Billie Joe Armstrong’s Marshall 1959SLP “Meat”

Billie Joe’s second Marshall Plexi, the one he called Meat, showed up after Pete was already established as the main amp on Dookie. The exact year isn’t clear, but by the Insomniac tour it was already in use. Just like Pete, Meat started life as a Marshall 1959 Super Lead, but instead of the Dookie mod it was taken to Martin Golub and fitted with the SE Lead mod. That mod gave it more gain and sustain compared to Pete.

From then on Pete and Meat were always seen together. Pete did the job of recreating the Dookie tone, while Meat acted as the backup and the heavier option when the songs called for it. On Nimrod and Warning tours both amps were stacked on the cabs, Pete carrying most of the rhythm work and Meat coming in for the parts that needed more push.

By the time of American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown, the roles were pretty much set. Pete had the rawer tone, closer to the early Green Day sound, while Meat gave Billie Joe a smoother, heavier tone that worked better in big arenas.