[Slowhand] Yardbirds' work out of the equation??

[Shanahan]

	>And I'd take just about all of his Yardbirds works out of the equation.
	>While it was good, it in no way stood out from anyone else really at that
time.

Garret,

Eric's output with The Yardbirds (while he was with them) consisted of just
one album (live) and three singles.

Although the album was released in December 1964, it was recorded in March,
one month before they recorded their first single at Olympic Studios in
April.  And what an amateurish recording it is.  Certainly no
state-of-the-art recording equipment used by Paul Samwell-Smith, just one
mike plonked on top of a table in front of the stage (perhaps just a
reference recording for the band to hear how they sounded).  I think
releasing it officially was an afterthought.  Still, I can't think of any
live rock albums released before this, so I suppose that says something
(quite what, I'm not too sure)

As for the remaining 6 studio tracks, we can quickly eliminate For Your
Love, as it's common knowledge that Eric hated this song, contributed as
little as possible to it, and it was the catalyst for him leaving.

That only leaves:
1) I Wish You Would
2) A Certain Girl (26 second solo)
3) Good Morning Little Schoolgirl (20 second solo)
4) I Ain't Got You (25 second solo)
5) Got To Hurry (well, 2.47 of 19 year old Eric strutting his stuff)

A total of 3 minutes and 58 seconds of released studio Eric in 1964.

Stack this up against who was around in the U.K. at that time (well for a
start The Who and The Small Faces didn't surface until 1965)

The Spencer Davis Group - 2 singles, Dimples and I Can't Stand It (guitar
wise, nothing much)
The Animals - 3 singles and an album (great band, great sound.  Making any
bold guitar statements?  no.)
Them - 2 singles, Don't Start Crying Now and Baby Please Don't Go (the
latter, great production, great guitar SOUND, but...)
The Kinks - 4 singles including You Really Got Me and All Day And All Of The
Night and an album (two great songs, simple riffs, guitar virtuoso? no.)

Which brings us to the BIG TWO

The Beatles - 4 fantastic albums, 8 fantastic singles (George's guitar,
really good)
The Rolling Stones -  one album, 2 EPs, 5 singles (great songs, great sound,
fantastic feel, nice guitar riffs)


So Garret, what I'm trying to say is this:

In 1964 in the U.K. all the above guitarists, excluding Eric, played a lead
guitar of sorts.
With a bit of work they could probably slot into each others bands and do a
reasonable job with what was required.

Compare the best of real guitar work in anything from Spencer Davis Group,
Animals, Them, Kinks, Beatles and Stones in 1964 to Eric's 3 minutes and 58
seconds from 1964.  There is a chasm as wide as that between Fenders and
Gibsons.  Even at nineteen, in The Yardbirds, the writing was definitely on
the wall.  Eric had a style, confidence, maturity and to a degree,
originality that was unique in Britain.

Give those 4 songs another good listen.

Tone