George Harrison Admitted He Had Trouble Using Volume Pedals: ‘I Couldn’t Do It’
George Harrison revolutionized slide guitar, but he had a hard time using another technique most guitar players use: volume pedals. He needed the help of a bandmate whenever he wanted to use the method.
The Beatle’s guitar techniques changed over time
In the mid-1960s, George became entranced by the sitar. The sound of the instrument amazed him, so he went out and bought one. He used the sitar on The Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood” and eventually met Ravi Shankar. The legendary sitarist taught George the proper way to play the instrument.
Soon, George was obsessed with the sitar and left the guitar behind. When George realized it was impossible to become a great sitarist, he started picking the guitar up again. However, he had a serious problem. He felt out of touch with it, and seeing what Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix were doing only made him feel worse.
So, to freshen up his sound, George began honing his slide guitar skills. It eventually became part of his signature sound. Along with slide guitar, George started experimenting more and more with different sounds. However, George couldn’t nail one technique that was becoming increasingly popular in the guitar world: the volume pedal.
George Harrison said he couldn’t use a volume pedal
During a 1988 interview with MuchMusic, George explained he couldn’t use a volume pedal.
“I couldn’t do it,” George said. “Couldn’t tap by foot and play at the same time [Laughs]. I couldn’t really get that to sound right. One track, I forget which one it is, about ‘Rubber Soul‘ around there, I just had John kneeling down, and as I played it, he just did it on the guitar [makes a twisting motion].
“Some players can do that, they can play and use their little finger around the volume control. I was never very good with machinery.”
George used a volume pedal on three Beatles songs
John helped George distort three Beatles songs with a volume pedal: “I Need You,” “Yes It Is,” and “Wait.”
However, George left the technique behind shortly after using it on the tunes. The Beatles used other ways of getting the sounds they wanted. George isn’t known for his volume pedal work, obviously, but he is known for his slide guitar work.
Now, when other musicians play slide guitar, it’s hard not thinking of George. When George started playing slide guitar, he found his spark again. Choosing one song with George’s best slide guitar work is hard. There’s “Cheer Down,” “Cloud Nine,” “This Is Love,” and many, many more.
George wasn’t a volume pedal kind of guitar player. He left that effect to guitarists like Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page. He liked the raw guitar sound that his idols pioneered.
