When blues guitar phenom Eric Gales first met up with Carlos Santana, he was hoping that the electric guitar legend might show him a few tasty licks. Instead, he got so much more: Santana took on the role of Gales’ godfather, and as such he imparted a sage piece of advice. “He said, ‘Do everything you can to keep the light shining as bright as possible,’ ” Gales recalls. “I took that to heart. Those words run through my head all the time.”
As it turns out, Gales has some musical wisdom of his own to share. “Some guitarists don’t want to tell you how and why they do what they do. It’s like they’re giving away their secrets or something,” he says. “But I’ve had so many people help me along the way, so if I can give somebody a little advice or something to think about, I’ll gladly do it.”
Learn From Your Heroes
“You have to look to the past to get to the present. When I was coming up, I listened to so many guitarists and tried to grab little bits from each of them. Stevie Ray, Robin Trower, Frank Marino, Eric Johnson, Albert King, Muddy Waters — I dug deep into these guys.
“Oh, there’s more: Wes Montgomery, Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, Jesse Ed Davis, Kenny Burrell, Tuck Andress. I had multiple influences. I wasn’t just trying to emulate their sound and style; I wanted to get inside their minds. I thought, ‘If I can get a sense of what they were trying to achieve on the guitar, a piece of that will rub off on me.
“That was a big part of my journey toward forming my own identity as a player. I know that sounds funny, because the worst thing you can call a guitarist is a copycat. But let’s face it: Very few guitar players reinvent the form. We all take something from somebody else. I took from the best and tossed in little bits of myself. I’d change things here and there, and before long, it started to sound like me.”
Start with a “Clean” Amp
“Let’s talk about shopping for gear. To me, there’s Gibson-style people and Stratocaster-style people. I know there’s tons of other guitars, but in my opinion they all fall under those two umbrellas. Whatever guitar you choose, it should play like butter. You should want to play that thing all day without an amp. If you don’t, you need to keep looking.
“When you look for an amp, you need to plug your guitar in and play it clean — no distortion. That’s the best way to gauge whether the amp truly sounds good or not. To me, a clean sound is home base. If you can’t get a good clean sound from an amp, it’s time to move on to something else. You can always add effects, and I sure do. I love delay and distortion. I like having all those sounds at my disposal. But I always start with a clean sound, and I build it from there.”
Keep Going – No Matter What
“The world can be a hard place sometimes. There’s always somebody who’s going to tell you no. Your spirit can get broken, and you might think, It’s not gonna happen for me; I should just give up. I’ve been there; I’m human like everybody else. I’ve faced rejections, and they hurt bad. After a while, you start to doubt yourself, ‘Are they right? Is what I’m doing any good? Am I relevant? Should I keep going?’
“The important thing to remember is, those people telling you no aren’t the source of your happiness. They aren’t the determining factor about why I play music. They don’t decide what happens when I pick up the guitar or bass, or whether I sit down at the drums. They have no involvement with what happens when I play music. That comes from me and me alone, and nobody can take that away.
“There will be down days and roadblocks. Sometimes it might seem as if nothing is going your way. Don’t blow it out of proportion. Keep going. I guarantee you, the biggest guitar players in the world have felt just like you at one time or another. But they held on and kept at it, and it guided them through all the adversity out there. Believe me, I know what I’m talking about.”
Inspiration Is Everywhere
“I could watch [Golden State Warriors point guard] Steph Curry play basketball all day. He’s inspiring to me, and believe it or not, his fluidity and beauty has sparked my creativity when I try to write songs.
“One day a fan said, ‘Eric, you’re like the Steph Curry of guitar playing.’ You can’t imagine what that meant to me. I was so humbled and taken aback, because honestly, I’m such a Steph Curry fan. Watching him move is like listening to the greatest music.
“You can be inspired by anyone or anything. Sometimes I’ll watch a movie and get ideas, or it could be something I read. I’ve been to museums and have been moved by incredible pieces of art. I can be walking along and I’ll take in the scenery. I might find myself watching the interaction between a cat and a dog.
“Inspiration is all around, and it doesn’t always have to be pretty Road rage! You could come up with some grungy riffs because you’re frustrated and angry behind the wheel. All of your emotions can find their way into your music. Look around and pay attention. Don’t tune anything out. And try to watch Steph Curry. He’s the best.”
Don’t Freak Out If You Get in a Rut
“People think I never get in a rut. I get in ruts all the time. It used to bother me, but after a while I realized that a creative rut just means you’re headed somewhere new.
“The temptation is to try to fight your way through it, and that can work… sometimes. I’ve found that it’s best to set the guitar down and get away from it for a while. It’s like letting a motor cool down; you spark it back up, and it’s roaring and ready to go. I might listen to some music that I love — a little gospel, some Stevie Ray and Eric Johnson. Mostly, I try to relax my mind and come back with a fresh set of brain cells. Ruts will happen. You can’t freak out about it. You’ll be all right if you don’t beat yourself up.”
