Jimmy vs. Jimi: A Rankly Amateur Perspective

If you talk to someone knowledgeable about popular rock'n'roll music throughout the last half century or so, odds are they will identify one of the following three men as the best (mainstream) rock guitarist: Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, or Jimmy Page. Now, I think that Clapton, while good, is overrated. I think I have mentioned this before.

Despite my ever-increasing interest in and knowledge of more obscure music- at least, that's the current trend- I remain a classic-rock and blues fan at heart. Which leaves me to decide between the homophone brothers as the undisputed king (to clarify: a homophone is a word that sounds identical to another, as distinct from a homonym, which is the same word with at least two meanings. All this to say that "Jimmy" and "Jimi" sound the same without being spelled the same).

The way I see it, the talent level is virtually identical. Many gush about Hendrix as though his playing was head and shoulders above all others, but that's simply a mistake. To me, this is the essential difference: the unique thing about Hendrix is that his playing often makes me forget I'm hearing a string instrument; the unique thing about Page is that his playing often makes me hyper-aware that I'm hearing a string instrument. At times, Hendrix's guitar sounds stop registering as "guitar" and simply become "sounds." Weird, intriguing, fluid sounds. Hendrix was legendary as a sonic innovator, doing all that he could to broaden the scope of the attack. I am thinking of the last minute and a half of "All Along the Watchtower" in particular, but a lot of other songs apply.

By way of contrast, Page's contributions to the rock sound came primarily in his production, with his ambient miking and reverse-echo recording techniques. His playing itself was surprisingly orthodox: a great deal of pure blues with varying levels of distortion. The genius of his riffs is their groove, weight, and staggering feel. However, his soloing is another matter. Page was a pioneer of guitar soloing, employing traditional blues feel in wild, fast, and innovative ways- Eddie Van Halen cites Page's "Heartbreaker" solo (heavy on hammer-ons and wild finger work) as a major influence on his own two-hand tapping methods. And this is exactly where Page makes me so intensely aware of the nature of a guitar. When I hear his solos- especially "Since I've Been Loving You," "Achilles Last Stand," and "Whole Lotta Love"- I can't help but think about fingers fretting, bending, and shifting. By contrast, Hendrix makes me think of the undoubtedly hilarious reaction spaced-out hippies must have had to his seemingly impossible sounds.

Ultimately, I would be remiss not to comment on the fact that I have no real right to judge between the two- I'm not even a guitarist (I just play one on the internet). And so, I'm content to leave the issue of "best" undecided, and simply declare Page to be my favorite. Psychedelia is nice now and again, but the blues is home. In closing, I will quote Dave Grohl, who once said "Jimi Hendrix was a genius on fire... Jimmy Page was a genius possessed." Apt, and much more succinct than this was.