We are faced with an initial dilemma: can we simply go role by role, or must we start with a single key role, fill that, then build around it? I'll opt for role by role, simply because it's easier. I don't know music well enough to determine what drummer, for instance, would complement Eric Clapton best.
Note 1: I saved this as a draft and am coming back at it. I'm struggling. I'm finding I really don't know who's who all that much.
Note 2: It also occurs to me that an underlying assumption is that we're picking these folks based on how good they were in their prime. Not necessarily right now. Heck, some of them are dead.
Lead Guitar
Candidates (in order of how they appeared in my mind):
- Stevie Ray Vaughn
- Jimi Hendrix
- Mark Knopfler
- Eric Clapton
- Jimmy Paige
- Slash (from Guns n Roses)
I've never been much of a Clapton fan. I acknowledge his skills, I just haven't developed a strong sense for his style. The same holds for Paige ... he's widely considered a guitar god, but not for me.
It's hard to overlook Jimi Hendrix, but I wonder how much of my affection for him is based on memories of the times. One thing in his favor, in my mind, is that he was also an accomplished blues guitarist, not just a wild acid rock player.
I used to think Mark Knopfler was the unchallenged king of guitar. He's very good, but I'm not starting to wonder whether I'd select him in this role.
That leaves Stevie Ray Vaughn and Slash. Vaughn was unbelievably good. But in this category I'm going with Slash. I can't fully explain why. I just have a sense that he'd make an excellent lead guitarist around whom a band could be built.
Rhythm Guitar
Candidates:
- Pete Townsend
- John Lennon
- Joe Strummer
I'm somewhat lost in this category. I don't pay too much attention to who's a good rhythm guitarist and who is not. Heck, I don't even know what would separate a great from a good rhythm guitarist. Townsend is a sentimental favorite, and I think his forte was rhythm, but it was more power chord stuff. Lennon? I know you revere him, and while I don't dislike him I also just don't appreciate him. For pure quirkiness I'm going with Strummer.
Bass
Candidates:
- John Entwistle
- Paul McCartney
- Victor Wooten (of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones)
- Sting
In this category I'm going to guess there are far better bassists that we've never heard of -- session musicians that would blow the doors off those on my list, but we've never heard of them. Entwistle is my sentimental favorite. But his penchant was for enormously fat and powerful basslines ... lots and lots of noise. I fully acknowledge McCartney's skills and his role as a trailblazer. Victor Wooten is flat out amazing, and if I was truly going for virtuosity, I'd pick him. But I'm going with Sting for this reason: on the "Synchronicity" album he used a double bass and a bow on several songs. It was magical.
Drums
Candidates:
- Keith Moon
- Neil Pert (Rush)
- Terry Bozzio or Chad Wackerman (drummers for Frank Zappa band -- I don't know which was which on what songs ... but the drumming was always outstanding.)
- Futureman (Roy Wooten of Bela Fleck)
Moon, I suspect, was destined to be part of the Who, and the Who, I suspect, were destined to be a 60's/70's phenomenon. Form them now with all four in their prime and they'd wither into obscurity.
Roy Wooten of Bela Fleck, aka "Futureman," is a stunning drummer. The odd thing about him is he doesn't actually play a drum kit. He plays a drum synthesizer that's shaped like a guitar. His style is more jazz.
I'm going with the drummer(s) for Frank Zappa. Tight, precise, but not mere timekeeper. Amazing stuff.
Vocals
Candidates:
- Steve Winwood
- John Kay (of Steppenwolf)
- Frank Zappa (an odd selection, but he has a distinctive vocal style)
- Axl Rose (what a wasted talent)
I love Winwood from his Traffic days, but I put him on this list for sentimental reasons. Of those on this list, I'm down to John Kay or Axl Rose. Both have a rather rough sound to their voice. I despise Rose's lifestyle, but I love his voice. But I'm going with John Kay. I love his deeper, grittier voice.
Lineup:
Vocalist: John Kay
Lead: Slash
Rhythm: Joe Strummer
Bass: Sting
Drums: Terry Bozzio or Chad Wackerman
So what have I just built? It's an odd collection. Would the jazz stylings of Sting/Bozzio|Wackerman conflict with the rock of Slash/Strummer?
* * *
Re: Paul McCartney on bass -- I agree, and I've always found him an impressive bass player. I took notice of the role of the bass player when I became a fan of The Who. Only then did I start listening more closely to the bass line in songs. Most are basic and somewhat hidden. I am by no means an expert on the Abbey Road album, but my memory tells me there's some rather sublime bass lines on that album. I don't think the bassline is about flash, I think it's about mood. I can't explain it, but I sense the bassline under a song touches the subconscious and establishes the mental imagery of the song. See my note on Herbie Flowers below.
Re: Ringo Starr on drums -- I once read a commentary on Starr's drumming that described him as a very misunderstood drummer. Apparently (if memory serves), the article said that at the time the criteria for a drummer was how well they held to certain rules and conventions, and particularly how precise their timing was. Starr, it was argued, was maligned because people at the time did not understand his more intuitive style. So, I guess it would be much like the reaction the Impressionist painters received when their work first appeared. "What? It's not crisp and realistic? What's this fuzzy lighting?"
Re: Herbie Flowers on "Walk on the Wild Side" -- Oh, man. That is one of the most understated and hence marvelous bass lines ever. It sets the tone and mood of the song perfectly -- dark, isolated, lonely ... but not necessarily sad. I always wondered who laid that down. Now I know. Thanks!
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