The first step in any journey is to pick a destination. I have always been inspired by
guitar players like Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eddie
Van Halen, and many others. What do these guitarists have in common?
– They sound amazing.
– They have a unique lead guitar style which reflects and expresses their
personality.
But most importantly:
– They can play what they are feeling on any given day and improvise with
incredible freedom.
This is well docmented. Hendrix played wild solos and played
differently every live show. In my opinion, his improvised
live solos were more impressive than his studio albums.
Clapton said that he while he might have the beginning
of a lead planned out, he never worked out any complete
solos note for note in advance. And Eddie Van Halen
said that he got his best solos recorded just by playing
them live with the band.
These legendary players are so good at expressing themselves
on the guitar, that they have been called “Guitar Gods”.
Someone even wrote “Clapton is God” with grafitti on
a wall.
Being able to IMPROVISE what you feel is the
essense of being a Guitar God. Why
should you learn to improvise?
– Being able to play exactly what you feel in the moment is very rewarding.
– The better you can improvise, the greater your ability to also compose.
– Playing what you feel in the moment is the best way to express yourself
and create emotive music.
