“It means a lot to me that a young musician can buy an affordable guitar and have the same opportunities we did”: Why Billy Corgan doesn’t play expensive guitars
Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan says important for young musicians to have access to affordable instruments.
In an interview in the latest issue of Guitarist, Corgan elaborates on his point, and explains why he doesn’t need an expensive guitar to create great music.
READ MORE: “When I sat and watched Eddie Van Halen play 3ft in front of me in the studio, I learned that it’s about the hands”: Billy Corgan says tone lies in the fingers
“It means a lot to me that a young musician can go into a music store and take a guitar that they can afford, and if they work hard like we did, they can have that same sound and have that same opportunity with that great instrument,” he says.
“That’s really important to me as an independent musician, you know? I’ve certainly played super expensive guitars – but it’s pretty cool playing a guitar that doesn’t need to be souped up.”
Corgan’s affinity for budget guitars was no doubt nurtured during his early years as a musician. Speaking to Conan O’Brien in 2023 [via Ultimate Guitar], he noted how his first guitar was a “Korean-made Les Paul copy”, which he had painted black and later sold to a “drug dealer”.
“Then I had a Fender Mustang that my father gave me. I played that for a while, but it had very weak pickups; couldn’t get the grunge sound,” he said.
“And then Jimmy Chamberlin showed up one day with a 1974 yellow Strat. Yellow [is] definitely not my colour, but Richie Blackmore played that guitar, so that was okay. And Jimmy said, ‘I’ll sell it to you for $270.’ I later found out that was how much he needed for rent.”
Corgan’s yellow Strat was stolen in 1992, but they were reunited almost 30 years in 2019.
Elsewhere in the Guitarist interview, Billy Corgan notes how an encounter with Eddie Van Halen led to him to conclude that tone was, in fact, in the fingers, and not in the gear.
“When I sat and watched Eddie Van Halen play 3ft in front of me in the studio, I learned that it’s about the hands,” he says. “Great guitar players can get the same sound out of any amp; it’s something about the way they play.”
The post “It means a lot to me that a young musician can buy an affordable guitar and have the same opportunities we did”: Why Billy Corgan doesn’t play expensive guitars appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
Source: www.guitar-bass.net
