Advice for musicians by musicians! (part 2)

There is a Spanish proverb that goes something to the tune of "diamonds have a price, but good advice does not.” Consider thus, the following invaluable guidance of these music greats.

Gary Moore (guitarist and singer)

Don’t hesitate to tackle different styles (but the right ones!)
“Don’t advance with blinders on and allow yourself to see what's next door sometimes. I am someone who is very curious. I once leaned towards dance music in my career, asking myself why there wasn’t ever any guitar on it. In hindsight, I understand why! I liked the idea that someone would experiment with this, but I prefer it not be me!”

Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters singer and guitarist, drummer of Nirvana and Queens of the Stone Age)

Give of yourself in your lyrics without cluttering them with personal references
"I would advise putting a little bit of oneself into your songs, and in your texts. You have to invest yourself because you want people to understand your passion and at the same time, the text should not become obscure to the point that you integrate too many personal references. I thought about that a lot. The idea is to find a message, a sensation so general that it will allow people to recognize themselves in it. That's what makes for thousands of people to be able to sing along."

Chris Stein (Blondie guitarist)

Practice your game
"If you're new to the guitar, don't run through the steps too quickly. Pay attention to how you play your chords. It is necessary to play the strings over the frets. When I started, around eleven or twelve years old, I had no idea that it was necessary to press them in a certain way for sound. I thought it just happened on its own, that you just pressed and voilà. Then I had to learn bars. What an ordeal!"

Tom DeLonge (guitarist of Angels and Airwaves, ex-Blink-182)

Be yourself
"You have to be confident and not play a role. We shouldn’t change our personality just to please people. What would The Cure have been if they did not do their hair and dress as they did. They would have just been normal guys of course, but ordinary. When we tell jokes on stage, it's not to play a role. We are just like our fans. The only difference is that we have a microphone. Faced with four thousand people, what do we do? Is it the time to make a serious speech or do we tell a joke? We tell a joke."

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Published on: 5 December 2018