Who or what made you want to play you paricular instrument?

[f.sciarrillo]

I am wondering who or what made you want to play your particular instrument?

For me, my whole family plays guitars and was in bands for years starting with my grandfather. But that isn't the reason I started to play guitar. My journey started when I was 15 and I heard the solo from comfortably numb, David Gilmour blew my mind. (He still does in so many ways, the man can do things with a guitar that I can only dream of. He has perfect tone and perfect pitch. I am dumbfounded with how he does it.) After wrapping my brain around comfortably numb, I then heard Shine On You Crazy Diamond for the first time and it was at that time that i said I have to learn how to play guitar.

So if I had to say the reason I started playing, it would be Gilmour. Who or what was your reason?

[sstuckey]

I am wondering who or what made you want to play your particular instrument?

For me, my whole family plays guitars and was in bands for years starting with my grandfather. But that isn't the reason I started to play guitar. My journey started when I was 15 and I heard the solo from comfortably numb, David Gilmour blew my mind. (He still does in so many ways, the man can do things with a guitar that I can only dream of. He has perfect tone and perfect pitch. I am dumbfounded with how he does it.) After wrapping my brain around comfortably numb, I then heard Shine On You Crazy Diamond for the first time and it was at that time that i said I have to learn how to play guitar.

So if I had to say the reason I started playing, it would be Gilmour. Who or what was your reason?

The video for 'One' by Metallica. When I first saw it I was blown away. My uncle was a drummer and my attention always gravitated towards the drums. And when I heard Lars do the double bass pattern during the "darkness...imprisoning me...all that I see...absolute horror" part ...I said WTF is that!!!! I so wanna do that someday! Then one day Chris Peters asked if I knew any drummers...and I lied and told him I was one. So I went out bought a drum kit....played my ass off in my garage...and 20+ years later I'm still at it. And that's how I ended up a drummer. Still love it after all these years.

[onegunguitar]

I'd have to say Eddie Van Halen was the main reason I started playing guitar. I picked up the bass 3 or so years ago to help some friends out,which in turn put me in my current role with NailDriver.

[kayla]

my inspiration was local. maybe thats why i have such a passion for the local music scene. i started playin guitar in church...and when i left the church i started goin out to find some music locally. i stumbled upon the hurricanes one night and thought, damn, thats what i wanna do. it was a week later and i bought my first electric guitar.

its been a few years now and i look up to people like SRV and the Allman Brothers. but most of my inspiration comes from the local guys.

- kayla.

[Lowender]

Chris Chaney - Great bass player, always has a great groove and awesome tone. His work is highly underrated. Just IMHO of course

[moxham123]

I started out as a drummer/percussionist and then started to play guitar in a band when I was 13 years old, The bass player quit the next year and I was elected to play bass. That was 41 years ago and I have not stopped since. Playing bass turned out to be a great move for me. I have also played keyboards and violin but bass has always been my main (and now, only) instrument.

[Lowender]

I started out as a drummer/percussionist and then started to play guitar in a band when I was 13 years old, The bass player quit the next year and I was elected to play bass. That was 41 years ago and I have not stopped since. Playing bass turned out to be a great move for me. I have also played keyboards and violin but bass has always been my main (and now, only) instrument.

WOW 41 years of bass playing. I would love to pick your brain someday

[metalchurch]

Tony Iommi, Randy Rhoads, and Jake E. Lee.
The Diary of a Madman album & Bark at the Moon album were the ones that what made me want to play.
I remember I was around 12yrs old sneaking my Dad's Sabbath and Ozzy albums into my room and playing them.
I'm 33 now, and I'm right around the age my Dad was at the time I was stealing his vinyl.

But to go back a little further than that, my Dad gave me a handful of cassette tapes when I was 6-7yrs old that really got me into music.
Short list:
Judas Priest - British Steel, Screaming For Vengeance
Twisted Sister - Stay Hungry
Iron Maiden - Powerslave
Dio - The Last In Line
Dokken - Under Lock And Key
Scorpions - Love At First Sting

I also distinctly remember as a kid, (probably 6 or 7yrs old), he would have parties at the house, and the Sabbath Master of Reality 8-track would play over and over and over all night long.....and the air would be thick......LOL

My Dad rocked! He never played guitar, but he really enjoyed music and he influenced me greatly in that respect.

[moxham123]

WOW 41 years of bass playing. I would love to pick your brain someday

I would be happy to discuss bass playing with you anytime. There are other bass players around the area who have been playing a very long time as well who would be happy to share information with you.

[robinhood]

Well, honestly my first desire was to play drums. I told myself going with guitar was good too because a close friend of mine in high school played, but music has always been a big part of my life. One Christmas i put on my list a 1500$ drumset, or a 100$ guitar jampack, and well I of course got the acoustic guitar, which I was totally ok with, Unfortunately at the time I was attempting to teach myself, and later became very frustrated and it ended up in the corner gathering dust. 3 years ago, my one friend had a band that I was "roadieing(dont think its a real word lol)" for, the bass player and drummer quit, so they asked me to play I borrowed a bass and I immediately fell in love, totally a big fan of the thumpy noises Have to say that Steve Harris was and still is like my idol when it comes to bass playing, and of course over time I've discovered a decent list. Also, chick bass players, well ::shrugs:: we're just hot just messin

[ToonaRockGuy]

I naturally gravitated towards drumming as a child. I did the standard kid thing, banging on mom's pots and pans. When I was four, I got my first drumset and it took off from there. My dad has a Master's in music from Fresno State, and he encouraged and taught me what he knew. Growing up, I played drums and violin, along with piano. I also taught myself a little guitar and bass along the way so I could "communicate" with other cats in whatever band I was playing with.

Visually, my biggest influences growing up were Animal from the Muppet Show, Buddy Rich, and Peter Criss. Sonically, it was Neil Peart from Rush, Tommy Lee from the Crue, and Alan White from Yes.

Been playing now for 39 years and don't ever plan on stopping or learning. Love watching other local folks play, as I always learn something from everyone that I see. Got to watch some drummers at the Wallack show that I hadn't seen before, including Paul Carracciolo and Pam Hiles! Rest assured, I've added some new stuff to the ol' toolbox!

[KeithReynolds]

Im not sure if anyone influenced me to start. I dont remember. I dare not say Peter Steele.
Started with guitar though. Then I decided I wanted to play other things too.
I now can jam on bass, drums, guitar, some keys and sing if joo want me too. Im not an amazing drummer at all, but thats what I have the most fun playing. Drummers have all the fun! Anytime im around a kit, I just wanna get behind it. I want to get an electronic kit so I can can start playing again!!!!

I just remembered, the first rockstar I remember wanting to be like was Bruce Springsteen when I was around 4 yrs old. I was singing "Born in the usa" into a yellow plastic baseball bat. I remember that it made my mom laugh. He wasnt an influence, but im pretty sure at one time I wanted to be a performer.

[MistValkyrie]

I remember I was around 12yrs old sneaking my Dad's Sabbath and Ozzy albums into my room and playing them.

lol...glad to know I'm not the only one on here who got into metal at waaaay to young an age.

I started playing the piano at 5 or 6 six because my siblings and I all had to learn and my sister first taught me (because I couldn't wait the extra year or two before I would be eligible for lessons). She's a great pianist, my brother, dad, and uncle all played the guitar and we all sing. I will always love the piano but it was never the same as the bass. There were also other flirtations with the drums, the harmonica (which I did end up taking up), and the trumpet (which I also ended up taking up in school).

I remember the exact moment I knew I wanted to play bass, though. I was about 9 years old my dad and my siblings and I went to the Mountain Man festival -or whatever it was called- at Glendale Lake. Anyone remember those? Anyway, there was some local band up on stage who's name I don't even remember and didn't find out to begin with. The rest of my family was off somewhere but my dad and I went up to the stage to listen to the band...it was the first time I had ever seen a band live. I'll never forget it, we were standing to the right of the stage, right in front of the speakers and every note that bass played hit me like a shot in the chest. I've never felt anything like it since...it was like destiny.
I didn't actually start playing until 1999 though. I spent years saving up for a bass but couldn't seem to get anywhere until my 17th birthday when my dad surprised me and bought me a used Squier. Once I had that instrument in my hands, its was like that whole part of my life just lined up...like the universe was telling me that I was on the right track. It was very cool, like that part in the first Harry Potter movie when he gets his wand...albeit without the sudden gust of wind and the booming theaterical score. lol

[CMOR]

My ears have always have been naturally tuned to the lower frequencies, so bass was no-brainer for me. My mom taught me some piano when I was little, then some trumpet a few years later, but none of it felt right. As far as influences, on the pro level, I'd have to say Cliff Burton, Robert Trujillo and Geddy Lee. Locally, who were more influence on me than any national player, in no particular order, Orangekick, The Buck(yeah, he's a guitarist) and Dustin Crandell. I've been chasing Dustin's tone for years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJBaypZZu7w

Anybody else remember The Pinch?

[metalchurch]

I remember I was around 12yrs old sneaking my Dad's Sabbath and Ozzy albums into my room and playing them.

Haaa! You know it, sisterhood!

Funny, cause he gave me those cassettes, all of which were fairly new releases (80-87), however, the vinyl were always off limits....go figure
But as they say: "When the Dad's away the Sabb will play"
I eventually bought my own Sabbath albums off of ebay, so take that Dad!

Lots of cool stories here, great reading that's for sure!
+1 for Robert Trujillo, Geddy Lee, Steve Harris, Neil Peart, and Tommy Lee!!

[lynch1]

I wanted to play guitar from a very early age, but mom and dad thought it was just phase, so they never really pushed buying a guitar. they finally did buy one from Sears, nylon strings wouldnt stay in tune, but I still wanted to play. my "aha moment" came when I was 15, a kid on the bus lent me his Van Halen Women and Children First record. I sat there stupified. Like I said, I always wanted to play guitar, but all I really new up to that point were the old country players, Jerry Reed in particular for some reason. When I found metal, that was all she wrote. Eddie got me really into guitar, but wanting to play in a band was my guitar god George Lynch. Seeing the video for In My Dreams, hearing the solo, watching him, I wanted to get serious. that was 26 years ago. still playing, not in a band because of my work schedule, but play to an imaginary roaring crowd in my basement almost every night, lol.

[f.sciarrillo]

There are some great stories here. I am really enjoying reading them.

[Dragan Kalasa]

For me...it started with my family. My grandmother, my great aunt, and another aunt played piano. My uncle had a piano at his house. My one cousin plays bass. So apparently music has been in my blood.

When I got into 5th grade, I wanted to join band. I wanted to be a snare drummer, but I ended up choosing to be an alto saxophone player. I enjoyed it immensely, and once in awhile I reminisce about that time and wonder if I should ever pick it up again. My music instructor from 5th grade til I graduated was apparently obsessed with Eric Clapton, because in concert and jazz bands he was kind of highlighted a lot in our performances. After graduating, I was (and still am) interested in Japanese animé. In watching Cowboy Bebop, I was introduced to a jazz fusion type of music. Never really attempted to try and play it, although at times I'm very tempted.

When I was around 14 or 15, and probably because of peer pressure, lol, I was also introduced to Black Metal and joined a band in which I used a Digitech RP100 for distortion and instead of plugging a guitar into it, I plugged in a microphone. So that's basically how I became a "vocalist" and where I'm at now.

[kidrck42]

I, like many others here, grew up in a musical family. My grandmother played the organ at church for 20 years (recently stepping down due to illness). My mom played in bands from the time i was little, and i always enjoyed sitting up in the garage listening to them practice, and around the holidays the whole family would get together with accordions, a piano, and guitars n just jam all night long. I never touched an instrument tho until my freshman year of college. I was more into writing than anything, but Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam really changed that. Hearing yellow ledbetter made me pick up a guitar and I've been playing ever since. And now I'm the one in the family people call and ask to teach and jam with haha.

[witchhunt]

I got into rock music around age 10. My first 8 track was Alice Cooper's Love it to Death and I wore it out. Killer may have been my 2nd and I wore it out, too. At that age, I probably didn't pay a lot of attention to individual instruments but the song as a whole. I hadn't heard much of Sabbath til Vol. 4. Now I'm starting to hear what each instrument is doing. Geezer blew me away. Now in 1974 I bought KISS Hotter than Hell. I was 13 and didn't actually realize that KISS weren't quite the great musicians as some of the other bands but they brought the theatrics which I loved. So I'll have to say that Gene Simmons was my original inspiration. That was cool cause he really got me listening to the other bassists a little closer. In 1975 I bought Fly by Night and that was it. Need I say more.

[DickShackBass]

Honestly, my entire life I wanted to be a performer. I remember being a little kid and writing songs that I'd sing for my parents and their friends (I bet my folks friends REALLY enjoyed that haha).

As I got older I wanted to play an instrument. I played the flute from 4th grade until I graduated high school. I still love the instrument. I got an electric guitar in 8th grade, but not an amp. I took some lessons, used my instructors amp at my lesson, but hated practicing without an amp. So I quit.

Somewhere around 10th grade I got a bass and an amp and took a few lessons, but at that age I was really going through a lot so quit.

I completely gave up my dream of ever performing.

Then came 2007. I was in my mid 30s, still loved music and fell completely in love with the sound that Billy Gould of Faith No More created on his bass. I had to learn.

So I got another bass, began teaching myself.
That's it.
I love Billy Gould's style.

Andrea

[Don Hughes]

Even though I'm a piano/keyboard player, I can remember completely wearing out my father's ZZ Top Eliminator album. Classic.

[Pizon]

Believe it or not, i got interested in playing bass by seeing a guy at the
cambria county fair. They had a small combo to draw in the crowd for the
"hootchie kootchie" show. I asked him-- what kind of guitar is that? He
said it's a bass, so with the $$ i earned from working at a pizza stand, i
went and bought my first bass. Wasn't long after that i ended up in the
Navy, and since it's hard to play bass all alone, i saw a guy with a gibson 12 string on board. I used to watch where he put his fingers, and one day i just asked-- can i try that? He let me, and in 3 weeks i was playing fairly well. Bought a Hofner bass for $100 american in Germany. Found
other musicians on board, and we had a small band on the ship. would play for beer when we hit ports. all this was in the mid 60's. Have been
in a few bands since then playin either ryhthm or bass. Am currently the
bass player in Night Train, and havin a ball. Had a slight stroke about 5
years ago, and it causes me to have brain farts occasionally, but the other
guys cover for me. I'm amazed by all the talent in the area. It's
really great to meet other people and get ideas or help. Just turned
65, but i'm still rockin!!

[lonewolf]

I started out on piano (Dad) and trumpet (Pap) before grade school and continued with trumpet until I heard In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida in the late 60s. I made makeshift drums from upside down plastic trash cans and sticks that i carved from scrap 1x1 wood, an old Stella guitar and a cheap little electric organ. I learned all the instrument solos from that song. From that, I liked guitar the best. I took my paper route money, went to Mason's (where Value City used to be) and picked up a Teisco electric guitar and Checkmate 12W amp and never looked back.

After that, I never had an acoustic guitar until I bought one at Jarrett's some time in the '90s

[Metalhead]

my neighbor phil , saucemonster and hot chicks and band/musician wise too many to list,