# Great Artists No One Tried To Emulate? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 13, 2019, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819 "2019-12-13T17:55:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/61 "2019-12-18T00:14:25Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > From reading up on it, it looks like Moon didn’t use hi hat at all on tour from 1968-1972, but I can’t find any definitive reason for it. One source said that he wasn’t very good with the hi hat pedal, so when it was on stage, it was just used without the pedal. > > Yeah, to me it seems like a lot of the constant tom fills he did were easier if he rode a cymbal on the right rather than hit a hi hat on the left (and I don’t think open position drumming was much used back then – where a right handed player would use the left hand on the hats and the right on the snare instead of crossing over, as is more usual.) Seems much more natural for his playing style to want to ride a cymbal on the right hand side of the kit with his right hand. > > I also suspect the loudness of riding a ride and crash vs the more tight attack and quick decay of a hi hat suited his style better. You can turn those ride “pings” into crashes and cymbal washes by altering where and how you hit the cymbal with your stick. So, for someone with a manic style who wants to make a lot of noise, those cymbals make more sense to me than a hi-hat. (Though when he did use hi-hat, setting them in that half open/“sizzle” position that doesn’t require use of the foot pedal makes sense to me for him for creating that noisier sound with a longer decay and just more overall noise. Keith had a hi-hat on the right side. I think you can see it clearly in studio video of “Who Are You?”, but not sure if he had it before. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/62 "2019-12-18T01:23:17Z")
> [@MortSahlFan](#): > > Keith had a hi-hat on the right side. I think you can see it clearly in studio video of “Who Are You?”, but not sure if he had it before. Ah, well then it works well with his tom technique! So we may be on to something. 🙂 ETA: Though I do see from this [1965](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJn4HrRl99o) video that he did have it on the left side at least earlier on, I guess. And I see that it’s set up pretty traditionally – he is opening and closing with his foot, though in a unpredictable Keith Moon manner. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/63 "2019-12-18T02:52:17Z")
Franz Liszt. He was an incredibly gifted virtuoso, combined with mesmerizing stage charisma and style (Lisztomania predates Beatlemania by ~120 years) and composed music that no one else (at least in his time, perhaps ever) could play as written. ---
**Author:** ![str8cashhomie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7cd45c/32.png) [@str8cashhomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/str8cashhomie)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/64 "2019-12-18T04:29:00Z")
Les Claypool Freddy Mercury Aesop Rock (probably a lot of other rappers with unique cadences as well) Norah Jones George Jones ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/65 "2019-12-18T06:23:45Z")
Art Tatum Fats Waller Jon Hendricks Paul Desmond ETA: Randy Rainbow ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/66 "2019-12-18T07:34:57Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Art Tatum Art Tatum definitely influenced Oscar Peterson. Their styles were similar, and critics and fans often compared them to each other. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/67 "2019-12-18T09:48:13Z")
Lewis Carroll ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/68 "2019-12-18T12:54:48Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Ah, well then it works well with his tom technique! So we may be on to something. 🙂 > > ETA: Though I do see from this [1965](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJn4HrRl99o) video that he did have it on the left side at least earlier on, I guess. And I see that it’s set up pretty traditionally – he is opening and closing with his foot, though in a unpredictable Keith Moon manner. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/PNbBDrceCy8/maxresdefault.jpg "The Who - Who Are You (Promo Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNbBDrceCy8) ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/69 "2019-12-18T19:17:00Z")
Anyone try to copy Vincent van Gogh? (Asked in innocence - nobody in particular springs to my mind.) How about Laurence Sterne? Others: Steely Dan Cyndi Lauper Depends what you mean by Great Artist: [Vivian Fisher](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWFdsK0rQ00). Number one in a field of one. j ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/70 "2019-12-18T19:44:20Z")
I was going to ask about Van Gogh, since he’s the only painter I liked, but I kinda assumed someone would have already, maybe with a bit of spin so it wasn’t so obvious. ---
**Author:** ![journeyman\_southpaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5e9695/32.png) [@journeyman\_southpaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/journeyman_southpaw)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2019, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/71 "2019-12-18T22:38:28Z")
> [@MortSahlFan](#): > > I was going to ask about Van Gogh, since he’s the only painter I liked, but I kinda assumed someone would have already, maybe with a bit of spin so it wasn’t so obvious. [David Hockney.](https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/hockney-van-gogh-museum-amsterdam-1477189) ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/72 "2019-12-19T03:01:55Z")
Has anyone tried to emulate the refined distinct genius of Cecil Adams? ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/73 "2019-12-19T13:01:26Z")
> [@MortSahlFan](#): > > I was going to ask about Van Gogh, since he’s the only painter I liked, but I kinda assumed someone would have already, maybe with a bit of spin so it wasn’t so obvious. > [@journeyman\_southpaw](#): > > [David Hockney.](https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/hockney-van-gogh-museum-amsterdam-1477189) I have to say, that’s quite an homage. j ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/74 "2019-12-19T23:27:36Z")
Jimi Hendrix had a fairly unique guitar style. The only musician I can think of who seemed to imitate him sometimes was Stevie Ray Vaughn, who even covered Voodoo Child. The comedian Steven Wright was also one of a kind. ---
**Author:** ![C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecd19e/32.png) [@C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C.Montgomery_Burns)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/75 "2019-12-21T15:57:21Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Art Tatum > > Fats Waller > > Jon Hendricks > > Paul Desmond > > ETA: Randy Rainbow Pat Flowers was a protege of Fats Waller who performed in a similar style. He was somewhat pigeon-holed and promoted as “the next Fats Waller” after Waller’s death in 1943, which wasn’t quite fair. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/76 "2019-12-21T16:22:55Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > The comedian Steven Wright was also one of a kind. I would say Mitch Hedberg was pretty darned close to the same style. Even Emo Philips, though each had their own way of approaching the humor, I guess. But they all feel very closely related to me, just with different styles of delivery. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/77 "2019-12-21T19:31:25Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Not a musician, but a painter: Jackson Pollock. It seems evident how it should be done, but it would be silly, IMO. Pollock has a lot of imitators, in an “a child can splatter paint” way, but it was methodically placed _ **and revised** _ so it’s usually easy to tell his from an imitator’s. His are works of art. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/78 "2019-12-21T19:40:39Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > Has anyone tried to emulate the refined distinct genius of Cecil Adams? For a while there William Poundstone was like Cecil without the snark, but what would a snarkless Cecil be? I’m my staff reports I tried to be Cecil, but ended up being a lesser light of the Cecil Adams school. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/79 "2019-12-21T19:46:34Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Not a musician, but a painter: Jackson Pollock. It seems evident how it should be done, but it would be silly, IMO. > [@Ludovic](#): > > I’d agree: when you see a Pollock-y painting in a museum, the large majority of the time it _is_ a Pollock. > [@dropzone](#): > > Pollock has a lot of imitators, in an “a child can splatter paint” way, but it was methodically placed _ **and revised** _ so it’s usually easy to tell his from an imitator’s. His are works of art. I was going to mention Pollack. He’s the classic target of “my kid could do that” comments, but [mathematical analysis has shown that his paintings are far from random but are instead fractal](https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/pollocks-fractals) (and they became even more fractal in his later paintings, indicating that this was an effect he was working to achieve). Imitators can be distinguished because they lack this fractal dimension. Pollack is probably harder to emulate than a conventional painter, because it’s not intuitively obvious how he achieved his effects. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819/80 "2019-12-22T13:01:32Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > The comedian Steven Wright was also one of a kind. Billy Crystal, in a Playboy interview, described Margaret Smith as someone who “does kind of a Stephen Wright thing.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-artists-no-one-tried-to-emulate/844819.md?page=5)