The Most Comprehensive List Of Backline Stock In Europe

At John Henry's, we have the most comprehensive list of backline stock in Europe, available for touring or studio work. Our inventory is constantly updated with the latest professional equipment, as well as select classics. All our equipment is routinely maintained and PAT tested to ensure optimum performance, every time.

All our equipment is supplied fully flightcased with all appropriate cabling and necessary accessories where required. A delivery and collection service is available for the UK and Europe. We also deliver and collect worldwide.

We are competitively priced, with special rates for long-term rentals. We strive to match the most exacting specifications and provide the best in back-up service.

If you are looking for amplifiers, speaker cabinets, combos, pre-amps, guitars basses, double-basses, keyboards, synthesizers, samplers, sound modules, rack effects, foot pedals, drums, percussion, pick-ups, pianos, cooling fans, music stands, transformers, turntables and much much more, then there is only one place to contact.

Backline Featured Equipment

Featured here, a small selection of our Fender amps.
Clockwise from far left:

Fender Super - 2x10" combo. Brown tolex finish (1963)
Fender Concert - 4x10" combo. Brown tolex finish (1963)
Fender Twin - 2x12" combo. Blackface (1966)
Fender Twin - 2x12" combo. Silverface (1974)
Fender Deluxe Reverb - 1x12" combo. Blackface Re-issue

NEWS FROM THE BACKLINE DEPARTMENT

Free Bird ?

Legendary US southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd has just finished their first tour of the UK and Europe in seven years to support their new album God & Guns, due out later this year on Loud & Proud / Roadrunner Records.

Their sold-out London show at Brixton Academy rocked out to a full house with new material and old favourites, closing the show with “Sweet Home Alabama” & "Freebird" still sounding as fresh as it did way back when first released.  http://www.lynyrdskynyrd.com/?module=reviews_tour&id=71 for more info

Tour manager Steve Voudouris got in touch with Pepin Clout at JHL to supply all the band’s backline and guitar radio systems for the run. Amongst the comprehensive range of vintage and contemporary pieces supplied was the mighty new Korg M3 88 note workstation which is now added to our inventory!

See it at http://www.korg.com/Product.aspx?pd=280

JHL goes AER Acoustic

Added to our Backline stock this month is the amazing AER Compact 60 MK11 acoustic combo.

Compact 60 was developed after the AcoustiCube on which its concept is based and it helped substantially to break out of the ‘boutique-corner’. We were able to prove to a bigger and increasingly more interested public that an all-round, small, powerful and yet simple complete solution for stage, studio and home use does exist and that it works up to the highest demands and standards.   See it at http://www.aer-amps.info/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

New to our ever growing backline supply this month:

Canopus Neo Vintage Drum Kit - White Marine Pearl

John Henry's are the first and only UK company to acquire one of these amazing kits, in recent years, a return to vintage musical instruments is a universal tide in all genre of music. To respond to this trend. CANOPUS presents their NEO-Vintage series.

For more info: http://www.canopusdrums.com/en/drumproducts/neovintage/kit/index.html

Gretsch Gold Sparkle Drum Kit

At a time when Retro is as hip as ever, Gretsch embellishes the retro vibe by offering a true new professional drum set in the New Classic series. Featuring proportionate Gretsch-formula maple shells, this drum-set produces a vintage Gretsch tonality while giving these drums their own distinctive sound.

See them at http://www.gretsch.com/drums/index.html

Clavia - Nord Electro 3 73

With the introduction of the Nord Electro 3, the legacy of the original Electro and the know-how that have shaped some of the other Nord models have been combined. The Electro 3 features a new organ section, a new piano section, new effects and also a new exciting feature that allows the Electro 3 to use any samples from the Nord Wave library. The Nord Electro’s first adventure for John Henry’s is the Solange Knowles UK and European tour.

http://www.nordkeyboards.com/main.asp?tm=Products&clpm=Nord_Electro_3

Gibson – CJ-165

The Gibson CJ 165 ROSEWOOD is one of the new additions to our stock. The 6-String Mini Jumbo Acoustic Guitar is the stunning modern classic series model. It’s small-body shape is the evolution of the iconic SJ-200. For more info please click here: www.gibson.com For an example of how the CJ-165 sounds, have a look here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS9NRTbZWPQ

Gibson – Songwriter Deluxe Acoustic-Electric Guitar

The Gibson Songwriter Deluxe Acoustic-Electric Guitar has the traditional square-shouldered small dreadnought Gibson body style and sound. The premium Sitka spruce top on Indian rosewood back and sides produce wonderful resonance with tonal integrity.

See all the info at http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Features/songwriter-deluxe-standard/

Peavey – Cirrus 5

Cirrus 5 BXP bass guitar has a neck-through-body design and construction that delivers unmatched tone, sustain and string clarity more than any bass in its class. With two custom VFL(TM) active pickups and a 3-band active EQ, the Cirrus BXP basses allow you full control over volume and tonality.

See details at http://www.peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/107184/Cirrus(TM)%205%20Bolt-On%20Mahogany.cfm

Few are nearer the nerve centre of the touring industry than Backline Rental Manager Tark Bates, who revels in the laws of uncertainty and improbability on which our touring industry is founded.

Take the call he took from Zebrahead, who are signed to the same management as Motorhead, on a recent Friday morning late in the month. Tark listened in astonishment as he was told that the drummer had fractured his leg (or some other body part … Tark can’t quite remember) and was told a replacement needed to be found fast. He assumed the caller was referring to a complete stand-in drummer (rather than just a prosthetic limb) and zipped into action. “We arranged full backline and a day’s rehearsal space in our studios the following day to bring the stand-in drummer up to speed,” he says. The tour was due to start 24 hours later. Result…. one happy customer and a tour that had looked in jeopardy went ahead.

The Backline dept also sent a truck load of backline to Birmingham (Carling Academy) for Dio on the 27th and London Astoria (28th), while we had to muster up a last minute backline for Lionel Richie and The Overtures to be delivered to Lake Windermere in Cumbria on the 24th for a corporate gig on the 25th (since the specified equipment could not be sourced locally or north of the border).

To get an idea of the heavy traffic experienced in Brewery Road (fortunately we operate a Congestion Charge Free Zone at JHL) here is a snapshot of the activity over 12 days in May where backline, techs, transport, rehearsals and staging were supplied.

12th May –
GMTV - Minnie Driver - backline; Paul O'Grady Show - Lenny Kravitz - backline; Later with Jools – Nick Cave, Chatham County Line, The Raconteurs, Glasvegas – monitor systems & backline; The Wall – Black Lips – monitor system;

13th May –
This Morning – Lenny Kravitz – backline and full monitoring system, One Republic – backline; Graham Norton Show - One Republic – backline; Later with Jools – as above

May 14th -
Paul O'Grady Show - Sheryl Crow – backline, Josh Groban –backline
4 Music Nick Cave at LSO St Lukes – complete sound and staging

May 15th –
Jonathan Ross – Neil Diamond – floor sound & piano; An Audience with Neil Diamond – perspex screens, music stands and transformers,

May 16th –
This Morning - Sheryl Crow - backline and monitor system; GMTV- A.J.McLean – backline; Paul O’Grady Show - Duffy - backline

May 17th –
Nokia Green Room – backlines for Jamie Lidell, The Subways, Feeder and Gabriella Cilmi; I’d do Anything – backline & C2LS piano for house band

May 19th
This Morning - Sandi Thom – backline; Sound – Duffy, Alphabeat, Zutons,Taio Cruz, Late of the Pier, Fratellis, Mystery Jets - monitor system and backlines; Later – Tricky, Paul Weller, Martha Wainwright, Jimmy Cliff, White Lines – monitor systems and some backlines; The Wall – Black Kids – monitor system

May 20th
Paul O'Grady Show – I’d do Anything cast – backline; Later – as above;

May 21st
Paul O'Grady Show – 500th Show – backline; Q-Music – Elbow – full PA and staging

May 23rd
This Morning - Beth Rowley – backline; GMTV - The Zutons - backline

During the month we also kept the Jazz Cafe in Camden Town London supplied with backline for a host of artists including legends such as…..

Stanley Clarke, Roy Ayers and Milton Nascimento, The Skatalites, Blind Boys of Alabama, Fertile Ground, Vieux Farka Touré, The Blackbyrds, Jose James, Stevie Wonder Tribute, Gregory Isaacs and Luisito Quintero.

We also supplied backline (equipment and crew) for Africa Day at Trafalgar Square and Whitney Houston's charity performance at the Cauldwell Children Legends Ball, Battersea Evolution arena (May 8).

New equipment to meet Rental demand and requirements…..

Backline Department:
Korg Radias Bundle keyboard (Usher)
Clavia Nord C1 keyboard (Figurines)
Clavia Nord Lead Stage 88 note piano (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds)

Fender Pro Junior 15w 1 x 10 combo (Rooney)
Fender Blues Junior 15w 1 x 12 combo (Duffy)
Fender Super-Sonic 112 Combo (Matchbox 20)
Gallien-Krueger 410 & 115 RBH bass cabinets (Mary J Blige)

Hofner 500/1 v65 bass (Gnarls Barkley)
Kurzweil PC2X keyboard (Various)
Vic Firth Stereo Isolation Drummer Headphones (Estelle)
Vox AC15CC1X custom combo (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds)
Vox AC30CC2X 2 x 12 Custom Classic combo (One Republic)
Yamaha HS80M studio monitors (Whitney Houston)
Yamaha CGP-1000 Digital Grand Piano (Osmonds)

Justin Timberlake

JHL supplied Audio and Backline equipment including:

Audio: Two Yamaha PM5D-RH Digital consoles, XTA DP226 CX, Avalon VT-747SP and a full microphone and stand spec. Backline: Fender Rhodes 88 Suitcase pianos, Hammond B3 Organ and Leslie, Clavia Nord Lead 11, Korg Triton Pro, Korg Triton Studio 76's, Moog Voyager, Yamaha Motif ES7 keyboards, Ampeg SVT 1V Pro amps, Roland JC120 combos, Hughes&Kettner Triamp and cabs, Tama Starclassic maple drums and Toca percussion.

	Mary J Blige

Mary J Blige played her only UK date at the newly reconstructed Wembley Arena and had everyone on their feet from the first note of current Darkchild produced single "Enough Cryin". One song after another she segues across styles and periods of her career. She closed the show with "Family Affair" and sent everyone home with a groove in their step.

JHL supplied Backline equipment which included:

Gallien Kruger 2001 Series bass amps and cabs, DW Collectors series drums, Sabian HHX series cymbals, Line 6 HD-147 Series amps and cabs , Roland Fantom Series, X8, X7, V-Synth, VK7, Yamaha ES7, Korg Triton Pro keyboards and Roland Fantom XV5080's modules.

George Benson

From Jazz guitar legend to soul-pop vocalist extraordinaire, 8 time Grammy winner George Benson's music is both versatile and unpredictable and has made him one of the world's most respected musicians for the past 30 years.

JHL were proud to supply him and his superb band with their backline requirements which included:

Fender Twin 65 Re-Issue combos, Polytone Mini-Brute combos, SWR SM-900 amps and cabs, the mighty Yamaha C7 MK11 Grand piano complete with a Helpinstill Model 180 pickup system, Yamaha Motif ES7 & ES8's, Roland XP80 & Yamaha Maple Custom kit.

	Earth Wind & Fire

Earth Wind and Fire (EWF) returned to Europe for a short tour to let us all re-live hits like "Shining Star", "Let's Groove", "Boogie Wonderland" and "After the Love is Gone". In their 35 years they have notched up eight Grammy Awards, four American Music Awards, eight double Platinum/Top 10 Pop albums, eight number #1 R&B singles, a Star on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" and "Lifetime Achievement Honours", EWF and their music remains as inspirational and influential as ever.

JHL were contracted to supply a full set of Backline equipment including:

Crate VC5 212 combos, Taylor W12 acoustic guitar, SWR SM-900 amps and Megogoliath cabs, GEM Promega 2, Kurzweil PC-2X, Roland VK7, Roland V-Synth, Yamaha Motif7 keyboards, Roland XV-5080, Yamaha Motif racks, DW Collectors Series drums, Sabain cymbals and vast quantity of LP Percussion to name but some.

Roland at John Henry's
07 July 2005

JHL have recently serviced a massive rental requirement for Destiny’s Child who had specified a full compliment of the new Roland FANTOM range of keyboards and modules, the specification included:

1 x Fantom-X8
3 x Fantom-X7’s
3 x Fantom-X6’s
3 x Fantom-XR modules

"The Fantom-X Series are the world's first "Giga-Workstation" keyboards, giving musicians nearly 1GB of wave memory when fully expanded and powerful 128-voice polyphony. The synthesis section's new waves include a gorgeous 88-key split stereo-sampled piano, plus room for 4 SRX expansions. The sampler can be upgraded to 544MB of RAM, which provides enough recording time to use it like a digital recorder. The Fantom-X Series is also the first line of workstation keyboards with a color LCD screen. Between these features and their sleek new looks, the Fantom-X Series is poised to become the workstation of choice."

Also added to the list of Roland equipment requirements was the mighty Roland V-Synth - flagship 61-note synthesizer with multiple oscillator technology.

The JHL philosophy of, “what the customer wants, the customer gets” won the day. For all you gear spotters out there, these keyboards could be seen at the Live8 concert, as used by Mariah Carey in London’s Hyde Park concert and by Destiny’s Child performance in Philadelphia in the USA.

More information on the Fantom-X range on the Roland site.

Brian Wilson takes his pets on the road!
John Henry's have just supplied all the equipment for Brian Wilson's "Pet Sounds" tour, which ran through Europe from 17th Jan to the 2nd Feb, including four nights at the Royal Festival Hall. Everything from French Horns to Finger Cymbals were supplied by the Backline Department, and by all accounts it was a show to remember. The "Pet Sounds" (credited by Sir Paul as inspiration for Sgt.Pepper!!) album was performed in it's entirety, by a fantastic band of multi-intrumentalists, all topped off with outstanding vocals. There will be more dates in the summer, so keep your eyes peeled!

Virtual Classics come to John Henry's
JHL Backline have just taken delivery of the brand new Nord Electro 73. All the best electromechanical keyboards in the one easy to handle package. Classic electric piano's, Clav's, and the almighty tonewheel organ are all flawlessly re-recreated, with a wonderful "waterfall" keybed (as on the B3!). A multitude of fx are also included, as well as an extra patch memory for downloading new patches from the internet! Stop killing your crew! Rent the Nord Electro today!

More info from www.handinhand.uk.net

Two Grand ! !
More additions to the JHL Backline Department…. Two digital grand piano's! One from Yamaha, the DGT7A, and one from Roland, the KR-1077. Both these Digital Grands play and sound like fine acoustic pianos, with the added bonus that they never go out of tune (unless you want them to!) These pianos have been used recently by The Corrs, Stereophonics, David Gray, Lionel Richie, Tom Jones, and Shirley Bassey to name but a few!! No piano tuner required!

More info from www.roland.co.uk and www.yamaha.com/pianos.htm

New Yamaha Flagship Workstations available for rental!
John Henry's now have all three models of the new MOTIF workstation in stock for sale or rental. Imagine the sonic power of the world's most advanced synth combined with the hands-on inspiration of a cutting edge groove box. Then add a brand new concept - an Integrated Sampling Sequencer that seamlessly integrates audio sampling with MIDI in a way never achieved before. Top it off with an intuitive user interface that gives you streamlined control over all that sonic firepower and you have the ultimate music workstation……MOTIF!

More info from www.yamahasynth.com

When is a Les Paul not a Les Paul?
It looks like a Les Paul. It feels like a Les Paul. It certainly sounds like a Les Paul, until a tweak of a knob reveals the sound of a built in acoustic blender pick up!!! Ordered in especially for Alanis Morrisette's recent shows and TV appearances, this Les Paul's tailpiece hides a piezo acoustic pickup, which provides an instant acoustic guitar sound, which is blendable with the Les Paul sound we all know and love. In stock and available for rental from John Henry's Backline Dept.


Dweezil's amp! It looks like a car!!
"The road you take to achieve cool tone is as individual as you are"..the manual starts...and there has never been anything as individual as this! The "Wiggy", designed by Dweezil Zappa, is a visual delight, and after the initial plug in, we can confirm that it sounds great too! With controls labelled "RPM", "MPH", "OIL" and "BATT", and a 5 band graphic which gives either "more" or "less", the Wiggy is the amp for you if you like to stand out from the crowd, both visually and audibly! It even has hazard lights! The cabinet is a 2x12, in a diagonal configuration, which makes it nicely smaller than a 4x12 and larger than the traditional 2x12, making the Wiggy stack a winner! ...wonder what Frank would've made of it?...

Visit www.peavey.com/guitaramps/wiggy.html for more information, or come in and have a go!

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