Paul v.s. George on Lead Guitar | Fab Forum | The Beatles Bible

Funny Paper said
I’m a big Paul fan and I consider him to be a better acoustic guitarist than George, however, I think George has the edge over him on lead guitar.

 

If Paul was really that good, he would have done the solos himself on “Too Many People ” — but I’m pretty sure it’s Hugh McCracken (or Dave Spinnozza).  If someone can prove to me that the solo on that song is done by Paul, I will pronounce him better than George on lead.

I’ve always wondered about that solo- it does sound very much in Paul’s style. He might have directed one of those session guitarists on how to play it.

I cannot believe how many fans out there keep talking about McCartney’s guitar playing. First of all, he is a bass player. That is his specialty. If he was a great guitarist, he would have been the lead guitarist in the Beatles and he would not have needed to hire other great guitar players such as Jimmy McCulloch, Lawarence Juber, Robbie McIntosh and Rusty Anderson.

Inner Light said
I cannot believe how many fans out there keep talking about McCartney’s guitar playing. First of all, he is a bass player. That is his specialty. If he was a great guitarist, he would have been the lead guitarist in the Beatles and he would not have needed to hire other great guitar players such as Jimmy McCulloch, Lawarence Juber, Robbie McIntosh and Rusty Anderson.

McCartney is a good guitarist. I’d still contend George was better, but there’s no denying that Paul could have provided lead guitar with just as much proficiency and competence for any band.

RunForYourLife said
I actually had a specific question regarding Paul’s playing on a few songs in the OP, but it looks as if the thread has devolved into a general discussion of his playing.

I do think George began to struggle a little to write solos as John and Paul’s songs became far more characteristic and complex, and for several years the guitar solo was a fairly redundant tactic in the Beatles’ music. You can’t really stick a Chet Atkins-influenced 12-bar blues or rockabilly break in the middle of many of the tracks on Rubber Soul or Revolver , so it was more convenient for Paul to step up to the challenge a couple of times. Try and imagine a solo to replace Paul’s in Taxman without making the song lose its groove and momentum; it’s not easy. As far as I can tell, George was forced to change and adapt his style and that probably would have taken a while, not to mention his putting guitar aside in favour of traditional Indian instruments and other means of composition at that time (as I recall he wrote nearly all of his ’67 contributions on the harmonium).

That said, I do think George’s guitar abilities skyrocketed in this middle period; those who profess that George only became a worthy lead player as late as Abbey Road are overlooking the wonderful shimmering melodies he brought to Nowhere Man , If I Needed Someone , I’m Only Sleeping , And Your Bird Can Sing etc.

RunForYourLife said

Ben Ramon said

RunForYourLife said
I actually had a specific question regarding Paul’s playing on a few songs in the OP, but it looks as if the thread has devolved into a general discussion of his playing.

I do think George began to struggle a little to write solos as John and Paul’s songs became far more characteristic and complex, and for several years the guitar solo was a fairly redundant tactic in the Beatles’ music. You can’t really stick a Chet Atkins-influenced 12-bar blues or rockabilly break in the middle of many of the tracks on Rubber Soul or Revolver , so it was more convenient for Paul to step up to the challenge a couple of times. As far as I can tell, George was forced to change and adapt his style and that probably would have taken a while, not to mention his putting guitar aside in favour of traditional Indian instruments and other means of composition at that time (as I recall he wrote nearly all of his ’67 contributions on the harmonium).

That is my theory as well. I was just curious as to which times this was the case v.s. the times where they just let Paul play as a favor (Specifically, on the song Drive My Car ).

I would guess that Paul simply already had the idea for the lead guitar line in his head, and the others let him play it out of necessity or convenience.

Ben Ramon said

RunForYourLife said
I actually had a specific question regarding Paul’s playing on a few songs in the OP, but it looks as if the thread has devolved into a general discussion of his playing.

I do think George began to struggle a little to write solos as John and Paul’s songs became far more characteristic and complex, and for several years the guitar solo was a fairly redundant tactic in the Beatles’ music. You can’t really stick a Chet Atkins-influenced 12-bar blues or rockabilly break in the middle of many of the tracks on Rubber Soul or Revolver , so it was more convenient for Paul to step up to the challenge a couple of times. Try and imagine a solo to replace Paul’s in Taxman without making the song lose its groove and momentum; it’s not easy. As far as I can tell, George was forced to change and adapt his style and that probably would have taken a while, not to mention his putting guitar aside in favour of traditional Indian instruments and other means of composition at that time (as I recall he wrote nearly all of his ’67 contributions on the harmonium).

That said, I do think George’s guitar abilities skyrocketed in this middle period; those who profess that George only became a worthy lead player as late as Abbey Road are overlooking the wonderful shimmering melodies he brought to Nowhere Man , If I Needed Someone , I’m Only Sleeping , And Your Bird Can Sing etc.

Very good points above. I agree. I think that George was losing some interest around 1967. He was more focused on Indian culture and music at that point which in the long run I think helped him become a better all around guitarist. He started using much more complicated chord structures and began his quest focusing on his slide playing. Harrison for me was a very emotional singer and player and put so much of his essence into the music he created. I will always respect him for never selling out and writing songs when he truly felt he had something to say and kept his humble attitude throughout his entire career.

The eggman said

Funny Paper said
Ben Ramon said

Inner Light said

 

 

1. Being a guitarist is not limited to playing “lead guitar”; there is also the category of acoustic guitar playing, both strumming and picking.  For example, neither Paul Simon nor James Taylor play “lead guitar”, but they are considered among the best guitar players for how they intricately finger and/or pick their acoustic guitars.  Playing acoustic guitar is not just about strumming 3 chords, like some airhead at a campfire sing-along.

 

2.  Aside from the two categories of Lead Guitar and of Acoustic Guitar playing, there is another category of the Rhythm or Backup Guitar — a bonafide category in which people can excel.  I think Paul is better at this than George.

 

3.  Paul playing bass does not necessarily mean he can’t excel in another instrument.  Since when is it a Law of Music that a musician can only have his forte with one instrument?

         

         Paul was a master of the acoustic, but George was very good at it. Take a look at the Anthology versions of “WMGGW” or “Something “.

         As a rhytm guitarist George was, in my opinion, better. He played rhytm in some beatle songs and he did a great work. But the master of rythm guitar was John by far. 

         Paul is an awesome lead guitar player, and he could play faster than George, but George had something unique in his playing, Paul doesn´t. Obviously George had problems during the middle period of the Beatles, he was very apart from the band, but from the White Album to Abbey Road he showed that he was one of the best musicians ever. 

         And George was a nice bass player too. I think this is one of the best thing about the Beatles, the fact that they were good at playing many instruments (especially Paul and George).

One thing about John, Paul and George, they were all great musician’s in their own way. I think George could play just as fast as Paul but chose not to. Less is more. It’s not how fast you can play but the emotion and feeling you are putting into the notes you are playing. I have learned this over the years. I have been playing guitar all my life and have learned this.