Talk:Link Wray

Lead section - power chord

The lead section says this: ".. his 1958 instrumental hit "Rumble" by Link Wray & His Ray Men popularized "the power chord, the major modus operandi of modern rock guitarists".

But User:Lenzwerf, in their hidden comment, makes a perfectly valid point. The AllMusic source (which should be linked to the Biography section here), by Cub Koda says this: "Quite simply, Link Wray invented the power chord, the major modus operandi of modern rock guitarists" ... and then this: "Link's follow-up to "Rumble" was the pounding, uptempo "Rawhide." The Les Paul had been swapped for a Danelectro Longhorn model (with the longest neck ever manufactured on a production line guitar), its "lipstick tube" pickups making every note of Link's power chords sound like he was strumming with a tin can lid for a pick." So I think some adjustment is needed. And why do we have this referenced detail about the power chord appearing only in the lead section? Martinevans123 (talk) 22:38, 12 July 2019 (UTC)

Nice to pick this up, trying to figure out the polite way to contribute to this. Anyway, the power chord is just two notes. Robert Johnson used the 1 and fifth, alternated with one note higher than the fifth in 1936 (sweet home chicago) so Link Wray did not invent it. I can hear powerchords in 'Chicken run', 'Dueces Wild', 'Hang On' and some other songs but to say he uses them so differently than Bo Didley or other pioneers of Rock and Roll is one step too far for me. Even on a people are surprised about wiki and others naming Link Wray as the power chord inventor. Lenzwerf (talk) 00:05, 14 July 2019 (UTC)

Looking again at that Cub Koda piece, he says this: "Link Wray may never get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but his contribution to the language of rockin' guitar would still be a major one, even if he had never walked into another studio after cutting "Rumble." Quite simply, Link Wray invented the power chord..." This seems to me to be a categorical claim that the power chord was invented by Wray in that song. You may be perfectly right. If you can find a source that says Robert Johnson invented it in "Sweet Home Chicago", you need to present it here. But the article makes only the lesser claim that he "popularised" the power chord. Not sure how we accommodate your claim that "Rumble" is the wrong example. Thanks. Martinevans123 (talk) 09:55, 14 July 2019 (UTC)

p.s. In the meantime I have copied the detail, together with the sources (and the hidden note), into the main body, as it can't just appear in the lead section alone. Martinevans123 (talk) 10:09, 14 July 2019 (UTC)

References

Two notes a chord is not Anonymous8206 (talk) 01:43, 1 December 2024 (UTC)