used to record almost every single Police
track. It's a hybrid instrument, whoever
had it put a Gibson
hu mbuc ker i n
the front and an
overdrive switch
powered by a
nine-volt battery.
There was an outof-phase switch on
it, as well. So, somebody really played
around, and it was an
absolutely kick-ass
guitar. I barely play it
anymore, though.

Vintage Guitar - September 2017 - open

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