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Riff Tone
Rock With You
Michael Jackson
Guitarother1970s
Original Gear
GuitarFender Stratocaster (likely 1970s model, maple neck, used by session player David Williams)
AmpRoland JC-120 Jazz Chorus (most likely, based on era/session standards and clean tone requirements)
Amp Settings
gain0
bass5.5
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Notes
Studio recording, 1979. David Williams played the iconic riff. No evidence of live rig or alternate gear for the riff section. All details pertain to the original studio recording.
Tone Character(10)
clean and crispbright and articulatetight, percussive rhythmwarm, glassy Strat tonefunky and rhythmicslightly compressed attacksubtle chorus shimmerstudio clarityno audible overdrivedynamic, responsive to picking
Difficulty
The riff requires intermediate-level funk rhythm skills, including tight 16th-note strumming, muting, and maintaining a consistent groove. The technical challenge lies in the right-hand technique and rhythmic accuracy rather than complex chord shapes.
This tone has been researched 5 times by the community
Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear
Create Free AccountGuitarother1970s
Original Gear
GuitarFender Stratocaster (likely 1970s model, maple neck, used by session player David Williams)
AmpRoland JC-120 Jazz Chorus (most likely, based on era/session standards and clean tone requirements)
Amp Settings
gain0
bass5.5
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
This tone has been researched 5 times by the community
Notes
Studio recording, 1979. David Williams played the iconic riff. No evidence of live rig or alternate gear for the riff section. All details pertain to the original studio recording.
Tone Character(10)
clean and crispbright and articulatetight, percussive rhythmwarm, glassy Strat tonefunky and rhythmicslightly compressed attacksubtle chorus shimmerstudio clarityno audible overdrivedynamic, responsive to picking
Difficulty
The riff requires intermediate-level funk rhythm skills, including tight 16th-note strumming, muting, and maintaining a consistent groove. The technical challenge lies in the right-hand technique and rhythmic accuracy rather than complex chord shapes.