I stole this from the internet:
When Warren Zevon died, he was surprised to find himself in rock-n-roll heaven. St. Peter was showing him around, introducing him to all the departed rock stars. He saw Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, John Bonham, etc.
Suddenly, he noticed Bono.
Zevon gasped to St. Peter: 'I didn't know Bono died!'
'Oh no,' replied Peter 'That's God - he just THINKS he's Bono.'
Really? What exactly is your definition of a great guitar player as this is very subjective? Many get all jacked up on guys that can play a million notes a second commonly referred to as cock-rock. People get all jacked up about guys like Eddie Van Halen who was a great guitarist over a period of time. But exactly what memorable guitar songs has Eddie provided us over the last 15 years? Jimmy Page made some great albums over a small period of time as well. Not dissing these guys but longevity and relevance should be a keep element when discussing the all time greats. Does the guitar fit in with the rest of the song? Alot of guys play guitar recklesslly and selfishly in terms of having solos that don't fit with the song, not Edge.
On the surface the Edge plays very simplistic in terms of mainly utilizing just a few chords. But the delay and echo effects that he uses are anything but simplistic. He basically created a revolutionary sound that in a way has changed some of the landscape of rock music over the last 20 years when you consider some of the bands heavily influenced by him and U2. He and the band have made consistently good and relevant music over 30 years which is unprecedented considering some of the big acts over our lifetime. There are many ways to play instruments and for someone to basically invent a sound from a guitar that basically had been stagnant since the 70's and mid 80's is pretty impressive. Do you think what he plays is easy to duplicate? There are 100's of U2 tribute bands and mainstream bands that have immitated him but none sound the same. Consider this quote from Bob Dylan..."Everybody’s going to remember your songs, it’s just that nobody’s gonna be able to play them". So if you think his guitar playing is easy you are dead wrong.
Have you listened to Achtung Baby? From opening to closer that is quite possibly one of the top 5 best and freshest guitar albums of the last 20 years. Finally, Edge has made some great studio sounds but his true genious lies in the live shows. In the studio his philosphy has mostly been to play within context of the song and what the rest of the band are doing. He is not about showing off and going on endless solos that don't fit the context of the song like many do. But in the live setting he is a little more free in letting loose and further adding color to the U2 sound.
Also, in terms of complexity he uses upwards of 20 different guitars during a live tour. If you have never seen this band live you are truly missing a great expierence.
Is Edge a top 5 of all time..probably not. Is he a top 10, maybe. Is he a top 20, absolutely. But again it is so subjective that it really depends on your criteria. GoGo's is longevity, relevance, innovation, consistency, continuity within the rest of the music, and X factor(does your hair sometimes stand up when you hear it)
The new album BTW is very good. It is much better and very different from the last 2. It is a true album in the sense that it is best heard from start to finish to truly get into the music. Even Boots which GoGo wast not particularly fond of on first listen actually fits perfectly within the album. Should provide for another outstanding tour from these guys later this year. Looking forward to seeing them in a few cities.
You tell em Go Go. It sounds like what we have here is a bunch of under 30 somethings that have grown up with speed metal and unimaginative post punk rock. Which all sounds alike to me. We'll see which bands will hold up and still be relevant 30 years from now. Some of the best guitar players and bands from my day weren't the speed freaks, but the ones who set the mood within the music. David Gilmour from Pink Floyd was totally original. Peter Green from the orginal Fleetwood Mac was another great one. He is the artist who wrote Black Magic Woman that Santana later made famous. Even Jimi Hendrix wasn't all about speed. He knew how to slow it down and stretch out his chords to fit the songs. That's what it's all out. Tricked out speed freaks on guitar are a dime a dozen. The music they make today will be in the bargain bins by next year.
Be curious to see the answers to these questions myself. I can certainly understand someone not caring for their sound but not to understand why others would like them is baffling.
I would go off on my pro U2 tirade but I doubt I could add anything that GOGO did'nt already say. 30 years later they are putting out arguably their best stuff ever. Unlike other legendary Bands like the Stones, Zeppelin, Aerosmith and others who put out absolute rubbish the last 10, 15 years of their career theses guys are still capable of an incredible record.
No matter your opinion of U2 if you can't appreciate this song and performance then there is no hope for you
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