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I think Nels' solo in Either way is a great example of using theory, technique and a great imagination to come up with a fantastic musical moment. A guitarist with no (or very little) knowledge of theory coming up with that solo would be like a monkey typing Shakespeare.

I don't know how much theory Jeff knows, but I'll bet his lesson with Richard Lloyd involved a bit of theory. Richard Lloyd refuses to reveal what their lesson covered. Based on the lesson materials available on Lloyd's website it'd be hard to imagine they didn't work through some theory based ideas. As for Nels, a couple quotes form his Guitar Player cover story suggest that although he is "mostly self taught", he did a pretty thorough job of teaching himself theory: >>>How important is gear to making music? Ultimately, it comes down to the imagination and the physical touch

Also, Jeff Tweedy isn't going to sell his equipment on Craigslist.

To give J. Mascis the benefit of the doubt, Nels, in the same tour diary, says this about J.'s guest appearance from 10 days later: "Mascis came out & did "Maggot Brain", & this time it was no soilage--he sounded great. "

Nels has bashed J. Mascis in print...OUCH! http://hootpage.com/hoot_nelsshinebox1.html Word kept leaking out that Mascis was in town. It was true, he showed up behind the stage at the end of the set. As we walked offstage to a really good response (Watt's locked in on a set list that he likes, so we always end w/"Tuff Gnarl" now). Watt asked J to do "Maggot Brain". J, typically lethargic, took Watt down stairs to the dressing room, where I guess a million dudes had showed up (and drunk all our beer, etc). I waited offstage for what seemed like forever, finally shouting, "What is this Eng

Maybe you could bring both just in case. LOUD rock bands have been using 335s for decades. The center block will help, but but it will not completely eliminate feedback.

Ok, fair enough. I wasn't trying to rebut anything, just thinking in print.

Nothing, but this thread is not limited to Wilco since the original post says Nels is one of the best of his generation. Calm down with the bold hysterics. Are you going to freak out on Oceanman for saying he'd rather have dinner with Nels?

That's a level-headed response. If you were to look at Jay's complete discography and compare it to Nels', it's pretty easy to say Nels has Jay beat by a wide margin. Of course, Nels has played on 20 or 30 times more recordings than Jay.

Define generation. Nels is in his early 50s.

I could probably agree with that. People have had such easy access to music over the last several years. Maybe as a result, musicians are held to different standards than they were by fans and their fellow musicians in the '60s when the world of music was not just a mouse click away. Seems like you have to do more, or make some huge stylistic progressions to get that sort of acclaim these days. Certainly Jack White has played in an equal or greater number of music styles as Eddie Van Halen, SRV or Randy Rhodes, to name a few.

I dont think it's competitive in the sense of "winning", but having played in some small-time bands that landed a number of primo opening slots there is definitely an inflated desire to put on your best performance. Opening bands know that they're playing for someone else's audience, and if they want to get anything out of it they need to connect with that audience. That's definitely not easy. Ask Low. Years ago I read an interview with Rush in which they said they chose opening bands that inspired them to play their best. But they usually had crappy opening bands (Mr. Big). Anyway,

Without a doubt, this puts him in the ranks of the most repulsive humans currently living.

That was exactly my point: It only takes a few years, sometimes not even that long, before musicians are given the throne. Being a guitar player, it's natural for you to have higher standards. I agree it's a stupid argument, though. I apologize if I came across as antagonistic yesterday. Maybe in 20 years Jack White will have branched out from the fairly limited scope of the White Stripes and the Raconteurs and will have demonstrated that he is worthy of being included in the list of "guitar greats". I hope that turns out to be the case.

That does not discredit my attempt at discrediting you, as most of those who are considered greats were given (and earned/deserved) that title in less than five years of starting thier recording careers (EDIT: or, more clearly, within five years of earning their first success as an artist with name recognition. In other words, studio work in which the backnig musicians remain anonymous doesn't count.) In addition to the few you named I'll add several more...Santana, Duane Allman, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Robert Fripp, Clapton, Jerry Garcia, Jorma Kaukonen, Steve Howe, Zappa, etc.

It was their 10th anniversary show, not 8th. Most of the guitar greats from the '60s and '70s were recognized as "greats" in less than 10 years. I'm not saying Jack is or isn''t worthy. I'm just saying your criteria is flawed.

I often hear people bad-mouth Meg, but she's perfect for that band. You could replace her with Mitch Mitchell circa '67, or Bonham circa '73 and it would not make the White Stripes a better band.

335 is not a true hollowbody, it just looks like one. It has a large block of wood running under the strings, designed to cut down the vibrations & feedback. Now, a Casino, or a, ES-330 (which is pretty much the same as a Casino, but made by Gibson) is going to have feedback issues.

No, but I STRONGLY urge you to use a carry on bag rather than checked baggage. This way you can keep your stuff with you and there is no chance of lost luggage (unless you lose it). The more connections you make, the greater the chance of lost luggage. You're allowed two carry ons, plus a purse or other small bag/laptop. One piece of carry on luggage will easily hold three or four days worth of clothes (or in my case eight days worth...don't fold your clothes, roll it up. You'll be amazed how much crap you can stuff in a small piece of luggage).

I'm guessing you still enjoy listening to music as much as you ever did. As a bonus, now you get to enjoy riding a motorcycle, too.

Yeah, to be honest, the reason I ask is because I'm looking for yet another angle from which to attack the folly of audiophilia. I'm glad you're getting over it.

Why have you had so many turntables?

$30, $40...depends what kind of turntable you have. It could be pretty cheap. Also, "old" might be a VERY good thing, or it could be a bad thing. The needles for the Audio Technica turntable posted yesterday are probably in the $20 range. I think those types of turntables use "P Mount" needles. I never payed more than $25 for one, and I bought the most recent one two years ago. Usually I got one for $15-$18 (made by Audio-Technica). ACTUALLY...I just looked around a bit, seems the prices have gone up. Maybe $35 is more realistic these days, but I did see a few for $25. A couple ye

That one is very similar to the one I used for years (and still use from time to time), except mine was made by Akai. Perfectly fine turntable. If your budget is $150, you could get that one and have enough money left over for a stack of used LPs.

I don't think that's a stretch at all. The attendees probably would have spent the day driving all over town, one person per car, doing completely unnecessary errands if they hadn't been at a concert.