LYNCH MOB / SOULS OF WE / ex-DOKKEN guitarist George Lynch is featured in a new interview with Matt Blackett at GuitarPlayer.com. An excerpt is available below.

Q: What was the L.A. scene of the late ’70s like?

Lynch: "It was a great, great scene. I was exposed to so many amazing guitar players who were all very different from one another. In addition to Eddie and Randy, bands like A LA CARTE and STORMER had great guitarists. Another guy who was really good was Rusty Anderson, who plays with Paul McCartney now. He was in a band called EULOGY, and we did a bunch of shows with them when I was in BOYZ. The difference between then and now is that back then, nobody was hearing anyone else and copying them. That didn’t start until Eddie came along. Then everybody wanted to be Eddie, just like later everybody wanted to be Yngwie. Before that, every player had his own unique approach and style."

Q: When VAN HALEN blew up, were the other guitarists jealous or did you think it would translate into a bunch of other bands getting signed?

Lynch: "Both. We were jealous and we were all trying to play catch up. We thought, 'Oh boy, we better get on board. This guy’s going to change the world.' I remember my reaction when I first heard Eddie. I had been hearing about this guy with the weird European name. He’s got a torpedo onstage, the bass player wears clogs, they have bombs onstage, and the guy’s unbelievable. I saw him and it blew my mind. They were still doing covers at the time—RAINBOW, MONTROSE—and their original stuff was as good or better than their cover stuff, which was pretty exceptional. After their show, I went back to our band room and played my guitar until the sun came up. I thought, 'Man! How can I get that tone?'"

Go to this location for the complete interview.