# Vocalist who are lead guitarists **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 17, 2010, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764 "2010-03-17T16:39:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/21 "2010-03-17T18:51:54Z")
Buddy Guy (he toured with a band that included a rhythm guitarist) Albert King ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/22 "2010-03-17T19:09:28Z")
B.B. King ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/23 "2010-03-17T19:18:32Z")
Though he’s been a solo artist for decades now, John Fogerty was both lead vocalist and lead guitarist for CCR. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/24 "2010-03-17T19:35:10Z")
Trey Anastasio of Phish ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/25 "2010-03-17T19:38:51Z")
Susan Tedeschi Bonnie Raitt ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/26 "2010-03-17T19:46:14Z")
Tommy Shaw of Styx sang lead on a number of their songs, but I’m not sure if he or James Young was the primary lead guitarist. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/27 "2010-03-17T19:50:19Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Tommy Shaw of Styx sang lead on a number of their songs, but I’m not sure if he or James Young was the primary lead guitarist. I’m pretty sure it rotated, like with a lot of bands with two lead guitarists (Def Leppard springs to mind). ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/28 "2010-03-17T19:54:35Z")
> [@cjepson](#): > > Emerson, Lake & Palmer I’m not sure I’d include them. Not only were they a 3-piece band, but Greg Lake usually played bass when he sang. Or he played acoustic guitar. He didn’t do all that much lead work. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/29 "2010-03-17T20:36:06Z")
Dave Edmunds ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/30 "2010-03-17T20:42:22Z")
Justin Hayward (of the Moody Blues) ---
**Author:** ![TheBoltEater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheBoltEater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBoltEater)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/31 "2010-03-17T22:05:05Z")
Two of the better lead singer/guitarists lately are Matthew Bellamy of Muse and Jack White of the White Stripes. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/32 "2010-03-17T22:12:53Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Buddy Guy (he toured with a band that included a rhythm guitarist) > Albert King > [@KneadToKnow](#): > > B.B. King I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that just about every blues guitarist does his/her own vocals. And since they generally have a band behind them rather than playing solo, I think it fits the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/33 "2010-03-17T22:35:17Z")
John Pizzarelli. I know, you’ve never heard of him, but he is a jazz guitarist with a band who also sings. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/34 "2010-03-17T23:21:37Z")
> [@TheBoltEater](#): > > Jack White of the White Stripes. Are we including two-piece bands now? Because I once saw a one-man band where the guy was playing a bass drum, cymbals, a harmonica, an accodion, pulled out a guitar, and while he was playing the guitar he was also singing! I don’t know if he had any top 10 hits on Billboard though. ---
**Author:** ![Saganist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Saganist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saganist)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/35 "2010-03-17T23:36:51Z")
Man, 35 posts in and no one has mentioned Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins? ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/36 "2010-03-17T23:50:24Z")
Rik Emmett of Triumph did about 2/3 of the lead vocals, with drummer Gil Moore doing the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/37 "2010-03-17T23:50:30Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Eric Clapton > Chuck Berry > John Mayer > Junior Brown I was going to mention Junior Brown. Not only is he playing lead and singing lead, he’s playing two different kinds of guitars! I’ve seen him live a few times, and it’s like watching a juggling act. He’s amazing! ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/38 "2010-03-17T23:51:34Z")
Buck Dharma sang lead on a fair number of Blue Oyster Cult tunes (including their best known song, Don’t Fear the Reaper"). ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/39 "2010-03-17T23:58:23Z")
I’m looking at Wikipedia’s [list of lead guitarists](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lead_guitarists), and a few more names jump out at me (Adrian Belew, Rivers Cuomo, Roger McGuinn, Steve Miller). ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764/40 "2010-03-18T00:02:51Z")
> [@iophobon](#): > > Man, 35 posts in and no one has mentioned Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins? I was always under the impression that James Iha was their lead guitarist? I’m not sure who they have playing guitar now…maybe Billy took over full guitar duties? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vocalist-who-are-lead-guitarists/532764.md?page=3)