Greatest Guitar player of all time?

[Ramy]

Who do you think is the greatest guitar player of all time?

My pick has to go to Stevie Ray Vaughn. It's a shame he died so young in his career. For those that don't know he died in a helicopter crash.

 

[joedekock]

Who do you think is the greatest guitar player of all time?

My pick has to go to Stevie Ray Vaughn. It's a shame he died so young in his career. For those that don't know he died in a helicopter crash.

When I saw the title of the thread I knew as I clicked on it to name Stevie Ray Vaughn myself, and saw you already did!

I play guitar, and when I was growing up in my teenage years, I marveled Stevie's ability. I learned a few of his songs and even mastered them. But I was shocked when I would watch concert footage of him and he would be playing those same songs with the guitar behind his back!

My second pick would be Eddie Van Halen. He was an innovator of the guitar in rock n' roll.

 

[Ramy]

My second pick would have to be Eric Clapton, just because he has played for so many bands that requested him to play with them.

 

[nickg420]

This question can't be answered by strictly one name....The best guitar player of all time??? In what musical genre?? If you say blues then sure Stevie Ray would be up there, but so would Buddy Guy, Robert Johnson, Albert King, hell even Duane Allman.

If you were talking about rock gutarist it still has to be broken down into things like Metal/Tharash which would be Dimebag Darrell or Randy Rhodes, Flash Style Joe Satriani or Steve Vai, Slide Guitar Derek Trucks or again Duane Allman, All I'm saying is there are to many variables to just say so and so is the greatest guitarist of all time........

However, one guitarist stands out among the rest as a guitarist with the ability to play everything from blues and pop rock to country and western and bluegrass and everything in-between. That person would be Mark Knopfler, hands down he is the most talented and versatile guitarist around....just my .02

 

[Ramy]

Mark Knopfler? Most people wouldn't even know who he is. I know he was part of Dire Straits but I bet most people wouldn't even know that.

 

[crainbo]

Clapton. Hands down.

 

[NightRyder]

My top 7.

1. Stevie Ray Vaughn

2. Jimmy Page

3. Eddie Van Halen

4. Eric Clapton

5. Joe Satriani

6. David Gilmour

7. Steve Vai

Honorable mention to Balck Sabbath's Tony Iommi, Deep Purple's Ritchie Blackmore and of course Jimi Hendrix.

NightRyder

 

[Brewer4]

Depends on the music style.

Folks are mentioning Rock guitarists but dont forget the Blues ones. Some amazing ones out there.

Category:Blues guitarists - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not trying to knock anyone or not appreciating his talents but I always thought Eric Clapton was a bit over rated. I saw Stevie Ray Vaughn in concert too and he was amazing. Though not my personal favorite for music style but he blew me away how good he was. Knopfler is also up there in my opinion too and I like his style.

Though not the greatest but my personal favorites based on style is Stuart Adamson of Big Country/Skids and The Edge from U2. Another underrated guitarist is Andy Summers from the Police. I saw them over the summer and that concert was a billion times better then 1983. Brian Setzer is pretty slick too.

 

[Neutron]

All of those names are up there on my list. I also think Ted Nugent can play some mean guitar.

 

[joedekock]

Depends on the music style.

Folks are mentioning Rock guitarists but dont forget the Blues ones. Some amazing ones out there.

Category:Blues guitarists - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not trying to knock anyone or not appreciating his talents but I always thought Eric Clapton was a bit over rated. I saw Stevie Ray Vaughn in concert too and he was amazing. Though not my personal favorite for music style but he blew me away how good he was. Knopfler is also up there in my opinion too and I like his style.

Though not the greatest but my personal favorites based on style is Stuart Adamson of Big Country/Skids and The Edge from U2. Another underrated guitarist is Andy Summers from the Police. I saw them over the summer and that concert was a billion times better then 1983. Brian Setzer is pretty slick too.

Guitarists such as the Edge and Summers are in theory just jazz guitarists that got into Rock n' roll because they found a different "sound".

I am not taking anything away from them, they are both very good musicians. But that sound that is known as the "U2" sound is the same sound that edge uses on 90% of their songs. Its the same with Summers. In their respected bands they have phenomenal arrangements in their music. I think that is what made them good.

The likes of Clapton, Van Halen, Vaughn, Page, or or Hendrix made themselves or their band popular based on their ability to do something unique or not heard before on the guitar.

 

[joedekock]

All of those names are up there on my list. I also think Ted Nugent can play some mean guitar.

Nugent is underrated. When you hear his music on CD or radio, you think he is just a good rock musician. But some of his earlier stuff like "cat scratch fever", "great white buffalo", "wang dang sweet pootang', or "stranglehold" were done when he was just playing guitar in his band. He had a lead singer and rhythm guitarist in the band so all he did was lead guitar.

I saw him in concert in 2001. All he had on stage with him was a bass guitar player and a drummer. He did all the singing, rhythm, and lead guitar playing himself while jumping amps and running all around the state. And he never missed a beat!

I gained a lot of respect for Nugent as a guitar player that day!

 

[TAP112]

What a wonderful topic to bring up on 9/11.....and trying to get other people to think about.

 

[nsaspook]

Bluegrass and Country

Roy Clark would have to be close to the top.
Home

Blues/jazz/rock: Roy Buchanan Roy Buchanan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jazz fusion: John McLaughlin John McLaughlin (musician - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

 

[Hall]

E V H

 

[iceturkee]

wes montgomery. ever heard his day in the life album?

 

[rcbridge]

Too many variables to pick just one but some of my favorites.

Jimi Hendrix
Joe Satriani
Eric Clapton
Jimmy Page
Van Halen
Scott Henderson
Al Dimeola.

 

[RandallA]

Like everyone said, there are too many different styles to pick but my top three:

Eddie Van Halen
Joe Satriani
Jimmy Page

 

[Brewer4]

Guitarists such as the Edge and Summers are in theory just jazz guitarists that got into Rock n' roll because they found a different "sound".

I am not taking anything away from them, they are both very good musicians. But that sound that is known as the "U2" sound is the same sound that edge uses on 90% of their songs. Its the same with Summers. In their respected bands they have phenomenal arrangements in their music. I think that is what made them good.

The likes of Clapton, Van Halen, Vaughn, Page, or or Hendrix made themselves or their band popular based on their ability to do something unique or not heard before on the guitar.

Thats why its called an opinion. Especially your last paragraph which contradicts your first two.

 

[fayrich]

What's the matter - don't any of you guys remember Les Paul? He is still around and playing in his 80s by the way.

 

[joedekock]

Thats why its called an opinion. Especially your last paragraph which contradicts your first two.

I know it is just my opinion.

My last paragraph is not contradicting the first two at all. The first one explains that Edge and Summers just took jazz guitar and used a different effect that popular artists were not ever using before but have had the opportunity to. With the help of their band mates, (Bono for U2, and Sting for the Police), helped with the musical arrangements it made the band popular. People recognize those two bands not for their guitar players.

The others I listed were doing something crazy to re-invent guitar playing, or doing things never heard before. Eddie Van Halen literally created a new type of sond by using four humbucker pickups on his guitar for their first album. Now you can get that sound in an amplifier or a processor instead of rigging your own guitar like Eddie did.

You can take edge out of U2 and Summers out of Police and still get the same thing done with another guitar player. If you Take Eddie Van Halen out of Van Halen, its a big difference. Just watch a Sammy Hagar or David Lee Roth concert when they do Halen tunes.