Birds Of A Feather

Billy Duffy, Founding Guitarist Of 80s Hard Rock Heroes The Cult, Talks All Things White Falcon With The Fast-rising Piston’s Jack Edwards…

- Amit Sharma

September 24, 2006 is a certainly day that left its mark on an 11-year-old Jack Edwards. For his first gig, he was taken by his mother to see The Cult on their A Return To Wild tour at Birmingham’s Carling Academy and found himself awestruck by the sheer size and sound of Billy Duffy’s Gretsch White Falcon. After the show, the band’s roadies came over to hand out some plectrums and his fate was sealed – the young musician had found his true calling.

Twelve years and three and a half grand later, Edwards finally managed to get his hands on Duffy’s signature for use in his own band Piston, and not long after that ended up signing his own endorsement deal with Gretsch. On a late summer afternoon, the pair meet at London rehearsal spot John Henry’s – a facility used extensively by The Cult over the years, and where some of their equipment is kept in deep storage – to discuss the art of songcraft and why they put their trust in White Falcons to do things other guitars simply can’t…

What do you remember most about that night in Birmingham?

Jack: “I’d never seen a guitar player before, let alone anyone playing a guitar like that. To my 11-year-old mind, it all felt really huge. I was brought up on records by The Cult and Guns N’ Roses, so it was very special to see Billy right in front of us.”