Worship Guitar Tone: How You Got Here
So you’ve played guitar for a while, and you know your way around the fretboard. Maybe you’ve even played in a few rock bands, so you know what kind of gear it takes. People know you play guitar.
But…
After attending your local church a few times you find yourself being recruited by a Praise & Worship Team. They need an electric guitar player, and word around town is “You are the guy to go to.” So you give in. After all you love playing anytime, anywhere.
Later in the week, you find yourself at Worship Team Practice with all your gear in tow. A half stack, 4 guitars, 2 pedalboards, and all of your miscellaneous accessories. Pretty standard rig……..for a rock guitarist.
Pretty soon you are blowing the teams’ hair back with your half stack on this otherwise quiet or silent stage. The sound guy is losing his cool, and you have no idea why.
If this is you, do not fret. I get it. Five years ago, this was what I encountered. Its normal. It won’t be long, perhaps its even now, that you are realizing….. you just discovered a whole new genre of guitar playing.
Here’s the Deal…
Praise & Worship Guitar fills in the guitar shaped space in a team, but it has different needs, different goals, different gear, and most importantly different tone. Lets talk about Praise & Worship Guitar Tone as it will encompass most of what you need to know.
The Big Picture
Praise & Worship Guitar has different needs, different goals, different gear, and most importantly different tone. Lets talk about Praise & Worship Guitar Tone as it will encompass most of what you need to know. The big picture.
What is “Worship Guitar Tone?”
Guitar Tone is a term guitar players use to describe the overall sound produced by a player’s choice of guitar, gear, and playing style.
It is the depth, character, texture, and emotional feeling encompassed in your sound. Tone is not accidental.
It is something you learn to sculpt and refine as you mature as a guitarist. Tone is everything in Worship Guitar.
It is VITAL.
This is an ideal Worship Guitar Rig.
If you feel overwhelmed, don’t be. Its good that you are taking the time to do this properly. In the next part we will go over the specific gear you’ll want to consider, and talk about the iconic guitarists that unintentionally influenced the entire genre. Make sure to check out the next part. We’ll get into the nitty gritty of building your guitar rig.
Keep rocking,
The Axe Dr.
Worship Guitars with Great Tone:
- D’Angelico (DAPBEDBWMSTCTR)
- Gretsch Guitars G5135 Electromatic
- Reverend Double Agent OG
- Schecter Solo-6B Solid-Body w/ Bigsby
- PRS S2 Standard 24 Satin
- Schecter Ultra III w/ Bigsby
- Reverend Jetstream 390
- PRS SE Zach Myers
- Fender Classic Series ’72 Telecaster Deluxe
- Fender Alternate Reality Meteora
- Fender Vintera ’60s Jazzmaster
- Fender Classic Player Jaguar Special
- Schecter Guitar Research PT Fastback IIB with Bigsby
- Fender Deluxe Tele Thinline
1. What is "Guitar Tone?"
Guitar Tone is a term guitar players use to describe the overall sound produced by a player's choice of guitar, gear, and playing style.
It is the depth, character, texture, and emotional feeling encompassed in your sound. Tone is not accidental.
It is something you learn to sculpt and refine as you mature as a guitarist. Tone is everything in Worship Guitar.
2. What is "Worship Guitar"?
“Worship Guitar” is a niche or style of guitar playing. Many churches have a Praise & Worship Team that leads the congregation in songs, almost like a live concert. There are usually two to three guitarists in any one team. (Along with Bass, Drums, Keyboard/Synth, Vocals, etc.)
3. What is the best electric guitar for worship music?
The short answer is, the one you like to play. However there is a short list of guitars that sound amazing and are particularly well suited to the Worship Genre.
5. Gretsch Double Jet (w/ Bigsby)
4. G&L Doheny or Fender Offset (Jaguar, Jazzmaster, Mustang)
3. G&L ASAT or Fender Telecaster
2. Veritas Mini Master
1. Veritas Portlander (Used by all guitarists of Bethel Music)
