"Guitar 2004"

Every year, Canadian Musician checks in with a select group of guitarists to find out from the professionals what they're doing, how they're doing it, and how they got where they are. Arguably, in no past year has the list been so disparate. The guitarists featured this year are all very individual players - with a style quite unlike any of their peers. From Butthole Surfers to Righteous Babes, guitarists from all over the musical map have weighed in here with their responses. What's funny is that, while each guitarist featured here takes a unique approach to their instrument, there are some recurring themes.

For example, while virtually every guitarist CM spoke with was quick to point out that a guitar is basically just a hunk of wood (perhaps a convenient cover), when asked what piece of gear they could not bring themselves to part with, the answer was almost always the same: "My guitar." Perhaps what they meant was that a guitar is just a hunk of wood until it becomes "mine"

What's also interesting this year (and totally unexpected when we started) is that there are a few quitarists here that have cited other guitarists that are featured in this article as influences. In that way, the entire piece comes full circle as we find out that, while individual style is one thing, everyone has to start somewhere.

Why did you first start playing guitar?

Dean Ween of Ween: I started playing when I was around 12 or 13. Actually I had a drum kit first. When I got my first guitar I'd just tune it up to one open chord like you would with a lapsteel or something and that was good enough to start in Ween (laughing). Then when I was around 14 I started taking lessons from a guy named Bill Tucker who wound up going on to do a little bit of recording and things as well. He'd teach me how to play songs rather than theory. I stilt have no concept of theory other than what I taught myself.

What was your first guitar and how did you first come to own it?

Ween: A cheap Hondo Les Paul copy. Then I got a Squier Strat and a wah pedal. I wanted the same rig Hendrix had.

Who initially inspired you? (i.e. Who was the guitarist that was most influential on you or your favourite player)

Ween: I like a lot of the standard rock god kind of guys: Page, Beck, Hendrix, Santana, David Gilmour and Prince.

Are there any new guitarists playing right now that have really caught your ears and you think deserve more attention?

Ween: The Parliament Funkadelic crew; Blackbird and Michael Hampton. People think of P-Funk as being just George Clinton and that kind of overshadows everything else. Those guys are incredible and really don't get their due. Prince doesn't get much credit either - though that's probably because he does so much and he gets lost in the shuffle. Santana’s playing the best music of his life right now. The new stuff doesn't move me like the stuff in the 70s did, but strictly from a guitar standpoint he has only gotten better. Willie Nelson doesn't get enough credit for his playing either.

Is there one riff that still blows your mind that you heard growing up?

Ween: "Machine Gun" by Hendrix on Band Of Gypsies. Actually, any track off that record.

Is there any one guitarist that you would love to meet before you/they die? Is there anything you would ask them?

Ween: I'd want to talk to Santana. His approach is so right; he's got such a spiritual touch and there's so much resolve in it. I'd like to meet Willie Nelson too; maybe go play golf with him.

What's your approach to playing a solo?

Ween: I don't think enough guys take a melodic approach to soloing. I approach a solo the way I'd approach a melody. First of all it has to sound good. For the most part, shredders don't necessarily sound good because it's just a barrage of notes. That doesn't cut it for me. I usually sing a solo first and then try to figure out how to play it.

What's your approach to playing rhythm?

Ween: My strongest suit has never been my left hand, it's been my right. As I say, I was a drummer first and I like percussive feel. I have a pretty good sense of time for a white boy (chuckles) and I approach rhythm as another percussive instrument.

What are you thinking about when you play?

Ween: Just having a good time. I focus on our drummer, Claude Coleman, a lot as well because he'll either make us or break us.

What is the one piece of gear in your current rig that you absolutely love?

Ween: My guitar. It's a 1961 Strat. I’ve had it for a really long time. It's been through hell and back.

Is there any single guitar in history (not one of yours) that you've always wanted to own?

Ween: I wish I could afford a 1958 burst Les Paul. But they're way too expensive. Maybe John Lennon's Rickenbacker but that’s best left in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

What does your current rig consist of?

Ween: I run two Mesa-Boogie Dual Rectifier Tremo-verb heads, with two 4 x 12 cabs that run independently of one another. I use a Snarling Dogs Whine-O-Wah that I got from Jeff Beck, and MXR Phase 90, a Boss digital delay pedal, an Electro-Harmonix micro synthesizer, a Digitech whammy pedal, a Mutron 3 envelope filter. I use a lot of old analog boxes that break a lot.

Is there anything in your guitar closet that you can't bring yourself to part with?

Ween: All of it. I have trouble getting rid of anything. It took me years to amass a collection of junk pedals. I've given a few guitars away, but I don't think I've ever sold one.

Is there a difference between the gear you use in the studio and what you use onstage?

Ween: I have a lot of gear, and use it all in the studio. The one thing is that the '61 Strat gets played on everything we've ever done.

Is there any new piece of technology that has been developed in the last couple of years that has changed the way you play or caused you to rethink your instrument?

Ween: I can't handle technology very much. The thing that's changed Ween the most is the digital recording. Nothing really as a player though.

Any advice that you could give to players who are just starting out?

Ween: Stay away from modern rock because it sucks. It's really painful to hear the garbage on the radio. The fake heavy flavour of the day. It's not real. There's no soul or passion in it. It's totally ungratifying.