During the 1980s, extended soloing and linear virtuosity fell out of vogue in the mainstream pop world. One approach to working within songs was explored by Dave "The Edge" Evans (b. 1961) of U2, whose intuitive musicality led him to develop his own techniques, adding layers of electronically altered guitar with a mechanical logic.

Dave Evans

Evans' playing is based on a sonic approach with a highly creative, sophisticated sound produced by a series of intelligently thought-out applications of effects. Notes are used sparingly, and he does not often produce improvised linear solos but uses touch and color with an individual and original voice. During the late 1970s and 1980s, a new generation of sound-processing units was developed that enabled guitarists to conjure up new sounds. Evans is one of the pioneers in this field and has had devices custom-built to expand his range. His guitar repertoire ranges from bold rhythmic figures to delicate timbres and nuances.

Evans runs chords and single notes through delay units, resulting in a cascade of sound, which has a synthetic texture. This is often combined with echo and reverb as well as devices to create continual sustain. Individual notes are used to create a pedal tone throughout a song, and repeating arpeggiated motifs set up a sense of continuous rippling movement. Standard techniques, such as muting and harmonics, are processed so that they become virtually unrecognizable.

These effects can be heard on tracks throughout the 1980s, such as "I Will Follow" (1980), with its synthetic folk effect, and "Gloria" (1981) with a repeating melodic riff. "Sunday Bloody Sunday" (1983) opens with light arpeggios before moving to cutting acoustic sounds and incisive harmonics.

Johnny Marr

Johnny Marr (b. 1963) formed the Manchester-based band The Smiths in 1982 with singer and lyricist Morrissey. Their first album, The Smiths, was recorded in 1983.

Marr has a distinct identity and is influenced by a wide and diverse range of music, from pop and soul to folk and African styles. One of the exceptional players in pop, he pays great attention to detail and has developed a variety of techniques and approaches to sound. During his time with the band, Marr wrote The Smiths' music, and the songs have a subtle, harmonic approach with unusual chord voicings and progressions. His guitar parts are arranged with delicate two-and three-note chords and countermelodies, and he uses arpeggiated motifs, lines and fragments of harmonies. He often plays with his guitar tuned up a tone to create a brighter sound, and he also uses open tunings.

Instead of taking solos, Marr adds overdubs and delicate touches to enhance the mood of a Smiths' song with passages of subtle variations on repeating sections and linear melodic motifs played in different registers. He also combines electric and acoustic guitar sounds and makes use of a large number of rack-mounted effects and pedals.

"This Charming Man" (1983) uses many overdubs with harmonized two-note passages and melodic additions. On other outstandin pieces, such as "How Soon Is Now" (1985), the guitar has a vibrato sound and layered overdubs that include open tunings with harmonics, slide, and a part with an electronic harmonizer set to an interval.

Marr left the group in 1987 and went on to work extensively on his own and with other artists, ranging from Bernard Sumner to Paul McCartney, using his singular gifts as one of the finest guitarists in the history of pop.

The queen is dead

On the outstanding album The Queen Is Dead (1986), Marr plays with controlled understatement, yet his work is varied and creative. He uses acoustic guitar on many tracks, layering it beautifully with added electric guitar. "Bigmouth Strikes Again" has an effective, lilting rhythm and there are attractive melodic chords on "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side". Subtle and interesting harmonies can be heard on

TOWARD THE 1990s

Another Manchester band, The Stone Roses, was formed in 198S with John Squire (b. 1962) on guitar. Their debut album, Stone Roses, came out in 1989. With swirling, sustain and effects, arpeggiation and infectious melodic motifs, Squire's controlled playing on tracks such as "I Wanna Be Adored," "One Love," and the powerful "I Am the Resurrection" made him one of the most highly regarded figures of the early 1990s. Another important current of development came from the Indie movement that had been building up during the 1980s with players such as William Reid of The Jesus and Mary Chain and Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, whose style of loud, distorted guitars with effects constructed a trancelike, high-energy wall of sound.

Oasis

One of the best songwriting groups to emerge after this is Oasis; with Noel Gallagher (b. 1970), the group's guitars have a crashing excitement and a large, full sound. On "Rock 'n' Roll Star" from Definitely Maybe (1994), guitars play plangent, distorted chords in a chord sequence that moves around typical harmonies blended with rock riffs and breaks. Gallagher takes bluesy melodic solos and a large proportion of the material has a 1960s Beatles' sound, including "Shakermaker" with its arpeggiated distorted chords and "Up In The Sky," using a repeating riff and mix of electric and acoustic parts. The group reworks the boogie-riff rock sound of the early 1970s on “Cigarettes & Alcohol,” and achieves a grainy, minimalistic edge to the strummed acoustic and thin bluesy electric sound on "Married with Children." On the following album (What is The Story) Morning Glory? (1995), Oasis continue to build material around a strong guitar sound on songs such as "Hey Now," "Some Might Say," and "Morning Glory" that have eupting, distorted sounds and a driving intensity. One of their best tunes, "Wonderwall," starts with a catchy acoustic chord sequence that drives the rhythm as the drums, strings enter, and the song builds up.

New directions

Of the major groups to have emerged in the 1990s, the most interesting is Radiohead with guitarist Jon Greenwood (b. 1971), whose music is innovative and futuristic. Their album The Bends (1995) opens with "Planet Telex" which has shaking, pulsating guitar chords and strange tone effects that convey alienation. Greenwood often uses smooth, strummed acoustic parts, such as on "High And Dry" with its attractive acoustic chords and melodic solo breaks. "Fake Plastic Trees" reveals sustaining electric layers and on "(Nice Dream)" there are background ambient sounds and electric arpeggios. Fluctuating levels and normal distorted chords create tension and release on "Bones," and on "Just," a dramatic ascending figure alternates with softer, colorful textures before ending with abrasive soloing. On "Street Spirit," classical-style arpeggiation is played on electric chords.

During the 1990s, there was a rich diversity, with both pop and blues-rock melodiousness and experimentation. Groups such as Jason Pierce's Spiritualized on Laser Guided Melodies (1992) create trancelike, altered-state music. On ocean color Scene's "The Riverboat Song" (1996), guitarist Steve Cradock uses a repeating blues-rock riff with fundamental harmonies before playing an incisive, bluesy, wah wah solo. In pop, blur with Graham Coxon (b. 1969) produce a bright, hard-edged sound. The opening track on their album Parklife (1994), "Girls & Boys," features funky distorted rock guitar with a dissonant edge. "End of a Century" has overlayed acoustic and electric parts, and chords played with a hard downbeat. Coxon adds characterful parts in an exuberant punk style on “Trouble in the Message Centre" and contributes tangled parts to "Jubilee."

Among other popular acts are The Manic Street Preachers, with James Dean Bradfield (b. 1969) on guitar. On their album Everything Must Go (1996), Bradfield reveals an intense, serious style with muscular guitar parts, dry acoustic and electric distorted chords and riffs. This hard-edged approach is taken further by Kelly Jones of The Stereophonies on Performance and Cocktails (1999), on which "Roll up and Shine" starts with explosive guitar sounds and features attacking, tonally sharp, rough-edged rock-guitar chords and riffs. In a thriving music scene, the guitar continues to be a focal point for shifting trends and is still a major voice in contemporary popular culture at the beginning of the 21st century.