In a list of the best guitarists of all time, Prince has to sit near the top. When he first emerged in the late 1970s, his label saw that instantly. Not even yet an adult, everyone knew they’d encountered not just greatness but virtuoso-level talent as he delivered his debut album complete with some incredible guitar moments, as well as full, rich instrumentation and songwriting, all made by Prince and Prince only. Few other artists could even dream of competing with that – but there’s one player Prince himself never would’ve liked to go up against.
Attempting to pull together a succinct list of Prince’s best guitar moments would be near impossible. Obviously, there is the looming and timelessly epic sound of ‘Purple Rain’, arguably one of the greatest pieces of music ever performed on the instrument, as he seemed to manage to make it better and better each time he played it live, extending the track out into huge jams.
There’s the face-melting intro to ‘When Doves Cry’, the moment Prince somehow managed to put George Harrison to shame during a George Harrison memorial performance. There are countless incredible videos of his spontaneous performances during his infamous after-show gigs. There are recordings upon recordings of his live shows where he not only managed to translate his adventurous tracks to the stage but managed to level them up.
In short, Prince is a figure that would intimidate anyone. He’s the type of player that generations since have looked up to, that young kids only just starting to pick up the guitar can only dream that one day they might get somewhere near as good. He’s, surely, the type of player who was never once intimidated or threatened by the talent of anyone else – but that doesn’t mean he didn’t recognise it.
In fact, that’s maybe one of the nicest things about Prince’s legacy. He was never shy about his praise or his love for the music of others. He loved Joni Mitchell, he really loved Stevie Nicks, and he loved Jimi Hendrix.
“Hendrix is very good. Fact,” Prince told MTV once. As Prince was a fair bit younger than Hendrix and was still only a kid when he died, he somewhat missed the Hendrix ‘moment’. However, for any guitarist, his legacy lingers. “There will never be another one like him, and it would be a pity to try,” he said, more than aware that Hendrix was one of one.
Throughout his career, Prince even came to resent the constant comparisons he faced trying to tie him to Hendrix. “It’s only because he’s black. That’s really the only thing we have in common,” he once snapped at Rolling Stone in 1985. But it’s also because Prince, while respecting Hendrix, had no interest in going head-to-head with him.
He had no interest in going head-to-head with anyone at all, actually. “You can’t compare people, you really can’t,” he said. While more than aware of Hendrix’ unmatched talent, Prince always made it clear that he wasn’t even trying to match it. Instead, he was working in his own lane, stating, “I strive for originality in my work, and hopefully, it’ll be perceived that way.”