RE: guitar drone music

["William Walker" <billwalker@baymoon.com>]

 " my suggestion

..don't listen to any guitarists..

:-)

andy butler"

 Funny, that has been my conscious decision for the last few years,
purposefully stop listening to other guitar players, with of course Andy
Butler, and Jeff Beck being the exceptions ;-)
 Seriously, at some point I think it's healthy to turn off the faucet of
influence, particularly from other guitarists.  Listen to Tuvin throat
music, Borneo water music, Bulgarian women's choir. Gyoto Monks chanting,
Kawali singing, Ella Fitzgerald scatting, any vocal music in general to
influence your playing if you must. Its not that I don't check out new
players at all, it's just that I don't consciously try to cop licks or 
glean
influence any more like I did in my twenties.  Its flattering to have
someone compliment your playing by telling you sound like this guy or that,
its another thing to have someone appreciate you for your individuality.
Years ago I was playing in a club in Osaka and was doing some wang bar
strangling and leaning in to the monitor to coax feedback, Two young guys
came up to me during the break, smiling and nodding, and saying something
over and over again that I couldn't make out due to the club noise and
language barrier,  and finally I realized they were saying  Adrian Belew!
Adrian Belew!, as a way of giving me a compliment. I really appreciated the
reference but it also made me want to work harder to develop my own musical
identity, and shed or at least obscure my influences.
Bill