Riverpoet31 said:

Self-righteous pretentious twats could ALSO die unhappy, but who are we to judge and predict the outcome of these things? lol

well, people who really love music care for soul not for technical abilities..simple

Riverpoet31 said:

Ah, glad you cleared that up.

I'd always wondered why Dylan was better than Charlie Parker, now I know.

I'd always wondered why Dylan was better than Charlie Parker, now I know.

andyman91 said:

Me too. Now I'm going to go listen to a bunch of 3 year olds bang on some pots and pans, because dammit, at least they're putting their hearts and souls into it. Now that's art.

minneapolisgenius said:

Not if they do it well!

minneapolisgenius said:

A different approach...

Evander Holyfield is considered a GREAT heavyweight fighter...probably top 10 all-time. But, did he posess the skills of say Ali?? Of course not! He may not even have been as good a technical fighter as George Foreman was. But, the man had as much HEART as any of them!!

Same thing can be said for P's guitar skills. He may not be the best technical player ever, but his artistic approach to his playing makes up for that...and then some!

Just my 2 cents

ThaStrike said:

Yep, nobody said heart & passion wasn't important, but there's something to be said for technical proficiency, something Evander Holyfield & Prince have lots of.

ThaStrike said:

Actually, more and more (especially as "The Real Deal" continues to fight and lose) Holyfield is being looked upon as a great overachieving SMALL heavyweight. After his revenge tko of Michael Moorer, there were some boxing writers ranking him as high as number 3, all-time! Now, he'd be lucky to make the bottom five.

As far as technical skills, Evander Holyfield is actually more skilled than Muhammad Ali. Put another way, Evander possessed more textbook boxing skills. Ali possessed otherworldly speed and agility. But he rarely threw a left hook (a notable exception is his 15th round stoppage of ultra-tough Oscar Bonavena in his second fight back after his suspension was uplifted) and he rarely, if ever, punched to the body. And let's not talk about his dangerous habit of leaning back from punches with his hands down at his sides. That made him susceptible to the left hook (three of the knockdowns scored against "The Greatest" came courtesy of the left hook). What made Ali a legend (moreso in the post-suspension version) wasn't his technical skills. It was his heart, unwavering self-belief and concrete chin. Those intangibles, coupled with his athletic gifts, made Ali quite possibly the greatest heavyweight champion in history (though he and Joe Louis are interchangeable at 1 and 2, imho).

Roy Jones also had great natural gifts that he relied on more than textbook ability. When those gifts slowed down to where mere mortals could catch up to him, Roy had neither the chin nor unwavering self-belief to stay upright.

Excuse my rant - boxing rarely gets discussed here at the org

andyman91 said:

I like an even mix of both. I'm not even a fan of Vai or Satriani, but I feel the need to defend them somewhat when someone like Riverpoet makes the claim that their fans will "die unhappy" because they aren't enlightened as to what "real" or "good" music is. It's all about what you like to hear IMO.

You guys use a boxing analogy, and I was about to use a dance analogy, but I guess they both work just fine in this case.

minneapolisgenius said:

I agree. I don't care if people hate Vai or Satriani (I'm not really a Satriani fan myself) but if you notice I haven't put down Prince or Richard Thompson either (two guys with technical proficiency).

I'd never say somebody is "wrong" for liking Britney Spears. It just seems like people take their own opinions as gospel or something. "I don't like Steve Vai, therefore he's terrible."

Most people who dismiss him either:

1. Haven't really listened to him

2. Don't like that style of music

3. Can't understand the complexity enough to hear the musical nature of it

Answering #2 is just fine, it doesn't lessen his talents, though.

Sorry MinneG, that rant wasn't at you!

andyman91 said:

I know it wasn't.


(psst....but you know, people who listen to Britney Spears ARE just plain wrong. You know that. But we don't have to say that out loud. We can just keep on thinking it.)

There are LOADS of great guitar players around. Prince happens to be one of my favorites. I know Jeff Beck is more important/influential but I prefer Prince´s style for example. I like his vibrato and attitude. There was a time I didn´t care for his playing much, but now I really do. And listening to his SNL / RRHOF was REAL cool.

minneapolisgenius said:

Like I said, "I'd never SAY somebody is wrong for liking Britney Sprears..."

I wouldn't say it's right either!

andyman91 said: