Musical influences:
My earliest musical influences? Probably through my elder siblings and cousins- my sister's collection of singles by THE BEATLES, in particular. 'Back In the USSR' was probably my first dose of 'rock'n'roll'. The airplane landing at the
beginning of the song caught my ear - SO cool!
Other rock bands quickly caught my attention: DEEP PURPLE's 'Come Taste The Band' (1975) with the incredibly funky TOMMY BOLIN on guitar is still one of my all time favourite rock albums.
And the overall SOUND in that album is so full of... 'oomph'. The only other albums from the mid '70s with such a 'fat' sound I've heard...hmm, I can only think of Frank Zappa's 'Zoot Allures' (1976).
I got my first guitar when I was 8. The 'obvious' things to
learn how to play (and what all the local bands were playing at the time): SANTANA tunes!
Carlos Santana and his band made a big impact on me with
their double live album 'Moonflower', and I tried hard to learn the wonderful instrumentals, 'Europe (Earth's Smile Heaven's Cry)' and 'Moonflower'.
CLIMAX BLUES BAND was a superb band from England. Their guitar player, the late Pete Haycock (1951-2013), always played the 'right' things on every song. Such melodic, tasteful solos, everytime.
Many years later I got to know him personally, and he kindly offered to do guest on my CD if I ever thought of recording one.
Sadly, Pete suddenly left this world in 2013 due to heart failure. But his fantastic guitar work lives on.
Recommended listening:
Pete did an absolutely smashing instrumental album called 'Guitar and Son', released on the IRS 'Guitar Speak' label in 1987.
EDWARD VAN HALEN came along and shocked the whole guitar world in 1978. His playing sounded like nothing I had ever heard before. I was, of course, blinded by his 'tapping' technique... many an hour was spent practising 'hammer-ons and pull-offs'. At one point I even decorated my old Hagström guitar with black tape to make it look like Eddie's 'Frankenstein' Charvel guitar! Listening to Van Halen's first albums today, I listen more to the band as a whole, compared to how I listened when I was 12. What a band! Not only did Eddie do so many cool little things with his guitar - Dave Lee Roth was the perfect singer for that band! He can swing and pace like Frank Sinatra. Much more entertaining to listen to than the stream of spandex/poodle hair singers that was to come in the '80s...
I think I must have listened as much to FRANK MARINO & MAHOGANY RUSH as I did to Van Halen.
Frank Marino was obviously influenced by Jimi Hendrix.
And since I was born a bit 'late' (1968), I never really got around to listening to him. But I discovered Hendrix through listening to Frank Marino (and Robin Trower, who also had much of the same 'vibe' in his playing).
John McLaughlin
There are musicians who who, for me, will remain a 'mystery' - I will never be able to figure out HOW they play. I just find them so incredibly deep and inspiring to listen to. John McLaughlin is one such musician. His catalogue is raaaaather extensive, being a monumental figure in the world of jazz music. Two of his albums that blew me away: 'Electric Guitarist' (1978) and 'Electric Dreams' (1979). Just listening to the guitar TONE on those two albums is like a gourmet meal. The music still sounds fresh and exciting 40 years later.
'Electric Guitarist' (1978) has a list of monster musicians playing on it:
Tony Williams, Jack Bruce, Fernando Saunders, Billy Cobham, David Sanborn, Chick Corea, Carlos Santana, Patrice Rushen, Stu Goldberg, Tom Coster, Jerry Goodman, Stanley Clarke, Alphonso Johnson, Tony 'Thunder' Smith, Neil Jason, Narada Michael Walden, Armando Peraza, and Alyrio Lima.
Goldberg, Saunders, Smith, Lima, and Sanborn also played on McLaughlin's next record 'Electric Dreams' (1979) as 'John McLaughlin and The One Truth Band'. For that record, McLaughlin also brought in L.Shankar on violin.
Phil Keaggy
Phil Keaggy was completely unknown to me until a local radio station did a presentation of his music - and I was quick to press 'RECORD' as soon as I heard the first few tones of his guitar. Around the same time (1986), Guitar Player Magazine did an article on him as he was releasing his album 'Getting Closer' and reading that was so inspiring.
I also had the great pleasure of meeting him in person in 1992 when he visited Norway. A local radio station set up for me to meet him before his concert and he kindly signed my guitar!
Recommended listening: The fusion/rock/pop-tinged 'Getting Closer' (1986), the Beatles-influenced 'Phil Keaggy & Sunday's Child' (1988), and his fantastic all-instrumental albums 'The Master and the Musician' (1978) and 'The Wind and the Wheat' (1987)... and much more!
Ry Cooder
Around the time I joined my first band (at the age of 15) I was listening a lot to Ry Cooder.
Ry Cooder's tune 'Available Space' was already very familiar to me - it had been used as opening theme for a popular rock/pop radio programme called 'Pop Spesial' in the early '80s.
There was something very 'real' about his playing that appealed to me. We even played some of those tunes in the band (without the slide guitar, though).
Ry Cooder is still a big source of inspiration.
Allan Holdsworth
(1946-2017)
"“My music is written with one goal in mind: to improvise. It’s like explaining a great story in words, but without words, much faster than you could with words. It’s like a direct line of instantaneous communication where you don’t have to wait for the end.”
- Allan Holdsworth, 1987
Allan Holdsworth must have come from another universe, because nobody else could (or can) play like him - by far. Not only his otherworldly soloing technique, but also his composing and the way he voiced chords.
Allan had a way of expressing himself on a guitar that was totally unique. I guess it had to do with him listening a lot to sax players rather than listening to other guitar players (which is what most of us guitar players usually do), So he had a very special way of phrasing lines, and the intervals between the notes were of the sort that made all other players scratch their heads, thinking, 'how DOES he DO that???'...
I had the pleasure of hearing Allan and his fantastic band play live in Oslo on April 21, 1993 - my 25th Birthday. It was without a doubt the most jawdroppingly impressive concert I have ever been to.
I met Allan and his keyboard player Steve Hunt backstage after the show. Two genuinely nice Brits with a keen sense of humour!
Allan kindly signed my copy of his album 'Metal Fatigue'!
Needless to say, that's a very treasured album in my record collection!
