The Joe Perry Riff Slash Couldn't Figure Out
Apr 5, 2024 6:35:39 GMT -5
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Post by fwanger on Apr 5, 2024 6:35:39 GMT -5
The Influential Riff Slash Could Never Figure Out How To Play
by Arun Starkey
Guns N’ Roses powerhouse Slash is a guitarist who is greatly indebted to those who inspired him. He might have risen during the latter half of the 1980s when great musical and cultural changes were afoot. Still, despite this, sonically he always cut a figure that harked back to the previous decade, when an array of Les Paul-toting masters were at their peak. It might have been hidden beneath a distinctive sound and equally unique aesthetic, but old-school rock ‘n’ roll was his stock and trade. In many ways, he was one of the last vestiges of the classic rock era.
Fusing punk and hard rock, with a touch of glam metal thrown in there for good measure, Slash was always the most devastating piece of artillery in the Los Angeles band’s fierce arsenal. A technical master, capable of moments of absolute fury as he is potent passion, he is one of the final genuinely great guitar heroes.
As well as his searing technical ability and a seemingly God-given gift of conjuring timeless riffs, it was Slash’s philosophical debt to the likes of Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Keith Richards and other masters of the classic era that allowed him to appeal to so many, and take rock back to its swaggering, blues-underpinned roots. Regarding his famous weapon of choice, the Gibson Les Paul, many highly mythologised players weaponised it before him and clearly helped him conceive his style. Aerosmith’s Joe Perry is one man whose work can be heard in most of Slash’s best efforts.
Of course, Perry and Slash might both conjure an otherworldly stage presence, with their pouting, screaming Les Paul’s and deeply bluesy approaches establishing this – while also bringing to mind formative musical pioneers such as Page and Jimi Hendrix. However, more directly, listening to Aerosmith’s most frenetic early work on records such as Toys in the Attic and Rocks, it’s not hard to understand how the fierce, distorted take on the blues would influence Slash’s approach, which can be heard on the likes of ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ and ‘Sweet Child o’ Mine’. The guitarist would also once reveal that Rocks was the record that made him pick up the guitar; that’s how instrumental it was for him.
According to Slash, one Perry riff in particular had a tremendous effect on him. This was Rocks‘ third and final single, ‘Back in the Saddle’. Famous for being one of Perry’s ultimate achievements, it has long been deemed one of the Boston group’s heaviest compositions, and it was a perfect number to open the record with.
It’s also significant as this is one of the most notable tracks on which Perry did not play his Les Paul. Instead, the pulsating lead riff was written and played by Perry on a Fender Bass VI, which gave it the extra heaviness. It also features one of the most prominent bass lines Tom Hamilton has laid down with the group and starts with the unhurried introduction, which suddenly explodes into the main section.
When appearing on My Favourite Riff in 2017 alongside Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, Slash discussed the brilliance of ‘Back in the Saddle’. While he noted that the introduction was “killer” on its own, it is the central collection of notes that blows him away, saying it was “just like ‘fuck‘”. He admitted: “I don’t even know if I play it right because he played it on a six-string bass, so I’m not sure where he’s playing it”.
Slash also described its general essence, noting, “It’s such a unique riff, it’s really original”. He then stated that it reminds him of The Rolling Stones because of the way it’s deeply bluesy and, although it’s written in a major key, it features a minor third, which adds a whole load of atmosphere.
Watching Slash playing what he thinks is the correct riff for ‘Back in the Saddle’ makes a lot of sense. From its dynamic nature to how it fused a major key with a minor third, this blueprint is something he would build on, and using the warmth of his Gibson humbuckers, he would make his own a decade after the Aerosmith classic first arrived.
Watch Slash discussing ‘Back in the Saddle’ below.
faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-influential-riff-slash-could-never-figure-out-how-to-play/
by Arun Starkey
Guns N’ Roses powerhouse Slash is a guitarist who is greatly indebted to those who inspired him. He might have risen during the latter half of the 1980s when great musical and cultural changes were afoot. Still, despite this, sonically he always cut a figure that harked back to the previous decade, when an array of Les Paul-toting masters were at their peak. It might have been hidden beneath a distinctive sound and equally unique aesthetic, but old-school rock ‘n’ roll was his stock and trade. In many ways, he was one of the last vestiges of the classic rock era.
Fusing punk and hard rock, with a touch of glam metal thrown in there for good measure, Slash was always the most devastating piece of artillery in the Los Angeles band’s fierce arsenal. A technical master, capable of moments of absolute fury as he is potent passion, he is one of the final genuinely great guitar heroes.
As well as his searing technical ability and a seemingly God-given gift of conjuring timeless riffs, it was Slash’s philosophical debt to the likes of Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Keith Richards and other masters of the classic era that allowed him to appeal to so many, and take rock back to its swaggering, blues-underpinned roots. Regarding his famous weapon of choice, the Gibson Les Paul, many highly mythologised players weaponised it before him and clearly helped him conceive his style. Aerosmith’s Joe Perry is one man whose work can be heard in most of Slash’s best efforts.
Of course, Perry and Slash might both conjure an otherworldly stage presence, with their pouting, screaming Les Paul’s and deeply bluesy approaches establishing this – while also bringing to mind formative musical pioneers such as Page and Jimi Hendrix. However, more directly, listening to Aerosmith’s most frenetic early work on records such as Toys in the Attic and Rocks, it’s not hard to understand how the fierce, distorted take on the blues would influence Slash’s approach, which can be heard on the likes of ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ and ‘Sweet Child o’ Mine’. The guitarist would also once reveal that Rocks was the record that made him pick up the guitar; that’s how instrumental it was for him.
According to Slash, one Perry riff in particular had a tremendous effect on him. This was Rocks‘ third and final single, ‘Back in the Saddle’. Famous for being one of Perry’s ultimate achievements, it has long been deemed one of the Boston group’s heaviest compositions, and it was a perfect number to open the record with.
It’s also significant as this is one of the most notable tracks on which Perry did not play his Les Paul. Instead, the pulsating lead riff was written and played by Perry on a Fender Bass VI, which gave it the extra heaviness. It also features one of the most prominent bass lines Tom Hamilton has laid down with the group and starts with the unhurried introduction, which suddenly explodes into the main section.
When appearing on My Favourite Riff in 2017 alongside Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, Slash discussed the brilliance of ‘Back in the Saddle’. While he noted that the introduction was “killer” on its own, it is the central collection of notes that blows him away, saying it was “just like ‘fuck‘”. He admitted: “I don’t even know if I play it right because he played it on a six-string bass, so I’m not sure where he’s playing it”.
Slash also described its general essence, noting, “It’s such a unique riff, it’s really original”. He then stated that it reminds him of The Rolling Stones because of the way it’s deeply bluesy and, although it’s written in a major key, it features a minor third, which adds a whole load of atmosphere.
Watching Slash playing what he thinks is the correct riff for ‘Back in the Saddle’ makes a lot of sense. From its dynamic nature to how it fused a major key with a minor third, this blueprint is something he would build on, and using the warmth of his Gibson humbuckers, he would make his own a decade after the Aerosmith classic first arrived.
Watch Slash discussing ‘Back in the Saddle’ below.
faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-influential-riff-slash-could-never-figure-out-how-to-play/