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Riff Tone
Hold You Back
Status Quo
Guitarrock1970s
Original Gear
GuitarFender Telecaster (Rick Parfitt's white 1965 model, maple neck, single coil pickups)
AmpMarshall Super Lead (likely 1959 model, 100W Plexi head, paired with Marshall 4x12 cabinet); possible blend with Vox AC30 (live only, not confirmed for studio)
Amp Settings
gain5.5
bass6
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Notes
Studio recording, 1977. Rick Parfitt played the main riff on his iconic white Telecaster through a Marshall Super Lead. No evidence of pedals or effects used in the studio recording for the riff section. Live, a Vox AC30 was sometimes blended in, but the classic studio sound is Marshall only.
Tone Character(10)
classic British crunchtight, percussive rhythm attackbright and cutting Telecaster bridge tonefull-bodied midrange punchminimal sustain, fast note decayaggressive strummingdynamic pick attackraw, unprocessed amp soundslightly compressed from amp overdriveno audible reverb or delay
Difficulty
The riff requires fast, driving shuffle rhythm with tight, consistent strumming and dynamic pick attack, but uses straightforward chord shapes and no advanced techniques.
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Create Free AccountGuitarrock1970s
Original Gear
GuitarFender Telecaster (Rick Parfitt's white 1965 model, maple neck, single coil pickups)
AmpMarshall Super Lead (likely 1959 model, 100W Plexi head, paired with Marshall 4x12 cabinet); possible blend with Vox AC30 (live only, not confirmed for studio)
Amp Settings
gain5.5
bass6
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
Notes
Studio recording, 1977. Rick Parfitt played the main riff on his iconic white Telecaster through a Marshall Super Lead. No evidence of pedals or effects used in the studio recording for the riff section. Live, a Vox AC30 was sometimes blended in, but the classic studio sound is Marshall only.
Tone Character(10)
classic British crunchtight, percussive rhythm attackbright and cutting Telecaster bridge tonefull-bodied midrange punchminimal sustain, fast note decayaggressive strummingdynamic pick attackraw, unprocessed amp soundslightly compressed from amp overdriveno audible reverb or delay
Difficulty
The riff requires fast, driving shuffle rhythm with tight, consistent strumming and dynamic pick attack, but uses straightforward chord shapes and no advanced techniques.