# Who are your favorite guitarists **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 24, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734 "2005-02-24T17:39:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sweepkick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@sweepkick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweepkick)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/21 "2005-02-24T20:39:36Z")
Josh Homme ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/22 "2005-02-24T21:07:23Z")
Doc Watson. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/23 "2005-02-24T22:08:58Z")
What does everyone have against Clapton? ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/24 "2005-02-24T22:12:52Z")
Andres Segovia Laurindo Almeida Django Rhienhardt Charlie Byrd Wes Montgomery Chet Atkins Julian Bream Mark Knopfler Brian May ---
**Author:** ![chefjef](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e480ec/32.png) [@chefjef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chefjef)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/25 "2005-02-24T22:54:07Z")
Al Dimeola Keith Richards Duane Allman ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Side_of_the_Floyd)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/26 "2005-02-24T23:07:40Z")
David Gilmour. Upon preview, I see someone had already put him down. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/27 "2005-02-24T23:11:17Z")
Duane Allman Derek Trucks Jimi Hendrix Jack Pearson Hubert Sumlin Jimmy Herring Carlos Santana Mark Knopfler ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/28 "2005-02-24T23:24:16Z")
Django Reinhardt Doc Watson Tony Rice Mark Cosgrove Steve Kaufman Dan Crary Norman Blake Dix Bruce Brad Davis Beppe Gambetta Scott Nygaard Mark O’Connor Tim Stafford Clarence White Orrin Starr there’s tons more, but every one of those guys will make your jaw hit the floor. I’m in the process of learning Steve Kaufman’s arrangement of Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag, and I’ve been working on it for four weeks straight and I’ve only got the first movement down. And at maybe 3/4 speed. Ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![Rufus\_Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@Rufus\_Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rufus_Xavier)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/29 "2005-02-25T00:22:23Z")
Thanks to **picker** , I remembered a couple more great players who never get mentioned: Pat Flynn and Jerry Douglas. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/30 "2005-02-25T00:24:14Z")
Thanks to **Marley23** for mentioning Hubert Sumlin, and I just realized I forgot to list Richard Thompson. ---
**Author:** ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/31 "2005-02-25T00:42:41Z")
Robert Fripp Frank Zappa Al Dimeola Mike Keneally Adrian Belew Allan Holdsworth ---
**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:** [February 25, 2005, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/32 "2005-02-25T00:52:48Z")
Adrian Belew (can do everything from power pop to art rock) Brian May Michael Roe Lindsey Buckingham is actually pretty interesting sometimes ---
**Author:** ![nitroglycerine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c5a1d2/32.png) [@nitroglycerine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nitroglycerine)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/33 "2005-02-25T01:01:14Z")
Keith Richards Johnny Thunders-Not a “great” guitar player but his playing had more personality than a thousand Eric Claptons. Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd-The greatest guitar duo in the history of music. Robert Quine (RIP)-Richard Hell’s guitarist, and Lou Reeds former right hand man. He was this bearded mild mannered looking old guy (he was already in his 30s at the beginning of the punk rock era), who wore Mister Rogers sweaters and tore off killer riffs that sounded like if Johnny Thinders had the virtuosity of Yingwie Malmsteen. Frank Zappa. Poison Ivy Rorschach Ron Asheton and James Williamson-Two Stooges guitarists with different styles, but they both continue to influence punk, metal and alt-rock 30+years after the fact. Gregg Ginn Ross “the Boss” Funichello Billy Zoom East Bay Ray Reverend Horton Heat ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/34 "2005-02-25T01:20:40Z")
Django, Eddie Lang, Dick McDonough, Wes Montgomery, Jim Hall, Bucky Pizzarelli, James Chirillo. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/35 "2005-02-25T01:23:20Z")
Yngwie Malmsteen. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/36 "2005-02-25T01:41:05Z")
> [@pinkfreud](#): > > Yngwie Malmsteen. HOLY COW! Great call! How the heck did we all miss that one? ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/37 "2005-02-25T02:01:02Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > HOLY COW! Great call! > How the heck did we all miss that one? I’ll bet a lot of people thought of Yngwie, but didn’t want to take a chance on misspelling his name. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/38 "2005-02-25T02:12:48Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > Thanks to **picker** , I remembered a couple more great players who never get mentioned: > > Pat Flynn and Jerry Douglas. \ I’ll give you Pat Flynn, but I will have to nitpick about JD - while I love Jerry Douglas, he is a dobro player. I’d say probably one of the best ever, and definitely my personal favorite, but the dobro and the guitar are two different beasts and despite the similarity in resemblance and construction, bear about as much in common playing-wise as a trumpet and a saxaphone, and maybe less… \ ---
**Author:** ![Baggins111](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9fc29f/32.png) [@Baggins111](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baggins111)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/39 "2005-02-25T02:19:49Z")
I’ll second Jerry Garcia on his live tracks playing with the Dead. Not always on it, but when he hits that sweet spot, it’s transcendental… well, you just have to be there. Mr. Garcia kicks ass on the banjo, too. Another second for David Gilmour. Sweet mellow rips. You can tell it’s him. Trey Anastatio can hold his own. Distinctive style, as well. another for Jimi Hendrix Peter Rowan Lester Flatt ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2005, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734/40 "2005-02-25T02:35:08Z")
> [@picker](#): > > I’m in the process of learning Steve Kaufman’s arrangement of Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag, and I’ve been working on it for four weeks straight and I’ve only got the first movement down. And at maybe 3/4 speed. Ridiculous. friend picker, you might also like giovanni de chiaro’s guitar arrangements of joplin’s work. i am particularly fond of his rendition of solace lh [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-favorite-guitarists/291734.md?page=3)