0:00:04 > 0:00:07I can turn that down a little if you want.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13Over the last 50 years, one black box has, probably more than anything
0:00:13 > 0:00:17else, come to define the sound of rock - the Marshall amplifier.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24It's been behind some of the biggest names in rock history, literally.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27From the most humble beginnings, it caused nothing less than
0:00:27 > 0:00:30a musical revolution - giving the guitar a new voice.
0:00:39 > 0:00:43And behind it all lay a man the rock world is lining up to celebrate.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46Known in the music business as the Father of Loud,
0:00:46 > 0:00:48his name was Jim Marshall.
0:00:49 > 0:00:53The brand he created is now virtually synonymous with
0:00:53 > 0:00:57the sound of rock, and one of the most successful in musical history.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00But Jim's long
0:01:00 > 0:01:03and colourful life started a long way from stadium stages.
0:01:03 > 0:01:0750 years ago, in a shop in West London, Jim spotted a new
0:01:07 > 0:01:11trend in music that would, in time, take over the world.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15And he capitalised on it, spectacularly.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20In doing so, he helped create a sound that revolutionised
0:01:20 > 0:01:21the electric guitar.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25And a volume that meant guitarists could step out of the shadows
0:01:25 > 0:01:29and take their place centre stage in the biggest venues.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34It became the standard of rock'n'roll.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37There is no amplifier that can touch it.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41It was a fabulous sound and suddenly guitars were no longer polite.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43When this thing came out,
0:01:43 > 0:01:47there wasn't any limit to the volume you could get out of it.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51It was like, if you didn't have a Marshall, you weren't cool.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Listen, I've always liked Marshall amps, so I used them,
0:01:55 > 0:01:56and I've used them ever since.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58# I can't explain... #
0:01:58 > 0:02:01The wanted loud, they wanted distorted.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05Marshall is a symbol of the rise of British rock.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08That was what it was all about. Marshall stacks.
0:02:22 > 0:02:24Though now a global enterprise,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27the Marshall business started off as a cottage industry.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30And the beginnings of the amp's history are still clearly
0:02:30 > 0:02:32remembered in the modern business.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Phil Wells is head of Marshall's Heritage and Archive
0:02:37 > 0:02:41and has worked here for over 35 years.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44When I started all those years ago, Jim used to spend the morning
0:02:44 > 0:02:48covering in the covering department and then the afternoon
0:02:48 > 0:02:51he would do his normal business side of the company.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54And he did that for probably for 18 months to two years
0:02:54 > 0:02:55when I first started here.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02The reason why our units are now signed was because of Jim,
0:03:02 > 0:03:04mainly because when he was covering -
0:03:04 > 0:03:08if one was badly covered, everybody else would blame Jim.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12So he said, "From now on, everybody signs their unit
0:03:12 > 0:03:15"then whoever has badly covered it, I won't get the blame."
0:03:16 > 0:03:18There's always been something fundamental
0:03:18 > 0:03:20about the Marshall sound.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22And whatever amp there is, whether it's one of the small
0:03:22 > 0:03:26practice amps, right through to the big valve stuff and the stacks,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29you know, they all have something within them and that kind of stems
0:03:29 > 0:03:32from the beginning where, back in the '60s,
0:03:32 > 0:03:33when Jim started the company.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Jim...Jim is a great character.
0:03:39 > 0:03:40He could roll up his sleeves,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43he could go on to the bench and he could show the people what to do.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46And he understood the works, the mechanics of the company.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49To the point that he used to open the post.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51It's a strange thing for the owner of a company to do,
0:03:51 > 0:03:54to open the post, but by opening the post, you understand the ethos
0:03:54 > 0:03:57and what's going on in the company just from that one small task.
0:03:57 > 0:03:59And that was Jim, he did everything.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Jim, though, also enjoyed life at the top.
0:04:10 > 0:04:15His success not only brought him fame, but also fortune.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Not to mention a deep respect from the industry that he loved.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24His was an empire built on sheer hard work and grit.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30Jim's single mindedness probably had its roots in his childhood.
0:04:33 > 0:04:38As a young boy, he endured years in hospital, cocooned in plaster,
0:04:38 > 0:04:43suffering from a terrible condition called tubercular bones.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46Finally, aged 13, he was set free.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52His father suggested that tap dancing might help build his bones.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57It was a suggestion that would change his life. He found rhythm.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03This was the era of the big band.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06The glamour and energy of the sound drew him to the drums,
0:05:06 > 0:05:08he was a natural.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12Jim was a really good musician and he was a fine drummer
0:05:12 > 0:05:16and he could also sing and do both at the same time.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20And he was so good that a lot of students would ask him
0:05:20 > 0:05:22if he could teach them to play the drums
0:05:22 > 0:05:25because he was doing such a good job in the dance bands of the era.
0:05:27 > 0:05:33In the late '40s, early '50s, I had a following of youngsters
0:05:33 > 0:05:37everywhere I appeared and eventually I was being chased to teach.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44Firstly, I thought I would not like teaching
0:05:44 > 0:05:48and I kept saying, "No, I'm not interested in being a teacher."
0:05:48 > 0:05:52But then I gave in to two pupils
0:05:52 > 0:05:56and found that I liked teaching.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Young hopefuls would make their way to Jim's unimposing
0:06:02 > 0:06:05semi in deepest West London.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09I saw an advert for Jim Marshall drum tuition and he sat me
0:06:09 > 0:06:13behind a drum kit and then said, "Right, go on, have a go."
0:06:17 > 0:06:21My connection with Jim started, and John Entwistle's started,
0:06:21 > 0:06:24very, very early. We were 12,
0:06:24 > 0:06:26and we were in a jazz band.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29We used to be called The Confederates.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31And our drummer was Chris Sherwin.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34Jim's teaching was phenomenal.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37I thought he was wonderful as a teacher.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41Every rehearsal, at the end, Chris would close by showing us
0:06:41 > 0:06:43his latest drum lesson.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Chris used to go completely mad.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50HE MIMICS DRUMMING
0:06:50 > 0:06:54Now I didn't see that again until Keith Moon walked on the stage
0:06:54 > 0:06:57but Chris was doing this, you know, when we were 12.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01MUSIC: Take The A Train by Duke Ellington
0:07:01 > 0:07:05Taking us to see bands, particularly the American bands,
0:07:05 > 0:07:07was just phenomenal.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Buddy Rich, Count Basie, Duke Ellington.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13I had massive respect for Jim
0:07:13 > 0:07:17because he knew what was what at that time and I didn't.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21At the most, I had 64 pupils in a week,
0:07:21 > 0:07:23which meant that was 64 hours teaching a week.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27With a considerable teaching income,
0:07:27 > 0:07:30Jim was able to quit life on the road.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33# The warden threw a party in the county jail... #
0:07:33 > 0:07:37Jim's younger students began to talk about an exciting,
0:07:37 > 0:07:39new, American music.
0:07:39 > 0:07:41# You should've heard those knocked out jailbirds sing
0:07:41 > 0:07:43# Let's rock
0:07:43 > 0:07:44# Everybody, let's rock... #
0:07:44 > 0:07:47The glimpses of rock'n'roll that we were getting at that moment
0:07:47 > 0:07:52were so occasional that it needed a sort of home-grown movement.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57# Mama don't allow no skiffle... #
0:07:57 > 0:08:00Skiffle was incredibly important.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03In one sense, it was almost the punk rock of its time.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06It was basically - find a cheap guitar,
0:08:06 > 0:08:07three chords and you were off.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09# Mama don't allow no skiffle... #
0:08:09 > 0:08:13You know the old tea chests with a stick, a broomstick on it
0:08:13 > 0:08:16and a bit of string and that was our bass
0:08:16 > 0:08:22and we bought a couple of acoustic guitars, no amps, and we were off.
0:08:23 > 0:08:28Despite the austerity, you begin to sense, you know,
0:08:28 > 0:08:30this new generation coming through.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Kids raced to form rock'n'roll bands
0:08:35 > 0:08:37and their influences were all American.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41After Lonnie Donegan and the skiffle craze, people that picked up
0:08:41 > 0:08:43a guitar and stayed with it
0:08:43 > 0:08:45obviously ventured into rock'n'roll.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49And the good thing about it was there were lots of places to play.
0:08:50 > 0:08:55We used play down the 2i's, that's where Marty Wilde saw me.
0:08:55 > 0:09:00And Marty said, "You've got to have your hair dyed blonde."
0:09:00 > 0:09:04So I thought about that for all of a second and a half.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09But only the most well-heeled of Britain's rock'n'rollers
0:09:09 > 0:09:14could afford the shiny guitars and amps of their American heroes.
0:09:14 > 0:09:19Buddy Holly was playing a Fender Stratocaster in 1950.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21About '57.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26So we were all looking at that and, of course, wanted one.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30We just wanted to be rock'n'roll stars, you know.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33# It didn't take a lifetime... #
0:09:33 > 0:09:36What we were really doing with our things was playing catch-up
0:09:36 > 0:09:39with the Americans. And that included our instruments as well
0:09:39 > 0:09:43because you couldn't get Gibson guitars or Fender guitars.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46But amp-wise, it was a nightmare, really.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50There were some people that made them, like Charlie Watkins
0:09:50 > 0:09:54made amps, and some of the amps he made were really good.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56GUITAR PLAYS
0:09:58 > 0:10:03We wanted to hear the sound that was beginning to come from guitars.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05They could hold a note on.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11The Watkins Westminster was one of Britain's first guitar amps,
0:10:11 > 0:10:14and Charlie had discovered a secret.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16I thought, that's it, get rid of that bloody hi-fi.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19We don't want hi-fi, we want distortion.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21# What have I done to make you blue? I'll be... #
0:10:21 > 0:10:24As British rock'n'roll gathered momentum,
0:10:24 > 0:10:27their amplification was lagging far behind.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30There was nothing above sort of ten watts
0:10:30 > 0:10:32because they were all little, tiny...
0:10:32 > 0:10:34they were make-do amplifiers.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36They weren't proper guitar amps.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40I actually did a gig at a wedding where I plugged
0:10:40 > 0:10:45into a Dansette record player, undid the wires from the pick-up.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47That was the sort of things we were up to.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52Yeah, I mean this, you can get a sound out of it fine,
0:10:52 > 0:10:55but take it to a hall and see what it sounds like, you know.
0:10:55 > 0:11:00What can you do with a soppy little ten-inch speaker, I ask you?
0:11:00 > 0:11:01You can't do anything with it.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04We did the best with what we had at hand.
0:11:05 > 0:11:11The kind of amplifiers that we were using, that everybody started using,
0:11:11 > 0:11:14everybody, including the Beatles,
0:11:14 > 0:11:17were the amplifiers used by the Shadows.
0:11:19 > 0:11:23By the late '50s, the famous Vox amplifier had arrived.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27In those days, the Vox amp really was the king amp.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30That was the amp. That's the only one you could hear
0:11:30 > 0:11:33because all these other little ones, you just couldn't hear 'em.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39Well, Vox were the first of the great British amplifier
0:11:39 > 0:11:43manufacturers and their pride and joy was the,
0:11:43 > 0:11:46still legendary to this day, Vox AC30.
0:11:46 > 0:11:52I managed to acquire myself a Vox AC15 then, which was amazing.
0:11:52 > 0:11:57And they all had AC30s so I really did feel like the new boy, you know.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02You know, that was the sound from the '50s, the twang of guitars,
0:12:02 > 0:12:05The Shadows, the first records I bought.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08Wonderful though they were,
0:12:08 > 0:12:12I always had a feeling that there
0:12:12 > 0:12:16was a beast that was waiting to be unleashed.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19MUSIC: Boom Boom by John Lee Hooker
0:12:21 > 0:12:26The guy that blew me away when I first heard him was John Lee Hooker.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29# Gonna shoot you right down... #
0:12:29 > 0:12:31And I got one of his very early albums
0:12:31 > 0:12:34and there was a track on there called The Devil's Jump.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38We've got The Devil's Jump, man.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42He had this idea to put the microphone inside the guitar,
0:12:42 > 0:12:45restring the guitar, then do the song that way,
0:12:45 > 0:12:47singing into the guitar.
0:12:47 > 0:12:48# The Devil's Jump
0:12:48 > 0:12:50# I Got the... #
0:12:50 > 0:12:53And it was this incredible distorted noise.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58This is like 1949,
0:12:58 > 0:12:59so, you know,
0:12:59 > 0:13:02we can't claim to have invented distortion.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07The thing the guitarist wants is something else.
0:13:07 > 0:13:12You know, he really doesn't want the cleanest guitar sound
0:13:12 > 0:13:16in the world or we'd all would sound like the soundtrack to Bonanza.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21Edgier guitar tones began to interest the eccentric
0:13:21 > 0:13:23British music producer, Joe Meek.
0:13:23 > 0:13:30I think Joe Meek was the first to explore that distorted,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32heavier, trebly guitar sound.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Drummer Mick Underwood was summoned to Meek's strange little
0:13:37 > 0:13:39studio in the Holloway Road.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42It's a bit over the top. It went a bit weird.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44Joe, Joe Meek says, "Come up and see us."
0:13:44 > 0:13:46He said, "The Outlaws need a drummer."
0:13:46 > 0:13:49So I went there and had a jam with them
0:13:49 > 0:13:52and they said, "The thing is, we do need a guitarist."
0:13:52 > 0:13:55And I said, "I think I know the man."
0:13:58 > 0:14:0117-year-old Ritchie Blackmore joined the Outlaws
0:14:01 > 0:14:03and the Meek sound turned wild.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10John Peel later called Shake With Me the first heavy metal record.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14Rhythm and blues became the sound of the moment
0:14:14 > 0:14:17and there was only one way music was heading.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21An arms race began to develop.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25Could the guitar player be able to make more noise than
0:14:25 > 0:14:28A - the drummer, and B - the audience.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33Everybody wanted to be loud and louder, everybody.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36What did we want to be as loud as?
0:14:36 > 0:14:38We wanted to be as loud as the drums.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50Back at the drum studio, Jim's pupils were constantly pressing him
0:14:50 > 0:14:52for help in buying their first drum kit.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55I used to take all of the pupils to a shop called
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Lou Davis in Charing Cross Road, London.
0:14:58 > 0:14:59One day the manager said to me,
0:14:59 > 0:15:04"Well you're a damn fool, why don't you open your own drum store?"
0:15:04 > 0:15:09Jim's first shop opened in Hanwell, West London, in July 1960.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13And his teenage son, Terry, made it a family business.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16So we opened it as a music shop but it had a concentration of drums
0:15:16 > 0:15:19and the guitar side was very minimal.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23Well, having taught so many of the top drummers,
0:15:23 > 0:15:26they brought their groups in with them. I'd known Pete Townshend
0:15:26 > 0:15:29for many years, because I used to play with Pete's father.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32And all of the drummers would come by and say,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34"Why you don't stock guitars?
0:15:34 > 0:15:37"Because every drummer needs a guitar player and other musicians
0:15:37 > 0:15:40"to go along with." And so he started to stock guitars.
0:15:40 > 0:15:47There'd be a few bashed up drum kits in there and a few mediocre guitars.
0:15:47 > 0:15:52But if you wanted to hear what was going on in the business,
0:15:52 > 0:15:54you went to Marshall's.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58Oh, Jim was a lovely person. He was a very happy-go-lucky sort of guy
0:15:58 > 0:16:01and he let us guys go in to his shop
0:16:01 > 0:16:04and sit around and play anything on the wall.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06He didn't worry that you weren't buying anything.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09We just used to hang out there and it was like
0:16:09 > 0:16:15a Labour Exchange for up-and-coming rock musicians, you know.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18For me, when I think about Jim's shop, it was a meeting place,
0:16:18 > 0:16:23a place to go with ideas, where you know you would get listened to.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27And some of my ideas, the guys in my band wouldn't listen to them.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33There were sorts of musicians went to Jim's shop, from every aspect,
0:16:33 > 0:16:35rock'n'roll, jazz, you name it,
0:16:35 > 0:16:38and it was a great learning curve for everybody.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40Good for everyone, that.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48Then you had Ted's cafe a couple of doors away.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50# 40 cups of coffee... #
0:16:50 > 0:16:52Or if you wanted something a bit more refined, you'd cross
0:16:52 > 0:16:58the road to the Rendezvous. And it was just a whole social scene.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01We were unique really
0:17:01 > 0:17:07because he had such a vision about customer service.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10The shop just exploded
0:17:10 > 0:17:12and we were in the right place at the right time.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15And while we were in there we used to say,
0:17:15 > 0:17:17"Do you know, we couldn't half do with amplifiers.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20"You don't do amplifiers, do you?"
0:17:21 > 0:17:24One of Jim's regular customers was band manager
0:17:24 > 0:17:27and electronic experimenter Ken Bran.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30# And go like this... #
0:17:30 > 0:17:35He knew that I was interested in building amplifiers,
0:17:35 > 0:17:37the sound of amplifiers.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39Ken began working for Jim.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42This was a partnership that would last the next 40 years.
0:17:42 > 0:17:47He always had this brown coat on, you know,
0:17:47 > 0:17:50like Ronnie Barker in the shop.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57All the kids wanted a lot more power
0:17:57 > 0:18:01and the only amp that was really around was the Fender Bassman.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07HE PLAYS GUITAR RIFF
0:18:07 > 0:18:11The Bassman was designed for bass guitar really,
0:18:11 > 0:18:16but the guitarists found that it gave a real crisp live sound.
0:18:18 > 0:18:23The Fender amps were fine sounding amplifiers but they tended to,
0:18:23 > 0:18:26they didn't... A - they didn't distort,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29they had a very clean kind of surf music sound.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33One of the guys who worked in the store had one
0:18:33 > 0:18:36and he brought it in for Ken to have a look at.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40We had a really good look at it to see what made it tick.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Ken discovered the Bassman used a standard circuit design that
0:18:45 > 0:18:49was widely used and without any patent restrictions.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51Jim seized the opportunity.
0:18:51 > 0:18:53He decided there and then
0:18:53 > 0:18:55that he was going to build a rock'n'roll amplifier.
0:18:55 > 0:19:00I said, "Well, if you're capable, Ken, let's have a go at it."
0:19:03 > 0:19:06With no access to American components, Ken was forced to
0:19:06 > 0:19:09trawl London's army surplus shops for parts.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14A crucial element of the Marshall sound came about
0:19:14 > 0:19:18because they couldn't get the same valves that Fender had been using,
0:19:18 > 0:19:22so they found another one that did sort of the same job.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25The sound that it produced wasn't like a Fender amp,
0:19:25 > 0:19:28but on its own terms, it worked brilliantly.
0:19:29 > 0:19:34The first amplifier was taking shape. But Ken needed help.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38I was a repairman, but we needed a designer,
0:19:38 > 0:19:42and Jim got hold of this young whiz kid called Dudley Craven.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47The 19-year-old Dudley Craven was lured from an apprenticeship
0:19:47 > 0:19:50at EMI on the promise of big money.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55We then took it out the basic chassis, brought
0:19:55 > 0:20:00in Pete Townshend and a couple of other guys and said, "Crank it up."
0:20:03 > 0:20:07When I first heard Jim's amplifier,
0:20:07 > 0:20:10I felt it was almost loud enough
0:20:10 > 0:20:12but it didn't have the zing of a Fender amp
0:20:12 > 0:20:14so I kind of chucked it back at him.
0:20:15 > 0:20:19We put it in the shop and let the guitarists play with it
0:20:19 > 0:20:23and we would know whether we were getting near the sound or not.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28And Pete would say, "I need more growl in this."
0:20:30 > 0:20:33I wanted distortion that was happening in the amplifier,
0:20:33 > 0:20:35not in the speaker, but in the amplifier.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42Eventually, he came up with a sound and I said, "Ah, that's the sort of
0:20:42 > 0:20:45"sound the boys have been talking to me about in the shop."
0:20:45 > 0:20:48GUITAR PLAYS RIFF
0:20:48 > 0:20:50And that's how the Marshall sound was born.
0:20:55 > 0:20:57That was it. Pete said, "I want it."
0:20:57 > 0:20:59It wasn't just a loud amplifier,
0:20:59 > 0:21:02it was an amplifier that would fold in distortion.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05BLUES MUSIC PLAYS
0:21:05 > 0:21:08Electronic engineers always want to get rid of distortion,
0:21:08 > 0:21:11but we knew that that was the sound we wanted.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18Ken Bran was willing to make what every other amplifier
0:21:18 > 0:21:21maker in the world would have called a bad amplifier.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Well, what it says is that Jim, Ken and Dudley Craven,
0:21:26 > 0:21:31when they put the unit together, designed it and built it,
0:21:31 > 0:21:32they got it right first time.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35Number One has survived
0:21:35 > 0:21:39and is now one of the most revered relics of rock.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41We've had a couple of blank cheque offers.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43We've had a couple of really silly offers for it,
0:21:43 > 0:21:45but it's the beginning of Marshall.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52Jim and Ken were now ready to unveil their creation.
0:21:56 > 0:22:00On the first Saturday, when we put the chassis in the shop,
0:22:00 > 0:22:05I think we sold 25 units the first day.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11While the inspiration was very clearly from Fender, what
0:22:11 > 0:22:15ended up coming out of the shop at that point, one way or another -
0:22:15 > 0:22:19by design, by accident, through necessity or what have you -
0:22:19 > 0:22:21ended up being quite different.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25All of a sudden, there is this monster 50-watt amp
0:22:25 > 0:22:27with four speakers. Even eclipsed the Fenders.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33Christened the JTM 45 after Jim and Terry Marshall,
0:22:33 > 0:22:36it was the loudest guitar amplifier in the world.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39Jim was selling these amps like hot cakes
0:22:39 > 0:22:41and I was the only one there to build them.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47With little room in Ken's workshop, Dudley started a production line
0:22:47 > 0:22:49with his old school friend, Ken Flegg.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51And a cottage industry began.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56Well, in actual fact, I made them in my bedroom, the ones that I did.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59He had a very small shed that he used to do his part of the work with.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02We had only just started at technical college, so
0:23:02 > 0:23:07our knowledge was extremely limited and we used to wing most of it.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11As the business exploded, Jim took production to their first factory.
0:23:11 > 0:23:15Even with more staff, it was now all hands on deck.
0:23:15 > 0:23:16My father used to do covering
0:23:16 > 0:23:20and my mum was gluing up for my dad to do covering.
0:23:22 > 0:23:23There was a good team spirit
0:23:23 > 0:23:26and a willingness to make the product work.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30They would make these through the week, sell them on a Friday
0:23:30 > 0:23:32and Saturday and then the money they made from that, they'd make
0:23:32 > 0:23:35the ones for the next week. So it was hand to mouth, if you like.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38We needed cash flow, the retail shop supported quite often
0:23:38 > 0:23:40the factory in the early days.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43Ken struggled to source parts
0:23:43 > 0:23:47and build the amps fast enough as the sales began to clock up.
0:23:47 > 0:23:53Well the best way to market any piece of musical equipment is
0:23:53 > 0:23:59to have it used by people who sound great and also to have a
0:23:59 > 0:24:04bloody huge logo on the front of it, so, you know, even at the back
0:24:04 > 0:24:09of the room, people can see what these guys are sounding great with.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13Jim said, "We're going to be producing amps from now on.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17"Good amplifiers, do you want to have a go?"
0:24:18 > 0:24:22The Tremeloes gave up their Fenders and moved to Marshall.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25Soon to be followed by the Nashville Teens
0:24:25 > 0:24:27and top American star Roy Orbison.
0:24:27 > 0:24:30It was the amplifier that sold it.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32How it was put together
0:24:32 > 0:24:34and what it sounded like that sold the amplifier.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38It was only very quickly that Jim's name, Marshall,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41became synonymous with that style of music.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43GUITAR PLAYS ROCK MUSIC
0:24:46 > 0:24:47When this thing came out,
0:24:47 > 0:24:51there wasn't any limit to the volume you could get out of them.
0:24:51 > 0:24:52# Can't explain
0:24:52 > 0:24:54# I think it's love... #
0:24:54 > 0:24:57Pete Townshend and John Entwistle were the first to really
0:24:57 > 0:24:59explore the new amp's limits.
0:25:00 > 0:25:05It made instruments capable of all different kinds of timbres
0:25:05 > 0:25:09and harmonics and, you know, it made it possible for me
0:25:09 > 0:25:11to make more than music.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17West London became the improbable focus of a music scene that
0:25:17 > 0:25:19produced dozens of new bands.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21# 600... #
0:25:21 > 0:25:24All the new guitar talent could be found jamming with
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Alexis Korner at the Ealing Blues Club.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30They were playing, particularly the Stones, through Alexis,
0:25:30 > 0:25:33had this grungy sort of blues sound to them.
0:25:37 > 0:25:41The West London scene stretched from Shepherd's Bush Hammersmith
0:25:41 > 0:25:43all the way to Uxbridge.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46So you could walk from Cyril Davis to Cliff Bennett
0:25:46 > 0:25:49and on the way, you'd get lots of action.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53# I was alone, I took a ride... #
0:25:53 > 0:25:56We all congregated around that West London area. Jim was right there.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01Jim Marshall saw all of this, like Alexis did,
0:26:01 > 0:26:05and like other people who were just maybe a little bit older than this
0:26:05 > 0:26:09generation and therefore could act as father figures to these new kids
0:26:09 > 0:26:10who were coming through.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15We had all the local musicians who were potentially
0:26:15 > 0:26:17the stars of the future.
0:26:17 > 0:26:21You know, Pete Townshend, Ritchie Blackmore, Eric Clapton,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24they were all our customers.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27And it was no surprise that Eric should find
0:26:27 > 0:26:29himself at the Hanwell shop.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32During his first stint with John Mayall,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35he was playing the JTM 45 half-stack with the 4x12 cabinet.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38And then during his second stint with John Mayall,
0:26:38 > 0:26:42which is notably when the album, the Beano album was recorded,
0:26:42 > 0:26:44he was using a 2x12 45-watt combo.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48You know, he'd been using that set up at gigs.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51He had the amp all the way up, he loved the sound it was making
0:26:51 > 0:26:53and when it was time to record,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55that was the sound he wanted on the record.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59It was unbelievably loud and the engineers were absolutely
0:26:59 > 0:27:02freaking out going, "Oh, no, all our needles are all going
0:27:02 > 0:27:04"into the red." You know.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07"Tell the young beast to turn it down." And he wouldn't.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11And the sound was born that people are still aspiring to,
0:27:11 > 0:27:14listening to and are trying to recreate today.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20But the business was still relying on Jim's shop
0:27:20 > 0:27:23and word of mouth for new sales.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26The time had come to move up a gear.
0:27:27 > 0:27:32In 1964, Jim signed a distribution agreement with Rose Morris.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35It was worldwide agreement for them to distribute their products.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39What Rose Morris did for Marshall was take it from
0:27:39 > 0:27:45relative obscurity to make it a worldwide, well-known brand.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49The deal put the amps into music shops across the world
0:27:49 > 0:27:51and with that, came an iconic new logo.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55As soon as they got the white scrolly lettering,
0:27:55 > 0:27:57the amps pretty much sold themselves.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00With Rose Morris, whatever we supplied one week,
0:28:00 > 0:28:02we were paid the following week.
0:28:02 > 0:28:06And they gave us an order book that kept us going every single month.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09But as gigs got bigger,
0:28:09 > 0:28:13The Who's guitarist discovered that 50 watts was no longer loud enough.
0:28:13 > 0:28:16I seem to remember once saying to Jim, like, almost pinning him
0:28:16 > 0:28:20up against the wall and saying, "Jim, I need bigger weapons."
0:28:20 > 0:28:24The challenge was on and Ken found a way to create the world's
0:28:24 > 0:28:26first 100-watt amp.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29He went back in and he fiddled about and a couple of days later,
0:28:29 > 0:28:32he came back and instead of two power tubes, we had four.
0:28:32 > 0:28:33# I can go anywhere... #
0:28:33 > 0:28:37I said, "What I've decided to do is use one 4x12 at the bottom and then
0:28:37 > 0:28:40"I'm going to put another one on top so it's level with the guitar."
0:28:40 > 0:28:42And he said, "Oh, no, Pete, that'll fall down, it'll hurt somebody.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45"They are not meant to be stacked."
0:28:45 > 0:28:48Anyway, that's exactly what happened. I banged it with my guitar
0:28:48 > 0:28:50and down it went.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54But it kept going.
0:28:54 > 0:28:56The Marshall stack was born.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59The Who arrived with chaos.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01# People try to put us d-down
0:29:01 > 0:29:03# Talkin' 'bout my generation... #
0:29:03 > 0:29:06They wanted loud, they wanted distorted.
0:29:06 > 0:29:08# Talkin' 'bout my generation... #
0:29:08 > 0:29:11And at the first gig I'd just started up with Heatwave
0:29:11 > 0:29:12and I was in a state of shock.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14# Talkin' 'bout my generation
0:29:14 > 0:29:16# I hope I die before I get old... #
0:29:16 > 0:29:19I'd never heard anything so exciting,
0:29:19 > 0:29:22so loud and energetic ever.
0:29:22 > 0:29:26We wanted to blow their minds, go blahh.
0:29:26 > 0:29:29Turn up the amplifiers so that they couldn't hear themselves think.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32- # ..dig what we all s-say - Talkin' 'bout my generation... #
0:29:32 > 0:29:35You know I was just a punk kid, art student, you know.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37I didn't give a shit for anybody, you know.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41I'd just had my thesis which was, you know, to make this band
0:29:41 > 0:29:43and blow it up in a cloud of smoke.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46LOUD FEEDBACK
0:29:47 > 0:29:50In those days, you can't imagine the fact those guys were
0:29:50 > 0:29:56buying in excess of a £1,000 worth of equipment a month.
0:29:56 > 0:29:59Everything was hire purchase in those days.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02Which is one of the reasons I was able to smash a few
0:30:02 > 0:30:05guitars in close succession cos he allowed me to buy them on tick.
0:30:05 > 0:30:09I can remember once not having a guitar for a gig and I ran into
0:30:09 > 0:30:14the store and grabbed this guitar and went, "OK, if I pay you later?"
0:30:14 > 0:30:18Just with my fingers crossed. And he went, "Yeah, go on, go on."
0:30:19 > 0:30:24So between Jim Marshall and The Who, they were building a foundation
0:30:24 > 0:30:28for what rock would look and sound like for the years to come.
0:30:33 > 0:30:35That sound just - that started it all off.
0:30:37 > 0:30:39I remember going to see the Small Faces
0:30:39 > 0:30:42and when they came on and played, they blew the place apart.
0:30:42 > 0:30:45I mean, it just changed everything.
0:30:46 > 0:30:49When I saw Peter Green and then Eric Clapton playing
0:30:49 > 0:30:51with them it was like, "Oh, hang on, this is big league,
0:30:51 > 0:30:54"this is everything, and everybody's going for these now."
0:30:55 > 0:30:58It was a statement about power.
0:30:58 > 0:31:02Remember also, we're entering the psychedelic era now
0:31:02 > 0:31:09and people wanted to be literally blown away with volume.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17Cream, Britain's first super group, used a wall of stacks.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21What seemed to matter now, was power and image.
0:31:21 > 0:31:23That was how it was in those days, you know.
0:31:23 > 0:31:25If you wanted to be louder,
0:31:25 > 0:31:29it wasn't the PA that did it, it was the amount of physical hardware.
0:31:30 > 0:31:35There's no doubt there is an iconic look to seeing
0:31:35 > 0:31:37a stack of Marshall speakers.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39It's almost the look of rock'n'roll.
0:31:39 > 0:31:41It's incredible actually.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49No sooner had Cream reached their peak,
0:31:49 > 0:31:51than a musical earthquake hit Britain.
0:31:51 > 0:31:56You know, there was a sort of hierarchy of London guitar players.
0:31:56 > 0:32:00When Hendrix arrived, it was like, "OK, everybody budge up one."
0:32:00 > 0:32:03MUSIC: Voodoo Chile by Jimi Hendrix
0:32:03 > 0:32:05I think Jimi came along at the right time,
0:32:05 > 0:32:08as far as the Marshall amplifier was concerned.
0:32:08 > 0:32:11Jimi not only appreciated the fact that
0:32:11 > 0:32:16I made the amplifier with the sound that he wanted, but also his
0:32:16 > 0:32:20name was James Marshall Hendrix and he got a kick out of that as well.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25It was a fabulous screaming sound
0:32:25 > 0:32:29and you got the sense of the guy playing through feedback.
0:32:29 > 0:32:32# I'm a voodoo chile... #
0:32:32 > 0:32:35And again, Marshall was at the centre.
0:32:35 > 0:32:37# I'm a voodoo chile, babe... #
0:32:37 > 0:32:41Immediately, he started playing guitar in Britain, all these
0:32:41 > 0:32:44great guitarists, the Eric Claptons, and Peter Greens,
0:32:44 > 0:32:49and Pete Townshends and Keith Richards and all just went, "Wow!"
0:32:52 > 0:32:56You know, Clapton was God, but Jimi killed God, man.
0:32:57 > 0:33:02The Marshall name was like Jimi Hendrix,
0:33:02 > 0:33:06Clapton in Cream, The Who, Marshall.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09And we all had stacks.
0:33:09 > 0:33:11HE LAUGHS
0:33:24 > 0:33:27Britain was in the grips of a deep counter culture.
0:33:27 > 0:33:30The message was turn on, tune in and drop out.
0:33:30 > 0:33:33MUSIC: Valley Of Neptune by Jimi Hendrix
0:33:33 > 0:33:37It was also a time of change for the sleepy hamlet of Milton Keynes,
0:33:37 > 0:33:40near Bletchley, 50 miles north of London.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44With growing international sales, the company had
0:33:44 > 0:33:47outgrown their tiny West London factory.
0:33:47 > 0:33:51The new town was offering generous relocation grants
0:33:51 > 0:33:53and Jim put the idea to the workforce.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56We went to lots of discussions on different places and things
0:33:56 > 0:34:01we were going to do, but it opened up that Bletchley was offering
0:34:01 > 0:34:06factories, accommodation for workers, and it looked quite promising.
0:34:07 > 0:34:09Jim led the way north.
0:34:09 > 0:34:12The first few weeks, I know they were all sleeping in the factory.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15Virtually all of his staff then followed.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23As rock developed, the super group began harnessing
0:34:23 > 0:34:25the power of the pounding guitar riff.
0:34:27 > 0:34:30Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin was the absolute master.
0:34:37 > 0:34:40Again, it's impossible to overstate how big Led Zeppelin were.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43They were absolutely massive.
0:34:43 > 0:34:46They were the Beatles of the '70s in terms of popularity levels.
0:34:46 > 0:34:50And, you know, I travelled with Robert quite a lot during that time.
0:34:50 > 0:34:56And one of the challenges was to figure out how to fill
0:34:56 > 0:34:58an entire stadium with that sound.
0:34:59 > 0:35:03I think that the change came in that later part of the '60s
0:35:03 > 0:35:07when somebody developed proper public address systems that
0:35:07 > 0:35:12were designed for music, not saying, "Would the owner of vehicle..."
0:35:13 > 0:35:17Because you could now have amps that were as loud as hell.
0:35:17 > 0:35:22The Marshall amp as a back-line, well, there's nothing better.
0:35:22 > 0:35:26It was like opening the doors and there we are, we are away now.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31It was just exactly like it was supposed to sound.
0:35:31 > 0:35:34All the other amps, you had to like twiddle, whereas with
0:35:34 > 0:35:38a Marshall, you just plug it in and it's like, like it's supposed to be.
0:35:39 > 0:35:43The spectacle of Paul Kossoff with his legs apart, with his head back,
0:35:43 > 0:35:47like a lion, roaring, wailing on his Les Paul,
0:35:47 > 0:35:53it was like a spectacle of biblical proportions to someone at
0:35:53 > 0:35:5415, 16 years old.
0:35:56 > 0:35:58Everything was ten for Paul,
0:35:58 > 0:36:01if 11 had been available by then, he would have done it been there.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03No, all the knobs went to the right
0:36:03 > 0:36:07and he would stand as close or as far away as he wanted to
0:36:07 > 0:36:09for the feedback and just play.
0:36:11 > 0:36:13It's kind of nice because I was there at the start of it all
0:36:13 > 0:36:17with Purple and, you know, it was the Marshall and
0:36:17 > 0:36:21this bass in particular that was the sound of our first hit, Hush.
0:36:21 > 0:36:22It sort of went...
0:36:22 > 0:36:26PLAYS OPENING RIFF OF HUSH
0:36:29 > 0:36:33MUSIC: Hush by Deep Purple
0:36:35 > 0:36:39You know, my 50-watt Marshall and Ritchie Blackmore's 30-watt Vox
0:36:39 > 0:36:42wasn't going to be what we needed, so I suggested that we
0:36:42 > 0:36:46go and see Jim down at the factory and we bought stacks for ourselves
0:36:46 > 0:36:50and started to build our reputation as the loudest band in the world.
0:36:51 > 0:36:55Deep Purple stretched the amp's power to the limits.
0:36:55 > 0:36:58You look back now and forget how big Deep Purple were.
0:36:58 > 0:37:00They were the equivalent of Black Sabbath, and certainly no
0:37:00 > 0:37:03question about it, but what Purple had was almost the dual guitar
0:37:03 > 0:37:07situation because of the way that Lord and Blackmore interplayed -
0:37:07 > 0:37:11they competed at times, but they also complemented at others.
0:37:11 > 0:37:14MUSIC: Smoke On The Water by Deep Purple
0:37:19 > 0:37:22There's no doubt that without Marshall, there wouldn't have
0:37:22 > 0:37:25been the sound that Lord and Blackmore were able to create.
0:37:25 > 0:37:31And it was Blackmore's virtuosity and Lord's classical leanings
0:37:31 > 0:37:33towards filling in the gaps that Blackmore didn't
0:37:33 > 0:37:37that made Purple sound so magnificent, so epic.
0:37:39 > 0:37:42I am still using, right through this period, the direct-injection
0:37:42 > 0:37:46Hammond organ, not going through the Leslie speakers but going
0:37:46 > 0:37:50direct from the organ amplifier out into a Marshall 200 watt.
0:37:50 > 0:37:52I could get that really hard,
0:37:52 > 0:37:55raw organ sound to compete with Ritchie.
0:37:56 > 0:37:59That's the beauty of what Deep Purple had, there was a warmth
0:37:59 > 0:38:03to Richard Blackmore and Jon Lord in the way they competed and
0:38:03 > 0:38:06combined and a lot of that was down to the way they used
0:38:06 > 0:38:07the Marshall amps.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12MUSIC: Smoke On The Water by Deep Purple
0:38:19 > 0:38:24What Marshall gave you was that feeling of, you've got four horses
0:38:24 > 0:38:28in front of you and you're driving them as hard as you can.
0:38:33 > 0:38:35We were very, very stoned.
0:38:37 > 0:38:38HE LAUGHS
0:38:38 > 0:38:40Yeah, and we were...
0:38:40 > 0:38:44We had this 6ft 2in woman with 52 inch tits,
0:38:44 > 0:38:48painted blue, and dancing on stage every night.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51I suppose you could say it was pretty loose.
0:38:51 > 0:38:53She didn't have an amplifier at all.
0:38:54 > 0:38:58# I, I just took a ride... #
0:38:58 > 0:39:01I'd only been with them four months, I think, and none of the others
0:39:01 > 0:39:05could sing it and I could. So I sang it and it went to Number One.
0:39:05 > 0:39:07On the front of the NME,
0:39:07 > 0:39:10I had a picture of just me and it said, "Hawkwind at Number One."
0:39:10 > 0:39:12It was great.
0:39:12 > 0:39:14It's a very loud kind of music.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16What has it done to your ears for instance?
0:39:16 > 0:39:17Eh?
0:39:17 > 0:39:20MUSIC: Ballroom Blitz by The Sweet
0:39:21 > 0:39:25Guitar sounds, because they were so thick and big,
0:39:25 > 0:39:28you didn't need much more on the recording.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31You didn't need to now start putting handclaps and tambourines
0:39:31 > 0:39:34and things in there because the space wasn't there.
0:39:34 > 0:39:38The drum sound was a powerhouse, the guitar was a powerhouse
0:39:38 > 0:39:40and the bottom end of the bass.
0:39:40 > 0:39:42What else did you need? You didn't need anything else.
0:39:42 > 0:39:46# And the girl in the corner said "Boy, I wanna warn you" And it turned into a ballroom blitz
0:39:46 > 0:39:47# Ballroom blitz... #
0:39:47 > 0:39:52The actual sheer weight of air movement that made your
0:39:52 > 0:39:55trousers flap.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59You know, of everything happening on stage was just incredible.
0:39:59 > 0:40:05The way the Marshall amp sounds gives a unique opportunity to
0:40:05 > 0:40:08musicians to play their instruments in the way
0:40:08 > 0:40:11they want to, knowing it will actually be projected to everybody.
0:40:14 > 0:40:17A pop group in full voice, as it were, can produce just about the
0:40:17 > 0:40:19same amount of noise as a 707
0:40:19 > 0:40:21thundering a few hundred feet overhead.
0:40:23 > 0:40:25And that's what it was all about then.
0:40:25 > 0:40:28We're a rock band - it's got to be loud, you know.
0:40:28 > 0:40:30And Slade were louder than us.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33Oh, really? OK, well, we'll turn it up then.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35# Here we are Oh, here we are
0:40:35 > 0:40:37# Oh here we go... #
0:40:37 > 0:40:40You know, we used to tear audiences' heads off.
0:40:40 > 0:40:42We had about 34 cabinets on stage
0:40:42 > 0:40:45and we used to call it the Wall of Death.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47And at our height, I mean, they were somewhere up there
0:40:47 > 0:40:50and you had to sort of reach up to try and adjust your volume.
0:40:50 > 0:40:54Not that it needed a lot of adjusting because it was flat out.
0:40:54 > 0:40:59MUSIC: Dancing with the Moonlit Knight by Genesis
0:41:04 > 0:41:08Les Paul, Marshall stack everything I wanted to do, everything
0:41:08 > 0:41:11I wanted to be...
0:41:11 > 0:41:12there it was.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19These days, we talk about you know searching for the upper harmonic
0:41:19 > 0:41:21and all that, but in those days,
0:41:21 > 0:41:24we would just go, "My God, it's so alive, it's screaming."
0:41:24 > 0:41:27And I think guitarists are always looking for the slightly
0:41:27 > 0:41:29out of control thing.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34But just as progressive rock had reached its peak,
0:41:34 > 0:41:37music received a sudden and dramatic wake up call.
0:41:38 > 0:41:42Everything had arrived at the stage where it all needed a huge,
0:41:42 > 0:41:46great kick and of course punk arrived kind of in the nick of time.
0:41:46 > 0:41:49# I am an antichrist... #
0:41:49 > 0:41:54The punk revolution unleashed a torrent of new talent.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57# Don't know what I want But I know how to get it... #
0:41:57 > 0:42:01Gritty guitars and the three-minute pop song were back with attitude.
0:42:01 > 0:42:03# Cos I want to be... #
0:42:03 > 0:42:06And it inspired more than just the anarchists.
0:42:06 > 0:42:10# ..anarchy... #
0:42:10 > 0:42:16I think Never Mind The Bollocks was more of an early heavy metal
0:42:16 > 0:42:18album than punk, to be honest.
0:42:20 > 0:42:22The minute you saw Steve Jones on the TV,
0:42:22 > 0:42:24I thought, "Oh, I see, right."
0:42:24 > 0:42:27You don't have to be Ritchie Blackmore then, it is
0:42:27 > 0:42:32possible to write three chords and get yourself up on stage.
0:42:36 > 0:42:38Diamond Head were one of the first of the
0:42:38 > 0:42:40new wave of British heavy metal.
0:42:41 > 0:42:44Punk and heavy metal were remarkably connected.
0:42:44 > 0:42:49What happened around about 1978 was it all started to coalesce.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52The media started to pick up on, hang on, the most exciting young
0:42:52 > 0:42:55bands around the country, be they from Sheffield, Newcastle,
0:42:55 > 0:42:58London, Manchester, Birmingham or Glasgow, happened to all
0:42:58 > 0:43:01fit into this funny little thing called hard or heavy rock, and
0:43:01 > 0:43:05the term new wave of British heavy metal, which just trips off
0:43:05 > 0:43:09the tongue now, sounds so ridiculous and so very complicated.
0:43:09 > 0:43:11But it summed it up because
0:43:11 > 0:43:14it was a young feeling in the country for metal.
0:43:14 > 0:43:19I think it was just a natural progression where we came out
0:43:19 > 0:43:22with all the energy, going at it hammer and tongues, you know
0:43:22 > 0:43:24arms flailing, ripping.
0:43:24 > 0:43:25# Wheels of steel... #
0:43:25 > 0:43:27I can still remember this kid at the front shouting,
0:43:27 > 0:43:29"It's great! It's just like punk. I love it"
0:43:30 > 0:43:34Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Saxon, just to use as examples,
0:43:34 > 0:43:38would look at that. What do I hear them play? Ah, they use Marshalls,
0:43:38 > 0:43:41which were identifiable and instantly recognisable
0:43:41 > 0:43:43and gave the sound and the warmth they wanted.
0:43:43 > 0:43:47They started to use Marshalls because it was the obvious amp
0:43:47 > 0:43:49to use, nothing else came close.
0:43:53 > 0:43:56Once AC/DC hit on their sound and their rhythm,
0:43:56 > 0:43:59there was nothing to add and nothing to take away.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01It was just perfect, and it still is.
0:44:01 > 0:44:04There's nothing that you need to do to it.
0:44:05 > 0:44:09Powering rock perfection may be one thing, but new challenges lay ahead.
0:44:12 > 0:44:16A seismic shift was beginning in the music younger audiences wanted.
0:44:16 > 0:44:20MUSIC: D.I.S.C.O. by Ottowan
0:44:22 > 0:44:25Disco was a threat to all live music,
0:44:25 > 0:44:28and that included the market for amps.
0:44:30 > 0:44:34Even though, in those days, disco records were still being
0:44:34 > 0:44:39made in the studios by musicians, it wasn't about the big live
0:44:39 > 0:44:44performance and therefore they didn't require the huge amps
0:44:44 > 0:44:49that, in the days before PA systems seriously got sorted out,
0:44:49 > 0:44:52were necessary to fill the bigger and bigger rooms.
0:44:52 > 0:44:56All rock bands recorded albums because they wanted to tour.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59They wanted to be seen, and that's where the expression
0:44:59 > 0:45:03comes across, and disco undermined it or tried to undermine it
0:45:03 > 0:45:09by making records more important but much more transient as well.
0:45:09 > 0:45:12And people used to say to me,
0:45:12 > 0:45:16"Well, the Marshall is very good once you can afford it."
0:45:16 > 0:45:21They were starting to get cheeky little oiks on their home turf
0:45:21 > 0:45:25like Orange, Sound City and Hiwatt.
0:45:25 > 0:45:30And they were building Marshall-style amplifiers,
0:45:30 > 0:45:35some of them were undercutting Marshall in terms of price.
0:45:35 > 0:45:39Some of them, like Orange and Hiwatt, had quite distinctive sounds
0:45:39 > 0:45:43of their own, so they weren't precisely just copying.
0:45:45 > 0:45:48Marshall's dominance was collapsing and sales plummeted.
0:45:48 > 0:45:53In 1981, we were down to 17 people on the clock.
0:45:54 > 0:45:58To survive, they desperately needed a new flagship amp.
0:45:58 > 0:46:01But the dilemma was whether to switch to cheaper transistor
0:46:01 > 0:46:04technology or to stick with their valve heritage.
0:46:04 > 0:46:07I think there will always be guitarists that will want to
0:46:07 > 0:46:11play valve amplifiers, whether it's because they think it sounds
0:46:11 > 0:46:13better or because there's a certain nostalgia.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18The more you progress as a musician, you're only really after one
0:46:18 > 0:46:21particular sound that becomes your own.
0:46:21 > 0:46:23And that's the valve-type sound.
0:46:23 > 0:46:26They take a signal, they add a bunch of noise,
0:46:26 > 0:46:27distort the crap out of it.
0:46:27 > 0:46:32What goes in is not what comes out, bigger. It completely mashes it,
0:46:32 > 0:46:35but in a glorious musical way that has a third dimension.
0:46:36 > 0:46:39It rounds off the edge. It sounds peculiar, but you get a cleaner
0:46:39 > 0:46:43distortion, you get less harshness than you would out of a digital amp.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46Beethoven, Mozart, the great composers,
0:46:46 > 0:46:50use symphonies to get across their thoughts and ideas.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53If they had a Marshall amp, you don't think Beethoven would have
0:46:53 > 0:46:55been plugging in and blasting away, or Mozart?
0:46:55 > 0:46:57Of course they would've done.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01The decision was made.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04The new JCM800 kept the valve technology
0:47:04 > 0:47:07so crucial to the distinctive Marshall sound.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13At its launch in 1980, everything rested on its success.
0:47:17 > 0:47:18They were lucky.
0:47:18 > 0:47:22British heavy metal hit the big time, and Marshall with it.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26The stack was back as the ultimate symbol of rock power.
0:47:28 > 0:47:30If you went to a show and you saw a wall of Marshalls,
0:47:30 > 0:47:33you knew exactly what to expect.
0:47:34 > 0:47:36The gamble with valves had paid off.
0:47:36 > 0:47:40By the mid '80s, the company was totally resurgent.
0:47:40 > 0:47:44MUSIC: Hungry Years by Saxon
0:47:44 > 0:47:47Sold out gigs, wall of Marshalls,
0:47:47 > 0:47:52wailing guitar, singing crowd, all in uniform - fantastic.
0:47:52 > 0:47:54It was the best feeling in the world.
0:47:56 > 0:47:59And we did have our own dress code. It went a little bit wrong
0:47:59 > 0:48:03later on cos I think America went a little bit Motley Crue.
0:48:03 > 0:48:05But it became very popular, so you were kind of tugged
0:48:05 > 0:48:09between pretty boys and being nasty like Motorhead, you know.
0:48:16 > 0:48:20I remember he sent me some JCM800's and I sent them back to him.
0:48:21 > 0:48:23I didn't like them, they were too quiet, you know.
0:48:27 > 0:48:28Nah, I just turned it up
0:48:28 > 0:48:32and hit the thing very hard, you know, that's...the secret.
0:48:42 > 0:48:44Shows got ridiculously big
0:48:44 > 0:48:45because the money was there,
0:48:45 > 0:48:48and, if you've got a 20,000-capacity arena,
0:48:48 > 0:48:51it's a little different to having a 20-capacity park.
0:48:51 > 0:48:52You have to project and have something
0:48:52 > 0:48:55that people to latch onto, so they did become
0:48:55 > 0:48:59so over the top and so ridiculous and also gave the opportunity
0:48:59 > 0:49:01to the lampoonists to come along
0:49:01 > 0:49:04and say, "Oh, look at that. We have an idea.
0:49:04 > 0:49:08"We can actually take the piss out of all those bands
0:49:08 > 0:49:09"who do huge stage sets."
0:49:09 > 0:49:11This is the loudest...
0:49:11 > 0:49:13Rock'n'roll! Rock'n'roll!
0:49:13 > 0:49:17..most explosive band in heavy metal history.
0:49:17 > 0:49:20This is Spinal Tap.
0:49:20 > 0:49:21I think the film Spinal Tap
0:49:21 > 0:49:26probably had a lot to do with a resurgence of the use of Marshall.
0:49:26 > 0:49:31- If you can see...- Yeah. - ..the numbers all go to 11.
0:49:31 > 0:49:33- Look, right across the board.- Oh.
0:49:33 > 0:49:3411, 11, 11.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37- And most amps go up to ten?- Exactly.
0:49:37 > 0:49:40Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
0:49:40 > 0:49:42Well, it's one louder, isn't it?
0:49:42 > 0:49:46Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number
0:49:46 > 0:49:47and make that a little louder?
0:49:51 > 0:49:52These go to 11.
0:49:53 > 0:49:55It goes to 11.
0:49:56 > 0:50:02And it made me laugh so much that they actually...they built me one.
0:50:02 > 0:50:05I think everyone likes to think it's about them.
0:50:05 > 0:50:08Everybody claims that, but Harry Shearer actually came on tour
0:50:08 > 0:50:11with us, did the research and put things from us in.
0:50:11 > 0:50:14If you talk to people about Spinal Tap and Nigel Tufnel
0:50:14 > 0:50:18and "goes to 11", they associate all of that still with Marshall.
0:50:18 > 0:50:21It might go up to number 11,
0:50:21 > 0:50:25but it also works very well at number 1 or number 2.
0:50:25 > 0:50:27You know, I think that's what's important.
0:50:27 > 0:50:30I've got a JCM800
0:50:30 > 0:50:32and it...
0:50:32 > 0:50:35I only ever have it on 2.5.
0:50:35 > 0:50:39That's as high as I dare take it because it's such a beast.
0:50:41 > 0:50:43Players began to seek their own signature guitar tone.
0:50:45 > 0:50:46If this was going to be a performance here,
0:50:46 > 0:50:49I might put an X on the spot where it goes into like...
0:50:49 > 0:50:50GUITAR SOUNDS Let's see.
0:50:50 > 0:50:58HOLDS SOUND ON GUITAR
0:50:59 > 0:51:01All right, well, that's going to go forever,
0:51:01 > 0:51:03so I'll put an X right there.
0:51:03 > 0:51:06I can remember there were more significant things occurred
0:51:06 > 0:51:07in the late '70s, early '80s
0:51:07 > 0:51:11and I think prior and maybe afterwards as well.
0:51:11 > 0:51:14Like you had Van Halen come out who revolutionised it,
0:51:14 > 0:51:17then you... When you thought it couldn't get any better than you had
0:51:17 > 0:51:19Randy Rhoads come out, for example.
0:51:19 > 0:51:23The amp's reputation had spread across the Atlantic.
0:51:23 > 0:51:25The American musicians embraced it so much
0:51:25 > 0:51:27and they actually took it to another level.
0:51:27 > 0:51:30If a young British musician had two or three Marshalls on stage,
0:51:30 > 0:51:32they had ten.
0:51:32 > 0:51:35It used to be in Los Angeles in the early '80s -
0:51:35 > 0:51:40"Wanted guitar player. Must have Marshall, Gibson and a car."
0:51:41 > 0:51:46Whether it's a pop song, a disco song, a rock song,
0:51:46 > 0:51:50uh, metal song. I mean, whatever genre the music is,
0:51:50 > 0:51:53God only knows how many recordings a Marshall has been on.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55These are bands that suddenly started to sell
0:51:55 > 0:51:59tens of millions of albums with what one could call big-hair rock,
0:51:59 > 0:52:03glam rock, call it what you will, great anthemic songs,
0:52:03 > 0:52:06great image and a sense of power.
0:52:06 > 0:52:08And the Marshall amp was part of it
0:52:08 > 0:52:11because they were proud to be photographed and filmed
0:52:11 > 0:52:13with Marshalls. They had them on stage everywhere you went.
0:52:15 > 0:52:19As rock music evolved in the '80s from rock to hard rock
0:52:19 > 0:52:23to heavy rock to heavy metal, so Marshall evolved with it,
0:52:23 > 0:52:26meeting the needs of those guitar players,
0:52:26 > 0:52:29and they were the amplifier of choice and becoming louder
0:52:29 > 0:52:32and being seen on stage to be louder.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36For me, it's all about the energy and the confidence
0:52:36 > 0:52:39to be able to go up there and just do your thing, right?
0:52:39 > 0:52:44So I spend very little time tweaking amps and doing all that shit.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46I set it up, it takes me five minutes, you know.
0:52:46 > 0:52:48Either it sounds good or it doesn't.
0:52:50 > 0:52:53MUSIC: Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns N' Roses
0:52:53 > 0:52:56I remember being intimidated by it, the first time I ever...
0:52:56 > 0:52:58It was somebody else's amp. And you plug it in
0:52:58 > 0:53:02and it was above and beyond anything I'd ever used,
0:53:02 > 0:53:04so it was a little bit out of my sort of experience.
0:53:06 > 0:53:07It's not a cure for anything.
0:53:07 > 0:53:10If you suck and you buy a Marshall, you'll still suck,
0:53:10 > 0:53:11but you will suck louder
0:53:11 > 0:53:14and with better tone than you've ever sucked before in your life.
0:53:15 > 0:53:19The respect and adulation for the elder statesmen of rock
0:53:19 > 0:53:21has increased many fold.
0:53:21 > 0:53:23They are now held up with great esteem
0:53:23 > 0:53:26and awe rather than being regarded as boring old farts.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32Psychologically, you knew that what was coming out of those speakers
0:53:32 > 0:53:33sounded great.
0:53:33 > 0:53:34You know, we didn't use pedals.
0:53:34 > 0:53:38I might have had a Crybaby or a wah-wah pedal or something.
0:53:38 > 0:53:40But you just knew that you had a great guitar sound
0:53:40 > 0:53:43because you were trying to emulate your heroes from before.
0:53:43 > 0:53:45It gave you that confidence to know that you were now...
0:53:45 > 0:53:46As soon as you hit that chord,
0:53:46 > 0:53:49you know, the crowd jumped up and - bang, you were there,
0:53:49 > 0:53:50you were rock stars.
0:53:52 > 0:53:54GUITAR RIFF TO CAROLINE
0:53:54 > 0:53:57At least it's tried and tested.
0:53:57 > 0:53:59You know what you're going to get with it.
0:53:59 > 0:54:01It does what it says on the tin.
0:54:01 > 0:54:04It kick... Well, it doesn't actually say, "Kick arse," on there
0:54:04 > 0:54:06but that would be quite good to have on there, wouldn't it?
0:54:06 > 0:54:08"Marshall Kick Arse." Yeah.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11But it does... It does what you want it to do.
0:54:13 > 0:54:16Like, my particular thing is always about a hard-driven
0:54:16 > 0:54:19but warm, natural kind of a sound,
0:54:19 > 0:54:21and that was what brought me to
0:54:21 > 0:54:25Marshall in the first place because it had the volume and the gain
0:54:25 > 0:54:29and all that to rock as hard as it could possibly...
0:54:29 > 0:54:31anybody could ever possibly ever want.
0:54:33 > 0:54:35# Watch me burn... #
0:54:35 > 0:54:38Still, today there's new bands coming out with new music
0:54:38 > 0:54:41using a Marshall and saying, "We do this.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44"This is how we do it, and this is how we sound."
0:54:46 > 0:54:49You take a 14-year-old just getting into metal
0:54:49 > 0:54:53and you show them a picture from 1971-72 of a band on stage
0:54:53 > 0:54:55using a Marshall amp,
0:54:55 > 0:54:56they'll connect with it.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59You take a 14-year-old in 1971-72
0:54:59 > 0:55:02and show them what equipment was on stage in the 1930s
0:55:02 > 0:55:04they'll just look at it and go, "Alien,"
0:55:04 > 0:55:07and that's the big difference. Marshall has transcended.
0:55:07 > 0:55:08# I am electric
0:55:08 > 0:55:09# I am electric
0:55:09 > 0:55:11# I am electric! #
0:55:11 > 0:55:13CROWD CHEERS AND SCREAMS
0:55:18 > 0:55:21Marshall amplification has remained independent and British,
0:55:21 > 0:55:23just as Jim intended it to be.
0:55:26 > 0:55:29Even into old age, he still led the company,
0:55:29 > 0:55:32never letting up on his ambition or control,
0:55:32 > 0:55:33but time was catching up.
0:55:35 > 0:55:40After a series of strokes, Jim was forced to take a back seat.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42We went and had dinner with him a couple of times
0:55:42 > 0:55:45and he was kind of getting frailer and frailer, you know.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49It's a terrible thing.
0:55:49 > 0:55:53In April 2012, Jim Marshall died peacefully.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56It was a shock but it was not unexpected.
0:55:56 > 0:56:01And it was international news within a few hours of him passing.
0:56:04 > 0:56:07Now, he was known as the Father of Loud.
0:56:07 > 0:56:10Jim Marshall, the man who helped shape the sound of rock, has died
0:56:10 > 0:56:12at the age of 88.
0:56:12 > 0:56:16The outpouring was huge because he was a very significant figure.
0:56:16 > 0:56:18There will never be another Jim Marshall.
0:56:18 > 0:56:20I remember him with such affection.
0:56:20 > 0:56:25And such a gentle, sweet, kind man,
0:56:25 > 0:56:27and, uh, to me, anyway.
0:56:29 > 0:56:33# Your love made it well worth waiting
0:56:35 > 0:56:37# For someone
0:56:39 > 0:56:43# Like you. #
0:56:45 > 0:56:48CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:56:52 > 0:56:55Jim never lived to see the Marshall 50th concert,
0:56:55 > 0:56:58but it became rock's tribute to his life.
0:56:58 > 0:57:00So, tonight, it's a mixed emotion.
0:57:00 > 0:57:04I was going out with the sole intention of doing this for Jim.
0:57:04 > 0:57:05He was supposed to be out there
0:57:05 > 0:57:08either sitting on the side of the stage or out of the sound desk.
0:57:08 > 0:57:12You know, cos he still loved his rock'n'roll, you know.
0:57:12 > 0:57:14And I must admit, it's quite loud out there,
0:57:14 > 0:57:16but it's his fault, isn't it? You know.
0:57:16 > 0:57:18HE LAUGHS
0:57:18 > 0:57:236,000 fans filled London's Wembley Arena to hear some of the world's
0:57:23 > 0:57:28greatest guitarists play their own respects to the Father of Loud.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:57:39 > 0:57:41It's a beautiful old amp.
0:57:41 > 0:57:43This is where it all started.
0:57:43 > 0:57:47Proud and sentimental. Bringing tears to my eyes.
0:57:47 > 0:57:48Jim got it.
0:57:48 > 0:57:50Jim was one of the first people.
0:57:50 > 0:57:53I have to say, I don't think that many others did.
0:57:53 > 0:57:58This is the guy that has left one of the most amazing legacies.
0:57:58 > 0:58:01I think, without Jim, this wouldn't have happened.
0:58:01 > 0:58:04We wouldn't have been able to do this stuff on stage.
0:58:04 > 0:58:06I suppose I've been very lucky, really,
0:58:06 > 0:58:08because I've liked everything that I've done in life.
0:58:10 > 0:58:14And I suppose the thing that makes it more interesting
0:58:14 > 0:58:19is the fact that whatever I've done has been associated with music.