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The Cars' lead picker names the best ever
Joe Bosso, Mon 2 May 2011, 10:40 pm BST
"A great guitar recording is one that influences scores of other guitar players," says The Cars' lead axeman Elliot Easton. "It's something that actually makes a difference in the evolution of the instrument. There are many great guitar albums and recordings, of course, but when I compiled my list, I made it a point to focus on the ones that really moved things forward a bit.
"For instance, when Jimi Hendrix came along, a lot of players took what he did and extrapolated on it. Hendrix, however, invented it. Obviously, nothing comes from nowhere, so perhaps he didn't 'invent' what he was playing. But he certainly turned things upside down in a dramatic fashion, to the point where it became hard to spot his influences."
Easton's own playing - a thrilling mix of pop, blues, jazz, rock and rockabilly - has been equally hard to pin down, and it's prominently displayed on The Cars' first album in 24 years, Move Like This. To celebrate the comeback of both Easton and The Cars, we asked the southpaw six-string star to name those recordings that, in his opinion, "pushed guitar playing further in the evolutionary chain."