We’ve all heard the soft rock ballad More than Words played a million times on the radio, but who would of thought that the man behind the curtain Nuno Bettencourt’s career would have ended up taking such a different spin.
Just the other day a friend handed me an Extreme album called Sides to Every Story and eagerly told me to take a listen. It was only later that I discovered the impressive lead guitar work belonged to Nuno Bettencourt, who I had always thought of as a mere acoustic guitar player / singer. This was not, however, the album that put Nuno and Extreme on the map. That accolade goes to the 1990 release Pornograffitti, which of course contained the mega hit More than Words.
Although Extreme does have a lot of new music to offer, it has become somewhat of a trend for them to perform the entire Pornograffitti album from front to back while on tour. Nuno said that the reason for doing so is based on the fact that he would love to see Van Halen perform his first or second album in full during a show. He did note that it’s a different live perspective to stay true to the album, and performing More than Words so early on in the show is somewhat of an obstacle.
But it’s his blistering guitar skills that he keenly displays on his lesser-known tracks that got him the gig with Rihanna back in 2009. It begs the question as to why an already established rock icon would team up with a pop star, but then it becomes evident that it would be foolish to turn down a tour with a pop singer at the very top of her game. As you can imagine, it probably takes care of a few bills. Nuno did mention that when going to work with her for the first time he was indeed skeptical of her vocal talents. “A lot of time with the singers you hear now, there’s a lot of that auto-tune element and you don’t know who can really sing. But when I went to rehearsal I couldn’t believe how well she sung”, said Nuno.
Photo licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Rihanna’s choice of band members is somewhat surprising in the modern era of pop singers, however she commendably wanted to undertake a heavier edge in her music. Nuno stated that one of the reasons he undertook the gig was because he was given the freedom of doing what he wanted on every song. That included using his own gear. Nuno said, “the drummer’s from Stevie Wonder. It’s a real band, and nothing on playback. We take the songs and we really play them. They’re nothing like on the album.” Nuno described playing with Rihanna to be more challenging than people would think, stating that the job requires him to cover many different genres.
When touring, Nuno uses his signature Washburn N-Series guitar. Interestingly enough, he has never changed brands throughout his entire career. The new version features a carbon fibre neck, which Nuno describes as “super fast”. For amplification he uses his signature Randall NB King. “Like the guitar, it’s just a workhorse amp. Nothing fancy”, says Nuno.
You can catch Nuno with Extreme on the Monsters of Rock Cruise, which departs February (this month) the 22’nd, where he will be performing alongside Steve Vai, Tesla and many more.
“This exclusive cruise charter is a fantasy camp for hard-rockin’ music enthusiasts, with non-stop entertainment, activities and fun. The experience is over the top! The Jewel Class ship has been designed specifically for the concert cruise market. Featuring 5 of the hottest venues on the high seas, more dining options than ever before and adding to it the friendly and attentive service that NCL is well known for, this experience will impress even the most discerning cruise and music fan!” – MonstersOfRockCruise.com
