gdt (06/25/82)
Here in Columbus last summer they had a contest to find out who the best guitarist is. Much to my surprise Eddie Van Halen was the winner. Alex somebody from Rush was second, and Neil Young finished third. The forth place finisher escapes my recollection. Do you people outside of Columbus (OH) have different picks? I am interested in finding out. Naturally, infiltrating the net with favorite guitarists will raise plenty of stink and displeasure; therefore, it may be best if you send your choices (top three only) to me via mail (cbosgd!nscs!gdt). By the way, my selections are: 1) Neil Young 2) Jeff Beck 3) Jimmy Page
elf (06/28/82)
I've seen many "best of" polls come through the net, and at their best they can be mildly informative; at their worst, well, you know as well as I. Now comes a poll about "best"/"favourite" guitarists. Rather than flame about the idea, maybe we could talk about what criteria we use to judge musical proficiency on that family of instruments we generically call the guitar. After all, this newsgroup is supposed to deal with music, and moreover, most people, including guitar-naive people would admit that there are slight differences in the styles of Julian Bream, Paco de Lucia, Leo Kottke, and Jeff Beck...all superb "guitarists". Eugene Fiume ...utcsrgv!elf
jwr@ccieng5.UUCP (James Walter Reid) (04/04/84)
I feel like starting a real argument on net.music. Something like: who is the your alltime favorite guitarist? I am going to give a list of mine, and anyone else who wants to, can do the same. These are just my personnel preferences (in no particular order), so if you don't like them, flame me! Michael Schenker: Definitely one of the most underated musicians in rock. He is as fast and fluid a guitar player as you will find. His greatest fault is his difficulty getting along with other people. He goes through bandmembers quicker than I can keep track of. Jimmy Page: Quite simply, the greatest rock guitarist of all time. He may not have been the fastest, but he was certainly the most creative. The success of Led Zep should be credited to him more than any other. Live, I have never seen a performer that put as much into a single concert as Page. Ritchie Blackmore: Possibly more talented than any other guitarist of his time. The fastest that I have ever seen (that can still play fluidly. anyone can play fast if there is no musical content). His biggest drawback being his personality. He too never gets along with anyone for long. He has lost the services of such notables as Ian Gillan, Tony Carey, Ronnie James Dio, Cozy Powell, etc. Now though, he seems to be getting some well deserved credit for Rainbow. David Gilmour: A truly original guitar player. No one sounds quite like him. A very, very big part of Pink Floyd. Should enjoy a fruitful solo career. Steve Hackett: My personnel favorite. Since leaving Genesis, his career has hit rock bottom, but he has yet to compromise his beliefs in music. He continues toimprove and expand with each album, without trying to make the charts. What he lacks in talent, he makes up for in originality. Totally unique guitar sound. I have been fortunate enough to have seen him perform live several times, and Itwas quite amazing. There's no one quite like him. Steve Howe: What can one say about Steve Howe that hasn't already been said. Oneof the two or three greatest guitarists ever. Doesn't get along with people too well (he was, more or less, responsible for the departures of Jon Anderson from Yes, and John W etton from Asia). Played better guitar with Yes than anyone elsehas with any other group. Well, that should be enough to start a war. Until next time....
timw@umcp-cs.UUCP (04/05/84)
HEY mush-for-brains, you call them guitarists ! ha !
You think the good guitarists are the guys with long hair
and jump around all over the place are good?
Robert Fripp - The best guitarist I have ever seen in concert
(yes, I've seen Led Zeppelin long ago).
The philosophy of the music is more important
than the stage appearance appeals to me.
Maybe not you, but it sure does to me.
There are more but I won't go into them since anybody is
better than who you mentioned( and you didn't mention
Lemmy from Motorhead. He good, but flawed).
--
Tim Wicinski
University of Maryland
UUCP: {seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!timw
CSNet: timw@umcp-cs
ARPA: timw@marylandmrh@aluxz.UUCP (HUDOCK) (04/05/84)
I believe that Clapton is the greatest player of all time.
rs@hou3c.UUCP (rs) (04/05/84)
The best trio of guitarists I've ever seen was Paco Delucia (spelling?), John McGlaughlin , and Al De Miola .... they were incredible!!!!! I know its a different realm, but for pure talent there are very few (if any) "rock" guitarists that come close to this groups level of playing, collectively or individually. Bob Switzer AT&T Bell Laboratories ...houxf!hou3c!rs
rs55611@ihuxk.UUCP (Robert E. Schleicher) (04/06/84)
I'll add two guitarists with similar names that I've always liked: Alvin Lee (very fast, but limited style-wise to basic blues-rock) Albert Lee - listen to his incredible solo on Dave Edmunds' Repaeat (oops) When Necessary album, during "Sweet Little Lisa" (Albert guest solos on one song of a couple of Dave Edmunds albums. Of course, Dave is a pretty fair guitarist himself!) Bob Schleicher ihuxk!rs55611 AT&T Bell Laboratories
gulley@stolaf.UUCP (William T. Gulley) (04/06/84)
No flames, just an amendation-
Jan Akkerman: Former guitarist (long time ago) with the
Dutch rock group Focus. (Remember "Hocus Pocus"?) Right
after releasing the album "Moving Waves", Jan left the
group to pursue a monetarily unsuccessful solo career,
somewhat in the same style as Steve Hackett. Jan isn't to
be admired for consistently clean technique, but his
understanding of a wide variety of musical genres rank him
as one of my favorites. Solo albums: "Tabernakel",
"Profile", "Live" (at the Montreaux Jazz Festival)
Mike O'Connor: This guy won the National Bluegrass Fiddling
Championship at age 7, and the National Bluegrass Flat-
picking Champoinship at 13, and had an understanding of
both instruments befitting someone twice his age. He's
some twenty-odd years old now, and has at least had a
passing acquaintance with just about every stringed instrument
there is. He's also a fantastic musician, by the way.
My pick: "On the Rampage", "Markology". Rounder Records
releases a lot of his music, including the mentioned albums.
____
UM YA YAAA!!
Man, that felt great. .
William Gulley - St. Olaf College - Northfield, Minnesota
. .!inhp4!stolaf!gulley
anderson@uwvax.ARPA (04/06/84)
My favorite (rock) guitarists: Jimi Hendrix: You've gotta mention him in any discussion of great guitarists. No one could imitate his style, though many tried. My favorite LP from him is "Rainbow Bridge". Eric Clapton: An up and down career; his peak in terms of chops was the later period of Cream (check out "Sitting on Top of the World" on the "Goodbye" album). His strong points were ability to put together interesting (well structured) LONG solos, and also to interrelate with other musicians (e.g. Jack Bruce). John Ciccolini: (Quicksilver Messenger Service): Had his own style that was very lyrical and inventive, as opposed to other guitarists who mostly just copy riffs they heard from someone else. I guess these choices are dated, but since the early 70's I have moved towards other musical styles, so now I listen more to people like Joe Pass and Julian Bream (whoever they are).
mcq@druxt.UUCP (McQueerRL) (04/06/84)
This discussion does sound like a good way to start fights, but anyway: Some candidates in various genres: Pop: Mark Knopfler, Jerry Garcia (I resist the temptation to call the Dead a category in themselves). Knopfler's style is the tastiest thing I've heard from a rock band in recent years. Jazz: John McLaughlin, Pat Metheny, Django Reinhardt if you want to count dead artists (I can't recall if the original poster said living guitarists), Al Dimeola. Note these are mostly modern performers. I do listen to more traditional jazz sometimes, but I think recent times have yielded the good guitarists in jazz. Blues: Mel Brown, Albert King (NOT B.B.), Earl Hooker (NOT John Lee, dead). lots of obscure artists that are very close in this category. You may want to call Mel Brown jazz. Bluegrass: Doc Watson. Saw him live once, was impressed as hell. Others (hard to categorize): Steve Morse (What do you call that stuff the Dixie Dregs play). Leo Kottke (musical methedrine). David Bromberg. If there's anybody I wish I could play like, it might be Bromberg - he is able to play an incredible mix of things, and do them all well.
brooks@ihuxl.UUCP (Carole Brooks) (04/06/84)
Three great guitarists not mentioned yet are: Eric Clapton (possibly the greatest guitarist ever!) Mark Knopfler (incredible style) Carlos Santana (absolutely beautiful sound) Carole Brooks ihuxl!brooks
myers@uwvax.ARPA (04/07/84)
How can you people leave out Jerry Garcia, Keith Richard, and Jimmi?
rlr@pyuxn.UUCP (Rich Rosen) (04/08/84)
Just to make sure the new breed of innovative guitarists isn't swallowed up by the endless repetition of the once-greats and the now-dismals: Adrian Belew - the guitar chameleon Arto Lindsay - of DNA, Lounge Lizards, and a new group whose name escapes me Bill Nelson - ex-Bebop Deluxe, ex-Red Noise, now on his own Andy King - Gang of Four Fred Frith - always eclectic, always unusual, always interesting Phil Lithman (alias Snakefinger) - need I say more? John McGeoch - ex-Magazine, now with Siouxsie & the Banshees (coming to USA this summer!!!) Carlos Alomar - Bowie's rhythm guitarist for many years Tom Verlaine - former leader of Television Pete Townshend - all right, not new, and not really a "great" guitarist, just a sentimental favorite -- "I'm not dead yet!" "Oh, don't be such a baby!" Rich Rosen pyuxn!rlr
rao@utcsstat.UUCP (Eli Posner) (04/09/84)
Two of my favorite guitarists are:
Alex Lifeson (sp?) of RUSH - he adds another dimension to Rush's magic
(whatever that means!)
and of course
Eddie Van Halen - in a class by himself (just listen to "Eruption")
--
Eli Posner
{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!utcsstat!raojwr@ccieng5.UUCP (James Walter Reid) (04/09/84)
The only question that I have is; if Robert Fripp is such a phenomenal guitarist, why does he play second fiddle to a man (Adrian Belew) that admittedly knows not how to read or write music. Now don't get me wrong, I do like Robert Fripp. I have seen him perform twice, once with KK, and once with the League of Gentlemen. I really did enjoy that show, even though he got repetive after a time. But to imply that he is the best is ludicrous. Try listening to Steve Hackett instead. He is every bit as good as Fripp, but has a much wider repertoire. Until next time.... JR
tony@asgb.UUCP (04/09/84)
Definitely Mark Knopfler. Tony Andrews tony@asgb.UUCP
got@houxf.UUCP (R.GOTTESMAN) (04/10/84)
My favorite guitarists (not necessarily the best, just the ones I enjoy the most are: Jimi Hendrix Robert Fripp Peter Townshend Also, I'd like to recommend some guitarists you might have not heard of but might like Larry Coryell (Early stuff like 'Coryell' or 'Live at the Village Gate') Terje Rypdal (ECM stuff) John Abercrombie (ECM stuff also. 'Gateway' is recommended.) Mike Stern (Member of Miles Davis' band. Listen to 'We Want Miles'.) Now I'd like to recommend some albums you might have not heard of, yet they feature people you probably have heard of. Miles Davis - Jack Johnson (with John McLaughlin) Soft Machine - (Stuff of a few years ago with Alan Holdsworth) Mike Oldfield - QE2 I'd be happy to answer any questions on anything mentioned here. I have over 3000 albums and could probably recommend other albums of people you might like or people you have not heard of. Bob Gottesman Bell Communications Research
kissell@flairvax.UUCP (Kevin Kissell) (04/10/84)
(sigh) >The only question that I have is; if Robert Fripp is such a phenomenal >guitarist, why does he play second fiddle to a man (Adrian Belew) that >admittedly knows not how to read or write music. >Now don't get me wrong, I do like Robert Fripp. I have seen him perform >twice, once with KK, and once with the League of Gentlemen. I really >did enjoy that show, even though he got repetive after a time. >But to imply that he is the best is ludicrous. Try listening to Steve >Hackett instead. He is every bit as good as Fripp, but has a much wider >repertoire. -JR One might just as well dismiss Eric Clapton on the basis of his work over the last five years. Steve Hackett is an adequite guitarist, and has technique in some respects superior to Fripp's, but while Hackett has mastered several styles, Fripp successfully *defied* style for most of his career, opening whole new avenues of electric guitar improvisation and creating (with Brian Eno) a new musical genre ("frippertronics"). His courage to do the melodically unthinkable in performance rivaled that of Jack Bruce. I don't like most of what he's done since Exposure, but I feel he deseves a place in our electric pantheon. Feeling no obligation to be rational while discussing music, Kevin D. Kissell Fairchild Research Center Advanced Processor Development uucp: {ihnp4 decvax}!decwrl!\ >flairvax!kissell {ucbvax sdcrdcf}!hplabs!/
carey@yale-comix.UUCP (Orchid) (04/11/84)
Any Mike Hampton, Eddie Hazel fans out there?
burris@ihopa.UUCP (David Burris) (04/11/84)
What? All this talk of guitarists and no mention of Jeff Beck. Extreemly good in the "Blow by Blow" days. -- Dave Burris ..!ihnp4!ihopa!burris AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, Il.
rkp@drufl.UUCP (Pierce) (04/11/84)
I must say that I like just about everyone that has been mentioned in this discussion, but one of my newer favorites has not been mentioned. The Edge from U2 Don't know his real name, but he sure does do some cuttin' up on that guitar of his. His rough style is something I haven't seen in anybody else (at least, that I can remember). Russ Pierce drufl!rkp
rlr@pyuxn.UUCP (Rich Rosen) (04/11/84)
> I must say that I like just about everyone that has been mentioned in > this discussion, but one of my newer favorites has not been > mentioned. The Edge from U2. > Don't know his real name, but he sure does do some cuttin' up on that > guitar of his. His rough style is something I haven't seen in > anybody else (at least, that I can remember). His last name is Evans, beyond that unknown by me. He appears on a recent record with Jah Wobble (ex-Public Image Limited) and Holger Czukay which is rather interesting. -- Never ASSUME, because when you ASSUME, you make an ASS out of U and ME... Rich Rosen pyuxn!rlr
naftoli@aecom.UUCP (Robert Berlinger) (04/12/84)
If we are mentioning great guitarists, how can we forget Brian May of Queen.
rlr@pyuxn.UUCP (Rich Rosen) (04/12/84)
> If we are mentioning great guitarists, how can we forget Brian > May of Queen. Like this ............................................. [Sorry, I just couldn't resist. Are there really people out there who still like Queen?? I thought they were just a short-term flash-in-the-pan.] -- Pardon me for ... oh, never mind!! Rich Rosen pyuxn!rlr
nxs@fluke.UUCP (Bruce Golub) (04/13/84)
oh well, here comes a salvo from the great northwet... hey pins heads, nobody has mention the ultimate in fusion guitarists ALLEN HOLDSWORTH so there... sleep tight in them bomb shelters and remember, in the next world you're on your own. Bruce (this line intentionally left blank) Golub John-boy Mfg. Co., Inc.
rob@ctvax.UUCP (04/13/84)
#R:ccieng5:-34600:ctvax:39000008:000:3622
ctvax!rob Apr 12 17:57:00 1984
Voting for favorite guitarist is rather silly since they are all
so different but it is fun! Here's a few more:
Henry "Sunflower" Vestine (Canned Heat) (RIP) -- not the guy who played
slide, the other one. Classic 60s blues/rock. Check out "Amphetamine
Annie" on "Boogie with Canned Heat".
Big Jim Sullivan (Tom Jones band and sessions)
There was a time when most of the records of the British Invasion of
the 60s featured either Jimmy Page or Big Jim.
If you think some of Led Zep's riffs
sound like the Small Faces or Them, that's 'cos Jimmy did all of them.
Big Jim used to have a spot on Tom Jones' (gag!) TV show. Tom would say
do you know X and off Jim would go with a blinding intro into Tom's
"singing". The trick was that every week, it was a completely different
style, all from the same old Strat. Does anyone know what happened
to Big Jim?
Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick)
Yeah, I know the guy with four guitars round his neck. But remember
Jimi used to play with his teeth to get attention. I saw Nielsen in
Cheap Trick's heyday do a solo while the rest of the band was off-stage
getting "cranked" up. The guy had the audience in the palm of his
hand. A tremendous showman and a sense of humor. Check out all the
Beatles' riffs in the middle of "Ain't That a Shame" on "Live at
Budokan".
Robbie Krieger (Doors)
His classical training shows with the finger-picking and barres.
Nice slide work too. Gone downhill after the demise of the BEST
AMERICAN BAND EVER (Wanna start another argument?)
Check out "The End" on "the Doors", but watch out for helicopters.
Rory Gallagher (started with Taste)
Irish blues/rocker with a beat-up Strat that has less finish on it
than Stevie Ray Vaughn's. Good slide work. Listen to "Messin' with the
Kid" on "Rory Gallagher Live in Europe".
Ron Wood (Faces)
After he quit playing bass for Jeff Beck, and before he disappeared
behind Keith "I-just-look-like-I'm-strung-out" Richard(s) in the Stones,
Woody did some nice raunchy stuff for Rod Stewart and the boys.
Try "Miss Judy's Farm" on "A Nod's as Good as a Wink".
Andy Summers (Police - when he is 40)
aka Andy Sommers (Zoot Money's Big Roll Band - when he was 19!)
As the plaque that on top of one of his amps says,
"Watch out for Andy, he's small but he knows a lot."
Love all those minor chords.
Billy Zoom (X)
Has rekindled the market for old Gretsch solid bodies (:-).
Really knows how to let it rip.
Hank B. Marvin (Shadows)
The backup band for Cliff Richard (England's answer to Elvis),
the Shadows (formerly the Drifters) stuck to covers of Ventures
songs, etc. Still, Hank with his Strat and his thick hornrim glasses
was an inspiration in and around 1960 to all the kids that became
the 1960s British Invasion.
Billy Gibbons (Moving Sidewalks, ZZ Top)
Forget the MTV stuff, when Billy gets his '59 Les Paul out of the vault,
he can tear it up with the best of them even if he did steal the intro
to "Le Grange" from "Fried Hockey Boogie" by Canned Heat (where'd they
steal it from?)
Neil Young
It takes guts to have a Bigsby on a Les Paul. The guitar as a percussion
instrument. Try "Out of the Blue" on "Live Rust"
-------------------
Gosh that's enough! If you want more, Creem put out a special issue
on Rock Guitarists from A-Z a few years back with Jimi, Jimmy and Keith (?!)
on the cover. It had some nice pics in it too, with Nugent and Van Halen
with their collections and Nielsen with his five-neck Hamer.
"They'll get my guitar when they peel my cold dead fingers off the
fretboard."
Rob Spray
uucp: ... {decvax!cornell!|ucbvax!nbires!|{allegra|ihnp4}!convex!}ctvax!rob
dmf@whuxi.UUCP (FLANAGAN) (08/20/84)
More additions: Stevie Ray Vaughan Marshall Tucker Band (the remaining Caldwell Brother) PERHAPS WE SHOULD POST TO CATEGORIES (as per suggestion to me) Southern Rock, Blues, Classical, Folk, R & R, R & B, etc.
survey@whuxi.UUCP (SINGH) (08/21/84)
I just jolove Stevie Ray Vaughan, and I think that he belongs in this category.
jdb@qubix.UUCP (Jeff Bulf) (09/01/84)
Why has NOBODY (including me in an earlier posting) mentioned the late, great
Blind Blake. Many of Hot Tuna and Kaukonen's most enjoyable numbers come
from this great pioneer. He is one of the few old masters that Rev Gary Davis
praised.
Unfortunately, late '20s recordings are real hard to listen to. When they
can be digitally rectified, there are likely to be some new Blind Blake fans.
Meantime, there are good faithful versions by others. Check out Police
Dog Blues (a show-off-with-the-guitar song) as done by Ry Kooder or Jorma
Kaukonen, or That'll Never Happen No More as done by Hot Tuna. A guitar
picker's wet dream.
--
Dr Memory
...{decvax,ucbvax,ihnp4}!decwrl!qubix!jdbjohn@fritz.UUCP (09/03/84)
Just wanted to add Duane Allman to this ever-growing list of names.
I may have missed it, but I have not seen his name yet, to my surprise.
Eric Clapton once said he was the greatest guitarist he had ever seen.
Guess he really though enough of him to invite him to help with the
"Layla" effort. So, here's to the memory of Duane!
I too feel Eddie Van Halen deserves a good deal of credit. He has
popularized some old styles of pick-hand hammerons and really is
a master of his instrument.
In addition, I give credit to the following:
Jerry Garcia
Bob Weir (most creative rhythm guitarist I know of)
Doc Watson
Merle Watson
Chet Atkins
Larry Carlton
Pat Metheny
Robben Ford
David Lindley
I could probably go on for quite a while.
John Gilbert
..!decvax!trwrb!felix!john