Quote:
Originally Posted by Thinny
I'm sure he's very aware of this...what makes you think he isn't?
I remember an interview he did around the time of the hall of fame and the presenter was blowing smoke up his ass saying that how Richie was one of the few guitarist that were known to the masses. And Richie said "thanks for the compliment, but I don't really think so..."
But his situation is no different from your average guitarist from a successful rock band. Joe Perry, Keith Richards, Brian May, etc who are all guitar players that release solo stuff, never sell any records or play huge venues. There are very few exceptions of guitar players that do well solo. Slash is once exception as he is such an iconic character. The majority of guitar players always fall in the shadow of the singer, that's just the way it is...
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This is about it. Slash obviously trades off his own name, but I also think he did it the right way by just staying as the guitarist. His output is still very much a band situation. I am not saying Richie should do the same, but it shows the unique place Slash is in.
The only guitarists who are selling and touring well are the ones who have always been known as guitarists, like Vai, Bonamassa, etc. I can't think of any guitarist who dipped out of a band who has had major success, not in recent decades anyway.
And, some are assuming Richie isn't getting this? I think he deserves at least the presumption that he has not been walking around for 40 years with his eyes closed. He may not be Jon, but he knows how the business works and how far he can go.
I still don't buy him as a frontman and that is part of the problem for me. At the same time, I get why he wants to be front and center.