Hey Friend,
I have to admit I am, though not necessarily for the reason of the article. I tend to be more attracted to a guitar whose shape (and yes, headstock) are aesthetically pleasing to me, not because of the name on the headstock. I guess it's kind of the "love at first sight" syndrome for me. And yes, I realize that confession can label me as a bit shallow, but it is what it is.
However, it wasn't that article that immediately caught my attention. It was the article directly below it: Hear Steve Lukather's Isolated Guitar from Toto's "Rosanna"
There are a few guitar players that stand out in my mind as some of the most under-rated, yet utterly incredible monster talents. "Luke " is one of them, and while you might only know him as associated with Toto (if you've heard of him at all), he's touched you musically in ways you probably never realized (that doesn't sound creepy at all!).
He's played session guitar on over 1500 records, and has been a go-to guitar player for the biggest names in music. Ever heard of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" album? Not only did Steve play guitar on most of the tracks, nearly all the members of Toto were hired to record the songs.
Anyway, "Rosanna" was the song that cemented my admiration for "Luke", and to have an opportunity to listen to his guitar parts isolated from the rest of the instrument tracks is not only a treat, but an eye-opener.
What I'd like you to do is listen first to the full version of the song so you have a frame of reference. I'm sure you've heard it before, but I'd like you to close out all distractions and focus your ears on listening to the guitar. Here is the final mix of " Rosanna" from the album.
With that fresh in your mind, now visit Guitar World and listen to the isolated tracks presented in the show. Try to ignore the annoying radio DJ banter (that's why I don't listen to radio - it gets in the way of the music).
Once you've had a chance to listen to the isolated guitar track, play the full album track again. I think you'll see where I'm coming from. This guy is not only a fabulous guitar player, but he also knows how to provide just the right amount of guitar in a song.
One of the benefits of recording is you can create and layer many instrument tracks on top of each other. You could literally have 100 different guitar tracks loaded into a song. But the secret to great recordings isn't filling up every second of the track with notes - it's in cutting out anything that doesn't serve the song. The whole K.I.S.S principle definitely applies in recorded music.
If you enjoyed the isolated tracks, check out this analysis of " Rosanna" on Bobby Owsinski's Blog. If you like that, he's got other songs he's isolated the tracks on for analysis.
Hopefully you don't mind the little diversions outside regular chord lessons. Personally, I love going off on these tangents, listening to how songs were recorded and turned into the finished products we fall in love with. Enjoy!
Peace~
Dave | 
