Orianthi: She's a squirrely little thing.

[diablo175]

2 hours ago, zorrow said:

True. She hasn't found a convincing voice for herself and her success is highly due to the fact she's a beautiful lady who can play. But... so what? She's capitalizing on her assets. She's a marketable product which has found its niche --being "the cute hired gun" in big acts. Nothing wrong with that. Everybody has bills to pay, including Orianthi.

Nothing wrong with that at all. Good on her.

On a guitar forum such as this, a player's attributes and deficiencies are fair game to discuss and opine on.

[hamerhead]

Does anyone else think shred guys trying to play the blues is hilarious? They all try (I'm a huge Eric Johnson fan but the dude is a whiter shade of pale and plays Jimi all of the time), and the only one (shred guy, that is) to pull it off is Satriani. There's that lack of ........soul? funk? agony of defeat?.......that just makes most of them sound cartoon-ish to me.

[kizanski]

2 minutes ago, hamerhead said:

Does anyone else think shred guys trying to play the blues is hilarious? They all try (I'm a huge Eric Johnson fan but the dude is a whiter shade of pale and plays Jimi all of the time), and the only one (shred guy, that is) to pull it off is Satriani. There's that lack of ........soul? funk? agony of defeat?.......that just makes most of them sound cartoon-ish to me.

I agree with all of that. In fact, you've inspired me to refine/recant my "Once you turn pro, it's time to get off Jimi's dick" statement.

Yes, these shred guys playing Jimi is hilarious. IMO however, Eric Johnson gets a pass because he is sticking to the original composition (much like he does with everything he plays live), that is to say, note-for-note. Many people criticize him for his live shows (I've seen him live several times) being somewhat "exactly like the record."
You either appreciate that in a performer or it bores you. That's probably another topic for another thread at another time.
But back to EJ playing Jimi songs live: Never having had the opportunity to see Jimi live (in person), I really enjoyed seeing Johnson play the songs, recreate the solos and the studio production "sounds" that even Jimi usually didn't even attempt: volume swells, amp panning, and (again) note-for-note recreation of the solos, which, let's face it, are sacred.
This is a virtuoso demonstrating his undeniable greatness while paying tribute to a legend, not running around the stage wanking away in the key of E for 10 minutes.

So, only Jimi, SRV and Eric Johnson may perform Jimi songs live. And that's it!

[Dave Scepter]

 

[hamerhead]

Even in his re-creations EJ lacks a certain rawness or edge or pain or whatever you want to call it. It's a pleasant nod, but just not there.

And Randy Hansen WAS Jimi in a previous life. At least the closest I'd seen.

[diablo175]

6 minutes ago, Dave Scepter said:

 

A talented white dude who not only rode Jimi's dick but tried to look like Jimi, too.

 

[diablo175]

Then there are the dudes who rode only certain parts of Jimi's dick, like this bloke who borrowed heavily from Jimi's sound but made it it uniquely his own via his song writing:

 

[kizanski]

16 minutes ago, hamerhead said:

Even in his re-creations EJ lacks a certain rawness or edge or pain or whatever you want to call it. It's a pleasant nod, but just not there.

I agree, EJ's sound is lacking in the all of the rawness and frantic mind-blowing sonic and visual aura that was Jimi, but (for me, at least) that doesn't detract from the "experience."
Have you ever noticed how, when 99% of these players, armature and pro alike, try to play Jimi songs, they dial up every effect that they have and go all NASCAR on their WAH pedal? That's them compensating for their innate lack of Jimi-ness.
I'm not throwing rocks here. I'm just as guilty of it as the next guy. I just cringe when I see a professional, established artist do it.
Johnson manages to walk that tightrope without falling on either side.
Again, that's only my opinion, but it's coming from someone who views Jimi's songs and his influence as sacred and, when paid tribute, it should be done properly.

 

6 minutes ago, diablo175 said:

Then there are the dudes who rode only certain parts of Jimi's dick, like this bloke who borrowed heavily from Jimi's sound but made it it uniquely his own via his song writing.

Agreed. Trower is very Jimi-like without actually robbing directly from the man.

[Ting Ho Dung]

8 minutes ago, kizanski said:

I agree, EJ's sound is lacking in the all of the rawness and frantic mind-blowing sonic and visual aura that was Jimi, but (for me, at least) that doesn't detract from the "experience."
Have you ever noticed how, when 99% of these players, armature and pro alike, try to play Jimi songs, they dial up every effect that they have and go all NASCAR on their WAH pedal? That's them compensating for their innate lack of Jimi-ness.
I'm not throwing rocks here. I'm just as guilty of it as the next guy. I just cringe when I see a professional, established artist do it.
Johnson manages to walk that tightrope without falling on either side.
Again, that's only my opinion, but it's coming from someone who views Jimi's songs and his influence as sacred and, when paid tribute, it should be done properly.

 

Agreed. Trower is very Jimi-like without actually robbing directly from the man.

Maybe it's the lack of Jimi's dick?

[kizanski]

31 minutes ago, Ting Ho Dung said:

Maybe it's the lack of Jimi's dick?

I can't speak to that, but if you have more intimate information, feel free to share.

[Ting Ho Dung]

2 minutes ago, kizanski said:

I can't speak to that, but if you have more intimate information, feel free to share.

I'm still trying to figure out what that means as well. 

[LucSulla]

My favorite two guys doing Jimi are SRV and Gary Moore.  SRV more so, but I actually thought Gary's batch of Jimi tunes was incredible.  One thing SRV, Gary, and Jimi all have in common is that they played really, really loud.  There is a part in the Gary Moore concert where checks a guitar in between songs and kills the signal quickly.  You can hear the slapback off the back of the arena from the amp on stage clearly.  That's just loud as hell.  I think that is some of the mojo necessary - a really loud something or other giving most all its got. 

So yeah, take some guys that have something to say artistically in their own right who really loved Jimi and who tended to play really damned loud without much BS in the signal path (Moore at least for the Blue for Jimi album, and I think you still get some magic. 

I'm not going knock Orianthi though.  We're all snobs, and personally, I could do without ever hearing 99.9% of guitarists ever playing this song again, and she really isn't bringing anything interesting to the table here musically.  But lots and lots of folks still love hearing someone do it, and at least she's got legitimate chops.  I don't blame her for playing up her looks.  If I could shake my ass a little and cover the odd Jimi tune and get that many people to watch and hopefully actually notice that I can play, I'd do it too.  
 

 

[mc2]

 

Good for her! It's nice to see her getting exposure. 

Having played with a great woman player for years, I inow how hard it is for them to be taken seriously,

Back in the '90s I had the argument with NAMM regarding female musicians. NAMM was of the opinion that only THREE PERCENT of the music gear market was females....so it was not even worth marketing to?!?! I SWEAR that is what the old farts truly believed, as they complained at the same time about the troubles they had at expanding the market and music education in schools.

And the times I had meetings with the editors of Guitar Player and the other major guitar magazines about covering women players more. Their response was "But we already wrote about Bonnie Raitt/Jennifer Batten in the last TWO YEARS."

The publisher of Guitar Player actually said, "Our subscription base is only TWO PERCENT FEMALE and we can never seem to increase that...Why are all the womenr who play guitar LESBIANS?"  I SWEAR that is what he said. My reply was, "I think you just answered your own question about why you have almost no female readers."

So, 25 years later it is somewhat better. The shame is that Orianthi has become the next "Jennifer Batten" and there are many others women who should also get some exposure. The industry just seems to latch o to one at a time that is safe to write about.

My friend Jodee Frawlee, a longtime Bostom area killer woman player (and former Hamer endorser BTW) sort of put it best in a song of her's called "Freak Show"....basically, how great women players are viewed more as sideshow freaks and spectacles.

Ronni Crooks used to ise the "Svengal" reference is a similar way...when record execs would tell her nobody wants to see hot woman play guitar like Hendrix or Van Halen. They would just say, "dress sexy, sing and strum some chords, honey."

It ain't easy for women players.

So, good for Orianthi....although I don't get the Sambora thing.

[jettster]

9 hours ago, hamerhead said:

Does anyone else think shred guys trying to play the blues is hilarious? They all try (I'm a huge Eric Johnson fan but the dude is a whiter shade of pale and plays Jimi all of the time), and the only one (shred guy, that is) to pull it off is Satriani. There's that lack of ........soul? funk? agony of defeat?.......that just makes most of them sound cartoon-ish to me.

There are a few but for the most part I agree. Loved Satriani back in the day and while I agree, in the company of Vai and some others he sounds more convincing than the others trying to pull off blues. We saw the G3 tour with KWS though and next to a Blues player none of them sounded too convincing. Think a lot of it has to do with the point of reference at the time.Probably be the same if BB, Walter Trout or any other Blues player was jamming with them to give a real point of reference.

[kizanski]

 

6 hours ago, mc2 said:

Back in the '90s I had the argument with NAMM regarding female musicians. NAMM was of the opinion that only THREE PERCENT of the music gear market was females....so it was not even worth marketing to?!?! I SWEAR that is what the old farts truly believed, as they complained at the same time about the troubles they had at expanding the market and music education in schools.

They had (and still have) a point, though.
If you've ever been to an (insert your favorite guitar hero's name here) ________ concert (and I know you have), the only broads you see there were dragged there by their boyfriend.
Indeed, this forum is enough of an example that proves this point. Sure there are a few women here, but it's a percent of a percent of the membership.

For the record, I don't hold anything against Orianthi or any other female player for being easy on the eyes, or even using that to their advantage for that matter. God knows they need an angle to compensate for their lack of ability...
KIDDING!!
No, seriously. They do need an angle because they're probably not going to be taken seriously (or paid attention to) otherwise. But that's the way our society has always been and we're not going to correct that here.

I guess the question you have to ask yourself is, "Would I buy or listen to her CD if I never would ever see her?"
It's just one of the reasons I like Sia, but I digress...

7 hours ago, LucSulla said:

My favorite two guys doing Jimi are SRV and Gary Moore.  SRV more so, but I actually thought Gary's batch of Jimi tunes was incredible.  One thing SRV, Gary, and Jimi all have in common is that they played really, really loud.

Ok. Jimi, SRV, Eric Johnson, and Gary Moore, but THAT'S IT!

[Ting Ho Dung]

7 hours ago, mc2 said:

 

Good for her! It's nice to see her getting exposure. 

Having played with a great woman player for years, I inow how hard it is for them to be taken seriously,

Back in the '90s I had the argument with NAMM regarding female musicians. NAMM was of the opinion that only THREE PERCENT of the music gear market was females....so it was not even worth marketing to?!?! I SWEAR that is what the old farts truly believed, as they complained at the same time about the troubles they had at expanding the market and music education in schools.

And the times I had meetings with the editors of Guitar Player and the other major guitar magazines about covering women players more. Their response was "But we already wrote about Bonnie Raitt/Jennifer Batten in the last TWO YEARS."

The publisher of Guitar Player actually said, "Our subscription base is only TWO PERCENT FEMALE and we can never seem to increase that...Why are all the womenr who play guitar LESBIANS?"  I SWEAR that is what he said. My reply was, "I think you just answered your own question about why you have almost no female readers."

So, 25 years later it is somewhat better. The shame is that Orianthi has become the next "Jennifer Batten" and there are many others women who should also get some exposure. The industry just seems to latch o to one at a time that is safe to write about.

My friend Jodee Frawlee, a longtime Bostom area killer woman player (and former Hamer endorser BTW) sort of put it best in a song of her's called "Freak Show"....basically, how great women players are viewed more as sideshow freaks and spectacles.

Ronni Crooks used to ise the "Svengal" reference is a similar way...when record execs would tell her nobody wants to see hot woman play guitar like Hendrix or Van Halen. They would just say, "dress sexy, sing and strum some chords, honey."

It ain't easy for women players.

So, good for Orianthi....although I don't get the Sambora thing.

Well written. But you reminded me of a long ago and very forgotten music "awards" or tribute or something show from probably a dozen years ago. I don't remember now why we even were interested in watching it. But it was primarily woman acts. I remember being quite bored and started yawning as it was one of those evening shows before bedtime. I asked my wife if she was as bored with it as me. Just then Eric Clapton hit the stage. I am not in any way an Eric Clapton fan but when he hit the stage he commanded the audience's attention and ours. I don't remember what he played but after he was done I remarked to my wife that his performance really brought life into the show. She said it was testosterone. I asked if she really meant that and she said yeah. And she made this kind of grunt and hand movement. Men are rock n roll. Men are Nascar (which I don't watch). Men are football (which I don't watch) and bassball. (intentional sic and I don't watch) When you see a lady in these groups it is just an attention grabber. As far as the female readership of the magazines you mentioned, I have a video I want to share but I can't find it tonight. Hopefully tomorrow. If I can't find it I'll do my best to describe it to you to the best of my recollection. 

[mc2]

49 minutes ago, Ting Ho Dung said:

Well written. But you reminded me of a long ago and very forgotten music "awards" or tribute or something show from probably a dozen years ago. I don't remember now why we even were interested in watching it. But it was primarily woman acts. I remember being quite bored and started yawning as it was one of those evening shows before bedtime. 

Totally agree. I can't stand those all-female bills or festivals.  I also have found that most of the best women players tend to not play in all-girl bands either.

[kizanski]

26 minutes ago, mc2 said:

...most of the best women players tend to not play in all-girl bands either.

[RobB]

9 hours ago, kizanski said:

Ok. Jimi, SRV, Eric Johnson, and Gary Moore, but THAT'S IT!

Uli Roth, too. He can play all the Hendrix catalog beautifully, but his soloing style is more symphonic and modal. His JH obsession is what ultimately got him ushered out of Scorpions. No blackface, but he did scoop up Monica Danneman, Jimi's last girlfriend. I guess he gets the FTW for the Ultimate Jimi-fanboi move, no?

She was a rad lady. I liked her Electric Sun album artwork and she wrote the beautiful lyrics (about Hendrix, no less) of "We'll Burn the Sky" on Scorpions, "Taken By Force" LP. 

Im in love with the sunshine
I'm in love with the fallin' rain
Everything seems to call your name
Yesterday you were leavin'

Leavin' life and all your pain
Everything wants you back again
Wants you back again
Wants you back again

I found myself through you
And there was love in my life
I felt always naturally high
And my love had a home

But now my mind has started to roam
You're my life giving fire
And you carry all my love
Through you I was so inspired

You're engraved deep in my heart
Heart, heart, heart

My dreams recall us being one
I've searched for you to be free
The force of life you have always been
I feel blue since you're gone

You're breath of life surrounded me
When can I join you to be free
Join you to be free
Join you to be free

Wait, can this be a dream
There is a voice in my head
It belongs to you, it says
Don't cry, no need to be sad

There's a way to stay with you again
It's more than you ever had
And no death brings us apart
Our timeless love always grows
Because you are my other part

I know we've never been apart
Your love sets fire to my heart
We'll burn the sky
When it's time for me to die

We'll burn the sky, oh yeah
We'll burn the sky, oh yeah
When it's time, time, time
We'll burn the sky
We'll burn the sky, oh yeah

[geoff_hartwell]

17 hours ago, diablo175 said:

A talented white dude who not only rode Jimi's dick but tried to look like Jimi, too.

 

As did the other players mentioned. SRV-hats, scarves and boots? Definitely. Eric Johnson on Austin City Limits - wearing a high school marching band jacket a la the famous Jimi photo. Btw, that live at Austin city limits has the best version of Cliffs of Dover ever, just staggering. I still have the Flexi disc from a guitar magazine where I heard it first.

And not for nothing, but Mike McCready of Pearl Jam was in full-on SRV mode when they recorded and toured for the Ten album. Every photo and video is four other Seattle grunge guys and Mike in a big hat and Jimi/SRV garb. And Just IMHO If you go back and check out those tunes with Jimi in mind (through the lens of Stevie) it's still really solid guitar work that had a pretty great raw vibe and influence.

For "spirit of Hendrix" interpretations I love Eric Gales, though I've found him hot and cold (mostly due to his amazing ADD), but I think he wails and does some great Hendrix. 

[zorrow]

4 hours ago, RobB said:

Uli Roth, too. He can play all the Hendrix catalog beautifully, but his soloing style is more symphonic and modal. His JH obsession is what ultimately got him ushered out of Scorpions. No blackface, but he did scoop up Monica Danneman, Jimi's last girlfriend. I guess he gets the FTW for the Ultimate Jimi-fanboi move, no?

Absolutely! I was about to post about Uli as the ultimate Jimi fanboy and as a highly competent imitator. You took the lead.

Now I'll share here a rendition of "Hey Joe!" by the other German icon, Michael Schenker. To me, this one nails the essence of the song, in spite of the whole lot of Schenker-isms there. It succeeds in giving an European twist to it, while still remaining loyal to the original. Hope you guys will like it as much as I do. Enjoy!

 

[it's me HHB]

They say Uli has the blk strat

 

IMO orianthi is the least talented of the ladies mentioned in this thread. Nothing personal and I have worked w tons of amazing women in music.

And Eric fuckin Gales. Untouchplanefir me, nobody with a strat on planet Earth playing what I like hearing more than EG

[Ting Ho Dung]

1 hour ago, it's me HHB said:

They say Uli has the blk strat

 

IMO orianthi is the least talented of the ladies mentioned in this thread. Nothing personal and I have worked w tons of amazing women in music.

And Eric fuckin Gales. Untouchplanefir me, nobody with a strat on planet Earth playing what I like hearing more than EG

This is one of my favorite Eric Gales videos. It's too short though. He has great Strat tone and plays the open strings a lot. I like the first song probably the best and the third song the least but they are all good. I've tried playing the first song and can get close but watching Eric's fingers claw their way over the fretboard like a stone crab over barnacles will show you that he is able to fret things that we regular right-handed players can't. But, I did learn a new chord which is yet unnamed to me. It's the cool one from the first song that sounds like the Jimi chord E7 9 and maybe it is, just a different fingering or triad.

 

[princeofdarkness56]

Frank Mariano of Mahogony Rush did a pretty damn good job of riding Hendrix's dick IMO. 

[Ting Ho Dung]

14 hours ago, mc2 said:

Totally agree. I can't stand those all-female bills or festivals.  I also have found that most of the best women players tend to not play in all-girl bands either.

I can't find the video I'm looking for. But basically it's a guy with a music school and he said his female participants were like 4 percent in the beginning. He's in total agreement with you and your statements about female readership of the magazines.  After he started printing up pink shirts with the school name and catering to girls his students now are 60 / 40. But I can't remember which side is the higher, girls or boys. If I find it later I'll pm the link to you.