To the layman it may just be a metal box with some switches and wires inside, but any guitarist, whether up-and-coming novice or seasoned pro, knows that a good electric effects unit is like an instrument unto itself.
In the world of musicians, pedals are as highly regarded and hailed as the guitar heroes that fans know and love. They don’t make a secret of it either, with many famous guitarists even crediting their careers to particular stomp boxes and effects units.
Believe it, without effects like the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff or the Ibanez Tube Screamer, the records you know, love, and know every single note to simply wouldn’t sound the same, maybe they wouldn’t even exist.
We’ve decided to shine a spotlight on six of the most important, popular, and iconic guitar pedals of all time, as well as the guitarists that use them and a few songs you might know where the pedal played an indispensable role.
MXR Phase 90
Whilst most phase-shifting effects completely take over a guitar’s sound, the MXR Phase 90 is far more subtle, blending rather organically with the guitar’s natural tone, giving it the added treble boost that marked so many of Eddie Van Halen’s early guitar solos.
Electro-Harmonix Big Muff
A ballsy name for a ballsy pedal. So mighty, Mudhoney named their debut EP after it and its iconic design has been reimagined and recreated on everything from T-shirts to gig posters. One of the first production units ever went to Jimi Hendrix and its legacy pretty much goes from there.
Dunlop Cry Baby
As far as pedals go, this baby is pretty much timeless. It’s the single best-selling pedal of all time and it’s not hard to understand why, its resume is pretty much unrivalled, having featured prominently on some of the most famous recordings and under some of the most famous feet ever.
Ibanez Tube Screamer
So you want to make a rock and roll record? You’re going to need one of these. One of the most popular overdrive pedals ever produced, the various editions of the Ibanez Tube Screamer is that distinctive growl you hear on countless albums in the rock, punk, metal, and blues genres.
Dunlop Fuzz Face
It was Hendrix that made Hendrix, but it could be said that without the Dunlop Fuzz Face, Hendrix would never have sounded like Hendrix. At least, not what we think of as “the Hendrix sound”, with that incredibly warm, blissful distorted guitar tone. Thanks, Fuzz Face!
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