Greatest Guitarist

[Il Medico]

It's really a matter of subjective opinion, but after having a long argument with two of my friends over the top ten, I thought I'd see what others (thats you lot) thought.

My top 10:

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBWR57IvL1w)Jimi Hendrix (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPTP_JyQpl8&feature=player_embedded)
Carlos Santana (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9ZRS0F5t34)
BB King (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpRIYi721WE)
Slash (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCplsXu1HRk)
Steve Vai (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IrWyZ0KZuk)
George Harrison (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3RYvO2X0Oo&feature=related)
Chuck Berry (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8enzt3JP-I&feature=related)
Jimmy Page (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0ZIOlCE4iU&feature=related)
Eric Clapton (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYS732zyYfU&feature=related)
Eddie Van Halen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_lwocmL9dQ)

[Blackscare]

Jeff Beck.

[F9]

Fuserg9

[Rotfront]

What about Jeff Loomis, John Petrucci, Michael Romeo etc.?

[John "Eh" MacDonald]

Duane Allman. Anyone that says otherwise is a troll.

[Meridian]

I don't find any of those guitarists particularly interesting.

[¿Que?]

I don't think Slash is that great of a guitarist, technically speaking. At least in his late 80's early 90's stuff, you can tell when he plays fast he's mostly doing pull offs and hammer ons, whereas real virtuosos tend to pick every note (and believe me it ain't easy). Be that as it may, with Izzy Stradlin on rhythm, he has produced some of the best guitar solos in the history of rock.

Also, I read somewhere that he was actually not comfortable with the "One in a Million" lyrics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bne4squ_j6I
(The end is really good, when Slash solos over the hook)

[Volcanicity]

Ace Frehley and Robby Krieger.

[Tablo]

Can't choose. All my favorites are good in their own individual ways so to pick a best is impossible.

[JerryBiscoTrey]

Jerry Garcia; no doubt

[4 Leaf Clover]

wtf , where is Stevie Ray Vaughan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Ray_Vaughan) ?
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Ray_Vaughan)

[Il Medico]

wtf , where is Stevie Ray Vaughan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Ray_Vaughan) ?
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Ray_Vaughan)
Other

[Il Medico]

Can't choose. All my favorites are good in their own individual ways so to pick a best is impossible.
It multiple choice you know. Which is why I find it puzzling that it only counted one of my votes....

[Manic Impressive]

I voted other my vote goes to Les Claypool.

Us Bass Guitar players are the oppressed masses of music we need a music revolution I call for the dictatorship of Bass players

[Stand Your Ground]

Jimi Hendrix with Slash at a close 2nd.

[Fawkes]

I can't choose an individual one at all, nor do I wish to, but in addition to those listed above -- even Krik Hammett, some other great ones, in no particular order, are:
Greg Ginn
Ron Asheton
Robert Quine
Keiko (from Super Junky Monkey)
Roddy Radiation
Reverend Gary Davis
Jack White
Dean Fertita
Tom Morello
Dave Navarro
Billy Karren
Ricky Wilson
Keith Strickland
Son House
Charley Patton
Leadbelly
Trafton Waldrop (Kings of Nuthin)
Tommy Stang
Rikk Agnew
Dr. Know
Cody Votolato


Just a random list off the top of my head, there are a bunch of others I think are really kickass too.

[The Ben G]

It's too hard to pick just one. (Plus, why would you have Kirk Hammett up there? Metallica's music is pretty mediocre)

I would have to pick

Karl Sanders/Dallas Toler-Wade
Nergal
Gregg Ginn
Muddy Waters
Tony Iommi
Jus Oborn
Chuck Schuldiner
Tom G. Warrior (Fischer)
Max Cavalera
Ihsanh
Johnny Marr
Justin Broadrick
John Christ
Jim Martin
just to name a few

[The Ben G]

I voted other my vote goes to Les Claypool.

Us Bass Guitar players are the oppressed masses of music we need a music revolution I call for the dictatorship of Bass players

I've always been more of a fan of Rob Trujillo before he joined Metallica..

[Fawkes]

He's sick in Infectious Grooves

[Il Medico]

It's too hard to pick just one. (Plus, why would you have Kirk Hammett up there? Metallica's music is pretty mediocre)


Because a lot of people consider him a great guitarist. I don't care much for him myself.

[Admiral Swagmeister G-Funk]

Its none of them.

The best guitarist is the guy who picked one up for the first time and jammed on it.

As for that dumb list, its Jimi Hendrix (in terms of the influence he had on music etc afterwards).

Let us bear in mind that he would not have had this influence if it wasn't for Robert Johnson and the like. These kinds of questions are stupid, as it is impossible to pinpoint the evolution of the guitar sound to one person.

[Manic Impressive]

I've always been more of a fan of Rob Trujillo before he joined Metallica..

Yeah man he's a beast as well but for me it's still Claypool also John Entwistle is pretty good for an ol' fella http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVl39LBZGMw

but if we're sticking to the discriminatory policy of excluding bass guitar players I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Bucket Head or Matt Bellamy yet.

[Il Medico]

Its none of them.

The best guitarist is the guy who picked one up for the first time and jammed on it.

As for that dumb list, its Jimi Hendrix (in terms of the influence he had on music etc afterwards).

Let us bear in mind that he would not have had this influence if it wasn't for Robert Johnson and the like. These kinds of questions are stupid, as it is impossible to pinpoint the evolution of the guitar sound to one person.
mjQZNkiY7ds
:P

[Admiral Swagmeister G-Funk]

mjQZNkiY7ds
:P
The point still stands.

[ken6346]

Voted Eddie, BB, Carlos, Vai and other; I think the other is Shawn Lane, as a purely technical guitarist. My old guitar teacher from school (whom I hope to get some private lessons from outside school from) said that he reckons he's a pattern-orientated player - he's technically brilliant, but he just plays a bunch of cool sounding patterns, and has no practical knowledge of the music he plays, or at least he doesn't show it. I still think he's awesome to learn from (if you haven't listened to him, look up Grey Pianos Flying on YouTube) but, like my guitar teacher said, he's a bit predictable, and on the whole there's a lot to be learned from him but not to be directly imitated (which is a bit of a prerequisite as a beginner-moderate guitar player).

[kitsune]

Can't choose. All my favorites are good in their own individual ways so to pick a best is impossible.

Yes. I'm terrible at this sort of thing. I can recognize when a guitarist is extremely talented, but I don't know how to compare Jerry Garcia with Joe Pass and Wes Montgomery and Link Wray and Tomoyasu Hotei and Pierre Bensusan and Paco de Lucía. I just know they're all brilliant.

[S.Artesian]

Buddy Guy

[Tifosi]

This thread is lacking a mention Tom Morello.

[Fawkes]

This thread is lacking a mention Tom Morello.
.

Tom Morello

[gorillafuck]

East Bay Ray

[Pirate Utopian]

Eddie Hazel

[Vanguard1917]

Sor, Tarrega, Mertz, Segovia, Yepes, and flamenco guitarists like Sabicas, Sanlucar and Paco de Lucia -- there's more to the guitar than "sick riffs" on the electric.

[Reznov]

Ramone!

[Nuvem]

Tom Morello. I consider him superior to most other guitarists because of his innovation. Tom makes music in ways and with sounds that others would simply never conceive of. Going beyond mere finger dexterity or flashy showmanship, Morello has truly revolutionized the idea of what a guitar is capable of.

[Tifosi]

.

Well now we're up to three:cool:

[gorillafuck]

I just noticed Johnny Ramone on this list.

I love the Ramones and hate shred music, but still.....why is he on there?

If you want great punk guitarists go with East Bay Ray or Greg Ginn, who were actually extremely good guitar players all around. Johnny Ramone was good in that he was a pioneer but he was definitely not a great guitarist.

[Il Medico]

I just noticed Johnny Ramone on this list.

I love the Ramones and hate shred music, but still.....why is he on there?
Because 1. Hes a great guitarist imo, and 2. I thought of him while compiling the list for the poll. All of them were just ones I could think of off hand while making the poll.

[Broletariat]

Sor, Tarrega, Mertz, Segovia, Yepes, and flamenco guitarists like Sabicas, Sanlucar and Paco de Lucia -- there's more to the guitar than "sick riffs" on the electric.
Oh god yes, I was hoping someone would bring up Flamenco.

Lets not forget John McLaughlin and Al di Meola

[empiredestoryer]

hendrix is the greatest like the polls aways show:rolleyes:

[MellowViper]

I was surprised Frank Zappa wasn't on there.

[brigadista]

why not Ali Farka Touré? and it will be ridiculous if eric clapton tops BB King in this poll because without BB there would have been NO eric clapton

[Fawkes]

I'm surprised Chuck Berry has no votes, I mean, he pretty much invented rock n roll.

[Il Medico]

I'm surprised Chuck Berry has no votes, I mean, he pretty much invented rock n roll.
I'm also surprised that George Harrison doesn't have any votes, considering i voted for both of them.

[Turinbaar]

django reinhardt

[Cencus]

In the words of Eddie van Halen "that guy from The Toy Dolls" aka Olga

[Leonid Brozhnev]

Herman Li

[Rotfront]

Herman Li

The topic is "Greatest Guitarist", not "Fastest Guitarist".

[Vanguard1917]

Lets not forget John McLaughlin and Al di Meola

Indeed. Part of that famous trio with Paco de Lucia.



django reinhardt


Yep.

[Os Cangaceiros]

One person who's guitar playing I enjoy (and who I haven't seen mentioned thus far) is Kerry King.

Another sadly underrated guitarist is Alvin Lee (guitarist for 60's British band Ten Years After).

[Leonid Brozhnev]

The topic is "Greatest Guitarist", not "Fastest Guitarist".

He's not even the fastest, some Brazilian dude is.

Anyway, I was trolling... a little. Voted for Page.

[Veg_Athei_Socialist]

Has anyone mentioned Buddy Guy yet?

[Ztrain]

I simply cannot fucking beleive you didnt include David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)

[Ztrain]

Guitar slim should have been mentioned too though I say Davbid Gilmour

[Aloysius]

Tom Morello, because he's not only great on the electric guitar, but pretty beast on the acoustic, too.

[Ztrain]

Eric Claptons music SUCKS and his cover of bob marleys tune is shit

[wunderbar]

John Fahey

[Axle]

Alex Skolnick.

[Lyev]

One person who's guitar playing I enjoy (and who I haven't seen mentioned thus far) is Kerry King.Kerry King, really? Some of his solos (esp. early Slayer) consist of just playing random notes as fast as possible. I've always preferred Jeff Hanneman. (Not that I play guitar by the way, that's just my opinion).

One of my favourites, and who people often don't seem to bring up much, is Eddie Hazel with Funkadelic. His solo on Maggot Brain's title track is lovely.

Oh and I voted BB King. I also love the style and timbre of guitar playing of earlier Delta blues musicians like Robert Johnson.

[Pirate Utopian]

Eddie Hazel


One of my favourites, and who people often don't seem to bring up much, is Eddie Hazel with Funkadelic. His solo on Maggot Brain's title track is lovely.
:closedeyes:

[Casbah]

What about Kevin Shields from My Bloody Valentine?

Others I like are:

Keith Levene (Public Image Limited)
Mick Jones (The Clash)

Tom Morello is great and influenced me a lot but I've got to say that there were guitarists doing unorthodox shit with their guitars predating him. Doesn't make him any less great just something to consider. Sonic Youth comes to mind..

[Rosa Lichtenstein]

Garry Moore, by a mile.

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Check out this guitar duel with BB King:

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And finally, this minor blues with the late Phil Lynott and Scott Gorham (of Thin Lizzy) from 1978:

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Plenty more, inlcuding guitarists not mentioned in this thread, at my YouTube page:

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos?feature=mhsn

http://www.youtube.com/my_playlists?p=00F31177D9EF4EA2

[L.A.P.]

I would say the best is Jimi Hendrix but my favorite is Tom Morello and I think he deserves a mention.

[The Ben G]

Yeah man he's a beast as well but for me it's still Claypool also John Entwistle is pretty good for an ol' fella http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVl39LBZGMw

but if we're sticking to the discriminatory policy of excluding bass guitar players I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Bucket Head or Matt Bellamy yet.

I love John Entwistle. I can listen to 'The Ox' over and over again.

[gorillafuck]

Kerry King, really? Some of his solos (esp. early Slayer) consist of just playing random notes as fast as possible. I've always preferred Jeff Hanneman. (Not that I play guitar by the way, that's just my opinion).
Agreed, I don't think of him as a great guitarist. I personally like his solos because I enjoy really chaotic elements in music, but they're not something I think of when I think of great.

[Rotfront]

ITIfITKGhVw

[Bardo]

"Best" is subjective, obviously. But one of my favorites is Dave Gilmore. He's not a face melting technical player, but damn can he move you with 3 notes.

[gorillafuck]

django reinhardt
I'm not a huge fan of his music (though I prefer it to most jazz) but his guitar playing was absolutely incredible. Especially with his third and fourth fingers paralyzed.

Edit: I also heard he escaped being killed in the holocaust because he was protected by some Nazis who went against the official anti-Jazz policy.

[malthusela]

That list is a rather standard one.

Paul Masvidal is my favourite guitarist.

[A Revolutionary Tool]

I'm going to rejuvenate this thread back to life.

I'm disappointed about how underrated Steve Vai is here, when you watch this guy it seems like him and his guitar are one and the same he has so much control over it it's crazy. A short example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw74sDWPH7U&feature=mh_lolz&list=FLD5LfFOUpgPA
I also like him because he's personable in that he makes weird ass faces when he plays just like I do :laugh:.

And for those saying Tom Morello come on, just no. He's a great guitarist and can do some pretty amazing shit, I love just about everything he's involved in. But the best? Nah, just nah.

[Frank Zapatista]

Yngwie Malmsteen

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[Ose]

Antoine Dufour.

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[socialistjustin]

Jimi Hendrix, but the guy from Death is awesome as well imo.

[Apoi_Viitor]

Kevin Shields

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[Tomhet]

Why the fuck isn't TONY IOMMI on that list? disgraceful..
He's my all time favorite..

[Tomhet]

Because a lot of people consider him a great guitarist. I don't care much for him myself.

He's quite mediocre, abusing the pentatonic scale.. James is far better IMO..

[JustMovement]

I don't know that much about the technical stuff, but Stevie Ray Vaughn always did it for me.

[Euronymous]

Jeff Loomis from Nevermore. Sweep-pick king!