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i think jimi would listen to the song orgasm and wonder if it was him playing the guitar. that was the most jimi like prince ever got on a released album.

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blacksignparade said:

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i think jimi would listen to the song orgasm and wonder if it was him playing the guitar. that was the most jimi like prince ever got on a released album.

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Actually if he was a fan of Prince's music, he'd have already heard it on Controversy.

sharonbell said:

Was listening to Jimi this morning, man, he was good, but Prince's music sounds much better to me overall, even though I know Prince came behind him.

I wonder if Jimi would have been impressed with Prince?

Same thing these gentlemen thought about Jimi:

They knew a legend when they saw one because they were ALL LIVING LEGENDS

TrivialPursuit said:

blacksignparade said:

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i think jimi would listen to the song orgasm and wonder if it was him playing the guitar. that was the most jimi like prince ever got on a released album.

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Actually if he was a fan of Prince's music, he'd have already heard it on Controversy.

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admittedly, it's been 30 years since i heard that album but i don't remember anything in there that screamed jimi.

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The segue from "Private Joy" to "Ronnie"..That's the same solo in "Orgasm". I even thought back then that solo had a "Jimi At Monterey" vibe.

SPYZFAN1 said:

The segue from "Private Joy" to "Ronnie"..That's the same solo in "Orgasm". I even thought back then that solo had a "Jimi At Monterey" vibe.

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well, there you go. i have trouble remembering what happened yesterday let alone 30 years.

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tab32792 said:

Prince passed Jimi Hendrix as a guitar player a long time ago. There's many reasons Hendrix was/is great but there's plenty of reasons P is better. way more versatile as well.

I agree. I always wondered if Jimi had lived longer what type of musician he would have grown into, and to be honest, I don't know if Jimi could have sustained all the changes in music. I don't think he could have kept up. Prince was always evolving. However, I must admit, that it was because of Prine that I could even appreciate Jimi's music. Prince opened my eyes to other types of music that no other artist did.

I have struggled to avoid posting on this thread but I am seeing it again so here goes. To say that Prince is a better guitar player than Jimi Hendrix a mind-boggling assertion. The sound that Hendrix created is completely original. Prince is an absolutely amazing guitar player, and the diversity of his stylings outranks just about anybody. But in terms of lead playing, his tone was not remotely as interesting as that of Hendrix' which is something no one has approached. As good as Prince was, one of the issues in terms of his lead playing is that his tone was sometimes thin and reedy, owing to poor choice of guitars. Those symbol guitars had no low end at all due to the shape of them. And the telecaster, while perfect for funk rhythm playing, is not optimal for leads. Again, no disprespect at all, but Jimi Hendrix was easily the best, most influential, and most original guitar player in history.

He probably would have been a fan of Prince's music. To a degree that he would have borrowed ideas from Prince's music, just like Miles Davis did.

As a guitar player he probably would have considered Prince a "truer heir" to himself than Stevie Ray Vaughan and others. Jimi had the funk in his playing too.

"his tone was thin and reedy, owing to poor choice of guitars..the symbol guitars had no low end".....I agree. He used a variety of power amps and rack effects to make up for the thin tone. ...I think it got even thinner when he started using Floyds...."And the telecaster is not optimal for leads"...Call me crazy, but I always dug his twangy, haywire Tele lead tone...."Jimi had the funk in his playing too"......THIS!

I'm sure Jimi's already told him.

SPYZFAN1 said:

"his tone was thin and reedy, owing to poor choice of guitars..the symbol guitars had no low end".....I agree. He used a variety of power amps and rack effects to make up for the thin tone. ...I think it got even thinner when he started using Floyds...."And the telecaster is not optimal for leads"...Call me crazy, but I always dug his twangy, haywire Tele lead tone...."Jimi had the funk in his playing too"......THIS!

What I will say at a minimum is that Prince's rhythm tone, as discovered in the gold Telecaster, ceratinly constitutes one of Prince's truly original contributions to music and guitar playing. His whole approach to rhythm guitar is extremely original...no one had played funk guitar in that same way before.

As for Hendrix, the fact that he turned his guitar upside down impacted the tone significantly. If you ever get a chance to listen to Eric Gales perform Hendrix songs, you'll be amazed. Eric is certainly one of the greatest living guitarists. Although he plays a lot of Hendrix songs, his style is more likely Prince's, but his tone is a lot thicker.

"the fact that he turned his guitar upside down impacted the tone significantly" Yes..I agree with that..The pickup pole reverse/angle, the headstock...all contributed to that big tone..."Eric Gales..but his tone is a lot thicker"...Yup! Eric Gales has that Jimi tone down to the bone. Always dug him..he's a big fan of P too.

perfume said:

The thinness of Prince's tones was also due to personal choice. I'm not saying that some of his more ununusual guitar designs might not have contributed to it as well, but if you've listened to a lot of Prince you should have an idea of why he wanted things to sound "thin" in general. Every element on his music is usually easily audible and I think that's why the guitar is "treble-heavy", as that's how it's not competing with the other instruments that were doing the low- and midranges. He usually played pretty high up the fretboard too.

In Jimi's stuff the guitar is playing the same type of parts that in Prince's productions would be played on keyboards or by the horns. Jimi tried to fill up the space with his guitar parts - Prince really just added them on top of everything else on most tracks. A thin tone is definitely what works with that approach.

"treble heavy"...Understood and well said. His lead tones had to be that way (slinky, treblish and quirky) to be heard in the mix. Songs like "Positivity" and "Thunder" are perfect examples...I have to say that I really enjoyed his live guitar tones with 3EG. Very full and thick with the P90's..perfect for that project.

novabrkr said:

The thinness of Prince's tones was also due to personal choice. I'm not saying that some of his more ununusual guitar designs might not have contributed to it as well, but if you've listened to a lot of Prince you should have an idea of why he wanted things to sound "thin" in general. Every element on his music is usually easily audible and I think that's why the guitar is "treble-heavy", as that's how it's not competing with the other instruments that were doing the low- and midranges. He usually played pretty high up the fretboard too.

In Jimi's stuff the guitar is playing the same type of parts that in Prince's productions would be played on keyboards or by the horns. Jimi tried to fill up the space with his guitar parts - Prince really just added them on top of everything else on most tracks. A thin tone is definitely what works with that approach.

This sounds spot on -- maybe it would not have worked sonically if his tone were thicker. Needless to say, Hendrix would have respected Prince immensely and probably would have learned a lot from him as well.

leadline said:

2olskool4u said:

leadline said: Yep 100%. What makes Prince stand out is his accuracy and immaculate playing, the amount of hours he put in is probably unthinkable

Exactly, he was fast, he was the most accurate and clean player I have ever seen, he could play all styles, he was genius at both rythm and lead, and he could improvise his ass off, which he basically did every time he took the stage. Prince has 30 years more experience on the instrument that Jimi, so for me, the comparison lost it's juice a long time ago. But you will always find folks that will argue till the end of time that Prince was not better.

[Edited 6/11/16 4:56am]

I would disagree that P was the most accurate, clean player. When I think of accuracy Yngwie Mamlsteen comes to mind. Prince was really good, but from a purely technical standpoint he pales in comparison to Malmsteen, Bettencourt, Di Miola, Jason Becker, etc.

But from a songwriting standpoint, Prince would win against all of them. There's more to playing that techincal skill, and all things considered I think P is better than all of them.

I would agree with mpalmer. I find technically perfect playing pretty uninteresting, and Prince's much more so. If he were more accurate he would have been a less appealing player

Once in a while, such as on "Batdance' and some of the live renditions of "All the Critics" in early tours, he plays in a more punkish way, simply letting notes ring out amidst feedback. There's nothing technically pretty about that, but it's amazing.

Based on the Youtube videos I have been seeing, Prince's playing was best at rehearsals and aftershows, when he was more relaxed. Even some of the performances like Montreaux, which are considered iconic, to me are a tad over the top in places. When he just kicks back and allows more spaces to occur, it's more appealing for me.

mpalmer5 said:

leadline said:

Exactly, he was fast, he was the most accurate and clean player I have ever seen, he could play all styles, he was genius at both rythm and lead, and he could improvise his ass off, which he basically did every time he took the stage. Prince has 30 years more experience on the instrument that Jimi, so for me, the comparison lost it's juice a long time ago. But you will always find folks that will argue till the end of time that Prince was not better.

[Edited 6/11/16 4:56am]

I would disagree that P was the most accurate, clean player. When I think of accuracy Yngwie Mamlsteen comes to mind. Prince was really good, but from a purely technical standpoint he pales in comparison to Malmsteen, Bettencourt, Di Miola, Jason Becker, etc.

But from a songwriting standpoint, Prince would win against all of them. There's more to playing that techincal skill, and all things considered I think P is better than all of them.