meandthestereo

My admiration and fascination of guitars and guitar playing goes way back. It was just so cool watching these guys rip through leads, playing ultra-fast or just generally causing mayhem with their guitars. Whether watching a good axe-man live or in a recorded concert, there is nothing more electrifying than watching a great guitar player ply his chosen craft. There are many great guitar players, past and present; I’d like to mention a few of my personal favorites.

For sheer impact on the music community as a whole, I have to go with Jimi Hendrix. Unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to see Hendrix live, but I have seen many recorded concerts. I also have a very extensive collection of bootleg concerts and interviews. He was one of those musicians who, when he was ripping a solo, would go to another level of being; a whole other place. His impact on music and the guitar-playing community is unmistakable. Virtually every great modern guitar player mentions Hendrix as a major influence on their own playing. His innovation on guitar and in the recording studio will live on forever.

For pure virtuosity of playing, I’ll go with Stevie Ray Vaughan. It was a pleasure to witness this man playing guitar…usually with your jaw on the ground. I was fortunate enough to see SRV a couple of times; both times were absolutely remarkable. When he went into a solo, it was impossible to look away. I found myself fixating on his fingers as he climbed around the neck of 1963 Stratocaster. Pure genius! He too seemed to go to some other place when he was shredding. I once heard Eric Clapton refer to SRV as a channel…music just flowed through him and erupted out of his fingers. At times, I felt sorry for the rest of Double Trouble as they tried to keep time and keep up!

For total innovation on the six string, I’m going with Eddie Van Halen. The first time I saw him play with both hands on the neck, I was completely blown away. What was this dude doing? Where is his pick? I’ve seen VH many times and watching Eddie perform his guitar solo is well worth the price of admission. In my opinion, he brought the use of two hands on the neck to rest of the world and into the mainstream. Many modern guitarists added this style to their repertoire, but nobody perfected it, or plays it better, than Eddie.

I could easily go on and on about great guitar players. After all, there are so many phenomenal ones to talk about. From the likes of Django Reinhardt through Les Paul, great guitar players have spanned the generations. Other modern guitarists who easily deserve mention are guys like Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Tom Morello, Jeff Beck, Randy Rhoads, Yngwie Malmsteen…somebody stop me! Let’s all enjoy these guitar virtuosos as they shred their six string things.

The source for the awesome Eddie Van Halen photo is here!

Roy Hargrove

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJNN-YmaJ8I

Roy Hargrove is a music sensation. His albums define the true creativity that Jazz can express. He has used hip-hop and funk, as well as R&B artists to contribute to this American Art Form.  You will find that Roy has been playing the trumpet ever since he was a little boy. He has been influenced by the greats, like Wynton Marsalis and David “Fathead” Newman. He has performed with legends such as Herbie Hancock, Diana Krall, Common, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Diana Ross, Natalie Cole, and John Mayer among many others. You will hear a lot of these artists on his recordings.

The RH Factor’s “Hard Groove” is one of my favorite albums; this was actually the first Roy recording I had ever heard. One song that I can’t stop listening too is called “Kwah/Home”, featuring Anthony Hamilton.  His sounds have such full eccentric sounding chords that always manage to evolve. He is very soulful, and any true lover of music will enjoy Roy Hargrove.  When I first heard he was coming to Blues Alley in DC, I was excited. When my friend and I got there, the line was practically around the corner. We had to wait a good while before they let us in. Blues Alley is known as one of the top performance venues for Jazz artists, so I felt glad that I was able to attend this event. Our seats were right in the front, because my friend actually knows Roy and has had the opportunity to play with him. The scene inside was very intimate, the place is only but so big, so everyone was able to see the stage.  The audience was in awe of his performance.  Each song gave them a chance to give him a warm and full applause. This night the music was truly straight ahead jazz with a little bit of funk at the end. He allowed guest musicians to come and perform with his band. His band members include: Justin Robinson (sax), Jonathan Batiste (piano), Ameen Saleem (bass) and Montez Coleman (drums).  Each musician on stage was able to carry their own show if allowed; their solos were full of rhythms, distinct melodies, and dissonant harmonies. I truly had a great night seeing and hearing this wonderful art form at it’s best.

If you do not know Roy Hargrove’s music you must begin your journey now!!!

More info about Roy Hargrove: http://www.vervemusicgroup.com/royhargrove

TV Show: Glee
Network: Fox
When: Wednesdays 9/8c
Favorite Tunes: “Don’t Stop Believing”
Rating: 4/5

I have never understood why musicals are so divisive.  Approximately fifty percent of the population hates musicals.  At least, that’s what I’m guessing with no evidence whatsoever.  It makes no sense for so many people to be anti-musicals.  A lot of people like movies, and a lot of people like music.  Both put together should have a sizable built-in audience, but its only been recently that musicals have been successful anywhere outside Broadway. Me, though, I have enjoyed musicals for a while now, but especially recently thanks to some of the smarter musical comedies that have been released.  Those that are successful, because they don’t take themselves too seriously.

This is precisely why Glee is successful.  It doesn’t take itself seriously as a musical or as another television show about pretty adults pretending to be teenagers.  The plot is actually pretty similar to the dreadful High School Musical (or so I hear).  A group of misfits who just want to sing make singing seem so fun that eventually non-misfits want to join in too.  But while a regular musical might put more emphasis on making the musical numbers seem as artificially spectacular as possible, Glee takes popular songs and shows the characters enjoying performing these songs.  I mean we can all relate to singing Journey in a moment of happiness right?  Anyone? Read the rest of this entry →