Guitar Solos

by Sean WestergaardFred Frith's landmark Guitar Solos album has now been reissued on his own Fred label. Although it was originally recorded in 1974, there are pieces on this album that are probably still making guitar players scratch their heads wondering "How did he do that?" Don't expect any kind of Yngwie Malmsteen-style wankage; Frith instead uses a volume pedal, tapping, and other extended techniques to produce everything from chiming bell-like notes to unearthly howls. It almost never sounds like standard guitar-with-plectrum playing, but the pieces have a logic (and beauty, in some cases) all their own. This is free improvised, challenging, avant-garde music, but that doesn't mean it's unapproachable. Guitar Solos' lasting legacy is that it radically redefined the way some people think about the guitar. [This is the original album release, without the bonus tracks included on the ESD version.]