Best Guitarists of All Time

[wesfau2]

Thanks for fixing that, BrChad.  The internets mess me up.

[Saniflush]

You would think a future member of the Alabama Bar would know that. 

One would.

[War Eagle!!!]

The video is messed up...

And Charley Murphy claims that Prince is a hell of a basket ball player too...

[DnATL]

Alright, our sample is small, but you guys are like crack-addled rhesus monkeys with ADD.

The point is that there is one guitarist who is routinely ignored on lists like this.  Kudos to Randall for being the only voter to include him:  Prince.

If you need convincing, peep the following video (if you only want to see Prince's jaw-dropping performance, skip to about the 3 minute mark, but the entire performance is worth watching).  This is Tom Petty and friends paying tribute to George Harrison at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony where Harrison and Prince (among others) were admitted:

The video could have been improved if his guitar spewed forth ejaculate (circa Purple Rain tour), and if at the end, he said "game, blouses".  Oh well - must have been on network TV or basic cable....

[wesfau2]

I just watched it again...and again, if we're telling the truth....Prince is a bad motherfucker.  If you listen to that and don't have some sort of visceral reaction then you're probably dead and jumbo will be around to jam a carrot in your ass in a few minutes.

[Pell City Tiger]

Dickey Betts
Duane Almann
Slash
Clay Lespool
Jimi Hendrix
Dave Hlubek
Dave Stewart
Jerry Garcia
Kurt Cobain
Kirk Hammeth

[Townhallsavoy]

Good God...are people really saying that Kurt Cobain and Tom Morello are part of the top ten greatest guitar players of all time? 

If your list doesn't include Tommy Emmanuel, Django Reinhardt, Chet Atkins, Joscho Stephan, Jason Becker, Luca Turilli, Birelli Lagrene, Stochelo Rosenburg, Stevie Ray Vaughn, George Benson, Joe Pass, Lenny Breau, Les Paul, Eddie Van Halen, then you haven't done much research. 

Look those guys up.  I suggest youtubing these songs:

Tommy Emmanuel - Guitar Boogie, Train to Dusseldorf, or Initiation

Django Reinhardt - Nuages (But you won't find much from him)

Chet Atkins - Londonderry Aire, Poor People of Paris

Joscho Stephan - Bossa Dorado, La Gitane

Jason Becker - Serrana Arpeggios

Luca Turilli - The solos to When Demons Awake or Unholy Warcry

Birelli Lagrene - Anything you can find.  Probably the best jazz player of all time.

Stochelo Rosenburg -

Stevie Ray Vaughn - The Sky is Crying or his arrangement of Little Wing

George Benson - Take Five

Joe Pass - All the Things You Are

Lenny Breau - (This guy is legendary) - Georgia on My Mind

Les Paul - Avalon

Eddie Van Halen - Eruption

Etc, etc, etc. 

There's a lot of great guitarists (and other musicians) that don't get enough credit.  The criteria for top ten or best guitar players shouldn't be based on which guitar player you've listened to the most on the radio.  Example of a shitty guitar player who had a good band - Kurt Cobain.  Example of a pioneer who had enormous talent and innovation - Jimi Hendrix.  Example of a virtuoso who revolutionized jazz guitar and should be taught to every kid in school - Django Reinhardt. 

Consider yourselves informed.  I'm going to go sit in my room and contemplate what my level of guitar nerd is.

[Kaos]

Yingwhatever Mamwhatever

[AUChizad]

Example of a shitty guitar player who had a good band - Kurt Cobain.  Example of a pioneer who had enormous talent and innovation - Jimi Hendrix. 

This is very true for Kurt Cobain, but I don't see how you can lump Tom Morello into that, and then praise Jimi Hendrix for his "enormous talent and innovation".  Morello's greatness lies in the exact same qualities. Essentially he is the Jimi Hendrix of our generation.

[Townhallsavoy]

This is very true for Kurt Cobain, but I don't see how you can lump Tom Morello into that, and then praise Jimi Hendrix for his "enormous talent and innovation".  Morello's greatness lies in the exact same qualities. Essentially he is the Jimi Hendrix of our generation.

Maybe I haven't listened to enough of him, but what I heard from Rage Against the Machine was lackluster.  He had a cool sounding solo on Bulls on a Parade, but I can't think of anything else he did that was extraordinary. 

Now Hendrix, he did things that revolutionized electric guitar.  Nobody played the way he did when he came out, and guitar players today still use his ideas and techinique as influence for their own style.

[AUChizad]

The Solo in Bulls On Parade is the tip of the iceberg. Have you heard any Rage song besides that one?

Every Rage song only features drums, bass, guitar, and vocals. Knowing that, the sounds he makes that guitar make are pretty amazing.

From Rage Against The Machine:
Killing In The Name (3:50), Take The Power Back (2:42), Settle For Nothing (2:48), Bullet In The Head (1:17), Know Your Enemy (3:15), Wake Up (2:55), Fistful Of Steel (3:21), Township Rebellion (2:05), Freedom (2:08)
From Evil Empire:
Down Rodeo (2:23) , Without A Face (2:20), Wind Below (2:47)
From Battle Of Los Angeles:
Guerilla Radio (2:28) (yes, that's his guitar, not a harmonica), Mic Check (2:09), Sleep Now In The Fire (2:46),  Born As Ghosts (2:08), Maria (2:54),
From Renegades:
Pistol Grip Pump (2:15), Kick Out The Jams (1:40), Down On The Street (1:50)

I don't have many Audioslave songs, but just judging from their singles, he's quite impressive. Like A Stone (2:58), Doesn't Remind Me (2:51), Original Fire (2:27).

Here's a video someone compiled with some clips.

[lifesapplepie]

Good God...are people really saying that Kurt Cobain and Tom Morello are part of the top ten greatest guitar players of all time? 

If your list doesn't include Tommy Emmanuel, Django Reinhardt, Chet Atkins, Joscho Stephan, Jason Becker, Luca Turilli, Birelli Lagrene, Stochelo Rosenburg, Stevie Ray Vaughn, George Benson, Joe Pass, Lenny Breau, Les Paul, Eddie Van Halen, then you haven't done much research. 

Look those guys up.  I suggest youtubing these songs:

Tommy Emmanuel - Guitar Boogie, Train to Dusseldorf, or Initiation

Django Reinhardt - Nuages (But you won't find much from him)

Chet Atkins - Londonderry Aire, Poor People of Paris

Joscho Stephan - Bossa Dorado, La Gitane

Jason Becker - Serrana Arpeggios

Luca Turilli - The solos to When Demons Awake or Unholy Warcry

Birelli Lagrene - Anything you can find.  Probably the best jazz player of all time.

Stochelo Rosenburg -

Stevie Ray Vaughn - The Sky is Crying or his arrangement of Little Wing

George Benson - Take Five

Joe Pass - All the Things You Are

Lenny Breau - (This guy is legendary) - Georgia on My Mind

Les Paul - Avalon

Eddie Van Halen - Eruption

Etc, etc, etc. 

There's a lot of great guitarists (and other musicians) that don't get enough credit.  The criteria for top ten or best guitar players shouldn't be based on which guitar player you've listened to the most on the radio.  Example of a shitty guitar player who had a good band - Kurt Cobain.  Example of a pioneer who had enormous talent and innovation - Jimi Hendrix.  Example of a virtuoso who revolutionized jazz guitar and should be taught to every kid in school - Django Reinhardt. 

Consider yourselves informed.  I'm going to go sit in my room and contemplate what my level of guitar nerd is.

That Is a fucking good gutiar player,,,There are not too many people that can play like that!!!!

[Jumbo]

Slash
Ace Frehley
Dave Matthews
Eric Clapton
Hank Williams Jr.

[Townhallsavoy]

I thought y'all might get a kick out of this.