Rock band format having a lineup of electric guitar, bass, and drums
A
power trio
is a
rock and roll
band format having a lineup of
electric guitar
,
bass guitar
and
drum kit
, leaving out a dedicated vocalist or an additional
rhythm guitar
or
keyboard
instrument that are often used in other rock music bands that are quartets and quintets. Larger rock bands often use one or more additional
rhythm sections
to fill out the sound with chords and harmony parts.
Most power trios in
hard rock
and
heavy metal music
use the electric guitar player in two roles; during much of the song, they play rhythm guitar, playing the
chord progression
for the song and performing the song's important
riffs
, and then switching to a
lead guitar
role during the
guitar solo
. While one or more band members typically sing while playing their instruments, power trios in hard rock and heavy metal music generally emphasize instrumental performance and overall sonic impact over vocals and lyrics.
[1]
An example of a power trio is
Motorhead
, whose lead vocalist,
Lemmy
, played bass and sang lead vocals. Although four-piece bands such as
the Who
or
Led Zeppelin
may function instrumentally as a power trio, with three instrumentalists and a dedicated
lead vocalist
, these bands are not usually considered as power trios.
History
[
edit
]
The rise of the power trio in the 1960s was made possible in part by developments in
amplifier
technology that greatly enhanced the volume of the electric guitar and bass. Particularly, the popularization of the electric bass guitar defined the bottom end and filled in the gaps. Since the amplified bass could also now be louder, the rest of the band could also play at higher volumes while still being able to hear the bass. This allowed a three-person band to have the same sonic impact as a large band but left far more room for improvisation and creativity, unencumbered by the need for detailed arrangements. As with the
organ trio
, a 1960s-era
soul jazz
group centered on the amplified
Hammond organ
, a three-piece group could fill a large bar or club with a big sound for a much lower price than a large rock and roll band. A power trio, at least in its
blues rock
incarnation, is also generally held to have developed out of
Chicago-style blues
bands such as
Muddy Waters
' trio.
In addition to technological improvements, another impetus for the rise of the power trio was the virtuosity of guitarists such as
Eric Clapton
,
Jimi Hendrix
, and
Rory Gallagher
, who could essentially cover both the
rhythm guitar
and
lead guitar
roles in a live performance. In 1964,
Frank Zappa
played guitar in a power trio, the Muthers, with Paul Woods on bass and Les Papp on drums.
[2]
In 1966, the prototypical blues-rock power trio
Cream
[3]
was formed, consisting of
Eric Clapton
on guitar/vocals,
Jack Bruce
on bass/vocals, and
Ginger Baker
on drums. Other influential 1960s-era
blues rock
/
hard rock
power trio bands were
the Jimi Hendrix Experience
,
[4]
Blue Cheer
,
Grand Funk Railroad
,
[5]
the
James Gang
featuring Joe Walsh, and
Taste
.
[6]
Well-known 1970s-era power trios include the Canadian
progressive rock
groups
Rush
and
Triumph
,
[7]
the American band
ZZ Top
,
[8]
the English
heavy metal
band
Motorhead
, and the
Robin Trower Band
.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
(as well as its offshoot
Emerson, Lake & Powell
) is usually considered a power trio
[9]
[10]
as Keith Emerson fulfilled the rhythm and lead playing on the keyboards that would usually fall on the guitarist, while bassist (and occasional guitarist) Greg Lake on vocals. In 1968, the power trio
Manal
was formed in
Argentina
, and were the first group that composed blues music in Spanish.
[11]
[12]
After the 1970s, the phrase "power trio" was applied to the
new wave
group
the Police
,
[13]
grunge
band
Nirvana
,
extreme metal
bands
Hellhammer
and
Gallhammer
,
alternative rock
bands
Husker Du
and
Concrete Blonde
,
mod revivalists
the Jam
, hard rock/progressive metal band
King's X
,
post-grunge
band
Silverchair
,
alternative
bands
the Presidents of the United States of America
,
Goo Goo Dolls
,
Primus
,
Everclear
,
Muse
, and
Eve 6
,
pop punk
bands such as
Green Day
,
Blink-182
,
Alkaline Trio
and
MxPx
, and
Argentine rock
bands like
Soda Stereo
,
Divididos
,
A.N.I.M.A.L.
, and From Power Project. Also, by the 1990s, rock trios began to form around different instrumentation, from the band
Morphine
, featuring a
baritone saxophone
instead of an electric guitar, to
Ben Folds Five
's replacing the guitar with various keyboards, principally the
piano
.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Larson, Tom (2004).
History of Rock and Roll
. Kendall/Hunt. p. 183.
ISBN
978-0787299699
.
- ^
Watson, Ben (1994).
Frank Zappa: The Negative Dialectics of Poodle Play
. Quarted Books. p. 26.
ISBN
0-7043-7066-2
.
- ^
Hoffmann, Frank (2004).
Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound
. Routledge. p. 505.
ISBN
978-1-135-94950-1
.
Extract of page 505
- ^
Gilliland, John
(1969).
"Show 53 ? String Man"
(audio)
.
Pop Chronicles
.
University of North Texas Libraries
.
- ^
Olsen, Andrew.
"An Interview with Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad"
.
duluthreader.com
. Retrieved
12 June
2013
.
- ^
Cariappa, Shiv (January 8, 1997).
"Interview With Gerry McAvoy"
.
Christian Science Monitor
. Archived from
the original
on 23 October 2014
. Retrieved
22 June
2013
.
In the late 1960s, two music groups, Taste and Cream, blazed trails as definitive examples of rock's power-trios.
- ^
"Billboard"
.
Billboard
.
- ^
UPI (December 11, 1974).
"New Rock Music Trio Coming on Strong"
.
The Dispatch
. Retrieved
1 June
2013
.
- ^
Martin, Bill; Fripp, Robert (2015).
Avant Rock: Experimental Music from the Beatles to Bjork
. Open Court. p. 81.
ISBN
978-0-8126-9939-5
.
Extract of page 81
- ^
Harrison, Thomas (2011).
Music of the 1980s
(illustrated ed.). ABC-CLIO. p. 85.
ISBN
978-0-313-36600-0
.
Extract of page 85
- ^
Javier Martinez sube al escenario del teatro Colon con lo mejor del blues
- ^
Las 10 bandas mas revolucionarias del Rock Nacional
- ^
Clark, Dick (July 15, 1983).
"The Police: An Arresting Power Trio"
.
Milwaukee Record-Journal
. Retrieved
2 June
2013
.