Is Steve Hackett's guitar work... Weird?

eddietrooper wrote: I must be the only one who fully understand your point. YES, I've always thought that Hackett's playing on Genesis albums and early solo albums is somehow weird. Here are some annoying features of his playing:   Hackett's sound in early Genesis ios what made Genesis unique, he gave an aggressive touch to the often soft atmospheres, NOBOODY else had ever tried this before.   - No vibrato at the end of the notes (with some exceptions of course) making the sound lifeless sometimes.   Why will you add a vibratto to an atmosphere when it must almost fade?   In flashes a la Hendrix you need to make a vibtratto to show where it ends, but in an atmosphere you must feel like it doesn't end until the note blends with the next one.   - Few string bendings. He played electric guitar like a classical guitar, pusing the notes individually.   For God's sake, that's another thing that makes him unique, anybody can play a guitar in the style of Hemndrix or Santana (With less quality of course) but playing an electric guitar in the style of Segovia (His idol) is something very few achieve.   Probably you're talking about the tapping technique, hitting every individual string against the fingerboard almost as if he was hitting a piano key, he was the pioneer of this style in Rock and many have followed.   - His sound sometimes reminds me of a synth, very mechanical.   Please, that's Genesis trademark, the guitar that sounds like a keyboard, almost three decades had to pass until a MIDI guitar could hardly approach to this, he sacrificed part of his individuality to play for the band.   He has enough skils to show out, but Genesis required that sound Hackett created, BTW: His playing in Seconds Out is barely listenable, they took the volume very low for "unknown" reasons.     Despite of these thoughts I don't dislike Hackett, he was really talented and inspired, but I'm sure that most of his early solos would sound much better nowadays. Just listen to his latests albums: his playing is now much more fluid and dinamic and his sound is much better, and he still keeps unmistakable, with a very personal style.   Genesis was not a solo band, in comparison with their peers, they are the less worried in soloing, their music was a team work, not a contest between musicians.   As for "The Knife" I have not heard his version.   Despite I love Anthony Phillips guitar style, Hackett gave new life to this song, it's superior IMHO.   Iván

Edited by Ivan_Melgar_M - April 18 2007 at 01:44

totally agree with Ivan, too.

Hehe, when you know, you know, and fortunately Ivan does, to our mutual content, but Lamb does present a valid point, also. Back-scratching leanings apart now, I think Hackett's creative singularity isn't questioned, as the pedestal we're all building always has that in mind, including Lamb's; maybe I'm misinterpretating as well, but what's in discussion are our feelings to that unique style of playing, mainly depicted as an imperfection here - which I'm not sure about how Lamb feels exactly, but I don't see it as a necessarily flaw. Perhaps it is misplaced, but it fits the music beautifully in construction of eerie ambiences and spearheading an entire emotional distortion with the guitar's, so this case proves imperfection - if one wishes to call it so - is a manifestation of beauty. In example, I remember someone in this site saying he didn't feel Gilmour's guitar playing was that emotional, for being too clean.
Nearer to the topic: yes, I do find Hackett's guitar sounds disturbing, weird, monstruous, at times, but I love every single note that reaps my mind into fright, riding the apex of the mood established by his fellow members (in early Genesis at the least).

Sadly or not, this is all I can say, seeing as I share andu's burden.

I think Hacketts guitar playing is very interesting and fits well into the music that Genesis made. I'm not too sure about his solo stuff cause I haven't really explored that area, but when it comes to Genesis, he was of great importance as well as being immensely talented and inventive.

TheLamb wrote: Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only one who hears it, but it sometimes seems to me that Steve Hackett is a very odd guitarist... He is outstaning, don't get me wrong, I love his work... Genesis and Solo... He's a great composer and he ussualy has a really amazing sound and feel to his playing... His acoustic work is amazing, When he plays those gentle clean guitar parts my hearts always melts... but sometimes, his solos, especially agressively distorted ones just sound horrible.... It's like something is terribly wrong with this guy... Hes a genius on the guitar, but some of his solos just sound like... sh*t.   OK, so you could give countless examples of pieces he played in where the guitar work is completly perfect and heavinly... I do agree, he is a MASTER... but listen to "The Knife" solo, from 'Genesis Live'. Hackett changed the original solo by Anthony Philips, that's understandable... but why does he sound like a 14 year old that has started playing guitar last month? The phrasing is nice here and there... but also... its mostly very odd... and the sound is bad, plus every time he pulls, the guitar sounds like it's trying to kill itself.   Whats up with this guy?   opinions?

I don't agree with your opinion of the live-solo in "The Knife". one of the best guitar solos ever in my book

Genesis the most keyboard driven band outside ELP? What a strange conclusion, did you miss the 12-string guitars, Hackett his varied guitar work (inventive use of volume-pedal, hammering down, glissando). His interplay with Banks on Wind And Wuthering is awesome and it's a pity that the record company released Seconds Out where Hackett his contribution is almost deleted , you should listen to 1977 BBC W&W concert (on 2-CD bootleg), what an impressive contribution Hackett delivers  And I went to 5 The Musical Box concerts (Foxtrot, The Lamb and Selling tour), I was not bored, in contrary, I was stunned by Hackett his great guitar skills and I was pleased to notice what a great sounding BAND 70-77 Genesis was  And I have seen all Hackett solo concerts in Holland between 1979 and now, never a dull moment, from the use of the Spanish guitar to the Roland guitar synthesizer, a big hand for Steve Hackett on guitar (not on vocals  ) !

Edited by erik neuteboom - April 21 2007 at 12:55

Well I don't know how much clearer I can make this... My problem with Hackett is not sound... its that imprecision in his playing that is always apparent to me... But it maybe just me being petty... because humans are not machines, no one plays 100% tight on the click, only machines do... and if people did, it probably wouldn't sound good...

Progger wrote: Ivan, It sounds like I hit a sore nerve with you and that's what the truth often does. I stand by what I wrote and am entitled to my theories and oppinions. This board isn't run by Stalinist Russia.

Edited by Ivan_Melgar_M - April 21 2007 at 14:45

Progger wrote: I have seen Hackett often enough to know he is a very good guitarist but nothing exceptional!

Are you talking about clips on YouTube? How can you have seen him live "many times" and not see what we are talking about?

erik neuteboom wrote: Ivan, don't let you provoke by Progger, his only intention is to provoke, he is one of the increasing amount of persons who has discovered Prog Archives as a perfect place to surpress their negative feelings by nailing others so they can feel superior, very poor and I am concerned that they often succeed to get reactions, I have decided to stop reacting on him, he is not worth to join a serious discussion.

The Who - We're not Gonna Take it.

Edited by Ivan_Melgar_M - April 21 2007 at 15:19