The underappreciated icon Slash called “one of my all-time guitar heroes”
As a child of the 1960s, Slash, real name Saul Hudson, arrived at the zenith of rock ‘n’ roll. During this colourful decade, British invasion artists like The Beatles, The Who and The Rolling Stones set new trends for the American tradition, lighting the path to the imminent psychedelic wave. Around Slash’s second birthday, The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream owned psychedelia by bringing electronic guitar virtuosity to a whole new level.
Born in Hampstead, London, to a British father and an American mother, Slash was first baptised in his father’s tastes. Anthony Hudson was an esteemed artist who created album artwork for the likes of Neil Young and Joni Mitchell. His taste resided primarily in British rock music, and he had young Saul listening to The Beatles, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, and The Rolling Stones.
On British TV, Slash saw Page, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards and Billy Gibbons playing Les Paul guitars and knew early on which axe would suit him best. He was drawn most to the Les Paul tone Page attained in the early Led Zeppelin catalogue. “I specifically remember hearing ‘Whole Lotta Love’ from Led Zeppelin II when I was seven years old,” he recalled in an interview with Total Guitarist.
The Guns N’ Roses guitarist remembered thinking it “was the coolest record I’d ever heard”. Even at that young age, Slash began to understand the crucial difference between guitar brands and builds. “I knew it was a Les Paul making those guitar tones because I saw pictures of Jimmy Page holding one – so that’s what made me associate the Les Paul with that kind of sound.” Slash got the same model as Page in his teen years and has been associated with Les Pauls ever since.
Jimmy Page was undoubtedly one of Slash’s most crucial guitar influences. The British legend’s songwriting and catchy riff-making abilities were reflected impressively in Guns N’ Roses’ seminal work in the late 1980s. However, Slash’s talent was shaped by a swathe of iconic guitarists, from Jimi Hendrix to Eddie Van Halen.
After a childhood spent listening to the prominent hit makers, Slash became well acquainted with some of the much-revered guitarist’s guitarists, namely Jeff Beck and Rory Gallagher. Although Beck set out as a Yardbird, he failed to achieve the same commercial success as his fellow Yardbird alumni, Clapton and Page, because his subsequent work was more leftfield.
Similarly, the Irish legend Rory Gallagher, famed for a heavy blues-rock style, never quite broke through to mainstream success. Still, almost three decades on from his death, Gallagher is remembered as one of the finest guitarists of his generation. And what a generation it was. Gallagher was a true all-rounder, capable of blending rhythm and lead in holy matrimony, even with the trusty Stratocaster he clung to throughout his entire career. “With a guitar like this, I can play both parts, rhythm and lead; we won’t need a rhythm player, so I can earn more money and pay it off,” Gallagher said in Ghost Blues: The Story of Rory Gallagher.
Naturally, when Slash bumped into Gallagher in the early 1990s in Los Angeles, he couldn’t believe his luck. “It was a fucking huge thing when I met Rory,” he reflected in a 2013 Q&A. “Not just the fact that he was in LA and that he was really, really gracious and had me come up and jam with him, which was a blast. But on top of that, he was staying at the Riot House on Sunset.”
The Riot House was a bar at the Continental Hyatt House in LA famed for its hedonistic rock ‘n’ roll soirees throughout the 1960s and ’70s. The venue was already a Mecca of sorts for Slash, but to jam with Gallagher at the intimate venue was a dream come true. “He invited me up after the gig, and we drank, and we jammed on acoustic guitars all night and had a really great time,” Slash added. “He’s one of my all-time guitar heroes, and I was surprised he even knew who I was”.
