I love the guitar trio of John McLaughlin, Paco De Lucia, and Al Di Meola. I’ve also listened to a little bit of their solo stuff, and it’s good too.
If I like them, what other musicians might I like? What records should I get?
Joey
Ottmar Liebert
Strunz & Farah
Oops. Forgot the second half for the question. For Ottmar Liebert and Luna Negra, I recommend Opium. For Strunz & Farah I really like Americás.
Second ol’ Ottmar. You might like Acoustic Alchemy’s earlier albums. If you don’t have Di Meola’s old Elegant Gypsy album, hie thee to a record store.
It’s a bit off, but Django probably deserves a mention.
Bill Connors
I just picked up a John Scofield/Lee Ritenour collabaration called I can see you house from here which I quite like. I have no idea how it compares to those previously mentioned, but would like to get the Dopers opinions as I’m in the early stages of a jazz phase,
Larry
You might give Manuel Barrueca a try, though he trends more to classical.
Fast and tasteful - he is the master; the fact that he only had two useful fingers on his fretting hand makes it all the more amazing.
Steve Morse is another superfast player with amazing tech chops who’s playing covers a wide range of styles…
Larry Coryell was the original third member, before being replaced by Al di Meola. You might like his acoustic stuff - in particular check out The Restful Mind which he made with Oregon, a three piece offshoot of the classic lineup of the “New Age” pioneers Paul Winter Consort ( but the best of that rather sleepy genre ). It features guitarist Ralph Towner, who is pretty good himself.
In my distant youth I was quite the fan of 100mph fusion guitarists ( both acoustic and electric ) like McLaughlin, Coryell and di Meola. Kind of got away from all that stuff once I got out of my teens. Probably should give it a try again just to see how it holds up.
- Tamerlane
Another vote for Manuel Barrueco. His CD Nylon & Steel has the added bonus that Steve Morse plays on a couple tracks. I always recommend Steve Morse. The man has chops and plays, as Wordman noted, a wide range of styles. A CD might go from a southern style rock tune to a fusion-y piece to a straight ahead classical tune. The amazing thing about Steve is that he plays all the styles equally well. That is not an easy thing to do. For Morse, *Split Decision * might be a good intro as it is half heavier stuff and half lighter stuff.
For Al DiMeola do pick up Elegant Gypsy as Chefguy recommends.
Michael Hedges was another great player who does some interesting stuff. Sadly, he died in 1997. His CDs are still available.
You might also want to check out the Los Angles Guitar Quartet.
Slee