100 Top Guitarists
When the subject of Guitar Heroes is brought up these days, you will rarely hear the name Alvin Lee.
Yet in the 70's he was certainly up there with Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana, George Harrison, Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton.
Alvin Lee is one of those few guitarists that creates a perfect balance between technical flashiness and true passion,
slowly building up the climax, going from slower, more standard soloing to heights that nobody in those days could scale.
Just listen to Ten Years After doing I Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes, Help Me, or I Woke Up This Morning.
I'd Love To Change The World, is probably played more on classic rock stations today than it was in 1971 when it was released.
It only peaked at #40.
In 1970 the band had released 5 albums in America, with two reaching the top 40, without the benefit of major commercial radio airplay.
I'd Love To Change The World hadn't been released yet, nor had the movie Woodstock, in which the band woud get major stage time.
Ten Years After were the first to recieve a $1,000,000 contract to their new label Chrysalis, distirbuted by CBS/Columbia records.
Clive Davis must have known something!
An accomplishment achieved by very few rockers in those days.
