Josh Homme
Doc Watson.
What does everyone have against Clapton?
Andres Segovia
Laurindo Almeida
Django Rhienhardt
Charlie Byrd
Wes Montgomery
Chet Atkins
Julian Bream
Mark Knopfler
Brian May
Al Dimeola
Keith Richards
Duane Allman
David Gilmour.
Upon preview, I see someone had already put him down.
Duane Allman
Derek Trucks
Jimi Hendrix
Jack Pearson
Hubert Sumlin
Jimmy Herring
Carlos Santana
Mark Knopfler
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.
Thanks to picker, I remembered a couple more great players who never get mentioned:
Pat Flynn and Jerry Douglas.
Thanks to Marley23 for mentioning Hubert Sumlin, and I just realized I forgot to list Richard Thompson.
Robert Fripp
Frank Zappa
Al Dimeola
Mike Keneally
Adrian Belew
Allan Holdsworth
Adrian Belew (can do everything from power pop to art rock)
Brian May
Michael Roe
Lindsey Buckingham is actually pretty interesting sometimes
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
Django, Eddie Lang, Dick McDonough, Wes Montgomery, Jim Hall, Bucky Pizzarelli, James Chirillo.
Yngwie Malmsteen.
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.
<pedantic nitpick>
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…
</pedantic nitpick>
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
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