Who in your opinion is/are the most underrated guitarists in the rock/pop genre? I’m talking about guitarists that you never hear about in guitar mags or rolling stone, or anything like that. So the obvious ones like Clapton, Hendrix, etc. are NOT what I’m looking for.
I’ll start the ball rolling by naming my top three:
Gleen Tilbrook from Squeeze
Davey Johnstone from the Elton John Band
Tommy Shaw from Styx.
Whenever I go back and hear anything the above three have done, from simple rhythm to blistering leads, these three are amazingly innovative, and yet you never hear them discussed by any of the so-called “knowledgable” rock press.
I’ve always thought that Jamie West-Oram, of the Fixx, did some really interesting, innovative stuff. People always thought I was crazy when I listed him among my favorite guitarists, but I felt vindicated when, years and years and years ago, in an old issue of Guitar World I think it was, Joe Satriani mentioned West-Oram as being one of his favorite underated guitarists as well. Not that Satriani is the official word or anything, but at least I knew I wasn’t completely alone!
And everytime I see Robyn Hitchcock in concert (the last time being this past Saturday), I’m amazed what an amazing guitarist he is. He’s more known for being the quirky singer-songwriter of his studio work, but live he generally lets loose at least once, and trust me, he’s outstanding.
Tunabreath - I think I have that CD, I’ll have to check.
I saw him play a benefit concert at Ashley Rehab Center in MD - for Father Martin, I didn’t know who he was, he was Awesome.
I wish he would get known - Make It Big.
Tommy Shaw and james young are both under rated guitarrists. i have to confess that i recently bought the new styx cd, cyclorama… they are still a great guitat band, and i really like the cd.
everyone either likes him or hates him because he writes simple pop songs, but if youve ever had a chance to see him live, you know how talented he is. like him or hate him, but he has a sheet of paper from the berklee school of music that says he’s either a great player or a great bullshitter
check out his performance of “your body is a wonderland” from the grammys. only him and a guitar and it’s pretty damn impressive…
I agree with kefka: John Mayer (except that he dropped out of Berklee.) He’s one of the best new guitarists I know of and if you dont believe me try playing “Neon” on an acoustic the way he does, while singing.
Also, Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine (Harvard alum too)
Nuno Bettencourt from Extreme
I think Johnny Marr of The Smiths did some incredible-sounding stuff. Granted, I can only take that group (and its melodramatic lyrics) in limited doses, but I think Marr’s work really stands up.
