Monte Montgomery Influenced by LB

[michelej1]

Excerpt from an article on Monte Montgomery in Tahoe.com

http://www.tahoe.com/article/2010082.../1020/WHATTODO

“So when I started my own band I would do both and open up with some acoustic sets,” he said. “Over time people were more receptive to the acoustic, and I was playing the acoustic just like I was playing the electric. People really seemed to like that so I just left my electric at home along with the heavy amps that went with it. It simplified everything, and I'm just really at home with my acoustic. It's just a much more expressive instrument for what I do.”


Montgomery was most impressed with Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham, the pop rock, fingerstyle innovator whose notes seem come directly from his heart.

“The fascination with Lindsey began early,” he said. “I can definitely point to him as being responsible for the whole fingerpicking thing that I do. He does some of the craziest stuff without a pick.”

Moreover, Montgomery absorbs styles from numerous guitarists, from “Michael Hedges to Steve Vai to everybody in between. Stevie Ray, Jeff Beck, Lindsey Buckingham, Mark Knopfler, I could go on and on. I love great guitar players. I think my versatility is the result of being open to all flavors of music. ... It's afforded me an unorthodox style. It's got a little bit of this, a little bit of that. I'm an ear guy. I just soak things up.”

[michelej1]

From Out On The Town News, September 15, 2010, by Rob Nagy

http://www.ootonline.com/OOTnews/?p=1766

Like most great artists, Montgomery painstakingly built a following of fans of all ages that were instantly captivated by his abilities on the guitar. There was no question that fate was at play. “I never woke up and said, what am I supposed to be doing with my life?” says Montgomery. “I always knew, even before I played guitar, that I was going to be doing music, one way or another.” Influenced by Lindsey Buckingham, Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, Mark Knopfler and Michael Hedges, Montgomery continues to embrace any opportunity to expand his artistry. “You take a little bit from everybody”, says Montgomery. “Everybody that I listen to gets filed away and channeled at some point. That’s what makes me the player I am. I’m really an amalgamation of everybody that has inspired me. Early on I was pretty much obsessed with Lindsey Buckingham and Fleetwood Mac”, added Montgomery. “I learned a lot of stuff from that band other than just guitar playing – like dynamics, like how to bring songs down to a whisper and how to drive through a song.”