You Won't Sound Like Eddie
The magic is in the artist, not the gear
Like just about every guitar player my age, I grew up worshiping at the altar of Eddie Van Halen [1]. When Eddie first arrived on the scene, none of us had ever heard anything like it. Rumors flew that Eddie has some sort of little magic "black box" of effects that made his guitar have that amazing signature Van Halen sound.
At one point, Van Halen went on tour opening for Ted Nugent. Apparently, Ted also thought Eddie had a little black box and wanted to play through Eddie's gear, so he could sound, well, “like Eddie.” Here's how Eddie remembers the encounter, in his own words:
"Ted was cool enough to give the band a sound check," he said. "He's standing off to the side and he's listening to me, and he comes up and says, 'Hey, you little shit! Where's your little magic black box?' I'm going, Who the fuck is that? And it was Ted. Hey Ted, it's nice to meet you, thanks for the sound check. And he's going, 'Let me play your guitar!' I go, 'Okay, here you go.' He starts playing my guitar and it sounds like Ted. "He yells, 'You just removed your little black box, didn't you? Where is it? What did you do?' I go, 'I didn't do anything!' So I play, and it sounds like me. He says, 'Here, play my guitar!' I play his big old guitar and it sounds just like me. He's going, 'You little shit!' What I'm trying to say is I am the best at doing me. Nobody else can do me better than me."
The lesson for all of us, buried in Eddie's colorful language is his last sentence: "What I'm trying to say is I am the best at doing me. Nobody else can do me better than me"
I first heard this story as a young man learning to play guitar. And I've always remembered his last point as "the magic is in the artist, not the gear." [2]
I think about this story every time I see amateur artists go up to professionals and ask questions ad nauseam about the brand of paint, the brand of brushes, what type of varnish to use, how the canvas is prepared...whatever.
It doesn't matter - the magic is in the artist, not the gear.
You can't write, paint, play or dance like that artist you look up to. It won't matter if you buy all the same supplies, read all the same books and travel to all the same places. It won’t even matter if a master takes you under his wing and tries to teach you what he does. Because the artists who are the greatest at what they do, don’t even know exactly what they do. They couldn’t articulate it into exact steps if they tried. Well, they could try, and they could even write a book or show you step by step what they do, but, in the end, the most important things they “know” can’t be articulated.
And, while in some ways, it can be frustrating [3], here's what you can draw inspiration from: you are an artist as well, there is also magic is inside of you, not your gear. Nobody can "do" you, better than you. And that's an amazing gift. Like Thomas J. Bevan says, “Good artists copy, great artist steal- but there’s a world of difference between being a master jewel thief and a petty burglar.” So, take inspiration from your "idols" and then embrace your own magic and share it with us.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] I wrote an earlier version many years ago and it has been updated and expanded in this version. Since I first approached this topic, EVH has passed away. The rock world lost one of the greats in 2020. EVH - RIP. I never met Eddie but one thing I know for sure - he would want you to share your music, your art, and your magic with the world.
[2] I think there have been different versions of this story. In my mind, I remember a version where Eddie's roadie tells Ted that "You won't sound like Eddie, the magic is in the artist, not the gear". I don't know if my mind twisted it into that statement, or if I heard a version where someone actually said it. It doesn't matter, it's true. The magic IS in the artist and NOT in the gear.
[3] While I've grown up and no longer try to play like Eddie, my biggest current influence is Texas acoustic player, Monte Montgomery. And yes, sometimes it's frustrating to always fall short of his talented, smooth sound. On the other hand, while he may have better "chops" than me, he'll never sound like me either. The magic runs both ways, and Eddie couldn't sound like Ted Nugent either. Embrace YOUR magic.
Love this essay, Clint. I agree wholeheartedly with the point of your essay-the magic is in the artist, not the gear. I wonder why we feel so uncomfortable being ourselves? And feel we have to be like the other guy! Maybe it is because we want to be accepted or the fear to be different.
Just after graduating from college, I created a painting, “Women in Art, Where Are They?”. This was in 1985. I was making a comment on my art history courses and the history books had very few women recognized as artists. Just several in the 1970’s!
My painting took 1st place in the juried exhibition at the Cayuga Museum of Art and Science in Cayuga, NY, juried by a prominent gallery in Rochester, NY. But even though I was very proud of the honor, I felt I couldn’t show it to the general public at that time because of gender inequality, not only in the arts for women, but in society as well. It would fall on deaf ears and neglectful eyes and arguments. I didn’t put it on my website until the later 1990’s.
I had painted it using famous paintings in quilting shapes in squares on a quilt that a modern day woman was tending on her lap. One guy at the opening came up to me, not knowing I was the artist, and said, “You know what would be really great, if she would make the actual quilt”. He obviously didn’t get it. And that painting is still true today for women trying to get into galleries and museums-43 years later.
I always seem to be ahead of the curve when creating my paintings because I listen to my heart about the problems we face in society that I recognize as my own as well. I put them out there more readily now because I don’t care if they are liked because I am an ARTIST. The money isn’t the priority, even though I wish more sold for the storage space alone. It is my soul that must be tended. I really get a kick when people express their feelings about my paintings. The most common comment is that they are fun, and they are so happy. Most are about serious subjects but apparently I must have a catharsis while painting them and my soul is happy I am expressing myself. I really can’t explain it.
Painting is my life and I can’t stop, just as you expressed. Creating 17 paintings in 8 weeks, the members of an organization I am in asked if I ever sleep. I sleep very well, thank you, every night getting a good 8 hours. Expressing yourself is peaceful.
Until you realize that you are creating for yourself and for no one else, you are burdened with the acceptance of others. And it will hold you hostage no matter what form of Art you create.
100%. @Phil, I also agree with you. There are many people who desire to be impersonators. That's great too. The world needs them as well (to keep the memory of those artists alive). But I do have to say, no matter how good the impersonator, there is still a difference between those that try to match the original and the original itself. Painting and art: ultimately I don't know of any copy that hasn't passed the scrutiny of science as an original (note that I say ultimately). We stray from the point, though, of Clint's article. I think Clint is saying to just be yourself.
I am a professional pianist as well as a professional visual artist. There had been many years I tried to "be" other artists and that didn't make me happy. I ended up being down on myself and frustrated. I finally felt liberated and happy when I realized that I have certain "voices" or "signatures" that were specifically mine and began to embrace those. That's when I FELT success at being an artist. AND that's when I started being happy for other artists. I can't BE them and they can't BE me.
In the light of the impersonators, if that is what the artist wants to do, then "they" should do everything to be the best impersonator they can be. Absolutely. But even then... there will be a little "voice" or style that is specifically theirs - where even science can tell one copy from another based on the artist.