Top 5 lists are always hard mainly because there are so many good players. So, in no particular order.
Randy Rhoads… Stellar techincally, awesome riffs and meoldic multilayered leads.
John Petrucci. Monster riffs and insane technical skills.
Tony. Sabbath. Enough said.
Criss Olivia. Savatage. Great rifs and unique solos. Very melodic.
Jim Matheos. Fates Warning. Great song writing and lots of interesting riffs and time signatures.
Obviously there are a bunch of other awesome players out there but these guys hit the trifecta, great song writing, great solos and sweet tone. They all also expanded the genre in some way.
And, yay! A new Fates Warning album is coming out this year!
You don’t have to explain Viv Campbell - if folks are in this thread they know he was Dio’s sideman. Great journeyman player - recently diagnosed with treatable cancer…
Yeah, but a lot of people think Jake E. Lee played on Holy Diver, since he was the band’s guitarist when the writing was being done. Ironic, really, since Jake is uncredited for Bark at the Moon (which IMHO far outshined the Randy Rhoads Ozzy albums in terms of the guitar parts.)
I didn’t know Jake E Lee was in Dio, I thought it was Vivian all along for Holy Diver.
I also think that Rhoads’ guitar parts were actually better, Bark at the Moon(the song) excepted, which has probably the most intensely awesome rhythm ever in an Ozzy song.
Yeah, it’s in Buckethead’s wiki page, and it’s pretty funny. From there: “I tried out that Buckethead guy. I met with him and asked him to work with me, but only if he got rid of the fucking bucket. So I came back a bit later, and he’s wearing this green fucking Martian’s-hat thing! I said, ‘Look, just be yourself.’ He told me his name was Brian, so I said that’s what I’d call him. He says, ‘No one calls me Brian except my mother.’ So I said, ‘Pretend I’m your mum, then!’ I haven’t even got out of the room and I’m already playing fucking mind games with the guy. What happens if one day he’s gone and there’s a note saying, ‘I’ve been beamed up’? Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great player. He plays like a motherfucker.” Ozzy Osbourne, Revolver.
Yeah, I’m not being fair and Ozzy’s record stands up. It’s just that at his worst, he’s such bad shtick. And then there are songs like Mr Tinkertrain, a rocking song that is also a fake-horror bit from the POV of a pedophile…
He’s like some metal Keanu Reeves - limited talent but amazing ability to pick the right projects and manage his overall career.
Not when Randy Rhoads took it. Remember, Ozzy was coming off a two-year hotel room drug and alcohol binge. If Quiet Riot had been signed before 1979, he probably wouldn’t have left.
Intersting side thread! I actually came into this thread to make sure Dimebag was getting some love, because for me his tone is unmatched. Anytime i find a video on youtube of someone covering Pantera, the solos just feel… i dunno… lifeless, but when Dime played them they came alive.
Now admittedly i don’t know good tone from a hole in the ground, and i prefer my metal extra crunchy and little sloppy, so YMMV.
Also, if we’re counting GNR as metal (and i think we should) i would give Slash special mention just for My Michelle. That riff is so nasty, i love it.
You’ll get no argument from me about Bratta. But I think Norum was eclipsed by Kee Marcello, his replacement in Europe. Although Norum’s work on the Don Dokken solo album is stunning.
Up Front: I am not a musician, so I’m not at all qualified to judge how easy or hard it is to play a given guitar piece. I honestly don’t know what solos are so hard that only a few virtuosos could play them, nor do I really care. I judge musicians by the quality of their recorded output, and if I love somebody’s output, it will make absolutely no difference to me if some actual guitarist on the SDMB sees that I have Joe Schmeaux of the Schmendrix in my top 5, and roars, “Joe Schmeaux? Geez, I can play better than him!”
Bottom line: in my book, a mediocre guitarist with a talent for catchy riffs will always top a guy who can do lightning fast solos in the middle of lame songs. Technically, Yngwie Malmsteen may be a MUCH better guitarist than Joe Perry, but Aerosmith has DOZENS of songs I love. Yngwie doesn’t. So, Joe Perry is much closer to my top 5 than Yngwie ever will be.
Second point: I’m old, and therefore my list is a bit (MAYBE A lot) more retro than I’d like.
Anyway, my top 5 (alphabetically):
**Ritchie Blackmore
Buck Dharma
Jimmy Page
Eddie Van Halen (more for his riffs than his hammering- “Beautiful Girls” would be a great song without a solo)