Harder to find: great lead singers or great lead guitarists?
David Kuehn
Opinions of those in bands or who have ever tried putting bands together
are especially welcome. The question is general, but VH specific comments
wouldn't hurt.
Dave K
FrFrFriday
I'd say a good lead singer is MUCH more difficult to find than a good
guitarist, but, finding a great lead singer or great guitarist is equally
very hard. In other words, there are plenty of good guitarists, not many
good lead singers and very few great lead singers or guitarists.
David Kuehn <dku...@us.oracle.com> wrote in article
<01bd8e6c$d2b48520$5c6cb98b@dkuehn-pc>...
Michael L. Blair
On 2 Jun 1998 21:27:57 GMT, "David Kuehn" <dku...@us.oracle.com>
wrote:
>
>Opinions of those in bands or who have ever tried putting bands together
>are especially welcome. The question is general, but VH specific comments
>wouldn't hurt.
I know of more people around here that can play than can sing. And it
is WRITING original songs that seperates the pretenders from the
contenders. EVH has proven he can't write songs.
Almost any reasonable coordinated person can get a guitar, and learn
how to imitate EVH's stuff. Not CREATE it, mind you, just play it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michael L. Blair wm...@zoomnet.net S.S.K.A.
"Van Halen is NOTHING without David Lee Roth -Howard Stern
Only 7 days until the rebirth of Rock and Roll!
June 9th! The Mighty DLR Band Album
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Doug
IMO, it is more difficult to find a good lead guitarist.
Off of the top of my head, I can think of many great lead singers (how many
"one hit wonder" bands are because of a strong lead singer? not to mention
the "real rock bands"). On the other hand, I can think of only a few
revolutionary type lead guitarists (Hendrix, Clapton, Page, Gilmor..sp,
Eddie, SRV, Eric Johnson, Townsend...sp) Slash? nah...Edge? nah...the
Aerosmith guitarist? nah...
VH without Eddie=squat.
I'm sure I left a few people out, that is for you to add....
Written by the #1 Sammy fan.
Doug
sta...@xmission.xmission.com
In alt.music.van-halen David Kuehn <dku...@us.oracle.com> wrote:
: Opinions of those in bands or who have ever tried putting bands together
: are especially welcome. The question is general, but VH specific comments
: wouldn't hurt.
In my experience, they're equally difficult to come by, but it really
depends on what qualities you are looking for and which genre of music
you are playing. In terms of lead guitar, I am usually just looking
for someone who can throw in some flash or atmospherics - not a lot
of substantial lead playing a la EVH, where the lead guitar is the
bulk of the instrumental output. The way I do things, the rhythm
section (including rhythm guitar) and the vocals tend to make up the
heart of the song, and the lead instruments just help to fill it
out.
As for lead singers, I gave up a long time ago. Trying to find the
right combination of voice, lyrics and stage presence....ugh. I eventually
started doing it myself because I was writing and co-writing the songs
anyway and I had no desire to hire someone just so they could usurp
my material. Because like it or not, Eddie fans, lead vocals are a vital
part of pop music, and getting it across to an audience. Especially if the
singer doesn't do anything else except sing. I sing lead, but I also
play bass so it's a constant tug-of-war between getting the parts
down, giving band cues, nailing the vocals and entertaining the crowd.
Sometimes I would like to give it up and search for a frontman again,
but I don't think I'd respect myself very much in the morning.
And now I'm rambling again...
Sorry no VH-related comments. Maybe next time.
-------
stabbim