Caroline Jones' new album, 'Bare Feet,' was released March 30. (Image credit: Philippe Mcclelland)
Guitar World has gotten together with up-and-coming singer-songwriter Caroline Jones to premiere her exclusive new "Guitar Talk: Behind the Record" video. In the clip, which you can check out below, Jones shows off all the axes she used to record her new album, Bare Feet, which was released March 30.
"I played all the guitars on this album," Jones tells us. "I love the creative process of production. I love mixing acoustic elements associated with folk and country—banjo, Dobro, mandolin, acoustic guitar—with modern electronic elements. Sonically, this album ranges from bluesy rock ('Tough Guys') to Eighties pop ('Your Heart Is Mine') to modern country ('Bare Feet,' 'The Difference'), and the production features tons of guitars, synths, programmed beats and layers of background vocals. So we needed a diverse range of guitars and parts for layering.
"The Strat is the hero of this album. My co-producer, Ric Wake, has produced Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Trisha Yearwood and many more. He's a great guitar player and has played on many records. I had the honor and pleasure of playing his 1963 hardtail Strat on this record.
"From lots of love and the passing of time, this Strat just has the warmest, most round, heavenly sound. We call it 'Angels in Heaven,' and it's my favorite guitar tone—the Strat on the neck pickup, position 4 or 5, soaked in reverb and delay, very clean, minimal distortion. You can hear that sound really well in the solo of 'Bare Feet' or the second verse of 'Your Heart Is Mine' or 'Twilight's Cryin',' which has a more Mark Knopfler-esque sound.
"'Sunshine' has my favorite guitar tones on this album. There are three lead guitars (the Strat, a Brian Setzer Gretsch and a Parker Nite Fly), and I love the way they blend and add color and emotional depth. Another sound we used a lot on this album is a classic 'twangy' sound. In 'The Difference,' we used a Danelectro with slapback echo and tons of brightness, and a 1961 Telecaster on 'Bare Feet.' Lastly, the lead sound in 'Tough Guys' is a combination of a 1980 Les Paul Artist and a National Resophonic ResoRocket."
Jones was named one of Rolling Stone's "10 Country Artists You Need to Know" as “an ambitious, entrepreneurial guitar heroine primed to bring back the pop-country glory of the Nineties” and ranked Number 2 on Billboard’s “15 Country Artists to Watch in 2018." Throughout 2017, she toured with Zac Brown Band and shared the stage with Jimmy Buffett, Kenny Chesney and Toby Keith at the Trying to Reason hurricane relief benefit concert.
Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
