Fans of Eric Clapton’s tone with the Blues Breakers (a band from the ’60s headed by John Mayall), might be familiar with the term “Beano Tone,” a warm yet edgy sound that became the signature of those records. If you are wondering what amp Clapton used with that band, you shouldn’t: it was a Marshall Bluesbreaker – a JTM-45 combo with an open-back cab with two 12” speakers.
Italian pedal builder Veri-Tone unveiled a pedal that claims to recreate that sound, the Azzurro. This is a tube preamp circuit that does boost and overdrive and also features an extra boost, activated through a separate footswitch. It employs a real, miniaturized dual triode tube that was initially developed for use in early fighter jets
Ryan at Demos In The Dark picked it up and is raving about it in the video below – check it out!
n 1966 John Mayall & The Blues Breakers put out a record with Eric Clapton on guitar that would end up being a topic of heated discussion among guitarists for decades to come. Clapton, playing a Les Paul with a prototype Marshall amp, created some of the most unique and pleasing overdrive sounds ever caught on tape. For years, guitarists have been trying to recreate it. AZZURRO is a tube preamp that was heavily inspired by Eric Clapton’s “Beano” tone as well as The Beatles’ rooftop concert tone. It makes use of a real miniaturized dual triode tube that was initially developed for use in early fighter jets. It will give your tone that true tube warmth, and as you turn the gain knob higher, you are gifted with an overdrive tone that is rich in even-order harmonics and perfect for rhythm playing. The Boost switch brings yet another nuance as it drives the tube harder, bringing some odd-order harmonics to the mix in order to create a lead sound guaranteed to cut through any mix.
