CompuServe Messages

That's a better quote for Clapton than BB King, however …. Speed does not make a player. Look at Dimeola or Pat Martino. Blazingly fast. That doesn't mean it's good (to me, it's not, but everyone's taste are different. For me, classical music is just so much background noise and opera is a bunch of people screaming on cue). When you stop practicing, you don't become less of a musician, but you do become less of a player (again, assuming that you aren't performing or otherwise working at your craft for 8-12 hours a day, that in itself is 'practice'). Segovia practiced 4-6 hours a day until he died. Practice, repetition, honing of your skills thru playing is what it takes to be a player.