I think Prince has definately found his niche in respect to his guitar playing.
Within the context of his own music I think he's brilliant. Let's face it Hendrix cast some really loooong shadows. If you happen to be black & play guitar even more so. Some are very happy to embrace Jimi's influence...while some others seem to make every effort to avoid it & be un-hendrixy. (LOL)

That being said I never quite got the whole Prince/Hendrix comparison.
I can see it infinatly more than I can hear it. His stage antics...histronics..wardrobe..yes. Musically a little, but certainly not as overt some folks claim. Maybe it's just me.

It would be far more interesting...well at least to me anyway, to hear folks opinions about who his other guitar influences may have been.(both rhythm & lead) Not including the ones he's tosses around in interviews from time to time.

Maybe it's just me.....sometimes I catch a hint of a bit Jeff beck & Roy Buchanan in his lead playing.
[Edited 11/28/06 8:27am]

I think one of the most flattering comments you can make about a musician is that they have their own voice on an instrument. You know Jimi when you hear him. You know Miles when you hear him. You know Herbie Hancock when you hear him. And you know Prince when you hear him.

The only valid comparison you can make is to compare Prince to Prince. That would be a more interesting conversation.

prince is ripping off jimi vibes..clothes...facial expressions..and licks all the time...the only musical thing that i have found prince to have a singular voice in.. is...his rhythm guitar playing..the chicken scratch guitar in controversey or sexuality or lady cab driver could only be Prince ! The funky bass is Larry graham and sly..the keyboards are often sly...the grooves are often JB inspired or sly..or other classic soul/funk artist...the vocals are sly,al green,marvin,joni, george clinton and a whole host of others his special thing is being a badass at all of it !!!

I am convinced that when Jimi died from that drug overdose, his spirit went into Prince.

Prince is the Jimi that never was....

prince is ripping off jimi vibes..clothes...facial expressions..and licks all the time...the only musical thing that i have found prince to have a singular voice in.. is...his rhythm guitar playing..the chicken scratch guitar in controversey or sexuality or lady cab driver could only be Prince ! The funky bass is Larry graham and sly..the keyboards are often sly...the grooves are often JB inspired or sly..or other classic soul/funk artist...the vocals are sly,al green,marvin,joni, george clinton and a whole host of others his special thing is being a badass at all of it !!!

And there it is. Pretty, and u know this to be true, I have echoed those exact sentiments on here in the past. Truth of the matter is, is that many people on here already knows this. But they simply don't dig these other artists. They don't care if P came on here and said himself where he got all his shit from. They just care that P does it. Period. They could give a fuck

And there it is. Pretty, and u know this to be true, I have echoed those exact sentiments on here in the past. Truth of the matter is, is that many people on here already knows this. But they simply don't dig these other artists. They don't care if P came on here and said himself where he got all his shit from. They just care that P does it. Period. They could give a fuck

You're damned right I don't give a fuck. And furthermore I don't give a rat's ass who did what before Prince, the fact is, when HE does those things, he makes them his own. PERIOD. Quit worshipping dead musicians. Join the living.

Interesting that no-one has mentioned Prince's rhythm guitar playing skills, which imo are superior to his admittedly often marvellous lead playing.

The whole Prince on guitar subject has been widely discussed on the Org over the years, but I think as a funk rhythm player he is the best of his generation, with a highly inventive sense of rhythm and often interesting chord choices.

I also think his jazz guitar skills, while not virtuosic, are under-rated. He has displayed convincing and impressive skills in this area on parts of the 'Xpectation' album and elsewhere.

As to his lead playing, I'd say Carlos Santana was a major influence, along with Hendrix, but Prince is more modern and has used various tone boxes over the years, which, while increasing his sonic range, may have denied him a true 'guitar great' reputation as he often lacks a 'signature tone', which is often considered important. He also frequently chooses not to play as fast as some players, being possibly influenced by Miles Davis' 'less is more' doctrine - generally play fewer notes, but make those notes count.

Santana is also a Miles influencee in that way imo, and if Prince shares any tonal similarities with anyone, it's with Carlos.

All guitarists imitate to some degree or other. In Jimi Hendrix, you can hear blues players like Albert King, BB King,Muddy Waters/Hubert Sumlin and John Lee Hooker, and jazz players like Wes Mongomery, though Jimi brought a great deal of his own to the table too, of course.

For a multi-intrumentalist, Prince's guitar skills are impressive, and had he chosen to specialise only in guitar in his career, he may well have been one of the modern greats of the instrument.

You're damned right I don't give a fuck. And furthermore I don't give a rat's ass who did what before Prince, the fact is, when HE does those things, he makes them his own. PERIOD. Quit worshipping dead musicians. Join the living.

Perhaps a little off-topic...but besides his guitar playing, I have a feeling that Prince is (or could be) a great vocal impersonator! We've heard him do Mick Jagger, a very convincing Ray Charles, some James Brown, the Michael Jackson "hee-hee" etc... I bet there's plenty of different singers he could sound like, just for fun.

You're damned right I don't give a fuck. And furthermore I don't give a rat's ass who did what before Prince, the fact is, when HE does those things, he makes them his own. PERIOD. Quit worshipping dead musicians. Join the living.

Ok I see someone opened the door labeled IGNORANT !!!!!

No, I opened the door labeled BEING HONEST, b****.
[Edited 12/1/06 20:28pm]

Is that u, Honeymoonexpress?

Ok I see someone opened the door labeled IGNORANT !!!!!

The one and only. I got tired of that long ass name so I had it deleted.

No, I opened the door labeled BEING HONEST, b****.
[Edited 12/1/06 20:28pm]

Its a shame that your honesty is filled with so much ignorance as well...
[Edited 12/2/06 5:52am]

I'm ignorant because I choose to tell it like it is? Me thinks you're the ignorant one here.