Editing EBow

{{Short description|Electronic device for playing guitar}}
[[Image:PlusEBow.png|thumb|An EBow|220x220px]]
[[Image:EBow P1400291.JPG|thumb|Using an EBow with a [[Telecaster]]]]

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}}The '''EBow''' is an electronic device used for playing string instruments, most often the [[electric guitar]]. It was invented by the American guitarist Greg Heet in 1969 and introduced in 1976. The EBow uses a [[Pickup (music technology)|pickup]] and a [[Feedback loop|magnetic feedback circuit]] to vibrate strings without touching them, allowing players to [[sustain]] notes indefinitely.

==History==
The EBow was invented in 1969 by the American guitarist Greg Heet and introduced in 1976 at the [[NAMM]] trade show.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Ed |date=2012-07-18 |title=In praise of: the EBow |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/in-praise-of-the-ebow-553486 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=[[MusicRadar]] |language=en}}</ref> It has remained in continuous production since.<ref name="Gill-2023" /> The first version was activated by plucking the [[guitar string]]. The second, introduced in 1983, added an on/off switch and a more powerful drive. The third, introduced in 1989, had improved sensitivity and faster [[Envelope (music)|attack]]. The EBow Plus, introduced in 1998, adds a blue [[LED]] and a switch to allow users to move between normal and [[harmonic]] modes (which sounds one [[octave]] higher).<ref name="Gill-2023">{{Cite web |last=Gill |first=Chris |date=2023-05-04 |title=In praise of the EBow, one of the most under-appreciated yet influential guitar tools of all time |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/features/in-praise-of-the-ebow |access-date=2024-08-24 |website=[[Guitar World]] |language=en}}</ref> The Ebow is powered by a [[nine-volt battery]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=White |first=Paul |date=November 2020 |title=Why I love... the Ebow |url=https://www.soundonsound.com/people/why-love-ebow |access-date=2024-08-29 |website=[[Sound on Sound]] |publisher=SOS Publications Group}}</ref>

==Function==
The EBow uses a [[Pickup (music technology)|pickup]] and a [[Feedback loop|magnetic feedback circuit]] to vibrate strings without touching them. Whereas guitars traditionally have [[Envelope (music)|fast attack and slow release]], meaning notes ring immediately and then fade out, the EBow can sustain notes indefinitely and gives greater control over attack and decay.<ref name="Gill-2023" /> The EBow can only play one string at a time, but can be moved across the strings to play [[arpeggio]]s.<ref name=":0" /> It can produce sounds similar to cello or violin.<ref name="Gill-2023" />

==Use==
The EBow was particularly popular in 1980s music, used by acts such as [[Big Country]], [[Tones on Tail]], [[Love and Rockets (band)|Love and Rockets]] and [[Bill Nelson (musician)|Bill Nelson]].<ref name="Gill-2023" /> The Love and Rockets guitarist [[Daniel Ash]] said the EBow "changed everything for me ... [It] basically turns the guitar into a keyboard ... It completely opened up the sound of the guitar."<ref>{{cite web |date=16 May 2018 |title=There's Only One: An Interview with Daniel Ash |url=https://www.collideartandculture.com/single-post/2018/05/16/There%E2%80%99s-Only-One-An-Interview-with-Daniel-Ash |access-date=18 February 2023 |website=Collideartandculture.com}}</ref>

The EBow has been used to create background textures or sustained notes similar to [[guitar feedback]], as in "[[(Don't Fear) The Reaper]]" (1976) by [[Blue Öyster Cult]] and "[[Heaven Beside You]]" (1996) by [[Alice in Chains]].<ref name="Gill-2023" /> It was used by [[the Edge]] on the 1983 U2 album ''[[The Unforgettable Fire]]'' and by [[Noel Gallagher]] on the 1996 Oasis song "[[Don't Look Back in Anger]]".<ref name="Gill-2023" />

The EBow was prominently used by the [[Siouxsie and the Banshees]] guitarist [[John McGeoch]] on "Sin in My Heart", from the 1981 album ''[[Juju (Siouxsie and the Banshees album)|Juju]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sullivan-Burke|first=Rory|title=The Light Pours Out of Me: The Authorised Biography of John McGeoch|publisher=[[Omnibus Press]]|date=April 2022|isbn= 978-1913172664|page=108}}</ref> The EBow is used by the [[Radiohead]] guitarist [[Ed O'Brien]] for performances of songs such as "[[My Iron Lung]]", "Talk Show Host", "[[Jigsaw Falling into Place|Jigsaw Falling Into Place]]", "Where I End and You Begin" and "[[Nude (song)|Nude]]".<ref name="Duxson-2024">{{Cite web |last=Duxson |first=Eli |date=2024-02-15 |title=The story of the EBow in seven tracks |url=https://mixdownmag.com.au/features/the-story-of-the-ebow-in-7-tracks/ |access-date=2024-08-24 |website=Mixdown |language=en-AU}}</ref> Other users include [[Duran Duran]], the [[Red Hot Chili Peppers]], [[Van Halen]], [[Metallica]] and the [[Foo Fighters]].<ref name="Gill-2023" /> The Canadian-American [[ambient rock]] band [[Vision Eternel]] uses an EBow on nearly all their songs.<ref name="NewNoiseMagazineInterview2021">{{Cite web |last=Reed |first=Mick |date=January 21, 2021 |title=Interview: Vision Eternel, Moments of Clarity a Mist of Memory |url=https://newnoisemagazine.com/interview-vision-eternel-moments-of-clarity-a-mist-of-memory |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126135505/https://newnoisemagazine.com/interview-vision-eternel-moments-of-clarity-a-mist-of-memory |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |access-date=July 12, 2023 |website=[[New Noise Magazine]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="ReGenMagazineInterview2024">{{Cite web |last=Mayo |first=Stitch |date=March 12, 2024 |title=InterView: Vision Eternel – Dark and Depressive Phases |url=https://regenmag.com/interviews/interview-vision-eternel-dark-and-depressive-phases |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250213024024/https://www.visioneternel.com/vision-eternel-interview-for-regen-magazine |archive-date=February 13, 2025 |access-date=February 13, 2025 |website=ReGen Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>

In the 1980s, [[the Bongos]] used the EBow in the intro of their song "Numbers With Wings" and in "River To River", "Miss Jean", "Glow", "Flew A Falcon" and "Sweet Blue Cage". Frontman [[Richard Barone]] continues to use an EBow on his subsequent solo recordings and much of his production work including his songs "Love is a Wind that Screams" and his cover of [[T. Rex (band)|T. Rex]]'s "The Visit".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2013/10/09/from-the-desk-of-richard-barone-my-ebow-and-me/ |title=From The Desk Of Richard Barone: My EBow And Me|website=Magnetmagazine.com|date=9 October 2013 |access-date=18 February 2023}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[E-Bow the Letter]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ebow.com/ EBow website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120415220647/http://www.diyguitarist.com/DIYStompboxes/EbowTech.htm EBow Technical Analysis]
* [[Wikibooks:Guitar/E-bow|EBow entry on Wikibooks]]

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[[Category:Guitar parts and accessories]]
[[Category:Effects units]]
[[Category:Products introduced in 1976]]