Who influenced you?

[The Analog Cub]

I'm curious about everyone's musical grassroots. Who influenced your playing style, your instrument tone, etc.?

 

I have to give it to:

 

Adrian Smith

Lerxst

 

When I'm playing around with new amps or toys I usually find myself setting my tone up so it sounds like Adrian. Heavy and hard, but when soloing or playing clean everything sounds crisp and clear, with a lot of sustain but with the proper amount of gain. Alex finds his way into there as well, but his effects are more subtle. His quirky way of setting up notes or chords has left its mark on me.

 

Other guitarists that haven't been much of an influence on my playing but are a blast to listen to:

 

Gary Moore

Joe Bonamassa

Dave Murray

Buddy Guy

[Narps]

[The Analog Grownup]

Oh I really don't know. I feel like a lot of my influences are not even from guitarists. I like how Adam Jones is in control of feedback though, his lax way of just putting his effects in front of his amps and sticking to what he learned to play with. I grew up with Hendrix, SRV, ZZ Top and such but never followed any musical directions. That's why I sound like I do for better or worse. I had some classical training one year and use that in ways even I can't recognize.

 

Whatever I play or whatever sound I have is something I hear in my head.

[Ancient Ways]

Clapton and Kirk Hammett are what I hear in my playing. Not sure if that's a great mix but when I played the most they were the two whose solos I enjoyed the most.

[The Analog Cub]

Clapton and Kirk Hammett are what I hear in my playing. Not sure if that's a great mix but when I played the most they were the two whose solos I enjoyed the most.

 

When I hear Kirk Hammett:

 

LOTS OF WAH SO MANY NOTES WHHHOOOOOOOSH

[CygnusX-1Bk2]

Guys I've played with have influenced me as much or more than guys I've listened to. I don't listen too much anymore for inspiration. These days I am interested more in production values than performance or instrumental values aside from arrangement. When I was younger the guys who influenced me are too many to name individually but I started very young and feel I developed my own sense of style by the time I was 15 or so and I've been refining it ever since. But I play several instruments and they all influence my approach on the others. I rarely think in terms of influences when playing anything original. Which is why I say the guys I play with.

[JARG]

I tend to mention four names when it comes to who influenced me:

Lifeson

Gilmour

Vaughan (Stevie, not Jimmie)

Van Halen

 

 

[thirteen]

I guess the biggest influences would be the guitar teachers I have had over the years.

And Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple and Rainbow).

[Mr. Not]

-no one specifically, I just wanted to play. And then...-

 

Ty Tabor

[Fridge]

-no one specifically, I just wanted to play. And then...-

 

Ty Tabor

 

Yup, he has been a big influence of mine, especially with the space-occupying rhythm he plays.

 

others:

 

Hendrix

Lifeson

Jerry Cantrell

[Maverick]

The first people I loved and wanted to play like were, and in this order:

 

Steve Howe

Alex Lifeson

David Gilmour

Jimmy Page

 

Howe and Lifeson would remain my main influences for years. But now I have seriously changed my playing style, and listening habits. Today, my main influences are:

 

SRV (and by extension Hendrix)

Joe Bonamassa

Brian Setzer

Danny Gatton

Paul Pigat

[EagleMoon]

I'm mainly a bass player but also play a bit of guitar but as far as influences...

 

Bass:

Dee Murray

John Entwistle

Geddy

Jaco Pastorius

Paul McCartney

John Deacon

John Paul Jones

Chris Squire

Andy West

Greg Lake

Mike Rutherford

 

Guitar:

Alex

Steve Morse

Jeff Beck

Jimmy Page

Brian May

David Gilmour

Joe Satriani

Stevie Ray Vaughan

Eric Clapton

[CygnusX-1Bk2]

Dee Murray was awesome.

[JARG]

The first people I loved and wanted to play like were, and in this order:

 

Steve Howe

Alex Lifeson

David Gilmour

Jimmy Page

 

Howe and Lifeson would remain my main influences for years. But now I have seriously changed my playing style, and listening habits. Today, my main influences are:

 

SRV (and by extension Hendrix)

Joe Bonamassa

Brian Setzer

Danny Gatton

Paul Pigat

 

A vastly underrated talent there.

[PolarizeMe]

When I began picking up the bass these were my main influences...

 

Geddy Lee

John Entwistle

Paul McCartney

Jaco Pastorius

Steve Harris

John Myung

 

They've still remained influential to me (Geddy probably more than the others on the list above) and my bass playing for years, but as of recent I've been gravitating towards a different hybrid style sonically with the following "modern" bassists as my main influence...

 

Justin Chancellor

Jeff Caxide

Colin Edwin

Nick Beggs

Al Cisneros

Troy Sanders

[apetersvt]

Nice thread idea!!

 

Those who have had the biggest influence on my playing are probably:

 

Duane Allman

Jerry Garcia

Warren Haynes

 

While Dr. Lifeson will always be my favorite guitarist, my style is more of the jam-style players listed above. With that said, I love nothing more than jamming along with Rush licks. But my own personal style isn't so much Lerxst (but it's gotta be there subliminaly).

 

Jimmy Page is also worth mentioning. That Les Paul/Marshall sound is classic. Slash would agree (but also goes back to Duane Almman). His sloppy playing never bothered me. That fits in with my jam-band mentality of trying something and see if it works.

 

Jimi Hendrix is an idle is well, but not only am I not in his league, I'm not even in his minor leagues.

 

[Del_Duio]

Les Claypool (Primus)

 

Les is the whole reason I started playing bass. It was 1991 or 1990 and my buddy woke me up by blasting Jerry Was a Racecar Driver right in my ear (put the speakers almost on top of my head, that bastard). Up until then I never knew a bass could sound like that, and that's what got me started. Plus around where I lived we had an absurd amount of surplus guitarists so it made sense to play something different than that.

 

His playing and sound is instantly recognizable. He's the anchor and the lead of almost everything Primus has ever put out, and of course has that distinct nasaly voice on top of it. There is no Primus without Les. I kind of got into these guys well before they made it big on MTV with My Name is Mud and Wyonna's Big Brown Beaver and I'm so glad they got the recognition they deserve nowadays.

 

 

Peter Gifford (Midnight Oil's 2nd bass player)

 

This guy is just so awesome. Think straight up rock / punk but with a lot of melodic elements all over the place. It gives him a pretty unique sound. His Fender has this great tone too- kind of like it has some distortion to it but it doesn't sound all shitty. Couple that with his great vocal harmonies and the guy's an overall beast with Australia's greatest band.

 

 

Geddy Lee (um, guess who he plays with)

 

Strangely enough, it took me a bit longer to really get into Geddy. The first time I remember ever seeing him play was on MTV when they played the video for Time Stand Still. My brother was all freaking out, saying "Watch these guys! He's the best bass player! And he's the best drummer in the world!" So yeah my first thought was "What? That guy who looks like an old lady??" (sorry Geddy!) But oh yeah I was MIGHTILY impressed by his playing as anybody with half a brain should be. I went to a local Coconuts music store and found the only thing that had Time Stand Still on it- A live tape called "A Show of Hands" and LOVED that one. The rest is history.

 

 

John Myung (Dream Theater)

 

For years, I had heard about how awesome DT were and blah blah wow I should really check them out but it took FOREVER for me to finally do so. I was in a Best Buy one night and for shits & giggles I saw their Live at Budokan DVD for cheap and decided to get it. I went home and gave it a spin..

 

WOW. From the opening bass harmonics of "As I Am" to the absolute insanity of their "Instrumedely" I was just awestruck to a degree that I haven't been before or since. Aside from Myung's mindblowing technical prowess (honestly, I think this guy can probably play anything there is, was, or will be) he has the ability to DOUBLE UP friggin' Petrucci! Then you get some great melodic moments like the very tail end of "Erotomania" / beginning of "Voices", or the really cool bass line he plays during the acoustic guitar / piano break of "Solitary Shell".. I love DT now. Probably tied for my #1 favorite with Midnight Oil.

 

Now mind you, I can't play anywhere near how they do- but I really like the way they play and how their different styles fit the song. So influenced, yes but a clone of these guys? No way!

Edited August 29, 2014 by Del_Duio

[LerxstLuthier]

Alex

David Gilmour

Mark Knopfler

EVH

Charlie Parker