First Strat
‘ 61 Strat KWS Series Signature Strat
is going to eventually hit the strings . So , we modified it and he sent it out to me , and I ’ ve been playing it and I ’ ve owned it ever since . We did the Stones tour , and Keith ’ s guitar tech , who actually helped introduce me to Fender , when he saw that guitar he was like , “ I know that guitar , Keith loves that guitar , you better not let him see it .” So I ’ ve had it ever since . It ’ s real special , on the back it ’ s got a big print into the wood , a stamp that says “ Prototype ”, and on the headstock and inside the body cavity it says “ Relic ” engraved in big letters . So there ’ s no doubt what the guitar actually is , and it ’ s a very special guitar .
[ WM ] Alexander Dumble works on your amps – he ’ s a legend ! Can you tell us about that ?
[ Kenny ] From my own experience , I would say believe in the hype because the amps are that special from the get-go . It ’ s one of the biggest investments in tone that I have made in my entire career and it ’ s the biggest thing in recent years that has helped elevate my playing and has inspired me musically . It ’ s real , and there is a reason why everybody wants those amps . The process in my experience with him has been that I ’ ll go there and we ’ ll sit , and I ’ ll be there for hours , and we just have such a nice time together . He just sits there and he plugs me in , he ’ s got amps all around the room , and he plugs me into this amp and that amp , and he listens to the way that I ’ m playing and what it is that I ’ m trying to get the amp to do . That is the basis of how he approaches the build of the amp that he ’ s going to build for me . You can get the Overdrive Special , and the Steel String Singer , he still builds those kinds of things , but I think what he really thrives on is continuing to create new things . I think he loves exploring new ideas , so every amp that he ’ s done for me has been a full rebuild . The only thing that he ’ s using that he didn ’ t make himself is the chassis of the cab . He completely guts it and he starts over from square one and builds his entire circuit from the ground up inside of the amp . I ’ ll tell him if I want a little more of this or that , but he kind of builds it in anticipation of how the amp should respond based on the way that I play . I ’ ll come over and demo the amp , and then he ’ ll maybe go back and make some refinements to it if he thinks that it needs it . It ’ s like having a tailor made suit , I think that ’ s why in the past he was very specific about not wanting people to sell amps , because when he ’ d build an amp it was for that person and the way that they played , so I think the intention is that that amp responds to that person .
[ WM ] Are you still using the Dunlop Uni-Vibe ?
[ Kenny ] They were really great . I don ’ t think they make those anymore , and that was kind of the first alternative option for a Uni-Vibe other than the real thing . I have two really cool ones , I have a really clean one that I bought , and I have another one that I allegedly bought that a guy gave me when we did a trade . But they ’ re real fragile , the don ’ t take to getting banged up very