Who are your biggest influences?

This is me singing for my old band 13 CANDLES...Im also playing the sustained guitar

LOU/REALM said:

This is me singing for my old band 13 CANDLES...Im also playing the sustained guitar

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Must get to see you play sometime!

On the guitar, my earliest influences were San Franciscan Johnny Colla, the Swede Kee Marcelo, the Canadian Alex Lifeson and the dutch Edward Van Halen primarily due to their compositional abilities, rhythm guitar playing and melodic solos. Then I got more into Akira Takasaki, the late James Honeyman-Scott's work, some of what Bob Rock managed to get James Hetfield to do on the black album, some of what Reb Beach used to do, Chris DeGarmo, especially in regards to his tone. Joey Allen's solos, and to a small degree Stevie Ray Vaugn--just had that sick Stratocaster sound... Guys that really made me want to push the limits of what it is I can do were Paul Gilbert, and, to a limited degree, Yngwie J. Malmsteen.

On keyboard, Elton John (his work for Disney in '94 is what got me back into playing again after a two year break from music), Vince DiCola, Ron Wasserman, and David Benoit.

Vocally, I don't have anyone I try to sing like except, maybe, Peter Cetera. It's all I can do to stay on key, not crack and be articulate in the mix. But I've been compared to Howard Jones and Julian Lennon. I would love to be able to sing like Steve Perry or Joe Lynn Turner, though.

When I started playing guitar in the mid 80's, my biggest and earliest influences were these three guys:

George Lynch
Ace Frehley
Jake E Lee


As I played more and more, the list expanded exponentially, but those are the three guys that first made me pick up a 6-string more than anyone else.

slash's very melodic solos have influenced my solos. Lately I have been getting into a lot of buddy holly who is providing influence for songwriting.

As a bassist my primary influence is Peter Hook (Joy Division & New Order). His ability to weave melodic lines into the bottom end is amazing and unique. I also admire Paul McCartney (just listen to "Rain" or "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" and you'll see why. I'm not an REM fan anymore but I was deep into their music during the early 80s, so Mike Mills' playing style has slipped into mine. Phil Lesh inspires me to be more creative while not necessarily over playing.

Acoustic guitar influences include Nick Drake, John Denver & Neil Young. William Ackerman, too.

I don't play enough electric guitar to have many influences, but I guess Neil Young would be on that list, too. Mark Kozelek's heavier moments, like in "Salvador Sanchez", "River", the end of "Lost Verses"...that's how I want to play electric guitar.

Vocal influences, for better or worse, are Mick Jagger and Ian Curtis (Joy Division). I don't sound like either one of then, or anyone else for that matter, but they informed my style at an early age, so it's stuck in my craw.

My experimental Bambo Syndicate productions are inspired by "Revolution #9", Skinny Puppy, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Larry Carlson, Throbbing Gristle, Renaldo & the Loaf, Salvador Dali, anything that boggles the mind.

I am a very schizophrenic guitar player - I play in a few different styles (not that I'm very good at any of them!)

On electric, my biggest influences are Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, Jimmy Page, and James Williamson (of the Stooges). I love Hendrix too but I don't know that much of his style has truly seeped into my playing. A lot of the times I think I sound like Ted Nugent with brain damage! I guess Tommy Iommi and Warren Haynes are also big influences.

Sometimes I play jazz - I do a lot of Wes Montgomery's octave stuff, and also am influenced by Grant Green & Kenny Burrell a lot. I'm more of a rocker than a jazzer though, so I don't have an extensive number of jazz licks in my bag - but that's a direction that I've been working on lately.

I love to play old honky-tonk country stuff too, like simulated steel-pedal bends and the like. I'm not sure who influenced me the most on that stuff, I learned most of it from instructional videotapes. I try to sound like Clarence White, Don Rich, Jimmy Bryant, Grady Martin, and cats like that when I'm playing country (not that I'm anywhere near as good as any of those guys).

On acoustic, I try to sound like Lightning Hopkins, John Lee Hooker, Merle Travis, Davey Graham...I don't come that close to any of them either, but its fun trying! I'm not that great at Travis picking, I've kind of developed my own weird style of doing it, mixed in with some blues and country licks. Sometimes I'll even throw in some Zakk Wylde-type pinch harmonics (that's when I'm Travis-picking on an electric, of course).

Like I said, I'm a bit of a schizophrenic guitar player.

My biggest influences for music in general is John Cage, The Flaming Lips, Do Make Say Think, Arcade Fire, Explosions In The Sky and Miles Davis.
Certain musical genres like jazz, experimental rock, post rock and prog rock have been an influence on me.

Nobody really inspired me to take up the drums. It's something I've been drawn to ever since I could remember. Though Jamie Muir has been my inspiration to use everyday items as percussion along with Carter Beauford.

David Gilmour and Steve Howe are my inspirations when it comes to the lap steel.

Boyd Tinsley, David Cross, Julie Penner and Sarah Neufeld are my inspirations to take up the violin.

Hendrix, Page and Morrison... Anyone with the first name James it would seem!!

My thing is songwriting. I play guitar, bass, keyboards (one handed) and drums. I sing but, that's because I have no one else to sing for me. My influences started with The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan and of course the Beatles and Stones. I progressed to the Dead, the Moody Blues, Pink Floyd, Bob Seger, John Mellencamp and Neil Diamond. Take all these great artists and put together an album and you would have one great sound track in my humble opinion.

Brad