Timi Temple’s Top 5 Influential Guitarists

Recognisable playing along side Kilter as his live guitarist it is now time for Australia’s own TIMI TEMPLE to unleash his own intoxicating music with the release of his psychedelic new single Sands Of Time that has just dropped. Rather than drop by and do the usual interview to promote his single Timi has taken the reigns and compiled a list of his Top 5 Influential Guitarists. Before reading on check out the new video clip for Sands Of Time.

TIMI TEMPLE’S TOP 5 INFLUENTIAL GUITARISTS

The list that is about to follow is of five legendary guitarists who have shaped the way I play. I want to make a few special honorary mentions prior though, I must confess, I did have a teen shred era of which Joe Satriani and Steve Vai frequented my ears, and during uni I donned a jazz hat and listened to the likes of John Schofield and Pat Metheny. However, the guitarists that remain by my side will always be…

Eric Clapton

My first song I learnt on guitar was sunshine of your love. I wish with all my heart that one day I write a guitar riff as good as this. Just having a legacy live through all the new breed of guitarists would fill my heart to the brim and more! I’m sure this is contender for most learnt riff, this and bloody smoke on the water…

Clapton was also the first guitarist and singer I got into, well, guitarist that sings his own songs haha. I resonate personally with this heaps! His soloing technique, (I think he was called ‘slow hand’ at some point? but maybe my dad made that up) is really cool, just holding out a single note after a winding blues lick is like the modern interpretation of BB King!!

Jimmy Page

Satiating my more rock side, Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin is all time. From songs that cross exotic key signatures (Phrygian dominant) and time signatures like Kashmir to, once again, ubiquitous guitar riff legacy, stairway to heaven, Jimmy has done it all! I think he was also a session musician before ledzep so he had heaps of experience playing different genres and I think this attributes to the uniqueness of the riffs in Zeppelins catalog. As a guitarist, I come from a session background as well, and I’m often writing songs that attempt to incorporate things I’ve taken from odd genres in the hopes that I create a masterful blend! Finally, he also made popular the double neck gibson SG… I’ve got my eyes on one… damn I really want it… Christmas is just around the corner I guess haha

Jimi Hendrix

What guitar list is complete without Hendrix gracing it?? He’s the name sake for the TIMI in TIMI TEMPLE.

This legend brought so so many creative techniques to the guitar and I’m not sure if theres been a more influential innovator on the instrument! In saying that, I’ve only ever learnt techniques from Hendrix songs, never actually to play one front to back. His music is just so beautiful and perfect in all its weird intricacies that I don’t really want to touch it! Semi steering away from guitaring, I really love JIMI’s lyrics. He’s so very descriptive and closing your eyes while absorbing the words truly paints a picture in my mind. I strive for this level of creativity and vividness. However, I think i’ll make my lyrics a little less ambiguous at times haha

John Mayer

This guy is the modern guitar hero. I think currently there isn’t a more recognisable name in guitaring than John Mayer. I love the way Mayer blends the line between guitarist and singer… like, which one is he better at?? He’s just so wonderful at both! Yeah, he’s copped a bit of slack for sounding like Hendrix too much, but, stand on the shoulders of giants I say! He’s also got some fantastic imagery in his lyrics and plenty of his stories, whilst teetering cliche, come across in a unique light through his telling. I remember hearing Walt Graces Submarine Test and just thinking to myself, I would die happy if I wrote a song as pretty as that one! John Mayer’s songs were the first ones I learnt when I decided to learn how to sing to accompany my guitar playing…

Angus Young

AC/DC was the only poster that ever graced my bedroom wall as a teen, that and a stupid prank Selena Gomez poster my sister erected before my friends came round for a birthday party… 10/10 embarrassing. I would sit at the back of math class listening to music all lesson air guitaring to Angus’s Thunderstruck. I think that AC/DC was a brilliant crossing point for me as a young guitarist as I was starting to develop. So many of their songs are accessible to ‘noobs’ but they are swamped in delicacies and intricacies that could take a life time to master! Such is their prowess. I love Angus’ showman ship on stage. He commands the whole lot of it and the band was as much about his personality as it was of Bon Scotts. This sort of spotlight was something I grew up yearning! He’s also a pro at classical guitar and I’m pretty sure during some of his guitar breakdown solos, I can hear this influence shining through!

Head to Timi Temple’s Facebook page for more info…