Miles said:

And yes, Jimi is undoubtedly the better all round guitarist, especially in lead playing. While very cool and flashy, none of P's solos hold a candle to Machine Gun from Band of Gypsies IMO. That track is the paragon of rock fusion guitar solos to me. Also, Prince has often relied too much on effects that mask his technique, while Jimi used a far narrower range of effects to far better 'effect', as it were .

Prince is obviously the better all round musician, as while Jimi was imo a better singer than he gets credit for, more accomplished on the keyboard than many realise (listen to Burning of the Midnight Lamp, that's him on harpsichord ), and was funky and supple on bass guitar (a lot of the bass parts on Electric Ladyland are Jimi overdubbing over Noel Redding after he left the band) and dabbled in drums, Prince was definitely the better multi-instrumentalist in his 20s, the only period we can compare with Jimi who left us at 27.

But Jimi was touched by God on the guitar. NOBODY can equal or surpass his awesome technique and pioneering contribution to the electric guitar, use of high volume and in the amount of 'soul' he brought to his playing.

Prince is great on guitar, probably the most accomplished player of both rhythm and lead guitar I know of who's alive, but, like all practitioners of psychedelic electric rock/ blues guitar since the late '60s, he plays in the long shadow of Hendrix.

I agree about everything except Prince relied too much on effects that mask his technique part.

Prince always had technique.he used effects to achive certain sound ,not to mask his playing

ConsciousContact said:

thebanishedone said:

I can play guitar solo from All Along The Watchtower note by note.

does that mean im better than Jimi? of course not.

Its not only about what you play,its also about how you play.

Jimi played with so much confidence attitude,

he redefined the sound of electric guitar.

And Jimi influenced every guitar soloist .That guy set a standard

and changed the music forever.

Nobody can play Little Wing,Castles Made Of Sand ,

Who Knows and many others the way he did.

If there was no Jimi we wouldnt have Prince the way we know him.

Regarding Jimis career if he survived >I think that

Jimis music would have changed in a more classic

singer songwritter style.

His band would expand with keyboard instruments,saxophones.

And i think if Jimi was alive in the 80s he would go synth drum machine all the way.

Prince is a great guitarist.He always was but he didnt explore

the instrument in the way Jimi had.

Prince is a mix of influences so eclectic and thats the

thing that makes him so original.

But Prince innovated linn drum the same way Jimi did with guitar.

Prince used linn drum in a way nobody else did.many people call Prince The Hendrix Of Linn.

so they cant compare as a guitar players but they can as innovators in music field .

[Edited 3/11/14 16:44pm]

[Edited 3/11/14 16:45pm]

Can you explain more about how Prince innovated the linn drum the same way Jimi did with guitar with a few examples please?

Lot of artist had used linn in the past.But im not sure you would recognise songs

like Radio Ga Ga by Queen or Take My Breath Away by Berlin just based on the drum pattern alone.

When you listen to linn drum on the songs like 1999,Little Red Corvette ,

When Doves Cry,If Eye Was Your Girlfriend and many others you can recognise very easy

the songs even without any other instrumentation .Only based on the linn lm1

patterns alone.

Princes innovation of the linn consists of him running

linn through the guitar pedals and getting exotic and unique sound,

using bass drum as a bass instrument without real bass

and his refusal to tweek linn with reverb and other effects.many songs contain only raw linn patterns without any polish. Detuned rim is also classic Prince .Its strange that a man once known as Hendrix of Linn created such a lame and boring patterns on NPS and Emancipation.

[Edited 3/13/14 17:45pm]

Miles said:

Beautifulstarr123 said:

I suspect you are talking about the blues impulse, that dark, brooding atmosphere that pervades so much of Jimi's music and sound. Blues was the sauce in which he cooked up all his creations, and Jimi was much closer in feel, tone, culture and in history to the original blues artists than Prince, as well as having travelled the south a lot while on the 'chitlin circuit'.

For me, much as I love all his music, Prince is perhaps at his least convincing when trying to do a 'traditional style' blues song, like The Ride, or his imo weak renditions of Jimi's Red House, for example. He always sounds a little fake to me when doing straightforward blues. He doesn't seem to 'get' it, and is always on surer ground when he brings the psychedelic funk rock into the mix, superimposed over a blues song. I would say Prince's best original blues songs are Sign o' the Times, The Truth and Don't Play Me .

Having said that, a song like Sign o' the Times is totally a blues song in spirit if not in structure and is very much a 'modern' blues song in the tradition of Sly Stone and Curtis Mayfield. It has that blues feel in the lyrics and music, without being a 12 bar progression thang.

Very bluesy sounds more like it for Hendrix I was listening to "Hey Joe" from a movie, the other day. To me lyrically, it is the blues, but musically, it has a bluesy/rock sound.

....but as many would agree, Prince took his inspiration from Hendrix, but with originality, and it shows. Stone and Mayfield, too.

Miles said:

And yes, Jimi is undoubtedly the better all round guitarist, especially in lead playing. While very cool and flashy, none of P's solos hold a candle to Machine Gun from Band of Gypsies IMO. That track is the paragon of rock fusion guitar solos to me. Also, Prince has often relied too much on effects that mask his technique, while Jimi used a far narrower range of effects to far better 'effect', as it were .

Prince is obviously the better all round musician, as while Jimi was imo a better singer than he gets credit for, more accomplished on the keyboard than many realise (listen to Burning of the Midnight Lamp, that's him on harpsichord ), and was funky and supple on bass guitar (a lot of the bass parts on Electric Ladyland are Jimi overdubbing over Noel Redding after he left the band) and dabbled in drums, Prince was definitely the better multi-instrumentalist in his 20s, the only period we can compare with Jimi who left us at 27.

But Jimi was touched by God on the guitar. NOBODY can equal or surpass his awesome technique and pioneering contribution to the electric guitar, use of high volume and in the amount of 'soul' he brought to his playing.

Prince is great on guitar, probably the most accomplished player of both rhythm and lead guitar I know of who's alive, but, like all practitioners of psychedelic electric rock/ blues guitar since the late '60s, he plays in the long shadow of Hendrix.

That what many muscians would say, when you watch some interviews.

Question: in your opinion, do you believe that Kurt Cobain is a great innovator or overrated. He died at 27, too.

novabrkr said:

Beautifulstarr123 said:

Purple Rain or Purple Haze? What do you think?

Purple Rain, of those two.

A fairer comparison could be Let's Go Crazy or Purple Haze. In that case I might pick the latter.

Thanks

Beautifulstarr123 said:

Miles said:

And yes, Jimi is undoubtedly the better all round guitarist, especially in lead playing. While very cool and flashy, none of P's solos hold a candle to Machine Gun from Band of Gypsies IMO. That track is the paragon of rock fusion guitar solos to me. Also, Prince has often relied too much on effects that mask his technique, while Jimi used a far narrower range of effects to far better 'effect', as it were .

Prince is obviously the better all round musician, as while Jimi was imo a better singer than he gets credit for, more accomplished on the keyboard than many realise (listen to Burning of the Midnight Lamp, that's him on harpsichord ), and was funky and supple on bass guitar (a lot of the bass parts on Electric Ladyland are Jimi overdubbing over Noel Redding after he left the band) and dabbled in drums, Prince was definitely the better multi-instrumentalist in his 20s, the only period we can compare with Jimi who left us at 27.

But Jimi was touched by God on the guitar. NOBODY can equal or surpass his awesome technique and pioneering contribution to the electric guitar, use of high volume and in the amount of 'soul' he brought to his playing.

Prince is great on guitar, probably the most accomplished player of both rhythm and lead guitar I know of who's alive, but, like all practitioners of psychedelic electric rock/ blues guitar since the late '60s, he plays in the long shadow of Hendrix.

That what many muscians would say, when you watch some interviews.

Question: in your opinion, do you believe that Kurt Cobain is a great innovator or overrated. He died at 27, too.

haha Kurt an innovator hahaha

thebanishedone said:

Beautifulstarr123 said:

That what many muscians would say, when you watch some interviews.

Question: in your opinion, do you believe that Kurt Cobain is a great innovator or overrated. He died at 27, too.

haha Kurt an innovator hahaha

I guess that means he's overrated

Kurt brought interest in the electric guitar and a big thanx for that but as

a guitar player he really sucked.beginner level playing

Beautifulstarr123 said:

Miles said:

And yes, Jimi is undoubtedly the better all round guitarist, especially in lead playing. While very cool and flashy, none of P's solos hold a candle to Machine Gun from Band of Gypsies IMO. That track is the paragon of rock fusion guitar solos to me. Also, Prince has often relied too much on effects that mask his technique, while Jimi used a far narrower range of effects to far better 'effect', as it were .

Prince is obviously the better all round musician, as while Jimi was imo a better singer than he gets credit for, more accomplished on the keyboard than many realise (listen to Burning of the Midnight Lamp, that's him on harpsichord ), and was funky and supple on bass guitar (a lot of the bass parts on Electric Ladyland are Jimi overdubbing over Noel Redding after he left the band) and dabbled in drums, Prince was definitely the better multi-instrumentalist in his 20s, the only period we can compare with Jimi who left us at 27.

But Jimi was touched by God on the guitar. NOBODY can equal or surpass his awesome technique and pioneering contribution to the electric guitar, use of high volume and in the amount of 'soul' he brought to his playing.

Prince is great on guitar, probably the most accomplished player of both rhythm and lead guitar I know of who's alive, but, like all practitioners of psychedelic electric rock/ blues guitar since the late '60s, he plays in the long shadow of Hendrix.

That what many muscians would say, when you watch some interviews.

Question: in your opinion, do you believe that Kurt Cobain is a great innovator or overrated. He died at 27, too.

I'm probably not the best qualified person around here to speak about Cobain, as I'm not really familiar with Nirvana bar one or two songs. Having said that, as a guitarist, I've never seen him listed in the same breath as James Marshall Hendrix .

My guess is Cobain is far more influential as a modern(ish) rock icon and in his songwriting and general 'attitude' in his performances and lyrics than he is as a guitar player.

Out of the so-called '27 Club', I only really have time for Jimi (a true musical titan for the ages imo) and to some extent Jim Morrison and Robert Johnson, but in their cases for some of their entertaining/ interesting lyrics, vocals and performances. Mind you, Johnson was a mutha when it came to guitar technique too. Apparently he was known to have performed live with an electric guitar but alas no recordings of that exist beyond his acoustic records .

Cobain has been regularly listed as one of the best guitarists ever (in TOP10-20). Higher than Prince, typically. I suppose what they really mean by that is "one of the most important", as far as the development of modern rock music goes.

Prince shouldn't even be compared to Jimi Hendrix, sorry but no! I believe Jimi would have been one of the biggest stars had he not died at age 27. His fame in those yrs proves this. The org always overrates Prince's guitar playing and although he is great, he is not even on the same level as Jimi. The way Jimi re-created the way you play guitar and just everything about him, is just not comprable to Prince. That's why our beloved Prince is still tryna channel Jimi as we speak (the looks on Instagram, the thirdeyegirl, the style and the clothes - pure jimi) Jimis guitar solos are amazing and people are still imitating the master but still not even coming close to it. The feeling and soul Jimi had when he played that guitar, is just amaazing! Vocally Prince is a better vocalist than Jimi (technically speaking), but it's quite unfair to compare the two as Jimi is more of a blues vocalist.

So we can compare movies,food,cars but we cant compare 2 guitar players?

And btw if there was no Freddie King Albert King and Buddy Guy ther would have been no Jimi

apples and oranges, can't really compare. Plus Jimi hit the dirt at age 27 and was booked for studio sessions with Miles the week he died

prince is nothing more than a Hendrix knock off....Hell Prince cant even fuck with Jesse Johnson let alone hendrix

Miles said:

Beautifulstarr123 said:

That what many muscians would say, when you watch some interviews.

Question: in your opinion, do you believe that Kurt Cobain is a great innovator or overrated. He died at 27, too.

I'm probably not the best qualified person around here to speak about Cobain, as I'm not really familiar with Nirvana bar one or two songs. Having said that, as a guitarist, I've never seen him listed in the same breath as James Marshall Hendrix .

My guess is Cobain is far more influential as a modern(ish) rock icon and in his songwriting and general 'attitude' in his performances and lyrics than he is as a guitar player.

Out of the so-called '27 Club', I only really have time for Jimi (a true musical titan for the ages imo) and to some extent Jim Morrison and Robert Johnson, but in their cases for some of their entertaining/ interesting lyrics, vocals and performances. Mind you, Johnson was a mutha when it came to guitar technique too. Apparently he was known to have performed live with an electric guitar but alas no recordings of that exist beyond his acoustic records .

I haven't actually sat and listen to him myself, but in this day and age, he get so much praise. Maybe one day, I'll take a listen, and see what is all the hype about

As legend have it about Johnson, the way I read it, he couldn't play a lick, then he left town for awhile, and came back as a mean guitar player. He sold his soul at the crossroads, they say . Though I didn't hear it, Clapton did an album, in his honor. I heard maybe a couple of Johnson's songs like "Hellbound On My Trails"

[Edited 3/15/14 9:41am]

thebanishedone said:

So we can compare movies,food,cars but we cant compare 2 guitar players?

And btw if there was no Freddie King Albert King and Buddy Guy ther would have been no Jimi

Little Richard seems to think he deserves most of the credit for Prince, though

GoldDolphin said:

Prince shouldn't even be compared to Jimi Hendrix, sorry but no! I believe Jimi would have been one of the biggest stars had he not died at age 27. His fame in those yrs proves this. The org always overrates Prince's guitar playing and although he is great, he is not even on the same level as Jimi. The way Jimi re-created the way you play guitar and just everything about him, is just not comprable to Prince. That's why our beloved Prince is still tryna channel Jimi as we speak (the looks on Instagram, the thirdeyegirl, the style and the clothes - pure jimi) Jimis guitar solos are amazing and people are still imitating the master but still not even coming close to it. The feeling and soul Jimi had when he played that guitar, is just amaazing! Vocally Prince is a better vocalist than Jimi (technically speaking), but it's quite unfair to compare the two as Jimi is more of a blues vocalist.

I see a lot of Jimi in Prince, no doubt.

novabrkr said:

Cobain has been regularly listed as one of the best guitarists ever (in TOP10-20). Higher than Prince, typically. I suppose what they really mean by that is "one of the most important", as far as the development of modern rock music goes.

Did Slash make the cut?

novabrkr said:

Beautifulstarr123 said:

Purple Rain or Purple Haze? What do you think?

Purple Rain, of those two.

A fairer comparison could be Let's Go Crazy or Purple Haze. In that case I might pick the latter.

To me, if you like more blues, then Purple Haze. I like Purple Rain, too

Hey everybody,

I've been playing guitar for about 20 years now. I've gotten to be pretty good.

Here's a sample of some of my music if you're interested in hearing some material that is influenced by Prince amongst other artists:

https://soundcloud.com/jaydeep-bhadra

That aside, if you really listen to Prince's style of lead and rock guitar playing, you'll notice that he doesn't play much like Hendrix. While they're both light skin African Americans with a penchant for flamboyant clothing and rock and roll, Jimi played 'dirtier' where Prince plays a more 'clean' style. While both are blues players, Prince's stylings on guitar are clearly more influenced by Santana. A lot of Prince's 'borrowed' runs are from Santana. Here's an example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqZceAQSJvc&hd=1

Finally, I really believe Prince's rhythm playing is where it's really at! There are the obvious choices of Chelsea Rodgers or the entire live Parade show, but then there's stuff like Race or the Beautiful Experience version of Come where Prince is doing some other worldly stuff with his guitar! In my humble opinion, Prince's use of technology to produce and compose music was one of the factors that really made his music so unique.

Anyhow, here's a high 5 to Prince for his wonderful rhythm guitar playing for what's going on 4 decades now!!!

[Edited 3/16/14 10:17am]

Anyone who thinks Prince is a better than or anywhere near as good a guitarist as Hendrix needs their head examined.

While Prince is a good guitarist, Jimi is one of the best of all time.

You ask this on any other forum outside of this Prince forum and people will laugh at you.

Prince never came up with such iconic riffs like on Purple Haze, Voodoo Chile, Little Wing, Foxy Lady.

The best he could do was Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy which are not on the same level.

I used to think Prince was a great guitarist but that was before I got into rock music. There are far better guitarists. Guys like Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Dave Navarro, Nile Rodgers, Billy Corgan, Stevie Ray Vaughan. I could continue.

I would even say Kurt Cobain was a better guitarist. Although his technique was nothing special, he created his unique sound and produced iconic riffs like Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium.

However Prince is a genuine multi instrumentalist whereas the above guys focused purely on guitar so you can't expect him to be as good as those guys.

[Edited 3/16/14 17:02pm]

SEXYMOFO said:

Anyone who thinks Prince is a better than or anywhere near as good a guitarist as Hendrix needs their head examined.

While Prince is a good guitarist, Jimi is one of the best of all time.

You ask this on any other forum outside of this Prince forum and people will laugh at you.

Prince never came up with such iconic riffs like on Purple Haze, Voodoo Chile, Little Wing, Foxy Lady.

The best he could do was Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy which are not on the same level.

I used to think Prince was a great guitarist but that was before I got into rock music. There are far better guitarists. Guys like Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Dave Navarro, Nile Rodgers, Billy Corgan, Stevie Ray Vaughan. I could continue.

I would even say Kurt Cobain was a better guitarist. Although his technique was nothing special, he created his unique sound and produced iconic riffs like Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium.

However Prince is a genuine multi instrumentalist whereas the above guys focused purely on guitar so you can't expect him to be as good as those guys.

[Edited 3/16/14 17:02pm]

Dandroppedadime said:

you could use the same question for

Sly or Prince

JB or Prince

P-Funk or Prince

MJ or Prince

Curtis or Prince

Stevie or Prince

Lionel or Prince

or dare i go into the untouchable white gods...

Bowie or Prince

Bruce or Prince

Beatles or Prince

Elvis or Prince

the fact that the question can be asked of all the above and a measured answer should be made for ALL of them. Proves Prince is up there with hte best of them.

P-Funk/George Clinton > That entire list.

Sorry. But even I cant let my Princeness take over logic.

Also Jemi is a better as a guitarist. Prince is better as an artist and more diverse.

SEXYMOFO said:

Anyone who thinks Prince is a better than or anywhere near as good a guitarist as Hendrix needs their head examined.

While Prince is a good guitarist, Jimi is one of the best of all time.

You ask this on any other forum outside of this Prince forum and people will laugh at you.

Prince never came up with such iconic riffs like on Purple Haze, Voodoo Chile, Little Wing, Foxy Lady.

The best he could do was Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy which are not on the same level.

I used to think Prince was a great guitarist but that was before I got into rock music. There are far better guitarists. Guys like Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Dave Navarro, Nile Rodgers, Billy Corgan, Stevie Ray Vaughan. I could continue.

I would even say Kurt Cobain was a better guitarist. Although his technique was nothing special, he created his unique sound and produced iconic riffs like Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium.

However Prince is a genuine multi instrumentalist whereas the above guys focused purely on guitar so you can't expect him to be as good as those guys.

[Edited 3/16/14 17:02pm]

I totally agree with you regarding Prince being a better guitarist than Hendrix but you went a little too far when it comes to those other guitarist you mentioned......i mean Kurt Cobain "Really" lost some credibility mentioning him. I am assuming you have not heard most of Prince's guitar playing from "KISS, JOY IN REPETITIION, SHE SPOKE TO ME, DREAMER'......hell Prince's version of "WHOLE LOTTA LOVE' IMHO better than the original

I agree to some point ,,,but Kurt cobain basic 5th grader power chords playing better than Prince? nah u reaching my friend.....Prince would wipe the floor with cobain

SEXYMOFO said:

Anyone who thinks Prince is a better than or anywhere near as good a guitarist as Hendrix needs their head examined.

While Prince is a good guitarist, Jimi is one of the best of all time.

You ask this on any other forum outside of this Prince forum and people will laugh at you.

Prince never came up with such iconic riffs like on Purple Haze, Voodoo Chile, Little Wing, Foxy Lady.

The best he could do was Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy which are not on the same level.

I used to think Prince was a great guitarist but that was before I got into rock music. There are far better guitarists. Guys like Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Dave Navarro, Nile Rodgers, Billy Corgan, Stevie Ray Vaughan. I could continue.

I would even say Kurt Cobain was a better guitarist. Although his technique was nothing special, he created his unique sound and produced iconic riffs like Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium.

However Prince is a genuine multi instrumentalist whereas the above guys focused purely on guitar so you can't expect him to be as good as those guys.

[Edited 3/16/14 17:02pm]

kidmelody2012 said:

cobain just did power chords...what new style are u speaking of?

SEXYMOFO said:

kidmelody2012 said:

I agree to some point ,,,but Kurt cobain basic 5th grader power chords playing better than Prince? nah u reaching my friend.....Prince would wipe the floor with cobain

Technically Cobain was nothing special at all but he had a unique style that was imitated by many and it left a big mark. If the mark of a good guitarist is simply how technically proficient he is then guys like Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai would be considered the best. However that is not the case.