By Steve Newton
British guitar hero Bernie Marsden turned 72 today, so I figured now was as good a time as any to ask God to bless his solo on Whitesnake’s “Fool For Your Lovin'”.
In previous blogs I’ve asked God to bless exquisite guitar solos by Scott Gorham on Thin Lizzy’s “Romeo and the Lonely Girl”, Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser on Blue Öyster Cult’s “Burnin’ For You”, Snowy White on Peter Green’s “Slabo Day”, Steve Cropper on Rod Stewart’s “Stone Cold Sober”, and Huey Thomasson on the Outlaws’ “Hurry Sundown”.
Marsden’s 35-second solo on Whitesnake’s original 1980 version of “Fool For Your Lovin'” isn’t the fanciest bit of fretwork you’ve ever heard–especially compared to the neck-tapping, whammy-barred solo shredmaster Steve Vai played on Whitesnake’s re-recording of the song in 1989.
But to me it deserves the utmost praise because it suits the bluesy vibe of the song–which Marsden cowrote with Whitesnake singer David Coverdale and coguitarist Micky Moody–so damn perfectly. The choice bends and vibrato are shiver-inducing. Check it out at the 2:49 mark:
I suppose I should have asked God to bless Neil Murray’s wicked bass playing on that tune as well, but I reckon there’s only so many blessings to go around.
I’ve never had the opportunity to interview Bernie Marsden, but to hear the full audio of my interviews with former Whitesnake members John Sykes, Steve Vai, Rudy Sarzo, Vivian Campbell, and Tommy Aldridge subscribe to my Patreon page, where you can eavesdrop on over 350 of my uncut, one-on-one conversations with the legends of rock, dating back to 1982.