Off Topic Who shaped your playing? (READ first post before replying!)

[whitestrat]

I don't mean who have you learned from in terms of how you want to craft your playing, solos, etc etc. You can only know this is you've recorded yourself over and over and over, and took a good long listen.

Who do you hear in your own playing?

I used to think I was influenced by many many guitarists. But when I really took a long listen to my own stuff, I discovered how much some players molded my playing more than others into what it is now. And those I thought I was influenced by, were nowhere to be heard.

Here's the list of guys who I seem to catch a glimpse of in my own playing.

Slash (How come this guy came out on top? I never realised that a lot of my rhythm playing and lead playing came from him)
Gary Moore
Eric Clapton
Joe Satriani
SRV
Tom Keifer (Rhythm baby!)
Mark Knopfler
Yngwie Malmsteen (I couldn't believe it, but I'd have to say my vibrato came from him)
John Petrucci (the bottom of the list? i'm amazed!)
Carlos Santana (another odd one... I never realised how much I sounded like him in some cases)

Those I thought did influence me in some way or another, but I can't seem to hear anything I play coming from them:

Steve Vai
Marty Friedman
Vinnie Moore
Andy Timmons
Robert Cray
BB King
CC Deville (huh?)
Jeff Beck
Jeff Healey
...and some others.

So, who do you sound like the most when you play?

 

[robelinda2]

You tell me! I have no idea. I think I sound like me.

 

[ScoobySteve]

That's easy for me. For me as a kid it was absolutely Stevie Ray Vaughn. There is no bigger influence for me. I started playing piano at 3 (Korean parents) then trumpet at 7. I quit both at 15 to pick up the guitar because I heard my Dad's Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix and most importantly Texas Flood by SRV.

I love all kinds of music, I try my best not to hate, nor to discriminate any style of music and be as eclectic as I can. So my playing is diverse I think because of that, but I will always find myself modifying or straight up carbon copying an SRV lick and slapping it into my playing. Can't help it, lol

 

[parker1963]

Frampton, Clapton, Jimmy Page, SRV.

 

[heka313]

Well, depending on which styles I'm playing I can hear something from these guys:

rhythm playing (rock): Izzy&Slash on Appetite, SRV
rhythm playing (heavier stuff): Dave Mustaine, also Nuno on funkier riffs

leads:

Although Slash has been my ultimate favourite since 1989, and really can't hear his style in my playing, unfortunately. Maybe some minor things of his legato, but not all. Actually a big surprise was when I heard Better from the latest GN'R album, the last solo (3:39) by Robin Finck was just the thing I would play on that. Weird...

Most things I usually play are combinations of Satriani, Gary Moore, Steve Morse and Randy Rhoads excluding those fastest things (I've never liked those ultra-fast sweeps etc. I played with Aleksi Laiho in 1994 and I kind a felt that "okay, I'm not the fastest guy in the neighborhood, I'll concetrate on other things". Also some delay chops (and Ebow) are a bit similar what the Edge plays, or at least I can hear the influence.

Naturally everything I'm nowadays playing is "me", but these players have had the biggest affect on my overall sound.

 

[spychocyco]

The kid that picks up a guitar for the first time in the music store and just bangs away on it. Wish I were joking, but I really suck despite 20 years or so of efforts to not suck.

I'd probably say the two guys I hear in my playing most are Tony Iommi and James Hetfield. (Though both would cringe to hear me say that if they'd heard me play). I've always been a rhythm guy. I like power chords and big heavy riffs. I'd probably add Criss Oliva to the list as well, as I like to do a lot of the single-note style riffing he did.

Or, at least, those are the guys I would sound like if I could play.

 

[Smellybum]

I shaped my playing - that's also my downfall - but there's nobody else to blame!

 

[joe web]

take a listen to this file and tell me what you here from it.
Dreamland

for me, my playing sounds like some kind of evh, steve vai, paul gilbert and john petrucci, maybe some kind of zakk wylde sometimes.

 

[TNT]

johnny winter and eddie van halen combo

 

[dwells]

hmm well probably Marty Friedman Yngwie Malmsteen Vinnie moore Jeff waters John Petrucci Joe Satriani Dave Mustaine these are a few that people have told me that they can hear in my sound??

 

[Astrofreq]

I'd say my playing sounds like a cross between The Osmonds and sandpaper.

 

[leftyguitarblue]

I'd say my playing sounds like a cross between The Osmonds and sandpaper.

hahaha, nice one Rad.


As far as me, it would have to Kirk Hammet,George Lynch and Petrucci. Believe me, I can't play as fast and clean, but it's definitely there.

 

[agt]

Whoever it is I hear in my own playing, he needs to practice more!

 

[candid_x]

Carlos, Neil, Randy California, Stills, Garcia and Tiny Tim.

 

[browndog]

Alex Lifeson, Rik Emmett, Jimmy Page

 

[mb99zz]

Lots of folks I admire and look up to in the guitar world, but I don't really hear any of them in my own playing/music. I just hear somebody that needs to keep his day job.

 

[pjc812]

Hey Whitestrat and everybody else. Been a while sine I've been here (busy) and I missed ya'll.

Who do I sound like? Well, the people who influenced my playing the most you've probably not heard of with the exception of Phil Keaggy:

Phil Keaggy
Bob Hartman
Renato Butturi

Phil Keaggy is of course an extraordinary guitar player and has been around for a long time. Bob Hartman is the guitarist for Petra. Renato is my guitar professor from college. All three of these guys have one thing in common (besides the guitar). They know how to grab a hold of one note and really make it count. I can't play fast, never have. But I try to eak out of one note as much tone as humanly possible.

So I pretty well sound like myself. Case in point, I was in rehearsal one day for a big Easter shin dig with a local church. This Easter service draws about 8000 people so it's a pretty big deal. My mom walked into the rehearsal room and heard the guitar. Without even seeing me she knew it was my playing. At the time I played Marshall amps exclusively and was forced to play through a Fender Twin so the tone was all wrong. She still knew my playing over the other half a dozen guitar players who participated.

 

[Spudmurphy]

Paul Kossoff

 

[Shadowbox]

Ty Tabor, Dave Navarro, Eric Gales, Steve Morse (I wish I could phrase like he does!).

 

[NewLukeGuy]

Larry Carlton
Dickey Betts
Jerry Garcia
Billy Gibbons

Pretty much in that order. There are others that have a lessor influence but when I'm just winging a solo there's a chance you might here some of one or more of those guys.