In a serendipitous blend of hard rock heritage and boutique amplification wizardry, guitar icon Jake E. Lee and Friedman Amplification founder Dave Friedman turned an ordinary afternoon into an electrifying jam session, channeling the raw energy of ’70s rock into modern sonic innovation. Described by insiders as a “great day messing around,” the impromptu collaboration at Friedman’s Southern California workshop yielded fresh riffs, amp tweaks, and a palpable excitement that harks back to the golden era of guitar-driven anthems.
Lee, the virtuosic axeman best known for his blistering contributions to Ozzy Osbourne’s Bark at the Moon (1983) and The Ultimate Sin (1986), has long been synonymous with the aggressive yet articulate tones that bridged classic hard rock and ’80s metal. His tenure with Badlands and Red Dragon Cartel further cemented his status as a tonal bridge-builder, blending muscular Plexi warmth with high-gain scream. Friedman, the self-taught amp visionary whose hand-wired creations have powered countless stage legends, has been Lee’s go-to collaborator since their first signature project in 2023.
The session, held amid a sea of tube amps and half-built prototypes, kicked off with Lee plugging into a prototype extension of the JEL-20—a 20-watt all-tube head released earlier this year as a more accessible follow-up to the limited-edition JEL-100. “We started with some old-school riffs from my Ozzy days, but Dave had this new circuit tweak that added just the right bite without losing the heart,” Lee shared in a brief statement. “It’s like messing around in the garage, but with gear that could headline arenas. Pure magic.”
Friedman, ever the musician-at-heart rather than a mere technician, echoed the sentiment. “Jake’s got that innate feel for what a tone needs—not just what it wants. We were dialing in a TS-style boost on the IR-J preamp, and suddenly it was like the amp was breathing with us. No egos, just chasing the sound.” The IR-J, a pedalboard-friendly dual-tube preamp launched in June 2025, incorporates Lee’s favored modded JCM800/Plexi circuits alongside low-latency DSP impulse responses for direct recording. It’s already become a staple for touring pros seeking Lee’s signature roar in a compact package.
Eyewitnesses described the pair trading solos over Badlands-inspired grooves, with Lee unleashing behind-the-head flourishes reminiscent of his infamous stage antics. Friedman, grinning ear-to-ear, adjusted gain staging on the fly, revealing a JEL-50 head—another Lee signature model boasting 50 watts of hand-wired fury—that pushed the limits of pedal integration. “The effects loop on these is transparent as glass,” Friedman noted. “Jake threw a wah and phaser in there, and it was like the ’80s never left.”
This isn’t the first time the duo has sparked creatively; their partnership birthed the JEL series, which has sold out limited runs and garnered rave reviews for its evolutionary glue between eras. The JEL-20, in particular, pairs seamlessly with matching 1×12 cabinets loaded with Celestion Creambacks, delivering Lee’s “ultimate tones” in a bedroom-friendly footprint. Retailers report brisk demand, with bundles fetching upwards of $3,000, but enthusiasts swear the investment captures Lee’s athletic ’80s flair rooted in ’70s fundamentals.
As the sun dipped over the workshop, the session wrapped with promises of more to come—perhaps a track for Lee’s next Red Dragon Cartel outing or an expanded IR-J firmware update. In an industry often bogged down by digital modeling, this analog throwdown reaffirms why flesh-and-blood collaboration still reigns supreme.
For fans, the takeaway is clear: When Lee and Friedman “mess around,” the result is anything but ordinary. Keep an eye on Friedman’s site for potential footage or new releases; in the meantime, crank up “Bark at the Moon” and imagine what could be next.
