hmmm…i also thought knopfler should be placed higher…he’s one of the few guitarists that i can recognize no matter what song or band he is playing in.
willie deville has an alblum with mark playing as a guest guitarist…knew right away that it was him when i 1st heard it.
cant say anyother guys are like that for me.
though i do remember when clapton came out for a guest appearence at a stones concert, he played one solo song by himself…leaning back eyes closed…just going nuts.
then the stones came back on and was a bit of a cheap act in comparason
I was also surprised at Malmstein’s exclusion. Technically he is brilliant, but as with a lot of pure technicians he comes across a bit sterile at times.
Depends how you define greatness. A distinctive sound? - if so I’d include Peter Hook [the bassist from New Order].
And if, as someone questioned “where are the blues’ artists”, I’d want to know where Robert Johnson was placed, since it was he who originally sold his soul to the devil to play as he did.
Demo Dick: The difference is, I could probably talk my dad into gettin’ into the cage with most other dads from here
Regarding the thread: This whole poll was obviously a rather lame PR game, similar to the “Top 100 Movies” list…it’s organized so at least some of everyone’s favorite guitarists are on the list, instead of really being an analysis of guitar as art, skill, and technique. Where’s Jango Reinhardt? Robert Johnson? Not to mention the classical guitar masters (the name I’m hunting for slips me now). And as a poster above mentioned, WTF is Kurt Cobain doing there? I think the guy wrote fantastic music but damn, he was NOT any particular talent, plenty of guys who take a few months of guitar lessons can match one of Cobain’s riffs.
I’ve played guitar for a number of years, and polls like this upset up. It should have called the “Post Popular Guitarists.” Then I wouldn’t have a problem with it. But the list is for the “Best” guitarists. The two most technically proficient guitarists are Joe Satrinani and Steve Vai. They have master playing their instrument far beyond what anyone else ever did.
Here’s something else - I never understood the facination with Jimi. Sure, he influenced almost every guitarists, but so many have gone light years beyond what he did. Let me put in this way, I’m sure Joe and Steve can play every Jimi song. But if Jimi were alive today, I doubt he could do what Joe and Steve do.
I also think Clapton wasn’t that great. Kurt? If someone is just starting out playing rock, and they want to learn stuff that’s easy to play, I can always recomend Nirvana.
I think that it would be unfair to not include guys/girls such as Jeff Buckley, the boys from Cannibal Corpse, the boys from Carcass, and many others in all genre’s. I know that I can’t remember some of these guys names but I know to many bands and after awhile it becomes a chore. And let me also note that the magazine that you read probably on rated favorite guitartists that people know, so in that case nevermind my post!
Brider, a point you made, that Knopfler
so often “just plays such appropriate stuff in a group” though I hadn’t realized is also
part of why I place him so high, whereas others might not. Having spent many years
as a recording engineer, and either formally
producing various albums from strictly-local
groups or often serving in that capacity
in terms of trying to help them get appropriate parts on tape, “just playing
such appropriate stuff” is a huge thing with me. There’s a hell of a lot of art to that
and the number of guys who are great at it
is much fewer than the number that can play flashy solos. Knopfler is superb at it.
The reason why EVH is always so high or at the top of any list is because he combines it all. Great technical ability, soul, and amazing writing. Plus when musicians are asked you will always hear EVH in their top 5. Also his brother gets the same nod in the drum department. The late Buddy Rich probably the most influential drummer ever said on the Johnny Carson show that Alex Van Halen was the best drummer he had ever seen in his entire life. The both of them are amazing. The talent in that family is off the chart. Absolutely nothing against any of the guitarist mentioned. I saw earlier in the thread about THE EDGE from U2 well he isn’t exactly the best but he is a great writer and that is half the job right there. I could see that as a reason for Hetfield from Metallica being on there for that reason but again the writing has to be combined with technical ability and soul and that is why EVH combines it all.
Yea, when was 15, I learned to play Stairway to Heaven. When I was 18 I could play quite a few Hendrix songs. I bet, that would make me as good as those guys, right? Anyone can play a cover. It’s so funny that people rate musicians by their technical ability. If that’s all it took to be great, classical guitarists could run circles around everyone on that list.
It’s creativity that makes people listen. You wonder why people who can actually play site influences like Jimmy and Eddie, it’s because they where the first people that make them want to play guitar. Its not how technical you are its how CREATIVE you can be with an established instrument. Can you do something that’s never been done before with it? That’s the key to being a great player.
1.SRV (stevie ray vaughn)/ Jimmy Hendrix (tied)
2.Randy Rhoads
3.Yngwie Malmsteen
4.DimeBag Darrel (for being only 1 guitar player in a band,Pantera has one of the best guitarists in existense)
5.Kerry King (Slayer , some of the best leads)
6.Dave Mustaine
7.Joe Satriani
8.John Schaffer (don’t f!@in ,laugh Iced Earth is one of the Most Talented band sin existense not to mention a kick ass guitar player)
9.Eric Peterson/Alex Skolnick (Testament is the ultimate metal/thrash band !!!)
10.Zakk Wylde
p.s. ( i know the are numerous talented guitar players, blues,jazz etc. but this is the genre i think has the best of best now/then)
Aaron: right on. I couldn’t agree with you more. Creativity and influence are invaluable in rating musicians, and should probably be the only criteria for judging things such as this. But if you’re going to do that, we’d all have to go back to the roots of blues and give props to all of them since they started it all, right?
What made Hendrix so good? Perhaps the fact that he was doing what no one else ever did before and he’s influenced nearly every guitar player out there. And is Clapton really that great of a “technical” guitarist? I tend not to think so, but he is a phenomenal writer and knows what to play and when to play it. That’s what makes him so damn good. Just as others said about Knoppler.
But what makes that list the biggest piece of BS is that Stevie Ray Vaughan is, what, #19 or something?!?. Fucking absurd. The only thing I can think of that would exclude him from the top 5 is the fact that this was a rock list.
As for Cobain, yeah, that’s like putting Elvis on the list. And for the ladies, Bonnie Raitt is a fantastic slide guitar player. And does she have class. Always plays the right thing at the right time. Again, that’s invaluable.
This definitely is very subjective and a matter of taste and personal opinion but I think Stevie Ray definitely should’ve been in the top 10- Joe Satriani and Steve Vai belong in the top10 - I’m not surprised but Steve Morse should’ve made the top 20 cut- I agree with Bloatbag Stu about the jazz players- I mean check out Wes Montgomery’s earlier stuff- incredible guitar playing!! Then there’s Pat Martino’s early stuff, along with Pat Metheny’s Trio work and then Al Dimeola’s fusion albums in the 70’s-Elegant Gypsy and Casino…Well, I can go on and on here as you can tell I’m a big time guitar head but it’s really hard for me to make a list of the top 20 guitarists–I mean then there’s the classical guitarists such as Andre Segovia, John Williams, and Elliot Fisk-- I’m gonna stop here but if anyone out there is into guitar music and hasn’t heard of some of these names then definitely check them out you won’t be disappointed-
Speaking of classical, anyone who likes that sort of thing should check out Sharon Isbin’s recordings on 6-string acoustic of JS Bach’s lute works. Now, the lute does have more strings but I don’t suppose that magically makes everything easier. Now, it’s known that Bach did play the lute, and if he was able to play his own works well, he must have been one hell of a player – as is Sharon Isbin. It’s amazing to her hear play them. Doesn’t seem possible without overdubs, but there weren’t.
I also vote THE EDGE in as a GREAT guitarist. Listen to every album. How he’s evolved. How is music is inspired. Every album progresses. He’s taken the guitar into realms nobody else has, and he’s infused it with many powerful melodies. Listen…most guitarists have their own niche. One guy has his fast songs, one guy has his slow songs. Not many guitarists fill in all the shades in between. Not many guitarists bring passion out through their guitar when you hear the song. Slash is another awesome guitarist. You can feel the emotion coming out of his guitar. He’s more one dimensional than The Edge, but you can really feel it.
As a guitarist myself I would love to tell you guys a secret: Rock music is so laughably easy to play compared to classical and fingerstyle guitar. Don’t get me wrong I like some of these guys more than you guys and some of them are truly innovative of the guitar and are able to create a style all there own. But if you really want to be left with your jaw on floor, go see Tommy Emmanuel play a live set. He an australin guitarist who can play anything in any style, He is THE BEST ever. I would also recommend Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, Django Reinhardt, Lenny Breau, Andres Segovia, Tony McManus (this guy can play bagpipe music on a guitar, he’s insanely good),John Williams, these guys in my opinion are the best all around guiarist, no classification of rock, country, jazz, But all-around guitarist.
