Dumble guitar amps are some of the most celebrated in history, and such is their exclusivity that only a handful of high-profile players – among them Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Robben Ford and Carlos Santana – are known to play them on a regular basis.
Another name on that list is John Mayer – a guitar gear connoisseur whose personal Dumble stash is so well stocked that, if one malfunctions on stage, he always has a spare waiting in the wings to bring into action.
Though his collection comprises a number of models, there is one particular Dumble amp he considers his (ahem) pride and joy: a Dumbleland Special with the serial number 005, which was once used by late blues guitar legend Stevie Ray Vaughan to record Texas Flood.
Mayer made the revelation during an appearance on Cory Wong’s Wong Notes podcast, and said the amp in question had been living in singer-songwriter Jackson Browne’s personal home studio when Vaughan rocked up to record his debut studio album.
“The one on the left [the amp Wong is playing through during the podcast], I got in Japan,” Mayer explained, “and that’s basically an Overdrive version. That’s one of my favorite amps – that’s the one I had out with Dead & Company for the last couple years.
“The one on the right is a Dumbleland Special, serial number 005,” he continued. “That amp belonged to Jackson Browne, and was in Jackson Browne’s studio when Stevie Ray Vaughan recorded Texas Flood. He recorded the entire album through that amp.”
“That is the Texas Flood Dumbleland Special. No-one knew this before I mentioned this to you, but I used that amp when I played Stevie’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inauguration ceremony. That was a special thing."
During the 2015 ceremony, Mayer was not only plugging into his hero’s amp, but he was also playing a Fender Stevie Ray Vaughan signature Stratocaster. Footage from the event, which sees Mayer join Jimmie Vaugan, Doyle Bramhall and Gary Clark Jr. to perform Pride and Joy, can be found below.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Mayer and Wong jammed an unreleased Continuum-era track titled Over and Over, which never saw the light of day because, according to the Sob Rock star, "the bridge made no sense".
It was the second installment of Mayer’s extended appearance on the Wong Notes podcast. In the first part, which aired last week, Mayer revealed he had a secret stash of uniquely finished PRS Silver Skys that would make people “flip out”.
Earlier this year, Alexander Dumble – the genius behind the amps – passed away. Recently, it was revealed that one of the last-ever amps Dumble made was for Guns N’ Roses rocker Slash.
