# What's this instrument?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [December 29, 2007, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644 "2007-12-29T22:55:01Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Crawlspace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Crawlspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crawlspace)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2007, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/1 "2007-12-29T22:55:01Z")

</div>

Can anyone figure out what’s being played at the very beginning of the song [Once Around The Block](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAtcJ954TjQ) by Badly Drawn Boy. The only thing I was able to find makes mention of “a funky shimmering wah-wah effect-laden guitar lick,” but that doesn’t sound right.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2007, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/2 "2007-12-29T23:04:12Z")

</div>

It sounds to me like an accustic guitar played through an effects rack. I hear distortion and wah for sure but there might be other stuff on there too. Anyway, it’s definitely some kind of accustic guitar, possibly a dobro.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![totoismomo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@totoismomo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/totoismomo)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2007, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/3 "2007-12-29T23:51:42Z")

</div>

My guess is an [auto-wah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto-wah) on an acoustic guitar.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2007, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/4 "2007-12-29T23:53:53Z")

</div>

[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic]  
It sounds to me like an accustic guitar played through an effects rack. I hear distortion and wah for sure but there might be other stuff on there too. Anyway, it’s definitely some kind of accustic guitar, possibly a dobro.  
[/QUOTE]

Yep, sounds like a very mildly distorted acoustic to me, run through a pedal - my ex used to have something he called an “autowah” (always thought he was saying Ottawa!). Sounds very, very like that, to my ears. I could be way off, though. It’s been many years.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BACI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ce73a5/32.png) [@BACI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BACI)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2007, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/5 "2007-12-30T00:47:04Z")

</div>

I think there’s some auto doubling or real time pitch shifting happening in there too. I wouldn’t be so sure it’s a guitar. Something about the timing of the notes - feels more like there’s a left hand / right hand keyboard thing going on rather than a guitar.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BACI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ce73a5/32.png) [@BACI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BACI)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2007, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-this-instrument/431644/6 "2007-12-30T00:48:41Z")

</div>

OK - just listened again… it’s a guitar. Sticking with my real time pitch shifting story though…