Most Over Rated Guitarist

  • Thread starter Thread starter Roel
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I would think that if you could play like Vai and Satch then you would......It would be like saying that if you had 12 inches you would only use 7.....
 
You woul;dn't always want to use 12. Say you just need to hang out, or take a leak, or something like that. You don't need twelve. And if 7 gets the job done better, or with more style, then 12 is better. The philosophy that the more notes, the faster, the more complex, etc., ends uo with chessy ass stuff. Steve Vai is not that bad, although he had that song with his baby singing on it, what the hell was that. Satriani, pretty chessy, Ingvie, or however you spell it, stupid. That is not sytle, I'd rather here BB Kig, or Jimmy Paige hit one note then that guy hit 33.
 
Although Vai can play REALLY fast, he doesn't always. This is borne out by the fact that i can play fairly large parts of some of his songs (ok, I can't play them well) and I'm not very good. It's funny that you can always find people that will say "If I could play that fast I wouldn't" but you NEVER find anyone who will say "I CAN play that fast and I don't". All comes back to the envy thing.
Hell, I sure envy him!
 
Yeah, probably the same people that holler that a band is "rock whores" and "too commercial" because they sell millions of records......
 
What's the difference between the following two groups?

Group 1

Page
Clapton
Hendrix
Beck
Allman
Betts
Edge

Group 2

Van Halen
Satriani
Vai


Answer:

Group 2 represent extremely talented "guitarists".

Group 1 represent extremely talented "guitarists", but are/were first and foremost extremely talented "MUSICIANS". They were able to focus on the whole picture. If you tied Hendrix's hands behind his back, he would eventually come up with a brilliant piece of music by playing a keyboard with his toes.

When it comes to Hendrix and Page in particular, most people miss the point. They are/were musical production geniouses - every bit as legit as famous composers.

I'm not saying that group two have no attributes in this area, simply that those attributes do not come close.
 
The sad thing about this topic is that everybody seems to think it's necesarry to wank on others. In my opinion, I really don't like the way Satriani, Vai or other technique freaks play like 1000 nothes every second, but that's just a matter of taste, I don't have the right to say they suck!

I personnally think the approach of Tom Morello is great: fresh and innovating, without tearing on the same stuff everybody has done the last couple of 30 years. He searches for new sounds and new approaches, and that is what music is about for a great part. You don't have to like his playing for me, but it's childish to say he can't play...
 
If you actually listened to a selection of music by Steve Vai you would realise that he does not just allways play super fast. And anyway, he probably doesn't play that must faster than someone like Kirk Hammet does sometimes but you don't see people ragging on him as a "speed freak" people seem to automatically assume that becouse it guitar only (i.e. non-vocal) music that he's just playing extended super fast solos and then start ragging on him.
In my opinion Steve Vai is not only probably the best guiitarist in the world (he's the best I've heard) but he's also a musical genius.
 
You have to put it all in context, in 1966, Clapton's playing on the 'Beano' album was what led to 'Clapton is God' graffitti all over London, sure, now anybody who has been playing for a couple of years can get all those licks, but AT THE TIME...

Same goes for Alvin Lee, people who saw or heard him play at Woodstock were blown away, but then Ten Years After were hyped up to be more than they were, and Alvin sort of gradually faded away.

The question really should be overrated by WHO? I don't know why Slash's name popped up in this thread 'cos I don't recall seeing him mentioned anywhere as a 'great' guitar player, except maybe by the G'n'R fan club mag. I doubt whether the man himself has any illusions about his ability.

So how do we judge who is over or under-rated? By the amount of articles in Guitar mags, the amount of guest appearances on other peoples albums, the number of times they are cited as influences in interviews with other bands?

There seems to be a post modern ironic approach to this topic now, (basically CRAP IS GOOD) which is the only reason I can think of that Tom Verlaine's name has been creeping into a few interviews with young guitarists I have read recently. Television were shit, and Mr Verlaine took great delight in the fact that he could get the worst sound ever recorded out of an electric guitar, yet there seems to be an attempt to rehabilitate both him and his band - god help us.
 
Group 2

The biggest difference I see between group 1 and group 2 is no one in group 1 plays the particular style/brand of extremely high level modern guitar technique as those in group 2 play. You could make the arguement that because group 2's style is so dominated by a very high level of sheer technique, the perception is the song might get overshadowed sometimes. But, imo, this particular genre of music (modern, high technique) doesn't really need any explanation. If your a fan of this stuff, Vai, Satriani ,Blues Saraceno, S. Morse, Greg Howe, Allan Holdsworth et al. , it's the excitement from the virtuoso playing ITSELF that makes for worthwhile listening, not is the guitar player doing just enough to be just another interesting element to the song. (and of course there's nothing wrong with that at all either). I like to think of all those guys listed as great musicians who happen to play great guitar.
 
Elco,

Well put - I don't disagree with you at all. It's a matter of what you're in to. Although I tend to go with the overall thing, I have to admit that watching Clapton wail through "Five Long Years" is an end in itself (while watching him play it on SNL, I probably stopped breathing). Also, anyone who says they'd prefer NOT to have Vai's chops is probably lying. And by "chops" I don't only mean speed, but also "technique" (SRV's tone and vibrato anyone?).
 
Steve Vai himself said 'no-one in the whole wide world plays guitar as beautifully as Michael Hedges'(r.i.p).

Michael hedges is someone I thought steve vai would not listen to-but there ya go.
 
I'm ashamed to say I don't know who Michael Hedges was - can anyone enlighten me?
 
Vease,
Michael Hedges was a very innovative guitar player and a pretty fabulous singer and energetic live performer. He used many unorthodox approaches to the acoustic guitar, such as alternate tunings, heavy bass strings and percussive slapping of the guitar body as well as cool harmonics and harp-guitar stuff. Check out the Live on the Double Planet album, very cool stuff. He was killed in a car accident in 1997. Rest his soul.

peace.
 
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