“I don't think Jimi Hendrix was a guitarist. Eric Clapton is excessively tedious.” Robert Fripp on the shortcomings of his 1960s contemporaries — and the one guitarist he thought was fun

Guitar Player ^ | 7/10 | Phil Weller

[pepsi_junkie]

I saw Fripp some years back, he opened for Porcupine Tree. Interesting, mostly just electronic ambiance, not really music in any conventional sense. I think the ideas Fripp has are great in small doses, use them to really add a new thing to a song but if you listen to it for 20 or 30 mins straight it's a little hard for a troglodyte like me to take.

Regarding Clapton, I think he was called God because he was different than people had heard. In the Bluesbreakers he did something new: yes, he had faster than usual licks, but he also had a totally new sound. He tool an old Les Paul (long out of favor) and plugged it into a newfangled Marshall amp, cranked it up to 11 for recording and invented a magical tone that nobody had heard to that point. I think that's why people thought he was extraordinary, partially technical skill but I think a huge part was the tone that he pioneered and which dominated rock and roll for the next 30 years!

[doorgunner69]

Heard him at his prime 50 years ago Royce hall at UCLA.

His hands prevent him from playing like that now.
What he could do back when was uneartly.

He was still good last I heard him 125 or so years ago but much slower..

[Paladin2]

Who?

[ArtDodger]

Tommy Emmanuel

[niteowl77]

Once I heard Leo Kottke, stopped listening to rock guitars until mark Knopfler came along.

I got to see Leo live some years ago. I had my choice of tickets for either Leo Kottke or the Seldom Scene, and I thought I would always be able to hear the (then mostly original) Seldom Scene... a false assumption which I have often regretted.

Leo and John Fahey remain two of my somewhat guilty listening pleasures.

[Paladin2]

Kottke seems to have a totally unique sound/style.

Very complex torrent of notes.

[Paladin2]

John Fahey deserves more adulation.

[MV=PY]

I recently saw Beat - King Crimson with Steve Vai replacing Fripp. (Adrian Belew and Tony Levin, along with Steve Vai on guitar and Tool drummer Danny Carey.)

It was VERY interesting to see how Steve Vai covered Fripp’s technical riffs with tapping and other techniques. He did his own take while capturing the soul of all the KC classics.

[T.B. Yoits]

From the article: “I think the guitar is a pretty feeble instrument..."

They do make guitars strong enough to dig holes with.
Three and a half minutes of Justin Johnson Crankin' Up the 3-String Shovel Guitar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9-ltPsbw9g&list=RDV9-ltPsbw9g&start_radio=1

[Nervous Tick]

>> Fripp is so good I’ve never heard of him. He comes across as an ass.

I confess I can’t recall a single King Crimson song at all.

[howlinhound]

I once won tickets to see Robert Fripp play a college auditorium in Toronto, in the mid-80’s, with an acoustic band he formed called “The League of Crafty Guitarists”. There were six people plus me in a venue that seated approximately 1,000. We all stayed and he put on the show as if the place was full. I never heard of the League of Crafty Guitarists again..

[AceMineral]

I think half the audience didn’t know what to make of it.

[Noumenon]

No mention of David Gilmour.

[crusty old prospector]

Now, that is a quality tune.

If only I'd thought of the right words. I could have held on to your heart. If only I'd thought of the right words, I wouldn't be breaking apart. All my pictures of you.

[Spacetrucker]

I, to this day, *DETEST* Roger Waters. Hendrix, on the other hand, had a brief but brilliant career.

[Salvavida]

Let’s just all agree Mark Knopfler is and will always be the greatest, and be done with it. Feeble instrument indeed.

[nickcarraway]

Still around:

The League of Crafty Guitarists

The League of Guitarists includes players from all over the world. The group performs on acoustic guitars tuned in Guitar Craft Tuning, which extends the sonic range of the traditional guitar tuning. Its repertoire is constantly evolving, the music remains true to a common conceptual approach, and includes a rich variety of original compositions and interpretations of material arranged for the context. A characteristic and outstanding part of the repertoire are improvised and/or written group compositions, known as Circulations. The LG’s background and lineage is The League Of Crafty Guitarists which was founded in 1986 by Robert Fripp and toured worldwide until 1991. During this first period of activity several albums were released: “Live 1″, “Get Crafty”, “Live 2 – Live At The Victoriaville Festival”, “Show Of Hands” , “Live 3 – Intergalactic Boogie Express”.

[FreeReign]

Hendrix >>> Fripp > Clapton >>> Fripp lately.

Yes I know, Fripp is now 79.

[waterhill]

+1.

[RetiredArmyMajor]

I found Fripp’s comments to be exceedingly tedious.