Speaking The Language of Guitar

In most bands not named Metallica (Right, Mr. Ullrich?), the guitarist assumes a royal position of importance. The identity of the band is wrapped up in what incredible feats a guitarist can bring to the table. Would Motley Crue's "Wild Side" have sounded quite as dangerous without Nikki Sixx and Mick Mars plunging fans into a seedy underworld of violence? How about Limp Bizkit's "Rollin"? Fred Durst wouldn't have come off as quite such a menace if Wes Borland hadn't pieced together the image of a bad boy revving up his Harley Davidson, hell bent on leaving his imprint with the masses, both male and female. In other cases the guitar can leave audiences less unsettled, more enchanted. The Dave Matthews Band, which is to contemporary music what gumbo is to New Orleans cuisine, left me feeling "cuddled" by the opening riffs of Dave's guitar on "So Much To Say". It was extremely limber, the warm up for a cosmic fusion of horns and drums. The Dave Matthews Band's core identity would appear to be find Point A in the road and let the quality of your supporting musicians carry you to heights airplanes at peak altitude can't get to. "Crash Into Me" does sound like waves crashing onto a venerable beach. Again, Dave deserves kudos for picking up his musical paintbrush and putting the finishing touches on a masterpiece of understated fret work so convincing you can smell the surf, watch the pigeons amble along the shore. There are certainly records where the more the guitarist gets a chance to showoff, the larger the payoff gets for both listener and artist. I'd like to present two hard rock classics as examples. "Hot For Teacher" is, in my opinion one of the all time great hard rock songs. Eddie Van Halen more than earned his living legend status based on the creativity he exhibited. The song could have easily allowed VH's core fan base to become easily spoiled. It's not enough Alex Van Halen pounded out one of the most sinfully breathtaking drum solos I've ever had the privilege of hearing but then here comes his brother unleashing an equally spine tingling set of snarling notes that came off like a miniature roller coaster ride. You couldn't believe the first twist just got surpassed by an even more logic defying twist. He essentially took his guitar and shoved it up the petard of anyone who wasn't yet convinced Eddie was a wunderkind. To make matters even more astounding he laid down a second blistering ear electrifier at the bridge. I'm especially impressed by the juncture where Alex's drumming serves as the backboard for the volleys Eddie slams against the wall. Then there's "Rock You Like a Hurricane" by The Scorpions, one of the best things Germany ever shared with us. This band knew what heavy metal was supposed to sound like, ridiculously bombastic but with an insane sense of forged in steel musicianship.Make no mistake, Klaus Meine is one of the A-list lead singers but Rudolf Schenker absolutely set the rock world on fire with his piranha fang guitar efforts. You couldn't possibly call yourself a diehard metalhead if chills weren't doing an Indy 500 style race up and down your spine. It's nice when artistic contenders triumph over pretenders. Rudolf killed. Not just a guitar but a relentless surge of intimidation that never stepped away from fourth gear. That there is an ideal time capsule moment of rock life in the early '80s. The second decade of the 2000s does have at least one commendable example of a guitar meant to stun, here in a ponderous salute to enjoying it when your man roughs you up a bit. Politically  incorrect? Quite possibly. Mad right down to the tips of its toes? As if you had to ask. The band in question is New Jersey's Halestorm. Their single "I Miss The Misery" makes the notion of rough sex sound more playful than pugilistic. Not only is Lzzy Hale one of the most attention commanding female hard rock vocalists in recent memory (Her portion of the recent remake of Lita and Ozzy's "Close My Eyes Forever" was a winning tribute to a superb hard rock ballad) she knows how to sink her teeth into her instruments, both voice and guitar. To make "I Miss The Misery" sound convincing, those notes have to take you into the middle of Lzzy's domestic battlefield where you believe her when she claims to favor fighting with her squeeze over a tranquil night in front of the TV. The pistol smoke is still warm by the time this domestic slice of warfare is over. While there's no pool shark showing off on this track, Lzzy makes her point by biting down and refusing to deal with her veil deprived hostility issues. You really buy the idea she likes it rough. In cases like the bridge featured in Olivia Newton John's workout orgy "Physical" this guitar manages to crank up the provocative overtones even higher than before. Olivia already had spelled out her intentions. The playing that followed only accelerated the machinations of the sweat glands even more. Music has a sensational history of a guitar employed to spectacular effect. This instrument is the engine driving many rock vehicles. Next time you settle in for a new or old school tune, remember why the hairs on the back of your neck are saluting. I know many of my most memorable music moments hatched due to a guitar being given license to fly.