The Music Court

With this post, the poll for who is the greatest guitarist of all time shall be closed. The ending results: Jimi Hendrix: 6 and Eric Clapton: 2. I know, so many people voted! Therefore, since Hendrix won, my post should be relatively easy. Because of the large sample size of voters we can logically deduce that Hendrix is clearly the best. Well, no, even if I was not being sarcastic and we did have thousands of voters, I feel as if many would choose Hendrix just because they feel obligated to do so. Jimi Hendrix has always had a strange mystical quality to him; almost to the point where he is looked at today as a spirit, rather than a person who once existed. Because of his shortened career and his large amount of tremendous guitar playing, he is sometimes looked at as the default greatest guitarist. People know Jimi Hendrix. They know the story of Woodstock. They know how he used to set his guitars on fire. People do not know as much as Eric Clapton, simply because he does not surround himself with the similar aura that Hendrix did. Clapton’s guitar playing was certainly undermined by Hendrix, mainly because Hendrix had that crazy, hippie-like persona that has never left him, even in death.

It is not hard to defend Jimi Hendrix. Hell, it is not hard to defend Eric Clapton either. Both are two different guitarists, who took the blues and re-shaped it into their own particular niches. But, it is in Hendrix’s ability to make a guitar sing that I find him to be better then Clapton. Clapton can certainly make a guitar cry, but Hendrix may be the only guitarist ever that was able to make that electric sing like there was no tomorrow. In all of his distortion, wacky chords and riffs, and gritty solos, Hendrix’s guitar sang to any crowd he played for. This is a large contributor to the aura that surrounds him. His guitar sang and the way he played with it on stage was incredible.

Ask anyone why they think Hendrix was the greatest guitarist of all time and they will certainly mention his stage antics. No one felt a guitar like Jimi. He manipulated the string of the guitar and made love to it on stage. Hendrix’s salacious playing was not a negative attribute though. His style of playing just echoed the times he was playing in. His guitar shot sounds of free love and hate to an audience. It is his feeling of playing the guitar that sets him apart from Eric Clapton and others.

Clapton, King, Johnson, Allman, all feel the guitar. If you don’t feel a solo it will come out detached and unnecessary. Out of that list of names, I would go so far in saying that Clapton certainly feels the guitar better than any of them. But, he just does not compare to Hendrix in this respect. Career-wise, Clapton has stayed alive for over 35 years past the death of Hendrix at 27. He has had the ability to hone on his guitar skills and become a dignified master. Yet, over the quick span of Hendrix’s life he proved that he was just as proficient as Clapton. His use of distortion was not masking mistakes and this can be proved in his early performances before distortion became one of his staples. His skilful use of music is certainly there. While my roommate, Josh, may not be able to listen to Hendrix on repeat, I can. In the short amount of years that he existed he created such a variety of music that went from funk, acid, hard, psychedelic rock. I understand one cannot put credit into what could of been, so I am not. Look at his body of work. This proves that he is the greatest.

When Hendrix got up on stage his singing guitar and remarkable phrasing sounded like he was putting together understandable sentences. The sound penetrated listeners to the point that the venue holding Hendrix’s performance collapsed around them, only leaving Jimi, his guitar, and them. His guitar was the music of the stars, of  sheer wonderment, and it will forever have the ability to entrap with its skilfulness and leave anyone in awe of its beauty.

“Purple Haze” from Isle of Wight:

Hey guys,

Ok, so first off…Eric Clapton is God. I will start off by saying that Hendrix is an amazing guitarist, and he is by far the best guitarist in manipulation of guitar distortion. However, when it comes to true mastery of the guitar, I have to say that Eric Clapton takes the cake to the bakery to see the other cakes. When I judge a guitarist, I keep in mind several categories: technical proficiency, emotion, phrasing, manipulation of the guitar, and skillful use of music. Eric Clapton is a true master in every category. His phrasing is always impeccable, and his technical proficiency is rivaled by very few. However, Clapton is the only guitarist that truly makes it “look easy.” Clapton makes playing the guitar look so easy, that you lose none of the performance in wild, perhaps desperate movements that some guitarists make to properly place their fingers on the strings that hover so gracefully above the guitar neck. Therefore, the technical proficiency category is taken care of.

One cannot speak of phrasing without skillful use of music. Eric Clapton not only squeezes a painful weeps and moans from his guitar, but he also calls upon anguish-filled cries from silence. When Hendrix plays, some of the emotion and music can get lost in the distortion that can cloud the performance. Clapton’s use of silence in his music and soloing help him soar far over any other guitarist, when combined with his other talents. The emotion with which Clapton plays is due to his skillful manipulation of the guitar and his ability to pour his heart out into his playing. If you take a look here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNBEiyGwGRc, you will see an example of Clapton’s amazing playing. Clapton depends on nothing except his experience, emotion, and guitar in order to send waves conveying anguish in every conceivable direction. Clapton does not use distortion to cover potential mistakes. Part of the reason why he is so amazing is because he leaves his playing completely exposed, leaving nothing but raw emotion emanating from his guitar.  I’m not saying that Hendrix isn’t amazing, but small errors are easily hidden in distortion. I am a guitar player myself, and I know that distortion can help cover minor inaccuracies. Clapton always uses pinpoint precision and accuracy in his playing, which results in a raw, melodic, beautiful, yet painful melody. Furthermore, I can listen to Clapton all day. I can only take so much of Hendrix. Lastly, Eric Clapton is so good at guitar, that Chuck Norris himself bows down in amazement, and I think that is evidence enough.

I am in the new category mood. Also, I am rather busy tonight and wanted to put something up that was nice and easy. I did not say that did I. Well, if the above title does not give you any indication about what is going on here you should probably look again. Easy enough. I am going to post a list of names below of the most fantastic guitarists, in my opinion, of all time. What do you have to do? Vote which one is the best. Think I forgot someone or you want to defend your point; just comment and let me know what you think. I am looking forward to all of your responses.

New polls can be created at anytime and anytime a poll is created I, or whoever posts the poll will let you know who my/or their pick is. An explanation of why will follow in a day or two after the posting. Cool? Cool!

Why am I starting with this impossible question? Well, this is one of those questions which has no answer. There are a few guitarists who are the best in different ways. There are a lot of things that go into a player. Feeling, precision, speed, accuracy, sound. So, with this one you may want to prove yourself below. Today, Josh, who is an Eric Clapton supporter showed me an amazing video, which he may post sometime soon (maybe even in a response to the poll) which may prove Clapton to be the best. Personally, my pick is Jimi Hendrix. I will tell you why soon. So, tell us what you think.