Biggest influences?

[Blurillaz]

What were your biggest influences to start playing your instrument? I don't mean who they are now, but when you first picked it up, who made you want to make music? You can put your influences now also.

For Gee-tar
To Start-
1. Graham Coxon
2. Jack White
I don't think anyone else had as big of an influence for me to start playing but I'm pretty sure these dudes also helped a lot.
3. Kurt Cobain
4. George Harrison
5. Dave Dederer/Andrew McKeag/ Chris Ballew (PUSA Guitarists)
6. Steven Drozd/ Wayne Coyne/ Ronald Jones (Some of the Flaming Lips Guitarists)
My parents also said that my favorite band when I was but a wee tyke was The Police so I guess that's cool... Also my dad was really into Bob Dylan so I heard a lot of that too.
Now-
1. Same dudes as before
2. J. Mascis
3. Kevin Shields
4. Mick Jones and Joe Strummer
5. Curt Kirkwood
6. Simon Tong

Bassssssss
To Start-
1. Basically anyone who could play Slap Bass.

Now-
1. Alex James
2. Paul Simonon
3. Cris Kirkwood

Trumpet-
To start and now...
1. Louis Armstrong
You know you love him

Anyway that be me. What be you?

[veteransdaypoppy]

George Harrison, Jonny Greenwood, Elliott Smith, Kurt Cobain, Nick Drake, and Kevin Shields.

Influenced in order of Most to least, now.
When I first started playing it was pretty much just Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Page, and Blind Melon... hahaha, that's it. That's the only thing I really listened to.

[Ghost Hip]

Well I first wanted to play bass because of D'arcy's bassline in "Blue". The Bent G-FC line was fun.

Then I went onto IGN.com and saw a review for a game called guitar hero which was coming out the next week. I bought it. Two months later I got a Fat Strat pack.

If it wasn't for guitar hero I probably wouldn't have picked up a guitar or be on these forums lusting after fuzz.

As far as musicians I was really into Classic Rock when I started then I made my way into 90's alternative and punk. My first band was a ska/punk band.

[bigchiefbc]

Kurt Cobain was by the far biggest influence that got me to play guitar, and Dave Gilmour and The Edge were the only others that really entered my brain at the time (this was around '92).

[my bloody television]

I picked up the guitar because I thought it was cooler than piano and because of Blink 182's Enema of the State. Seriously, that album changed shit for me.

Then I found Jimi Hendrix and SRV. I basically only watched live videos of those guys and learned to play all their licks throughout high school. Jimi Hendrix is still one of my biggest influences.

From those guys I started listening to their influences (The 3 Kings, Albert Collins, Howlin' Wolf, etc.) and moved back further to Delta Blues and got really big into acoustic slide.

Then someone showed me My Bloody Valentine. I had never heard guitar like that and strove to create textures like Kevin Shields. I seriously think Kevin Shields is the only guitarist to be as innovative with the instrument since Hendrix. He may think he doesn't really know how to play but he offered an entirely new approach to the guitar and I was in love.

Nowadays, Hendrix and Shields are still at the top, but included on that list are J Mascis, Johnny Marr, Jeff Tweedy, Thurston Moore, and Tom Verlaine (Television).

[deadbeatriot]

to start? tom morello.

nowadays? josh homme, troy van leeuwen, dean deleo, graham coxon, neal schon (when he was playing with betty davis, not so much journey), wata and takeshi from boris

honestly though? i picked up guitar because i was bored. thank god i did though.

[smile_man]

before

Guitar: white stripes,rage, ramones, nirvana, Blink 182, Sum 41.
Bass: ^
Drums: Punk rock, steven drozd

now

guitar: do make say think, godspeed, ambient music, don cab, mathrock tapping, fuzz, delay, joan of arc family, white rainbow
bass: death from above , do make say think, bazz fuss
drums: flaming lips, hella, lightning bolt, HEALTH, danny seim, greg saunier
samples/computer music: atlas sound, white rainbow, dead electrcian, breakcore, new fast.

I listen to a lot more music nowadays.

[kvn]

Tom Morello made me want to play guitar. Though...I've forgotten how to play a lot of RATM songs.

[smile_man]

Tom Morello made me want to play guitar. Though...I've forgotten how to play a lot of RATM songs.

+1

[theshoegazer]

Kevin Shields, Merzbow and Animal Collective are probably my biggest musical influences.

[deadbeatriot]

Tom Morello made me want to play guitar. Though...I've forgotten how to play a lot of RATM songs.

+1

funny how that happens, isn't it?

i only really remember how to play bombtrack and killing in the name

[Ghost Hip]

I listen to a lot more music nowadays.

Probably the best part about learning to play guitar.

[iblamesummers]

A Tribe Called Quest + scores upon scores of nameless faceless punks that will go unacknowledged by history but will remain in my heart forever.

[Mudfuzz]

In the beginning
Bass Guitar:
Cliff Burton
Aston "Family Man" Barrett
Donald "Duck" Dunn
Paul Barker
Tony Levin
George Porter Jr

Double Bass:
Willie Dixon
Stefano Scodanibbio
Ray Brown
Ron Carter

Guitar:
Scot Ian
Tony Iommi
Buzz Osborne
David Linley

Now............. I'm going to have to think about it a bit..

[smile_man]

Probably the best part about learning to play guitar.

Best part about getting high speed internet.