Paul Gilbert Interview
We are delighted to introduce a man whos name is synonymous with the electric guitar, Mr Paul Gilbert. Metal guitar virtuoso Paul Gilbert was born November 6, 1966 in Carbondale, IL and raised primarily in Greenburg, PA; Paul became interested in music under the influence of his parents and his Uncle at the age of five. On his 5th birthday, his parents gave him an aluminium toy guitar and amp.
So, Paul started to play the guitar in 1971. At the age of 9, he was listening to hard rock/heavy metal like Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Aerosmith and Heart. When he was 11, Eddie Van Halen’s guitar playing influenced him greatly and he started to play with a band. By age 15 Paul was not only touring local clubs with his band Tau Zero but was even spotlighted in Guitar Player magazine alongside fellow up-and-comer Yngwie Malmsteen.
In 1984 Gilbert relocated to Los Angeles to attend the Guitar Institute of Technology (during that year he won "Outstanding student of the year" and "L.A. Guitar Wars"), Paul was made an instructor at the Institute the following year; concurrently he formed the band Electric Fence, which by 1986 evolved into Racer X. Their debut album Street Lethal appeared later that year (which is credited "Racer X with Paul Gilbert")
Since then Paul has been in "chart topping" Mr Big, reformed Racer X, made a fantastic Blues album with his Uncle, Released solo albums, done tours of Asia with his guitar clinics and is now in the studio mastering his as of the moment untitled latest album.
Although Paul is a very busy man we managed to prize him away from the mixing desk to talk to Blind-Summit about motivation (after all, this is a man that is constantly changing the way he plays and he’s got to be one of the hardest workers in the business!). After briefly chatting to Paul about the fact that we all at points feel like our playing is going nowhere and we find it difficult to re-invent our approach to playing, I got the interview underway (for someone in Mr Gilberts position, time is money!).
What motivated you to want to learn to play Guitar?
The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and early Van Halen. Also my uncle Jimi Kidd.
Where do you draw your inspiration from?
The drama of life, the love of pop chords, the challenge of trying to do better, and sometimes just having a good advance from the record company.
Is there any aspect of the instrument or industry that demotivates you sometimes?
I wish I could sing as high as Robin Zander, but my voice won’t do it. My guitar does what I want it to most of the time.
We are all aware that some techniques take months, maybe years to master and it is easy to give up on things. In the early days, how did you deal with these situations?
I really, really, really wanted to be a musician. I really, really, really, really needed it. I believed that everything good in my life would come from this. My uncle told me that if I wanted to be a great guitar player, I should practice all the time. I believed him.
Your playing helps motivate people from all over the world to practice and get better. Is there anybody who makes you want to get even better?
The audience! I want them to like my music and me.
Any final words for our readers?
Learn songs. Simple, good ones. Like "Cretin Hop" by The Ramones. I asked a bunch of my students at GIT to learn "Cretin Hop". Everyone learned it enough to play it through. But nobody really LEARNED it. Nobody was DRIVING the song. You have to make the listener know when the parts are going to change, and know all the accents and REALLY KNOW IT. It’s a SIMPLE song, but no one got it perfect. So I say. Learn something simple. And get it PERFECT!!
Thanks for taking time out to talk to me man!
PG: It’s a pleasure, Blind-Summit is a great site!
For news on Paul Gilbert, check out http://www.paulgilbert.com
Written by Alex on Friday 28th January 2005 at 2:57pm and posted in Interviews
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