We'll, here's my recently played artists on iTunes,
*now including some non-list summaries!*:
Frank Zappa is probably my favourite artist all-around. Great variety of musical styles, great humour, and a solid guitar player too. Though at one point he commented, "I'm a composer, and my instrument is the guitar. I shouldn't be rated as a guitar player. Rating guitar players is a stupid hobby." His playing is often overlooked though, as it's not as flashy as some. The humour and orchestral approach he put into his later work is fun stuff too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwqsRjXzZrgWhen I was an all-out metal-head, I still preferred Sabbath over all the modern types like Opeth, Megadeth, and Cryptopsy. Got to see this lineup in concert in 2007, and now they've released a new album. One of my favourite tracks off it:
Heaven and Hell (a.k.a. Black Sabbath)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-mo3i4rwQAEddie Hazel, another overlooked guitarist. Like a funked up Jimi Hendrix. His solo has some awesome, spacey covers of 'California Dreaming' and 'I want You / She's so Heavy)
Eddie Hazel (guitarist for Parliament / Funkadelic)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LtfxxlusCUBuckethead, a freakish, versatile player with a great variety of modern stuff - hard rock, soundscapes, electronica, instrumental. If you've only heard his playing in Gn'R, you're missing most of the good stuff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-YbV3QXBPQhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTcg9JybEp8The Beatles have been growing on me lately, though I'm not a diehard. Right now I'm digging this stripped down version of the Let It Be album:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJkD1lrshBAThe Doors have some real psychedelic stuff, and I've listened to them for some time now, mostly for Jim Morrison's trippy lyrics and vocal style. One of the only rock guys I can do a decent impersonation of, being a baritone. I have particularly wonderful memories of driving through an open, green field in a rusted out van with no seats, blasting 'Peace Frog' through these giant stereo speakers that the guys had wired up to a laptop.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azCon4I7fWAJust getting into the Charlie Hunter Trio of late. Not listened to a lot of stuff, but his technique is incredible, Plays bass, rhythm and lead guitar all at once, on a modified 8-string guitar.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YJbUXfvgGkJohn Zorn is a total freak. But for the occasional dose, I love cranking a record like 'Naked City.' He always has great titles too. Like 'Thrash Jazz Assassin' and 'Sack of Feces':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7yB4wcOoy4http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KNx4UMDEPMVanilla Fudge is another oldie I'm getting into lately. Love the heavy drumming from Carmine Appice. One of the first guys to do double-bass stuff in the late 60s:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10aXR8vxzHQWeather Report I find is great study music. Great vibe, stellar musicians, and relaxing grooviness.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDYnaKhrBvwSteve Hackett, well, I was never that into Genesis, but I love Hackett's solo stuff. Very tasteful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWHgRv9x_Vs
*points at new topic title* That means you!
~V_Translanka
Happy now??
Well, here's an addendum in case you're not: Aside from than these recently played artists, there's a lot of stuff in my collection. One of the cooler discs I added to my collection recently was 'Miles From India', a Miles Davis tribute album with a mix of Miles alumni and Indian classical musicians. I love indian classical stuff. Since moving to Toronto I've gotten to see Zakir Hussain (tabla) and Ravi Shankar (sitar) with his hot daughter, Anoushka (also sitar), and both shows were just awesome. I also got to see these guys, Niyaz -sort of Iranian vocal / electronica - at a jazz fest a few years back, and really liked their stuff. I've come to appreciate the latest Rob Zombie stuff as well... anyone who gets such a heavy, dirty sound out of a telecaster (guitarist John 5, ex-Marylin Manson) is worth listening to.
