Attitude.
That one word sums up Joan Jett and her raw, heart-thumping brand of rock and roll. From her early days leading the “Runaways” to the iconic “I Love Rock 'N Roll” and on to modern times, Jett always brought attitude to her music.
Jett began her rock career as the guitarist and later the vocalist of the first all-female band The Runaways. While the music industry may have dismissed the early music of the band, Jett would not let go of her dreams.
The Runaways did have at least one memorable hit for the masses in “Cherry Bomb,” but musical differences between Jett and future heavy metal guitarist Lita Ford led to the band’s breakup in 1979. This put Joan on the path to greatness when she started her solo career and formed The Blackhearts.
In 1982 Joan Jett and The Blackhearts recorded “I Love Rock N' Roll,” which gets fans pumped to this day. Like most singles, the song was overplayed on the radio and at clubs, which inevitably led to dislike for the tune, but there can be no denying the song’s — or Joan’s — place in history.
Over the years Joan Jett has had eight platinum and gold albums, and nine top 40 hits. Of course, “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll” led the way, but she also had hits with “Bad Reputation,” and “Crimson and Clover,” among others.
Writing and playing music were not her only accomplishments. She also starred in feature films, and Broadway plays. Not to be left out of her career is her own music label, Blackheart Records.
Jett’s last album, Sinner, was released in 2006 and contained the single “A.C.D.C.” She has toured in support of album to rave reviews from fans since its release.
In a recent interview with Gibson, Jett described her sound as “straight-up distorted.” With a Mesa Boogie Mark 3 running through a Vox AC30, Joan combines a couple of classics to create an unforgettable tone.
Of course, Jett uses a Gibson Melody Maker as her main axe, swapping it out on stage only “when I’ve pounded it out of tune.”
When making Jett’s tone on the computer, I used Guitar Rig 3, AmpliTube and Pod Farm. I stayed pretty true to Joan’s comments of her distorted sound in all three applications, not overdoing the gain and going for a more vintage sound for each tone.
It had been quite a while since I queued up “I Love Rock 'N Roll,” and I must say I really enjoyed listening to Joan Jett and that fiery attitude of hers again.
Check out Gibson USA’s Joan Jett Signature Melody Maker here.
Download the Joan Jett Guitar Rig preset here.
Download the Joan Jett Pod preset here.
Download the Joan Jett Amplitube preset here.
Check back next week to learn how to capture Malcolm Young’s AC/DC guitar tone!