Best Rock Guitarist Ever?

Off Topic
121

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]strangemeadow wrote:
Really? We should listen to Eric Clapton? Half of his biggest hits were JJ Cale covers or done with help from the aforementioned Allman Bro, who actually came up with the Layla riff, as well as the awesome slide solo.
Just cuz some one spray painted “Clapton is God” on a wall doesn’t mean he is.
Sheesh…[/quote]

By that rationale Page is omitted from the list 'cause 80% of Zep songs are STOLEN old Delta blues songs that were changed just enough to not give credit or royalties to the originators.[/quote]

Well, 80% is an exaggeration, but Zep has made a few payouts, quietly, over the years. Hey, at least Willy Dixon got a little scratch out of it.

122

Hammet has been w Metalica since ever since man. He’s doing something right.

123

[quote]Viernes wrote:
Hammet has been w Metalica since ever since man. He’s doing something right.

[/quote]

Yea, he’s not Dave Mustaine and sits back while Lars and James run the band into the ground…if you call that “doing something right”

124

seen hendrix, and a ton of his videos… never seen him play clean like this . as fast as this, and this man is doing it at a younger age than hendrix was…

like i said on a previous post here. how you supose to judge who the best is??

whats the criteria? the rules? whats the judge looking for? lol!!!

cant go by the top 100 guitar players of all time magazines…

one pole joni mitchell was ahead of carlos santana… in another best 100 guitarists off all time, kurt cobaine was ahead of rory gallagher…

hahahahahahahahahaha.

seen a rare interview maybe 40 years ago,jimi said the lead guitar player of chicago was far better than he was…

if the song has a good beat, i’ll probably like it…

125

Gotta post some Alex Lifeson here. I’m biased as fuck, but I think he’s one of the most under-appreciated guitarists out there.

126

Hendrix was great at what he did.
Terry Kath and a little feedback

this thread was rock guitarist and that’s why I went with Nuno. if it was blues I would have went with Rory Gallagher. metal I would have stayed with Jeff Waters. classical would be Andre Segovia.
flamenco would be Carlos Montoya.

Cello could only be Pablo Casals

AND
THE
ONE
STYLE
YOU
CAN’T
LEAVE
OUT
.
.
.
.
.

AIR GUITAR

127

If we are Talking purely rock guitarist I would like to add Ted Nugent. Don’t hear him mentioned a lot but he is the best, just ask him.

128

[quote]Testy1 wrote:
If we are Talking purely rock guitarist I would like to add Ted Nugent. Don’t hear him mentioned a lot but he is the best, just ask him.

It’s funny, I’ve always bashed Ted’s playing, but I heard him in an interview on Howard Stern and he was playing and holy shit, I was surprised at how well he was playing blues and jazz blues. It was miles above anything I’d heard him do before.
Now if only he wasn’t so extremely insane on politics lol…

129

If the criteria includes song writing and ability to play, it’s Prince.

130

[quote]doogie wrote:
If the criteria includes song writing and ability to play, it’s Prince.
[/quote]

Great artist, wouldn’t call him a rock guitarist though.

131

[quote]Testy1 wrote:

[quote]doogie wrote:
If the criteria includes song writing and ability to play, it’s Prince.
[/quote]

Great artist, wouldn’t call him a rock guitarist though.[/quote]

I would. Plus!

Listen to the solos in songs like Let’s Go Crazy. That little purple bastard shreds!

132

I have a list of of fave guitarists… technically proficient, yet soulful and able to write truly powerful, memorable riffs.

But Johnny Thunders (RIP) gets my vote for pure balls, swagger, tone, and attitude ? nevermind sloppiness, it’s rock n roll!

Here he is on a good night:

And here he is on a bad night:

133

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Haven’t read past the first page, but not sure how anyone thinks the answer isn’t “Jimi Hendrix”. Rock isn’t about technical proficiency, or playing a billion different chords, Rock is about making you feel the music. Jimi Hendrix has affected and influenced literally every single guitarist since, and his brief catalogue of music is UNBELIEVABLY deep.

Eric Clapton himself says Hendrix is in a ballpark by himself, and he’s right. Peope can throw out obscure guitarists to sound cool, or other greats to play Devil’s advocate, but as rock’n’roll as they might be, they’re not rock’n’roll. Jimi Hendrix is rock’n’roll, and everyone else is competing for second place.[/quote]

Guys here love putting names of guys you have never heard of to sound cool. But jimi hendrix has won every single greatest guitarast of all time award, every single time they’ve had it.

134

Like I said. John 5 is pretty good.

135

[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:

[quote]Testy1 wrote:

[quote]doogie wrote:
If the criteria includes song writing and ability to play, it’s Prince.
[/quote]

Great artist, wouldn’t call him a rock guitarist though.[/quote]

I would. Plus!

Listen to the solos in songs like Let’s Go Crazy. That little purple bastard shreds![/quote]

Don’t get me wrong, I have immense respect for the slick, slinky, sexy funk that he plays and concur that he shreds, but for the most part it’s not rock and roll to me.

136

[quote]roguevampire wrote:

Guys here love putting names of guys you have never heard of to sound cool. But jimi hendrix has won every single greatest guitarast of all time award, every single time they’ve had it.[/quote]

What the bloody fuck are you even talking about? Do you even play the instrument? You have the logic of a toddler 95% of the time when you open your mouth.

Yea - what awards would those be? Because in Guitar Player Magazine (the industry BIBLE) many players have won top honors in their polls - in fact, EVH won Best Rock Guitarist 5 fucking years in a row, and Randy Rhoads won Best New Talent in 1982 - not to mention the HUNDREDS of players who have won over the years. And, most importantly, a poll really means nothing more than a popularity contest anyway, and there is no fucking way in the universe to take ONE player and proclaim him the GOAT - as I said earlier, that’s how 4 year olds think.

And LMAO at “Guys here love putting names of guys you have never heard of to sound cool” - this shows how absolutely ignorant you are on the subject, and why you should shut up about it. There’s not a SINGLE player mentioned in this thread that I’ve never heard of - but that’s because I’ve been playing the instrument seriously for 30 years, and you’re an ignorant shit talker and the forum joke…

137

The real test of the ‘greatest rock guitar player of all time’ is to take a sample of people from all walks of life and ask them to name a rock (or electric) guitarist.

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Jimi Hendrix and/or Eddie Van Halen would win that poll by a large, large, margin. Hell, my mom who certainly knows who Led Zeppelin is doesn’t know who Jimmy Page is (that’s not to minimize Jimmy Page). Ask a group of kids to name the first guitar player to come to their mind and I bet the winner is Jimi Hendrix or EVH.

“Jimi Hendrix” and “Eddie Van Halen” are synonoymous with “electric guitar”. Neither one was/is a great technician, but both turned how people thought about and played electric guitar upside down. That’s what makes them GREATEST.

Jimi didn’t invent the pentatonic scale. EVH didn’t invent ‘tapping’, but their application and phrasing and songwriting were way ahead of their contemporaries. EVH almost single handedly revived a failing electric guitar industry.

138

[quote]SteelyD wrote:
The real test of the ‘greatest rock guitar player of all time’ is to take a sample of people from all walks of life and ask them to name a rock (or electric) guitarist.

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Jimi Hendrix and/or Eddie Van Halen would win that poll by a large, large, margin. Hell, my mom who certainly knows who Led Zeppelin is doesn’t know who Jimmy Page is (that’s not to minimize Jimmy Page). Ask a group of kids to name the first guitar player to come to their mind and I bet the winner is Jimi Hendrix or EVH.

“Jimi Hendrix” and “Eddie Van Halen” are synonoymous with “electric guitar”. Neither one was/is a great technician, but both turned how people thought about and played electric guitar upside down. That’s what makes them GREATEST.

Jimi didn’t invent the pentatonic scale. EVH didn’t invent ‘tapping’, but their application and phrasing and songwriting were way ahead of their contemporaries. EVH almost single handedly revived a failing electric guitar industry.
[/quote]

Great post S but I disagree about VH not being a great technician - he definitely is, and certainly in 1978 he was at the forefront of technical rock guitar. Compared to Yngwie or Petrucci or Gilbert - then yea, but that’s all post-EVH…

Also should point out that EVH was the first to jam a humbucker into a strat body and pretty much single-handeldly created the after market electric guitar craze…

And just for shits and giggles…

That incredible clean picked intro, awesome heavy rhythm and all the insane little licks and fills he plays all over this tune live…so awesome…

139

I mean, sure, this pattern is now an iconic part of pop culture.

But how did it get there?

140

[quote]SkyNett wrote:

[quote]SteelyD wrote:
The real test of the ‘greatest rock guitar player of all time’ is to take a sample of people from all walks of life and ask them to name a rock (or electric) guitarist.

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Jimi Hendrix and/or Eddie Van Halen would win that poll by a large, large, margin. Hell, my mom who certainly knows who Led Zeppelin is doesn’t know who Jimmy Page is (that’s not to minimize Jimmy Page). Ask a group of kids to name the first guitar player to come to their mind and I bet the winner is Jimi Hendrix or EVH.

“Jimi Hendrix” and “Eddie Van Halen” are synonoymous with “electric guitar”. Neither one was/is a great technician, but both turned how people thought about and played electric guitar upside down. That’s what makes them GREATEST.

Jimi didn’t invent the pentatonic scale. EVH didn’t invent ‘tapping’, but their application and phrasing and songwriting were way ahead of their contemporaries. EVH almost single handedly revived a failing electric guitar industry.
[/quote]

Great post S but I disagree about VH not being a great technician - he definitely is, and certainly in 1978 he was at the forefront of technical rock guitar. Compared to Yngwie or Petrucci or Gilbert - then yea, but that’s all post-EVH…

Also should point out that EVH was the first to jam a humbucker into a strat body and pretty much single-handeldly created the after market electric guitar craze…

And just for shits and giggles…

That incredible clean picked intro, awesome heavy rhythm and all the insane little licks and fills he plays all over this tune live…so awesome… [/quote]

Steely’s the man, but I have to agree with SkyNett here. Yeah, Jimi wasn’t a great technician, but Eddie was/is. Granted, I’m not a guitar player, but as a bassist I could easily see that one of EVH’s strengths was his impeccable sense of rhythm. The man played flawlessly within structure and never got lost with all he was throwing in a passage at any given moment.