Making Use of the SDUGF Faves List

[the guy who invented fire]

Alright...I was PM'ed about this so I'll give it a Shot

Billy Gibbons

Im picking one of their oldest tunes and one of their fialry new ones...to me there are 3 very dinstinct perios of ZZ Top...the early blues heavy stuff that turned into arena rock, the later stuff thats full of synth/sampler work and the newest stuff that people seem to either love or hate. I chose one of the old ones and one of the newer ones but for those that don;t know there is a ton of smallin materal in the middle of these 2 tunes and if you happen to like it there are atleast 2 more killer albums of the newer style ZZ after Rhythmeen...on to my pics, and this was hard!

Song 1:
"Brown Sugar"
From the 1970 ZZ Top album " ZZ Top's fist Album"
Opening track from the first ZZ Top album, and a killer...Billy's opening bit is full of depth and soul not to mention killer playing and a tone that still sets the bar for me! This song set the stage for 35+ years of killer Texas blues/rock thats still going strong...everytime I hear this song im still sucked in by it!


Song 2:
"My Mind is Gone"
From the 1996 ZZ Top album Rhythmeen
This album was a sort of a return for the buys in ZZ Top....they had moved away from the way they did things in the old days and with Rhythmeen then came back full force...this track is just a slammin example of that...again, killer tune, great lyrics, slammin tone and more of that ZZ Top magic!

[Iron Horse]

yeah I see that... I don't think stargazer was a very good choice... oh well next time I'll be faster.

Actually I kinda agree with you on that. I wasn't thinking clearly, because Man on the Silver Mountain has a great riff and one of the best solos ever.

[Iron Horse]

Edited the list a bit, no Stargazer anymore, instead of it there is Man on the Silver Mountain.

[scottish]

trey anastasio...both songs from his work with phish and from live sets, most of the album versions of any of their songs pale in comparison

i dont have all my music in front of me so im afraid i cant post exact dates right now.

down with disease (93-96 era)

divided sky

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Ok. But I never really thought of George Harrison as a "showing off" kind of guitar player. I suppose you could use "The End" by the Beatles as a good example, but he wasn't the only one "showing off" on that track. Same with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." I suppose if I were coerced into changing one of the songs, the replacement might be "If I Needed Someone"...but that would defeat the purpose of why I chose the examples in the first place. My choices were meant to be an introduction, seeking the rest is up to the listener.

These selections are meant to be personal -- the reason each person put the guitarist in question on their own top five list. I don't think anyone should be persuaded into changing his choices.

That's my take on it. If you want me to change the song list, just let me know.

Alright...I was PM'ed about this so I'll give it a Shot

Thanks, Christian!

Edited the list a bit, no Stargazer anymore, instead of it there is Man on the Silver Mountain.

Done.

trey anastasio...both songs from his work with phish and from live sets, most of the album versions of any of their songs pale in comparison

i dont have all my music in front of me so im afraid i cant post exact dates right now.

down with disease (93-96 era)

divided sky

I've got all the Live Phish albums that were released on CD, as well as a number of them from the Live Phish Downloads site. If you want, I can find a live date for each of these songs. However, it would be great if you could pick your favorite dates yourself, so I could leave the specific album blank until you find something you particularly like.

Just let me know.

- Keith

[Jocelyn]

Edited the list a bit, no Stargazer anymore, instead of it there is Man on the Silver Mountain.

YIPIEEEEEEEEEEEEE YEah

[Woodcutter]

Alex Skolnick

Wizards in Winter. From the album The Lost Christmas Eve by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

Transformation. From the Album Transformation by the Alex Skolnick Trio.

[theodie]

OK, since that Jabroni KG said my pick has been taken we are going with........



Slash!

"Estranged"

"November Rain"

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

#4 David Gilmour

"Shine on you crazy Diamond"

I think this song shows not only your usual magic by Gilmour but, it also shows off and introduces newer but, as good as Pink Floyd Pink can get as well.

"High Hopes"

Its gets no more artistic, classy, and tasteful than this. Plus you can Hear David on Nylon string acoustic and also Pedal Steel rather than the usual electric.

Sorry, Odie. Gilmour's taken already. Check the list and find another guy from your top five list who hasn't been taken yet.

- Keith

[lex666]

James Hetfield

Selecting songs that best exemplifies James Hetfield's music is a tough one. There's just so many great songs he's written and the Metallica catalog spans almost 3 decades, many albums, and shows alot of progression and changes the band has gone through. You can pretty much pick up any album before "Black" and be guaranteed of great metal music. IMO, they define what it means to be a "great metal band".

So I selected 2 songs that both show different sides of James' music and lyrics. Both of which deserve plenty of credit.

"Fade to Black" from Ride The Lightning: This is more than just a power ballad. This songs captures James' prowess at building songs that progress into a huge metal monster. The guitar intro is a great example of James' ability of not only playing heavy and fast, but beautiful, almost classical passages. So many things are just done "right" with Metallica. James' lyrics, the layering of guitars, and subtle yet heavy drums make this song a beautiful powerhouse of a metal ballad.

"Master of Puppets" from Master of Puppets: I really wanted to avoid this song simply becuase I think everyone knows this song as being one of Metallica's "Masterpieces". It is probably the obvious choice and overplayed. But it is considered one of Metallica's best songs for good reason. Heavy, multi-layered guitars, an awesome drum track, and lyrics that are somewhat cryptic - but never obvious. This also shows alot of maturity in James' ability to write and compose songs. Complexity, speed, precision, tempo changes, and well written lyrics all combined into 1 "masterpeice" of a song.

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Great selections for Hetfield, Lex! I was wondering when someone was going to grab him.

I'm glad you made mention of his lyrics as well as songwriting/playing.

Oh, and don't feel bad about "Master of Puppets." That's a song that needs to be heard by the uninitiated.

- Keith

[jeremy]

derek trucks

sahib teri bandi/maki madni off the derek trucks band album songlines - perfect display of his vocal like slide abilities

having trouble picking a second one at the moment, lemme think on it


edit: ok i thought an di thought andihad a feww bearas. im gonna say high cost of low living off the abllman brothers badn record-

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

derek trucks

sahib teri bandi/maki madni off the derek trucks band album songlines - perfect display of his vocal like slide abilities

having trouble picking a second one at the moment, lemme think on it

Right on.

[darkshadow54321]

Gary Moore:

"The Loner" - The best guitar instrumental of all time (in my opinion, of course ). You can find it on the Wild Frontier CD.

"Still Got The Blues" - From the Blues Alive CD. Probably shouldn't have picked this as he has loads of technically better songs, but I like it anyway. The main reason why you must listen to it:.... the INCREDIBLE lead tone. Gorgeous tone! A must!

[pinto79]

Trev... I know how you feel.

To me, Randy's take on Children of the Grave demonstrates his talent by taking a classic Sabbath song and turning it into a different type of beast.

Knowing that you're one of the biggest Randy fans on the board, I'll defer the decision on the second song to you. I would, however, really think about leaving it as is - the solo he played on that particular live track has gotta be one of the best heavy metal solos of all time. Momentum in movement and grace that is unmatched to any of his other works.

Randy's Solo on Children is very nothing short of brilliant. I can't actually imagine a better solo for it. I love playing his version of the song and think he took it further than Tony was capable of. So I'll retract my suggestion to change it.

I was hoping to be the one to help people find Randy's brilliance through Mr. Crowley and S.A.T.O. but you beat me too it!

So there are my contributions regarding the guy who should have been on the top of the list.

[Gamera]

#1 Jimi Hendrix

this is too hard...

1. Burning Of The Midnight Lamp
2. The Wind Cries Mary

Both can be found on Jimi Hendrix - The Ultimate Experience

I think you should provide some description for those. While they're good songs, I wouldn't use either of them to describe his body of work. You gotta include "Machine Gun" when talking about Jimi IMHO.

[SnakeAces]

You gotta include "Machine Gun" when talking about Jimi IMHO.

Could it be the greatest display of a jam ever recorded? I don't know... it just might be.

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

I think you should provide some description for those.

+1

Don't get lazy, guys!

[Gamera]

Could it be the greatest display of a jam ever recorded? I don't know... it just might be.

Yes it is. Says me. 1-2-3 no more changes.

[thespricket]

Ok. But I never really thought of George Harrison as a "showing off" kind of guitar player. I suppose you could use "The End" by the Beatles as a good example, but he wasn't the only one "showing off" on that track. Same with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." I suppose if I were coerced into changing one of the songs, the replacement might be "If I Needed Someone"...but that would defeat the purpose of why I chose the examples in the first place. My choices were meant to be an introduction, seeking the rest is up to the listener.

I was just saying, if i were to give a new listener 2 tracks of George's to show him off as a guitar player i wouldn't have chosen either of them. However, there are a number of songs you could choose that show off his song writing skills, the two you chose are perfect.