7 0 s G u i t a r i s t s
Every so often, two or three guitarists collaborate, with spectacular results. I've listed these alphabetically according to their band or project, because, for all their talent, that's the vehicle which put most of these players in the spotlight.
~ D U O S ~
AC/DC
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AEROSMITH
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ALLMAN BROTHERS
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ALICE COOPER
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BTO
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BOSTON
CRACK THE SKY
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DOOBIE BROTHERS
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FOGHAT
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GENTLE GIANT
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HUMBLE PIE
JESUS CHRIST, SUPERSTAR
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KANSAS
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STYX
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THIN LIZZY
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WISHBONE ASH
~ T R I O S & M O R E ~
EAGLES
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LYNYRD SKYNYRD
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MOLLY HATCHET
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OUTLAWS
APRIL WINE
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HEART
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SCORPIONS
AC/DC: ANGUS & MALCOLM YOUNG
Angus' powerful and feeling-drenched vibrato, his graceful use of minor blues and pentatonic scales (along with other touches, such as Scottish folk-inspired pulloffs), his knack for playing for the song and certainly his ample sense of humor place him firmly among my favorite lead guitarists of the era. But you don't have AC/DC without Malcolm, who provides the raw, nasty and metronomic rhythm guitar pulse. I'm more a fan of the Bon Scott era - their comeback was fun, and they've made a lot of great rock since then - but I recall hearing Let There Be Rock on late-night FM, somewhere back in the fog of time, and I don't think they've ever topped it.
AEROSMITH: JOE PERRY & BRAD WHITFORD
THE ALLMAN BROTHERS: DUANE ALLMAN & DICKEY BETTS
CRACK THE SKY:
THE DOOBIE BROTHERS: TOM JOHNSTON & PATRICK SIMMONS
FOGHAT: DAVE PEVERETT & ROD PRICE
GENTLE GIANT: GARY GREEN & RAY SHULMAN
HUMBLE PIE: STEVE MARRIOTT & DAVE "CLEM" CLEMPSON
JESUS CHRIST, SUPERSTAR: NEIL HUBBARD & HENRY MCCULLOUGH
KANSAS: KERRY LIVGREN & RICH WILLIAMS
STYX: TOMMY SHAW & JAMES YOUNG
ALICE COOPER I: GLEN BUXTON & MICHAEL BRUCE
ALICE COOPER II: DICK WAGNER & STEVE HUNTER
BACHMAN-TURNER OVERDRIVE:
BOSTON: TOM SCHOLZ & BARRY GOUDREAU
Who didn't thrill to the soaring sounds of that first Boston album? My gosh, it was era-defining. Top-flight pop rock that still gives me chills. But something interesting happened in the late 90s, when I picked up a copy of RTZ's self-titled CD out of curiostiy: The guitar tones and even the phrasing of the licks sounded so Boston-ish, leading me to two possible conclusions. 1.) Either Goudreau was a dead-on disciple of Scholz, or 2.) Barry was not merely Tom's shadow, but in fact was hugely integral to Boston's sound. I lean toward the latter opinion.
Some of my earliest rock radio memories revolve around these guys' music. Songs like Listen to the Music, Rockin' Down the Highway, Jesus Is Just Alright, Long Train Runnin', China Grove, Black Water, Eyes of Silver and Another Park, Another Sunday (all possessing really tasty rhythms and leads) will endure for life. In most band biographies, Simmons is billed as rhythm guitarist and Johnston as lead, but there was unquestionably an easy sharing of responsibilities between them.