John Petrucci, The Guitarist Discussion

[Addy]

That being said I wanna share a controversial opinion. I think he lost a bit of his technical skills recently. Listening to footage from recent G3 tour back to back with e.g. G3 2001, it's not as tight and effortless. I guess 6DOIT/ToT era was his peak.

I don't know if that will be super controversial around here - I think with age he is a little less "fluid" of a player. I'd agree that his peak was probably that SDOIT through ToT era - the touring they did to support those records has given us some great sets and some great JP moments.

I agree with this. It might not be age, who knows maybe he practices differently, or less. It could also be his tone, it's changed a lot since ToT

Really?  I think he is much more fluid now.  I was listening to the Old Bridge bootleg recently, and his playing nowadays is MUCH more smooth than back then.

Well, there are lots of proshot festival vids from recent years where he's sometimes off e.g. The Enemy Inside from Sonisphere 2014. And here are the clips grom G3 - 2018 vs 2001. You be the judge.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-r4bN85eYE
https://youtu.be/bNXEXb-Dn0c?t=488

Don't get me wrong. I love his playing and I know I'd have to share a dozen of such examples to prove my point, but it's just my observation.

[Drinktheater]

He is top 3 for me back when I cared for ranking my favorite guitarist.

1.Satriani
2.Vai
3.Petrucci

[gzarruk]

He is top 3 for me back when I cared for ranking my favorite guitarist.

1.Satriani
2.Vai
3.Petrucci

You must love G3 Live in Tokyo then

[PetFish]

What is JP's guitar legacy going to be?

Speed?  Accuracy?  Versatility?

I'd have to say it's the constant pickup switching between bridge/neck.  Most players will use one pickup for an entire song and then JP comes along and opens up this door and now everyone seems to be doing it.  Well, at least the up-and-coming prog metal players seem to be.  I could even add the piezo integration as well but the pickup switching goes back 15 years farther.

Just like EVH's legacy is tapping and Vai's legacy would be guitar/human sexual relations (you know he's done it), I think JP will be forever remembered for this particular technique.

[bosk1]

I've seen tons of guitarists doing that since the early '80s at least.  It is nothing that JP invented.

Personally, I've never seen a guy tweak his pickup switch and volume knobs as much during a song as this guy:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFiYislNeRw
He isn't on the toggle switch as much in that video, but is on the volume knobs constantly (it is very subtle and you are likely to miss a lot of it if you don't watch closely), including some really nice volume swells at about the 4:15-4:30 mark (that is all volume knobs, not a pedal).

[mikeyd23]

Yeah, I think loads of guitarists switch between the neck and bridge to get different sounds mid-song. To me, JP perfected that craft, especially during solos. He definitely influenced my playing in that particular way. That said, I think that's a detail to his playing that not a lot of people will remember simply because not a lot of people will notice it and understand it.

I'd say his legacy will be strongly linked to his role as the guitar player from DT. I think people will remember him in that context. In terms of his playing - his versatility will be the thing I think I'll remember most years down the line.

[PetFish]

EVH wasn't the first to tap but he made it his own and is generally recognized as the one who 'invented' it and that's his legacy.

Same for JP, sure others switch pickups, but not very many people can name who did it first or whatever.  I'm an axeman myself and can name a zillion guitarists but ask me to name another player that does it like JP and I can't which is why I think it's going to be his legacy... that and muscles.

[bosk1]

Same for JP, sure others switch pickups, but not very many people can name who did it first or whatever. 

Well, sure people couldn't name who did it first.  But that's because it is such a common and inconsequential thing that pretty much EVERYBODY has been doing it since pickup switches were commonplace.  It's like asking who was "first" to plug in their electric guitar. 

I highly doubt that many people really notice that he switches pickups fairly frequently.  And those who do are probably mostly guitar players, and as such, would have also likely noticed that tons of guitar players have been doing it with as much or more frequency than JP for decades.  It's just not really a "signature move" kind of thing.

[PetFish]

Fine, you win, gg.

[pg1067]

Same for JP, sure others switch pickups, but not very many people can name who did it first or whatever.

I can't suggest who did it first, but I can think of a lot of guys who did it regularly long before JP:  Steve Howe, Alex Lifeson, EVH, Randy Rhoads....

But that's because it is such a common and inconsequential thing that pretty much EVERYBODY has been doing it since pickup switches were commonplace.  It's like asking who was "first" to plug in their electric guitar. 

I highly doubt that many people really notice that he switches pickups fairly frequently.  And those who do are probably mostly guitar players, and as such, would have also likely noticed that tons of guitar players have been doing it with as much or more frequency than JP for decades.  It's just not really a "signature move" kind of thing.

I'd never really noticed it in relation to JP and agree about pretty much everybody doing it.


If you want to come up with a "legacy" for JP as a guitarist, I would say its the precision of playing and the fastidious attention to tone (although lots of other guitarists do both, these are things about JP, as a guitarist, that stand out to me, a bass player).

[CodyWanKenobi]

He's definitely my favorite guitar player. He's got just about everything you could want in a guitar player - song writing, blazing solos, gorgeous melodies, soulful playing, emotion, kick ass riffs, beautiful acoustic playing. He's got it all.

Some of my other favorites/most influential to my playing and attitude are:

Mark Tremonti
Buckethead
Jason Becker
Jake E. Lee
Andy McKee
Eddie Van Halen
Steve Vai
Dimebag Darrell
Mark Holcomb
Daron Malakian
Tosin Abasi

[Indiscipline]

I think the main pick-up switch offender could be Jeff Beck.

I also like to think John Petrucci's most important legacy as guitar player and guitar musician is his religious and scientific dedication in exploring and fulfilling the potential of the instrument, changing the game yet respectfully never shifting the focus from the sacrality of song and music to himself. Striving for the most complete palette never forgetting the painting.

Among the contemporary shredders, he has the monk-like mindset of a XVIII century virtuoso. 

For what is worth, he's up there in my pantheon with Jeff Beck, Rory Gallagher, John McLaughlin, Vernon Reid, Robert Fripp, Jan Akkerman, Mark Knopfler, Brian Setzer, Ritchie Blackmore, Steve Lukather and Gary Moore.

[TAC]

Brian Setzer? Gee I was just thinking how much Mike Mangini reminded me of Slim Jim Phantom. 

[FracturedMirror]

Personally, this is my "holy trinity" of guitar:

Stevie Ray Vaughan
Buckethead
John Petrucci

[CodyWanKenobi]

I think guitarists who constantly switch between the pickups during songs are just guitar players who know exactly how they need the guitar to react to the notes being played. I'd say just about every "real" guitar player does this, and what I mean by that is, every guitar player who is trying to speak through the instrument. There are so many "guitar players" who are just that - guitar players. All they do is play the guitar for their band or whatever because they just wanted to be a guitar player in a band. But guys like JP, Steve Vai, and Jeff Beck have something to say, and they're using the guitar to do that.

On that note, I will mention something that JP does with the pickup switch that I picked up, that I don't really hear anyone else doing - he'll have the switch set to the neck* pickup during a solo, and then bend up on a high note, and almost simultaneously he'll flick the switch and sweep the signal from the more fat sounding neck to the thin sounding bridge which creates this very vocal, very expressive sound on the note. Almost like a wah pedal or a talk box sort of effect. It's something that I absolutely love and something that I've incorporated into my own playing. Now, it's just a natural thing for me to do, which is really cool. It seems like such an obvious way to be expressive now.

*edited to fix my mistake

[rumborak]

The switch between neck and bridge pickup is usually simple a choice between rhythm and solo section. At least for me

[King Postwhore]

The switch between neck and bridge pickup is usually simple a choice between rhythm and solo section. At least for me

Warmer or cutting through sounds.

[Indiscipline]

On that note, I will mention something that JP does with the pickup switch that I picked up, that I don't really hear anyone else doing - he'll have the switch set to the bridge pickup during a solo, and then bend up on a high note, and almost simultaneously he'll flick the switch and sweep the signal from the more fat sounding neck to the thin sounding bridge which creates this very vocal, very expressive sound on the note. Almost like a wah pedal or a talk box sort of effect. It's something that I absolutely love and something that I've incorporated into my own playing. Now, it's just a natural thing for me to do, which is really cool. It seems like such an obvious way to be expressive now.

I've seen Steve Morse doing that trick. I suppose that's the rationale behind his guitar having the switch settings featuring the neck and bridge positions unusually adjacent.

[Volante99]

Petrucci's "legacy" is the influence he's had on the current generation of metal guitarists from Avenged Sevenfold to Animals as Leaders, etc.

He's also one of the few virtuoso "guitar gods" whose combination of technique AND songwriting translated best in the context of a band to levels even Vai or Malmsteen couldn't quite match. 

Technique-wise his strong points are his strict adherence to alternate speed picking and his almost godlike ability to stay on pitch during those soaring sustained high notes.

I also truly think he's a natural guitar prodigy/savant. Anyone who can write an album on the level of Train of Thought in three weeks is, well, a freak of nature.

[wolfking]

I don't know what the switching of pickups has to do with the conversation.  It's a common, simple thing a lot of guitarists do, it's nothing special or technically amazing.

[TAC]

I don't even know what that means. 

I mean, switching pickups, I think I understand, but I never knew you could do that or what the application would be.

[wolfking]

I don't even know what that means. 

I mean, switching pickups, I think I understand, but I never knew you could do that or what the application would be.

Bridge pickup, usually used for rhythm most of the time with a brighter tone and think Adrian Smith tones when soloing.  Neck pickup mostly used for soloing, more smoother and think Dave Murray tones when soloing.

[TAC]

Oh..Iron Maiden. Now everything makes sense!

[KevShmev]

Petrucci's "legacy" is the influence he's had on the current generation of metal guitarists from Avenged Sevenfold to Animals as Leaders, etc.

He's also one of the few virtuoso "guitar gods" whose combination of technique AND songwriting translated best in the context of a band to levels even Vai or Malmsteen couldn't quite match. 

Technique-wise his strong points are his strict adherence to alternate speed picking and his almost godlike ability to stay on pitch during those soaring sustained high notes.

I also truly think he's a natural guitar prodigy/savant. Anyone who can write an album on the level of Train of Thought in three weeks is, well, a freak of nature.

This is a great point. 

[TAC]

Been watching the Live At Budokan 2017 clips tonight and holy crap..JP 

Such amazing passages.

[gzarruk]

Something that I've noticed is that JP hasn't done a lot of guest work on other artist's projects. Jordan, for example, guests on one or two albums every year, but John only has a handful of guest spots here and there. Would love to see him work with other artists, outside of DT, as a guest or side project, to hear him in different settings.

[Volante99]

Petrucci's "legacy" is the influence he's had on the current generation of metal guitarists from Avenged Sevenfold to Animals as Leaders, etc.

He's also one of the few virtuoso "guitar gods" whose combination of technique AND songwriting translated best in the context of a band to levels even Vai or Malmsteen couldn't quite match. 

Technique-wise his strong points are his strict adherence to alternate speed picking and his almost godlike ability to stay on pitch during those soaring sustained high notes.

I also truly think he's a natural guitar prodigy/savant. Anyone who can write an album on the level of Train of Thought in three weeks is, well, a freak of nature.

This is a great point. 

Thanks. To be fair I think some of Vai's tastiest playing was with DLR and the Sex & Religion group. But unlike Petrucci, playing in a band won't be Vai's "legacy". That said, I'd kill to have Vai do another album with Townsend without all the early 90s trappings (and egos).

[mikeyd23]

Been watching the Live At Budokan 2017 clips tonight and holy crap..JP 

Such amazing passages.

Yup, he sounds killer on that!

[Drinktheater]

He was number 4 when I did my favorite guitarists countdown list a couple years ago,

Who were your Top 3?

My influences as a guitarist is very limited much more the pieces and I guitarists that I play.

He is in my Top 3  he is top 3.

1.Satch.
2.Vai
3.Petrucci.

[Dublagent66]

Listening to my Astonishing Abridged right now. JP's solo in When Your Time Has Come is sneaky amazing.

I suppose Tim, but the callbacks.  Why does this song sound like This Is The Life Pt. 2?  I love TITL.  I don't want to hear something similar on another album.

Been watching the Live At Budokan 2017 clips tonight and holy crap..JP 

Such amazing passages.

I need to check that out.

[bosk1]

What do you find similar between When Your Time Has Come and This Is the Life?  I never drew any connections between those two songs, so I'm curious to know what you are hearing there.

[TAC]

I want to say something about This Is The Life. Now I'm not saying it's anywhere close to my favorite song, although I do love it. But I think it might be their best written song ever. It's almost perfect.

[Drinktheater]

He is top 3 for me back when I cared for ranking my favorite guitarist.

1.Satriani
2.Vai
3.Petrucci

You must love G3 Live in Tokyo then

For sure,

Had Petrucci been in the first G3 instead of Eric Johnson and had I been given the chance to watch that live and meet the three of them at the meet and greet I might scream like a little girl! Back in 97 lol.