Earlier this year, Marty Friedman (ex-Megadeth) made headlines after saying he hopes “the traditional guitar solo dies a slow and painful death.” Now, in a new interview with Guitar World, the guitarist has clarified his comments.
Friedman said the following in part:
“I’m not going to give you any kind of sensational headline in this answer. [Laughs] You know, as long as people exist, people are going to want to hear music that makes them feel good. So, whatever instruments it takes to get there are what the instruments are going to be. And if guitar solos evolve into something that modern people can enjoy, then that’s how it’s going to be.”
He also added:
“I try to do my best. In my music, if you listen to my music, they’ve [solos] always played a purpose of trying to make you feel something when you’re listening to the entire piece of music. That’s all I can do. At the end of the day, it’s the listeners who decide whether, you know, a particular instrument is in vogue or not. But for us as guitarists, we all hope that it continues to thrive; it lasted longer than the sax did, and that’s a good thing. But I love the sax solos of the ’50s, especially the sax solos of a guy named Jimmy Wright, who was just, like, the craziest sax player. And he was just like, I don’t know — like Eddie Van Halen of sax in the ’50s. I don’t know how to describe it, but back then, sax was the guitar. And now, it’s still guitar, but it’s our responsibility to do things that draw people to want to listen to our instrument. And that’s really where I stand on this very, very important topic.”
You can read more at Guitar World.
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