If painters had electric brushes. Even if Yes didn't invent Progressive Rock (some point to King Crimson), it was Steve Howe who wrote the book on how to approach the new style on the guitar. Howe's playing seems to emanate from the song, and builds through several chord progressions and tempo changes, until all possibilities have been exhausted. Pete Townshend once said: "Rock songs are composed of two chord changes, maybe three. Any more than that, and you could be called before the committee for breaking the rules". If this is so, Steve Howe is a supreme offender. Fortunate to have been in a band of fellow virtuosos, no one ever tried to limit his output, and Steve has felt free to explore as diverse styles and moods as the songs he plays. His creative powers know no boundaries. Howe has never been tied down to his own sound, and has always sought to expand the horizons of Rock. Bands like Kansas, Rush, and Dream Theater are in his debt. If guitar players are painters, albums are canvases, and electric guitars are brushes, then Steve Howe is the master impressionist of his time. (Click on the link to see "More Gods") |
