zacaroo21 Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 You're going to judge someone's playing on a stage antic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topher Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 You're going to judge someone's playing on a stage antic? Actually, I'm a pretty huge fan. Just thought it'd be worth posting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David The Gnome Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Glad to see Gary Clark, Jr mentioned. He'd have to be my choice. The last 2 times I've seen him were borderline religious experiences; totally mind-blown by his talent. I'm not mad about John Mayer being listed at all, honestly. He's got chops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticus Posted November 23, 2013 Author Share Posted November 23, 2013 Disclaimer: my vote doesn't stem from studio albums. Live John Mayer is a totally different beast. His solos fall under the "every note thought out" category to the extent that it feels, to me, like he is saying more through his guitar that his lyrics. He also weighs in heavily in the technically proficient category. Not in the sense of finger tapping solos in 9/12 time but in the sense that you simply can't play what he does and his solos just "make sense." And obviously he weighs in the "memorable riffs" category as he has sold a bazillion records. His 4xlp "Where the Light Is" highlights this perfectly. Disk 1 is an acoustic set. He plays some of the very best acoustic folk style guitar out there. Disk 2 is his blues trio. Sick nasty what he can do with just a kit and a bass backing him. On disks 3 & 4 he redefines his "poppy" songs playing/singing them in a way that transcends radio top 40 crap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topher Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Disclaimer: my vote doesn't stem from studio albums. Live John Mayer is a totally different beast. His solos fall under the "every note thought out" category to the extent that it feels, to me, like he is saying more through his guitar that his lyrics. He also weighs in heavily in the technically proficient category. Not in the sense of finger tapping solos in 9/12 time but in the sense that you simply can't play what he does and his solos just "make sense." And obviously he weighs in the "memorable riffs" category as he has sold a bazillion records. His 4xlp "Where the Light Is" highlights this perfectly. Disk 1 is an acoustic set. He plays some of the very best acoustic folk style guitar out there. Disk 2 is his blues trio. Sick nasty what he can do with just a kit and a bass backing him. On disks 3 & 4 he redefines his "poppy" songs playing/singing them in a way that transcends radio top 40 crap. For the record, 9/12 is not an actual time signature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticus Posted November 23, 2013 Author Share Posted November 23, 2013 Glad to see Gary Clark, Jr mentioned. He'd have to be my choice. The last 2 times I've seen him were borderline religious experiences; totally mind-blown by his talent. I'm not mad about John Mayer being listed at all, honestly. He's got chops. Yea GCJ is a hero of mine. Still up and coming in my book though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticus Posted November 23, 2013 Author Share Posted November 23, 2013 For the record, 9/12 is not an actual time signature. Right. Exaggeration for exaggerations sake. topher 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommy Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Disclaimer: my vote doesn't stem from studio albums. Live John Mayer is a totally different beast. His solos fall under the "every note thought out" category to the extent that it feels, to me, like he is saying more through his guitar that his lyrics. He also weighs in heavily in the technically proficient category. Not in the sense of finger tapping solos in 9/12 time but in the sense that you simply can't play what he does and his solos just "make sense." And obviously he weighs in the "memorable riffs" category as he has sold a bazillion records. His 4xlp "Where the Light Is" highlights this perfectly. Disk 1 is an acoustic set. He plays some of the very best acoustic folk style guitar out there. Disk 2 is his blues trio. Sick nasty what he can do with just a kit and a bass backing him. On disks 3 & 4 he redefines his "poppy" songs playing/singing them in a way that transcends radio top 40 crap. This I'm convinced that anyone on here that does not list John Mayer simply has not been to his live show. Man owns the guitar and as mentioned above "speaks" through it in a way no other technical guitarists in this thread can. Dude has the chops and the soul, the ultimate combo "Your Body is a Wonderland" - thats like saying the only song the Beatles wrote was "Help" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abovetheearth Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 "Your Body is a Wonderland" - thats like saying the only song the Beatles wrote was "Help" not sure i agree with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Dave KnudsonThe squeeling guitar in Botch blows my mind. I would do anything for his skill and guitar tone. Really can't get into MTB but still love him. deletedunknown 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronniegwilliams Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 atticus, I like the way you think. I'm gonna get drunk with you from a number of states away. I'd agree with you usually, but it seems like you want an argument, so I'm gonna throw another name out there, Dan Auerbach from the Black Keys. Lets drink more staring now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bathroommonkey Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 i've enjoyed ronnies post from afar for awhile, but this is too much. black keys rub me all the wrong ways. i don't really have an ear for the technical stuff. melody and lyric suit me fine, but how has this thread not included names like; Mike McCready Billy Corgan Chris DeMakes Adam Jones (at least one of these names is a joke) almightyseancore 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 John Mayer. I'm drunk. Debate me. I don't care about his lame ass love songs or his stupid tabloid personality. Fuck you if you think there's a better guitarist out there. sorry. did not mean to downvote you. i am also drunk. but i'd say the two guitarists that have always impressed me live are billy corgan and jack white. i know i know. but i saw a secret dead weather show from the front row and jack white came out from the drums toward the end of the show to play "will there be enough water" up front and was shredding in my face. it was a religious experience. i'd say he deserved many-an-accolade for being so damn crafty and original. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pushbacktosquare Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 John Mayer. I'm drunk. Debate me. I don't care about his lame ass love songs or his stupid tabloid personality. Fuck you if you think there's a better guitarist out there. I clicked on this thread to say this! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronniegwilliams Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 i've enjoyed ronnies post from afar for awhile, but this is too much. black keys rub me all the wrong ways. i don't really have an ear for the technical stuff. melody and lyric suit me fine, but how has this thread not included names like; Mike McCready Billy Corgan Chris DeMakes Adam Jones (at least one of these names is a joke) I love this response. I honestly couldn't think of anything and OP wanted an argument, so I pulled up iTunes and just looked for something quick that I knew would spark a nice debate. I love that you said Corgan though; I've been obsessed with his guitar playing for the last couple of months or so. Also, I went off on a co-worker earlier tonight because they didn't appreciate Tool. It's not that I wanted them to "like" Tool, I just wanted them to appreciate them. As of right now, bathroommonkey is my favorite poster. Please pick up your gift basket at the entrance, the drink tickets are good for up to three house beverages, no top shelves, the complimentary lotions may cause some to break out. bathroommonkey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bathroommonkey Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 aw shit. i wish we could get drunker and watch Army of Darkness while listening to 10,000 days or In With the out Crowd, or Machina II. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronniegwilliams Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 I endorse everything that has just been stated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almightyseancore Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 billy corgan. fight me. edit: someone on page 2 beat me to it i guess. but it is still a fact. the man is a goddamn genius when it comes to guitar playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brandy Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 John Frusciante, guys. jtcohenour, David The Gnome and deletedunknown 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticus Posted November 23, 2013 Author Share Posted November 23, 2013 atticus, I like the way you think. I'm gonna get drunk with you from a number of states away. I'd agree with you usually, but it seems like you want an argument, so I'm gonna throw another name out there, Dan Auerbach from the Black Keys. Lets drink more staring now. Fuck man. I got too drunk and passed out. Now I am up at 5:30 with the beer shits. Thanks for engaging. I would agree with Dan as far as chops and soul but to me he is just sort of pure energy on the guitar. I'd have to say the same about Jack White. The man has decent chops and definitely some mad genius-like quality about him but he and Dan both lack a certain tenderness that I believe John brings to his playing. John can throw down with the best of them in a high energy fuck your face kind of solo, but (I think) almost more importantly he has that other side that many great guitarists lack, where what he doesn't play speaks almost as much as what he does play. Too many technically genius guitarists just try to cram as many notes as quickly as possible into a run because- why the hell not? But there is something to be said for letting the song breathe. I liken him to Clapton in this way. That man knows how to play the guitar almost lyrically. Every solo has a purpose and really takes the song somewhere, it's not just that musical masturbation like I referred to earlier. I know this whole topic is really subjective, I just think that John Mayer is an incredible rock/folk/blues guitarist that got famous for writing cheesy pop songs and put in this box so real music lovers sometimes tend to write him off. Tommy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticus Posted November 23, 2013 Author Share Posted November 23, 2013 John Frusciante, guys. Shit. You may have just deflated my JM balloon a little there. If there was one guitarist that could top Mayer for me it would be Frusciante. Man is a creative genius and I believe has a similar approach. However I think he takes being weird just for weirdness sake too far sometimes. I appreciate his art and a lot of it is beautiful as a whole work but the genius of what his guitar is doing sometimes gets lost in the noise. As far as his work with the chili peppers goes- oof. That man has consistently taken me to a different level on many occasions when he was still a pepper. That arena for me is where he begins to enter the scope of conversation I'm talking about. Technically the man is a god, his signature riffs with the chili peppers are some of the most recognizable out there, and if you've ever seen them live you know that when John is on he is the embodiment of soul. I know I sound like I'm making a case to change my answer but again I think it goes back to subjectivity. JM edges Frusciante out by just a bit in my book and the reason isn't really tangible. It just kind of "because I think so" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almightyseancore Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 John Frusciante, guys. yes, he would fall into this category too. i agree, not necessarily his work with chili peppers, considering californication has to be some of the laziest guitar playing i've ever heard recorded and somewhat appreciated, but his solo albums, 'to record only water' specifically, are fantastic. also the record he made with omar. JESUS CHRIST OMAR LOPEZ! HAS NO ONE MENTIONED HIM YET? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetsfan4ever80 Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Gary Clark Jr. I nearly wept when I saw him perform "Bright Lights" live. Even though I'm not that crazy about his studio work, he absolutely kills it live. The guy plays with so much soul. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 This I'm convinced that anyone on here that does not list John Mayer simply has not been to his live show. Man owns the guitar and as mentioned above "speaks" through it in a way no other technical guitarists in this thread can. Dude has the chops and the soul, the ultimate combo "Your Body is a Wonderland" - thats like saying the only song the Beatles wrote was "Help" Dude's got rip-off rehash chops. Your Body Is A Wonderland! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 If only you guys fully understood everything Trey Anastasio does during the course of a concert (not only with his guitar which is also technically superior to anyone mentioned here, but with wah, loops, delays, etc...) , you'd laugh at John Mayer's copycat abilities. He uses loops and combinations of pedals to create new sounds and tones on the fly, all while still playing. So not only does he have to think about playing his instrument, he's also gotta have his mind work on experimentation and real-time creation. Plus, as an improvisational artist, you've also gotta listen to the other band members and piece your work in with theirs. When you add all these things together, don't even think you're gonna convince me that John Freaking Mayer belongs anywhere near this conversation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.