Leo Kottke (taking country to a whole new level).
John Renbourn (taking folk to a whole new level).
Nick Drake (totally unique picking style).
Robert Fripp seems to be about the only great guitarist not yet mentioned. So I thought I would. There.
I didn’t say I could play ALL of his stuff and I doubt that you can play ALL of Hendrix’s stuff. If so, let’s hear you duplicate The Star Spangled Banner, with every effect, every piece of feedback, and every whammy bar dive executed precisely as it is on the Woodstock recording.
You DO know you’re in the minority, putting Morse ahead of Hendrix, don’t you?
Segovia was probably the greatest classical guitarist of all time, and in some ways was probably technically better than Hendrix, but it’s such a different style that it’s almost two different instruments. (classical accoustic and Electric rock)
Dimeola, great jazz guitarist, nice, articulate, lickety-split runs. Technically flawless, like Steve Morse a guitar player’s guitar player, but IMHO, NOT better than Hendrix.
There’s more to musicianship than simply level of difficulty. Clapton has almost no level of difficulty, does this mean he sucks?
Actually, speaking of level of difficulty, I’m surprised that nobody’s brought up Yngwie yet.
Oh, and Zappa always said Jimi was the best he ever heard. Zappa wasn’t even the best guitarist in his own band when Steve Vai was in the group. Zappa hired Vai specifically to play the “impossible” guitar parts that Zappa had written but could not play himself.
some of my favorite guitar players (in no particular order),
adrian belew (for being a groundbreaker)
robert fripp (for being technologically advanced/oriented)
jeff beck (for fluidity)
junior brown (for pickin’)
frank zappa (for that “mangle it, strangle it” sound)
al dimeola (for sheer speed and technical precision)
ted nugent (for the “all i need is a guitar, a cord and a wall of marshall’s” '70’s rock sound)
brian setzer (for that “flashy/showy, aw shucks” style of his)
steve hillage (he was way too cool in the '70’s)
robin trower (for being so smooth)
dick dale (for inventing “surf guitar”)
steve vai (was fz’s “stunt guitatist”, listen to flexable, now)
pete townshend (even saddled with that howling moron (daltrey), he shines)
and since this is completely subjective, the wanker awards,
joe perry is a contestant for the lamest man in r&r
eddie van halen, the “lowest common denominator” guitar player who was never as fast or innovative as his hype suggested (but, in fairness evh could sell records)
the fudge (from u2) has been milking the same guitar line since the first album, if you want to hear that line played properly try david rhodes (peter gabriels guitar player) on the pg song “shaking the tree”
unclviny
A little more debatable: John Squire and Bernard Butler.
Man there’s a lot of misinformation in this thread. BTW, Hendrix is definitely a great, but no where near THE BEST…as if you could say there was a best. Music isn’t a race.
But first let me point out a few things…
You like SRV? Check out Albert King, it’s where SRV stole his chops.
Jimmy Page? Hmmpfff…Zep was great, but ripped off every blues musician in the book. And the bow? he stole that idea from Eddie Phillips.
Clapton…see Page
Vai- has chops, but Zappa sent him home telling him not to come back until he had some tone.
Bettencourt- paalleeezzee. he is good but there are hundreds of people that can play flight of the bumble bee.
Ok, here’s my list and I defy anyone to argue! (based off contribution as well as talent)
#1 Django Rhienhardt
the rest…
Chet Atkins
Brian Setzer
Chuck Berry
Steve Morse
Danny Gatton (if you like speed and no soul)
Duke Robbilard
Merle Travis
EVH
Brent Mason
Hendrix - in the top ten, but not the best
John Lee Hooker - not technical but emotional
Les Paul
Elliot Easton
Duane Eddy
I’m sure I’ll add a few more later.
Oh by the way, add Billy Gibbons to my list.
And for all the hendrix worshippers "When asked by a reporter what it is like to be the best guitarist in the world, Jimi Hendrix said, “I don’t know, you’ll have to ask Phil Keaggy”
Look - bottom line, this is very much a subjective question. Having said that, there are, as Diogenes stated, some “generally accepted” truths out there for guitar players.
So, Qwertyasdfg (by the way is your name an exercise for your fingering hand?), if you asked the question more just to generate discussion and to share your POV, then, cool, you have done that and folks are responding.
If you are asking more because you are still reasonably new to guitar and want to learn more about who you should be listening to, then I have something to contribute (been playing for 25 years and actively, aggressively into music for longer)
Rather than try to establish a single ranking, it is probably better to come up with categories - with that in mind, here goes:
Generally considered the “Best” - Rock - in Rock, only Hendrix, and maybe Clapton routinely make the top of the list. And while other players may be more technically proficient, no other players combine technique, innovation, cultural impact/crossover to the mainstream, and, most importantly, quality, enduring songs the way these two do. I love Hendrix and am not a particularly big Clapton fan, but that isn’t the point - as objectively as one can try to do this, these two stand out. A lot of folks think/thought Eddie Van Halen would end up here, but he hasn’t for a variety of reasons.
Best Blues - The names you are likely to hear the most are Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, The Three Kings (Albert, Freddie and B.B.) and SRV - there are tons others. My biggest nominee would be T-Bone Walker, the first electric guitarist of the Blues - showman extraordinaire, great songs, great technique - hugely influential to Albert King and SRV.
Best Jazz - Django, Charlie Christian (first to place single line melodic runs with an amplified guitar in a jazz combo), Joe Pass.
If you were to focus on these players to learn about guitar, you would be doing just fine.
Now, there are other groups of guitarists that are amazing, but they don’t bring the same combo of technique, innovation, cultural cross-over (e.g., famous to the masses) and songs that the ones above do, such as:
Gunslingers - Steve Vai, Malmsteen, Satriani - you know the type. Makes players drool, technique for days but limited cross over appeal and few truly great songs.
Journeymen - All Arounders - Steve Morse, Steve Howe, Adrian Belew, etc. - can play pretty much anything and do it better than most, but again, limited cross over appeal and songs. yeah, I know Yes with Howe is popular, as are many Morse bands, but let’s be honest, neither have never been as famous as Clapton or Hendrix, nor their songs as burned into the culture.
Sound-scapers - Tom Morello, The Edge, Andy Summers, etc. - these guys seem to use their guitars to create interesting sonic landscapes within which their bands exist. For what they do, they are the best, but it is a little outside the standard blues/jazz/rock continuum - that is not a bad thing, just different.
Single-Noters - Jeff Beck (a personal favorite), David Gilmour, Billy Gibbons, Peter Green or Lindsey Buckingham of early and later Fleetwood Mac - these guys play amazing leads - very few, very emotional and well-articulated notes. These guys say more with one note than the Gunslingers do with a thousand.
Songwriters - Neal Young, Pete Townshend, even Bruce Springsteen - worthy guitarists in their own right, but more known for their songs. Keith Richards should probably be here, too, but he could also be in a separate category for Riff-meisters or something, with James Hetfield and many others.
Rockabilly - Chuck Berry, Scotty Moore, Eddie Cochran, Buddy Holly, James Burton, Gene Vincent’s players (Cliff Gallup and a couple of others) and Brian Setzer - all amazing and worth checking out.
There are plenty more to mention - Jimmy Page, Joe Perry and Slash of the Les Paul brigades come to mind, but you get the idea - there are a few that are generally considered The Best, and plenty of others entirely worth learning about.
Is this list definitive - heck no. But I have tried to find a balance between stating the “generally accepted” truth and provide a framework within which to think about different players and styles of playing.
Supposedly it didn’t happen.
http://www.snopes.com/music/artists/keaggy.htm
Music is like food, it has a lot of flavors. You can like gourmet meals, but you’re not an idiot for liking chili dogs.
Wordman has the right idea of breaking it down to styles.
Let’s not forget the riff-masters that maybe aren’t too fast or technical, but they write catchy licks, like Keith Richards, Mick Ronson, even Angus Young. I mean, what constitutes a good guitarist? Technical ability or making appealing sounds? Speed or emotion? How do you classify Mick Jones, Johnny Thunders or Roger Miller?
One of my personal faves in the blues/rock category would have to be Rory Gallagher. His ability was more pronounced in concert rather then on record.
>>>Supposedly it didn’t happen.
Yeah I know…I was just goofing. And Phil is a great guitarist. Also I can’t believe I forgot to mention Cliff Gallup.
I don’t know much about John Mayer, but I’ll bet the John Mayer fan club has short meetings.
What about more folk-type guitarists?
I’ve got a lot of respect for guitarists like James Taylor. I’d say he deserves a mention, as does Paul Simon.
In the jazz category, what about Wes Montgomery and Pat Matheny?
Another Vote for Jimi, and for Zappa.
Nobody has mentioned Jerry Garcia, whom I respect.
>>>What about more folk-type guitarists?
They are great musicians and song writers, but I don’t think they are all that technically proficient compared to the other guys in this thread…and folk has it’s roots so far back I don’t think they’ve really revolutionized anything.
And what about Stanley Jordan?
wordman - while I agree with your post, I disagree with your neglecting Eddie Van Halen. In the era just prior to Van Halen, many guitarists were emulating the sound of Hendrix, Page, Clapton, etc., and there wasn’t much happening that one could classify as influential, at least not to a wide range of popular music. Although some tried new sounds, for the most part, nobody did anything that significantly changed the sound of the guitars coming out of the radio (except for the Punk sound, but that’s a different story.)
And then Eruption was recorded.
Regardless that the technical aspect of the song and style isn’t terribly impressive, the difference in the overall sound was far enough removed from the music of the times that it turned heads. Although many pure guitarists of the day (and even now) discounted Eddie’s work as simplistic and largely unimpressive, outside those small circles, it was new, fresh, and sounded “really cool”. In addition, the popularity of the band itself further spread the EVH sound and influenced a great many bands from that point on.
The unfortunate part of that statement is that the Van Halen sound spawned a lot of the really cheesy “hair” bands that are so often ridiculed nowadays. Be that as it may, it still does not discount the fact that the influence was strong and widespread. I’ve heard EVH’s influence in many styles of rock, R&B and in jazz guitar as well.
I think it’s as injustice to not give Eddie Van Halen the credit he deserves.
Two names I’d like to throw into the pot (without comment, since y’all are violent!)
Stephen Stills
Harvey Mandel
I’d like to applaud Wordman on the most thoughtful and incisive list yet. (although I agree with Bomzaway that EVH deserves a little more credit, for his tap-on innovation alone if nothing else.)
For me, Joe Satriani is the best that ever lived.
Followed by:
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Steve Morse
The Reverend Horton Heat
Eddie Van Halen
Jimi Hendrix was great and an innovator, but I never really liked his stuff. Sue me.
I can’t believe we’re forgetting Ralph Macchio