We Salute You

To paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of rock have been greatly exaggerated.

I was at the AC/DC concert in Quebec City last week, and I assure you that rock and roll is alive and very well, thank you very much.

Solo Stars

Guitar World’s 40 Most Influential Solos In Rock is quite possibly the list that’s come closest to what I would have expected.

All the early rockers are there: Scotty Moore, James Burton, Eddie Cochrane –and Chuck Berry, who’s Johnny B. Goode GW correctly notes is “the most important rock guitar part ever recorded.”

All the Classic Rockers are there: Clapton, Beck, Hendrix, Blackmore, Allman, Fripp, Page, Gilmour, Knopfler, Young and West.

The blues influencers are there: Elmore James, and the 3 Kings.

The list is chronological, so until it got to the 80’s my reaction was consistently, “yep, influenced me alright.”

The latter-day guitar heroes are there too: SRV, Zakk Wylde, Randy Rhoads, Malmsteen, Satriani and, the cat with the coolest handle: Dimebag Darrell.

One or two guitarists I wouldn’t have included myself, but fully expected to see.  And given GW limited itself to one solo per guitarist, I think they did a pretty good job of coming up with the most representative tune.  No easy feat with most of these guys.

Not sure how Heartbreaker gets to be Jimmy Page’s most important solo, but that’s just me.  I certainly remember being floored when I first heard it, but later on I kinda felt it wrecked the song, because it interrupted such a powerful groove.

Nice to see Europa chosen for Santana so they could make room for Peter Green and the original Black Magic Woman.  Peter Green is usually under-rated and overlooked.  Speaking of overlooked: no Highway 61 Revisited by Johnny Winter?

Shaking At The Knees

AC/DC’s Thunderstruck belongs right there in the dictionary as the picture beside the word(s) rock and roll.  It’s got it all:  Angus Young’s riff buzzing around your face like an aggressive wasp, a driving rhythm from the drums and bass that feels like a runaway train, mindlessly juvenile lyrics, a soccer chant that conveys an urgent menace – and three (four?) guitars with absolutely perfect tone.

If you want to study how to write, perform, or produce a rock song, look no further.  Brian Johnson’s vocals, Angus Young’s solo, Malcolm Young’s rhythm, the sound of the mix  - they are all perfect.  And, what – three hooks?

Go have a listen.  Take a breath or two.  You’ll need to, because you’ve been thunderstruck.

And One For All

I need to take a second pass at this…

So speaking of riffs, New Musical Express’s 50 Greatest Guitar Riffs of All Time is nothing if not democratic.  Everyone seems to get a turn.  You’ve got at least one each for rockabilly, British Invasion, psychedelia, hard rock, metal, glam, classic rock, new wave, euro pop, alt, grunge, hair, punk, thrash … have I missed anything?

And kudos to NME for spreading the joy, but really, shouldn’t the likes of AC/DC, the Stones, or U2 been on the list more than once?

And if you insist on limiting to one apiece, is Sunshine of Your Love really Clapton’s best riff?  Is Free Fallin’ Tom Petty’s?

As for the Stones, limiting it to one is kinda silly, so it might as well be Satisfaction.

Oh, and even though even one isn’t enough for them either, no Beatles?  At all?  Does NME have something against them?  For heaven’s sake!

I was delighted to see the likes of The White Stripes, The Kings of Leon and The Black Keys on the list, but some of the others just seem to be arbitrary.  I dunno.  When I read these lists I try not to let my peronal taste get in the way (really, I do), but I’m not sure what NME’s criteria was.  Influence?  Sales?  Recognizability?  Airplay?  Fairness and diversity?

Cool collection of pictures, though.

Postscript - best write-up goes to the one for Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit:  “Is the most remarkable thing about this riff that it killed hair metal or that it made Nirvana superstars against their will?  No, the most remarkable thing about this riff is that even after hearing it 87 million times it still sounds so visceral.”

Rock ‘N Roll Train

Question: who would you say is the perfect guitar hero?

Clarification: not the best, not your favourite, but the one with the perfect blend of attributes, the one who best exemplifies the role.

Well, my answer is Angus Young.

Hard driving riffs that are informed by – and rival – such riffmeisters as John Lennon and Keith Richards.  Guitar solos that are acts of sedition, solos that frequently quote Chuck Berry but also convince you that Jimmy Page is doing his impersonation of Jimi Hendrix.

And the “so-I’m-dressed-as-a-schoolboy-gotta-problem-with-that?” attitude.  I mean, is anything missing?

Oh, and his tone is amazing.  Dark and ballsy, sharp and biting all at the same time.

Angus is hard as a rock.

Rolling Stone Reacts and Revises

A while back Rolling Stone published senior editor/writer David Fricke's version of the 100 Greatest Guitarists (DF version). With all due respect to Mr. Fricke, I know I had lots of issues with the list. I wonder if others did too, because Rolling Stone assembled a panel of experts and came up with a new list, 100 Greatest Guitarists (panel version).

The fun with lists is that you get to disagree, but I must say the 2nd list defies the camel-is-a-horse-designed-by-a-committee business. I mean I like it better.

Let's compare the top 25:
     DF Version                       Panel Version
 1. Jimi Hendrix                     Jimi Hendrix
 2. Duanne Allman                Eric Clapton
 3. B.B. King                         Jimmy Page
 4. Eric Clapton                     Keith Richards
 5. Robert Johnson               Jeff Beck
 6. Chuck Berry                     B.B. King
 7. Stevie Ray Vaughan        Chuck Berry
 8. Ry Cooder                        Eddie Van Halen
 9. Jimmy Page                     Duanne Allman
10. Keith Richards                Pete Townshend
11. Kirk Hammett                  George Harrison
12. Kurt Colbain                    Stevie Ray Vaughan
13. Jerry Garcia                    Albert King
14. Jeff Beck                         David Gilmour
15. Santana                          Freddy King
16. Johnny Ramone             Derek Trucks
17. Jack White                      Neil Young
18. John Frusciante              Les Paul
19. Richard Thomson           James Burton

20. James Burton                 Santana
21. George Harrison             Chet Atkins
22. Mike Bloomfield              Frank Zappa
23. Warren Haynes               Buddy Guy
24. The Edge                        Angus Young
25. Freddy King                    Tony Iommi

I definitely prefer the content and the sequence of the 2nd list.

David Fricke did have some cool inclusions, like Robert Johnson, Ry Cooder, Jack White and John Frusciante. But those inclusions came at the expense of Albert King, David Gilmour and Angus Young. Nice to see Derek Trucks on the panel's list too.

You could argue that panel version is safer. I mean with the exception of Keef, who seems to gain more respect with each passing decade, the panel list looks a lot like the list has looked for over 40 years: Clapton, Page, Beck, Hendrix ... all at the top.

So hats off to David Fricke for maybe stimulating some controversy. Like I said, the fun with lists is that you get to disagree.

The Rhythm Is In The Guitars

So said The Beatles before they had a steady drummer.

I'm starting to believe that I prefer short lists to longer ones. For example, Gibson's 10 Greatest-Ever Rhythm Guitarists, has less to take issue with than Guitar Player's 50 Greatest Rhythm Guitarists.

Maybe it's that on a shorter list, you lower your expectations; like, gee, there's only room for 10 so I can't expect all my favourites on the list, right? So the Guitar Player list is easier to pick apart.

For starters, John Lennon doesn't make the Top 50? You kidding me? (He is on Gibson's Top 10. Well done, Gibson.)

And is the Guitar Player list the 50 greatest guitarists who happened to do some cool rhythm work, or the 50 greatest guitarists who specialized in the role? I mean, does anyone seriously consider Jimi Hendrix a rhythm guitarist? Sure he played chords, and yes he had some funky rhythmic chops, but Jimi's idea of chords was to hint at one while he hammered on, pulled off, slid up, skipped down and bent into all kinds of notes decidedly not in the chord. His idea of not soloing was to solo less, not play rhythm. Jimi was Jimi.

Both lists have Chuck Berry, Angus Young, Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page and of course Keith Richards - although Guitar Player ducks the issue of who's in the top 10 by listing the players alphabetically.

I guess the longer list does allow for more names, so it was nice to see Bo Diddley, Steve Cropper, The Edge and Bob Marley on the Guitar Player list. In fact, I would argue that they all belong on Gibson's top 10 list.

Oops! Just argued with the shorter list, didn't I?

Defining Moments

If you look at the Guitar Player 40 Most Influential Rock Guitar Solos, as a guitarist, you get the depressing feeling that it's all been done, so why bother?

I mean, take Chuck Berry's Johnny B. Goode, for example. It has the quintessential licks that fit in almost every rock song.

Well almost. To fill up your bag of tricks you can borrow from the songs listed by the Three Kings: Freddie, Albert and B.B.: Hideaway, Born Under A Bad Sign, and The Thrill Is Gone. You don't need much else. Don't believe me? Listen to Clapton's Crossroads. (Yes I know Crossroads preceded The Thrill Is Gone but I'm making a point.)

As a guitarist, I'm always searching for new ways to express myself, but those five solos give you a pretty large playing field.

This is a list of influential solos, not necessarily best or favourite solos. So for sure Duanne Allman's Statesboro Blues belongs there, and, sadly, Eddie Van Halen's Eruption belongs. But some seem arbitrary to me. Is Heartbreaker really Jimmy Page's most influential solo? Is Comfortably Numb David Gilmour's? Pride and Joy is Stevie Ray Vaughan's most definitive solo, and All Along The Watchtower is one of Hendrix's most amazing, but ...

At some point it feels like we've crossed the line where the best, most admired guitarists simply get an arbitrary pick. Fair enough. I wouldn't want to see a list that didn't include Mark Knopfler, Peter Green, Angus Young, Jimmy Page, David Gilmour or Ritchie Blackmore either.

My favourite thing about this list is that most of the solos are very musical. Happily, there isn't much mindless wankarama. Thank you, Guitar Player.

By the way, I get the influence of Elmore James for Dust My Broom, but it's Robert Johnson's, 100%.

Top Guitar Riffs of All Time

Now here's a list that's not from Rolling Stone.  Gibson's Top 50 Guitar Riffs of All Time

It's a good list, a can't-dispute-it list.  Here's the Top 10:

 1. Satisfaction.  Easily the most recognizable riff in rock.
 2. Smoke On The Water.  The second most recognized riff.
 3. Whole Lotta Love.  See?  This is a pretty good list!
 4. Iron Man.  OK, well it is very recognizable - if just a tad lame.
 5. Back In Black.  You bet.
 6. Smells Like Teen Spirit.  Relentless and powerful.
 7. You Really Got Me.  Way ahead of its time.
 8. Day Tripper.  Trippy.  Bluesy.  Perfect rock 'n' roll.
 9. Walk This Way.  Not a huge Aerosmith fan, but it's kinda funky, eh?
10. Sunshine Of Your Love.  One of those I-don't-care-I-still-think-it's-cool songs.

I like this list!