I've been thinking of getting the ball rolling on this for some time, but replying to the Badfinger post has finally got me motiviated. As this site is ultimate source for Sunn amp info, curiously there's no definitive historical list of notable users through the years. Now, while it would be virtually impossible to be all-inclusive, it would be fantastic if all of you could add to the list that I'm going to start, if you know of a player that at one time or another used Sunn amps. HOWEVER, there seems to be a fair amount of hearsay, conjecture, and flat-out misinformation as to who really used/uses Sunn gear. Even the present-day Sunn(via Fender)amp website puts forth some questionable information----Brian May? While Queen bassist John Deacon definitely used Sunn amps, May is a Vox AC-30 guy all the way. Tommy Iommi? All that I've ever seen him use were Laney stacks...perhaps Geezer has used Sunn at some point. Kiss? Well, yeah, there are those old print ad endorsements, but Gene Simmons will whore himself out for a lot of things; I've only seen him use Ampeg SVT's. So, please, the only criteria for adding to this list should be that you've actually seen the player live, or live on TV, or an actual concert photo, or quoted in an interview, using Sunn. I'll add an "iffy" list also, open to discussion or verification from anyone. I realize that a lot of memories can be hazy(purple?), but let's try to keep this as historically accurate as possible! Have fun with this...thanks. If you have any doubts about(or imbellishments to) my listings, please feel free to point 'em out............................and the nominations are(in no particular order)..................The Kingsmen--Norm Sundholm(ground zero!); Jimi Hendrix Experience--Jimi and Noel Redding(of course, although Jimi himself wasn't too happy with Sunn, Noel thought they were the greatest amps); Buffalo Springfield--Bruce Palmer &/or Jim Messina; Grateful Dead--Phil Lesh(2000s cabs only); CCR--Stu Cook(2000s cabs only); Country Joe & the Fish(bass amps); Jefferson Airplane--Jack Cassidy(at least speaker cabs); It's A Beautiful Day(bass amp); New York Rock and Roll Ensemble--future film composer/rock orchestrator Michael Kamen(Coliseums); The Who--Pete Townshend(briefly) & John Entwistle(for a long time); The Buckinghams(guitar & bass amps); Cryin' Shames(another mid/late '60s Chicago band--bass amp); Mountain--Felix Pappalardi and Leslie West(do I have to explain it?); The Velvet Underground--Reed, Morrison, & Yule (full 1200s and 2000s rigs...just look on the back of the original "Loaded" LP); Lou Reed's back up band on the "Transformer" tour(Coliseum stacks); Jeff Beck Group #2--Beck(possibly) & bassist Clive Chapman(definitely--Coliseum stacks); Beck, Bogert, & Appice--Tim Bogert(Coliseums); Moody Blues--John Lodge(Coliseum stack); Queen--John Deacon; Todd Rundgren's Utopia(Coliseum); Fleetwood Mac(Peter Green era)--John McVie(cab only); Blue Oyster Cult--Joe Bouchard(Coliseum bass stack); Mahavishnu Orchestra--Rick Laird(Coliseum bass stack); Vandergraff Generator(great English '70s prog band)--Nic Potter(Concert bass rig); Beach Boys--earliest Sunn PA system; Bread--David Gates(Coliseum head & 2000s cab...I should know, I've got the cab!); The Dickies(early LA punk band--200s rig); Dead Kennedys--Klaus Flouride; Japan(unique English prog/new wave band)--Mick Karn(Coliseum); Little Feat--Kenny Gradney(Coliseum half-stack; look carefully on the cover of "Waiting For Columbus"); Steppenwolf--Nick St. Nicklaus(200s rigs); Glen Cornick(original Jethro Tull bassist) used a 412L cab in a mid-70's band with Bob Welch called "Paris".....jeez, did I leave anyone out? (Yeah, I know, that mook with Kid Rock...well, maybe that guitar player is a nice guy, but Kid Rock is definitely a mook)..............So, here's my "I Don't Know, But I've Been Told" list.....If you look on the back of the first "Live Cream" album, there's a Sunn Orion cab in the middle of all the Marshall stacks....did Jack Bruce ever really use Sunn amps at any time as it's reported? The Allman Bros:I think I've read that Berry Oakley used 2000s rigs; in one photo of the original band I've seen a 1200s head. Anybody know for sure? I've seen concert photos of Derek and the Dominoes with a Coliseum cab in the background; is that Clapton's or Carl Radle's? Did anyone actually see Gene use Sunn's live with Kiss? What about Geezer Butler with Sabbath? And finally, next time you watch "Gimmie Shelter" on video, look for the 200s(style) cab being used as a floor monitor for the Stones at Altamont...I wonder if it got destroyed by the Hell's Angels...on second thought, we all know nothing can destroy a Sunn speaker cabinet, right?
