To Marty Friedman, Playing Guitar is Just Like Fu*king
Banging. Porking. Doin’ the horizontal cha-cha. There are tons of ways to talk about fucking without actually saying it, but a new one might have emerged from a recent Ultimate Guitar interview with ex-Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman — “playing guitar”.
While looking back throughout his career from his time with Megadeth to his meteoric rise to stardom as a solo artist in Japan, Friedman was asked whether he still practices guitar at this point. And while he could have easily said something about how he doesn’t really need to spend too much time practicing anymore, he took it in a way more sensual route, equating guitar playing to bumping uglies.
“Everything that I always say about this can be related to sex in some way: if you practice at home, you’re going to get good at practicing at home. If you go out and do the real thing, you’re going to get good at doing the real thing. So all that stuff, all relates to any double entendre that you can imagine…
“A lot of people [will say], ‘Well, I’m not in a band, and I don’t get to play in front of people, and I’m not recording.’ So what I say to them is you have to make the top priority not the practicing of your licks or whatever you’re practicing. Your top priority has got to be creating opportunities to play in front of people. That is your top priority. That is going to suit your end goal much better.”
“And on the course of doing that, you will develop, believe me, the things that your hands need to do because when you have a gig in front of people, whether it be a guitar seminar or a guitar clinic or a concert or a music video or anything, you’re going to work on the material for that so much harder than you would sitting at home with no goals.”
“So, therefore, the work that you put in gets you more results. So, instead of practicing, don’t practice. Practice networking. Practice putting together a band. Practice putting together gigs for yourself. That’s going to really be a very beneficial thing I recommend.”
In his own words, he says that he plays guitar so much for work that he doesn’t really need to run through scales or do some guitar playing exercises. His daily responsibilities as a highly sought after guitarist keep him playing at a near consistent rate, so his playing becomes his practice.
And while starting at 14 or 15 could be considered a little young for the other activities he described, he said his having played guitar from that age has really helped him hone his craft — which explains why the man is so otherworldly with his playing.
“But I’ve been very lucky that I’ve been playing live since I was 14-15, so all I’ve been doing since then is creating music and performing it, and oftentimes having to explain it, whether it be guitar seminars or music video for instructional things. So, I have to know exactly what it is I’m doing.”
“And not only that — doing music videos themselves. I just did a new music video for the song ‘Tearful Confession.’ And when they’re showing your fingers, you got to know exactly what it is you’re playing on that record.”
So there you have it. Want to be as good at guitar as Marty Friedman? Put your proverbial genitals away and commit some musical exhibitionism with a damn guitar. You’ll gain better experience while on the job.
Friedman will be touring the U.S. starting later this month. You can find the full list of dates below.
Marty Friedman “Live Drama 2025” tour dates:
Jan. 25 – Las Vegas, NV @ Count’s Vamp’d
Jan. 27 – Denver, CO @ HQ Live
Jan. 29 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway
Jan. 30 – St. Charles, IL @ Arcada Theater
Jan. 31 – Westland, MI @ Token Lounge
Feb. 01 – Columbus, OH @ The King of Clubs
Feb. 02 – Cleveland, OH @ The Winchester
Feb. 04 – New York, NY @ The Loft at City Winery
Feb. 05 – Boston, MA @ City Winery
Feb. 06 – Derry, NH @ Tupelo Music Hall
Feb. 07 – Annapolis, MD @ Ram’s Head on Stage
Feb. 08 – Pawling, NY @ Daryl’s House
Feb. 10 – Philadelphia, PA @ City Winery
Feb. 11 – Leesburg, VA @ Tally Ho Theater
Feb. 13 – Greenville, SC @ Radio Room
Feb. 14 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement
Feb. 16 – Houston, TX @ Bronze Peacock at House of Blues
Feb. 17 – Austin, TX @ Antone’s
Feb. 18 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
Feb. 20 – Albuquerque, NM @ Launch Pad
Feb. 21 – Phoenix, AZ @ Rhythm Room
Feb. 22 – Los Angeles, CA @ Whisky A Go Go
