On Guitar Solos and Scottish Independence

Greetings my little readerlings.

I'm posting today about two subjects which have been lingering around my brainspace for a while - no real connection between the two... other than they are both related to humans I suppose. And they are both written in English. So... actually they are connected... yeah...

Anyway.

Firstly, the recent debate over the Scottish independence referendum. For a while there the headlines seemed to be predicting that Westminster would be telling Holyrood when to have the vote. Now it seems that the Tories are backpedalling and saying they were only trying to give the Scots the legal chance to decide when the vote will be.

To be honest, I never seriously thought that the London government would really be stupid enough to try and weigh in on such a close-run issue. It seems they have realised that the more they try and interfere, the more chance there will be of a "yes" vote. But the legal and political implications aside, the timing of the referendum seems to have taken on a degree of importance beyond what is necessary.

Obviously the SNP needs to hold it during this parliamentary term, and with enough time to work out the intricacies of how to separate one of the last remaining empires in the world, but soon enough not to drag it out more than is necessary. As far as that goes, 2014 seems fine to me.

However, the reasoning behind holding it that year has a more cynical leaning. Timing the referendum with the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn would seem to be ideal for the SNP, what with the fervent Scots nationalism that will grip the nation, and off the back of Glasgow's commonwealth games, it's a gift. But there is a risk with putting it on that day that worries me.

You see, I support independence, and I support a reasonable amount of the things the SNP do, however, I want independence to happen for the right reasons. I worry that relying on what is essentially the borrowed jingoism hanging on from a 700 year old battle between aristocratic interests is the best attitude to go for Scots independence. Independence on the basis of cultural, economic and political differences, yes. But independence on the basis of forgetting these very relevant issues with some horrific battle in the middle ages and some kind of "the good Scots beat the evil English" attitude? I find that worrying.

If we are to throw off our paralysing Scots attitude of living in the past, then we must start the next chapter of our country's history with a forward-facing, contemporary attitude. Whenever the referendum is held, those of us in favour of the "yes" vote shouldn't feel the need to bring up the ghosts of some fourteenth century peasants. We should be able to win based on modern needs and arguments.

The second, and perhaps just as contentious thing I have been thinking about recently is the construction of the guitar solo. There are many people out there who will express great admiration for musicians such as Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Yngwie Malmsteen. I can't say I can disagree with admiring them, they are all extraordinarily good guitarists, technically brilliant.

However, I can't say I have ever heard a song by any of them which I have enjoyed or that I could even remember very well. You see, I strongly feel that what these guitarists have in terms of talent and ability, (and, no doubt, dedication) they lack in a certain sense, a feel for their songs. personally, my favourite guitar solo, and one of my favourite pieces of music is Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd.

Now, Dave Gilmour is by no means an underrated guitarist, he is famous and successful, but he's rarely praised for ability in the way the other three are. But I ask you, listen to the solo on that song. I'm not sure anything could have captured the feel of it, or indeed the whole album as well as Gilmour's guitar there. It's not massivly technically demanding, there's some fast bits, but really it's what the solo does for the song, the feeling it conveys in terms of its concept which makes it great. Enjoy. :)

Laters.