Best musician that you've played in front of?

[Denim n Leather]

I have taken lessons from:
Dennis Sandoli
Joe Scro
Joe Frederico
Paul Gilbert
Mike Campese

Master classes with:
Tal Farlow
Pat Martino
Arlen Roth
Jimmy Vivino
Sharon Isben
Carlos Alomar
Steve Vai

Opened for:
Lynch Mob (2x)
Symphony X (3x)
Angra
Nightwish

Jammed with:
Greg Howe
George Lynch

... yeah, outclassed at every turn!!!

[Nolly]

The best guitarists I've been lucky enough to play with are Guthrie Govan, Greg Howe and Alex Hutchings. In all three cases their consummate musicianship is such that once you get over the initial wobbles they really encourage the best out of you. Those experiences are truly some of the most inspiring of my life, I can only hope I get the opportunity to do so again someday!

[MDV]

At the BKP meet I wisely sat and played with stomp boxes. I know my place and it ain't sat behind a guitar in that company ;)

I was about to say the same BKP meet..where martin roped me into being his metal player (with a firm stare in my direction and "I need a metal player!" :lol:) and judiciously avoided doing anything I could have $%&#ed up :lol:

Other than that...my mate Barney...hes pretty good. No celebrity stories, alas :( Would love to though.

[gwEm]

Nicky Blackmarket

The Orb opened for me once (!) turns out they love Black Sabbath

Also played in front of A Guy Called Gerald

edit 1: I rapped in front of Witchfynde (somewhat bizarre that one)

i'm sure more will come to me. all these guys (expect possibly Aphex Twin) were really sound

edit 2: Not really a musician, but Malcolm McLaren (who I thought was rather pompous)

edit 3: I read an interview with Richard Kruspe (from Rammstein) when he played in front of Iommi and Page - said he was sh!tting himself - I would be too :)

Its generally quite an honour to meet these people though, especially when they like/tolerate what your doing ;)

[Prawnik]

Some Turkish dude. Very sweet, but later I was told that he grew up in eastern Turkey and learned about western music from listening to the radio, mixing that with the traditional Turkish music around him.

The sad result was that he did not know that many of the things he did (weird microtonal polyphonic things, played very fase on a fretless SG for instance) were impossible and that therefore he needed to stop doing that.

[HTH AMPS]

I've played in front of "Guitar George" Borowski from Sultans of Swing fame  :lol:

did he know all the chords?  :lol:

[FELINEGUITARS]

I had Paul Raymond from  UFO and MSG fame in the workshop on Saturday

Whilst I obviously have always had Mr Schenker on somewhat of a pedestal I have to confess that Paul's all round musicianship is a big key in my eyes to what made UFO so great, playing both guitar and keyboards

Even though he is left handed he plays his guitars strung up for a right handed player.

Great guy and now a BKP user as well

[Philly Q]

Great guy and now a BKP user as well

Which models has he got?

[FELINEGUITARS]

Just put an MQ in the neck of the Vintage guitar he is endorsing
And sold him an irish tour for the bridge of a strat

[Stevepage]

I played a show with Fell Silent a number of years ago. That was it really.

[Philly Q]

Just put an MQ in the neck of the Vintage guitar he is endorsing
And sold him an irish tour for the bridge of a strat

Ah yes, I saw he's endorsing Vintage - must admit, at first I didn't recognise him in the advert! 

Good to know he actually uses the guitar and likes it enough to upgrade the pickups!  :)

[mikeluke]

Bit tangential but...

The wife of a old colleague was a winner of BBC Young Musician of the Year - to watch her play the piano close up was unreal - the speed and dexterity of movement was something else.

[AndyR]

I've just been reading back through this thread and found I missed this first time:

Hmm,I did play in front of one of the most famous musicians on the planet but fortunately I was playing bass in a band where I wasn't the prominent one.Another advantage was that the guitarist in that band was Mike Casswell so I could hide behind his playing.

You mean... gasp... Lady Gaga?  :o

:lol:

Who though? It wasn't a left-handed singer-songwriter/bass-player was it? (I'd love to have played in front of him...)

[Philly Q]

Who though? It wasn't a left-handed singer-songwriter/bass-player was it? (I'd love to have played in front of him...)

Roo would like to meet him too....

[AndyR]

Who though? It wasn't a left-handed singer-songwriter/bass-player was it? (I'd love to have played in front of him...)

Roo would like to meet him too....

:lol: I thought that too... in fact, I nearly posted "It wasn't one of Roo's bete noires was it?", but I wasn't too sure of the spelling and it only narrowed it down to three suspects (Sir Cliff, Sir Paul, or a traffic warden)