January 15, 2008

 

 

The Best Guitar Player In The World

 

 

As my name Johnny Concert implies-I see a lot of concerts. No, dude, seriously A LOT OF CONCERTS. Like 100-plus per year. My favorite part of the concert is the guitar. I love the leads, the riffs, the breaks, the licks, the hooks, and especially. . .the solos.

Of course I love the drum fills, and the bass runs, and the complementary keyboards, and the derring-do vocals. But the guitar, to me, is the be all end all. Rock ‘N’ Roll. Give me screaming electric guitar or give me death.

After seeing six amazing axemen in three weeks- from November 16th ,’07 to December 7th ,’07- I thought it was time to revisit the question: Who’s the best guitar player in the world?

November 16th- Zappa Plays Zappa.

Dweezil Zappa usually has Steve Vai on stage with him (this show Jamie Kime filled in) so I figured Vai played the lead and Dweezil was in more of a back up role. I figured wrong. Dweezil played the lion’s share of the solos and he was unstoppable. My only complaint about the show is that I had to keep picking my jaw up off the floor. I came away thinking he is one of the best guitar players in the world.

November 21st- Tool.

Adam Jones is a techno whiz. His use of the talk box, multiple pedals, effects, and multiple amps is mind boggling. Jones is a master of sound, but also of visuals. He attended film school and studied set design. Jones has worked on all of the Tool videos as well as major motion pictures. He also played violin and acoustic bass growing up. His knowledge of music, his use of effects, his command of visuals and his amazing guitar playing all combine to place him in the top echelon of guitar giants.

 

December 3rd- The Cult.

Billy Duffy is a total rock star and guitar stud. His tone is crystal clear and his licks are so tasty. His stage presence is powerful and his Gretsch White Falcon is gorgeous. Duffy played two or more solos on almost every song. One guitar solo is great but two solos is even better. The show was fantastic and put Duffy in contention for best in the world.

 

 

December 4th- Ozzy with Rob Zombie.

John 5 (formerly of Marilyn Manson fame) tore it up. Very few guitar gods use the Fender Telecaster as their main axe. He ripped through both the White Zombie and Rob Zombie classics, but he took it up a notch on his extended solo and made the crowd go wild when he played the ‘Star Spangled Banner’-WITH HIS TEETH. On his latest solo release, ‘The Devil Knows My Name’ (how cool is that title!), John 5 plays everything from Country to Blues to Jazz to Rock. He also has an instructional video. Definitely a candidate for best ever.

Zakk Wylde’s whole being screams Metal. He has the hair, he has the beard, he has the clothes, he has the boots, he has the chains, he has the booze, but most of all-he has the chops. You have to be good to play Iommi songs, Rhoads songs, Lee songs and Wylde songs all in one night. Not to be outdone by John 5, his extended solo was a shred-fest and he wowed the audience when he played the ‘Star Spangled Banner’-BEHIND HIS HEAD. Wylde also plays with Black Label Society- where does he find the time? His playing is spectacular and qualifies him for the top of the table.

December 6th- Trans Siberian Orchestra.

Al Pitrelli has played for Metal acts Savatage and Megadeth. He also does session work with artists such as vocalist Joe Lynn Turner (Rainbow, Deep Purple, etc.). He attended the world famous Berklee School of Music, and is a well respected professional. During this unique Christmas concert, the TSO played an amazing ‘Metal’ version of ‘Silver Bells’ and had fun, rockin’ takes on many other holiday songs. The performers also forayed into “the Nutcracker Suite’ and ‘Carmina Burana’ the medieval sounding orchestral chant by Carl Orff. Pitrelli’s use of soaring, majestic single notes followed by arpeggiated runs is phenomenal. All that and his versatility put him in the running for Numero Uno.

I used to say Jimi Hendrix is the best ever, period, end of discussion. Then I saw Jeff Beck. He can do more with one note than most guitarists can do with the entire fret board. Wow. So he took over the Number 1 spot. Then after several G3 shows and solo Joe Satriani shows a new King was crowned- Satch blew my mind. Joe’s so good and makes it look so easy, it almost looks like he’s joking. Then I switched to Buckethead as the first seed- it’s impossible to play that fast AND with that much feel. Then another Satriani show and he regained the title. Then after I saw the Heaven and Hell tour it was all Tony Iommi. He’s the riff master- playing almost painfully slow sometimes- then he plays a solo and it’s as fast as anybody out there.

So who’s the best guitar player in the world? Easy. . . the best guitar player in the world is the one I saw last night.

 

 

                                           Johnny Concert