A biography for Allan Holdsworthhasn’t been written yet.
“I never use pull-offs because I don't like the sort of 'meow' sound they make with the string being deflected sideways.”
“You never really get to be good at anything.”
“In essence, I feel I'm more jazz guitar player because I write vehicles geared for improvisation.”
“We used to work with a promoter in Italy who used to book for shows with nine hour drives in between, so we got a new promoter.”
“I'm trying to play tunes in a new way, using all the same scales, harmonies, structures, but twist everything a little bit so that it comes out sounding different.”
“If the whole idea, in the original bebop days, was to get to soloing, then that's all it should be about.”
“I'm pretty selfish, I think. I'm probably a terrible dad. I don't do too much with my kids. Obviously I love them and everything, but I just stay here in the studio all day.”
“I don't like playing to guitar players, actually. I'd rather just play to ordinary people.”
“I don't get a big recording budget or much promotion, but I have creative freedom.”
“It's obviously flattering when somebody likes something one is doing. But at the same time, I get embarrassed about it. It's the 'I'm not worthy syndrome.'”
“I went through a bad period where I was just not writing; I couldn't create anything. I was out of ideas. But when I started playing on other people's music, I realized how lucky I was to be doing this.”
“I think the guy who tells you he knows about music is really dumb, or he's lying to himself.”
“The electric guitar's a pretty cheesy thing when you think about it, still working on those bits of wire and magnets for its sound. It's all of the things that are wrong with it that have made it the unique instrument it is.”