Adam Jones
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| Adam Jones | |
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 Adam Jones performing with Tool at the Roskilde Festival in 2006.
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| Background information | |
| Born | January 15, 1965 Park Ridge, Illinois, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | Alternative metal Progressive rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician Songwriter Make-up artist |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1990 - present |
| Label(s) | Zoo Entertainment Volcano II Tool Dissectional |
| Associated acts | Tool The Melvins |
| Notable instrument(s) | |
| Gibson Les Paul Custom Silverburst | |
Adam Thomas Jones (born January 15, 1965) is a Grammy Award-winning musician, guitarist and visual artist, best known for his work with the band Tool. Jones was rated the 75th Greatest Guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine and placed 9th in Guitar World's Top 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists.[1] He is also responsible for most of Tool's music videos.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early years
Jones was born in Park Ridge, Illinois and raised in Libertyville, Illinois, and played violin in elementary school. He was accepted into the Suzuki program, and continued to play violin through his freshman year in high school. He then began to play an acoustic bass for three years in an orchestra.
In addition to playing classical music, Jones played bass guitar in the band Electric Sheep, with Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, until Jones moved to California (Morello soon followed). According to both of them, the band was quite unpopular at the time. Jones never received traditional guitar lessons, but instead learned by ear.
[edit] Film work
Jones was offered a film scholarship but declined and chose to move to Los Angeles to study art and sculpture. His focus of interest shifted to film, and he began to work as a sculptor and special effects designer, where he learned the stop-motion camera techniques he would later apply in Tool's music videos, such as "Sober" (on which he collaborated with Fred Stuhr), "Prison Sex", "Stinkfist", "Ænema", "Schism", and "Parabola". He graduated in 1987.
After graduation, he went to work at Rick Lazzarini's Character Shop. During the next couple of years, he worked the TV show Monsters. He designed and fabricated a Grim Reaper makeup and a Zombie head on a spike (later used in Ghostbusters 2) among others. After that, he went to Stan Winston's special effects workshop, where he worked on Predator 2, sculpting a unique-looking skull for the Predator's spaceship interior.
Jones worked on several other big films in Hollywood doing makeup and set design, including Jurassic Park, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Dances with Wolves, and Ghostbusters 2. He did the "Freddy Krueger in the womb" makeup for A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, as well as work for A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master.
He also worked on commercials for salad dressing (never aired), Olympic stain (Albert Einstein makeup), and Duracell (boxers and taxicabs).[citation needed]
[edit] Music career
After Tom Morello introduced Jones and his friend Maynard James Keenan to Danny Carey in 1990, they -- along with Paul d'Amour -- formed Tool.
Jones also toured with the Jello Biafra/The Melvins band and contributed to their albums Never Breathe What You Can't See and Sieg Howdy!. Jones and Melvins Guitarist/Vocalist Buzz Osborne are close friends. Jones also appeared on the Melvins album Hostile Ambient Takeover and the Melvins/Lustmord collaboration Pigs of the Roman Empire.
On Mr. Show, he appeared as the fictional guitarist of Puscifer along with bandmate Keenan, and can also be spotted in the audience seated at a table with Keenan in the series' first episode.
[edit] Playing style
Adam Jones is known for not predominantly using any particular guitar playing technique, but rather combines many techniques[2] such as "alternately utilizing power chords, scratchy noise, chiming arpeggios, off-beat rhythm patterns, and a quiet minimalism".[3] Other techniques used to expand his band's sound repertoire require forms of instrumental experimentation, for example, on the Tool song, "Jambi",[4] Jones uses a talk box. Adam, along with all members of Tool, loves experimenting with new things. He has two synthesizers that are listed below in his effects section. Live , Adam can be seen with a large pedalboard full of effects, including a DOD FX-40B Equalizer (EQ) pedal, Boss BF-2 Flanger, Boss DD-3 Digital Delay, and an MXR Micro Amp among others.
[edit] Visual art
Jones created the liner art for the re-release of Peach's Giving Birth to a Stone, in which Jones's fellow Tool member Justin Chancellor played bass.
He helped Green Jellÿ with their costumes.
In 2007 he received the Grammy Award for 'Best Recording Package' as art director for his work on 10,000 Days.
Adam came up with the Make-up layout the actors wore on the videos for Schism and Parabol/Parabola.
In his spare time, Adam shoots photography that is used for the visuals at live Tool concerts.
Adam draws his own comics, a habit he began as a young child manipulating his ideas into 2-D form on paper.
[edit] Personal life
Since 1999, Jones has been married to the artist/singer Camella Grace.[1] He was previously married to his High School sweetheart Antonia Jones, born Antonia Maria Benyovszky. [2]
Jones has experimented with various hallucinogens such as Ketamine and DMT. Jones talked about his use in 1997 RAGE magazine:
RAGE: Where does a man get mushrooms these days?
Jones: [chuckles] Where does a man get mushrooms?
RAGE: Or a woman.
Jones: I'm talking beyond mushrooms, man. Have you ever done DMT?
RAGE: No.
Jones: Have you ever done ketamine?
RAGE: No. I have to come there.
Jones: Come check it out, man. Fucking changed my life. Changed my whole thinking.
Jones had a pet Jackson's Chameleon and a Great Dane named Eon. But according to an interview with Danny Carey, Eon became ill with cancer and passed away. Adam dedicated the song Eon Blue Apocalypse from the band's 2001 album Lateralus in his memory. Adam's current Great Dane is called Diablo. He and his wife have a great love for the breed of dogs.
[edit] Equipment
[edit] Guitars
Adam Jones famously uses the Silverburst Les Paul Customs made from 1978-1985, of which he owns 3, confirmed by the cover of Guitar World Magazine, the June 2006 issue which features Jones standing with 4 Silverburst Les Pauls behind him and one in his hand. The guitars on either side of him are photo edited duplicates and the one in his hand makes 3 total. Tool is infamous for misinformation and this magazine cover has probably fooled many. His main Les Paul has a headstock ornament, it appears to be a blue mirror, which covers the usual split diamond inlay Gibson Les Paul Customs are known for. Gibson discontinued using this finish after complaints about the metalflaking changing the tone of the guitar, however Jones says that this altered tone is part of the draw for him. The bridge pickups have been swapped for Seymour Duncan pickups, which are widely rumored to be the SH-4 JB model or a Seymour Duncan Trembucker, but not confirmed by Jones. Jones also uses a Natural finish Les Paul, for "Prison Sex" and "Parabol/Parabola", which are in BADGBE and BEDGBE tunings respectively. These tunings incorporate the lowest strings of a baritone or 7-string tuning while retaining the four or five higher strings of standard E tuning. According to their website Jones has also used a Fernandes Nomad to "write songs" and "warm up". Jones has recorded using a Gibson SG, but does not use one live. Although rare, Adam has used Acoustic guitars for Tool's music. On the song Disposition, an acoustic guitar can be heard. Jones describes it as a Guild. An Acoustic guitar is also used in the hidden track, on Tool's Salival album, called Maynard's Dick. This is a mix of both Electric and acoustic guitars and Tool has been known to play it live on occasion. The song Intension from 10,000 Days, is rumored to have been recorded using a Telecaster, according to what Jones told one of his close friends.
[edit] Amplifiers
The amplifiers that Jones uses to create his unique tone are uncertain, as he and the band are known for spreading misinformation about themselves and their music. What is known for certain is that he uses multiple amplifiers simultaneously. Of the amplifers that he has cycled through, two have remained constant since 1994 and can be assumed to be "core" of his sound. These amps are a 1976 Marshall Super Bass amp and a Diezel VH4 "blueface" amp, the blue faceplate models were made from 94-97, and have less presence and a darker tone than the current Silverface that are being made. The Marshall is his oldest amp, and was most likely used on all the Tool recordings, all the way back to Opiate EP. Adam has stated that this amp is of the "non-master volume" type and has had both channels wired together. He keeps this amp "in the freezer" when not in use to help preserve it. The Diezel has been in his live and studio setup since at least 1994. This is a four channel amp from Germany. From as early as 1994 until the late 1990s Adam can be seen live using a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier 2 Channel amplifier as a third amp. In some interviews from that period, Jones has confirmed that it is a Dual Rectifier. More recently, this Mesa/Boogie has not appeared on stage and appears to have been replaced with another more recent VH4 amp. The new model VH4's have a silver faceplate and are different in voicing and circuitry compared to the bluefaces. Interestingly, he appears to not always use this amp. During some shows, the blue Diezel's 'standby' clearly remains illuminated for the duration of the performance, while the amp is without a doubt on and being used at other shows. Other amps mentioned by Adam include a Sunn Beta Lead which he states he used in place of the Mesa/Boogie during studio recording in a June 2001 interview. More recently Jones has talked about using Bogner, Rivera, and Peavey amps in the studio as well as his Marshall and Diezel. He appears to always use Mesa/Boogie cabinets with his amps. The only exception here is a Marshall cabinet which is always seen sitting under his Marshall.
Lateralus may have been recorded with the Diezel amp, along with the Marshall bass amp. Adam has made references to a Sunn head and may have also used his Mesa Boogie rectifier in the studio. By the time of the main Lateralus tour, the only Mesa Boogie equipment in sight was the two Mesa Rectifier Standard cabinets.
Mixonline.com's interview with Joe Barresi and Bob Ludwig discuss Adam's equipment and setup for the 10,000 Days album with great detail. When discussing the amps, Barresi mentions Adam's famous Marshall and Diezel, "a Mesa Boogie", a Bogner Uberschall, a Rivera Knucklehead Reverb, and "several others". In a Guitarworld magazine interview Adam also mentions an unspecified Peavey amp, which is probably one of the "several others" that Barresi mentions. As far as cabinets go, Barresi says that Mesa/Boogie cabinets were mostly used because of the better low end response. The Marshall ran through its Marshall cabinet and the Rivera ran through a Rivera cabinet. Barresi goes on to describe signal chain for tracking. He says that Adam would play through certain effects and then send the signal to a splitter. The sound would then go into three to five amps. The Marshall and Diezel would each get their own track, and a third track would be a mix of the other amps (usually the Bogner and Rivera). Each cabinet would have at least two to three mics on them. Rivera Amps also claims on its web page that he is using a Rivera Knucklehead Rev Mick Thompson model on the recording.
It is worth pointing out that Adam doesn't switch channels on his VH4. He uses only channel 3 when playing live. All changes in intensity are through his pick, his volume knob, or (as of recently) a volume pedal. Also, another point to mention about Adams live rig is that he uses Mesa/Boogie 4x12 Stiletto Cabinets with a straight side, and slanted speakers which have a lip hanging over them. They are identifiable by the grey piping used around the cabinets grill, as opposed to the black piping used on the Mesa/Boogie 4x12 Standard Recto Cabinets.
[edit] Effects
According to a Guitar School interview in 1994, Jones stated that he strongly disliked using effect pedals. During that time, he only used two pedals, a delay and an equalizer, in part to the reliability of simple live setups.[5] He is known for subtle wah use, to only create slight tone and timbre bends. There is also an older Ibanez Flanger and Digital Delay present on much of Ænima and Lateralus. Flanger is definitely a staple of his live tone. Adam runs these pedals right into the front of the amplifiers as opposed to in the effects loop.
Adam stated that he uses an Epilady, (specifically the Epilady TRIO), an electric hair remover designed for women's legs. "An Epilady is even better than an E-Bow," he said. "It makes great sounds when you push it against the pickups."[6]
In the April 2006 edition of Guitar World magazine, Jones revealed that he used the Gig-FX Chopper Effects Pedal. He also mentioned that he had several pedals modified, and that he used an altered volume pedal to control the strength of some effects. A newer Ernie Ball Standard Volume Pedal is clearly visible on his stage setup. He also stated that he uses the Foxx Tone Machine Reissue and a Heil talk box on the song "Jambi", that he learned to use with Joe Walsh's help. Adam uses a "pipe-bomb microphone" for the lead recording of the song Rosetta Stoned, which is a guitar pick-up wrapped in what is believed to be a piece of brass tubing capped at each end, which resembles a pipe bomb. . Jones also uses a Dunlop CryBaby BB-535 Wah.[7] In a recent Guitar World interview, he stated that he uses an Access Virus B pedal hooked up to a Moog Taurus (bass pedal synth). As an example, the Access V.B. can be heard in the intro of the songs "Reflection" and "The Grudge".
List of possible[citation needed] and proven effects pedals used throughout the years:[3]
- Snarling Dog- Blues Bawls
- Snarling Dog- Mold Spore
- Line 6- DL4 Delay
- Foxx- Tone Machine
- DOD- FX40B EQ
- MXR- M-133 Micro Amplifier
- Voodoo-Lab- Tremolo
- Boss- BF-2 Flanger
- Boss- DD-3/5 Digital Delay
- Dunlop- Heil Talk Box
- Boss- SYB-3 Bass Synth
- Ernie Ball- VP Passive Volume
- Korg- DTR-2000 Rackmount Digital Tuner
- Dunlop- Crybaby BB535 Wah
- Boss- PSM5 Power supply/Master switch x2
- Roland- PK5 MIDI
- Access Virus Classic (Redtop)
- Gig-Fx- Chopper
- Boss- CE5 Chorus Ensemble
- StroboStomp Virtual Strobe Tuner
- Buzz Box - Signature Buzz Melvin Distortion
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - GUITAR WORLD's 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists Of All Time
- ^ Jon Wiederhorn (June 2001). Mysterious Ways. Guitar Player. Retrieved on 2007-05-02. “Jones isn't a shredder, a pop guitarist, a jazz man, an avant-garde iconoclast, or a blues player, but his performances often include elements from all those genres.”
- ^ Steve Huey. Sober Song Review. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on 2007-05-02.
- ^ Forlenza, Jeff (July 1, 2006). The Making of Tool's "10,000 Days". Mix. Retrieved on 2007-05-09.
- ^ "Tool Guitarist Adam Jones is a Master of Many Trades". Guitar School (March 1994). Retrieved on 2007-03-03.
- ^ Crisafulli, Chuck. "Tool: Open Your Mouth And Say "Ugh"". "Guitar Player". Retrieved on 2006-05-09.
- ^ Smith, Matt. "Adam in Guitar World". "Fourtheye". Retrieved on 2006-05-09.
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Adam Jones |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Musician, Songwriter, Make-up artist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1965-1-15 Park Ridge, Illinois, U.S. |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
