Re: Carey Bell, what kind mic and effects does he use?

[scott <checker758@xxxxxxxxx>]

>Hi Folks,

>Do you know what equpiment Carey Bell use? He's sounds is like >a
>hammond.

I haven't seen Carey in a while, but I co-produced the two CDs he did for Alligator.  During that time, he always used a custom made mic that was given to him by an admirer while on tour in Scandanavia somewhere - it was the element from a Shure SM57 installed into a gold colored body that was a lot smaller and shorter than an SM57 body, and was machined to fit nicely in the hand when cupped with a harp.  I don't recall that he had any preferred amplifier - I think on gigs he just used whatever loud, reliable amp was available.   In the studio we ran his harp mic through a series of Y-cords to an array of different amps I brought to the studio, recorded each to a different track, and then in the final mix used the one(s) that sounded best.  He did insist on using an octave pedal though, which was sent though a Bassman reissue (and isolated so the sound wouldn't leak into any of the other mics!)  We used this sparingly on his CDs, but he used it constantly on gigs, and this m!
ight be
 what is referred to in the question above.  I think we *might* have also used an actual "Leslie" organ cabinet at some point, which obviously would give that kind of quavering, Hammond organ-like sound.  I haven't listened to the CDs lately, but I don't think much (if any) of it ended up on the CDs.  The one thing I do remember about it is that it caused his harp playing to sound out of tune, which is why we stayed away from it and tried to discourage him from using it.  As for his live gigs, it's possible that he might use (or have used) some sort of imitation "Leslie" effect pedal (if such a thing exists), but the only thing I've ever seen him use is the octave pedal.  Which he apparently loves, for better or worse.
 
 
Scott

		
- ---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Photos: High-quality 4x6 digital prints for 25¢