o

E IC r Clqpton John AAcycll with Eric Clop;ton

l g45- Crecm Geors; Wheels cf Fire

Derek cnd the Dominos And Other
GUITARS: FENDER STRATOCASTER, GIBSON LES PAUL
Eric Clcptcn 461 Bculevqrd ; 9owhond ; JourneYmon ;
Un AAe And tVr Johnson

Clopton wcs roised neor London bY hiis, ond rncde on olburn with blues
Ask rhe mcn in the street to ncme five
his grondporents. The discovery of his legend Sonny BoY Williornscn
guitorists, ond you'll olmost certoinly
fomily's secrel of oge nine hod CI Clopton left the bond in 1965,
lrecr lhe ncme Eric CloPton CImong
strong emctionol effect, cnC disillusioned with its rnusicol direction
those put fcrword" Since the eorlY
Cloplon grovitoted (He refused to ploy on the hit "For
I 960s, "Clcptcn" hos been ;,,,

toword the blues- Ycur Lcve," which owed little to the

riti..

olniost synonymous with iiil

blues thot Clopton held so deor

",il
dit
'EUilortst" in the public porticulorly the music ..id,'
i.:
',1$.
)

r:i;-

perception for of Robert Johnson - ,iet

-cnd I".f,.
::1

Bluesbreokers
gccd recson. frorn 0n eorly cge. .:i
'i1

-[he if-
After sorne months of rnonuol work
illegilirnote son
ond intensive proctice, Clqpton ioinecJ
,i

oi c Ccncdion pilot Pop goes the blues i

.1'
l'l;t

whc returned to Clopton's lirsl moior ,J.

jii i

iil
John AAoyoll's B[uesbreokers. Both the
Bluesbreokers cnd the Yordbirds were
tt,

Concdo ofter World professionol experience wos t.:.

with the Yordbirds-c blues-

{i

irnportclnt sPowning grounds for some

Wor ll, Eric ij

influenced pop grouP - in the ,.1

.:,

i";
:
of the most inlluenticl musicions of the
eorly 1960s. The grcuP
;, ,i

ir.
i follcwing deccde, including Clopton
li+
:;
severcl .i hirnself, Jock Bruce, Jimrny Pcge, Peter
jti:

":
Green of Fleefwood AAoc, crd leff
Beck. Clcpton PloYeC cn ihe
Bluesbrec kers'
influentiol ond

occloimed first
olburn - probobly the
single most imPortont moment
in the estsblishment of the blues os
0 moinstreom musical stYle-but he
left the bond (to be reploced by Peter
Green) in mid- 1966. Around this time,
the slogon "CloPton is God" storted
oppeCIring 0s groffiti in London-0
status thot, olthough not sought bY
Clopton, nevertheless ensured him o
'l; '
permonent ploce in rock otristocracy'
.if;
Neil Young Recommended Listeningl
CSN&Y Deia Vu

1945- After the Gcld Rush

Horvesf
GUITARS: GIBSON LES PAUL, MARTIN

One of the most influentiol guitorists embcrking on the Rust NeYer S/eePs regrel the line "li's better to burn out

cnd songwriters of his generCIiion,
Neil Young hos olso been cne of the
nnost musicclly promiscuous. Often
chcrocleri zed by his high pitched
noscl vcice ond thoughtful, personol
tour. A direct response to punk rock, thon to fode owcy" from his song
eoch concert feotured cn ocoustic set "My My, H"y l-J*Y."
ond o hord-rocking electric sel with
Crazy l-lcrse. Eclecfic
Ycung hcs clso dobbled in rncre Young's musicol eclecticlsrn hos given

lyrics, Ycung's eorly work mostlY experimentcl creos of rnusic with him one of the brcodest oPPecls of

consisled of the country-tinged folk 1982's Trcns, which wos recorded cny ortists-pcrl cf the reoscn he
rock evideni on the 1q72 number" clmost exclusively using synthesizers, continues to influence musicions ic

one single, "Heort of Gold." leoving [ons uiterly boffled this doy

ln the l96Cs ond eorly 197Cs

Young worked wilh the briefly
successful Buffolc Springfield (of
which he wos 0 founding member),
formed his long term bockup bond,
Craz,y l-lorse, ond ployed
Wcodsiock cs port of the supergrcup
Crcsb'y, Stills, Nosh & Young,
reoch ing h is commerciol pec k in
1972 wilh the Stroy Gotors cnd the
Row-edged
Though rnusicclly inccnsistent,
Young's inlluence is nct to be
u nderestimoted . Pioneering c rower
forrn of heovy rock, he hos been
dubbed the "godfcther of grunge."
Kurt Coboin wos outsPcken cbcut
Young's influence, ond Young
would loter come to !
l*

olbum Harvesf Flighlights of this i.

period include Buffolo Sptingfield's

eponymous debut, CSN&Y's Dela Vu &
tl q7C\, ond Young's solc clossic
After the GolC Rush

Countty roots
Following the death of C rory Florse
: *-
n
*'
#
Youlg formed the Sonto AAonico
'lr_\1
ti.--

.y-

Flyerq; ond took o new direction with

Tonight's the Nighr, c dorker effort
# !*

now ieen by mony critics os c ,+!,-

precuisor to punk rock. Re'forming

I
Crary Horse in 1q75 for the hord
rock olbum Zuma, Young returned . r!1/Iliri \*f,r.

briefly to his country roots for 1977's

Pefe Townshend
:_.
;: i :,i

Recornmended Listeni ng; '

::-
l
:
'i::'l
a:.;:

The Whc: The Ultincte Collection :..

I 945 ;;'
):,: a:.
/+'ii : ..":.:)
GUITARS: RICKENBACKER, FENDER, GIBSON {
,.Pf,.
:'1j11r - :i:1.:..
..(r
tr:
.T'I
.itfl
: :i. . i
',iawnart
bcost tc Pcul AAcCortney thct he hcd this cornivol of destruction cs
l'.:]

Alcng with the Beotles ond the Rolling 'i L//\fJ\/\, I

Stones, the F{olyTrini! of British rock Iust reccrded the hecviest, dirtiest cn lntegrol port cf the show
,: ::

boncjs thct conquereC the world in
lne 1960s is cornpleted by The
Wlro As much 0s either the Beotles
or lhe Stones, The Who underwenl c
series of trcnsforrnotions, reinventing
lhennselves cnd pushing ihe bcundories
cf rcck eoch tirne"
thing ever written led direciiy io
AAcCortnev creoting "Flelrer S<elter,
orguc bly the f irst heovy rock -rcck,
by todcy's stc ndo rds.
Cornivol of destruction
By the lote l95Cs, The Wnc were
pcssibly the bigEest live cct orcunci
" Rock operq
ln the 1970s Townshend crected
the phencrnencn cf rcck opero with
the filrns Tommy cnd Quadrophenic,
-ihe
while Whc picneered stodium
rcck, pioying to h uge c ud iences
, o nd tcking cdvontoge cf powerful

Rebel wirh o guiror
Eorn cs World Wor ll ended, Pete
lownshend corne to Ypify the
'eLrellicusness
cf the British boby
i:oorn . Ec rl'y Whc sing les, such os
"AAy Genercticn" 0nd "l Con't
E*pio in , " rnc nogeC lo seern pc rl cf
lhe ernerging "Brilish lnvcsicn" scund
bul were octuclly for grittier While
the Beotles were still writing scngs
such CIs "l Wont tc l-lold Your l--lcnd"
onC "Con't Bry AAe Love," ond the
Stcnes, for cll their rebellious irncge,
were slill regurgitoting Arnericcn
rhythr"n ond blues, Townshend wos
sneering ot his elders wiih lines such
cs the fcmous "l hope I die before
Eel cld
"
though their prcfitobility wos sericusly scund systerns not ovciloble in lhe
undermined by their hobit ol smoshing I 96Cs. This inevitobly tock its toll
their equipnnent ot the end of ecch ,,on Townshend's heoring, cS diC
-rho
gig Dozens, nrcybe hunCreds, cf lcmous incident involving cn
ond Rickenbockers
Les Pouls, Strots, ,'
irn prcrn ptu f irework d ispl"y (wh ich
were smoshed on the stoge or thrust hcC been crgonized by drurnrner
through the specker cones cf Keith AAccn), which exploCed
AAcrshcll stocks wilhin inches ol TownshenC s
Th is d eslructive hec d
streok con be
seen cs directly
respcnsible for the
icter stoge cntics cf
hecvy rnetcl octs such
os Kiss ond Alice
Cooper Apporently, the
I whole thing storted os cn
cccident but, like .Jimi

TownshenC shored the influences cf
mcst British plcyers emerging in the
I 950s, porticulorly eorly Americon
rockers such os Ducne Eddy ond
Edd ie Ccch ron .
Flend rix's g u ito r-burn ing, w0s
encourcged by fons in the
oudience, whc come tc

Louder ond heovier

The Who quickly becorne ihe loudest,
broshest bond cround Townshend's
 .:

Jimmy Buffett
.i'
Recornmended Listening:
A White Spo rt Ccct
a Ptnk Crustccecn
1946- Chcnges tn Lctitudes,
GUITAR: PAUL REED SMITH Chcnges in Attitudes

Jlmmy Buffett is o mon of mony lolents'
Co-owner of the AAorgoritoville ond
Cheeseburger in Porodise restcuronls,
he hos olso written three best-selling
books, mode c comeo oPpeoronce
in the movie Cobb, ond slill flnds
fir'"ne to ploy o port in the work of the
Sove the Mcnotee Foundotion. Also
on enthusicstic pilot, Buffett wos shot
ot by iorncicon Pclice in I qq6, cn
inciCent thot is relcted in the song
'!o*oicc AAistoicc.' But the moiori!
"Fie'd stop ond lop his fcct, ond song of moritol sePorction, "Ccrne
there'd be no dcrnn bonC there," AAondoy," which become his first hit
recclls forrner Corol Reefer, Greg single Chonges in Latttudes, Changes
"Fingers" Toylor, with c iough. rn Attttudes lq77) feotured the hit
The I ?ZOs sow o plethcrc of song "AAergoritoville." ln the l98Os,
olbum releoses, iilcluding Buffett rnode rnost ol his money
rng
the criticolly cccloirneC
A White Sporf Coot
and c Pink Crusfccean tes
1197 3) Buffett
0
reveoled his mcre
thcug htful side in Living collection of Christmos scngs

of Porrotheods (Bulfet lons) ore and DytnE tn 3 /1 Tine

ottrocted by his sense of humor, his { I 97 41, wilh its

lcid-bock "becch burn" ottitude, cnd,

rncst importoni, his rnusic,

Besch'bum success
Buffett begon his officiol music ccreer
in Noshville in the I 960s, but it
becorne cleor thot he could noi be
straitiocketed by Noshville s orfiodox
music estoblishment. When his first
olbum Down to Eorfh sold PoorlY ond
Bornoby Records "lost" his second
olbum {miroculously rediscovered afier
his breokthrough), Buffet rnoved to
':1, K*y West ond begon to estoblish the
easygoing beoch bum Perscno fof
which he is known. ln 1974, he
formed the Corol Reefer Bond, 0n
ideo thot hod been in his mind for
some time. Long before he hod 0
single sidemon, let alone his Corol
would PCIuse in
Reefer Bond, Buffett
the midst of o number ond soy, "Tcke
it, Corcl Reefers lr.,'
 Dqvid Gilmour Recommended Listening:
The Dcrk Side cf the AAoon
,.;'
:,:;;;,.,

l 946-
t.j t.::

(! Wish Ycu Were Here

GUITAR: FENDER STRATOCASTER 1.. The \/Voll
'it,
The Ftncl Cut

lhere hos never been onother bond Borrelt's depcrture ccincided with
in the sorne leogue cs Pink Floyd, the groduoi ernergence of
'whose unossurning members Floyd under the ioint leodership of
rncnogeC lc builC c ccreer on their Gilmour ond bossist Roger Wcters
-r r-r /t
\_-/ i I
laaa, i\J.o
\J l\rl The breo kth roug h 1 97 3
DcviC Giirnour ioined Pink Floyd in Dork Side cf the tVoon.
lhe lofe I 960s, neor the end of its more thon 20 million copies ond
first phose, ied then by the brilliont but stoyed cn the chorts for oround 25
u nsto ble Syd Borrett The eo rly Pin k yeors, is one cf the lew successful
iioyC epiicmizeC British psycheCelic; "concept" c lbu rns.
epic rnstrurnentcls shcred olburn The olbum is sonicolly stunning,
spCIce with vignettes obout bicycles even by todcy's stondords, wilh its
ond mice use of rhythrnic sound-effect lccps
whose dcrninonce of the bond's
o new Pink songwriting ond rnusicol direclion
would ultimotely result in one cf
rock's rncsi ccrirncnious breokups
o lbu rn The Flis recipe workeC superbly for The
which solC \/Voll , however Wcters wrote ond
song most of the olbUffi, which
omounts to o rock operc (lcter
filrned ond stogeC), ond Gilmcur
generolly got on wilh the business oi
ploying the guitor. "Another Brick in
the Wcll," the olbum's theme, wcs c
h uge h it s ing le ocross the world
- r.'.-:l
-,.

("AAoney" ), synthesizers , Gilr-ncu r's Gilnrcur's solo is one of ihe most

'.,::.:|:
,,:.,,

Strctocoster, o nd, SU rpris ing ly, peCc I memcrcble, "singoble" guitcr solcs
steei . Th is inslru ment, rnore usuc lly ever reccrded. :

cssocioied with country music thcn The finol Pink FloyC olbum of
P
rog ress rve the Wciers-Gil rnour partnersh ip,
t...1
*
**, rock, cdCs o opproprictely entitled The Finol C ut
t
trS
lushness to the (l 983), stcnCs up rnusicolly with
texture, sitting perfectly ony of the bcnC's clbums ond is :

belween guitors ond regordeC by some cs their finest,

synthes izers. bul it is essentiolly o Rcger Woiers
llere ,:
\rVtsh You VVere olbum with Gilmcur relegoted to the
l197 5l , onother huge role of sessicn guitorist.
seller, is dominoteC by : Gilmour re-fcrmed Pink Floyd ofter :

"Shine On You Crozl Woters's deporture, continuing to

Diomond," o nine-port record ond tour, though for mony ,.' t':'tt
..:r:li,

musicol tribute to the bond s fons Pink Floyd wos sinnply not Pink t:1';,::,

:',,: t. ','

founder, Syd Borrett Floyd without both holves cf its ;t':':':"

The Woll l97q) in rnony centrol portnership. After yeors ol

woys the most ombitious olbum bitter legol disputes, ond Woters's ',,1:::.::'

of the bond's coreer, is clso the insistence thot he would never cgcrn
lcst "p,.per" Pink Floyd clburn. work with Gilmour, the twc reunited
K"ybccrd plcryer Rick Wright with Wright cnd AAcson in -lune
wcs edged out of the bond scon 2CC5 to perforrn oi Bob Geldof's
ofterwcrd by Roger Woters, LiveS concert.
 ,i

tit
:l \l

,rti

Jsmes Tsylor
itq
tt -'
4.:r:

'li"

:: ,
Recommended Listening:
i
.,,:

,:, r
Sweef Boby Jcmes
1948- Alud Siide S/im ond the Blue Holzon
GUITARS: MARTIN, OLSON .t!:.
New /Voon Shine
i. Hourgloss
Jornes Toylor, olong wifi lonl AAitchell, the choos within fie Bectles' empire "l:
::
Oclober Rocd
brought o new sophisticotion to the toword the end of their coreer-ond
.a

singer /songwriter genre in the eorly Toylor returned to Americo. ,i

1.{

197Cs. Tc mony, Jomes Toylor is "lhe"
singer /songwriter, ond though hes
rightly fomous os such, he's olso one
of the most occomplished fingersVl*
guitcrists oround.
voried in the lost 3C yecrs, with
I 5 olbums to hls nome, he hos
!-
Renoisstrnce
Eighteen months loter, cfter some : eorned his ploce os one cl the
heolth problems ond o horrific foremost exponents of guitor-bosed
mctorcycle occident, he ogoin .,,ij:
songwriting . H is loter work includes
.l'i:

Born in 1q4B to o well-off Boston
-lbylor
fcrnily, ployed in locol bonds
in his teens, notobly the Flying
AAcchine, with guitorist ond long-term
ccllcborotor Donny Kortchrnor.
teomed up with Peter Asher, who -.rl
ri''
wcs by this time emborking on 0 .i*,
coreer cs o West Coost record
producer, Asher monoged tc get
Toylcr c controcl with Wcrner
some big hit singles, CI plotinum-
selling duet with his then wife,
i
Corly Simon, ccnsistent olburn scles,
t
.J
ond regulor tours. Flis Greotesf
llits (releosed in 1q76 by Worner
,:

Somehow finding himsell in Lcndon
in l95B turned out tc be cne of
Toylor's lucky breoks: The Beotles
Brothers ond the breokthrough clburn,
Sweef Boby Jomes gornered huge
so les o nd inslo nt internotionc I fc me
td,
Brothers ofter Toylor hod been lured
i:
to ihe Columbic lobel) hos sold more
thcn I I million copies to dote

were lounching their Appie record
lobel ond odvertizing lor tolent They
were scon Celuged with thcusonds cf
demo topes, rnost of which were
never heo rd , but th roug h c lucky
ossociotion with Peter Asher (hclf of
the duo Peter onC Gordon but, rnore
imporlcntly, 0 rnon with lhe eor of
Pou! AAcCortney, whc wcs engoged
tc Peter's sister lone Asher), Jomes
Tcylor monoged to gel heord.
Signing with Apple, his first,
eponymously titled olbum wos
recorded in London with guest
The follow-up , tVud Siide Slim ond '; l:i.
''-:,r Jomes Toylor uses o simple thurnb-
the Blue tlorizon, included o mossi VC ond{ingers lingerpicking s[le ond
hit single-Toylor's cover of Corole generolly sticks to o folk-lnfluenced
tt
King's "You've Got o Friend -ond chord repertoire, though there is olso
thot clbum outsold its predecessor. c noticeoble country influence, olong
Though the quolity of Jcmes with obundont iary mornents-
Toylor's work hos porticulorly in his loier work.
3
\
{F,
I

cppeoronces from mony British

stors of the tirne, including Poul
AAcCortney on boss The olbum is 0
period piece, combining c glimpse
of things to come in Toylor's c0reer
with o iorge dose of l95Cs kltsch.
The Apple olbum wos not o success
of the tirne, however- lorgely due to