Larry Carlton

At 0:54 in this video interview, Larry Carlton talks about his most notable guitar, saying, "Yeah this guitar is the one that I played the majority of my sessions on and my solo records on. The choice to get the 335 was actually a very practical choice for me and so know I play a lot of different styles of music and for me I wanted to get a guitar that could cover a lot of bags so I didn't always have to switch to a bebop guitar for this blues guitar for that and this one covers most of the bags that I want to play or was called on to play. So that's how I ended up picking the 335 and the little store I went to in 1969 to buy a 335, it had three 335s hanging on the wall and I chose this one out of it because it sounded the best to me and the rest is really history, isn't it? ... Brand new...Yeah 1969... although I ended up carrying everything but this one seemed to cover most so I didn't have to keep pulling a new guitar out."

Asked if the guitar has had many modifications to it Larry responded, "Not really. Obviously the stop tailpiece because it came with the trapeze; same original pickups; a number of fret jobs over the years because I played it so much and we put in it the graphite nut. Long time ago Mike McGuire said gotta try this man there is no stick and it won't ever wear out and it doesn't stick and doesn't wear out other than that, you know, replace the tuning pegs when you need it... Nothing else. Yeah I copied this guitar [1969 ES-335] and it's really cool they came out really good... They copied everything and even the color they call this a Carlton Burst and so that's the label on it."

In this rig rundown video from Premier Guitar, Larry Carlton says at 4:57, "Yeah these are guitars that are just in my arsenal that over the years I've played. This is a ‘57 Les Paul Special and I haven't done anything to this guitar since I bought it. It's got the P90s obviously. It's just a great sounding guitar. I remember the early 90’s when I went on tour with Stanley Clarke and Billy Cobham and we did the Jazz Explosion I used this guitar for that tour just because and we recorded live at the Greek so that's the guitar you would hear on that record."

At 6:51 in this interview, Larry Carlton talks about his '51 Telecaster, saying, "Yeah this is a ‘51 Telecaster. The tech that worked for me in the 80s, Dave Rouse, he was with me at least three years full-time, at my studio and on the road. And his best friend, Dave's best friend Pierre Du Bois was Keith Richard's tech. And the Stones were gonna go out on a tour and they wanted to add another guitar tech. Pierre called Dave, his best friend, my tech, and said "Can you go out for the year with the Stones?" And Dave came to me, "Larry can I go out Stones for a year?" Well, he stayed with them 20 years. But what I'm getting at is at one of the Stone's sound checks, somebody showed up at sound check with this guitar to show it to Keith. And so they gave it to David and said, "Would you show this to Keith? It's for sale." And Keith said "I have enough Telecasters, blah blah blah." But Dave said "but I have a buddy who might be interested in it." So they shipped it to me. It screams. This back pick up, this back pick up tells a story when you crank it. So yeah, I'm happy to have this and I've actually done some bebop gigs with this too... The Montreux Jazz Festival 1997. If you go to YouTube and check it, out I'm playing "So What?" on this guitar... It's my understanding that the neck is stamped 1951 and the body is stamped '52, so it was put together sometime during that transition, probably... Right, yeah, so no, I haven't done anything to it. Just a special tone."

at the beginning of this video, Carlton can be seen using the cherry sunburst sire h7

In this video interview, Larry Carlton discusses his 1964 Stratocaster at 9:18. “Yes, so it's a '64 Strat. Gosh, I got this in the 80’s also. I was living in Los Angeles and for some reason was looking for Strat, got in the mood. And there was a music store on Sunset Boulevard, I think it was called Guitar Circus, something like that. And they were very nice. They would let Dave, my tech, go down to the store and bring three Strats to the house, to my studio. And I could check them out with my gear in my studio send them back and this is the one that my ear, caught my ear.”

When asked about playing Valley Arts Strats and if they feel similar to this guitar, Larry responds, “That's right. That was a great season too being affiliated with Valley Arts. Mike McGuire was making great guitars back then… No this, this sounds more authentic. Yeah, I mean that's the real deal… I'm happy to have this and my son, Travis, you know he's a professional bass player… Well he's been in Japan for two months with Tak Matsumoto and he's doing something with Scott Henderson coming up in a few days… Yeah, anyway Trav said, "Dad whatever you do when you pass away, I want the Strat.” And he's a bass player! But he loves the tone of this guitar.”

At 12:20 in this interview with Premier Guitar, Larry Carlton says, “Yeah, I designed this with Mike McGuire. I wanted a very, very small neck. I built it for speed. I built so it'd be just fast to play, and at the time we did it the newest pickups out were EMGs with a mid-range boost. And if you look at the album Last Night Live at the Baked Potato, it's a Valley Arts guitar that's playing all those beautiful harmonics on Emotions Wound Us. So yeah, we've kept this one all these years. God, I bet I haven't played this in 25 years.”

At 3:31 in this interview with Premier Guitar, Larry Carlton says, "This 335, this is a 1968. I got a letter from a fan and basically it took six months for the letter to get to me you know it went to the offices and people filed it away anyway this guy said you’re my favorite guitar player and this guitar that I have is a ‘68 335 that's been not played in, was it seventeen years? Yeah seventeen years and he said I would like to give it to you as a backup guitar if you like it and if you don't like it please don't keep it well he sent it and it's just just great so this was a gift from a fan."

When asked if it sounds similar to his number one, Larry responds, "Yeah it does, it really does. And the tone was very very similar and so what I did though is I wanted to experiment so I put PAF pickups, old matched PAF pickups in this one so it wouldn't try to sound exactly yeah so it gives me a whole different world I play this one tone wise."

it can be seen throughout this video larry Carlton is using a vintage sunburst h7

At 11:00 in this video from Premier Guitar, Larry Carlton says about his acoustic guitar, “Yeah, this is my Valley Arts acoustic that I've played since the 80's. And I fell in love with a little Martin D-28, and so I went to Mike McGuire at Valley Arts and I said, “I love this guitar, but when you put pressure on it, or you're playing, it didn't stay in tune, the little Martin. It’s so soft.” But I said, “I love the size, and the feel, and that tone.” So we copied the body, obviously, but reinforced with bracing everywhere. So the insides, it won't budge on the pitch if you put some pressure on it. And that was a motivation for it and this is the I played Smiles and Smiles To Go, Discovery, all those tunes on.”

When asked if the guitar was ever commercially released, Larry answered, “No, he made five of these and let me choose and then I think Carlos Rios has one. Maybe Paul Jackson Jr. You know, the guys that were hanging out there during that time in LA, they got to choose one… So yeah this has been with me a long time.”

The guitar behind him is Yamaha Sa-1000. (Live in Tokyo / Novermber 1978) / https://session-guitarist.net/larry-carlton-mr-335-live-in-japan-1979/

Among Carlton's first guitars, as stated in the February 1977 Guitar Player interview "Larry Carlton" by Steven Rosen.

Larry's first acoustic instrument was "a nameless box with strings a half-inch off the fretboard;" his first electric axe was a Fender Broadcaster purchased in 1955. This was traded for a Telecaster, then a Stratocaster, and finally a Gibson ES-175. Later he bought another Tele and used it as a backup.

Among Carlton's first guitars, as stated in the February 1977 Guitar Player interview "Larry Carlton" by Steven Rosen.

Larry's first acoustic instrument was "a nameless box with strings a half-inch off the fretboard;" his first electric axe was a Fender Broadcaster purchased in 1955. This was traded for a Telecaster, then a Stratocaster, and finally a Gibson ES-175. Later he bought another Tele and used it as a backup.

Mentioned in the February 1977 Guitar Player interview "Larry Carlton" by Steven Rosen.

The Ford group had furnished Larry with a black Les Paul Custom ("I was becoming more turned on to Beck and Clapton," he says.) which replaced the Gibson he had been playing on record dates. He wasn't happy, though, with his sound on the Les Paul, so he switched to a Gibson ES-335 which he still uses. The musician feels the 335 to be a vast improvement over the Fenders he had once relied upon, especially in relation to sustain and body feel; his jazz background led him to be more comfortable with a larger instrument in his hands. Other axes in his collection include a 1952 Telecaster, a '52 gold-top Les Paul, and two Martin acoustics.

A modified 1969 ES-335 is discussed in the February 1977 Guitar Player interview "Larry Carlton" by Steven Rosen and in the September 10, 2007 Premier Guitar interview "Chattin' with Mr. 335: Larry Carlton" by James Egolf.

Guitar Player

The Ford group had furnished Larry with a black Les Paul Custom ("I was becoming more turned on to Beck and Clapton," he says.) which replaced the Gibson he had been playing on record dates. He wasn't happy, though, with his sound on the Les Paul, so he switched to a Gibson ES-335 which he still uses. The musician feels the 335 to be a vast improvement over the Fenders he had once relied upon, especially in relation to sustain and body feel; his jazz background led him to be more comfortable with a larger instrument in his hands. Other axes in his collection include a 1952 Telecaster, a '52 gold-top Les Paul, and two Martin acoustics.

Some minor work has been done on the basically stock ES-335 (1969): a stud tailpiece and metal inserts were installed; Schaller tuning heads replaced the worn out originals; the pickups have been changed several times to other standard humbuckers; and a different tone pot with a wider range of effect is now used. Carlton compares the Gibson with the instruments of other players, (including studio guitarist Dean Parks') and finds that his sustain on the high E and B strings is far greater than theirs.

Larry's advice to those interested in 335s: find one that feels comfortable and see if it sounds good acoustically. His guitar, without being plugged in, will sustain on its own.

Recently, Carlton tried out another studio man's 335 after Gibson had installed a 5"x5" brass piece right where the tailpiece fits on. Though the guitar "weighs a ton," Larry reports, the brass plate, along with a special ebony fingerboard, creates a strong sustain.

Premier Guitar

Larry Carlton is one of the most prolific guitar players of our time. Though the term “prolific” gets bandied about quite freely, Larry is truly the definition of the word – each time Larry conquers one avenue, he finds new opportunities to excel. From playing and arranging more than 3000 sessions for acts like Michael Jackson and Steely Dan, to an internationally successful solo career, to commercial work and playing in groups like The Crusaders and Fourplay, Larry has really done it all. Recently, Larry launched a new record label, 335 Records, and an online TV station, Mr. 335 TV. We caught up with Mr. 335 himself to chat about his amazing start in the business, his newfound freedom, and everything in between.

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When did you hook up with the 335?

The romance between Larry Carlton and the ES-335 started in 1969. I was getting calls to do sessions, and I had to jump from studio to studio, but I never knew what style of music I was going to be called upon to play. I love jazz, I can play rock and roll and I can play country music, so I was looking for a guitar that could cover all those bags. I needed a guitar that was – and is – as versatile in sound as I was as a player. After checking out a few things, I decided that the Gibson ES-335 was right for me. I could play my jazz things – I love jazz and I love the f-hole and the semi-hollowbody sound – but when you put on the treble pickup, you can get it to scream on the amplifier. Versatility, versatility, versatility – that’s why I chose this guitar.

[...]

Your solo on Steely Dan’s “Kid Charlemagne” is pretty legendary. Are there any secrets to that tone?

I played the same 335 on 90% of my solo sessions, including the solo for “Kid Charlemagne.” I just used a little Tweed Deluxe amplifier. There’s video of that rig on my website. The combination that I used sound-wise for the “Kid Charlemagne” solo was the 335, Tweed Deluxe amplifier, back pickup and with the tone control turned down to about three.