Often, when a rock guitarist exits or works outside of a famous rock band, they never quite escape the shadow of their former group. Legends like Keith Richards and Rich Robinson have made solo excursions beyond The Rolling Stones and The Black Crowes, yet were unable to reach anywhere near the colossal heights of their great bands. It’s an impossible task, and if Keef can’t do it, well, good luck, babe.
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Still, a few, like the guitarists below, have enjoyed successful solo careers after leaving famous rock bands.
Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton set the standard for a guitarist trading life in a famous rock band for a solo career. It might be a risky move for most, but it’s a different story when they call you “God.” Clapton journeyed from The Yardbirds and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers to Cream and Blind Faith. He recorded his first solo album in 1970, then formed Derek And The Dominos. Each group resulted in iconic recordings, and it would have been an easy decision for Slowhand to carry on with his proven bands. But if he had stayed, you wouldn’t get to epic blues jams like “Cocaine” or “Lay Down Sally”.
Johnny Marr
Anyone who has ever been in a band knows the hardest thing about it is keeping it together. Johnny Marr and Morrissey are one of the greatest songwriting duos in rock history, yet the internal turmoil between the two led to The Smiths’ breakup. However, Marr didn’t go solo straight away. He spent years in other groups before Johnny Marr And The Healers released Boomslang in 2003. Marr’s proper solo career began with The Messenger in 2013. His solo work blends the sounds of his famous bands The Smiths, Modest Mouse, and Electronic. Don’t look back in anger? When Morrissey recently floated the idea of a Smiths reunion, Marr tersely answered, “No.”
Jeff Beck
You don’t have to be a singing guitarist to go solo. When Eric Clapton quit The Yardbirds, it opened the door for Jeff Beck to replace him. Then Beck followed in Clapton’s footsteps and formed The Jeff Beck Group. With Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood, The Jeff Beck Group released Truth and Beck-Ola. Beck eventually disbanded the group, though he later reformed it without Stewart and Wood in 1970. By 1974, Beck began focusing on instrumental music and released Blow By Blow in 1975. Produced by George Martin, the album is Beck’s jazz fusion masterpiece.
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