John first used the Marshall Silver Jubilee 25/55 100W during the Californication tour in the late 90s and continued using it on all the subsequent albums. The amp basically became a staple of John’s main stage setup, almost always paired with a Marshall Major amp.
In the Chili Peppers, I always have a Marshall Major, Marshall Jubilee, and my old Fender Stratocasters.
Vintage Guitar (USA), April 2009
On some occasions, John was seen using two Marshall Silver Jubilees simultaneously on stage, as shown in the Slane Castle footage. According to John’s guitar tech, Dave Lee, the second Jubilee was dedicated specifically to producing an overdriven tone.
The second Silver Jubilee was a stand alone amp. Usually with no effects. And set to an overdriven tone. Almost always played with the black Les Paul. We called that the ‘Slash Rig’. I remember during a show in LA, John playing that rig, and Slash standing right in front of him in the audience watching. I remember thinking ‘I wonder if Slash realizes he inspired that rig?’ Ironic.”
JF Effects Interviews: Dave Lee (2016)
The Marshall Silver Jubilee 25/55 100W was introduced in 1987 to celebrate Marshall’s 25th anniversary and Jim Marshall’s 50 years in the music industry—hence the name “Jubilee.” The amp became instantly recognizable for its silver tolex covering and unique design. It offered both clean and overdriven channels, with the added feature of a diode clipping circuit, which allowed for a smoother, more compressed distortion compared to other Marshall amps.
Californication Studio Sessions?
Based on all the information that is available on the web, John doesn’t seem to mention using the Silver Jubilee on the Cali studio sessions. He is quoted as saying that he used “real old ’65 Marshall,” likely referring to a JTM-45, and a 200-watt bass head. Also, photographs from the recording period show a Marshall JTM-45, a Marshall Super Bass, and a Fender Showman in the studio, but not a Silver Jubilee.
So it seems that the Silver Jubilee only entered John’s main after the sessions were wrapped up.
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