Steven Van Zandt Thinks Eric Clapton Pioneered The Modern Electric Lead Guitar Style

Steven Van Zandt said in a statement that Eric Clapton was the one who invented the modern electric lead guitar style. The E Street band guitarist and mandolin player, Zandt, named the figure he thinks shaped modern rock music during in a recent tweet.

There are moments, songs, and figures in the music industry whose legacy shaped the entire scene after them. One good example is Jimi Hendrix. He is undoubtedly one of these figures in that molded the rock scene. Although in a span of a very short career, he was able to leave an irreversible impact on the history even after passing away in 1970.

Hendrix’s musical style and tone is being used as a tracing guide by many of his successors. In which they were able to create sounds out of it, this includes some guitar legends like Steve Vai, Lemmy, Slash, Lenny Kravitz, and Clapton.

Zandt, is also one of his biggest fans and has even claimed that Hendrix has not been praised enough for his songwriting and guitar skills. Zandt is known for frequently engaging in discussions about music history and the rock scene with his followers on his social media platforms like Twitter.

Recently, he responded to one of the questions from his fans. He made a statement which attempted to break the general taboo about Hendrix being the “inventor of the modern lead guitar style.” He claimed that credit should go to Eric Clapton because he was the one who influenced everyone who came after him. A user asked Zandt:

“I recall on Underground Garage you said ‘Eric Clapton was Jimi Hendrix before Jimi was Jimi’ Did I get that right?”

The guitarist then replied:

“Eric Clapton single-handedly invented the modern electric lead guitar style. Everybody comes from him.”