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Saw Slash last night...


mcmurray

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Four players that made mountains move as far as how you view the instrument:

Chuck Berry invented rock and roll

Jimi used the guitar to make sounds never heard before

Van Halen and his tapping technique made everyone go to the woodshed.

Yngvie (who I can't listen to) innovated the whole shred and neo-classical harmonic minor type thing in rock.

Slash ..... cool hat and aviator sunglasses with curley hair all in his face.

 

 

So those are the only artists worth listening to? Yes, those guitarists no doubt did something new and innovative in their time. But not every artist needs to bring something new or be innovative. It doesn't need to be unique to be good...there are plenty of basic clues based rock bands that are amazing at what they do and people love them!

 

And CowboyBillyBob1, I don't hate you in the least. I'm just trying to understand your stance here. If I had to listen to 4 artists for the rest of my life, i'd go crazy no matter how fresh and unique the music is.

 

I'm not an enormous Slash fan, but I recognize his entertainment value and his skill. The guy does what he does VERY well. You can't discount that!

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So those are the only artists worth listening to? Yes, those guitarists no doubt did something new and innovative in their time. But not every artist needs to bring something new or be innovative. It doesn't need to be unique to be good...there are plenty of basic clues based rock bands that are amazing at what they do and people love them!

 

And CowboyBillyBob1, I don't hate you in the least. I'm just trying to understand your stance here. If I had to listen to 4 artists for the rest of my life, i'd go crazy no matter how fresh and unique the music is.

 

I'm not an enormous Slash fan, but I recognize his entertainment value and his skill. The guy does what he does VERY well. You can't discount that!

 

I'd put Slash in a league with guys like Joe Perry, George Lynch, and Ace Frehley. None of those guys really did anything new (unless ya' count smoking LPs!), but they do what they do better than a lot of people, and they made a big enough impresion to inspire people to play, and their solos are praised by many.

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I'd put Slash in a league with guys like Joe Perry, George Lynch, and Ace Frehley. None of those guys really did anything new (unless ya' count smoking LPs!), but they do what they do better than a lot of people, and they made a big enough impresion to inspire people to play, and their solos are praised by many.

Well said. I agree with you 110%.

 

Shred A... I never said those were the only artists worth listening to so I don't know where you got that. In any case Ace from Kiss is really nothing much BUT he did influence a lot of people to play so I will give him that.

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Well said. I agree with you 110%.

 

Shred A... I never said those were the only artists worth listening to so I don't know where you got that. In any case Ace from Kiss is really nothing much BUT he did influence a lot of people to play so I will give him that.

 

This may sound odd coming from me, a well-known Frehley fan, but you're right about the Acester. Like any musician worth his snuff, what Ace does is unique to him and no one else does it better. His licks really aren't that complicated (I'm not trying to gloat, but I know most of his solos note-for-note and they weren't very challenging to learn), but he's got great soul and feeling and his solos are highly melodic, which is important to me. He's a good guitar player, not a great guitar player. He could have been a great guitar player, but his substance abuse problems and lifestyle prevented him from reaching new levels. But he can write kicka$$ straight-ahead rock tunes, great riffs, and whip out pentatonic Chuck Berry-on-steroids licks out of his Les Paul, which are perfect for his songs. Some aspects of his personality and playing are flawed due to his drug abuse, and it showed on his last record Anomaly (2009). The songs were great, but some of the solos weren't as good as they should have been. That's what happens when you spend 40 years numbing yourself with booze, pills, cocaine, and the "rock n' roll lifestyle" (didn't treat another hero of mine, Brian Robertson of Thin Lizzy, too great either). Poor Ace probably couldn't stand up to some others (including 3/4s of the guys that replaced him in KISS, and some of the players that have been in Ace's solo band over the years), but what he played was perfect for KISS, and, IMHO, he gave their music the edge it needed. He has the KISS sound IMHO. They still sounded great without him (Creatures Of The Night, Lick It Up, Animalize, Revenge, and Carnival Of Souls are awesome records), but it was a different sound.

 

Ace will be the first to admit that he's nothing much, but he delivers to his fans, and found his niche: straight-ahead riff rock with basic-yet-melodic pentatonic solos. Needless to say, I'm happy the guy is still around. Same goes for his ex-addict counterparts: Robbo, Michael Schenker, EVH, and others.

 

Sorry for the thread derail, but I just said what was on my mind.

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Sling 'em low (and then pick it up and put it on your thigh when you get tired and have to make sure you don't mess up). [biggrin] My arms hurt just watching him.

 

I haven't listened to him much, just because I'm a little out of touch. He's very fluent and has a good dynamics. Like as if I'm any judge.

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Sling 'em low (and then pick it up and put it on your thigh when you get tired and have to make sure you don't mess up). [biggrin] My arms hurt just watching him.

 

I haven't listened to him much, just because I'm a little out of touch. He's very fluent and has a good dynamics. Like as if I'm any judge.

 

Zakk Wylde does that too (his position is more "fixed" though. Slash let's the Les Paul swing like Joe Perry!).

 

I think more people would like/respect Slash more if GnR had a different voice. I know a lot of people that dislike GnR because of Axl's voice alone. Scott Weiland can't please those people, either. Myles could pull it off, though.

 

If there's anyone who gets me as far as strap length goes, Steve Clark (RIP brother!) of Def Leppard amazes me. I mean, how the hell could he play?

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I think more people would like/respect Slash more if GnR had a different voice. I know a lot of people that dislike GnR because of Axl's voice alone.

I'm definitely one of those people. I respect Slash plenty, I just can't listen to GnR for longer than a song or two simply because of Axl's voice. Slash has chops, and I think it is a bit silly for anyone to deny that. I think in another band setting I would listen to him a lot more, I could listen to Velvet Revolver a lot easier than GnR. The new stuff hasn't really grabbed me, and I find it difficult to put into words why.

 

As for some of the comments about how he isn't groundbreaking etc. does every guitarist have to create something entirely new and game changing? We're all playing notes discovered long ago, patterns, chords and scales that more than likely were created by someone else long before we picked up a guitar. As much as I don't care for GnR, Slash is probably a big reason for a lot of people choosing to play the guitar within the last 20 years, and that makes him a bit of an icon. He has made music that people enjoy and has fun doing it, we should all be so lucky.

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If there's anyone who gets me as far as strap length goes, Steve Clark (RIP brother!) of Def Leppard amazes me. I mean, how the hell could he play?

OK, I had to Google a pic of Steve, and my gosh :D

Unless you have the arms of an orangutan, how can you reach it to play?

And I thought Page slung his low.

I do like how Slash will flip his skyward to play.

The bass player for Black Country Communion does the same thing by pointing the headstock upwards.

 

Steve-Clark-def-leppard-6466743-269-360.jpg

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I'm definitely one of those people. I respect Slash plenty, I just can't listen to GnR for longer than a song or two simply because of Axl's voice. Slash has chops, and I think it is a bit silly for anyone to deny that. I think in another band setting I would listen to him a lot more, I could listen to Velvet Revolver a lot easier than GnR. The new stuff hasn't really grabbed me, and I find it difficult to put into words why.

 

As for some of the comments about how he isn't groundbreaking etc. does every guitarist have to create something entirely new and game changing? We're all playing notes discovered long ago, patterns, chords and scales that more than likely were created by someone else long before we picked up a guitar. As much as I don't care for GnR, Slash is probably a big reason for a lot of people choosing to play the guitar within the last 20 years, and that makes him a bit of an icon. He has made music that people enjoy and has fun doing it, we should all be so lucky.

 

You're absolutely correct. I was listening to Highway To Hell in the truck today, and this thread came into my mind. Angus ain't groundbreaking, but the guy rocks so hard you have to love him. And both he and Slash are very humble about their playing (Angus once said that he has the easiest role in the band, and that he is replacable, but not Mal!).

 

Slash kind of brought back straight-ahead ballsy rock guitar to the mainstream in a scene full of shred.

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I don't get it. Slash seems like a nice guy and he plays well but... besides for the stupid hat what has he done for the Rock lexicon. I don't hear him doing anything that countless other guys have done in the past.

What is the big deal?

I know I am going to get smashed on this but he just bores me.

Clapton, Beck, Page, Berry, Satriani, Vai, Van Halen, Jimi, Scotty Moore, all brought something new but what has Slash done to innovate anything. He plays well but it's seems like... been there and heard that before.

 

The hat is something new. I will give him that.

 

Thread is entitled "Saw Slash last night..." not "Who is the most original trailblazing guitarist of today?".

 

Lets save that for another thread shall we? Go and start it, I'd be happy to contribute to the discussion.

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