@Muad'zin I am into "music".................Good music. I am into guitar playing.................You are just going to force it out of me I guess. Edge's guitar playing does NOTHING for me. Very innovative, yes. Fits in the band perfectly. If I had to name (my opinion of course) the top 25 guitarists he would not even be considered. You make think that I have some BIAS agianst him or U2. I don't. I enjoy many of their songs,
His guitar playing on the other hand just does NOT impress me. Their, I said it all. Sorry man.................
Hey, no need to apologize. I am a big boy and you are entitled to your opinions.
Personally, EVH does nothing for me. I can recognize that the man is a genius, but EVH never made as big a splash in Europe as he did in the US. US = stadiums, in Europe = arenas and clubs. So EVH never registered on me in his heyday. Running with the Devil and Jump are their only known hits here, the latter mostly. Hell, the only reason why his death was news here was because he was born here.
I have no dog in this fight... But this post is about "sound" not "playing".
I don't claim to be a U2 or Edge fan (unless you're talking Ibanez trems
) but the man created a unique, signature sound that is chased by many.
There honestly are not too many guitarists like that...
Not just one sound, MANY iconic sounds. I dare anyone to play the Korg A3's funkwah setting and NOT play Mysterious Ways. It's nigh impossible.
Basically every U2 song has unique guitar tone. Yeah, the dotted 8th delay into a Vox AC-30 is one of his most used sounds, but the dude did not tour with 2 Twin Towers of sonic doom for nothing. Aside from using delay a lot I'd say that his shimmer sound is just as much copied to the point that you now have pedals dedicated to just that sound.
Yes I alluded to that in other posts. Not sure about the "many" chase his sound. I would guess many U2 fans chase his sound. I knoww he is a competent and good guitar player. No doubt. I know he did create this very nice DEALY etc guitar sounds which are a major part of U2's sound.
As I stated UG, perhaps if the title wasn't about him changig the guitar sound forever I would not have even posted.
So many great guitar players pro and not pros, just so many. IMHO he is NOT a great guitar player he is a GOOD guitar player and he is GREAT at what he does.
Now as an example, imho of course, Eddie Van Halen did have a humongous impact on guita players around the world and he is copied and will be forever. I guess what I said and am trying to get across is EVH WAS a GREAT guitar player, whatever he played.
I daresay that Edge has more clones out there then EVH. As said, VH never made it that big outside of the US. Just like ZZ-Top by the way. I remember watching the 1st Live Aid concert in 1985, and whenever they switched over to the US side there were bands I had never heard off before. There are a lot of massively famous artists in the US who are unknown outside of the US, just by virtue of completely neglecting that market. U2 on the other was world wide. They were famous across the world, not just on one side of the pond. Stadiums in Europe, the US, downunder and basically wherever they go. U2's music appeals to more people, and by virtue of that that appeals to more guitar players too. Hell, the only reason I learned of the Axe-FX was because a growing group of tribute Edges were using them and showing them off online.
He has the second way to be a great guitar player...working on the sound and write songs.. I m a great shredders fan but this means nothing if you are not able to write anything.. People often forget that music is listening and not watching..
U2 had a SHITLOAD of hits. And over a very long period as well. From I Will Follow in 1980 to Vertigo in 2005. That's almost three decades of cultural relevance. Only the Rolling Stones have achieved similar results. Most artists are happy to have just one hit. And even now their shows are massive affairs that are next to impossible to get tickets for, except via scalper. Yes, I reckon that being a great songwriter DWARFS technical playing ability by lightyears. A great technical guitar player appeals to other technical guitarplayers. A guitarplayer which can consistently write good songs and guitar hooks will appeal to everyone.