Power trio

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The power trio is a rock and roll band format popularized in the 1960s (see 1960s in music). The traditional power trio has a lineup of guitar, bass and drums, leaving out the rhythm guitar or keyboard often featured in other rock music. In more recent years, the term has become generally applied to any sort of three-person band.

Contents 1 Overview 2 History 2.1 Origins 2.2 Experimentation in the 70s and 80s 2.3 1980s and 1990s

[edit] Overview

Power trios have at times been characterized as loud and bombastic, often embarking on long improvised jams that would highlight the virtuosity of the individual musicians. The American blues band, Hot Tuna, for example, when it chose to play electric, would often play six hour sets when performing in the mid 1970s. Power trio music often reflects a blues or jazz influence, since these two types of music invite improvisation. Typically, instrumental performance and overall impact are emphasized over vocals and lyrics. For instance, Beck, Bogert, and Appice would generally be considered a power trio, whereas the Jeff Beck Group, (a similar lineup with Rod Stewart on vocals) would not.

As power trios have one guitar, one bass and one drummer, this arrangement usually requires the guitarist to play both rhythm and lead parts. The emphasis on guitar solos and crashing rhythm sections in the power trio contributed to the development of heavy metal, although some power trios would prefer hard rock labels.

[edit] History

[edit] Origins

The rise of the power trio was made possible in part by developments in amplifier and electric guitar/bass guitar technology that permit the instruments to provide more sound than before. Particularly, the advent of electric bass guitar defined the bottom end and filled in the gaps. Since the bass could also now be louder, the rest of the band could also play at higher volumes without fear of being unable to hear the bass. This allowed a three-person band to have the same sonic impact as an 18-person 'big band,' but left far more room for improvisation and creativity, unencumbered by the need for detailed arrangements.

The first embryonic rock "power trio" may have been Buddy Holly and The Crickets, whose onstage sound relied on a driving rhythm section that underpinned Holly's guitar and voice. The power trio, at least in its blues-rock incarnation, is generally held to have developed out of Chicago-style blues bands such as Muddy Waters' trio.

The prototypical power trios were exemplified by The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream, who popularized the format during the 1960s. These two groups laid down the framework for all other subsequent power trios: extended improvisation, hyperamplification, and the use of effects (such as delay, distortion, flangers, fuzz bass, wah pedals, etc.) to round out and modify the group sound. The idea of the power trio became so pervasive during the late 1960s that it became a virtual rite of passage for young musicians - even Bruce Springsteen was in one before his career became successful.

[edit] Experimentation in the 70s and 80s

During the late 1960s, many groups used power trio instrumentation while adding a vocalist. These include The Who, Led Zeppelin, and Black Sabbath. Although none of these were ever particularly identified as such, the music that they created is influenced by, and follows the same musical format as, many of the pioneering power trios. Likewise, Mountain is often erroneously referred to as a power trio, even though there were four instrumentalists (guitar, bass, drums, and keyboards) in the band. Many punk rock bands, for example the Ramones and the Sex Pistols, would follow the power trio plus vocalist model, which was also used by proto-punk band The Stooges.

Some power trios also experimented with keyboards and sequencers in the studio, most notably the Canadian trio Rush, whose bassist-frontman Geddy Lee has often demonstrated his multi-instrumental capabilities on diverse rock albums such as 1977's A Farewell to Kings and 1985's Power Windows. Modern digital technology has also enabled a power trio to duplicate their studio performances in concert, as evidenced by Rush's 1989 live album, A Show of Hands, where Lee simultaneously sings, plays bass, and plays keyboard with foot pedals. This technology, in combination with their style and production, have earned the band the nickname of "Canadian Power Trio".

One of the longest-lasting and most popular power trios is ZZ Top. Beginning from their roots as a blues-oriented, Cream-like power trio on albums such as Tres Hombres, the band increased their audience through a series of hit songs and albums. In many cases, the music of power trios is ignored or minimized by the music industry, but with a combination of wit, image, and musical dexterity ZZ Top became one of the few power trios to attain widespread popularity. Like Rush, ZZ Top has often used technology to expand their band's sound, but have never forgotten their blues roots. Unlike many power trios, ZZ Top also injects a deliberate element of humor into their music, which may account for part of their continued popularity.

Some 1970s British groups, such as Genesis and UK began with larger lineups, but eventually became keyboard-oriented trios in the mode of Emerson, Lake & Palmer. However, due to the absence of a lead guitarist, these progressive rock groups are not usually considered 'true' power trios.

Other well-known trios from the 1970s and 1980s include Budgie, Grand Funk Railroad, Triumph, Blue Cheer, Johnny Winter's Progressive Blues Experiment, Cactus, Glass Harp, Motörhead, The Minutemen, West, Bruce and Laing, The Jam, The Police and the Robin Trower Band.

[edit] 1980s and 1990s

Although power trios fell out of fashion during the 1980s, some continued to emerge well into the next decade, such as King's X, Green Day, Jawbreaker, Gov't Mule and Nirvana. The rise of indie rock in the 1980s and 1990s also featured many trios, for example Hüsker Dü, The Clean, Dinosaur Jr, Minuemen and Sebadoh. These indie trios would often overdub multiple parts when recording but perform stripped-back versions of their songs live.

John Paul Jones uses a variant of the power trio idea in his solo tours, combining bass and keyboards with Stick player Nick Beggs and a drummer. The 1990's edition of King Crimson toured as an alleged "double power trio", (according to leader Robert Fripp) with two drummers, two bassists and two guitars. The traditional power trio continues to be represented by newer groups such as Los Lonely Boys, Wolfmother, Rose Hill Drive, and the North Mississippi Allstars, among many others who have sprung out of the jam band scene. In 2002 power trio The Bobolink Encounter attempted to revive the popularity of the power trio by specifically promoting itself as one. The Multi Genre group Boris only has three members, but compensates by using a double neck instrument with one neck being a guitar and one neck being a bass. They frequently use effects such as delay and echo, and fill in space with instrumental feedback.

The White Stripes and the Black Keys are of similar blues rock style to a traditional power trio, but omit a bass guitarist, so can be referred to as power duos.