If you were asked to name the three most influential guitarists of the past 40 years I wonder what names you would come up with?
Perhaps you would think of Frank Zappa, or Chuck Berry, or perhaps Woody Guthrie or Pete Seeger, or maybe it would be Chet Atkins or Barney Kessel.
No question about it, they are all great guitarists, but there are three names which you have not mentioned that I would go for.
So who would I vote for? These three, but not necessarily in any particular order Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck.
Sad to say that Jimi died in 1970, but happily Eric and Jeff are still performing today.
Right then, let me say a bit about these three guitar heros.
First of all, Eric Clapton. Eric was born in 1945, and in 1963 he joined the R&B group, The Yardbirds, but within 2 short years he had left the group as he felt that they were becoming an out and out pop group, and he was right.
He then had a brief spell with John Mayalls Bluesbreakers before coming back to the UK to form the supergroup known as Cream, along with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.
Everybody was very saddened when in 1968 Cream disbanded, which led Eric to set up a band called Blind Faith, which comprised Eric, Ginger Baker, and Steve Winwood.
Unfortunately Blind Faith did not last as long as everyone expected, and when they disbanded Eric formed Derek and the Dominoes, and whilst he was with this group he released my favourite record "Layla".
Sadly, drink and drugs began to take their toll of Eric, and he felt that he had to pull out of the music business, at least for a while.
Happily Eric is now back in full swing, and we his fans are all expectantly awaiting the next great thing from him.
The next performer that I want to talk about is Jimi Hendrix, and what an amazing performer he was. I hate having to say 'he was', because he only lived for 28 short years from 1942 to 1970.
People who saw him were overwhelmed by his ability on the guitar, many believing that he was the greatest Rock guitarist of all time.
For a part of his career he was a sideman for such famous name as Ike & Tina Turner, the Isley Brothers, and Little Richard, but not surprisingly somebody with his talent and stage presence did not stay in the background for long.
It was not long before Jimi had moved to the big lights of New York, and one night, whilst playing in Greenwich village, he was approached by a member of the British Rock group, the Animals.
And before long Jimi was packing his bags and moving over to play the scene in London.
And my how he played it. A dazzling guitarist, and an electric performer, what a combination.
His first debut single was Hey Joe, still a great record today, and his debut album in 1967 was Are you experienced.
But to really appreciate his brilliance, you just had to see him live on stage. I have seen him playing the guitar behind his back (its hard enough to play it normally), and I have seen him plucking the strings with his teeth.
If you saw him on stage you would never forget the experience.
When he died in 1970 of a drug overdose the world lost a truly unique musician.
This then brings me to my last choice for top three performers, and that is Jeff Beck, a great musician although much more in the background than Eric or Jimi.
1944 saw the birth of Jeff in a town called Wallington, in England. He played with the interesting character Screaming Lord Sutch, and with the Yardbirds
He stayed with the yardbirds until late 1966 when he went on to form his own band the Jeff Beck Group.
And it was here that he spent some time with Rod Stewart until Rod moved on.
Amongst other great names that Jeff has played with is Mick Jagger.
In 1989 Jeff won a grammy for best rock instrumental for his album Guitar Shop.
Not so long ago I heard Jeff playing live, and even after all these years he is able to thrill his audiences with his skill. If you get the chance, go and hear him for yourself.
This article is number one in a series on great performers. If you would like to receive each article as it comes out then go to my website where you will find my email address, and just email me asking to be kept updated. - 15615
Perhaps you would think of Frank Zappa, or Chuck Berry, or perhaps Woody Guthrie or Pete Seeger, or maybe it would be Chet Atkins or Barney Kessel.
No question about it, they are all great guitarists, but there are three names which you have not mentioned that I would go for.
So who would I vote for? These three, but not necessarily in any particular order Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck.
Sad to say that Jimi died in 1970, but happily Eric and Jeff are still performing today.
Right then, let me say a bit about these three guitar heros.
First of all, Eric Clapton. Eric was born in 1945, and in 1963 he joined the R&B group, The Yardbirds, but within 2 short years he had left the group as he felt that they were becoming an out and out pop group, and he was right.
He then had a brief spell with John Mayalls Bluesbreakers before coming back to the UK to form the supergroup known as Cream, along with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.
Everybody was very saddened when in 1968 Cream disbanded, which led Eric to set up a band called Blind Faith, which comprised Eric, Ginger Baker, and Steve Winwood.
Unfortunately Blind Faith did not last as long as everyone expected, and when they disbanded Eric formed Derek and the Dominoes, and whilst he was with this group he released my favourite record "Layla".
Sadly, drink and drugs began to take their toll of Eric, and he felt that he had to pull out of the music business, at least for a while.
Happily Eric is now back in full swing, and we his fans are all expectantly awaiting the next great thing from him.
The next performer that I want to talk about is Jimi Hendrix, and what an amazing performer he was. I hate having to say 'he was', because he only lived for 28 short years from 1942 to 1970.
People who saw him were overwhelmed by his ability on the guitar, many believing that he was the greatest Rock guitarist of all time.
For a part of his career he was a sideman for such famous name as Ike & Tina Turner, the Isley Brothers, and Little Richard, but not surprisingly somebody with his talent and stage presence did not stay in the background for long.
It was not long before Jimi had moved to the big lights of New York, and one night, whilst playing in Greenwich village, he was approached by a member of the British Rock group, the Animals.
And before long Jimi was packing his bags and moving over to play the scene in London.
And my how he played it. A dazzling guitarist, and an electric performer, what a combination.
His first debut single was Hey Joe, still a great record today, and his debut album in 1967 was Are you experienced.
But to really appreciate his brilliance, you just had to see him live on stage. I have seen him playing the guitar behind his back (its hard enough to play it normally), and I have seen him plucking the strings with his teeth.
If you saw him on stage you would never forget the experience.
When he died in 1970 of a drug overdose the world lost a truly unique musician.
This then brings me to my last choice for top three performers, and that is Jeff Beck, a great musician although much more in the background than Eric or Jimi.
1944 saw the birth of Jeff in a town called Wallington, in England. He played with the interesting character Screaming Lord Sutch, and with the Yardbirds
He stayed with the yardbirds until late 1966 when he went on to form his own band the Jeff Beck Group.
And it was here that he spent some time with Rod Stewart until Rod moved on.
Amongst other great names that Jeff has played with is Mick Jagger.
In 1989 Jeff won a grammy for best rock instrumental for his album Guitar Shop.
Not so long ago I heard Jeff playing live, and even after all these years he is able to thrill his audiences with his skill. If you get the chance, go and hear him for yourself.
This article is number one in a series on great performers. If you would like to receive each article as it comes out then go to my website where you will find my email address, and just email me asking to be kept updated. - 15615
