Megadeth Guitarist Chris Broderick on learning Marty Friedman's solos

He's the virtuoso lead guitarist in Megadeth and holds a bachelor’s degree in classical guitar performance. But what Guitar World readers really want to know is…

When I learned Rust in Peace, those songs had the highest learning curve for me, because I was learning a lot about how Marty would phrase things and how he crafted his solos. For Countdown, it was much more enjoyable because I had a better grasp on Marty’s playing. So during that tour I wasn’t as much worried about what was going on technically, and I could focus more on the phrasing and musical expression.

I got into working out when I was 19 or 20. It was purely out of necessity. I weighed about 250 pounds…and it was not muscle. [laughs] I actually got into guitar around the same time I started gaining all the weight. When I was in elementary school, I hung out with all the jocks. Then one summer I watched way too many cartoons and ate too much. When school started again, all my jock friends were like, “Who are you? See you later.” So I met some new friends who played guitar, and that’s when I picked up the instrument.

Anyway, I was pretty badly out of shape, and my sister got me into running. So by the time I turned 25, I went from 250 down to 155 pounds. That’s pretty thin for my height. I noticed one day that I could see my chest bones, so I started lifting weights. But I’ll always feel like that fat kid inside. And I’ll never quit working out because of that. I’ve tried dieting in the past, but it was a temporary solution. It wasn’t until I made a lifestyle change and decided that I was gonna work out for the rest of my life that it made a difference.

I’ll do whatever it takes to stay fit on tour. Typically I’ll get up in the morning and practice guitar for a few hours. Then I’ll hit the gym or go running outside. If there’s no area to work out in, I bring these heavy stretch bands to make sure I get my workout in. I’ll also run the stairs in a hotel if I have to, which is actually great for your cardio. Then I’ll come back, and play more guitar until we hit the stage.

I would say insulating ductwork and pipes on construction sites. It wasn’t a horrible job, but it was very time-driven. You had to be there at a certain time and had to get a certain amount done so the people coming behind you would be able to put up the drywall or whatever. Then there were the working conditions. You’d be up in crawlspaces or attics, hanging off beams and dealing with all that fiberglass, or whatever the insulation was made out of.

Chris Poland is the hardest to emulate, but not necessarily because of the difficulty level. His playing style is just way more foreign to me than Marty Friedman’s. He does a lot more chromatic, tonic and interesting quarter-note bends that you have to pick up on. And my favorite solos are by Marty. He’s been an influence of mine since the Cacophony days and from when he released his solo album Dragon’s Kiss.

The truth is all manufacturers are capable of producing a great guitar. But Jackson was the only company that stepped up to the plate to do the guitar I had always envisioned in my head. Everyone else said, “We’ll endorse you. Just pick one of our models and we’ll slap your name on it.” There was no difference or reason to have a signature model with that in mind. But Jackson was willing to do the 12-inch continuous radius across the fretboard, with stainless-steel frets and my asymmetrical body, which I designed to sit ergonomically against the player’s body. And the guitar has a lot of nice weight that gives it that Les Paul–kinda tone.

[laughs] Yes, I am an obsessive dude by nature. And that’s probably how I stayed focused! For me, it’s always about focusing on concepts or ideas. When I pick up the guitar I don’t think, Oh it’s time to practice. It’s more like, I haven’t explored these chord moves that I found in Beethoven’s songs and I want to write some studies around them. It’s all about finding what interests you and keeping that at the forefront.