Dimebag Darrell

“You can tune your guitar funky, and something's gonna come out. There's no secret to it - either you got it, or you don't.”

“Man, don't get me started on Pat Travers. That dude writes killer blues rock and roll riffs.”

“Using string bends instead of just playing regular, unbent notes can definitely help give certain riffs a cooler, heavier edge.”

“I always go for that live, honest feel when I'm going for that first rhythm track. I'll never hold back on a part just so it'll be easier for me to double it later on - to my ears, it sounds sterile if you do that. I always want to get that initial track kicking and full of slurs, squeals and feel. I'll worry about doubling it later!”

“Music drives you. It wakes you up, it gets you pumping. And, at the end of the day, the correct tune will chill you down.”

“A lot of bands whine about the road and how tough it is.”

“To make harmonics scream, I first dump my Floyd Rose real quick, hit a harmonic with my left hand while the string is still flapping, and then use the bar to pull it up to the pitch I wanna hit.”

“I really respect Zakk Wylde's guitar playing and his compulsive work ethic.”

“I'm still the same cat I always was.”

“The easiest place to get a natural harmonic on any string is at the 12th fret. All you do is lightly rest one of your left-hand fingers on a string directly above that fret and then pick it.”

“I try to do things in one take, but doubling rhythm parts is always difficult, especially if you want things to cut the way I want them to cut.”

“Van Halen was a huge influence on me, and 'Eruption' was the song that really leaped off that first Van Halen album.”

“To get my sound in the studio, I double guitar tracks, and when it gets to the lead parts, the rhythm drops out, just like it's live. I'm very conscious of that.”

“Make your heart bleed! Put your soul into that damn thing. And try new things.”

“Musicians tend to get bored playing the same thing over and over, so I think it's natural to experiment.”

“When you're a little kid, you have nerve. I'd walk right up to whoever was recording and say, 'Hey, dude, what's the lick of the week?'”

“I've tried to force a solo before, but sometimes it's like, 'That thing don't really fit, man!'”

“'I'm Broken' was a sound check riff.”

“It's funny, man, sometimes you record something that you plan on re-doing later, but then when you listen back to it, you decide to keep it because you realize that it's gonna be real tough to beat!”

“Initially, I just used the guitar as a prop. I'd pose with it in front of a mirror in my Kiss makeup when I was skipping school. Then I figured out how to play the main riff to Deep Purple's 'Smoke on the Water' on just the E string. Next, my old man showed me how to play barre chords, and that's when things started getting really heavy.”