Song 2
Blur
A two-minute burst of quiet verses and a distorted chorus that crashes in under a yelled 'woo-hoo'.
What is the Song 2 guitar tone?
The Song 2 guitar tone is a two-minute burst of quiet verses and a distorted chorus that crashes in under a yelled 'woo-hoo', heard on Blur's 1990s punk rock recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Blur reportedly tracked it with a Telecaster, by Graham Coxon's best guess, through what may have been his own Marshall turned well down, with a couple of distortion pedals he remembers stamping on for the loud parts, although he told producer Warren Huart in 2020 that he could not say which ones; Guitar Player describes him as playing mostly Telecasters through Marshalls, and Coxon says he was tired of complicated parts and wanted something simple and horrible, as noisy as possible, with a deliberately clanging, rough guitar sound; Damon Albarn's demo was a slow acoustic song with the 'woo-hoo' whistled, and Coxon suggested playing it fast and loud and telling the record label it should be the single, as a joke on them; the track was recorded at Maison Rouge Studio with the vocals sung live, two drum kits played at once by Dave Rowntree and Coxon, and heavy fuzz and distortion on the guitar, and the distorted bass comes in as Albarn yells 'woo-hoo'; to Coxon's surprise the label wanted it as a single, and it came out on 7 April 1997, two minutes and two seconds long, and reached number two in the UK. Punk rhythm tones are loud, dry and mid-forward, with enough gain to hold power chords together and not so much that fast downstrokes smear.
You do not need that exact gear to land in the same place. What carries this sound is the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup choice and the order of the effects, and all four can be rebuilt on equipment that costs a fraction of the original. The numbers change from amp to amp, because a high-gain head and a small practice amp reach the same voicing from different knob positions. That translation is what Tonelify works out for the rig you actually own.
Song 2 amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 1, with the bridge pickup.
- Gain 6
- Bass 5
- Middle 6
- Treble 6
- Presence 5
- Reverb 1
- Signal chain
- A couple of distortion pedals, stamped on together (Coxon does not remember which) → Marshall, turned well down (Coxon's guess)
- The control that matters most
- Rough on purpose. Coxon wanted a simple, horrible, clanging sound and stamped on a couple of distortion pedals into an amp he thinks was turned well down, so let the pedals make the noise into an amp set clean and not too loud. The record jumps from quiet verses to a chorus where the distorted bass and guitar crash in together, so the drop in level matters more than the exact amount of gain.
These positions are free and they are a starting point. A Katana, a Spark and a valve head reach this voicing from different knob positions, so Tonelify rewrites every value above for the amp and guitar you own. Your first match is free with an account, and needs no card.
Adapt these to my amp- Pickup
- Bridge pickup
These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. If you tell Tonelify which amp you own, it rewrites every value above for the controls that amp actually has.
What gear did Blur use on Song 2?
A Telecaster, by Graham Coxon's best guess, through what may have been his own Marshall turned well down, with a couple of distortion pedals he remembers stamping on for the loud parts, although he told producer Warren Huart in 2020 that he could not say which ones; Guitar Player describes him as playing mostly Telecasters through Marshalls, and Coxon says he was tired of complicated parts and wanted something simple and horrible, as noisy as possible, with a deliberately clanging, rough guitar sound; Damon Albarn's demo was a slow acoustic song with the 'woo-hoo' whistled, and Coxon suggested playing it fast and loud and telling the record label it should be the single, as a joke on them; the track was recorded at Maison Rouge Studio with the vocals sung live, two drum kits played at once by Dave Rowntree and Coxon, and heavy fuzz and distortion on the guitar, and the distorted bass comes in as Albarn yells 'woo-hoo'; to Coxon's surprise the label wanted it as a single, and it came out on 7 April 1997, two minutes and two seconds long, and reached number two in the UK.
Sources: Produce Like A Pro: inside Song 2 with Graham Coxon, Guitar Player: Graham Coxon on his style, and inside Song 2, Wikipedia: Song 2
Tonelify reads that chain and translates it to the amp and guitar you already own, returning gain, bass, mids, treble and presence values along with a pickup position.
How do you get the Song 2 tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Song 2
Get exact knob settings adapted to your rig
Song 2 tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Song 2?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 1, with the bridge pickup. These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. Tonelify rewrites the same values for the specific amp and guitar you own, because a high-gain head and a small solid-state combo reach the same two-minute burst of quiet verses and a distorted chorus that crashes in under a yelled 'woo-hoo' from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Song 2 tone?
Rough on purpose. Coxon wanted a simple, horrible, clanging sound and stamped on a couple of distortion pedals into an amp he thinks was turned well down, so let the pedals make the noise into an amp set clean and not too loud. The record jumps from quiet verses to a chorus where the distorted bass and guitar crash in together, so the drop in level matters more than the exact amount of gain.
Can you get the Song 2 tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with a Telecaster, by Graham Coxon's best guess, through what may have been his own Marshall turned well down, with a couple of distortion pedals he remembers stamping on for the loud parts, although he told producer Warren Huart in 2020 that he could not say which ones; Guitar Player describes him as playing mostly Telecasters through Marshalls, and Coxon says he was tired of complicated parts and wanted something simple and horrible, as noisy as possible, with a deliberately clanging, rough guitar sound; Damon Albarn's demo was a slow acoustic song with the 'woo-hoo' whistled, and Coxon suggested playing it fast and loud and telling the record label it should be the single, as a joke on them; the track was recorded at Maison Rouge Studio with the vocals sung live, two drum kits played at once by Dave Rowntree and Coxon, and heavy fuzz and distortion on the guitar, and the distorted bass comes in as Albarn yells 'woo-hoo'; to Coxon's surprise the label wanted it as a single, and it came out on 7 April 1997, two minutes and two seconds long, and reached number two in the UK, but the parts that define the sound are the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup position and the effects order. Those translate to other equipment, which is what the adaptation step does.
Is Song 2 a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from Blur's 1990s punk rock catalogue.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
Your first match for your own gear is free with an account, and needs no card. After that both plans start with a 7-day free trial: Stage is $6.99 a month for 20 matches, Headliner is $10.99 a month for unlimited matching within a fair use limit of 150 new matches a day, and yearly billing works out cheaper on both. Reading this page and the rest of the library costs nothing and needs no account.
