Ace Frehley on Noisey....

[Anonymous]

Ok so maybe he is an average player, pretty sloppy (the guy is 60+ years old, so ..) but he came up with some iconic licks. I saw him a few months ago and he is pretty sharp live. He has played on big stages for massive crowds for years, bigger than any of us will and and to be able to do that takes something other than fleet fingers and impressive technique. It takes a set of balls, and not a lot of people can be a megastar and walk the walk for as long as he (they) did.

He's not an average player (IMO anyway). He flat out sucks. I saw them on the first reunion tour and his solo was a complete caterwauling catastrophe, his timing was incredibly bad, the slop was just screaming through the unbelievable volume and all through it (and the rest of the show), this drunk dude standing next to me kept screaming in my ear, "Ace is bast guitar EVAH!!!!". This is what I don't understand - you're hearing this, how can you not hear it absolutely sucks (it was actually painful)?

I also saw Kiss in '76 and he sucked as a player then as well, so age is not even an issue.

Kiss is a lot of fun to watch and they have some good songs - they are great at marketing and very successful. That is all about Paul and Gene. Any hack guitar player could have been stuck in the Ace slot and it would not have made a difference...

I don't understand how playing big stages for massive crowds is any badge of honor? If you lack stage fright, playing those shows is the dream of a lifetime and a privilege - so what does it take to do that that I'm missing here? Anyone taking up guitar dreams of those shows so I don't see how it takes a set of balls (unless you have some sort of stage fright). For me playing for 5000 people was a rush, it was fucking awesome...

Steve

 

[JerEvil]

Man I don't care how NOT technically proficient Ace is, he and Iommi were what brought me to rock and roll in 2nd grade. Alive! and Hotter Than Hell showed me the way.

I think Jimmy Page sucks so what do I know! LOL!

IOMMI!!! YES!!! thats a REAL FUCKIN MAN>

on the Page comment, ...are you fookin mad mate?!?


DESTROYS ACE IN EVERY CAPACITY!!!

Lol! I love you Reza!

Yeah when I was really starting to learn to play guitar, I was into Yngwie, Lynch, that kind of stuff. When I heard that lead break in Heartbreaker I was like... "What the hell is this sloppy shit???"

Page wrote some really stellar rhythm riffs but man he is the sloppiest thing on 2 legs and it just grinds my gears! And don't give me that "he's got mojo" crap! I dunno, he's one of the greats I will never be a convert to. Hell it took me 20+ years to finally appreciate Hendrix!

I think Page is just as sloppy as Ace!

Now Iommi is a whole other thing for me. Just love him all around. Tone, style, whacky vibrato. Again, not a super technical player but just massive.

 

[War Admiral]

I understand the opinion thing but why beat on a legend whether he is good or not? Its irrelevant. He still came up with some very memorable shit!! Fuck...considering his limited chops to todays standards he made it big. Shit...we are all guilty throwing in some Ace licks here and there lol

 

[Anonymous]

Man I don't care how NOT technically proficient Ace is, he and Iommi were what brought me to rock and roll in 2nd grade. Alive! and Hotter Than Hell showed me the way.

I think Jimmy Page sucks so what do I know! LOL!

IOMMI!!! YES!!! thats a REAL FUCKIN MAN>

on the Page comment, ...are you fookin mad mate?!?


DESTROYS ACE IN EVERY CAPACITY!!!

Lol! I love you Reza!

Yeah when I was really starting to learn to play guitar, I was into Yngwie, Lynch, that kind of stuff. When I heard that lead break in Heartbreaker I was like... "What the hell is this sloppy shit???"

Page wrote some really stellar rhythm riffs but man he is the sloppiest thing on 2 legs and it just grinds my gears! And don't give me that "he's got mojo" crap! I dunno, he's one of the greats I will never be a convert to. Hell it took me 20+ years to finally appreciate Hendrix!

I think Page is just as sloppy as Ace!

Now Iommi is a whole other thing for me. Just love him all around. Tone, style, whacky vibrato. Again, not a super technical player but just massive.

I think EVH summed it up best:

"Jimmy Page is an excellent producer. Led Zeppelin 1 and Led Zeppelin 2 are classics. As a player. He's very good in the studio. I never saw him play well live. He's very sloppy. He plays like he's got a broken hand and he's two years old. But if you put out a good album and play like a two-year-old live. What's the purpose?"

Steve

 

[Doughboy]

I like all the guitarists mentioned here.
Ace is one of my guitar heros and I am definitely not in the 2nd grade.

Hey, then why do you have a juice box in your Dukes of Hazard lunch box.

 

[Anonymous]

I understand the opinion thing but why beat on a legend whether he is good or not? Its irrelevant. Fuck...considering his limited chops to todays standards he made it big. Shit...we are all guilty throwing in some Ace licks here and there lol

The reason I'm giving my opinion on Ace's playing is because I find it incredibly hard to comprehend why people talk about his playing like he's a guitar god when he's clearly not a good player. When I see posted:

"Nobody sounds like Ace, but Ace. Perfect example of tone is in the fingers."

all I can think of is, "Someone please chop those fingers off then."

I'm obviously exaggerating that comment for effect, but, I can't understand how anyone could think he sounded remotely good in the OP's video...

Steve

 

[JerEvil]

Man I don't care how NOT technically proficient Ace is, he and Iommi were what brought me to rock and roll in 2nd grade. Alive! and Hotter Than Hell showed me the way.

I think Jimmy Page sucks so what do I know! LOL!

IOMMI!!! YES!!! thats a REAL FUCKIN MAN>

on the Page comment, ...are you fookin mad mate?!?


DESTROYS ACE IN EVERY CAPACITY!!!

Lol! I love you Reza!

Yeah when I was really starting to learn to play guitar, I was into Yngwie, Lynch, that kind of stuff. When I heard that lead break in Heartbreaker I was like... "What the hell is this sloppy shit???"

Page wrote some really stellar rhythm riffs but man he is the sloppiest thing on 2 legs and it just grinds my gears! And don't give me that "he's got mojo" crap! I dunno, he's one of the greats I will never be a convert to. Hell it took me 20+ years to finally appreciate Hendrix!

I think Page is just as sloppy as Ace!

Now Iommi is a whole other thing for me. Just love him all around. Tone, style, whacky vibrato. Again, not a super technical player but just massive.

I think EVH summed it up best:

"Jimmy Page is an excellent producer. Led Zeppelin 1 and Led Zeppelin 2 are classics. As a player. He's very good in the studio. I never saw him play well live. He's very sloppy. He plays like he's got a broken hand and he's two years old. But if you put out a good album and play like a two-year-old live. What's the purpose?"

Steve

Never read that from EVH before but man, he nailed it. Unfortunately, fans of specific legends make me dislike those players all the more. Whenever I tell a guitar player my opinions on Jimmy, I feel like John Candy in the movie Canadian Bacon (see clip @ the 1:20 mark

 

[War Admiral]

I understand the opinion thing but why beat on a legend whether he is good or not? Its irrelevant. Fuck...considering his limited chops to todays standards he made it big. Shit...we are all guilty throwing in some Ace licks here and there lol

The reason I'm giving my opinion on Ace's playing is because I find it incredibly hard to comprehend why people talk about his playing like he's a guitar god when he's clearly not a good player. When I see posted:

"Nobody sounds like Ace, but Ace. Perfect example of tone is in the fingers."

all I can think of is, "Someone please chop those fingers off then."

I'm obviously exaggerating that comment for effect, but, I can't understand how anyone could think he sounded remotely good in the OP's video...

Steve

Guitar God is too much for sure...legend yes because of circumstance. Same for Page and the rest we deem not worthy...

 

[Mailman1971]

I like all the guitarists mentioned here.
Ace is one of my guitar heros and I am definitely not in the 2nd grade.

Hey, then why do you have a juice box in your Dukes of Hazard lunch box.

That's The Six Million Dolllar Man lunch box thank you very much!

 

[Rock Bodom]

But Ace has super powers (at least he did in the 70's).

 

[Kevin11]

all the Hammett haters couldn't play a single fucking solo he did off of any of the first 3 metallica albums.

gtfoh with that bullshit.

You assume too much.

Love early Metallica. Hammett seems like a cool cat, but I'm not a fan of his playing at all. I feel exactly the same way about him as you do about Ace, who I'm a huge fan of BTW.

Please post a video of you shredding some early metallica solo. I would actually love that.
I think his early album solos are some of the best. I love that extended pentatonic fucking shred shit. Mustaine really did that shit the best though.

Don't have a Metallica clip unfortunately, but how's some beer-fueled hacky Norum? I even threw in a classic Hammett overbend for you. It's all in good fun man. I'm with you, I love those first 3 records and think Kirk did some of his best work on them. Like them or not, every guitarist mentioned here has earned their place in history. Ace was Dimes favorite guitarist for a reason right?

 

[Kevin11]

all the Hammett haters couldn't play a single fucking solo he did off of any of the first 3 metallica albums.

gtfoh with that bullshit.

You assume too much.

Love early Metallica. Hammett seems like a cool cat, but I'm not a fan of his playing at all. I feel exactly the same way about him as you do about Ace, who I'm a huge fan of BTW.

Please post a video of you shredding some early metallica solo. I would actually love that.
I think his early album solos are some of the best. I love that extended pentatonic fucking shred shit. Mustaine really did that shit the best though.

Don't have a Metallica clip unfortunately, but how's some beer-fueled hacky Norum? I even threw in a classic Hammett overbend for you. It's all in good fun man. I'm with you, I love those first 3 records and think Kirk did some of his best work on them. Like them or not, every guitarist mentioned here has earned their place in history. Ace was Dimes favorite guitarist for a reason right?

FUCKK!!!!!! now that song is stuck in my fucking head!!!! DAMN YOU!!!! DAMN YOU!!!!!!

 

[romanianreaper]

Ace has been one of my heroes since the mid-70s when I was a kid. He has such a sloppy playing style but it just works. It is like Keith Richards or something.

 

[sg guy]

-apologizing because some one isn't as "technically proficient" is the insight and huge blunder of what killed rock/metal/80's... Not nirvana, when you judge "good" by how fast you can sweep pick scales, its the reason we're talking about this on RIG TALK, a small nitche slice of the music scene....

-the sad part of this is most won't even see this as an insult, they'll go home a practice there scales as fast as they can.... That's how they measure "good"

-I think ACE today sucks, the "its painful to watch/listen" is the truth, but the ACE of the early years was just as good if not better than his peer's,... TED NUGENT "I've seen ACE be brilliant, then I've seen him be horrible, too much drugs I guess''

-I'd "listen"<----yeah,--i--like--to --actually--listen--to--music----not watch his fucking technique!!!!!.... To ACE over any shredder,.... I'd rather pull my finger nails out with vice grips that look at those self flatuating wankers and the boring, following all the rules with zero originality pieced of shit that some bow down to.

-someone post the clips of ACE doing the tapping, or the shock me solo ...

-

 

[BRENTrocks]

wow...so much ACE hate....I don't understand

 

[mudf00t]

wow...so much ACE hate....I don't understand

ACE hateRS. Something I could never comprehend are these purists motherfuckers who love to talk about how people suck. Ace proves that you don't have to be a stellar guitar player to be ONE OF THE BIGGEST GODDAMN ROCK STARS IN THE WORLD. I am not a Kiss fan or an Ace Frehley fan but you haters can get the fuck outa here with that bullshit.

 

[Mailman1971]

Ok we all know EVH is more technical 'better' then Ace.
Yngwie.....Technical 'better' then Ace.

But the last time I bought a Van Halen Album? 22 years ago.
Last time I bought a Malmsteen CD?? Never....*YAWN*

But just 2 months ago.................... I bought the New Ace Frehley album.
Just good music. But thats just me.

 

[rottingcorpse]

I am just glad the viceland channel is getting some love.

 

[Doughboy]

wow...so much ACE hate....I don't understand

ACE hateRS. Something I could never comprehend are these purists motherfuckers who love to talk about how people suck. Ace proves that you don't have to be a stellar guitar player to be ONE OF THE BIGGEST GODDAMN ROCK STARS IN THE WORLD. I am not a Kiss fan or an Ace Frehley fan but you haters can get the fuck outa here with that bullshit.

Yes, he absolutely unequivocally in every way imaginable proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that you don't need to be a stellar guitar player to be ONE OF THE BIGGEST GODDAMN ROCK STARS IN THE WORLD.

 

[Mailman1971]

I am just glad the viceland channel is getting some love.

Don't make me hit you in the head with my Six million dollar Bionic man lunch box.