Watch Stanley Jordan Play "Stairway to Heaven" on Two Guitars at Once
Modern jazz master Stanley Jordan made a major splash in guitar circles back in the Eighties, in large part because of his innovative "touch" tapping technique and unusual all-fourths tuning.
One of the many highlights of his popular 1988 album, Flying Home, is a jaw-dropping instrumental cover of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven."
You can check out a live performance of the tune—shot around the same time the album was released—below (basically because we just happened to be in the mood to hear it today). What makes the video so special is that, at one point, Jordan plays the song on two guitars at once—treating both guitar fretboards as one big fragmented keyboard.
Flying Home happens to be jam-packed with stellar performances, including the Zeppelin tune, the title track and "Tropical Storm." Jordan's latest album, Duets, was released in 2015 via Mack Avenue Records.
By the way, you can find out more about all-fourths tuning right here. From the bass strings to the treble strings, it'd look like this: E A D G C F. Jordan has said that all-fourths tuning "simplifies the fingerboard, making it logical."
For more about Jordan and the Stanley Jordan School of the Arts, head here. Enjoy!
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Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
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