Which rock guitarists had as much as Eddie Van Halen after the VH explosion?

[frets5150]

Originally posted by Cathedral
What about Roy Clark?

That dude was a pickin fool, lmmfao.

Agreed!!!

[SNIPER]

Ed will always be king to me, I have even learned how to play like him useing my own riifs. long live the king, thats what im talking about!

[TongueNGroove]

I am glad that Vito Bratta was mentioned. I have to say the sweet leads he did with White Lion were always an inspiration to me. He had a very melodic and creative way of delivery leads, not just a shredder like Gary Howe or nay of those types.

I would say tht Nuo Bettencourt should also be mentioned since he is still very infuential to me.

[SNIPER]

Vito was an Eddie clone, He had the same hair Eddie had in the vh 2 erea. and his solos where very well thought out to sound like his king. god love him for that. wasnt a White Lion fan but the Halen vibe stuck out enuff for me to notice their talent.

[Terry]

Can't think of one guitarist who became popular after Eddie Van Halen that had the influence of making people who didn't play the guitar to begin with want to pick up the instrument.

Randy Rhoads was almost a contemporary of EVH. Just a couple years shy of gaining notoriety. For many new players from 1978 to 1982, Randy was the second guy you heard of after EVH.

Those mostly American players who became famous in the post-Eddie/Rhandy metal (am including some poseurs, though not necessarily all were) explosion of 1982 onward: George Lynch, Warren DeMartini, Carlos Cavazo, Jake E. Lee, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Steve Lynch, Mick Mars, CC DeVille, Yngwie Malmsteen as among the most visible.........I suspect the primary influence they had was on players who had been initially inspired to pick up the instrument by EVH.

Also included are Brad Gillis, Vivain Campbell, Vitto Bratta, the twin guitar attacks of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, and such.


That's what Ace Frehley was talking about when he said he had been cited by many such as Skid Row as a primary influence in wanting take up the instrument. Would tend to suspect that some of the players listed above who got famous in the mid 1980s hard rock boom would agree with Skid Row, and then go onto say that EVH was the one who inspired them to want to PLAY as opposed to just picking up the instrument. Hence the amount of Eddie clones who flooded the airwaves from 1983 to 1989, seemingly at times unable to play without two hands on the fretboard or one hand on the vibrato bar.

EVH had a similar impact on the next wave of younger guitarists who got their start around 1979-1983, and then went on to hear players like Malmsteen, Vai and Satriani who inspired them to look beyond the limitations of being an Eddie clone.

Would think it would be the guitarist who inspired more to take up the instrument to begin with that would be the most influential.

[dave_is_vh]

In terms of INNOVATION, there are only three ROCK guitar players that matter:

Jimi Hendrix
Eddie Van Halen
Yngwie Malmsteen

Each of those guys completely reinvented rock guitar. No one has had an impact comparable to these guys.

Other guitar players have been as innovative, but they are not rock guitar players - for example:

Stevie Ray Vaughn (blues)
Al Di Meola (jazz fusion)
Allan Holdsworth (jazz fusion)

That is the bottom line.

[ELVIS]

I'm happy to see Yngwie taken seriously in this kind of discussion...

Yngwie is a true innovater, and in my opinion, the best guitarist to ever hit the main stream...

[badhorsie]

There arent too many guitarists who revolutionized music/technique/style/GEAR as much as Hendrix and EVH.

I dont think anyone has even come remolelty close to EVH status in the last 20 years.

[ELVIS]

Originally posted by badhorsie

I dont think anyone has even come remolelty close to EVH status in the last 20 years.

Yngwie absolutely did...

..and without Dave, you would be saying Ed who ??

Yngwie did it without someone like Dave...

[janarak]

We keep getting this EVH/Hendrix thing and its to tuff to call.
If we are talking modern influence James Hetfields compressed guitar sound is everywhere,not a Metallica fan but even lighter rock songs now have the Hetfield chug.

Here's to EVH waking with a hangover proving us all wrong and showing he still has the moves.

[LickMyCream]

Yngwie is a wanker and Slash is cool

[dave_is_vh]

Originally posted by badhorsie
There arent too many guitarists who revolutionized music/technique/style/GEAR as much as Hendrix and EVH.

I dont think anyone has even come remolelty close to EVH status in the last 20 years.

Yngwie was more innovative than EVH. If you do not believe this listen to Yngwie's Rising Force and Van Halen I back to back. Nuff said.

[Terry]

Yngwie and EVH back to back is a tough call.

Almost as tough as Hendrix and EVH.

Satriani and Vai I consider more disciples of EVH and Hendrix than really innovative in their own right.

But Yngwie......well, Yngwie was influential. Not as many Malmsteen carbon copies out there, but you have to have serious technique to mimic Malmsteen. A little more perhaps than it takes to mimic Eddie.

Hendrix/EVH/Malmsteen........won't get into who's better, but those three make my top ten.

Where Malmsteen would have ended up without Blackmore (let's face it, Yngwie knicked more than just a little from Ritchie) is another question............

[Vivian Campbell]

This is an interesting question since I really can't think of anyone else besides those mentioned that were influential. Perhaps Satriani, but he bores the hell out of me. A lot of people just bit off of Eddie throughout the 80s which is good or bad depending on your guitar tastes.

There have been plenty of awesome guitarists. VIVIAN CAMPBELL for example :D . Was he influential? Probably not. But, shredding was big thing in the 80s and he was at the forefront of the guitar hero shredding scene.

All time influential? Hello? Ritchie Blackmore. Yngwie Malmsteen will tell you that he wouldn’t have taken up the guitar if it wasn’t for his idol Ritchie Blackmore. He’s worked with almost every one of Blackmore’s singers - Graham Bonnet, Joe Lynn Turner, and even a song with Dio for an Aerosmith tribute album.

Tony Iommi is an obvious for all time influential, but even HE tried to be Blackmore as odd as it sounds. Proof? Look at the personnel of Black Sabbath since Ozzy left - Ronnie James Dio, Ian Gillan, Glenn Hughes, Cozy Powell and there are many more.

Hendrix? Some one will shoot me for this, but is he even relevent today? He is the most hyped dude in the music industry. How many kids that pick up the guitar say, “I’m doing it because Hendrix inspired me.” Nope, they’ll most likely say Iommi, Paige, Blackmore, Yngwie (if they can pronounce his name), Vai, Satriani, and of course, Eddie Van Halen.

[rustoffa]

Since this has drifted a bit, I'll go ahead and throw Link Wray in the mix as far as influential.

IMO, he probably created heavy guitar riffs.