Via WaPo

Glenn Snoddy, a Nashville studio engineer who built a pedal that enabled guitarists to create the snarling “fuzz tone,” unleashing sonic distortion possibilities that influenced generations of rock guitarists, died May 21 at his home in Murfreesboro, Tenn. He was 96.

The fuzz effect was first heard — by accident — on country singer Marty Robbins’s 1961 record “Don’t Worry.”

During the recording session, guitarist Grady Martin’s six-string bass guitar was being run through a console with a defective transformer. The distorted and almost flatulent sound initially annoyed Mr. Snoddy, and he requested a redo. Martin, producer Don Law and the other musicians convinced him that they had stumbled on something new.