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Love Songs and other Stunts



Beacon '93: If Pete and Co. played AQO and "Cobwebs and Strange" I also
would kill for any kind of copy of this, audio or video. "Cobwebs and
Strange" live!?! Damn!

Love Song:  All right, I stand completely corrected.  "Sunrise", "Love
Is Coming Down" and others mentioned are good love songs (IMO).  "Love
Ain't For Keepin'" and "I Can't Explain" don't rate on the Love scale to
me at all.  "Pictures of Lily" is a good love song, but your hand
doesn't count as a significant other.  Remember, I said Great Love
Song...  Well, I now must admit, and shame on me for forgetting, "Love
Reign O'er Me" is a heart and clothes rending, Homeric Love Song (Thanks
to Dave Kipp for jogging my pathetic memory).  Sorry, Pete.

Stunt guitar vs Pete:  I agree, Pete while not a technical wizard has
more feeling in his bleeding pinky than Steve Vai has in his whole body
(PS: Zappa himself was a killer guitarist).  I hope I didn't give the
impression I think Pete's guitar playing is mediocre.  He was born to
play six string, and technical wizardy be damned, he makes that thing
soar.  Back in the Eighties when Eddie Van Halen fever swept over the
new legion of metal and rock bands I used to defend Pete's playing all
the time to metalheads who thought speed and scale mastery was the only
measure of six string talent.  I'm sure many other Who fans remember
those days.  I remember I read a mid 80's Pete interview years later
where Mr. Townshend delivered the best line ever on the debate of
intuitive player vs stunt guitarist.  I've used it ever since.  To
whit:  The interviewer mentioned the fact that technical wizardy on lead
guitar had reached mind boggling levels in the wake of Van Halen's
coronation.  Everyone is suddenly a guitar god.  Pete laughed and said
every time he goes into a music store any more (80's) there's some
eleven year old kid blazing away with chops Pete himself will never
have.  The interviewer asked him what he thought of all these new
guitarist who were so obsessed with speed and scales.  I believe Pete's
exact reply was, "Well, I think their fingers are faster than their
brains."  Priceless.
Piano: Yeah, I give McCartney the vote over Pete here.  "Let It Be",
"Lady Madonna", Paul knows his way around a baby grand.  Watch the Let
It Be film and he spends a good third of the movie doing great impromptu
jams on the ivories.  I do give Pete a hell of a lot of credit though,
he taught himself late in life yet he still gave us "Love Reign O'er
Me", a rock piano staple.  They're both natural musicians obviously.

Hart Deer:  Good poem for Pete's birthday.  Now, just add some guitar,
bass, drums (and a hint of synthesizer underneath of course), some mike
twirling and you'll be good to go.

- --Leo