B.B. King and Eric Clapton (Guitarist Comparison and Analysis)

all of the videos I am referring to throughout this video are posted down below

The guitarists that I am studying this week are B.B. King and Eric Clapton, two iconic figures in the world of music. The main observation that I was able to make while watching videos of the guitarists, was that both implement very similar techniques into their playing, but utilize these methods in very different ways. Firstly, as I was watching B.B. King famously play “The Thrill is Gone,” I noticed that he really likes to make use of the minor pentatonic scale. But rather than just going up or down the scale, or playing in a specific pattern, he will mainly utilize repetitive, and aggressive string bends that make the notes sound harsh and out of tune. From there, it seems that he will put in short licks that are usually only around two to six notes.These melodies that he plays are usually pretty slow, yet aggressive.The next song I watched King play was “Sweet Little Angel,” where I made observation of the trend of him really liking to hold onto one note for a long period of time, especially by sustaining his string bends. During this song, I also noticed that he would change tuning in the middle of his performance. I am not sure why that is. Perhaps he just realized that he was not in the correct tuning, or maybe he intentionally wanted to change the tuning mid song. I am not entirely sure. After watching these two performances by King, I noticed that he rarely plays and sings at the same time. He also does not plays chords, and usually has another accompanying guitarist do that for him if the song calls for it. In addition, there does not seem to be any rhyme or reason to what he is playing; rather, it seems that he is letting his feelings guide his decisions as a musician.

Eric Clapton, on the other hand, differs quite a bit from the style and musical decisions of B.B. King. But first, I will name a few of the similarities. Firstly, Eric Clapton, like King, performs vocals along with his guitar during his set. The difference, however, is that Eric Clapton more frequently sings and plays guitar simultaneously, while King does not. Something else that they have in common, as seen in Eric Clapton’s performance of “Layla,” is that Clapton also utilizes minor pentatonic scales, and typically plays them higher up on the fretboard as well. Within this minor pentatonic scale, as also seen in his song “Cocaine,” for example Clapton also plays shorter licks, like King, and also employs harsh bends and vibratos with the strings. The difference is the timing.There is far less empty space between Clapton’s licks than King’s. In contrast, Clapton will fill this empty space with repetitive and pattern driven melodies. Also, in Clapton’s songs generally, but especially in “Layla”, he seems to be far more intentional in his musical decisions than King is. This might be an assuming statement, but it seems like Clapton is more by structure while King is driven by emotion. Most of Clapton’s songs consist of the standard verse, pre-chorus, chorus, post-chorus organization, which is an aspect that I recognized during the performance of his song “Tears in Heaven” In King’s music, on the other hand, it is definitely more ambiguous as to where he might be in the song. Also in this song, Clapton plays chords frequently, by either strumming the strings or pinching them. And again, King does not play chords. In all of his songs, it seems that Clapton is able to play his guitar and sing simultaneously, which is not typical of King. So overall, Clapton and King share many similarities in the techniques they use such as vocals, bends, vibrato, and the pentatonic scale. However, they differ in the manner, timing, and structure in which they utilize these techniques.

Now I will discuss the impact that B.B. King and Eric Clapton’s musical performances have on the listener. Firstly, it is no secret that B.B. King is a very expressive guitarist. He will express this soulful passion of his by doing things such as closing his eyes, opening his mouth to match the shift in musical tone, and being grunty in his singing. I also think that because King will strike a note so hard or utilize harsh bends so often that it dramatically communicates his emotions to the audience. I said earlier that an aspect that distinguishes King from Clapton is the amount of time that goes by between King’s aggressive, yet short licks. I think that this has an interesting effect on the audience, in that this spaced out timing really emphasizes the power of the notes he is hitting. It is almost as if King is giving the audience extra time to really absorb the intensity of what he just played. The dynamic of Eric Clapton’s performances, on the other hand, is entirely different. Because there is less time left in between his licks, it keeps his songs going at a faster pace. Also, like I said before, Clapton seems as if he is much more intentional and organizational in the way he plays, which allows there to be a standard structure in most of his songs. Because of this, I think that it is easier for the audience to become familiar with his music and to dive directly into it. For Clapton, the audience gets involved from the start. But King dives into a more unfamiliar territory for most audiences. It intrigues them, and makes them want to listen to whatever melodic sequence comes next in his playing. For Clapton, it is far more predictable on the type of sounds that he will generate next. The last remark that I will make about the impact of their musicianship is that while both guitarists are typically accompanied by bands, I believe that they serve a different function and purpose for each of them. It seems as if for Clapton, he is part of his band. His guitar playing compliments the drummer which complements the keyboardist and so on. Clapton’s band is far more cohesive sounding as a group because of this. On the contrary, for King, it seems to me that his band is playing to compliment him. The intrigue is not King’s band; rather, he is the star of the show, and he is producing the intriguing sounds. The other musicians are just there to accompany him in the most basic, undistracting way. Overall though, I really enjoyed and admired the two of their performances and the tones and styles they generate, and appreciate the distinguishing characteristics that they both possess.

"The Thrill is Gone" -B.B. King

"Sweet Little Angel"- B.B. King

"Layla"-Eric Clapton

"Cocaine"-Eric Clapton

"Tears In Heaven" -Eric Clapton