Bad Company/Burnin' Sky/Guitar Question

[Kristy]

So this morning while in a rush I turned on the radio to get my lazy ass motivated out of bed (which didn't help) and was tuned to the local "classic rock" station where they 'Burnin' Sky' by Bad Company.

http://www.recordsale.org/cdpix/b/bad_company-burning_sky.jpg

Apart from it being a silly song lyrically (about a prison convict who goes to jail over the love of a woman..???) the music itself has a bit of a funky bass line played with what sounds like a Hammond B-3 low in the mix. Anyway, the beginning riff guitar part and it's spooky return and the end of the song where it sounds less of anything "bluesy" and more of a middle-Eastern vibe that becomes louder in the mix as the song fades seems to have an interesting tone (at least to me) ..so how does guitar player Mick Ralphs get that sound? Sounds like he using amp distortion and maybe playing a slide but it appears there is more to it that that -like he's using a compressor or some other effect (which is weird considering the quality of most effects in the 70's were archaic and unreliable). So...um, yeah, this is the shit I think about at 7:30 in the morning.

[ThrillsNSpills]

If I had to guess I'd say there's phase and delay.
There's a way to set a delay that makes the note sustain.
Hmm, sounds like reverb too.


But as you mentioned there were some bizarre guitar effects in the 70's.

The one used in that tune Who's that Lady comes to mind.

[Kristy]

Thanks for replying to my silly post, Thrills. Sounds like he's playing with a lot of reverb as well but did they have electronic delays in the mid-70's other than an Echoplex?

Anyway, next up: did Amy Grant sell her soul to the Devil back in 1991?

http://www.mapsairmuseum.org/photogallery/Amy%20Grant%201r.jpg

[ThrillsNSpills]

Thanks for replying to my silly post, Thrills. Sounds like he's playing with a lot of reverb as well but did they have electronic delays in the mid-70's other than an Echoplex?


Yeah there were analog delays. MXR had one. I don't know if Roland made one in the 70's but I have one from the early 80's.

[Mushroom]

I recall some flange effect too. love the song.