What do you know about Steve Morse? A guitarist.

[coloradodem2005]

I know that he had a band called the Dixie Dregs for a while, then went solo then joined Kansas. Then he left music briefly, then came back. Then he joined Deep Purple and has been there ever since.

[Ricdude]

1. I've read some of his columns in guitar rags....

he's a nut. musically. in the best sense possible. good stuff.

[Commendatori]

2. He's been phenomenal with Deep Purple

I don't know his pre-Purple career very well, but he's been a great replacement for Ritchie Blackmore with less than half the attitude and BS.

[Warren Stuart]

3. He plays really, really fast

Maybe not as fast as Buckethead, but a lot more tasty than Buckethead ever will be.

[Ricdude]

5. If you want fast...

...and even less tasty than Buckethead, Michael Angelo of Nitro. It gets really entertaining when he does harmony runs on his multi-neck guitars with both hands. But it's still all flash and no soul...

[bbernardini]

4. "For a while"?!? Try almost 30 years!

Granted, the Dixie Dregs have been on/off since the mid-80s, but they've had lots of gigs in the 00s, as well as some in the 90s, plus some albums.

[toddzilla]

6. arrogant, condescending...

typical.

I like some of the dixie dregs stuff, but he's got a serious attitude problem.

[leftofthedial]

8. beg to differ.

I've had a few occasions to speak with him and he was unfailingly a nice guy.

He's also very open about talking about music, playing, etc.

When he briefly left music, he worked as a commercial pilot.

[bif]

7. Here's some background

Although Steve Morse enjoyed a healthy following among guitar players, his name was never a household commodity, and he remained a cult figure who earned his greatest success in the readers' polls held annually by musicans' magazines. Although initially inspired by the Beatles, as a teen Morse began to expand his listening to include the Yardbirds, Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. Although he played a little piano and some clarinet, he became fascinated with guitar after seeing a concert by classical guitarist Juan Mercadal, who later gave a teenage Morse some lessons. Deeply influenced by a campus performance by John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Quartet while attending the University of Miami, Morse decided to focus on instrumental rock music; in 1974 that he put together his first band, the Dixie Dregs (later simply the Dregs), which would go on to become one of the defining groups in the fusion rock genre. After some 14 albums fronting the Dregs, the Steve Morse Band began their recording career in 1984 with an album called Two Faces. Soon after, Elektra Records snatched Morse up and he cut two albums for the company, The Introduction in 1984 and Stand Up in 1985, before switching to MCA. Morse releases for the label included High Tension Wires (1989) Southern Steel (1991), and Coast to Coast (1992). After leaving MCA in 1992, Morse recorded two excellent albums for Windham Hill/BMG Records, Structural Damage (1995) and StressFest (1996), and also joined Deep Purple for a U.S. and European tour in 1996.