#3 of 100 JEFF WATERS - Annihilator

“I'm delighted to be in Joel's book; not only because I was recognized in there (!) and that the research was so well done but because the guy obviously based most of the book on the reality factor rather than who is getting all the press and record sales. Most media is, understandably, driven to review and praise and feature artists whose labels/people are paying the big advertising bucks to get their artists in there… regardless of their actual talent. This book has the commercially-backed “superstars” of metal but also features some of the true talents in this prime and most-awesome form of music: HEAVY METAL!!! Well done, Joel”.

Jeff Waters
Annihilator

At this stage in this book, we're not merely celebrating great guitarists – we're setting down for historical purposes the reasons why certain musicians changed the face of popular music. Most metallers have heard of the names in these upper reaches of this list, but Annihilator – the Canadian thrash metal band led by Jeff Waters – have received less than their fair share of adulation over the years. This book sets out to rectify that situation, at least a bit… All the best bands sit comfortably between musical genres. Metallica are thrash metal and heavy metal. The Haunted are death metal and thrash metal. Pantera were heavy metal, thrash metal, groove metal and Southern rock. You get the picture – and Annihilator cover most of the heavy-music ground, effortlessly executing melodic thrash, amped-up power metal and classic heavy metal. Where Waters has broken new ground is in his delivery of fast, thrash riffs – but so cleanly and precisely that they're a world away from the sweaty, dissonant roots of thrash. As he has explained on many occasions, when he first heard the fast, raw riffs played by Venom, he wanted to be in a band which did the same thing – but playing those riffs in a cleaner, more technical style. He was in a position to achieve this in Annihilator, which he founded in 1984, because (after a couple of initial forays with a full studio band) he played all the guitar and bass tracks himself.

Like his contemporary James Hetfield, who was operating a couple of years ahead of him in the metal stakes, Jeff made a point of laying down super-tight, super-precise recordings that did not deviate by more than a few milliseconds from riff to riff. This taut, near-flawless approach gives Annihilator's songs a machine-like robustness, over which Waters can execute his other great strength – guitar solos.

Jeff's leads are among the very best on the planet. Incredibly fast when he requires, but always melodic and expressive, they combine superb clarity with immense speed to make him one of the most freakishly talented soloists anywhere in metal. Over the years he has contributed guitar to albums by Memorain, Soulscar, Dew-Scented, After Forever and most memorably, Children Of Bodom, whose own frontman Alexi Laiho (see elsewhere in this book) is an enormously gifted shredder himself.

In 1989, Waters received perhaps the ultimate accolade when he was asked to audition for Megadeth by Dave Mustaine, just as 'Deth were about to hit their commercial peak. Although it didn't take long for Waters to decline the offer with thanks, intent on devoting his energies to his own band, fans of both acts have always wondered what the phenomenal talents of the two guitarists would have been like as a duo. In the end Mustaine recruited Marty Friedman, a man of similar talent to Waters, and went on to hit the very pinnacle of the thrash metal scene. Jeff has no regrets, however, pointing out that both men are natural bandleaders and that therefore there would have been serious clashes before too long.

Instead, Annihilator embarked on a long and much-respected career that has encompassed 12 studio albums to date, as well as live albums and a compilation. An early boost came with the debut album Alice In Hell (1989) and the follow-up Never, Neverland ('90), which established the clean, melodic thrash/power metal sound that Annihilator delivered so well. Waters' guitar tones and occasional vocals, supported by a cast of many musicians, made his band a popular live draw, and he has issued albums every couple of years since then for various labels. Another career high came with Criteria For A Black Widow – like Alice In Hell a concept record, which required every guitar technique in the book from Waters. Although he was known in his early years for using a Hamer Flying V, he has also used Gibsons and Fenders, as well as an ESP Dave Mustaine model. Nowadays he plays a Ran instrument. (*UPDATE - not with Ran anymore and coming out with new signature guitar with company to be announced)

The Metal album of 2007 was notable for its wide range of song styles, and also for a long list of guitarists from the great and the good of the metal scene who provided guest solos. Asked where the inspiration for the guest-list came from, Jeff said: "I'd almost finished this record when I met Corey Beaulieu, who was finishing up the last Trivium record in Florida. Out of the blue I said, do you wanna do a guitar solo on it? He thought I was joking, so I said, why would I be joking? And he said, holy f**k – I would love to do it! He freaked out, ha ha! And then I thought, shit, it worked for Corey – why don't I ask Michael Amott of Arch Enemy? And why don't I call up my buddy Alexi Laiho from Children Of Bodom and see if he'll do it? And then maybe Jesper Strömblad from In Flames? They're all friends of mine. I even thought hey, maybe I can get hold of KK Downing or Dave Mustaine. But my girlfriend said, stop. Just talk to your friends who like your music – otherwise it'll become a gimmick. I said to everybody, just do your thing – I want you to do this your own way. I love what you do, and I don't want you to feel any pressure to do a 'Jeff Waters' kind of solo. Mind you, guys with the talent of Alexi Laiho could do a Jeff Waters-style solo in about two seconds if I told them to!"

Nowadays, Waters is comfortable in the knowledge that his talents are respected by his peers. So what's it like to be a guitar hero to so many? As Jeff concludes, "You know, when you listen to these great guitar players and you realize that they were influenced by something you did, it's a great feeling – it's like having a kid! But you don't let it go to your head. You appreciate the moment, and it's done – and then you're just grateful for everything you've got." Wise words indeed.

Guitar Genius.

Try 'Back Into The Palace' from 2000's Criteria For A Black Widow, which contains a fast, superclean intro riff and a melodic, legato solo that beggars belief. Alternatively, check out the Roadrunner United anniversary album from 2005, which featured dozens of current and former Roadrunner artists collaborating on an album's worth of new material. Jeff appears on 'The Dagger' and 'Independent (Voice Of The Voiceless)', produced by one of the four 'team captains', Robb Flynn of Machine Head (also in this book). Spin the accompanying DVD and skip to the point where both men are pictured sitting at the console. Note that Flynn is noticeably gobsmacked as Waters runs through solo after hyper-fast solo. Humble as ever, Jeff explains that the solo is moving too fast for his mind to be following his fingers. Now that's metal.

Jeff answers the question "Who's the best metal guitarist ever?" at length – exclusively for this book:

"Just to set this up properly, I need to include this! Eddie Van Halen, Angus Young and Randy Rhoads and are my favourite guitar players, in that order. Eddie and Randy for their ability to cover all three essences of the greatest players – writing, soloing and playing rhythm. It's rare to find a player who does all three exceptionally. Angus Young rules for his supreme energy and effort live, and for the amazing blues feel and vibrato in his soloing and playing. Early critics – and even the odd few today – couldn't see past the school uniform and stage show: real players, fans and critics know that Angus 'sounds' easy to play and copy, but few can get his feel down.

"On the more 'metal' front, Metallica's James Hetfield rules for his tight picking, riffing and songwriting. The evil duo of Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman reign supreme for their music, energy and for their never-ending brutal picking. Iron Maiden's Adrian Smith and Dave Murray have inspired guitar players from all styles of music to harmonise their lead melodies. Dimebag was the next big gun to come out in the 90s. He captured that Metallica/Sabbath vibe while giving us listeners new twists on the old stuff, along with Vinnie's shuffles and grooves. Dime even slid in some Van Halen into his music, acknowledging the king of guitar: Eddie VH. All four bands – Metallica, Slayer, Iron Maiden and Pantera – have done so much for guitar playing.

"But since I've been asked to include only one player, and only in the metal category, I am gonna go with Mr. Glenn Tipton from the Mighty Judas Priest. I was fortunate – an understatement! – to have been asked by Priest twice to tour with them; once in 1991 on their Painkiller tour of Europe, along with Pantera, and more recently in 2004 on their first dates of their reunion tour.

"Glenn, along with partners KK Downing and Rob Halford, has come up with the most killer metal riffing; elite, groundbreaking, original songwriting; and blues-influenced lead guitar shredding. Judas Priest and Tipton's work are arguably worthy of the term 'metal' more than any other, with Tony Iommi and Black Sabbath their only close rivals.
"Some notable all-round guitar gems from early Priest records would be 'Victim Of Changes', 'The Sentinel', 'Hell Bent For Leather' and 'Electric Eye'. A turning-point for Glenn seemed to happen in 1990 with the Painkiller record. Drummer Scott Travis told me that, as soon as Glen had heard his former Racer X guitar pal Paul Gilbert play, Glen's playing and practicing went through the roof – as you can hear on the title track's long, shredding masterpiece solo. While he's certainly not the cleanest, fastest or most technical player, this man is a legend to players that got into metal in the late 70s and 80s. Kids of today may be playing his licks without knowing it. Anyone who jams along to Arch Enemy, Annihilator, Children Of Bodom and many others may be playing a Tipton (or Downing) lick.

"So – to the younger generation of metal guitar players and fans who may not be totally familiar with Glenn Tipton's playing, go get every Judas Priest CD you can find. If you can learn his licks, understand his songwriting skills and be influenced by his killer riffing and methods of putting it all together, then you'll be a great player yourself!"

Buy this book by Joel McIver here:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Greatest-Metal-Guitarists-Joel McIver/dp/1906002207/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222773176&sr=1-2