Acoustic Nation with Dale Turner: The Rootsy, Aggressive Acoustic Style of Jack White

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These videos and audio files are bonus content related to the September 2014 issue of Guitar World. For the full range of interviews, features, tabs and more, pick up the new issue on newsstands now or at the Guitar World Online Store.

Since the late Nineties, Jack White has been the torchbearer of all things rootsy, retro and rocking. His unique blend of blues, garage rock, punk and acoustic styles has informed the artistry of his groups the White Stripes, the Raconteurs and Dead Weather and played an evident role in his production, soundtrack and solo work.

While blues legends Son House and Blind Willie McTell have been big influences on White, he has seamlessly distilled a wide-range of inspirations, from experimentalists like Captain Beefheart and fellow Michigan-based punkers Iggy and the Stooges to singer-songwriters like Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and Loretta Lynn.

Toss in his Led Zeppelin fandom, analog-only approach (to avoid digital signal processing’s perfection and its lack of extraneous noise), fascination with vintage gear (Gretsch Rancher Falcon, Gibson Hummingbird and 1915 Gibson L-1 acoustics) and oddball stomp box effects, and you get the basic elements of White’s unique sonic fingerprint.

This month, let’s treat ourselves to a grab bag of his acoustic guitar goodies.

Dale Turner
Dale Turner

A singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/film composer, Musician's Institute instructor, and author of 50+ transcription/instructional books, Dale Turner is also Guitar World's "Hole Notes"/"Acoustic Nation" columnist, and the former West Coast Editor of Guitar One magazine. Some of Dale’s old, weird, rare, and/or exotic instruments are featured in his score for WEEDS, the first animated short completed within the Filmmakers Co-op at Disney Feature Animation. His most recent CD, Mannerisms Magnified, was praised by Guitar Player magazine for its "Smart pop tunes that are crammed with interesting guitar parts and tones ... Like what the Beach Boys might do if they were on an acid trip that was on the verge of getting out of control. Yeah!"