Martin Barre

According to Jethro Tull's Martin Barre, his first Les Paul Custom was a "fake" copy, and was quickly sold after he found out, but not before recording the 1970 album, Benefit.

Full article here.

"1970 - Same amps but I bought a Les Paul custom; it was a fake and didn’t stay in the collection very long! But I used it on Benefit. I started using a Hornby Skewes Treble Booster, which gave the HiWatts a bit of a kick. Unfortunately they picked up radio perfectly. Any gig within a mile of a radio station was a disaster!" - Martin Barre.

Barre states on his official site that he used a Boss CS-2 pedal.

Full article here.

"So here is the “Rig” I have spent 37 years building up to!

· Paul Reed Smith 513 Electric

· 2 Soldano Decatone Heads, one feeding one or two 2 X 12" Marshall Vintage Cabs and the other feeding two 1 X 12” Marshall mini-cabs as “front” monitors. From the send of one amp I route through a simple reverb unit (Picoverb) and return to both amps a subtle background hall reverb." - Martin Barre.

From Martin Barre's website: I am now a dedicated Paul Reed Smith user. I have two superb 513 guitars, a Mcarty semi solid, a Quatro, a Singlecut Electric and a PRS Acoustic/Electric singlecut.

Barre states on his official site that he used a Hamer Chapparal on a few Jethro Tull albums.

Full article here.

Barre was an avid user of Hiwatt amps, running a 200w head into a 4x12 cabinet throughout the 1970s. This was the amp setup used on Benefit, Aqualung, Thick as a Brick, etc.

"A new DuoTone; just a cool and very easy instrument to play; it really covers the breadth of Fender tones."

The correct would be 'Duo-Sonic' (just check his webpage, and you'll see).

http://martinbarre.com/martin-gear/

Martin Barre owns a trio of 3/4 size Gibson ES-140T guitars from the mid-1950s, as detailed on the Martin Barre Band's website. These student guitars are noted for their aesthetic appeal and playability.

Martin Barre owns a Taylor Doyle Dykes Deluxe DDX Signature Model acoustic guitar, which was originally built for the NAMM show in the early 2000s. This information is detailed on the Martin Barre Band website.

Martin Barre played a 1978 Hamer Sunburst guitar, as evidenced by a user-uploaded photo on Buddlejagarden.

Martin Barre used to play different Hamer Guitars from 1978 till the early 1980. One of these Guitars was a black Hamer Sunburst.

"A 'Fat Strat' made in the USA and a guitar to keep forever, as they dont make this model anymore and it a really dynamic 'beast'.

I use it for recording and rehersals a lot, as it is a great workhorse instrument."

"Every guitarist needs a few Fenders and here are a few of mine!

A 1969 Telecaster; I've owned several over the years and this is the best Ive ever played."

"As well as the gorgeous Gibson F4 (circa 1917) and the Gibson A 5 from 1958 which I am very lucky to own; I have my three Fylde 8 stringers!!!"

"As well as the gorgeous Gibson F4 (circa 1917) and the Gibson A 5 from 1958 which I am very lucky to own; I have my three Fylde 8 stringers!!!"

The blonde "125 "on the left is one of a dozen to be made that year and is in mint condition.

The acoustic was brought to an early Tull gig by a dealer, I didnt really want it and he wouldnt fly it home so I paid $15 for it.

Martin Barre discusses his Gibson Cherry ES-335-traditional, noting he purchased it because of its cool appearance and attributes. This information is detailed on the Martin Barre Band's official gear page.

Gibson ES 135 from the mid 1980,s... I bought because it looked so cool and, quite frankly, it is cool.

Martin Barre discusses his Gibson ES-125 TC 1967, which he purchased from Gruhn Guitars in Nashville. He mentions discovering it online and being drawn to it, and after playing it acoustically in-store, he found it performed beautifully both unplugged and amplified. This information is shared on the Martin Barre Band's official website.

My favourite is the 12 fret, as it is more compact and translates from playing electric much better.

Martin Barre uses the Taylor 614 Grand Auditorium for live performances, appreciating its seamless transition from electric to acoustic playability. This information is detailed on the Martin Barre Band's official gear page.

In this interview, Barre himself confirms he used this instrument almost exclusively while recording AQUALUNG

In this photo from 03/20/2024 at Yoshi’s in Oakland, CA, you can see Martin Barre playing a PRS Robben Ford Limited Edition McCarty which is distinguishable by its controls which are master volume and master tone in a Les Paul Jr pattern. A mini toggle is below the master tone for coil splitting and a 3 way toggle switch for pickup selection is below the wrap tail bridge.

Martin used this guitar for all electric guitar except one song where he switched to a Fender Stratrocaster.

Martin also appeared to use a stand mounted PRS Acoustic/Electric for his acoustic work.

Martin also appeared to be using his Soldano Decatone heads mounted in a road case running into a Barefaced single 12” cab.

At 2:13 in the video "Jethro Tull - My Sunday Feeling, Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival, 1970," Martin Barre can be seen using the Watkins WEM Super Starfinder 200 Cabinet, visible by his feet and behind him. This is documented in a video by Remy Tena, published on YouTube.