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I’ve been a guitar freak my entire life. I
remember, as a 13 year old adolescent, how I could never get enough
of those Ritchie Blackmore guitar solos. I was fascinated by all
kinds of styles and genres, just as long as there was enough guitar
playing involved. I critiqued 100s of guitarists in search of the
ultimate guitarist. Today, I still consider bands without good solo
guitarists and good songs without a guitar solo as missed
opportunities.
However, I’ve become less fanatic through the
years. Gone are the days of those 70s freaky guitar solos of Jimmy
Page (Led Zeppelin) and Leslie West (Mountain). The long winded
soloists of the 80s, such as Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai and Joe
Satriani, are a thing of the past. Even the blues revival from the
90s with Gary Moore is behind us now.
I’ve listened to thousands of solos with one
guitarist being better than the next. But my favourite guitarists
are not the ones whose names you would know off the top of your
head. I appreciate the guitarists who dare to play a note too few.
I love the ones with the right feeling. Names? David Lindley (El
Rayo-X), Uli Jon Roth (Scorpions), Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac),
Martin Barre (Jethro Tull), Neal Schon (Journey), Roy Buchanan
(almost Rolling Stones), Robin Trower (Procol Harum), and , of
course, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour and Carlos Santana and
definitely Frank Marino.
Frank Marino is certainly not an unknown. This Canadian master
‘string picker’ had success in the 70s with his band Mahogany Rush
and as Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush in the 80s. He has played in
large stadiums in America and Canada (and in Belgium in
1983).However, he had become completely unmotivated by the music
industry in the early 90s and has hung up his guitar since then.
Thanks to his loyal fans (who created a website entirely dedicated
to him), Frank has now been pushed out of retirement. He returned
to performing and one of these shows has been recorded live in its
entirety on a double CD. It’s all live, all real and you can feel
that.
I remember listening to this CD a week or two ago
in the car on the way to work and I thought to myself, “Is this
going to fascinate me?” Well, let me tell you…I was astonished! It
has been a very long time since I’ve been touched by music from the
past. What sound…What guitar playing…What a CD! From “Voodoo
Chile” until the last track, “Try for Freedom”, Frank Marino can
play like no other. He’s inventive, using wonderful technique and
clever melodies and jazzy chords in bluesy rock songs that grab your
attention and that all sound very familiar from our days of youth.
Frank’s version of “Red House” is, without a doubt, the best I’ve
ever heard. You have to be really good to outshine Hendrix.
Marino’s subtle, jazzy version makes your heart ache. “Crossroads”
(Cream) and “She’s Not There” (Zombies in the Santana version) are
also well done. The best of his own songs are “Stories of a Hero”
and “Strange Universe”.
This album makes me a bit wiser. Although we’ve been dealing with
other kinds of music for many years, one never forgets his roots.
They envelop you. No matter how long my passion had been pushed
into the background, it still creeps up on me, completely
unexpected, and shouts: ‘You are and will eternally be a guitar
freak!’ Frank Marino, thank you for the memories
J. |
