“As far as guitar playing goes, go to the old school - Randy Rhoads, Tony Iommi, Eddie Van Halen”: The wisdom of Dimebag in the final issue of Total Guitar

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A classic interview with Pantera legend Dimebag Darrell is one of the highlights of the last-ever issue of Total Guitar, which goes on sale this week.

This final issue features excerpts from many other interviews from across the years with cover stars including Jimmy Page, Brian May, Noel Gallagher and Matt Bellamy. But for pure foul-mouthed entertainment, nothing can beat the conversation with a drunk Dimebag from the summer of 2004 - just a few months before the guitarist’s life was cut short.

At one point during this interview, Dime grabbed his new Washburn signature guitar and swung it at the head of TG writer Steve Allsworth. But even as the hangover from hell crept up on him, Dime remained lucid enough to discuss the magic of spontaneous creation.

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell (Official Music Video) [4K Remaster] - YouTube

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“I’ve got to the point where I just don’t f*ckin’ practice,” he said. “If I feel it’s slacking, I’ll do a little work. But dude, I’ve been doing this my whole f*cking life! I don’t know all the f*ckin’ scales, but you know what? If I knew all the scales, I’d know what something was gonna sound like before I played it. And then there’d never be that experience of stepping out there and saying, ‘Let me see if I can make this solo fly! Can I get that last lick in there?’ And if you can turn a sour note into a good one just by bending it a half step, you can almost make it sound like it was meant to be!”

And at the end of that interview, the man who would be buried in a Kiss-branded coffin, with one of Eddie Van Halen’s guitars, had some sage advice for TG readers. “As far as guitar playing goes, go to the old school - Randy Rhoads, Tony Iommi, Eddie Van Halen - for the lead chops. And do what’s right for you.”

Total Guitar’s Editor Chris Bird comments: "For me, it has truly been a privilege to work with a frankly awesome team of contributors and colleagues, and to have been able to spend the last 17 years of my life creating lessons and features for you.”

But that’s not the last you will see or hear of him. Chris will go on to a new role as Lessons Editor on MusicRadar and our sister sites GuitarWorld and Guitar Player - serving up high quality tuition content for the guitar-playing community.

Paul Elliott has worked for leading music titles since 1985, including Sounds, Kerrang!, MOJO and Q. He is the author of several books including the first biography of Guns N’ Roses and the autobiography of bodyguard-to-the-stars Danny Francis. He has written liner notes for classic album reissues by artists such as Def Leppard, Thin Lizzy and Kiss. He lives in Bath - of which David Coverdale recently said: “How very Roman of you!”