Shawn Lane talks about Picking technique & rhythmic groupings (AIM, 1995)

[TheObsidianDust]

stop arguing over which guitarist is "best". On the level of true art which is only reached by a minority of those who would practice an "art form" there is no better or worse only personal preference. All great artists are different. For example Bill Frisell is great; he is completely unique. Therefore it would not make any sense to say that he is worse than Shawn Lane because he is not as chops heavy. But simultaneously he is not better. Both have something to unique to contribute to the arts.

[minoux02]

Kirk Hammett is better than this fat pussy

[o0Slipdisc0o]

@minoux02 Kirk Hammet is in absolute awe of Shawn. He's eons upon eons behind. Don't ever mention that 5-trick pony ever again in the same sentence with Shawn. And please come back to at least fake a stroke Nimrod....

[o0Slipdisc0o]

@o0Slipdisc0o "On the Monsters Of Rock Tour, Metallica and Dokken were staying together at a hotel in Nashville. I was in my room, and I heard this Top-40 cover band playing up on the roof. The guitar player was wailing. They played another song, and suddenly this guy sounded like Allan Holdsworth. I thought, "Whoa! This solo isn't in that song!" Later, I ran into George Lynch from Dokken. I

asked, "Hey, man, was that you jamming?" He said, "No, that was Shawn

Lane." - Kirk Hammett, Metallica

[minoux02]

@o0Slipdisc0o yes, feed me more hate 8==D

[kalapoka666]

@minoux02 You must be new here.

[perrochumbeque]

@minoux02 jajajaja, nice joke, And now one about pirates please.

[noisyneil]

unbelievable guitarist. wish i could hear what he was playing under that horrible sound.

[HMG5588]

Every One PLEASE!!!

We gotta get some one in the film documentary business to do a 2+ hour piece on this genius of the modern electric guitar. Shawn Lane beyond any doubt was THE musical genius of our time. All of his recorded data on musical theory, interpretation of sound and melody, and technical ability must be gathered, cataloged, preserved, taught at all levels of musical education, and presented on film for the masses. DON'T LET HIM FADE INTO HISTORY!!! MAKE THE FILM! WRITE THE BIO!

[DiatonicSoul]

He had the "Nintendo button pushing" technique infused in his picking.

[vigier8604]

What the hell did i just hear from his guitar :( , his tone's always perfect and heart touching. whenever i listen you make ur guitar sing i have a mouth with widest open @@

[wblakesx]

sock it to me

[Xanadude575]

I can't conceive of playing so quickly, cleanly, and effortlessly. It's beyond my comprehension.

[6672rock]

My God, what a freakishly fast and flawless technique! If I had 10 percent of his ability, then maybe I could make some impact as a guitarist. Shawn Lane, God rest your soul.

[Iluvbuckethead1]

He looks like a fluffy Che Guevara who is epicer than the most epic person in epicdom.

[vetmusician]

@Iluvbuckethead1 "fluffy Che Guevara"............LMFAO.....­.............never heard THAT one....lol, he was just a genius pure and simple........it was never just "one" thing with lane, tone, technique, musicality, phrasing.......i could go on, but then it was something else, that i cant quite put my finger on..........

[petermccoll]

shawn lane is truly an incredibly fast picker, but he holds it back for the end of songs, to give a sort of 'build up' effect. but i think hes much better at spreading his emotion in music as oppose to the small sub-genre of music which is speed. He distributes his rhythm, melody and harmony equally throughout his songs. obviously he's not the quickest. we've all seen the world record by della vega. but he is the best musically. that is why he's my favourite.

[Chaif15Let]

@petermccoll Shawn was actually faster than Della Vega. Have you seen the video where he performs "Not Again" in the studio with Sean Rickman? Some of the shredded passages he plays near the end are the fastest I have ever heard in my life.

[fockingclassy]

I think someone has hit the fast forward when hes playing. This is impossible

[guitarfan1979]

Shawn would have hated these comments here

[rawrgDX]

I definitely prefer Lane to Petrucci any day in technique. He has a cleaner, better musical tone, and less focus on economy picking to match up both hands. But they are different styles, and thank God for that! XD

[TheLydianRocks]

people talk out of your assholes, lane is epic but all the retards talking about "woah dude its 25 notes a second" need to realize that we live in a day and age where we can slow stuff down without affecting pitch, when i put a shawn lane piece in "amazing slow downer" software, i certainly don't end up[ with 25 notes a second. love the guy for his talent..dont make stupid chuck norris style shit up

[ChainsawVsGod]

@TheLydianRocks

Rofl. Fucking chill man, People are clearly only joking.

[tmh1717]

"and then I kinda like went into straight sixes there..."

[JamesGod08]

How can he play like that without even looking at the guitar, and his eyes go funny like he is entering a spazzed out trance

[headlesssoldier]

the thing about shawn, is you have to watch a lot of video. I'm constantly impressed how wide his style really is. his soufulness can get really crazy.

What is with all these great players who get sick? WTF!

[JamesGod08]

@headlesssoldier You'd probably get sick too putting in the hours they do

[TheFigueroa007]

Shawn Lane is not of this universe.

[tabotabojayar]

dadigadachudiadagdgadeadad,,,,­,,,,,,

[MilanPolak]

the BIG difference between Shawn Lane and most of the other shredders: he didn't play fast to break a world record or impress. Technique was merely just a tool to create his sound. I was lucky enough to meet him, teach with him and hang out with him a few times. He was a very nice, down-to-earth guy, very intelligent and well-read...

[xuxis2008]

@MilanPolak Really? That´'s great. I never had the chance of watch him playing live, but at least on records and videos he was incredible. The only other player that techinically impressed me as much (this one I had the privilege of attending a show, in New York, 1991) is Allan Holdsworth. Both him and Shane play like the guitar was made of butter. Unbelievable.

[gammypage]

He also has tiny hands

[neddomac]

wow no dislikes pretty amazing...

[jimzzy49]

No way! How can anyone play at!!!-------->>>"88 trillion notes per second"!! Get real!! It just takes you at least 7 notes per second, to play at a constant speed of "420BPM" for that FACT!!!

N:B That there are 60 seconds in a minute right!! so multiply 2 notes X 60seconds and it equals= 120BPM ok

[webrokeyourbed]

@jimzzy49 It was a joke man, He was exaggerating on purpose because Shawn is just that ridiculously fast

[jimzzy49]

@webrokeyourbed Oh ok, never mind - silly me!!

[Spieleschummler]

This is so funny, because I thought I knew him from somewhere, but I don't. Then he seems little nervous and shy, but when he plays, just how ultimateguitar553 said, he melts you face ^^

[JamesGod08]

"I kinda went to straight sixes there". Oh yeah I noticed that too, not

[turnbacktime]

its a shame shawn isnt still alive.

[dieandgoaway]

@turnbacktime What? Sorry that i dont know a lot about him, but how did he die and when?

[turnbacktime]

@dieandgoaway Lane had psoriasis his whole life and also suffered from psoriatic arthritis from the age of about 13. This did not impair his playing but caused difficulty walking, and required treatment with steroids which seriously affected his weight—so much so that he weighed over three hundred pounds in the years before his death. On September 26, 2003, Shawn died in a hospital in Memphis, shortly after being told that he would have to remain on medical oxygen the rest of his life. (wiki)

[bebeard17]

Yngwie had wet dreams where he was shaun lane

[sublime88sublime]

it is awesome how he really cared for his fellow guitarists, you know, he seemed like the nicest guy, and if buck said he was the greatest guy to ever live, then that proves it

[analshredder]

FUCKIN' FAST

[jimzzy49]

@analshredder Yeah!  - but do you reckon "Diago Della Vega" is a faster player??

[dennoow]

@jimzzy49 I think he's faster yeah, but who cares?

[jimzzy49]

@dennoow Yeah, ok - I guess there will always be good to GREAT guitar players etc

[dennoow]

@jimzzy49 I mean, no one can deny Eric Clapton is a great player in his own genre, he doesn't want to play 20 notes per second. Likewise, I like a lot of slower players better than Lane and especially Della Vega. So it's not important, but the official world record is in the hands of Della Vega for what it's worth.

[jimzzy49]

@dennoow  20 notes per second would equal about?---------->1200 BPM!!! LOL

[dennoow]

@jimzzy49 Depends! It would if you're just playing quarter notes. If you play 16th notes it would be 300 Bpm, Della Vega played I think 320 Bpm or something, which is about 21,3 notes per second, pretty crazy, but it sounds like mosquitos drowning.

[jimzzy49]

@dennoow Oh okay, thanks - lol

[ShredableGuitar]

I believe 370 BPM now. And that would be 24 NPS I believe.

[dennoow]

@ShredableGuitar 24.6666667. Nearly 25 notes ps provided he's playing strictly 16th notes.

[danbau08]

Like his analogies. Freakin unreal.

[partlyshady]

Can someone please tell me if he alternate picks or economy picks? Thanks so much..

[sackvilleshredder123]

@partlyshady i think he uses both depending on what he is playing, not 100 percent sure though :/

[Despond]

Sigh what a tragedy. To think all the new songs and albums he would of made by now if he was still alive. To think he would of IMPROVED as well.

[MaximusDowns]

Shawn plays the most impossible music, and then you find a video like this where he just breaks everything down. He's the most complete musician this era has probably ever seen.

[Xelanderthomas]

He such a big bear of guy and his voice sounds like a kids. Amazing skills.

[TopsyTripsy]

HA! He's wearing a steely tam... that is so awesome.. I love this man!

[benno369]

Shawn Lane the fastest most complete guitarist ever the only guitarist who comes close is Guthrie Govan. Yngwie couldnt touch shawn

[XionComrade]

Yeah man, I mean even for as super human as Yngwie was, I mean the guy was a great writer(he was, even if you didn't like his stuff!) Blazing fast, and was so clean I dare not call him a shredder. But this Shawn Lane guy is just some sort of force of nature!

[ShredableGuitar]

I doubt Guthrie Govan is the closest to Shawn in terms of speed, I highly doubt it.

[benno369]

@ShredableGuitar He's the closest technically to shawn i didnt say closest to him speed wise.

[julianarismendi]

@benno369 never, govan and probably in some kind of thing gambale..!!

[benno369]

@julianarismendi Gambale is immense!

[Fluffypopcicle]

@benno369

wired(dot)com/magazine/2011/12­/pl_fastguitar/ John Taylor is the fastest. The fastest I have ever seen Shawn play is 24 nps, John Taylor is playing 53 nps here. Buckethead plays 3x as many genres as Guthrie and Shawn combined and has larger discography than both of them combined X 50. Shawn's technical ability is unsurpassed and his phrasing is impeccable, that's why he is one of the greatest, if not the greatest ever.

[benno369]

@Fluffypopcicle I don't consider those record breaking guitarists as musicians. They seem to treat guitar playing as a sport and not an art. I have yet to hear buckethead play jazz as guthrie does...

I'm not really a fan of bucketheads albums either...too strange for me. He's similar to Ron Thal, has immense talent but doesn't apply it to making good music. I respect buckethead though. He is a terrific player but I'll always pick Shawn and Guthrie over him.

[Fluffypopcicle]

@benno369

Jazz is one genre of music. That's Guthrie's main genre. Buckethead doesn't have a main genre because he plays so many. Check out his new album Electric Sea, it's beautiful. Also, there have been musical competitions since the classical era, music has always been a competition (sadly). Speed is what some people want to be known for and there is nothing wrong with that.

[Billyhadley1965yeah]

@benno369 What's so strange about "Colma" or "Electric Tears"? I am a massive Buckethead fan (going to see him in concert on April 6th!) and find that every genre he enters he does so with IMMENSE heart & soul. To say Buckethead doesn't apply his talent towards making good music is basically saying you've never bothered to actually listen to it all. Sounds like you got turned off by the technical stuff and totally skipped the EPIC stuff. Relisten, and this time pay attention!

[benno369]

@Billyhadley1965yeah Maybe i should give him another listen. I am impressed by Buckethead's technique but i wish he's ditch the whole gimmick thing and just gig as Brian Caroll.

If you want to see perfect technique, check out Mike Outram now he is someone special and all the things he plays are interesting...to me anyway.

[Billyhadley1965yeah]

@benno369 Personally I think Buckethead has the right idea....because of the bucket/mask he can go to the corner store without signing a bunch of autographs and the like. Totally anonymous! Not only that but I kinda like the "back story" of the Buckethead character.

[benno369]

@Billyhadley1965yeah It's all a bit too querky for me :P

[GuillermoSmyser]

24 fret S series Ibanez.............hmm.

[thejemboy]

RIP shawn ...

[visog]

A real loss - all that talent and a desire to learn! He was awesome then so he would have been phenomenal by now!

[Faststick]

WOw..its just awesome to see this friendly human beeing with agood heart and warm expression sharing his knowledge to others..

[tandas911]

Can anyone help me with my doubt? its about alternate string shifting

when you play 3 notes per string , going down to the lower string, you do DOWN-UP-DOWN-DOWN? or its always DOWN-UP-DOWN-UP?

same in the coming picking, its UP-DOWN-UP-DOWN? OR UP-DOWN-UP-DOWN?

if hope you understand what i mean, sorry im not english talker :(

[0ptriX]

Down-up-down-up-down-up all the time. If you did Down-up-down-down, that would be economy picking.

Shawn used alternate picking most of the time. :)

[tandas911]

@0ptriX dude thanks a lot you cut my bad practice :D cheers for you

Shawn such a awesome dude R.I.P

[cm92129]

@tandas911 its actually dependent on how you want it to sound you can go the economical way which is where you pick 3 times in the direction you are going i.e. up three times then to the next string or down three times that way your pick will follow the motion of your hand

however for string skipping its actually the opposite usually to keep it simple people will pick 2 times leading the pick away from the next string people do this in order to get a little more Dynamic control over guitar

[cm92129]

@tandas911 take every lick and rythmic grouping into consideration when playing something

it can help prevent stagnant playing or "it just sonds the same or like exercisses"

personally I believe that you can play "faster" with the economical picking but its not always the best

people do this in order to get a little more Dynamic control over the insturment. personally I believe that you can play "faster"

[AngeloGrazianoo]

Down Up Down up

[Siggelump]

Shawn and Andy McKee have pretty similar faces. :) Shawn was a great man, may he rest in peace.

[Fluffypopcicle]

"the blacker the cherry the sweeter the juice" HA!!! freakin hilarious. R.I.P.

[benno369]

Sooooooooo Fuckin fast

[xelad1]

LOL "the blacker the cherry the sweeter the juice"

[egghandsthethird]

Shawn looks kinda sexy in his hat and beard:)

[SenecaHighlander]

Seems like he was a very nice and cool guy, along with being completely sickening on the guitar!

[MrZovar]

WTF! Did someone speed parts of this video up? Lol!

[brandon5pennies]

jesus that ibanez is beautiful i wonder if ibanez realizes how stupid they are for not remaking him a set of signature guitars like his ghostrider and the s in this video. basically 24 fret s with an original edge with gold hardware and gibson knobs dimarzio pickups and all that good shit freaking incredible playing no one tops that

[toxicity28]

that would be a rarirty for ibanez, think about, it would be equally as rare as the allen holdsworth ibanez , no scratch that ,as rare as the jennife batten s series

i would kill so many people just to get my hands on a shawn lane signature ibanez (if it exisisted)

[brandon5pennies]

ibanez only made one of his ghostrider and one of the 24 fret s to my knowledge. his ghostrider was seen on ebay for $100,000 i'm gonna cut my losses and save up for a vigier shawn lane master signature and call it a day.

[b0b1919]

HOLY...

[YSBCITTAR]

FUCK...

[Whyrendog]

The stuff he does in this video is pretty much what makes me wonder if I should get all my musical knowledge erased and start from there instead of the "usual."

This taught me more than any of his other videos though, so I am glad to have known most of his other techniques.

Funny thing is, one teacher told me all these techniques as well as Petrucci style warmups long before I knew either of these guys stuff, but I didn't realize you could do anything good with any of it.

[oilkills]

Zesty chips says, "Thank you."

[ultimateguitar553]

He is so underrated

John Petrucci may have his killzone mode, but when Lane shreds, he goes into Melt Your Face Mode, where he can play over 88 trillion notes per second, and u die within a fraction of a second

Lane just kept his NPS low here so that he could keep his clinic going

[mg200442000]

Yea, Petrucci is great & even he said that Shawn Lane was the 'King' when it comes to this technique.

[asshairman09]

So cool Willjay thanks!

Hey btw I emailed Diane from shawn's site and she told me that the ordering system is down and to check back later, I'm really interested in getting 3 or 4 shawn lane dvds, do you have a list of those anywhere? would greatly appreciate it man :D

[Leadfoot570]

Ok, he's a genuis! Fuck!!!

[evtanoxx]

Buckethead about technique, 1996:

"In martial arts, I can see why Bruce Lee was so much better than

everyone else, because of the way he moved his body. It was in the way he

held his arms and all those little details.

[...] I looked at Shawn Lane's hands to see how he picks,

because technically I've never seen anyone more efficient. Of course, the real

ideas are in his head. When he plays, he's always looking out into space,

because he's going for the sound [...]"

[MyShawnLaneVideos]

Thanks for posting that!

[oilkills]

Great comment evtanoxx... he's always looking out into space cuz he's going for the sound :) Brian really knows what he is talking about and is the reason I'm aware of Shawn;) PEACE!

[slowgo93]

@evtanoxx Where did you get that quote from? I want to see the rest of the article.

Thanks man :)

[Aurelius27x]

his picking technique is fuckin unreal

[achaarpickler]

I love Lane and his music, but as is the case whenever a foreigner says 'ta ka dhi mi' I find it really hilarious (only because I'm Indian). But its wonderful how Lane always shared his knowledge with everyone. I discovered Allan Holdsworth only because Shawn raved about him at every opportunity.........

[connord12]

lol lane takes a big hot shit on van halen

[KOB245]

why yes, yes he does connor

[connord12]

:D i pooped a pop sickle!!!

[connord12]

1:15 to 1:28: one of the most epic things ive ever seen

[trevskiw2008]

check out his solo at the end of most "not again" vids you plays an insane outside solo he really was out there trying different music techniques he is just unreal.

[MyShawnLaneVideos]

ROFL!

[brunthroath6912]

he shits on pretty much everyone...

[kweerb8]

@connord12 don't be a snobby douche, they are both legends, both great at combining technicality with creativity, and they were both innovators that developed styles and techniques that changed guitar forever. furthermore, they both take a big hot shit on you, me, and anyone thats ever commented on this video, so who you think is better is irrelevant.

[killersoundz]

good lord.

[TasteDaThumb]

Shawn is not only the most fascinating guitar player, he is music philospher!

Jeff Sipe's comment is hilarious!

[trex257]

DAMN, a 24 fret S-series/sabre YEARS before they were ever brought out in production.

[superhube]

DA - Taka - Takita - taka dimi - Da di gi na dum - and thenet ceter ah

[zxcvmjg]

he's acting like he just drank a pot of coffee

[aliensporebomb]

And he plays guitar likes he drank FOUR pots of coffee!

[cronosbray]

Mind blowing stuff. I've been hit by the Lane effect.

[aaronbergAPB]

The most deep, and technical player in history. He didn't even practice guitar much at all. He made all of those advances in technique very early on, and piano became his instrument of choice. He will remain the legend that he was for decades to come. ApB

[lazychump]

when he says sideways pick angle, does he mean closer to perpendicular to the string vs. parallel?

[KARN1V4L]

yeah

[0ptriX]

Hahahaha! Holy crap! Have you clocked this Willjay?

[FreepowerUG]

One thing I love about Shawn is that just when you think you've seen it all. Holy crap.

[Phrygian12]

thus why its called "The Lane Effect"

have a few Hellborg videos with Lane and the stuff he dose is amazing

[FreepowerUG]

Hehe, the Lane effect has an interesting sound.

There's a odd thud as the jaw hits the floor, and then some frantic rewinding, and then the incredulous laughter.

I can still remember the first time I watched Power Licks and just... well, you know... not really believing it the first time.

[MyShawnLaneVideos]

Hehe.... still remember that myself.... coming home with Power Licks on video, around 1997..... watching it, and just kjjfjhaehfidjjfsiur*^^*UF$SDU(­KJ

[FreepowerUG]

I love that Shawn is almost embarassed by his own ability in that video, and the little things he says -

"That would be it about medium speed...this would be it fast."

"You can also do that lick picking, picking every note."

"You can go on and on with it..."

No Shawn, we can't. XD

[aliensporebomb]

I saw that too. It was like "Guitar technique for alien beings volume I". I played the tape for a music instructor friend of mine and he couldn't actually believe it, he thought it was some kind of joke I was pulling on it. When it dawned on him he was really playing like that his jaw hit the floor and rolled around. Efficiency of motion taken to its most logical extreme.

[KuraiX]

Heh, saw you in the UG forums, watched your awesome videos, and now I smile and laugh at your comment. )O

yeah that's funny xD "of course you can pick every one", when I say that I spent a considerable amount of time with this face on --> O_O

[reid452]

@MyShawnLaneVideos 1997 is my birth date

[reid452]

@MyShawnLaneVideos 1997 is my birth date

[Phrygian12]

"Hehe, the Lane effect has an interesting sound."

I take that offensive!

my friend head exploded cause of the lane effect....not a interesting sound..brains and blood.every where!! ;-;

but watching PL that day was amazing, chills every time he would give advise.

[aliensporebomb]

@FreepowerUG I had the same reaction. And I remember the first time I played it for a music teacher friend, the look on their face was worth about a hundred dollars.

[kalapoka666]

@FreepowerUG where i live, these vdos are very hard to get. but back in 2000, there was a very very small shop selling VCD copies of old lesson tapes by all guitarists. Shawn lane's power licks was there but i didnt know him back then, so i never got it. after 10 yrs I downloaded power licks and i am kicking myself since then.

[MercutioUK2006]

You really are the man!!

Awesome, awesome stuff :)

[onraj9mm]

great. thanks