Report that Prince has died

[brandx]

I'm sorry but that's twice you mentioned Neil Young can't play a lick, which instrument that Young plays are you referring to? Piano, organ, guitar, harmonica?

Agreed. Too many people judge a guitarist by their "gymnastic" ability on the fret board.  Give me someone who plays to the song rather than to set a speed record anytime. Good records are all about the music - not about the guitarist's dexterity. Style matters.

Guitarists I would include here include Young, David Gilmour, Edge, Peter Buck, and Keith Richards.

[keefe]

I'm sorry but that's twice you mentioned Neil Young can't play a lick, which instrument that Young plays are you referring to? Piano, organ, guitar, harmonica?

I am a huge fan of Neil Young but I think most would say his greatest contributions have been as a poet. Young offers an everyman perspective on life that celebrates the essential dignity of the human spirit and the importance of connection and community over materialism. I have never heard anyone applaud his skills as a guitar player; there is a reason he embraced the fuzz guitar.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

Neil Young....LOL.    Not even in the conversation.

But if he died today, I'd feel less sad than Prince.  Young is 70, Prince was 57.  Sad either way, but levels of sadness quite different.

Can you post the official Chico sliding scale of sadness meter? 

I imagine it looking a little like a slide-rule with multiple lenses that allow for debits for drug use and credits for purity in addition to age and other inputs.

[Lennys Tap]

Can you post the official Chico sliding scale of sadness meter? 

I imagine it looking a little like a slide-rule with multiple lenses that allow for debits for drug use and credits for purity in addition to age and other inputs.

+100. What kind of person actually spends time thinking about where he would rate people on his personal sad-o-meter should they meet their demise? You want sad? That is sad.

[brandx]

I am a huge fan of Neil Young but I think most would say his greatest contributions have been as a poet. Young offers an everyman perspective on life that celebrates the essential dignity of the human spirit and the importance of connection and community over materialism. I have never heard anyone applaud his skills as a guitar player; there is a reason he embraced the fuzz guitar.

Rolling Stone had him rated at #17 of greatest guitar players of all time.

Trey Anastasio had the following to say about Neil.

"If I was ever going to teach a master class to young guitarists, the first thing I would play them is the first minute of Neil Young's original "Down by the River" solo. It's one note, but it's so melodic, and it just snarls with attitude and anger. It's like he desperately wants to connect. Neil's playing is like an open tube from his heart right to the audience. In the Nineties, we played a festival with Crazy Horse. At the end of "Like a Hurricane," Neil went into this feedback solo that was more like a sonic impressionist painting. He was about six feet back from the microphone, singing so you could just hear him over the colorful waves of hurricanelike sound.

I think about that moment a lot when I'm playing. Traditional concepts of rhythm and keys are great, but music is like a giant ocean. It's a big, furious place, and there are a lot of trenches that haven't been explored. Neil is still blazing a trail for people who are younger than him, reminding us you can break artistic ground."


Neil knows more about sound, tone, melody and guitar dynamics than 99.9% of guitarists in the world. Technique and creativity cannot be judged separately.

[keefe]

Rolling Stone had him rated at #17 of greatest guitar players of all time.

Trey Anastasio had the following to say about Neil.

"If I was ever going to teach a master class to young guitarists, the first thing I would play them is the first minute of Neil Young's original "Down by the River" solo. It's one note, but it's so melodic, and it just snarls with attitude and anger. It's like he desperately wants to connect. Neil's playing is like an open tube from his heart right to the audience. In the Nineties, we played a festival with Crazy Horse. At the end of "Like a Hurricane," Neil went into this feedback solo that was more like a sonic impressionist painting. He was about six feet back from the microphone, singing so you could just hear him over the colorful waves of hurricanelike sound.

I think about that moment a lot when I'm playing. Traditional concepts of rhythm and keys are great, but music is like a giant ocean. It's a big, furious place, and there are a lot of trenches that haven't been explored. Neil is still blazing a trail for people who are younger than him, reminding us you can break artistic ground."


Neil knows more about sound, tone, melody and guitar dynamics than 99.9% of guitarists in the world. Technique and creativity cannot be judged separately.

Touche, x.

For me, Neil Young is a poet.

For guitar I look to jazz players. My favorite is Pat Metheny but guys like Joe Pass, Jim Hall, Al DiMeola, Stanley Jordan, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Christian, and Django Reinhardt are head and shoulders above the crowd. From the blues I am a fan of Stevie Ray, BB, Robert Cray, Jimmy Page, Duane Allman, Clapton, and Johnny Winter.

I think any of those guys plays circles around Neil Young but music is a matter of style and taste.

I have gone out of my way many times to see Pat Metheny play. He is incredible as a player and composer. He is one of those rare once in a century talents.

[brandx]

Touche, x.

For me, Neil Young is a poet.

For guitar I look to jazz players. My favorite is Pat Metheny but guys like Joe Pass, Jim Hall, Al DiMeola, Stanley Jordan, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Christian, and Django Reinhardt are head and shoulders above the crowd. From the blues I am a fan of Stevie Ray, BB, Robert Cray, Jimmy Page, Duane Allman, Clapton, and Johnny Winter.

I think any of those guys plays circles around Neil Young but music is a matter of style and taste.

I have gone out of my way many times to see Pat Metheny play. He is incredible as a player and composer. He is one of those rare once in a century talents.

It does come down to personal taste. Metheny is one of the few who deftly combine technical skill plus feel. Not many do that.

Neil expressed a lot of my feelings when he said "Nobody gives a crap if you have good technique or not. It's whether you have feelings that you want to express with music, that's what counts, really. When you are able to express yourself and feel good, then you know why you're playing. The technical aspect is absolute hogwash as far as I'm concerned. It bores me to tears. I can't play fast. I don't even know my scales. I know that most of the notes I play aren't where I play them. They're simply not there. So you can play any note you like. I think about it on another level, I don't care about that sort of crap. On the other hand, I appreciate really great guitarists, and I'm very impressed by those metal groups with their scale guitarists. When I see that, I go «Holy crap, that's really something». Satriani and Eddie Van Halen are guitar geniuses. They are incredible musicians, at an amazing level. But it does't really grab me. One note will do."

That is why Edge is one of my two or three favorites. It's ALL about feel, mood, and adding to the song. The song and what it is trying to express takes precedence over everything else.

[Spotcheck Billy]

God bless scoop, any thread can go from memorializing Prince to arguments over who was punk 1st to whose dick is bigger Neil Young or Pat Methany to claiming Jimmy Page is a blues guitarist

[StillAWarrior]

Since this has turned to a guitar thread, I stumbled across a guy that I really enjoy listening to:  Estas Tonne.  There are a lot of videos on YouTube and I sometimes just run them in the background while I work (I find music with lyrics too distracting).

I'm not a guitar expert by any means, and don't really know if he's any "good" (i.e., I don't know how the size of his dick compares to Young or Metheny), but I enjoy it and I suppose that's all that matters.

[Pakuni]

OK, since this has evolved (devolved?) into a discussion of great guitarists, I'll give Tom Morello some well-deserved praise. Perhaps the best ever at blending technical skill with innovation and creativity.
His solos while playing "The Ghost of Tom Joad" with Springsteen during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert were nothing less than staggering.

[brandx]

OK, since this has evolved (devolved?) into a discussion of great guitarists, I'll give Tom Morello some well-deserved praise. Perhaps the best ever at blending technical skill with innovation and creativity.
His solos while playing "The Ghost of Tom Joad" with Springsteen during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert were nothing less than staggering.

Morello has long been one of my favorites. Loved Rage Against the Machine. The show at the RnR HOF was stunning.

He's another guy who understands the totality of a song.

[keefe]

It does come down to personal taste. Metheny is one of the few who deftly combine technical skill plus feel. Not many do that.

Neil expressed a lot of my feelings when he said "Nobody gives a crap if you have good technique or not. It's whether you have feelings that you want to express with music, that's what counts, really. When you are able to express yourself and feel good, then you know why you're playing. The technical aspect is absolute hogwash as far as I'm concerned. It bores me to tears. I can't play fast. I don't even know my scales. I know that most of the notes I play aren't where I play them. They're simply not there. So you can play any note you like. I think about it on another level, I don't care about that sort of crap. On the other hand, I appreciate really great guitarists, and I'm very impressed by those metal groups with their scale guitarists. When I see that, I go «Holy crap, that's really something». Satriani and Eddie Van Halen are guitar geniuses. They are incredible musicians, at an amazing level. But it does't really grab me. One note will do."

That is why Edge is one of my two or three favorites. It's ALL about feel, mood, and adding to the song. The song and what it is trying to express takes precedence over everything else.

I should say the only musical instrument I can play is a B&O turntable...

Metheny with Lyle Mays, Jaco Pastorius, or Charlie Haden is sublime. God smiled when Pat Metheny picked up a guitar for the first time.

https://www.youtube.com/v/MYcZ6s3z1jg?list=PLNVnmq9Tpv3pK5XeSq9fJfvdAElCBYKpk


https://www.youtube.com/v/jHLY5VHQEek

[keefe]

God bless scoop, any thread can go from memorializing Prince to ... claiming Jimmy Page is a blues guitarist

Jimmy Page's best work was not his rock catalog. His finest guitar is his playing the blues.

He always said, the Yardbirds and Led Zep was just to pay the bills. His passion was the blues.

[nyg]

Since this evolved into a guitarist thread, maybe I can provide some insight.  I don't know if any other scoop posters are guitar players, but I have been playing for over three decades.  Played in numerous bands for some extra pay and just weekend fun.

The issue of who's the best, greatest, etc., has long been a point of contention in the guitar community, but as others previously stated, it all comes down to your taste in music.  Who's the best blues guitarist, the best funk guitarist, heavy metal, standard rock, classical, etc.  It all comes down to what your ear and brain likes to hear. BrandX said it perfect, he likes to hear one note that pleases him, a thing musicians love to hear. I loved Tom Stolz from Boston, who used a new amp back in the 1970s that provided a different, certain tone.  Stolz was not the best guitarist, but the sound......

For myself, I never played much blues music, but Pat Metheny is a very accomplished guitarist and has been for a long time.  Never got the national audience recognition, but in the blues field, he has a huge following and has made a good living. Yes, Jimmy Page loved the blues, but his known ability was for his Zeppelin days and that is what the audience/records reflect. Clapton was a bit different, since most of his recordings were of a blues nature, with exception of his earlier Cream days.  Enough of the blues.....

Since I enjoyed and mainly played lead guitar, my tastes were in the classic and yes, hairband songs.  I just fell for the chord rhythm licks of a Van Halen, Sammy Hagar, Dokken, AC/DC and the likes, but also the old Bowie, Aerosmith, Cheap Trick and others.  Long as it was loud and moving and could plug in to my stacked Marshal amps.  So many songs, so many likes.  But that what music is, just like sports.  Everybody has an opinion and a different liking. 

So, my favorites are Eddie Van Halen and its not even close, George Lynch, Peter Frampton, Ronnie Montrose, Alvin Lee, Mick Ronson and Gary Clark, Jr.  Many others, but remember, its all on the type of music you like to hear. 

[Lennys Tap]

Rolling Stone had him rated at #17 of greatest guitar players of all time.

Trey Anastasio had the following to say about Neil.

"If I was ever going to teach a master class to young guitarists, the first thing I would play them is the first minute of Neil Young's original "Down by the River" solo. It's one note, but it's so melodic, and it just snarls with attitude and anger. It's like he desperately wants to connect. Neil's playing is like an open tube from his heart right to the audience. In the Nineties, we played a festival with Crazy Horse. At the end of "Like a Hurricane," Neil went into this feedback solo that was more like a sonic impressionist painting. He was about six feet back from the microphone, singing so you could just hear him over the colorful waves of hurricanelike sound.

I think about that moment a lot when I'm playing. Traditional concepts of rhythm and keys are great, but music is like a giant ocean. It's a big, furious place, and there are a lot of trenches that haven't been explored. Neil is still blazing a trail for people who are younger than him, reminding us you can break artistic ground."


Neil knows more about sound, tone, melody and guitar dynamics than 99.9% of guitarists in the world. Technique and creativity cannot be judged separately.

Balladeer or rocker I'm a big fan of Neil Young. "Like a Hurricane" is a personal favorite and in my top 10 rock songs of all time.

[real chili 83]

Touche, x.

For me, Neil Young is a poet.

For guitar I look to jazz players. My favorite is, Al DiMeola

Elegant Gypsy

[Eldon]

Not really a guitar guy either, but my uncle is. Die hard. Blues and rock. To him, Joe Satriani is the greatest ever and nobody else comes close. Nobody.

[naginiF]

God bless scoop, any thread can go from memorializing Prince to arguments over who was punk 1st to whose dick is bigger Neil Young or Pat Methany to claiming Jimmy Page is a blues guitarist

But, like the Bowie memorialization thread that de/evolved into a strip club argument (IIRC), I'm pretty certain Prince would approve of this tangent.

Pakuni is right on introducing Morello.  Whenever I see someone live* and think "whoa! all of that is coming from one guy?" i gain immediate respect.  I think Paige, Harrison (can't believe he hasn't been mention yet), Angus, Slash, Kim Thayil, etc, etc, are are classic rock guitar gods.  Morello, Ed O'Brein (Radiohead), Nels Cline (Wilco) and Dressner (The National) are making the lead guitar more ingrained in the sound than just the riff.

*missed Rage live but caught Tom in his brief stint with Street Sweeper Social Club.  Great show.

[Spotcheck Billy]

nm

 

[ChicosBailBonds]

Can you post the official Chico sliding scale of sadness meter? 

I imagine it looking a little like a slide-rule with multiple lenses that allow for debits for drug use and credits for purity in addition to age and other inputs.

I like the idea....patent that thing.  You could call it the St. Peter slide rule.

L

[ChicosBailBonds]

So, should gov't bother to do autopsies, release them to the public?  Or is it a What Difference Does it Make approach?

[HouWarrior]

This post  brings symmetry to this thread, circling it nicely back to Prince....

"when asked what it feels like to be the greatest guitar player in the world,

Eric Clapton replied, "I don't know, ask Prince"."

[keefe]

Elegant Gypsy

Return to Forever. That got a lot of play on Schroeder 10N.

10N is where the real men lived. 10S? Not so much...

[real chili 83]

Return to Forever. That got a lot of play on Schroeder 10N.

10N is where the real men lived. 10S? Not so much...

Ha.  Keep telling yourself that.   

[4everwarriors]

Can we get back ta debatin' da merits of a big dick again, hey?