Even Wikipedia's confused. :p:

^^ Those are from the same article. Some ****s going down NOW!

Even Wikipedia's confused. :p:

I stand corrected.

this is actually one of the best lists ive seen so far. very glad you put eddie up so far but slash should of been higher. no tom petty either?

...after-all his solos are very Allan Holdsworth-like, as well as slinging an 8 string.

Was that a positive or negative comment?

I actually really dig the Edge as I get older and more experienced at the guitar... such a distinctive sound while playing such basic licks and always somehow keeping it fresh (for the most part).

hey Boo Boo, can you please explain to me why you felt Townsend was better then Brian May?

Well he's not "better", that wasn't really the point of the list. May has a great sound, though his use overdubbing was a big part of it. Townshend may not be better technically, but he pretty much invented a new approach to playing guitar, using more feedback and distortion than anyone before him and playing power chords more extensively than anyone before him, and his influence is insanely huge.

why does everyone focus on classical music and oldies or whatever music to be the most experiences in guitar playing? its retarded, people commonly feel that just because a band and its member are old that they have experience.

jesus, have you ever heard of metal?

I know what you mean. These people are f*cking idiots. Geez, John Petrucci absolutely SH*TS on Hendrix and Derrick Clapton or whatever his name is. Noobs.

Um, I don't even know what the hell you are talking about.

I think he's proposing that your list should be made up of nothing but modern Metal guitarists.

John Petrucci has no soul whatsoever. In very few songs does he actually put passion into. I like Dream Theater (really only Scenes from a Memory) and I am saying this.

Since I've made it very clear that I don't like to use words like "emotion" or "feeling" when it comes to someones musicianship, I prefer to use the word "energy".

And I do think that's one thing Petrucci greatly lacks. He sounds insanely robotic even by metal guitarist standards.

Fair enough... I can agree to that.

Because that's who the newer guitarists were influenced by... it's called respect. You can't just go pulling the foundation of rock music out from under the newer guys that you like... the whole thing would collapse.

that's one of the funniest thing's i've ever read. :rofl:

What about Kirk Hammett from Metallica? At least on the first 4 albums...

I'm as a big a Beatles fan you can be, but even I will say that's it's insane to put George Harrison before Keith Richards. The guy even had to bring in old Clapton to play on While My Guitar Gently Weeps.

He didn't HAVE to bring in Clapton, they were best friends, he was playing rhythm guitar and he let Clapton play lead. That has nothing to do with his abillity as a guitarist. Besides, theres nothing about that solo thats really more complex or technically challenging than the majority of Harrisons work, it's just a pentatonic solo and standard blues licks, he's not even playing a lot of notes, he's just using a lot of vibrato and bends to give it a really cool effect. I'm pretty damn sure Harrison could have played it.

I couldn't disagree with you any more honestly.

Well, you like Children of Bodom so I don't think your opinion matters at all ;).

Not the first time I've heard that, and won't be the last. :p: But in all honestly, I think John Petrucci is one of the most complete guitarists of our time. He's not just a guitarist he's a musician. He knows that knowing when not to play is just as important as when to play. I would honestly use him as a model guitarist when teaching students about discipline and not being a Yngwie Malmsteen show off type.

well put... that was more of a "look, we have Clapton on our song" then a "****, I can't play this bloody solo... Eric, can you lend a hand love?"

All guitarists suck except for Jimmy Hendrix:afro:

^^ Nothing is comparable to the sparse wisdom I occasionally flik through...

I'm so sorry you feel that way.

My top ten
 

My top ten favorite would be
Jimi Hendrix (The Jimi Hendeix Experience)
Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine/Audioslave)
Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
Pete Townshend (The Who)
Kurt Cobain (Nirvana)
Mike McCready (Pearl Jam)
Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains)
Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins)
Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath)
Kirk Hammett (Metallica)

Note: This is not the order of how much I like each guitarist it's just a list.

Note: This is not the order of how much I like each guitarist it's just a list.
Tom Morrello isn't as good as Allman or Clapton imo

Jimi Hendrix
Tom Morello
Pete Townshend
Eric Clapton
Carlos Santana
Kurt Cobain
Keith Richards
Zakk Wild
Dimebagg Darrell
Billy Corgan

Mind you, my horizons are narrow.

I think Dimebagg Darrell is a killer guitarist but he just doesn't carck my top ten.

I must say I was glad to see Chuck Schuldiner on the list. As well as East Bay Ray. Two of my greatest influences.

...Really? I like DK but I never thought of him as that good.

He is good, I just loved the riffwork he did. Most of DK's stuff was what inspired me to pick up a guitar. I agree with you. He isn't great, but he is still good.

Albert Collins
Johnny Lang
Bruce Kulick
Warren De Martini
George Lynch
Buddy Guy
George Benson
Neal Schon
Mick Marrs
Vinnie Vincent
Ace Frehley
Andy Taylor
Steve Stevens


I didnt see any of them listed. Also, no way Billy Corgan should be on that list, thats a huge "stretch" if you ask me...some others are questionable as well.

imo i think greenwood/o'brien should be higher up for there work with effects on guitars

also i think the edge and the dude from ZZ top shouldn't be on the list at all... just my opinion though

Billy Gibbons is an astounding guitarist with a dearth of music to show it. He was primarily influenced by B. B. King, but he took it so much further and incorporated a huge rock ethic in his work. He also uses a quarter as a plectrum. Noice.

ummm some of these dudes are on the list just because they made a name for themself through their band being popular and not because they were supremely skilled as a guitarist. Cobain was a decent guitar player at best who played really slow chords and used basic scales for his solos, buddy holly mostly played chords, lou reed is another example. There are very skilled guitarists that should make rolling stone's and this list but they are not as wideley known because their band didnt sell 1 million albums. Off the top of my head, Thomas Erak of Fall of Troy should be in there, Chris Arp of Psyopus, and at least one of the guitarists from Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza. Those are a few talented musicians that are way more technically proficient than, Cobain, Lou Reed, or Buddy Holly.

It recently occured to me recently that Uriah Heep's Mick Box is incredibly underrated... Well, like the whole band, but still, I'd like to see him make one of these lists some day. I have nothing against your list (except that Dereck Trucks should move a few inches up), and I'm sure you know a hell lot more about quitar players than I do, but can't help but think that Mick is a lot more fun than quite a few guys on the list. Just a personal opinion.

Good list, and holy crap you must be a patient person. You said you wanted recommendations for the next 50, so maybe J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.
He balances technique, and speed with melodic phrases pretty damn well (in my opinion). Check out the solos in "Start Choppin" and "Feel the Pain".

Its a good list...but im not sure about the tendency for people to always put the classic rock guitarists first
was hendrix really any more of a sonic explorer than say colin o'brien and johnny greenwood?
burn at the stake if you will

to be great doesn't mean to be technically proficient...
to me the ilk of Vai do not deserve to be in this list due to their excessive wank and poor melodic sensibilities.
great technique a great guitarist does not make

Why? Justify yourself classicist!

Vai is a great guitarist, he is indeed excessively flashy, but he's better than anyone else in that feld, and his influence is huge. Not a fan of Vai, Satriani and Malmsteen but I do think they deserve a high spot.

I'm half and half on this matter but is that genre even really deserving? Not to mention that technique is pretty damn easy to acquire if you have time and patience
of the three i think satriani is probably better...he has the better melodic sense and much more interesting use of his technique*
*midnight for example, which is a good tune, with an unconventional two hand chordal tapping approach, which also has a killer melody.
vai on the other hand plays fast wanky noise..

I think its a rather uncreative genre, with no restraint and very little emotional depth

AC/DC are just another run of the mill rock band...barring bon scott there was nothing special there
c'mon theyve released the same album about 15 times now