Jump to content
Gibson Brands Forums

Whose influence do You recognise on Your playing?


btoth76

Recommended Posts

Hello!

 

The answer to this question can be quite obvious, isn't it? But think of it...

 

There are/were musicians who made You start playing the instrument. There are ones You look up to. Others who set the standards for You...

 

...but then, there are those who doesn't really seemed to interest You, but still, distinctive characteristics of their playing style stuck on You.

 

For example: I admire Steve Morse, but I rarely listen to Him. But, His rapid tremolo-picking technique plays key role in my playing style. Or, Zakk Wylde, He infected me with the plague of pinch harmonics...

 

How about You regarding this?

 

Cheers... Bence

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Obviously I am not comparing my talent as anything near these guys. Sometimes intentionally and sometimes not, I can hear certain traits of these guys in my own playing.

 

Jimi Hendrix - especially that "Wind Cries Mary" style of double stops

Stevie Ray Vaughn - very percussive, heavy blues style

Jimmy Page - phrasing techniques and a lot of slides up from flatted notes

Dickey Betts - rhythmic lead style alternating on adjacent strings ex. "Jessica" "Blue Sky"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are certain licks and solo bits I learned so well by heart that they come out almost 'by default', fumbled or not - Hendrix licks from 'Hey Joe' and 'Stone Free'....Kossoff from 'Tons Of Sobs' and from 'Songs Of Yesterday', early Peter Green blues stuff...classic riffs of Muddy, Wolf, Buddy Guy, Albert King - not that I play 'em nearly as good!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is a great question. I play mainly jazz and blues. For my blues playing, I would say early Clapton and Robert Cray- Clapton for his straightforward and predictable pentatonic/blues scales and his phrasing (which I realize all belong to someone else), and Robert Cray for his incorporation of major scales in his blues playing. For jazz, probably Pat Metheny and later Miles Davis- Metheny for his melodic improvisation (one of the few great jazz players who still values appealing melodies) and later Miles for the same reason (and I cover many of the songs he did). Unfortunately, these are not my favorite players, though they are all players that I have admired at some point.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Biggest influences: Buddy Holly, George Harrison, Roger McGuinn, Eric Clapton,

Jeff Beck, Hendrix, the King's (BB, Albert, Freddy), Alvin Lee, Mick Abrahams,

Peter Green, etc., and, indirectly, anyone THEY were influenced by.

 

But, I'll "beg, borrow, or steal" licks/riffs, picking style and rhythms, from anyone! [biggrin]

 

CB

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I pity anyone whose style/sound/playing is recognized in mine. :wacko:

 

There are very few songs/players that I have sat down to try and learn note for note or emulate. Maybe to my detriment, since I would be awful in a cover band. I don't use effects except some reverb; just guitar, cord, amp, so matching tones I hear in other players is often out of the question.

 

I play my own style of chording, which is a sort of loose arpeggio strum that I've never heard anyone else do quite like me (the description sounds better than the actual execution). Mainly because I don't like to do upstroke strumming and I am not a fast strummer, so I create interest by picking out single notes within the strum, it's kind of like fingerpicking with a flat pick. A friend of mine that I play with in a band said when he first joined in the first band we were in together that I was trying to do lead guitar, bass, drums, and rhythm guitar at the same time, because our bass player sucked, our drummer just followed me and there was only me playing guitar until my friend (an acoustic rhythm guitarist) joined.

 

When I can just relax and play the way I like, I do like single note lead line playing like early Santana, Eric Clapton, and I knowingly stole one riff from Slash: a cool sounding bend followed by touching the pick on the string as the bend backs down in Sweet Child O Mine (at least that's how I do it). I also love David Gilmour, but my playing sounds nothing like his.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Okay, I'm not sure I can say any given guitarist or even guitar style was an influence in my playing unless I'm doing a definite "genre" type thing with other folks.

 

I'd say that musically I listened to a lotta different stuff that was available on radio in the '50s, including shortwave stuff I could get on my old big console radio with an antenna. So... if it was pop, rock, swing, jazz, blues, "classical," Latin... I was listening.

 

I mostly "solo." Jazz or jazzy old swing and pop... it's however I can figure an arrangement for fingerpicking. Old Time... pretty well a bum-shush as one would hear from old Carter Family records. Some of that material if I'm on a 12-string is almost more like a Stoneman/Carter Family autoharp playing. Blues... well, I've made my point that there ain't one single "blues," so it depends if I'm doing acoustic Delta, acoustic urban, arrangements of New Orleans standards, etc.

 

I'd say that in terms of technical concept on the right hand, more classical/flamenco influence than "using a thumbpick" Chet Atkins influence.

 

Musically I'd say a lotta influence from the crossover-jazz-blues one found across the genre spectrum of the 1950s. Guitarwise... I don't think so.

 

Of course, as has been noted, mostly nowadays I'm doing mostly my own thing rather than a band doing a specific sorta genre schtick.

 

m

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, are we talking "influence," here...or "which guitarist do you COPY?"

I don't "Copy" anyone, deliberately...but, I've been influenced, to varying

degrees, by all those I mentioned, and other's as well. I think We're all

"influenced" by who we like, or listen to, even if only subconsciously.

 

CB

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My biggest influence definietly Jimmy Page,not the cleanest playing most technical axe slinger ever.When it comes to feeling Jimmys playing it seemes to have a certain feeling that drew me in.Especially the look/strain on his face and the almost struggle to put all he has in the tune.Two of my favorites "Since I've been loving you" or" Stairway to heaven" off the "Song remains the Same" DVD. Although I cant even come close to his playing he influenced me to feel what Im playing and the very special songs to me to put all I have into them.Sorry if i sound a bit or a lot strange but he did influence me and I still dig him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, are we talking "influence," here...or "which guitarist do you COPY?"

I don't "Copy" anyone, deliberately...but, I've been influenced, to varying

degrees, by all those I mentioned, and other's as well. I think We're all

"influenced" by who we like, or listen to, even if only subconsciously.

 

Agreed. [thumbup] In fact, I've thought about this quite a bit and developed a theory...

 

As a guitar player (I guess any musician really) you sound like/are influenced by the people you hear early on more than those you may "copy" later.

 

I spent a lot of time in cover bands in the 80s and "copied" lots of people. Yet, left to my own choices, my playing (particularly soloing) sounds very late 60s - early 70s. I believe this is because, firstly, that is the stuff I had available to me (my dads record collection) and, secondly, that is the stuff I was attracted to (perhaps because of the aforementioned access to these sounds).

 

I guess a better description of my theory is that I was forming my identity as a guitar player long before I actually picked up a guitar, and I think the same can be said for many musicians. I have a friend who can play every song on the first two Van Halen albums near perfectly. Guess what albums he was listening to prior to picking up the guitar? Another friend of mine toured as opening act for Eric Johnson when he was only a teenager (I know right). Guess who he sounds like?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Surf...

 

I'd put it even earlier in life. But basically I'd say you're pretty much right on. And in both rock and country, the guitar played an increasing role in popular music of all genres. Increasing virtuosity was expected by audiences of all genres in the late 50s, into the 60s and beyond - and they got it.

 

But that's in the 60s forward. My own early music in the 40s and 50s was swing, pop, "classical" and old-time.

 

Ever wonder why Clapton's unplugged included material I was doing in '63 and '64 and so was he. Just not in "rock." He's within months of the same age as I am regardless that he was in the UK. Our early musical experiences were not that dissimilar. Our expression of the music was different, but...

 

Music was in us before guitar.

 

Ever wonder why so many "older" singers end up doing "standards" 'stedda just material of whatever might be the current style?

 

I'm with Surf... I think our music is ingrained in us from youth whether we admit it or not. I know it is in me. That's almost certainly why I'm playing elevator music with fat chords on swing, 50s and 60s material... <grin> when I've not been in a band playing for money.

 

m

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's hard for me to pick one because I don't hear them in my playing.

 

Also......I can't say just the guitarist....I feel like I'm more influenced by "songs" than guitar players.....more of how the guitar feels within the song that influences me.

 

AcDc

Aerosmith

Mike Ness and Social Distortion

Thunders and the Dolls

 

 

Loved all the 80's Metal Shredders, but definitely don't hear them in my playing.....which surprises me.....guess I'm more of a find a groove and crank it kind of guy that a soloist.

 

I remember seeing an interview with Joe Perry and Steven Tyler......Tyler said "When I met these guys, they couldn't even tune" and Perry responded with "Yeah, we were like Tunning??? Later for that , Lets see how loud we can get it!"

 

Stuff like that influenced me a lot!

NHTom

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ya,, interesting topic.

 

I started playing very young with a teacher and went through about 5 or so Mel Bay books.

So I didn't even really have an influence at that time. I was just learning to play. And I didn't really enjoy the

music I was learning.

Buy around the age of 12 or 13 I started listening to real music. Sabbath, Alice, Thin Lizzy, Deep Purple, Kiss.

For reasons unknown I was too stupid to think I could play this stuff so I completely up and quit playing guitar.

 

It wasn't until I was 20 that I came back to playing,, in a big way.

Now I was learning stuff I liked and was totally into it. And I learned and practiced a ton,, for several years.

And my musical tastes had evolved.

 

At this stage I found myself trying to sound like other people, not intentionally, I was just trying to learn stuff and I didn't know any better. One of my friends who was a crazy good player seemed to notice this and told me one day to stop trying

to sound like other people.. He said I had what I needed and should just take what I knew and play from the heart, not the brain.

It was hands down the best advice I had ever got for my playing.

It felt weird at first and I was a little shy about it because I didn't think anyone would care to hear me.

But the more I did it, the better I got. My playing improved immensely.

 

Several more years go by. We have our little band. We are writing originals and playing in a garage getting tight

for over 2 years.

 

Sorry for the lengthy preamble,, it just seemed kinda relevant to where I'm going with this...honest... lol.

 

So after several years of embracing my inner tastes and becoming a fair guitar player I was very proud of the fact that I didn't sound like anybody at all but I could play half a$$ed. I was just me and I liked it that way.

 

And then it happened. One day, as we were jamming away having a blast just messing around a buddy of mine told me how good it sounded and that I sounded like Zappa. [scared]

WTF??? Zappa? Ya right. I'm not even in the same galaxy as Zappa let alone the same planet.

As much of a compliment that was for me I was a little bewildered.

And as you may know, I am kinda fond of Frank. But I just didn't see it.

 

So while I am not anywhere close to the player Zappa was I could actually hear how he influenced my playing.

And I never in my life ever learned a Zappa lick.

I have only ever really played in the pentatonic minor scale with small dabbling in the Major scale.

And Frank of course was all over the map and every mode at some point.

So I certainly wasn't influenced that way.

Perhaps similar phrasing style but limited to my only playing the pent minor for the most part.

 

So I guess I have to say Zappa....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...