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“Some of the best guitar players in the world today are women”: Steve Lukather celebrates growing number of women in the guitar world
“While I hate even to differentiate between men and women because they’re all great players, the reality is that things have come a long way.”
Image: Scott Dudelson / Getty
Guitarist Steve Lukather has praised the growing numbers of women in the world of guitar, and has shared his stance that “some of the best guitar players in the world today are women.”
Lukather, known for playing guitar in Toto, released his most recent and ninth solo album (titled Bridges) back in June this year. He is set to tour from November through to late December.
In the new Holiday edition of Guitar World magazine, Lukather discusses the modern world of guitar, and in particular how there are growing numbers of women in the industry.
“People’s mindset has changed. It all starts there. Because it doesn’t matter what sex you are; a great player is a great player,” he says. “Go ahead and blindfold-test anybody without telling them what sex the player is and see what happens. If the player is great, they’re gonna say, ‘Oh, shit, that was awesome. Who is that?’ They’re not going to know if it’s a man or a woman, and they’re not gonna be able to say, ‘Oh well, that was pretty good for a chick’ or whatever bullshit thing.
“I wouldn’t ever say that, and I know it’s not politically correct to say that, but some people still think that way. But not me; I’m an old, peace-loving hippie from the ’60s [Laughs],” he explains.
Giving his take on how there are plenty of modern players who are brilliant of both sexes, Lukather adds, “Everybody seems to play so much fast bullshit, and I disagree with that entire concept. But there are so many incredible young players out there now, male and female.
“I’ve gotta say the women have stepped up. Some of the best guitar players in the world today are women. And I think that’s great because when I started, there weren’t many. So while I hate even to differentiate between men and women because they’re all great players, the reality is that things have come a long way.”
Get tickets to catch Steve Lukather on tour via his official website.