# Best Guitarist of Each Decade? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 30, 2010, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012 "2010-01-30T08:22:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/81 "2010-04-29T23:13:32Z")
I admit, I didn’t get to re-watch to see which he’s using, but I believe he uses both lap and pedal. (but not in that video.) ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/82 "2010-04-30T00:09:57Z")
I can’t believe anyone would cite Kurt Cobain as anyone on a list of “best” guitarists. I really liked Nirvana, and it was because Cobain wasn’t a good guitar player (and this is coming from someone as a teenager that got wrapped up in trying to figure out how to sweep pick like Yngwie). Cobain was a great _songwriter_. He was by no means a great guitarist. Emotional, yes, technically sound…ah, no. But he reinvented three chord rock in a refreshing way for a time. If you like Nirvana, that is. For that matter, neither was Kirk Hammet. Worst…metal…soloist…EVER! And again, I love Metallica’s music up to about 1992. Satriani was/is great, probably the best of his genre for mass appeal, even though I tend to rate Vai higher due to more technical ability and…well shit, he played with Zappa, an underappreciated guitar God in his own right! I like Buddy Holly in the 1950’s, Jimi in the 1960’s, Page/Gilmour/Eddie in the 1970’s, Yngwie/Satriani/Vai/Eddie in the 1980’s, Frusciante/Adam Jones/Jerry Cantrell/Dimebag/Morello/ in the 1990’s…damn, there were a lot of good guitar players in the 1990’s! As for the 21st century…well, I’m old. I don’t know enough to say. I’ll just cue up some more of my 1990’s guys… ---
**Author:** ![Walker\_in\_Eternity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/46a35a/32.png) [@Walker\_in\_Eternity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walker_in_Eternity)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/83 "2010-04-30T09:31:50Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > So why isn’t \*\*Yngwie \*\*your end-all, be-all? Didn’t he take that metal/classical fusion stuff the farthest? The trouble with, IMHO, Yngwie, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani is that while they are technically very good, some of their work, particularly Vai’s, lacks feel and real emotion. So for me, it’s either Rhodes or Van Halen for the 80’s. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/84 "2010-04-30T12:28:19Z")
No discussion of “guitarist” and “best” is complete without the mention, at the very least, of these giants: Chet Atkins Jerry Reed Tommy Emmanuel Lenny Breau Wes Montgomery George Benson Tal Farlow YouTube clips galore are worth exploring. I offer one: [Tommy Emmanuel - Somewhere Over the Rainbow](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ubVGiyAhkY) ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/85 "2010-04-30T13:33:32Z")
> [@Walker\_in\_Eternity](#): > > The trouble with, IMHO, Yngwie, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani is that while they are technically very good, some of their work, particularly Vai’s, lacks feel and real emotion. > > So for me, it’s either Rhodes or Van Halen for the 80’s. This. Vai and Malmsteen are technically very good guitarists, but I’ve never liked any of their albums. I wouldn’t put Satriani in that camp, though. He can really play. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/86 "2010-04-30T15:39:09Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > This. Vai and Malmsteen are technically very good guitarists, but I’ve never liked any of their albums. > > I wouldn’t put Satriani in that camp, though. He can really play. Vai and Malmsteen’s albums tend to be too egocentrical. Satriani honestly seems to be trying to come up with new sounds. Interesting though, I just read an interview with Sammy where he compared Eddy and Joe [here](http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Features/sammy-hagar-828/)! ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012/87 "2010-04-30T18:19:15Z")
Has to be Les Paul, and there has to be Segovia in there, we should also think about Julian Bream too, but as far as the '60’s goes, Peter Green was the one they all looked up to, including Hendrix. No mention of Gordon Giltrap here, check out Dodo’s dream. Incredible use of loop delays.Watch it all, its long but you will be impressed. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/8aeQ8D_IW20/hqdefault.jpg "Dodo's Dream -Gordon Giltrap") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aeQ8D_IW20) in this clip he explains how it all works. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/G_tXI4GyFZw/hqdefault.jpg "Dodo's Dream, Gordon Giltrap") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_tXI4GyFZw) Not only that, but he is also really helpful and generous with his advice to other players, he will explain it all and give you tips, you can’t say that about many other guitarists of his calibre - he genuinely loves the instrument, he is not some prima donna, he really does want you to learn from him. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/gaXCkiLk7BE/hqdefault.jpg "Catwalk Blues by Gordon Giltrap") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaXCkiLk7BE) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-guitarist-of-each-decade/527012.md?page=4)