Steel Notes Magazine February 2017 | Page 90

Steel Notes Magazine

Remembering Dimebag

By Andrew Catania
February 2017
Darrel Lance Abbott , more familiarly known as Diamond Darrell and Dimebag Darrell was born on August 20th , 1960 in Texas . Although it was his virtuosic guitar playing and fine lyrics composition that brought him fame , this might come as a surprise to many of his fans that Dimebag started playing as a drummer , while his brother Vinnie Paul practiced his fingers on the whammy bars .
Later , as Vinnie ’ s aptitude veered off from the chords to skins , Dimebag Darrell took hold of the guitar . The chords suited perfectly complemented the musical flair that his fingers possessed and there was no turning back for him . Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul formed their first band called Pantera ’ s Metal Magic , which gradually evolved , gained prominence and became Pantera of today .
Since the very start , Dimebag Darrell ’ s playing techniques exhibited a clear non-conformity to the conventional playing styles in various genres . He attempted to improvise his metal forte through strong doses of groove . Combining the essence of heavy metal with groove , Dimebag Darrell is one of the pioneers who evolved , nurtured and promoted the groove metal genre .
Dimebag Darrell was an inspiration for many budding musicians for his virtuosic groovy techniques . Yet he himself was a diehard fan of American rock band Kiss and was particularly inspired by Kiss ’ lead guitarist Ace Frehley . He often mentioned that his primary influences were drawn from the likes of Tony Iommi , Pete Willis , and Eddie Van Halen .
His professional music career , spanning over a good 25 years from 1979 to 2004 , is an era that is punctuated with multiple associations , experimentations , and his contribution towards progressing groove metal , and numerous solos and joint feats . Aside from his cofounded brainchild Pantera , Dimebag Darrell had partnered and performed with Damageplan , Anthrax , Pumpjack , King Diamond , Gasoline , and Rebel Meets Rebel .
Darrel started playing on a Hondo ’ s version of Les Paul and later switched over to playing on a variety of other guitars , including cherry sunburst , ML , his personalized ‘ Dean from Hell ’, Dean ML , Jackson Rhoads , and a blue Hamer ML . Dean Guitars and Washburn Guitars have also released signature Dimebag models for his fans and inspired musicians .

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In recognition of his immense contribution to metal instrumentals and his signature grooves , Guitar Player magazine listed Dimebag Darrell as one of the bearers of ‘ The 50 Greatest Tones of All Times ’. Rolling Stone Magazine placed him at 92nd rank in the list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Times . UK ’ s Metal Hammer Magazine ranked him as the best guitarist