It was cool to see Prince give props to the very underrated Brian May (of Queen) and the rock group Boston in the latest Guitar Player Magazine:

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"The best players used to play rock and roll. The first time you heard Boston, it was this huge, amazing sound with all that guitar doubling. Same with Brian May - nobody sounded like him. I still think Return to Forever as a rock band. Those guys could really play, but there ain't nobody doing that in rock these days."

then another quote regarding rhythm playing:

"If you need a path to follow, a good place to start is by listening to Ike Turner - he was as tight as they come - or James Brown, who is all about rhythm. Put any colors you've learned from Joni Mitchell on top of that, and then you've got something."
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It's rare that Prince throws out many specific names of those he admires or was influenced by.

Is this online? I'm pleased he mentioned Return To Forever cos Al Di Meola is one of my favourite guitarists

Boston