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  1. Guitars

TG215: The making of 'Led Zeppelin IV'

News
By Matthew Parker published 13 May 2011

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

New issue on sale now!

New issue on sale now!

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale now. Featuring a detailed look at the making of ‘Led Zeppelin IV’, Devin Townsend, Rise Against, Dennis Coffey (of Motown Funk Brother fame), New York Dolls, Children Of Bodom and Brian Setzer. Browse our gallery to see what else is inside!

Buy Total Guitar for iPad, iPhone and iPod

Buy a digital copy of Total Guitar magazine
(US readers click here)

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 1 of 10
Page 1 of 10
The making of Led Zeppelin IV

The making of Led Zeppelin IV

40 years after its release, TG revisits what is arguably Led Zeppelin’s greatest album and interviews legendary engineer Andy Johns – a man who’s CV also includes Hendrix, Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones.

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 2 of 10
Page 2 of 10
Monitor

Monitor

All the people, news and noise emanating from guitar land. This month we have an exclusive look at some very famous guitars from the Hard Rock Café vault, a chance to win Sonisphere tickets, a Queensryche studio report and a first-look at some new Boss stompboxes... And that’s just for starters!

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 3 of 10
Page 3 of 10
Access All Areas: Kyus Lives!

Access All Areas: Kyus Lives!

TG caught rebooted stoner gods Kyuss Lives! on their recent UK tour. Read our review of the show and check out our interview with new guitarist Bruno Fevery, who’s faced with filling the big boots of Josh Homme.

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 4 of 10
Page 4 of 10
Devin Townsend: A Man Of Extremes

Devin Townsend: A Man Of Extremes

The former Strapping Young Lad returns with two albums that reveal dual sides of this fascinating player.

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 5 of 10
Page 5 of 10
Dennis Coffey: The psychedelic Funk Brother

Dennis Coffey: The psychedelic Funk Brother

He painted Motown psychedelic and then disappeared. Now this one-time Funk Brother is back and funkier than ever.

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 6 of 10
Page 6 of 10
String 'Em Up: Children Of Bodom

String 'Em Up: Children Of Bodom

The clap, copycat guitars, ‘Malmsteen wannabes’… it’s all par for the course when Finland’s metal messrs get strung up!

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 7 of 10
Page 7 of 10
Learn to play…

Learn to play…

Read the stories behind the songs, get the sound with any setup and play along with backing tracks on the CD. Click the links for associated video lessons.

Full Tabs:
Nirvana ‘Heart-Shaped Box’, Machine Head ‘Halo’, Red Hot Chili Peppers ‘Breaking The Girl’ and Seasick Steve ‘Walkin’ Man’.

Video Lessons:
Led Zeppelin ‘Rock And Roll’
, Muse ‘Supermassive Blackhole’, The Police ‘Walking On the Moon’ and Black Stone Cherry ‘White Trash Millionaire’ (riff, no backing track)

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 8 of 10
Page 8 of 10
Huge gear reviews section

Huge gear reviews section

This month you can read reviews of the Sterling by Music Man JP100 (pictured), Hardwire SP-7, Peavey HP Single Cut SC-3, Group Test: Electro-acoustics under £300, Way Huge Green Rhino MkII, Fender Mustang V head, Head to head: Charvel San Dimas Wild Card Vs Rasmus By Suhr Standard S100, Airline Tux Deluxe, T.Rex Tonebug Chorus + Flanger, Tascam DR-05 and more!

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 9 of 10
Page 9 of 10
Head to head: Charvel VS Rasmus

Head to head: Charvel VS Rasmus

Forged in the 80s, the humbucker, twin singlecoil design dominated an age. Can these respins blast the past to shreds? Find out when we pitch the Charvel San Dimas Wild Card and the Rasmus By Suhr Standard S100 against each other.

Total Guitar issue 215 is on sale 13 May to 9 June

Subscribe to TG :: Buy TG215 :: Buy TG215 digital edition :: Where to buy TG

Page 10 of 10
Page 10 of 10
Matthew Parker
Matthew Parker

Matt is a freelance journalist who has spent the last decade interviewing musicians for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.

Read more
Led Zeppelin
The genius behind John Bonham’s towering When The Levee Breaks drum sound
 
 
Donovan
“We can’t let a wild boy like Hendrix in!”: Donovan and the song that connects him to Hendrix, Zeppelin and The Beatles
 
 
Davey Johnstone and Elton John are back-to-back as they perform live, with Johnstone playing his Captain Fantastic Les Paul Custom
Davey Johnstone on the making of Elton John’s 1975 masterpiece, Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy
 
 
NEW YORK: Todd Rundgren posed at a studio mixing desk in New York in 1974 (Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns)
“Sometimes it’s best not to meet your idols”: Todd Rundgren’s Top 5 favourite album productions
 
 
Derek Trucks wears a gray blazer as he takes a solo at Red Rocks, Colorado, in 2015. A couple of months later he would be revisiting the Mad Dogs tour of 1970 with Leon Russell as Tedeschi Trucks Band headlined LOCKN' Festival with a historic set and reunion of the Joe Cocker and Russell-led band.
Derek Trucks on the unlikely triumph of Tedeschi Trucks Band and Leon Russell’s “intense” Mad Dogs & Englishmen set
 
 
Alter Bridge record in 5150 Studios, the studio that the late Eddie Van Halen built, courtesy of an invite from his son and friend of the band Wolfgang Van Halen
Alter Bridge’s Myles Kennedy and Mark Tremonti on recording at the studio that Eddie Van Halen built
 
 
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Shortly before he died, Warren Zevon gave David Letterman a guitar, and it just went “back to work”
 
 
Deals of the week
MusicRadar deals of the week: The early Black Friday sales continue at Guitar Center, Sweetwater, Musician's Friend, Reverb and more
 
 
Kirk Hammett plays CEO 4 at Black Sabbath's farewell show, Back to the Beginning. CEO 4 is an SG built by Gibson CEO and president Cesar Gueikian, and it is being auction for Gibson Gives.
The unique SG built by Gibson CEO Cesar Gueikian and played by Kirk Hammett at Back to the Beginning heads to auction
 
 
Walrus Audio DFX-1 Percussion Processing Unit next to a cymbal
“For percussionists who want to take matters into their own hands”: Walrus launch the DFX-1, an effects unit built for drummers
 
 
IK Multimedia Tonex Plug: the new headphones amp is fully compatible with the brand's state-of-the-art modelling platform, giving players the opportunity to play anywhere, anytime, and access thousands of different tones while doing so.
IK Multimedia unveils the Tonex Plug – is this pocket-sized powerhouse a gamechanger for headphone amps?
 
 
Craig 'Goonzi' Gowans and Steven Jones from Scottish metalcore heavyweights Bleed From Within pose with their weapons of choice: Goonzi [left] has an ESP LTD M1000, while Jones has a Caparison TAT Special
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