Unsung or overhyped?

[herbychimp]

I was prompted to add this by a recent article / poll in Guitar world (Never my favourite mag) essentially it was a guitarist tournament where a hundred or so (predominantly rock / blues) players were compared against one another in a kind of abilities match-up / face-off. Of course EVH came out on top (Only US readers could contribute) but some of the parings where ridiculous and the playing field was hardly level. Anyhow, the whole thing got me thinking about a) how many excellent players there are out there that I have managed to miss b) How many of those stellar reputations are really justified. I should pre-empt this by saying that I felt it would be cool for people to air their subjective and educated views without resorting to the kind of dull-witted banter posted on the GW blog.

For my two-peneth I have always been a little confused by the accolades given to Kirk Hammet. A couple of cuts from the 'Metallica' album aside I just struggle to enjoy his tone and find his solos lack originality. However most of my guitar playing friends and non-musican rock lovers really dig his work.

On the other side of the coin I recently discovered Chris Poland. Whilst I am not a huge fan of either the thrash or fusion genre I really find his phrasing original and melodic whilst his playing is pretty damm tight.  I don't think that he featured in the poll though.

Certainly circumstance (and massive record sales) plays a part in fame but this whole 'poll' thing just got me thinking .... Anybody care to share their thoughts?

[richard]

The folks on the Seymour Duncan forum seem to have a particular dislike of Kirk Hammet. Never listened to Metallica much so I wouldn't know. EVH is an accomplished player but I struggle to find a VH song that I find listenable. I'm not a great fan of face melting speed, it gets very tired very quickly. I still prefer to listen to blues based stuff so I always come back to Rory Gallagher and Johnny Winter. There are thousands of great guitarists that we'll probably never get to hear. I'm not one of them but I keep trying.

[Alex]

A lot of people seem to adore EVH. About Kirk Hammett - I think he's a good player with nice solos, who has been lifted on the guitar olymp by too many obsessive Metallica fans. It's not his fault.

[mecca777]

A lot of people seem to adore EVH. About Kirk Hammett - I think he's a good player with nice solos, who has been lifted on the guitar olymp by too many obsessive Metallica fans. It's not his fault.

I also wonder whether Kirk Hammett gets more stick than he deserves because it's common knowledge that he took lessons from Joe Satriani. If you're judging Hammett by the same standard as Steve Vai, Alex Skolnick, Larry Lalonde or Charlie Hunter, he starts to seem a bit sub-par; but of course all that really matters is how he fits into the music his band plays.

As far as under-rated guitar players go, Chris Poland is a great shout. Off the top of my head, I'd say Randy California (Spirit), Massimo Morante (Goblin) and Michael Rother (Neu!) should all get more recognition. Vini Reilly (the Durutti Column) and Robin Guthrie (Cocteau Twins) are also huge personal favourites who never seem to be acknowledged for their influence and ability.

[Philly Q]

I'm not really into the whole "league table" approach to assessing guitar players, and I always think it's tough to say anyone is "better" than anyone else, it's art not a sport...

That said, I do agree with the comments about Kirk Hammett, I've never found anything about his playing particularly inspiring.  Maybe something to do with the fact that, unlike many rock/metal guitarists, he's not really one of the main creative forces in the band?  I have to say also that I've become pretty disenchanted with Metallica in recent years so maybe that's turned me against Hammett a bit. 

On the other hand, there seems to be a whole school of "Kirk-haters" and he doesn't deserve that either - he gets singled out for criticism which loads of no-better-or-worse players ever receive.

Good call on Chris Poland, I've always been a fan, he very much has his own style.  Much preferable to Chris Broderick!

I always go back to the '70s players I first got into when I was a teenager, maybe it's nonsense but to me they seem to be more unique than the majority of post-EVH guitarists.  Rick Derringer, Ronnie Montrose, Frank Marino, Robin Trower, Martin Barre, Randy California (already mentioned), Leslie West, Kerry Livgren, the guys in Wishbone Ash.  They're my heroes and always will be.

[herbychimp]

Glad that Trower, West and Montrose (RIP) got a mention. I recently heard a Planet Rock interview with Mick Jones who was recalling his time spent with Mr West. He sounded like a real character and what an unbelievable p90 tone.  Another chap who I always felt deserves a bit more credit was Elliot Easton of the Cars. Always restrained by the pop format but some juicy south-paw melodies there I think

[TheyCallMeVolume]

I never got why there is so much hate for Kirk. People say he's overrated and cr@ppy, but who ever said he was the best guitarist ever? I certainly have never heard anyone say that, so it's hard to call someone overrated that was never rated too highly in the first place. Yes he does use his wah a bit too much, but I feel like the hate he's gotten is a product of the band he's in. Metallica is arguably the biggest metal band ever, so people automatically put 2 and 2 together and think Hammett= best guitarist, which he obviously isn't.

Enough about that though! I know the guys I'm about to list here are from well-known bands but I don't feel they get nearly enough credit. First, there's my favorite guitarist, Alex Lifeson. Geddy and Neil get alot of credit and for good reason, but Alex doesn't get nearly enough respect for what he does IMO. Another great that gets overlooked often is Mick Jones of Foreigner. He's always had stellar tone and his playing is great, but I guess because people look at Foreigner as one of those "sellout" bands he doesn't get the credit I think he deserves. Not to mention the fact he wrote the majority of their extremely catchy and fun tunes. Mick Mars from Crue and CC Deville also deserve mention, and Mick has my favorite tone EVER and he's always been able to keep his bluesy roots on display.

[JJretroTONEGOD]

I think kirk hammet is an extremely over-rated player, he often plays the wrong modes and creates some really bad sounding dissonances, there are times when I want to throw paper aeroplanes at him with the hope that he will read the message 'play dorian mode NOW' he needs something just to remind him.

Next time I see metallica that's what I'm going to do...throw a paper aeroplane at him

[Andrew W]

In terms of unsung players I've always thought that Wilko Johnson has never really got his due. Instantly recognisable, totally cool, very much his own player and played on some great records. Another person who i never felt got enough credit (perhaps until recently) as a guitar player is George Harrison. Again, you always know it's him and there are so many Beatles guitar breaks that you can instantly recall that he must have been doing something right. He also played on a few decent records, so I'm told.

[blue]

how about Brad Whitford?

as far as i can tell he's always been pretty much an equal partner guitar wise in Aerosmith, yet Joe Perry gets all the plaudits.  personally, i have no idea what parts Joe or Brad played on any given song, but it's as likely to have been either of them.  by all accounts he's actually a more technically skilled player than Perry.

Speaking of Brad, has anyone ever had any experience of one of his three monkeys (i think)  amps?

[itamar101]

how about Brad Whitford?

as far as i can tell he's always been pretty much an equal partner guitar wise in Aerosmith, yet Joe Perry gets all the plaudits.  personally, i have no idea what parts Joe or Brad played on any given song, but it's as likely to have been either of them.  by all accounts he's actually a more technically skilled player than Perry.

Speaking of Brad, has anyone ever had any experience of one of his three monkeys (i think)  amps?

Exactly this. It's only that Joe Perry gets all the solos... But I wouldn't be surprised if brad had far more influence on the songwriting process.
That said, I do love Joe Perry's solos. Incredible tone and feel.

[Philly Q]

^

I remember hearing the Whitford St Holmes album many years ago.  That must have featured Brad as main guitarist, although Derek St Holmes - great singer - played guitar too, I think, just to confuse things.  Unfortunately I can't for the life of me remember what it sounded like.  :lol:

I've always assumed that Whitford is a technically able, versatile player but perhaps rather anonymous in his style.  I've never seen Aerosmith live but in all the live clips and promo videos I've seen it does seem to be Perry who invariably gets the "big" memorable parts.

Regarding the songwriting, when you look at the credits on the classic albums Steven Tyler - for all that he's a bit of a dick - seems to have been by far the main creative force in the band.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

how about Brad Whitford?

as far as i can tell he's always been pretty much an equal partner guitar wise in Aerosmith, yet Joe Perry gets all the plaudits.  personally, i have no idea what parts Joe or Brad played on any given song, but it's as likely to have been either of them.  by all accounts he's actually a more technically skilled player than Perry.

Speaking of Brad, has anyone ever had any experience of one of his three monkeys (i think)  amps?

Exactly this. It's only that Joe Perry gets all the solos... But I wouldn't be surprised if brad had far more influence on the songwriting process.
That said, I do love Joe Perry's solos. Incredible tone and feel.

Now hold on a second!!!

My two favorite Aero solos and probably up there on my all-time list are Last Child and Nobody's Fault (also my favorite Aero song and in my top 10 favorite songs from any group) both done by Mr. Whitford. I find Perry's solos are much more about energy that feel, and Brad is the opposite. I also like Brad's rhythm playing more than Joe's, Joe is much too sloppy for me. Brad is in the pocket and plays what needs to be played. I feel ashamed I left him off my list.

[Dmoney]

Chris Haskett
&
Gary Miller aka Dr Know

[MDV]

I'm not really into the whole "league table" approach to assessing guitar players, and I always think it's tough to say anyone is "better" than anyone else, it's art not a sport...

Didnt even bother to read the rest of what you said.

End $%&#ing thread.

I'm a poet and lists are shite.