Let's say you have a great singer who plays bass (since there's already 4-5 guys) but not very well, and can admit to it. Just playing the root. No more, no less, OR, a guy is there because he's best friends with someone, or they grew up...  Maybe someone looks back and can say, "Well, in the 60s my ______ wasn't very good" (but could be good or even great now).

I read this more than usual, but it's not usually my favorites, so I tend to forget.... Even if it's just an album or a song, where someone in a popular band can say, "Yeah, I played like garbage".... even if it sold millions. Even if all the fans loved it.

First name I thought of.

Nick Mason has had to hand off some Floyd duties as he wasn't capable and he seemed to be relaxed with it.

That was one I had in mind, but Pink Floyd is my favorite band, and I wanted to see how long it would take for someone else to mention him :)

Me too---  not all equally, but they are fascinating to listen to :

Japan '84

^ both incredible--  I've been a fan since the early 80s and I'm still beginning to appreciate the nuances of his music, complex & subtle rhythms, and the interface of vocals with composition & synthesizer .

You absolutely hear where he was impacted by horn players the most.   Sometimes it sounds like he pretended he actually was playing a saxophone, and it must've been a major physical component in how he fretted notes.  

I also think he was one of a handful of musicians who had found a "lost chord", and by that I mean he worked in a very narrow vein of harmony & melody that hadn't been fully explored by anyone, certainly not a guitar player.   His compositions sound like no one else's in the history of recorded music.   That itself is an accomplishment.

It can be a long road to Holdsworth as a solo artist.   Bleu cheese smells and sometimes tastes like a dead man's feet.   It's also delicious & complex once you get past that.

Grumpyprogfan wrote: Cool that this has morphed into a Holdswoth appreciation thread.

buncha Holdsworth thugs we are--  I'm sure the OP would like to see someone else mentioned.

Let's see...yeah I got nothing.   I know Roger W. and Keith E. and Peter G. and Eddie VH were not thrilled with the sound of certain records, but that's different.   And I'm sure many musicians felt an album performance was poor and we just never heard their thoughts.   The urge is to apologize but maybe it's better to say nothing and do better next time.

I was surprised to read Mike Rutherford of "Genesis" say that he didn't think he was very good, comparing himself to his peers in the 70's!  Personally, I thought he was God-like on the bass guitar!  

^ And he'd be right---  Belew's an artist, and does exactly what he's supposed to.  The Edge, too, for that matter. (consummate professionals, of course.  You don't rise to the top of the rock food chain without totally knowing you're sh*t.)

Some are humble, or know they're capable of better, but then sometimes it's simply a matter of timing. Guys grow up together, suddenly get big, and don't have the heart to kick one guy out who isn't great. But sometimes bringing in a bass player ruins the chemistry. I've seen bands where the ones who don't write might focus on other things, like making sure they aren't being ripped off, the one who talks to the "suits", has good ideas for the band, etc..

Personally, the older I get, the technical stuff (or how difficult something is) means nothing to me if it doesn't sound good. And most of the things that do sound good are easy to play. A guy like David Gilmour might not have great technique, so he uses those economic notes for emotion, and I think he's probably my favorite along with Jimmy Page, who had technique (although very sloppy live by the mid-70s)

In general, expression means more to me than technique. What made Jimi Hendrix stand out wasn't so much his ability to move fast on the fingerboard, it was his originality. Many fast guitarists bore me (Eddie Van Halen, Slash, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani etc.).

Of course, if you can use good technical skills in a creative and interesting way, everything is fine, and indeed it requires more techniques to play music like Toto than to play f.e. Beatles type of music. But then, some of these big virtuosos might suck at playing like the Beatles because they don't have the right feel.

https://www.stereogum.com/2173298/bono-says-he-hates-u2s-name-songs-singer/news" rel="nofollow - Bono Says He Hates U2’s Name, Songs, Singer