Why don't girls play electric guitar?

polarbelly

hem

feckin great!

no elctric guitars though

loadsa chicks

Pearl

If I could carry even one fifth of a tune on a tin whistle, I'd be in a band. But I can't, so I play other people's records on a Sunday morning on Phantom. Maybe in the next life...

o sleep

i don't understand the point about 'small hands', but then i'm not exactly the greatest guitarist of them all. but don't big clumpy hands have a similar effect (in a bad sort of way)? i've tried working out will oldham's songs from his 'ease on down the road', but he seems to be muting (or whatever the word is) strings because (and i'm guessing here) his hands are so big and fat. but i could be wrong. i have small hands too, but i'm a boy. what's up with that??

and there's lots of girl guitarists, and most of them don't play the wanky guitar solos, but that's a *good* thing, in my opinion. but, in this music business world, if you're not a particularly attractive woman, or at least a woman who appeals to a certain niche/fetish/whatever, it's going to be incredibly difficult (although exceptions do apply here). on the other hand, if you're a rather unattractive man (insert random male guitarist here), it doesn't seem to matter.

lamda

Well said o sleep! Ya hit the nail on the head there! Girls DO play electric guitar but they dont get the breaks!

Muppet Monarchy

Let's clear something up here.



THE SIZE OF YOUR HANDS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HOW WELL YOU CAN PLAY GUITAR


Seriously, you guys. It may become a factor when you're on grade 8 classical guitar, or playing in some whacked Jazz band where you play chords that have fingerings four frets apart, but in 99.999999999% of pop/rock music - it's just not an issue.


66electric - you and me gonna fight over Meg. I pity the fool who disses Meg White.

Graemo

There are very proficient guitarists out there who do indeed have small hands but the arguement will be laid to rest if you'd just take a close look at Jimi Hendrix' hands. Bleedin Masive they are.


As for femail drummers, anyone remember Emeline Duffy Fallon from Engine Alley?Hot bird and a sh1t hot drummer.

Muppet Monarchy

Are you trying to say he was a good guitarist because he had big hands?

Raggamuffin

what about django reinhardt

he only had 3 fingers on his right hand and used a plectrum with his right and he was fantastic, on a par with hendrix

funktastic

The hands thing would make a difference in terms of progression on a bass/guitar,yeah it won't make a difference to the people that sit around all day listining to green day and stereophonics and don't wanna progress.
But rock is male dominated and really so what?It'd be like going to see a gay male rock band ,it ain't gonna happen,I mean there are certain traditional associations with rock music.No problems with girls playing but they ain't gonna be doing lead guitar.Theres a certain anger/emotion to be expressed in rock music,I'm just talking about rock here which seems to hhave been mostly talked about, thats girls just couldn't let out without sounding like butch weightlifters.
I don't think a girl is ever gonna come along and play lead like Slash Page et al, grand sticking to a bit of strumming and some singing and maybe drums in a poncy band:cool: With drums ,I dunno, very few that are prominent, drums is even more male biased than guitar but hey theres always room in the queue of groupies:cool:

Giblet

I have yet to see a girl who can play lead guitar half as well as any guys i know, including myself

Funktastics right, Its just more 'Male' to play guitar. Most Females WILL be stuck on basics like Oasis, Greenday et al. No harm in that, and there are just as many guys stuck there aswell, but there are more guys who want to progress. I'm a pretty experienced guitar player, and If i had to guess at the reasons why there is a lack of girls playing it is because they're not good enough to be in bands. The level of guitar/bass some girls play is usually low, but the need for an experienced player in most bands today is minimal (eg:JJ72) so you might see some girls in the band, but to be honest, Hillary is eye candy and she will probably never play much beyond root notes and maybe a few fifth notes or octaves thrown in if Mark shows her. You may not like it, or even be insulted, but its true, and its not my fault

Raggamuffin

Originally posted by funktastic
I don't think a girl is ever gonna come along and play lead like Slash Page et al, grand sticking to a bit of strumming and some singing and maybe drums in a poncy band:cool: With drums ,I dunno, very few that are prominent, drums is even more male biased than guitar but hey theres always room in the queue of groupies:cool:

ok i guess this means that girls are smarter

PAge is overated, and slash is just ****.

Kim Deal rocks.... big time as does Kim Gordon and that dead bassist from hole who supposedly slept with kurt cobain.

guns and roses are just awful

Raggamuffin

and one more thing,
in myexperience girls are just as good as guys on guitar,
and i can't see the difference.

less pretencious maybe

funktastic

ok maybe down at the christian youth folk group they are just as good .Obviously you look less technically at music ,can hardly be seen as just as good though.
Jimmy Page ain't overrated either he brought about numerous progressions in recording along with guitar.Slash is a great guitar player as well asndf theres no basis for calling him'****' just 'cos you've got your Pixies/Kim Deal fixation at the moment

Amz

Well said Raggamuffin my good man/eunuch/isthataman/idunnoanymore

Giblet

Page is over rated? HOW!


And how come Slash is **** and you name no hopers like Kim Deal?

Kim Deal couldn't play guitar beyond the basic chords!

Guns n Roses were one of the best guitar bands of the eigthies early ninetys. And theres no way you can deny Slashs' ability as a Guitarist. He came up with more riffs and inspired more people to play guitar than any "chick" guitarist. I take it you're biased because you're probably a girl yes?

And you must know a HELL of a lot of shít male guitarists, because I have never seen a girl come close to most people I know, except pure beginners.
And i have seen more than a few girls play guitar.

I take it most people on this forum can't play guitar beyond the basics to be singing the praises of Kim Deal et al. And calling Slash Page fret ****. NEWS FLASH: thats how you play guitar.

Dexy

I em conquer with the point that women are as good and in some cases better than men at the old six string

Raggamuffin

excuse me
what about thurston moore form sonic youth?
Mike boon from the minutemen?
joey santiago from the pixies?
j.mascis from dinosaur jr. ?
CHarlie CHristian form the benny goodman band?

all far superior guitarists than slash.
and non wore stupid (top) hats.

Well i play guitar witha girl guitarist and she does lead guitar just as good as me?

And i think alot of people on this thread seem to be under the impression that bass is an "easier" instrument to play.

Problem with most bassists is too much SHOW less focus on timing and rhythm...

Raggamuffin

and to be honest one of the best guitar bands of the 80's and 90's was dinosaur jr. or nirvana......

better songs and better attitudes

i don't see in any way why girls could not be just as good guitarists as any guy.
and stop this crap about "basic" chords......... I mean "X" and "Black Flag" use basic chords and their songs rule big time.

and the unfortunate situation with the pixies and guns and roses is that th pixies screamed louder, wrote better songs, and did'nt wear stupid hats


Elastica? btw

Giblet

raggamuffin, tbh you still haven't explained how Slash is s**t, you just named guitarists you think are better, jesus i could name about 100 better ones off the top of my head, but that doesn't make him s**t, and tbh, Slash would rip up the floor against them guys.

You're going on opinion more than fact!

Raggamuffin

Slash is **** because he does'nt know where to place the riffs and solos?

its the amount you put into a solo and what exactly is ENOUGH.

i feel other guitarists manage to place a solo better and can create a better song because of this.

Giblet

He didn''t know where to place a solo or riff?!!! now come on thats bs, its plainly obvious that you've been playing the intro to "Where is my mind" too long, and have lost the plot. Seriously though are you taking the piss. Slash came up with some of the most original solos ever (even just solely using a pentatonic scale) and he knew damn well were to put them. And his riffs, well tbh I doubt you know what a riff is, to be making comments like that. Ok actually im gonna stop, I dont want to embarress you any further, and end on this point.

People are s**t at guitar because they wont expand on to bigger and greater things, and shouldn't comment on things they dont fully understand.

Raggamuffin

Slash to me does'nt sound original.

J.mascis sounds original.


oh whats the point everybody LOVES slash

Giblet

I'd say thats more of a problem you have yourself. Seriously though, learn to play better (give it a few years) You might appreciate good guitarists in ALL types of music, rather than strictly Indie/Grunge/Pop-Rock

Amz

Don't include me in that everybody loves slash statement thanks....

knobbles

predictably starting to turn into a boys-v-girls thing here!
(trust me, i love a woman who can play)

a lot of you complaing about the hands comment which i started. I'll try and explain. Slash a sh|t guitarist? Fair enough, you don't like the music of GNR and what Slash creates on guitar but there's no doubting how technically gifted he is. That said, apart from Pumpkins, Pearl Jam and Stone Roses nearly all the music i've loved over the last 10 years has not depended on the technical brilliance of the guitarist but the creative brilliance. You don't need to master you're scales and plucking speed to ridiculous Slash levels to write amazing music. And hand size doesn't make a difference in how creative/brillaint a male/female is with a guitar.

But all I was saying was, in terms of lead guitar and mastering the guitar arm, that it's a barrier when his/her fingers are a little shorter, doesn't mean that barrier can't be overcome with dedication. They're not a neccesity but Long fingers help. That pops to mind when i wonder why there seems to be far less female lead guitarists out there. But again, yes, not being technically brilliant does not stop anyone from writing amazing music.

Stop attacking each other(and me please!)

Raggamuffin

thanks so much *sniff*
maybe one day i can be just like you

screw you

Giblet

:cool:

Muppet Monarchy

OK, before I get upset, clear this up for me, will ya? Are we talking rating guitarists purely on technique? Are we talking NPM (notes per minute) here?

Giblet

All combined.
Yes we all know about Steve "21.3" Vai

Muppet Monarchy

Originally posted by funktastic
The hands thing would make a difference in terms of progression on a bass/guitar,yeah it won't make a difference to the people that sit around all day listining to green day and stereophonics and don't wanna progress.

What the **** is 'Progression'? Apart from that, I agree ; you don't need big hands to listen to green day, but it helps.

But rock is male dominated and really so what?It'd be like going to see a gay male rock band ,it ain't gonna happen,I mean there are certain traditional associations with rock music.

You have no idea. There are so many gay men in bands, probably in bands that you like. It doesn't just happen with Boyzone, buddy. It's just that with rock being so male dominated, it may be hard for them to come out with it. Chances are you have a record company telling you it'll hurt sales (your livelihood). If you have no problem with traditional associations, fair enough. I do. If I'm not careful, I may 'progress'.

No problems with girls playing but they ain't gonna be doing lead guitar.Theres a certain anger/emotion to be expressed in rock music,I'm just talking about rock here which seems to hhave been mostly talked about, thats girls just couldn't let out without sounding like butch weightlifters.

This is possible the most misguided, ill-informed, foolish post I have ever seen. In the vain hope that there's any hope of saving you from ignorance...

http://www.killrockstars.com/bands/factsheets/bikinikill/
http://www.killrockstars.com/bands/sleater-kinney/
http://www.killrockstars.com/bands/factsheets/teamdresch/

Go listen to those and then talk to me about anger/emotion.

I don't think a girl is ever gonna come along and play lead like Slash Page et al, grand sticking to a bit of strumming and some singing and maybe drums in a poncy band:cool: With drums ,I dunno, very few that are prominent, drums is even more male biased than guitar but hey theres always room in the queue of groupies:cool: [/B]

I can only assume that you grew up in a very different world. A world where men were men, and pansies were a type of flower. A world where women stayed in the kitchen by day, and did their duty for the country and their church by night. You poor, deluded, sexist fool.