Ted Sablay has been around to see it all. The seasoned guitarist has been a staple of the Killers’ touring band for the past 17 years. He’s rubbed elbows with Bruce Springsteen. He’s performed for the Obamas. He’s endured long enough to see himself become a solo artist with a tuneful LP and another on the way. When he isn't mentoring the next generation of musicians or touring, Sablay spends time with his wife and adorable new rescue pup, Sade Milky Way. Recently, we spoke with Sablay to discuss three key albums that have inspired his guitar playing and singing.
Keith Richards, Talk Is Cheap
“It’s his very first solo record, released in 1988. That was the year I started learning how to play guitar. I don’t know if kids really learn Rolling Stones now, but at the time it was that and Led Zeppelin. There was this canon that you learned. Out of all of those classic rock bands, I just liked the Stones the best. Whereas Mick Jagger has a reputation for being very career driven and on trend, Keith Richard is all about ‘We need to get back to the roots.’ He did that on this record. Keith Richards has a few quotes he’s said like ‘Everyone talks about the rock, but no one talks about the roll.’ I have more of a roll. I don’t melt faces, but it’s not yacht rock either. A lot of that comes from this whole Keith Richards thing. Keith Richards and the Stones … that pretty much sums up my beginning guitar playing and where I learned a lot of blues.”
U2, Achtung Baby
“I moved to Vegas in 1991 the month Achtung Baby came out. When you move anywhere, you don’t know anyone. I was 15 and a guitar player, so I just disappeared into that record. [Edge] was influenced a lot by Manchester music, and through that … I started learning more about Manchester, then from there it was The Stone Roses, and I learned about The Smiths. That’s a whole second act with my guitar playing.”
Jakob Dylan, Seeing Things
“I’ve always felt like if you’re gonna have vocals, they should be melodic and they should be sung high. This, as you can see, is a problem if you want to do your own songs but you don’t have a high voice. I would hear melodies almost in the vein of U2 and the Beatles ... but then it’s a bummer when you can’t execute it. So I really put things even more into my musicianship and my guitar playing.
“It’s Jakob Dylan’s first solo record. It’s almost in the vein of Springsteen’s Nebraska or Johnny Cash’s American Recordings. I wasn’t looking for another guitar mentor, but it was great in terms of learning how to work with those colors. If your voice isn’t super high, but there’s an interesting quality to it, then you really get your lyrics going and you really get your sense of rhythm in your vocal phrasing. Think of The Wallflowers’ “One Headlight.” I don’t think when anyone hears that song, they think ‘God if only he could sing higher.’ It’s awesome!”
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