Why do I think this is crappy when so many people love it?

[Ross]

So for a friend's 50th birthday I found a decent list of the "50 greatest guitar solos" and burnt him CDs of them. Then I decided I should give it a listen. So I get to song 3, "Freebird," which I never really have liked that much, but I figure "I'll give this a fresh chance." and the song's all right - and it gets to the solo and I'm thinking, yeah this rocks pretty good - some neat stereo stuff - and it keeps going....and going... and going. And I just ended up thinking it was an incredibly irritating guitar solo and makes me not look forward to this song again?

Why don't I like this so much? Is something wrong with me? What do you hate that everyone seems to love?

[roymond]

don't get me started on video games, comic books, prime time cartoons...and english scarves.

[Spud]

This might be a stupid place to post this, but it kind of fits, so there. Many people think that because I'm an architect I must love all buildings. Fact of the matter is, I hate most buildings. When you know too much about something, you have different, and tougher, standards.

Same goes for Freebird, Ross. You're an excellent musician. You know better.

SPUD

[jack]

well, with freebird anyways, you have to really get into the whole redneck, southern music scene of the late seventies and early eighties.

fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately), i was a teenager living in redneck central (virginia) when all this was going on, when the Outlaws brought the 25 minute opus guitar jam to the world with "green grass and high tides", and molly hatchet butchered the allman brothers' "dreams" into something more akin to a hank williams monday night football commercial and spawned a whole series of bad imitators (ie .38 special et al).

i love the free bird solo myself. i probably could scat sing it note for note but not as good as phish can.

maybe you can blame the allmans for it, or even the dead before that. or go back farther and blame john coltrane.

the gratuitous solo has been around a very long time.

[Ross]

well, with freebird anyways, you have to really get into the whole redneck, southern music scene of the late seventies and early eighties.

the gratuitous solo has been around a very long time.

See the thing is, I think there are plenty of gratuitous solos that I do like - "Free Form Guitar" by Chicago, for instance - but this particular one just began to grate on me.

By the way - Allman Bros "Dreams" made number 50 on the list I used.

[jack]

the other thing to mention is much of the best skynyrd was recorded by the legendary tom dowd, a man who should be spoken of with the utmost reverance. while i might sound dismissive of alot of southern rock, skynyrd was the definite exception. in the hands of tom dowd, their stuff is classic and timeless.

tom dowd also brought out the best of the allmans.

[Sober]

I think that Freebird - and Skynyrd in general - has a stigma that keeps people from taking it seriously. If you listen to any full album by them, you find very little 'redneck' stuff in there. It's mostly funk, with some rock (example). Obviously, living in Alabama in the 60's has an influence on your music, but it's not the focal point like people dismiss it as.

The Freebird solo, while being gratuitous, is an excellent production and is due all the credit it gets. I can see how, if you didn't listen to it 1000 times as a young kid, you could listen to it once or twice and not be amazed, but when you know every line and note in it, it really moves you. A solo doesn't have to be this intensely complex, difficult thing - it can be simple and powerful. BB King, Alan King, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Clapton, Vaughan, and Van Zandt all knew this.

Same goes for Stairway to Heaven. Huge stigma to where no one wants to even hear it, but it's still an amazing song with a great solo.

[Caravan Ray]

When you know too much about something, you have different, and tougher, standards

Yes. I am a professional environmental manager, and I have a great loathing for any products bearing the prefixes "eco" or "green". I also hate hippies. And I have never heard of "Freebird".

[roymond]

Same goes for Stairway to Heaven. Huge stigma to where no one wants to even hear it, but it's still an amazing song with a great solo.

Zappa's version tickles me because of this stigma.

[Sober]

Even more so because of Zappa's stigma?

[obscurity]

Surely Rolph Harris has destigmatised Stairway To Heaven?

Edit: oh, and the list of stuff that everyone else loves but I hate? Very long list.

[Caravan Ray]

Surely Rolph Harris has destigmatised Stairway To Heaven?

No. Stairway To Heaven has destigmatised Rolph Harris.

[Billy's Little Trip]

OK, you two rang chuckers perked my noodle, so I had to look up Rolf Harris performing Stairway To Heaven.
HAha! Sheet metal AND a digery doo.

[obscurity]

I think you'll find the technical term is 'wobble board'

[Billy's Little Trip]

I think you'll find the technical term is 'wobble board'

I thought it was called a digery doo, M8?

[obscurity]

Sorry, my mistake:

I think you'll find the technical term is 'didgeridoo'.

:p

[Sober]

Totally unrelated: Obscurity, how's Cubase 4?

[obscurity]

Totally unrelated: Obscurity, how's Cubase 4?

I refer the honourable gentleman to the answer I gave previously.

[Caravan Ray]

I think you'll find the technical term is 'wobble board'

I thought it was called a digery doo, M8?

Rolf is indeed master of both the wobble board and the didjeridu - both featured on that track. Sadly, he does not use the stylophone on there though

[Billy's Little Trip]

I think you'll find the technical term is 'wobble board'

I thought it was called a digery doo, M8?

Rolf is indeed master of both the wobble board and the didjeridu - both featured on that track. Sadly, he does not use the stylophone on there though

My pocket organ doesn't look anything like that one.

[EmbersOfAutumn]

See the thing is, I think there are plenty of gratuitous solos that I do like - "Free Form Guitar" by Chicago, for instance - but this particular one just began to grate on me.

By the way - Allman Bros "Dreams" made number 50 on the list I used.

Was Van Halen's Eruption on that list?

[Ross]

Eruption was #7 on the list I used.