Greatest guitarist of all time??

[LeftyP]

You are all wrong!  This is the guy.

 

[mike f]

It’s..., Paul McCartney.

 

 

Gets coat. Phones for taxi. Leaves country.

[TJ1]

I can't think of a single greatest guitarist. I think times and genres evolve so 'greatest of 'all time' does not actually exist. 

Maybe Chuck Berry in the 50's, George Harrison in the 60's. The pink Floyd guy in the 70's but nowish I think the Foo Fighters guitarist is pretty good. He seems to be very good at interweaving with the vocalist, rather than doing flashy solos.

But for me the best piece of bass playing of all time is on 'Stayin Alive'

[diskwave]

Depends on what u call great. Someone who comes up with totally new stuff or someone who can play everything on the fly.

Used to watch a band at my local holiday bar in the 70's. Guitarist played a tele and could slay any tune thrown at him....Beatles, 60's, 70's pop and he did it with gusto, his sweeping chords on the bridge PU were mesmerising and sooo musical....so in my mind... a truly superb guitarist...but then so is Jeff Beck and and Pat Travers and totaly different. U pays ur money etc.

[casapete]

6 hours ago, Ricky Rioli said:

How do we feel about influential rhythm guitarists like, say, Malcolm Young and James Hetfield? 

Love 'em. So few players concentrate enough on this side of guitar playing. 

All time great rhythm players for me would be Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend, Nile Rodgers and John Frusciante.

[peteb]

Perhaps there is a classical music website somewhere with a thread on who is the greatest second violin? 

[Munurmunuh]

13 minutes ago, peteb said:

Perhaps there is a classical music website somewhere with a thread on who is the greatest second violin? 

A google search found me someone opining that Alexander 'Sacha' Schneider of the Budapest String Quartet deserves that title:

[Bilbo]

The discussions are fun but unresolvable. I love Al DiMeola, Ralph Towner, John Abercrombie, Pat Metheny, John Scofield, Stephanie Jones, some of the new guys are monsters. Are they the best? I don't think there is such a thing. Who speaks to you? That's the only question. 

[pst62]

Well, ever since it's release in January 1979 I've kept coming back to this! It's just a brilliant solo.

 

[peteb]

5 hours ago, Ricky Rioli said:

A google search found me someone opining that Alexander 'Sacha' Schneider of the Budapest String Quartet deserves that title:

Excellent - great to see the equivalent of the rhythm guitarist in a string quartet getting the recognition that they so obviously deserve. 

[Munurmunuh]

8 hours ago, peteb said:

Excellent - great to see the equivalent of the rhythm guitarist in a string quartet getting the recognition that they so obviously deserve. 

I wonder if like second violins, like rhythm guitarists, use heavier gauge strings? 

A couple of years ago I saw / heard a long-standing, very respected quartet. The first violin had been in the job many years, though wasn't the founder member. The second violin was new, and was clearly loving the job, really getting into leading the rest of the rhythm section looked delighted with her and her energy. As a result, the first violinist seemed a bit out on his own, twiddling away on the pretty tunes rather than leading the ensemble, and I was left wondering if in a couple of years time he might find himself facing some kind of coup....

[oldslapper]

Who can forget the great Alvin Stardust coup kachoo of 74? 

[MacDaddy]

I think Basschat needs a 'who's the best guitarist' thread, as much as the Ozone layer needs another hole.

[funkgod]

On 24/04/2021 at 13:36, Barking Spiders said:

What irks me about articles like these  and  'who's the greatest' polls is they assume there's no other music genre of note apart from rock. I could name scores of steel string acoustic, jazz, country, Flamenco and classical players off the top of my noggin who could've  played the @r$3 off Prince, Hendrix or pretty much most other rock players. For starters let's go with  Segovia, Paco de Lucia, Tommy Emmanuel, Albert Lee, Danny Gatton and Joe Pass.

yep spot on.

lets just say that word again " the greatest"........... ok, to who ? you !

we all have our " greatest"

for me, as much as admire fantastic players who have obviously put allot of time into their playing, and some pushing boundaries, i will never remember anything malmsteen, or mclaughlin has done yet i will remember stuff by george benson, knopfler, gilmour, carlton, jimmy herring, wayne johnson even zappa because those guys play with melody and its melody that catches my ear, its that that i hum walking down the st, im not saying here that malmsteen, or mclaughlin and the like dont play with melody but just too much of the other stuff leaves me a bit cold and reaching for the FF to the next track.

Regarding Clapton, i dont think he was overrated claption like it or not took music to another level in cream, all be it pushed by baker and bruce,  and was THE first publicly named rock GOD before the term was used for anyone, it was made for him. painted on the fence for all to see, also contrary to what most believe hendrix and clapton were very good friends, in fact it was clapton that was left waiting for him with a present of a left handed strat he was going to give him the night they had arranged to watch sly and the family stone, the night hendrix died.  i think Blackmore was better, and i think clapton and esp Blackmore were better than hendrix, hendrix was raw and ground braking no doubt ....but not better, ........to me.

 

Edited May 25, 2021 by funkgod

[SumOne]

This Guardian article reckons Eddie Hazel's playing on Funkadelic's Maggot Brain is the best guitar solo of all time (well, basically the whole tune is a guitar solo) https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/apr/26/best-guitar-solo-of-all-time , I'd agree with that.

"Play it like your momma just died"

 

Edited April 27, 2021 by SumOne

[tegs07]

22 minutes ago, funkgod said:

yep spot on.

lets just say that word again " the greatest"........... ok, to who ? you !

we all have our " greatest"

for me, as much as admire fantastic players who have obviously put allot of time into their playing, and some pushing boundaries, i will never remember anything malmsteen, or mclaughlin has done yet i will remember stuff by george benson, knopfler, gilmour, carlton, jimmy herring, wayne johnson even zappa because those guys play with melody and its melody that catches my ear, its that that i hum walking down the st, im not saying here that malmsteen, or mclaughlin and the like dont play with melody but just too much of the other stuff leaves me a bit cold and reaching for the FF to the next track.

Regarding Clapton, i dont think he was overrated claption like it or not took music to another level in cream, i think Blackmore was better, and i think clapton and esp Blackmore were better than hendrix, hendrix was raw and ground braking no doubt ....but not better, ........to me.

 

The first time Clapton heard Hendrix play Killing Floor Blues he was so awestruck he had to leave the stage... but I know what you mean.

[tegs07]

Currently I have Kelly Joe Phelps playing in the background and thinking these articles should really be titled “Who is the most well known electric lead guitarist of all time”

[SteveXFR]

It has to be Tony Iommi for me. A guitarist so influential that his playing started a completely new genre of music and a sub genre (doom) which is pretty much defined by ripping off Iommi riffs.

You may disagree if you don't like metal. 

[tauzero]

I'm just going to say Jan Akkerman again. Classical guitar, lute, renaissance music, jazz, rock, prog rock (in Focus's case, jazz/classical/rock fusion), voted best guitarist in the world by Melody Maker readers in 1973.

[Supernaut]

16 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

It has to be Tony Iommi for me. A guitarist so influential that his playing started a completely new genre of music and a sub genre (doom) which is pretty much defined by ripping off Iommi riffs.

You may disagree if you don't like metal. 

Iommi for sure is a riff general... but then again, I always preferred Sabbath to Zeppelin! 

[SteveXFR]

3 hours ago, Supernaut said:

Iommi for sure is a riff general... but then again, I always preferred Sabbath to Zeppelin! 

Zeppelin were brilliant but I just think Sabbath were a bit more creative and original. I also think John Paul Jones was more impressive than Jimmy Page.

[Lord Sausage]

You're all wrong, it's bonehead who used to be in Oasis.

[4000]

Obviously there is no ‘greatest’. My personal favourites include David Gilmour, Peter Green, Andy Latimer, Jan Akkerman, Bill Connors, Jimi, Lindsey Buckingham, The Edge & Martin Simpson. Because, like Bilbo says, they happen to speak to me in some way. 

 

 

 

[Leonard Smalls]

I have an eclectic mix of favourite guitarists, including:

Buckethead

Eddie Hazel

Eduardo Niebla

James Blood Ulmer

Sonny Sharrock

Catfish Collins

Vernon Reid

[Nicko]

A somewhat controversial choice for great rhythm guitarists is Kelly Jones of the Stereophonics.  The first couple of albums were just brilliant examples of rhythm guitar.