The Marty Friedman Interview (Full Extended Cut)
It's no secret that my favorite guitarist of all time is Marty Friedman - my approach to playing and how I visualize/conceptualize guitar music is nearly entirely down to him and his super unique philosophies towards the instrument.
So I was obviously insanely stoked to finally get a chance with the legend himself and pick his brain about all things guitar, Megadeth, songwriting, soloing, philosophy and even martial arts!
Sit back, relax and enjoy this full 90 min extended cut especially for Guitar School members 🤘
0:00 Intro
1:14 Guess the song #1 (Cacophony - Concerto)
2:06 Thoughts on modern shred music/bands
5:49 Guess the song #2 (Dragon Mistress)
6:03 Bradley gets ROASTED
6:33 Making your own rules (and breaking them)
9:00 Exotic scales
11:45 Guess the song #3 (Megadeth - Rust In Peace...Polaris)
12:54 Marty's unique approach to guitar
17:45 Visualizing the fretboard as chords instead of scales
20:00 Playing what you hear in your head
24:20 Does Marty have perfect pitch?
25:25 Were the Rust In Peace solos cut together?
27:28 Guess the song #4 (Valley Of Eternity)
28:45 What's Marty's process for writing melodies?
33:08 Guess the song #5 (Ripped)
36:28 What are Marty's influences when it comes to fast/technical playing?
38:10 Guess the song #6 (Viper)
42:30 The importance of keeping the Rock'n'Roll spirit in shred music
43:57 Guess the song #6 (Tsume Tsume Tsume)
45:01 Is Marty still excited by Japanese music?
48:35 Guess the song #7 (Meat Hook)
49:23 How does Marty compose instrumentally vs. with a vocalist?
52:51 Guess the song #8 (Dead Of Winter)
53:42 Chord progressions
58:56 How much music theory does Marty know?
1:05:33 Is it better to be a well-rounded player or specialized player?
1:08:08 Has Marty's picking technique ever held him back?
1:10:24 Guitar School Member questions
Comments (23)
What a great interview. I never got his JAPAN JAPAN stuff until now. Guess I'm late to the party, but I went to the Japan Top 100 on Apple Music, and Marty is totally right! Rick Beato needs to go through the top 10 of Japan when he does his top 10 in the charts talk. Lilac by Mrs. Green Apple is fire! Proof that our technological progression in first world countries does not have to mean the pop top 10 becomes worse and worse.
Great player and great host love u bradley
Love Marty, one of the most genuine guitar player and a distinctive person.... great interview!
What a Guy and what a perfect host.. that was awesome!
That was fascinating Bradley. Very well constructed interview which Marty was clearly appreciative of. Marty was so gratuitous with all of the praise you had. The mutual respect you had for each other was really nice to see.
Awesome talk, awesome video. It was really fun. And Marty is the best...
Must feel incredible! Bradley's favorite guitar player just told him he is a fan of Bradley and invited him to a show in Japan! Awesome!
That was super cool; and it must have felt really nice to hear some of the things he said to you during that whole interview, man. Awesome!
Not just an extremely skilled guitarist, but a great human! What a down to earth guy. If/when you jam with him, please at least share your experience! That sounds like just a magical time. Also, Japan is such an amazing place to visit (one of my fav, I’m going back in late 2025). You’ll have tons of fun. Also kudos to playing in front of Marty. You got some real bollocks!
Saw a lot of interviews with Marty but this was by far the best! So many interesting and entertaining topics and such a cool chemistry. Thanks!
Love the part where Marty brings almost tears in Bradley's eyes
There is now only 1 degree of separation between me and Marty Friedman. Sick interview
I need a girl who looks at me the way Bradley looks at Marty
😂 😂
Amazing interview! Also pretty dope that my question made it in!
Hey Brad, thanks for that! Marty is one of the greatest guitarists ever and having the opportunity to hear him pass on his knowledge is priceless
I saw Marty at the end of January in an ice storm playing in a small venue and he was phenomenal! Band was great and it felt like they put everything they had into the performance. Marty is one of a kind and I consider myself fortunate to to have been able to experience his show that night. Looking forward to the interview!
Well done Bradley! Thank you so much for this. This is the best interview of Marty by a mile. And watching your level of excitement and fandom is heart warming. And I am eternally grateful that you asked him my question, it made me blush!
Loving it! Top job mate
Incredible, but having trouble watching from mobile. I get an error message asking me to sign in to YouTube (even though I am signed in to YouTube)
Yeah sorry, will be uploading the video properly to Patreon today!
Holy shitballs
Wow