Is The Edge as Influential a Guitarist as Jimmy Page and Pete Townshend?
U2 singer, Bono, told Rolling Stone magazine that he considers The Edge as influential of a rock guitarist as Jimmy Page or Pete Townshend.
“Edge’s genuine genius developing on the blank and bleached photographic paper…. avoiding all the obvious blues scales that blind every other guitar player that ever heard Led Zeppelin …The Edge finds some new colors for the spectrum of rock. Colors he now owns … owning a color, wow .. imagine owning the color yellow like VAN GOGH… EDGE owns, well I’m not exactly sure what colors they are… indigo or violet or crimson? But you sense an emotional color temperature that is unique to him… its his palette we’re painting from. Surely this is the most influential guitarist since the great composers Jimmy Page, Pete Townshend, Neil Young but remember he doesn’t have the history of the blues to plumb, these are unchartered [sic] waters…was to the English psychedelic revival we were also inspired by and plundering.”
Why is Bono talking about The Edge in such flowery language, like an English professor riffing on Proust? Who knows. No doubt about it, though, The Edge is great. And, I mean, it may be close — The Edge is a big influence on many — but I don’t think anybody has (or will ever have) the influential weight of rock guitar as Page and Townshend.
August 5, 2008 at 10:29 am
Considering that U2 have been around for 30 years and have been a huge band for 25 of those years, I’d say that The Edge has been pretty influential. I can’t specifically name any guitariists that I could say were greatly influenced by The Edge. But an enrtire generation of guitarists have come of age since U2 first started. More than a few of them must’ve learned a thing or two by listening to The Edge’s guitar work.
If that quote from Bono is from Rolling Stone, why did they spell “color” in the British version of the word (colour)? Shouldn’t Rolling Stone’s editors have changed that? It looks like they received a Bono quote from U2’s management and just ran it as is. That’s called lazy journalism. Doesn’t Rolling Stone have any copy editors?
August 5, 2008 at 10:32 am
I’ll take the blame for that. I britishized it.
August 5, 2008 at 11:34 am
He influenced Brett Michaels. Now, Brett wears a hat all the time.
August 5, 2008 at 1:34 pm
The headline should read: “Is The Edge as Influential a Guitarist as Jimmy Page and Pete Townshend?” The “of” is obsolete, as it renders the sentence grammatically incorrect.
August 5, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Sorry about that, Pat. You know how it is–once a Managing Editor, always a Managing Editor. Things like that tend to leap off the screen at me. No offense intended.
Hawk, do you think that Bret Michaels would share his Rogaine with The Edge? I kind of doubt it.
August 6, 2008 at 8:00 am
I think it’s a good thing to be reminded of proper grammar, especially in a medium that is so responsible for murdering it.
I think there’s enough Rogaine® to go around. But I’m sure there is something new out there rendering Rogaine® obsolete. Whatever it is, I’m sure that Brett Michaels and Paul Hewson can each afford a lifetime supply!
August 8, 2008 at 7:04 am
Sorry, an Italian is my first language. I have fixed. I will do more. Thank you
August 8, 2008 at 7:52 am
Fuggetaboutit!!!