Classic Rock

When it comes to my influences in my own music and guitar playing, I've got far more than one might expect. Sure I have my core favorite guitarists/musicians to whom I look to the majority of my inspiration, but the number who have inspired me numbers in the hundreds I'm sure, and includes saxophonists, violinists, and even a bagpipe player (no joke). I feel like if there's a great musician out there who's doing something innovative, powerful and emotional... then there's probably something I can appreciate and learn from to enhance my own music.

I think it'd be a stretch to say that Jazz is one of the more mainstream genres of music these days... and if that's the case, then lets not even talk about fusion or some of the more experimental jazz varieties. That's really a shame though, because experimental jazz is where music is evolving faster than anywhere else. There are some absolutely amazing artists out there doing things that musically would have been unheard of even a few years ago, while the mainstream stagnates.

It's been a good year for concerts, at least for me. I've seen some of my favorite bands live this past year, and some of truly amazing concert events. I'm going to a few more coming this spring (reviews will be written I'm pretty sure) and recently purchased some tickets for another concert or two and that got me thinking: What makes a concert special enough that I keep going to them?

Sometimes there are one hit wonders and they truly are just that. They had a moment when their songwriting skills peaked, and then unfortunately spent a good part of their career trying to recapture that initial moment. Then there are other "one or two hit wonders" or "Best of bands" (bands where their best of collections are all that are worth listening to) who have been unfortunately given these titles by pop culture, mainstream media, "music historians" and plenty of other people who consider themselves musically enlightened.