Five guitarists who think Eric Clapton is overrated: “Just a nostalgia act at this point”
When Steve Van Zandt was asked who his favourite guitarist was, he was quick and sure with the answer. “Eric Clapton is the most important and influential guitar player that has ever lived,” he said, “Do yourself a favour, and don’t debate me on this.”
In a bid to defend his answer, Van Zandt started listing other guitarists who are influential, before saying that Clapton managed to merge all of their styles and give rise to what we now recognise as the quintessential rock guitarist. He certainly has a point, as Clapton’s style is entrenched in the blues but also incorporates different styles and effects in order to bring a new angle to it. When you look at his work in Cream and The Yardbirds, there is no doubt plenty of talent on display.
The majority of people agree that Eric Clapton is an exceptional guitarist and should be praised as such; however, there are a few outspoken voices who think he’s overrated. It’s not that they don’t recognise his skill, rather, they believe Clapton to merely be a tribute to the blues as opposed to a genuinely innovative guitar player.
Given how much of Clapton’s music is loved, it’s surprising how many respected musicians share this view, but they do. Here are five guitarists who all think that Eric Clapton is overrated.
Five guitarists who called Eric Clapton overrated:
Angus Young
A lot of people critique the guitar work of Angus Young, saying that the albums AC/DC put out are repetitive. That may be the case, but they’re doing this on purpose, as they intend to keep heavy guitar music alive and deliver music that could only ever be described as AC/DC. “We’re a rock group,” he admitted, “We’re noisy, rowdy, sensational and weird.”
Young was always confused why AC/DC would get heat for being repetitive, when a lot of the other guitarists who were praised as geniuses were merely recreating what blues guitarists of old had done. For Young, Eric Clapton fell into this category. “Clapton just sticks licks together that he has taken from other people,” he said, “Like BB King and the other old blues players – and puts them together in some form of mish-mashed fashion.”
Tracii Guns
Throughout his career, Eric Clapton has played in a number of different bands, and naturally, fans argue over which of these bands were his best. Tracii Guns from LA Guns was happy to offer his opinion on the matter (though I wouldn’t describe him as much of a fan) as he said he believes the guitarists peaked with Cream.
“Cream, for me, Cream would be Clapton’s pinnacle. It’s like, dirty guitar sounds, wah-wah pedal, man, fucking going for it,” he said, “I’m not trying to bang on Clapton… But, you know, you talk about underrated guys. What about fucking overrated guys? You’re gonna put Clapton with Jeff Beck? In what reality?”
Jimi Hendrix
The story goes that during one of Hendrix’s first gigs in London, he played on stage with Eric Clapton. Clapton was so astonished by Hendrix’s guitar-playing ability that he stormed off stage after that song and left the building. Later, when people asked where Clapton had gone, he replied earnestly: “To practice.”
Hendrix never said that he thought Clapton was overrated, but given how much he flinched when their guitar styles were compared, you would be forgiven for thinking he wasn’t a huge fan. “The blues is what we’re supposed to dig. But you see, there are other things we can play, too,” he said, “And we just don’t think alike. Sometimes the notes might sound like it, but it’s a completely different scene between those notes.”
Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen was renowned in rock music for being a musical innovator. His guitar playing technique was unlike anything that had come prior. He was able to use a tapping technique to increase the speed of his playing and introduce a new layer to guitar music. It was incredibly exciting for all those listening.
Eddie was from the generation that grew up inspired by Clapton, and while he recognised his influence, he thought he became stuck in his ways. The innovation that Eddie championed is essentially what he thought was missing from people like Clapton. “I hate to say it, but when he was a heroin addict, he was good,” he said, “After that he was just trying to sound like BB King, but BB King has him beat because Clapton isn’t BB King.”
Ritchie Blackmore
Ritchie Blackmore was never afraid to try different styles of music when he was writing for Deep Purple. While the band started out making tunes that were a blend of classical sounds and rock, they eventually dabbled in what bordered on heavy metal. The point is, Blackmore was always willing to bend his artistic style and try something new, and this is where he thought Clapton fell short.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like the music Clapton made, but similar to Eddie Van Halen, he felt as though he had grown stagnant. His devotion to the blues made him, in Blackmore’s eyes, an overrated guitar player. “Clapton is just a nostalgia act at this point,” he said, “He could never come close to someone like BB King.”
