Hey Tom,

A numberof people have mentioned McLaughlin. But, I'll tell you something and I know a lot of players who agree, if you take a random point in any of his solos, you'll hear something more or less like having chosen any other random point. To me, John is a non-melodic improviser. Chops? Well, he's untouchable, of course, but I ask, "Where's the beef?" Like those fast-talking disclaimers on TV, my first reaction is "Wow!" followed by "Uh ... Whad'e say?"

Frankly, I think the emphasis on "chops" has gotten out of hand. In one note, Gene Ammons could say more on his tenor than I could in a million-note solo. I even invented a Chinese proverb emphasizing that the guitar is a limited voice (apologies to my Asian colleagues on the Forum for this stereotypic delivery; no insult intended).

The proverb: "Man with guitar run into man with saxophone like man with guitar run into tree chipper."

After all, what other instrument requires so many prosthetic devices (stomp boxes, effects pedals, processors, etc.) to make it work?

It's a tremendous compliment to even be mentioned in the same breath as McL. But it would also be good if listeners could hear what I'm trying to be: a melodic improviser that plays accessible ideas that you can sink your teeth into. The way I look at it, chops are the means to the end, not the end itself. Of course, folks are free to disagree. This is just a personal thing. My rant is over.

Dean