Not many can claim the ʻLiving Legendʼ status but Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister is most certainly deserving of the title. He also happens to be one of Marshallʼs most ardent fans, recently quoting:- “If it has Marshall written on it you can buy it without even a test drive, theyʼre that good.”
To honour this unique partnership that stretches back over three decades, the team at Marshall has created this new Signature Series amplifier that takes its inspiration from Lemmyʼs very own modified 1992 100W Super Bass unit – Murder One. The result is an amp that delivers sublime tone combined with sheer volume and crushing power, all wrapped up in a rugged oversized cab. The 1992LEM is no mere re-issue, this is a celebration of an iconic amplifier and its masterful owner, this is Murder One MKII. To fully understand the significance of this particular 1992 model we have to delve into the mists of time and revisit the history of Lemmy, Motörhead and Murder One itself.
FormerlyWe A Motörhead!a roadie for the late, great Jimi Hendrix and rhythm guitarist in numerous bands in the late ʼ60s, Lemmyʼs first notable bass pummelling antics were with psychedelic space rockers Hawkwind. Although not the regular lead singer Lemmy gave his vocal chords a stretch on the 1972 track Silver Machine, which remains the bands biggest hit. During his time with Hawkwind Lemmy developed his own distinctive bass playing style, possibly gleaned from his rhythm guitar days, preferring to use power chords rather than the single note technique favoured by most. But as the man himself professed:- “All the technique in the world donʼt mean sh*t if it donʼt sound right.” Youʼve been told! After being fired from the band over a “misdemeanour” on the Canadian border in 1975, Lemmy formed one of Rock ʻnʼ Rollʼs most musically prolific and uncompromising outfits – Motörhead. After some initial line up changes it was the combination of “Fast” Eddie Clarke on guitar, Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor on the skins and Lemmy on bass and vocal duties that defined the Motörhead sound in the late ʼ70s. Their most recognisable hit of course, is the iconic 1980 single Ace of Spades which has been the prerequisite track for every rock compilation since. Brutally fast, refreshingly uncomplicated and ear splittingly loud speed metal is what this power trio produced and rock fans the world over have loved Motörhead for it for over 30 years.
Guitarists and drummers may have come and gone, then come back and gone again throughout the ʼ80s and early ʼ90s, but the current line up of Phil Campbell (Guitar) and Mikkey Dee (Drums) has remained unchanged since 1995. The common thread binding the many guises of Motörhead together through the decades, apart from Lemmy himself, has been the raw, un-relenting wall of explosive sound that batters you about the head on every album and at every show. Never ones to follow big haired trends or jump on Nu-Metal band wagons, the Motörhead sound has remained as constant as Lemmyʼs pounding bass lines, microphones that point south and his love affair with 1992 Super Bass amps.
The amp that would eventually become Murder One was bought by Lemmy virtually brand new and had been finished in red vinyl. Made in 1976, just a year after Motörhead started down the road to rock infamy, this ʻmoddedʼ 1992 model has featured on nearly all of the subsequent brain rattling studio and live albums. For more than 30 years it was one of the hardest worked amps in the business, due to the relentless pace of life on the road sandwiched between stints in the recording studio. During Murder Oneʼs tenure as Lemmyʼs first choice thunder box the original red covering was given a lick of jet black paint and the face further customised with two unique emblems. Created from five-pointed Russian military stars inside ornate golden wreaths, these improvised crests stood proudly either side of the Murder One nameplate which in turn had been created from reflective traffic lettering.
Where did this custom of naming his amps come from though? Well according to his bass tech Tim Butcher “. . .[it] just comes from Lemmyʼs active mind, a blade and too much time on his hands. . .” Lemmy has also had at his disposal: Marsha, No Remorse and Killer among countless other Super Bass variants over the years which have all formed part of the imposing backdrop to many a Motörhead show. Lemmyʼs Marshall amps have become such an indelible part of Motörhead folklore that there were reports after a riotous gig in Argentina, where the crowd tore through the stage and destroyed most of the bandʼs equipment, that Murder One was being held to ransom! Thankfully, the truth is that most of Lemmyʼs rig, including his custom 4x12” and monstrous 4x15” Marshall Cabs, was safely pulled off stage moments before the over-zealous fans could get their sweaty, air punching hands on it. Sadly though, three plectrums and a microphone stand didnʼt make it!
ENGLISH
So Murder One survived to thump ear drums another day, which was good news for the Marshall team when Jim Marshall instructed them to produce a Signature Series bass amp honouring both his good friend and the most famous of his 1992 Super Bass horde. Placed in their more than capable hands, Murder One went under the ʻengineerʼs knifeʼ to see what made it tick so vigorously. Voltages were measured, transformers examined and circuitry scrutinised to establish the winning formula that has made this particular model such a formidable piece of kit. The outcome is the intimidating, uncompromising and brutish all-valve bass amp that you are no-doubt drooling over this very second.
Prior to their release, prototype 1992LEMs had been cutting their teeth with Lemmy, Phil and Mikkey on their 2007/08 world tour, a fiercely tough proving ground for any amp. It suffices to say that they sailed through the road test and proved themselves more than worthy successors to the mighty Murder One, which is now enjoying a well earned rest. No such retirement is planned for Lemmy though, as one of the last original metal maniacs there seems to be no end to his un-yielding stamina to write and perform Motörheadʼs own unique brand of head banging Rock ʻnʼ Roll. Armed with his new Signature Series Super Bass amps, that will no- doubt be christened before too long (any suggestions to www.imotorhead.com by the way), we are certain of many more years of the mind blowing tone and bone crushing volume that has come to epitomise the Lemmy and Marshall partnership since the ʼ70s. Long may it continue.
Finally, Marshall would like to thank Eddie, Roger, Tim, Abbe, Dan and the rest of the Motörhead road crew for their un-wavering help and support throughout this incredible project. Special thanks also to Phil and Mikkey for their continuing efforts to destroy the hearing of Motörhead fans the world over and thanks, of course, to the ʻgreatest living Englishmanʼ himself – Lemmy. He may have belted out:- “They say Iʼm gonna lose and gamblingʼs for fools, but thatʼs the way I like it baby, I donʼt want to live forever!” over a thousand times since 1980, but on current form it appears that he just might.
