Clapton VS Hendrix

[Kaiser of Arabia]

Who's better?
For me, it's Clapton.
1 word: Layla
1 other word: Cocaine.

[Gawain of Orkeny]

I prefer Clapton but its a matter od style and not talent. I think Hendrix was a more talented musician but prefer Claptons style. Also not dying at an early age gives Clapton a vast advantage in the shear volume of great music he has put out. I still think his best work though was with Cream and Blind Faith.

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

With the exception of Layla, Clapton has pretty much sucked since he left Cream, IMO.

I prefer Hendrix. He was an incredible musician, and possibly the coolest guy ever.

[DemonArchangel]

The best crap is the Clapton's classical guitar piece.

[Steppe Merc]

I think I'd go Hendrix. I love Clapton's stuff, but as pure skills and amount of awesome songs packed into a small amount of time, Hendrix wins. The thing with Clapton I think is that he faded out a bit later on, which makes him a bit less awesome. Hendrix died, so he never faded.
After all, it's better to burn out than it is to rust (Neil Young)

[Kaiser of Arabia]

I heard Mr. Young sing about her
I heard Old Neil kinda putin her down
Well I hope Neil Young will remember
A Southern Man dont need him around, anyhow!

Sorry I say Neil Young's name and I had to write that.

BTW, How the hell can you say 'Cocaine' sucked? That is a GREAT song.

[HopAlongBunny]

BTW, How the hell can you say 'Cocaine' sucked? That is a GREAT song.

Great song, but perhaps not the best version Granted, until I heard some of the older renditions I thought Clapton's was the "one and only, all time...!"

I voted Hendrix; 2 brilliant guitarists no question...just a matter of style

[Teutonic Knight]

Slowhand for me...

[Fragony]

Layla is one of the best songs ever, period. I also find Tears in heaven very moving, especially when you consider the circumstances when he wrote it. Never been a fan of Hendrix, a bit too noisy for my taste.

[lancelot]

I heard Mr. Young sing about her
I heard Old Neil kinda putin her down
Well I hope Neil Young will remember
A Southern Man dont need him around, anyhow!

My fav band ever!

I prefer Hendrix. He was an incredible musician, and possibly the coolest guy ever.

Also a documented rapist and abuser of women. Well cool...

[solypsist]

hendrix

he played the guitar left handed and upside down

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Quote:
I prefer Hendrix. He was an incredible musician, and possibly the coolest guy ever.


Also a documented rapist and abuser of women. Well cool...
__________________

Wha? That's news to me. Do you have a link?

[lancelot]

Wha? That's news to me. Do you have a link?

I saw that on a tv program about him, quite a while ago now..AFAIK, he never faced prosecution for it, so I supposed it is technically only 'alleged' but IIRC it was more than one woman.

That is what kinda depressed me about it, I thought he was a super cool guy till I heard that.

[eeyoredragon]

Hendrix was the better guitar player, but Clapton was the better musician.
I can't choose, since I like them both equally, so I went for the easy one: GAH!!!

[Ronin]

went with GAH!......


i´m more familiar with Clapton´s work...but Hendrix is amazing too....


besides i don´t think you can compare the 2...their styles are diferent....i think if you really want to pick the best guitarrist you´d have to name one guitarrist for every style...since you can´t just pick 1 guy.

[Kaiser of Arabia]

No this isnt for the best guitarist (though I think Clapton is, with Brian may second) its for who you like more.

[Togakure]

hmm, another "who's better?" thread. These threads almost always contain posts talking about apples and oranges. Some answer from the point of view of whom they consider to be more talented. Others answer based on whom they like better. Which is it in this one? I'll answer from the former perspective.

Eric Clapton is a very talented and skilled player. His fluid style, beautiful tone, and often poignant lyrics appeal to a great many people. His style however, is heavily based in standard Blues--derivative. This isn't a bad thing, but it is one reason why I would claim that Jimi Hendrix was "better" (sic).

Jimi Hendrix was an extraordinary guitarist. He was extremely innovative--more creative and divergent from the norm of his time than was/is Clapton. Though his style was also blues-based, the use of fuzz and distortion, and phrases that capitalized on these effects, morphed his blues into something new and different, giving birth to hard rock and heavy metal, imo. I have always wondered what more he would have done had he lived. Granted, in later years his drug-addled mind generated a lot of so-so (and piss-poor) music, but when he was on it, he was REALLY on it.

My bottom line is: a superb player who is also an innovator--who creates new genres--will always take my cake over a superb but derivative player (with no disrespect intended to the superb derivative players out there). True innovators are few and far between, the agents of change and growth. In any industry, where would we be without them?

[Togakure]

GAH! Capo--now you tell me (I just read your most recent post after posting my reply). Oh well.

As far as which I like better goes:

If it's a Friday night, in candlelight with red wine and a gorgeous Iberian princess: Clapton, definitely.

If I'm tearing down the road, working out, or pissed off: definitely Hendrix.

[PanzerJaeger]

Hendrix, although Jimmy Page blows them both outa the water.

[Quietus]

Hendrix. Clapton's a wee overrated guitarist.

[English assassin]

Yeah, Hendrix for me, the guy just invented so much. Of the holy trinity I'd rank Clapton third, but its a good third. Tough to say if Page has it over Hendrix, as a guitarist I'd say maybe not but I listen to a lot more Zep than Hendrix so I guess that answers it.

[Obex]

Hendrix for sure, even though their sytles and influences are too different to compare. Clapton probably had better technical skills, but if you factor in the innovation and raw tallent of hendrix, he takes the cake. plus i like his style of music better. i agree that his best work was in cream.

maybe a better question would be to compare the 3 lead guitarist for the yardbirds: eric clapton, jimmy page, and jeff beck. at least they all played for the same band, and had similiar musical roots.

[Gawain of Orkeny]

Though his style was also blues-based, the use of fuzz and distortion, and phrases that capitalized on these effects, morphed his blues into something new and different, giving birth to hard rock and heavy metal, imo.

Did you write this or cut and paste it from somewhere? Anyway Hendrix didnt invent that style Peter Townsend and the who did. They were the first to turn the amps way up and use feedback as part of the act.

[Togakure]

I wrote it. For the most part, I don't cut and paste things without putting it in quotes and citing the source. If you wonder at my choice of words, consider that I studied classical piano fervently for 12 years from age 8 to 20, and that I played keyboards professionally in nightclub bands fulltime on the road from '81 to '86, Western USA. For the early part of my life, music was everything. My classical training was by no means casual, involving annual exams sponsored by the California Music Teacher's Association at the university: in theory, harmony, ear-training, sight-reading, and performance of at least one piece each from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Contemporary periods. I had to deal with them for eleven of those twelve years with a ferocious Japanese mother right behind me.

I wasn't claiming that Jimi was "the first." He was one of the leaders who took it to the front, bringing it to the mainstream. I think also that if this were a $20,000 Pyramid question, more people would quickly respond Hendrix than The Who if asked this question under a clock. Often it isn't "the first" who are remembered as the innovators, it's the ones who did the most astonishing things at the time with the new thing.

[mfberg]

GAH !!

Dick Dale's surf guitar sound has broken Hendrix's hold on my ears.

mfberg

[Louis VI the Fat]

Also a documented rapist and abuser of women. Well cool...

*Louis gathers his Hendrix CD's, opens garbage can, throws them away in disgust*

Anyway, the guitarists mentioned here are a bit too old for my taste. Interesting guitar rock starts with Van Halen...

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Interesting guitar rock starts with Van Halen...

*spits out tea*

Whaaaaaaat?!

Led Zep? The Who? Pink Floyd? Deep Purple? Too many other bands to count?

[Louis VI the Fat]

Led Zep? The Who? Pink Floyd? Deep Purple?

Dinosaurs. Extinct and obsolete.

Seventies rock is only digestable when you're doing more drugs than the bands you're listening to. Otherwise you would never mistake 10-minute long drum solo's for anything exciting, bombastic lyrics as deep meaningful poetry and those high pitched 'ouch, these pants are too tight' squeals for intense emotional singing...

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Heretic! *gets out the faggots of wood and large pole*

It's the magnificent over-the-topness that attracts me too it. Twenty minute long songs is where it's at! Pretty much all the criticisms you've levelled are reasons that music from that era is pretty much all I listen too.

I also think calling those bands obsolete is insane when you can hear their influence everytime you turn on the radio.

[Orda Khan]

Well since the question was " Who's better? " and guitarist not mentioned, I voted Clapton. The moment Hendrix opens his mouth is when I usually stop listening. Can we judge better? It's all a matter of taste really when discussing music and our preference of a certain style. Personally, if we are talking modern-ish guitarists, I find Ry Cooder's understanding of simplicity being of far more worth than 'look what I can do with a guitar' is far superior than both of them. This is the reason that guitarists today do not interest me, it's not what you play it's what you leave out that really does it

......Orda