Rolling Stone's TOP 100 GUITARISTS of 2020 |
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- Опубліковано 20 лис 2020
- The Rolling Stone Magazine's 2020 special commemorative edition featuring Eddie Van Halen is a fitting tribute that uses the same top guitarist ranking from the Rolling Stone's 2011 issue. I compare the 2003 issue, compiled by Rolling Stone editors versus the 2020 edition that was ranked by guitar players.
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Take any Rolling Stone lists with a pinch of salt.
I think a plow just passed by that doesn't cover the amount of salt to take that with.
Terry Kath was an ultimately under appreciated guitarist. Even Hendrix was blown away by his abilities when he saw him perform with Chicago in LA.
Kath has been the most suggested player in this comments section, so you and Hendrix are not alone.
Kath was a beast of a player.
A glaring omission.
Gary Moore, Robben Ford, & Alvin Lee should be on that list. Thanks Matt for a great video!!
I was surprised that Steve Howe (Yes) didn't make the list! That seems like a serious omission.
BTW - it's great to see your subscribers have jumped from 18.3 K to 19 K in the past week. I had a strong intuition that your channel was about to pop!
Glen Campbell was one of the best guitarists EVER!!!....for christ's sake he was part of the wrecking crew!!!!
Correct !
And Roy Clark
Good call. He was without a doubt.
John Lennon is better than Glen Campbell? Just another Beatles strokefest, in my useless opinion.
so was the great Tommy Tedesco
Glad to see George Harrison moving up. People who are not musicians and adolescent males are wowed by "virtuoso" weedily weedily "great" guitarists. Whereas fitting guitar solos into the song framework without overwhelming the lyrics/rest of the music is a true art. So many bands release songs that are just vehicles for "musical masturbation" that feature the guitar solo as opposed to lyrics/melody (oh hi Cream).
What George brought to The Beatles was TASTEFUL guitar solos that embellished the song without stealing the spotlight. Same with Ringo's drumming for that matter.
Could not agree more. Love how melodic his playing was as well.
So Alex Lifeson does not make the list again? Rush was one of the most creative and talented bands that ever existed and his contribution to their sound was epic. A talented, technically brilliant player and he is ignored again. Johnny Ramone makes the list and Alex doesn't? What's wrong with this picture? (And I'm a Ramones fan, but common now guys). Do the guys at Rolling Stone hate Canadians? Haven't bought a issue since the 80's and never will again. Alex is such a great player he deserves to be on the list.
He did actually make the list but at a paltry #98, two positions behind Bruce Springsteen!
@@popgoesthe60s52 OK, I guess I was confused because I never heard of Eric Lifeson as you called him. LOL. That's still shockingly low for such a great player.
@@pleasantvalleypickerca7681 Ha! I missed that I muffed the name, damn. I was rushing to get through by that time! Thanks for the correction.
@@pleasantvalleypickerca7681 this list blows
Yeah, Lifeson at 100 and Neil Young and his hack riffs at 17.
Where the hell is Django Reinhardt?!
No Steve Hackett, no Steve Hillage! Many thanks Matt another great video.
Two more glaring omissions.
Alvin Lee and Albert Lee should be in top20
Just want you to know I love your shows. Can’t believe I’m just now finding these. But better late than never. Superb work man. Really excellent!
Thank you so much Michael. My channel is relatively new, so there is a long list that I am working on.
Hard to believe you snubbed 3 of the most influential guitarists of the past 20 years......Eric Johnson, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani!!
Ted Nugent was the reason we picked up a guitar in the late '70's. Nugent is definitely Top Ten despite his ego.
@@edofcokeFrank Marino made Nugent look like an amateur.
Clapton on the Bluesbreakers album, played scorching blues on 'Steppin' out' and his cover of 'Hideaway' also kicks out the blues jams . congratulations to Bonnie Raitt, who was snubbed before. she brought blues to the radio on hit records playing AND singing it .playing slide, yet! even Stevie Ray made it big for his live rep rather than being on the radio, while BB King latched onto U2, before he ever really got airplay mainstream. another road warrior who played 300 gigs a year in his day.
BB KIng has no business in the top 50
@@thatismattjohnsonjohnson3146 I could name 100 blues guitarists(and most people on this site wouldn't know half of 'em).but nobody plucked or caressed a string like BB King.
I see the Mike Bloomfield vinyl back there. One of my absolute favorite!
Again, no comment about Keith Richards! Certainly deserves his position for his rhythm guitar playing, but overall? And I am a huge Keith fan. I would say the same thing about Pete Townsend: he's basically a rhythm guitar player.
Brian Jones showed him the opened tunings and slide ..
Keith was an under study..
Much improved list! Still missing Terry Kath, though. Do other musicians think that Chicago was only a horn band? And like the last list, they should have limited it to the best rock, pop and blues guitarists of the Rock Era to keep it manageable.
Chicago, even in their day, was not loved by the critics. Their early to mid 70s work is killer. I have to believe that there was so much excellent music being made at that time, that even today they are overshadowed by many of their contemporaries. Thanks for the comment, Chrissy.
@@popgoesthe60s52 Thanks, Matt. To show other people what we are talking about, they should check out this video! ua-cam.com/video/7uAUoz7jimg/v-deo.html
@@chrissygerwitz520 Awesome! Thanks for sharing the link!
Tommy Emmanuel should surely be on a list 'of all time' guitarists! And Keef at #4....oh my!!
Keef shouldn't be that high, but he's better than Emmanuel, has written better Riffs and solos
Stephen Stills is criminally underrated
Facts, he’s a founding member of Sex Bob-Omb
If they were going to include acoustic players like Joni and Nelson, then I would have added James Taylor.. he's a phenomenal player. I would argue that his stuff is a lot harder to learn than most of the players on this list, given the delicate nature of his picking and bass lines. He invented a playing style and sound all his own. Great vid!
I agree. There is also the problem of the guitarist within the group's sound. The Zombies' Paul Atkinson, or as someone else pointed out Glen Campbell of the Wrecking Crew...
Hi Matt,congratulations once more for your beautiful and well-researched videos!! I just watched the three posts about Rolling Stone's best guitarists,and once more I learned a lot of things (from YOU rather than from the magazine,actually...but,to be honest, the 2011/2020 list was a fair one).
I just would love to mention five guitarists that I adore and that didn't make the list...and it's not difficult for me to imagine why they have been kept out!!
1)Brian Jones. The incredible riff to "The Last Time", which he composed and played, would be already enough for me to put him on the list...but the man could really play anything,strings,woodwinds,brass,keyboards of all kinds...and this is why he's not considered a guitar man. Of course he was not a virtuoso,but he was a great musician who taught Mick and Keith the basics of blues, on harmonica and guitar respectively!!
2)David Crosby. The most beautiful CSN(Y) chords on acoustic guitar came from this incredibly gifted man,who also taught Joni Mitchell how to use the "open tunings". Again,more all-round musician than guitar hero,but I love him immensely!!
3)Danny Kirwan. The young boy that Peter Green brought into the early Fleetwood Mac is,in my opinion, a genius of the guitar and a great songwriter,with the Mac and in his first two solo albums,soooo beautiful!!
4)Anthony Phillips. The first guitarist of Genesis,he gave the band that magic sound of the acoustic 12 string that you can hear all over the Trespass album...there are many precious jewels in his solo carrer,too
5)Roger Hodgson. Incredible voice and incredible songwriting....but also a great guitarist, many of his electric guitar solos give Supertramp a very unique sound..and his acoustic style is stellar,too!!
Three upon five of these talented guys are very famous....I would like very much to know what do you think about Danny Kirwan and Anthony Phillips!!
Greetings from Genova!!
Sergio
You've included some good ones here Sergio! I love Crosby's acoustic playing and Brian Jones did really have some nice slide playing too on those early records. I'm not as familiar with Anthony Phillips playing but it's certainly nice to recognze Kirwan and Hodgson as well. I could make a Top 100 list of Guitarists who DIDN'T make the RS list!
@@popgoesthe60s52
Yeah,I think so, too...and it would be a list full of GREAT musicians!!!
This more recent list from Rolling Stone is certainly an improvement on the joke 2003 edition. Perhaps I should keep an open mind on Rolling Stone magazine 🤔
I enjoy your channel by the way. I appreciate the time and effort you must put into making these videos. They are very informative and well researched 👍
Thank you Tony, more to come.
The number one guitarist on this list both in 2003 and 2011/2020 is Jimi Hendrix. Jimi once visited a show by the band Chicago Transit Authority (later just known as Chicago) when they were playing at the Whisky-a-Go-Go in Hollywood in 1969. He went to their dressing room and told them he thought their guitarist, Terry Kath, was better than he was. He invited them to go on tour with him and open for his band. He had conversation with Terry Kath about working together on a record. Why in the world would a guitarist that Jimi Hendrix considered better than himself not be included on either of these lists, but they include guitarist such as Johnny Ramone, Bruce Springsteen and Joan Jett? ARE YOU FRIGGIN KIDDING ME??? I can see him not being on the list in 2003 because the list was compiled by journalists but not being included on the latter, which was compiled by guitarists, is unconscionable. Don't believe me? Listen to the following cuts off of their debut album Chicago Transit Authority - "Introduction", "South California Purples" and "Poem 58". Listen to "In The Country" and "25 or 6 to 4" off Chicago II. Listed to "Sing A Mean Tune Kid" and "Lowdown" off Chicago III. Hell, even listen to "Takin' It On Uptown" off Chicago XI in case you think only his early stuff was good but not his later stuff. Terry Kath was world class, innovative guitarist who was taken from us way too early - Jan 23, 1978, however his stellar guitar work deserves a place on this list. Rant over.
Kath is almost never mentioned. It's a shame he isn't highlighted but Chicago for some reason was not critically revere, as if they were some kind of light pop band, which is ridiculous but was the view of some contemporary rock journalists. I think that taints the memory of Kath's playing. I appreciate your rant! Thanks for watching.
@@popgoesthe60s52 Critics need to listen to Chicago's first three albums, that were all double albums (what balls). This is where they showed their true talent. I'm a huge Beatles fan (I've got a few years on ya, i'm 61 in two weeks) and I love your channel and am now subscribed. I especially dig the "Albums That Never Were" segments. I actually had a customer (his name was Charlie Brown, swear to God) give me a copy of an album "Get Back - with Don't Let Me Down and 9 other songs". I eventually sold it, wished I hadn't.
@@ecschwalbe Terry eventually would of recorded solo stuff and collaborations and it’s a sin he is ignored. He dies and Chicago from late 78 to now became a glorified junior high dance band after he passed away. He was just entering his prime. No respect and how can that be that the number one guy on this list thought he was better then him and he isn’t in the top 100?? SMDH
Lindsey Buckingham not as good as Joni Mitchell? 😆😆😆😆🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
At last the great Albert King! - at 13 - unforgivably totally omitted from the earlier list.
The worst rating in that list is Keith Richards at number 4 !!!!!!!!!!!!! ??????????? He is a very poor guitar player, even compared to George Harrison, but to almost everybody on that list. It shows that it all comes to " the true kowledge " concerning guitar playing. As a classical guitar artist i know what i'm talking about when it comes to guitar playing, and when i was young till the age of 23 i was still playing a lot of electric guitar cause i was accompaning well known singers as a professionnal guitarist in recording studio. And when you are doing studio recording professionnally it means you need to be a lot better than most guitar players ! I would even say that the best guitar players are unknown !!! That's what Eric Clapton said in an interview : he said : you can't imagine how many guitar players i saw that were greater than me !!! Keep on doing your great work great friend, we need people like you. I'm glad you've talk about classical and jazz guitar at the end !
Thanks for going over the list. Some of us haven't picked up this issue so it's good to know whose on it. I also like the comparisons of the 2003 list. I will say the interesting difference of the lists is that guitar players pick them not the editors. I would tend to think that guitar players know whose good and who isn't. Anyway, no one is ever going to completely agree that's what makes these lists fun to see.
The omission of Glen Campbell is glaring..No Randy Rhodes is also a real oversight..No Frank Zappa a real error at least I don't remember seeing his name..
RHOADS, damnit!!!!!
I've been a player since 1979. I've listened to so many players over the years and these lists are a joke in my opinion.
One more... it has been widely reported that Jimi Hendrix once said, and I'm paraphrasing; Terry Kath is a better guitarist than me. So if that's the case, Hendrix himself thought he was overrated. He allegedly said he was the best guitarist in the universe. Which is sad because after their first few albums his guitar playing became an afterthought.
Yes, Given that his band is only considered a 'horn band,' he gets criminally overlooked.
He said the same about Rory Gallagher
#98: Alex Lifeson, maybe? And whoa they forgot Elliott Easton. The Cars had such tight song arrangements, yet Elliott sure was able to rip a really intricate solo. Just What I Needed and Touch And Go are 2 such examples.
"Here Again" RUSH
I agree this was a better list. I’m glad to see George Harrison, Pete Townsend, and Neil Young get more love. Still I’m surprised nothing for Glen Campbell.
Yes, I agree because Campbell had a huge profile and rubbed shoulders with plenty of players, so I'm surprised too.
@@popgoesthe60s52 As well as Roy Clark, the man was a monster guitar player along with Campbell
I would add Al Di Meola and John Petrucci (Dream Theater) to the list.
Yeah, it's really a rock list. But some of the jazz players had a rock audience too, Al di Meola and Pat Metheny being two. Both should've been included.
The 2003 list was beyond stupid with Eddie ranking so low. Even someone who’s never played a guitar wouldn’t have done Eddie like that.
I think even 8 was too low for him IMO.
Where's Gary Moore and Peter Green? Terry Kath?
Moore and Kath didn't make the last list either. Peter Green did make it at #58, however.
Terry Kath INDEED!
Nokie Edwards, Gerry McGee, Jerry Reed, Hank Marvin, Mel Brown, George Benson, Harvey Mandel, Blind Blake, Takeshi Terauchi...
I just finished your video in review of the 2003 list when I found this one, and I just had to give it a go! My notes: In general, this list (2011,2020) is MUCH closer to mine than the 2003 edition. It's very clear that guitarists (and I like to think of myself as at least a SEMI-professional guitarist) value different attributes than Rolling Stone editors when ranking players competitively. One of the biggest differences, I believe, is that guitar players value creativity/originality much more than the editors do. Hence the rises of Keith Richard, Pete Townsend and, of course, Eddie Van Halen. In contrast, the editors place more value on pure virtuosity and on genre/style. (1960s San Francisco vs. Country, for example) Speaking of Country, Chet Atkins was added, which is appropriate, but Willie Nelson makes the list over Glen Campbell/Keith Urban/Roy Clark or others? I mean, I love Willie, but c'mon.......
Another Beatles comment: you (Matt) mention that John Lennon was not generally thought of a lead guitarist, which is true. BUT, he is among the most original and creative rhythm guitarists ever. He belongs on the list. And yes, the Beatles WERE a "guitar band." However, they emphasized creative, guitar-based songs over virtuosity and improvisation. Both John and Paul have mentioned how much they were influenced by Buddy Holly, and his "Two guitars/Bass/Drums" lineup as the standard for a Rock and Roll band. Good stuff-keep it up, and I'll be listening!
I appreciate the support, William!
I used to subscribe to and really enjoyed Rolling Stone. Unfortunately they lost their credibility and ME a long time ago. Great video Matt.
No Steve Howe?! Should be in top 50 at least. And still no Rick Nielsen...is he not as good as I think? Thanks Matt, great job as usual.
Don Rich, Tony Rice
Rory Gallagher should be top 10.
Rest in peace, Tony Rice. I'm not a bluegrass fan but I'm a Tony Rice fan.
I agree with this list ! Clapton is my favorite ! Love George Harrison too!
I agree with your assessment about this list. A lot of good players were left off, but it makes more sense than the earlier one.
I would have added Steve Howe, Glen Campbell and Frank Marino.
Hooray for John Lennon! He was as groundbreaking as anyone. Nobody ever sounded like the Beatles before or after and John Lennon's guitar playing was a big reason why.
Agreed! He is often over looked - even I forget about how good his playing is!
Lennon's solo on You Can't Do That is arguably better than any of Harrison's from the Beatlemania period
@@tyronerodgers Yes, that is a good solo, but George came up with the riff - equally as good. Thanks for the comment.
Lennon is one of the greatest rhythm guitarists of all time. Also I know many good guitarists that can’t do that triplet rhythm from All My Loving and keep it consistent for a whole song. Harder than it seems!
@@popgoesthe60s52 Influence wise, Harrison and Lennon prob made more people buy a guitar from 1963 on.....than anyone else. Jerry Garcia saw Help, becomes a guitar player in a rock band
WARREN HAYNES, Robin Trower, Popa Chubby, Jeff Healey, Gary Moore. All better than a load on this list!!!
Please tell me what "guitar experts" rank Keith Richards at number 4 and George Harrison at number 11, both of which are before SRV. The only thing I can possibly think of is that these "experts" are putting them so high on the list because of their legendary status and influence of rock icons, rather than their actual guitar playing. I remember a Rolling Stone list from a few years back that put Kurt Cobain in the top 10. These lists are just a slap in the face to actual guitar virtuoso's that were very talented and diverse players, but also changed the way we look at guitarists.
Yes, I agree with you. "Legend" often trumps ability and creativity.
Clapton with the BluesBreakers in 1966 started the school of Les Paul through a Marshall. To say nothing was that important before Hendrix is incorrect. Don’t forget that Creams debut was several months before Jimi. Also Jeff Beck was innovating at the same time with the Yardbirds.
Hey, I’ve been enjoying the videos. I just wanted to make you aware of an electrical interference issue (or some audio issue) of some kind. It sounds like a quick tapping and it’s very rhythmic. I noticed that I can hear it in a lot of your videos, especially when you stop talking. So it might be occurring the whole time? I’m not sure if it’s a radio interference issue or a grounding issue or what. I wish I could help you more, but I just wanted to make you aware of it for future videos. Also, it’s a shame that these lists do not include Django, Wes Montgomery, or other jazz greats like Kenny Burrell or Grant Green. Terry Kath, Clarence White, & Steve Howe also should be on the new list. I would, however, agree that this list is much more sober minded than the list from 2003.
Thank you Jeff, I have had some mic issues unfortunately but thanks for letting me know!
@@popgoesthe60s52 No problem. Enjoying the content and didn't want you to lose some other potential viewers and new fans as a result! Thanks for the videos!
So Ritchie Blackmore ranks himself at #50 and all those guitarist who made that list forgot about Michael Schenker give me a break, also no Buckethead or Alvin Lee on that list.
Buckethead should definitely be here. More prolific than everyone in that list and probably technically superior to most of them as well. And he’s also top tier in terms of versatility and feel. But I guess Kurt Cobain, Keith Richards, John Lennon etc deserve it more smh
Also Shawn Lane…
It's always hard when a guitarist dies when he's young... we always forget that Hendrix died at the same age as Cobain though in his 20s, and he's number 1 in the list, which is all the more impressive if you consider his accomplishments.
How could Danny Gatton be left off this list? He could blow away well over half of Rolling Stone’s top 100!
Inclusion of Gatton is one thing I liked about the older list.
I'm a WHO fan 'til the end, and Pete's rhythm playing is one of the reasons ,but if he wasn't such a brilliant songwriter he wouldn't get these kind of accolades. when I hear the session tapes from WHO's next w/ Leslie West, it's painfully apparent what PT lacked in the lead guitar area. so, as far as top 10, West himself isn't even there. he was blessed w/ a talent for picking strings. there were nites when Townshend did rise above his usual lead level (live at LEEDS), as did Springsteen. saw him on TV (maybe Letterman)several years ago, and I said, "damn, I didn't realize he could play like that." I don't recall if Larry Byrom ever made this list, but his years w/ STEPPENWOLF were their best years. he did some great work on their double live record .but he doesn't have a big enough name to be considered, and nobody's name ever made them play any better. do they even know who Bill Nelson is over at Rolling Stone? check out 'Blazing Apostles ' on 'Live! in the AIR AGE'. or any version.
Micharl Hampton? Eddie Hazel? Warren Haynes? Steve Hackett? Gary Moore? Elvis Costello? Mike Bloomfield?
Matt, I know this is a global review and highly subjective but how does John Lennon get in and no one even mentions Hank Marvin? So many are there because of the Shadows, at least in Europe. Great channel by the way. How about some stuff on the beach boys? Pacific ocean blue?
Yes, there are so many guitarists of note that don't get mention. I really think Rolling Stone, being Rolling Stone, could afford to do multiple lists to cover the different genres and lesser known but hugely influential players. John Lennon could be in a category I would call "Team Players" or something that recognizes those smaller contributions but also leave space for the Hank Marvin's who were very influential. Thank you for the compliments - Yes! I do have Beach Boys on the way!
Keith Richards was a brilliant writer on the guitar but to suggest he was the player those other gentleman in the Top 8 were to me is laughable.
Terry Kath fans might find listening to The Move's Roy Wood Reviews the sounds of August 1971" in which he announces that the Blood, Sweat, & Tears would sound better with a different guitarist - the one from Chicago. Roy is funny and makes good points, although when he reviews Harrison's 'Bangladesh' single, and quite likes it, he disses McCartney's Ram. Matt, as a big fanf Bert Jansch, I loved seeing his Vanguard album on the wall. That was the first that I heard of Bert (hmm, maybe a reference on Donovan's Sunshine Superman album), and it seems like I put the needle on 'Needle of Death' over and over.
Rolling Stone magazine has gone by the way of the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame. Take it with a grain of 🧂.
Leslie west the master of tunes, must be top 10.
Keith Richard some where 90+
Much improved list from that bonkers 2003 one
Fairly hysterical list they put forth. Is Eric Lifeson (at a respectable #98) related to Alex?
100 is a lot of guitarists to rank. Who voted? Was it based on people who actually play or just the artists' influence in the music world? From a pure guitar talent perspective, it's tough to pass up Andrés Segovia. It doesn't look like he made the cut!
nah, Hendrix is never overrated
At least Johnny Marr is on the frick’n RS list now. But only at #51? What the damn hell?! Also, glad to see you give some love for John Lennon’s guitar work. He is under rated and often overlooked for his playing. Where is Billy Bragg? Roger McGuinn way down in the 90s? (See comments earlier re: Johnny Marr). Great to see Peter Buck from REM in there. I’d take any of these guys to many of the over baked virtuosos that always rank higher. Lists like this are always so frustrating.
No list is perfect because there are a lot of "right" answers.....and usually no "wrong" answers. I mean....sure Hendrix is better than, say.....Peter Buck.....but there's a lot of grey areas. Also it's tough to compare people from different eras. And it's not like you can scientifically prove Buddy Guy is one notch better than Angus Young.
Having said that......I think the 2020 edition is much better than the 2003. Great video once again!
Link Wray is the most important guitar player in rock and roll history. If rock and roll were given another name they'd call it Link Wray.
Eric Clapton was once asked how it felt to be such a brilliant guitarist and he replied 'I don't know, ask Prince' Any credible list of guitarists should place Prince in the top ten. Also Steve Marriott should be in there, he influenced a ton of guitar players including Jimmy Page.
New subscriber and loving your content.
I just read the same anecdote in another comment, but the first guitarist was Hendrix speaking of Eric Clapton, lol.
I believe it was Hendrix speaking about Terry Kath, Chicago's guitarist
That's a long running urban legend with countless variations.
Terry Kath who the number one guy on this list said was better then him isn’t on the list. 😆
People say that line about everyone
I wonder what Keith Richards would say about him being #4 and Robert Johnson being #71.
rick nielsen? always interesting topics..thanks!
John Renbourn, Bert Jansch, Nick Drake, Phil Keaggy, Bill Frisell, Bruce Cockburn???
Good list, but Paul McCartney and John Squire definitely deserved to be on it. Taxman is just amazing.
I’m John Squire’s case Britpop guitarists are incredibly overlooked and Squire is one of many outstanding guitarists.
Guthrie Govan, Wes Montgomery, Ed Bickert, Larry Carlton and so many others could have taken so many well deserved spots. This list is better but still not very good. Also Richards over Beck in the top 5 is insane.
Nice taste of Koss at the beginning. Thanks for the great video. Rolling Stone is a joke. Was there any Jazz players on this list? This was released on April fools day right?
Kossoff is one of the finest in my view. Such soul. Jazz used to be elitist, which one would think is right up Rolling Stone's alley. This just shows how phony there are and how they are unable to have a deeper discussion about this topic.
I will admit that it is difficult to compile a list of this magnitude and not offend anyone. Which is no way defending RS.
Where's Peter Green?
Hi Matt, once again a list such as this is born out of ignorance. Where are Ian Bairnson (Pilot and AP Project), Rick Formosa (early LRB), John Williams (Sky) and Jim Sullivan (early Gilbert O'Sullivan hits) ; just to name a few.
Speaking of Beatles not being usually linked to great guitar playing? Paul McCartney is not mentioned nearly enough for his bass playing. “She’s so heavy” might be the greatest bass playing ever.
These lists from Rolling Stone Magazine are an insult to all musicians
Eric Lifeson ?
Ritchie Blackmore 50.. MIJ alone! Go with his playing, not his narcissism lol. No Michael Schenker, UFO Strangers. Glad to see John and George make the list. Beatles my fave band of all time. Tommy Bolin could play it all, as he did in such a short time. gone to soon 25. cheers
I saw Tommy Bolin with the James Gang opening for Johnny Winter. Much as I admire Winter, Bolin almost blew him off the stage.
The domain of this list needs to be defined. I don’t see any mention of jazz artists, acoustic roots artists, flamenco, classical, need I go on?
Better list but still has some weird choices, but obscure to the point of why bother, a lot of them never mentioned in other guitar polls by Guitar Player magazine, and or Guitar World mag, or related
These six players are better than 85% of both lists: Terry Kath, George Benson, Roy Clark, Yngwie Malmsteen, Frank Zappa and Tom Scholz.
Joe Bonamassa deserves to be on this list!
100 top POPULAR guitarists it should be. No Andy Partridge? No Bill Nelson? And Kieth Richard's above Mick Taylor ? Give me a break. John Mc Laughlin could out play most here . Beck was the best guitarist out of the Yardbirds.
The top three should be Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, and Eddie Van Halen, in that order.
I would like to see an anonymous questionnaire filled out by all the guitarists of all time. It’s the only accurate list you would ever get.
Interesting that Hetfield replaced Hammet
Why do people still believe to that Rolling Stone garbage list, made by storytellers AKA journalists who don't have a clue about music.
Steve Howe? Alex Lifeson? Todd Rundgren??
rory gallehger shud be in top 5
4:42 of this video. No they didn't shit there pants when they heard him. They shit their pants when the "Saw" him. Out front, kicking ass and setting his guitar on fire. He was playing, mostly blues covers with distortion.
Matt, The second list proves that people do not always listen with their ears - but then I am guilty of that as well. But the ignorance of putting Lou Reed on the list is a bit much. Sterling Morrison played lead with the Velvets while Dick Wagner(from Detroit rockers The Frost) and Steve Hunter played the lead parts on Reed's most guitar driven albums. I am not saying that Lou Reed was a bad guitar player (maybe their should be a lis for excellent rhythm players like David Crosby). but Based on the records, Lou should not be in the top 200. And while Lennon could play well at times, the times were few and far between on record. And while I will catch flak for this, Keith Richard does not belong even in the top 100 as Brian Jones played lead some of the time as does Ron Wood, while Mick Taylor was the lead player while he was in the band (probably my favorite Stones tune is 'Can't You Hear Me Knocking'). Keith wrote great riffs and tunes - and obviously loves to play, but his actual guitar playing does not measure up to most of the guitarists rated below him. (I did say that my thoughts are subjective.)
So when and if you get time to make a list, I would suggest a separate category for the greatest influences - maybe Les Paul, Keith Richard, Davy Graham, ... and then more narrowly define the category (electric rock guitarists perhaps?).
You might want to check Mojo's list of the top 100 guitarists which is online and appears to have a more British perspective (like Johnny Marr and one of his favorite guitarists, Jon McGeoch, whose playing with Siouxsie and the Banshees is some of my favorite as well). FYI, Mojo lists Joni as #77.
Finally the most satisfying guitar show that I saw Mountain in 1970, but it wasn't a show, just the band warming up and doing a sound check - for over two hours - and me the only non-band related person taking it all in. WAY better than the actual concert - which was excellent.
Thank you for the substantive comments. I do hope to explore this topic more.
Without Buckethead this list is a joke. I don't care what number he should be on it.
Exactly
Glen Campbell and Roy Clark can out play most on this list
So many guitarist so little time,at least the guitarist got it a lil more correct!
Id like to know what you think of the Guitar Worlds greatest 100 list?
I'll have to check that out. I would have to believe it is more sensible than Rolling Stone Mag. I am working on a formula with criteria that help rate guitar players, but it is a difficult endeavor.
No love for Chris DeGarmo from Queensryche? His stuff was always so tasty and served the songs rather well.
Also no Davy Graham or Bert Jansch..Please they are Top 100 players..
Come on dude this is influential and im middle aged and nobody started playing cause of those guys as amazng as they are. With that logic Tommy Emmanuel should be no1
@@thedude-jb7wx Well, For one you don't know and neither do I why someone picked up a guitar and far as influence goes ask Jimmy Page if Bert Jansch was an influence for him..And by the way I'm 65..and still rockin'
@@stuartwexelbaum9070 Oh Stuey
A much better list.
Who was doing it before Hendrix? Jeff Beck was.
Good to see David Gilmour ranked highly this time. Need to get your spelling corrected though.
berry and van halen were the most influential.
Still a lot of fanboyism among the guitarists, maybe they should have non-rock guitarists rank rock guitarists to get a more unbiased evaluation. Could be interesting to hear what classic and jazz guitarists prefer.