Top Ten Guitarists Ever

Thinking in a mix among emotion/technique/melody/originality I´d say
1-Brian May
2-Slash
3-Steve Vai
4-Jimmy Hendrix
5-Yngwie Malsteen
.....

I have chosen this 5 musicians just because you recognaise em when you listen only one chord!

sorry to be all boring but i just had to say this.  any guitarist who was around was blown away by jimi hendrix, and that includes all the greats, from clapton, to townsend, to page, to collins (one of the greatest). he took the playing of the guitar to another level.  No one had heard anything like it.  i guess it depends where youre coming from.  robert johnson took the guitar to another level many years before, just as eddie van halen did in another era.  BUT saying all of that brian may is brillaint and hugely respected by his peers which has to count for something.  Anyway, there you go[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

even blues players like bb king thought hendrix was the best guitarist ever. Slash?....come on guys!....let's be real.  Hendrix vs slash?....I understand it's mostly opinions, but sometimes you have to use common sense.

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[b]Marcelo_argentina wrote: [/b]

Thinking in a mix among emotion/technique/melody/originality I´d say
1-Brian May
2-Slash
3-Steve Vai
4-Jimmy Hendrix
5-Yngwie Malsteen
.....

I have chosen this 5 musicians just because you recognaise em when you listen only one chord!
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i prefer put John Petrucci on slash position!

Hi QueenPaulo, you can do whatever you want to do, it´s just a forum,
you can express how you feel...let me just add, that, what slash makes
me feel when I listen to him, Jimmy Hendrix simply does not in  "the same
emotional level",  is not a matter of common sense, it just a matter of "own sense",
isnt it?

...enjoy yoursefl!

The most important statement before starting: Jimmy Page can't play. At all. Never could, never will.


Then, I don't think you could make a true top ten ranking, but I'll give it a shot.

[b]1- Steve Vai, [i]God of the Universe[/i]. [/b]Best left hand EVER.


That's it, the others are not in order:

[b]Eric Johnson[/b] for amazingly clever phrasing, playing and all the things he takes from other styles and blends into his own. Not only ridiculously clean but also very articulate. And, also very important, he created a very innovative style, very personal. Which not many can do, because it's not just the way he plays but also all the things he puts into the songs and how he applies certain techniques to certain styles of music. True genius. One of a kind.

[b]John Petrucci. [/b]Spectacular playing. Even tho his phrasing is not as good as Vai's or Johnson's, it still kick ass. Veeeery clean and great use of different timbres. Really great.

[b]Paul Gilbert[/b]. Even tho I don't personally like his lines. Unbelievable picking technique and immaculate fingering. It's funny how he seems to play his string skipping licks with such ease that he makes them seem easy to play.

[b]Shawn Lane[/b]. There is not much to say. He's pretty much inhuman on everything.

And [b]Brian May[/b], of course. For many reasons. First of all, being that he can play most of guitar techniques and his phrasing, which is totally out of this world. Not only in terms of playing but also for his perfect use of different timbres and his completely unusual way of playing certain lines. Brilliant, absolutely original. Even tho he completely sucked in The Cosmos Rocks.


And then, I dunno... I can't think of others. I could say Nuno Bettencourt, maybe. There are lots, of course, I just can't think of any others right now.

But people like Malsteen, Satriani and many others... I dunno. Great players, amazing players... but I listen to them and it seems like they're playing over a backing track. Specially Malmsteen. They don't get into the song as those other ones (except Gilbert, but he's mind-blowing).

What I mean is that, I've never heard people playing songs the way Steve Vai does. He sometimes plays the same melody over and over on a song, and he's constantly changing the way of playing the piece. Like he's always thinking how to play each melody, each section. And sometimes he's completely un-guitaristic with his lines and his fingerings and how he plays every part of a song, you can tell when he's playing. He never goes the easy way, but HIS way, with absolutely incredible technique. And that makes him the most clever player I've ever heard.

Jimmy Page also plays his lines in a different way every time, yet he manages to always sound the same: CRAP.


Cheers to all.

Nuno Bettencourt is the man.  Amazing rhythm, and arguably more influenced by Brian than anyone else regarding his lead playing.  Check out some stuff from Extreme's last tour on YouTube.  He is ridiculously talented.

My top 10 Guitarists:
-Brian May
-Roy Buchanan
-Jimi Hendrix
-Frank Zappa
-Jeff Beck
-Freddie King
-Chet Atkins
-Andres Segovia
-Wes Montgomery
-Phil Keaggy

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[b]redspecialusa wrote: [/b]

My top 10 Guitarists:
-Brian May
-Roy Buchanan
-Jimi Hendrix
-Frank Zappa
-Jeff Beck
-Freddie King
-Chet Atkins
-Andres Segovia
-Wes Montgomery
-Phil Keaggy
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If we were talking about rock: then surely Clapton, Gilmour, Iommi, & Blackmore would be on that list. But Jimmy Page?! FUCK NO! HE IS OVERRATED.

Well, maybe I looked it over, but nobody had mentioned Steve Hackett? Umm, strange.

And yes, Brian ig good enoug, although probably not the best. If I could name some great guitar players (without saying, who's the best), they'd be there: Eric Clapton, Brian May, Steve Hackett, Steve Howe, Ritchie Blackmore, Jimmy Page, Dave Gilmour and Tommy Iommi.

Vai, Satriani, Romeo, Petrucci, Malmsteen etc. are fine, but speed isn't all.

Well, that last statement only proves you've probably NEVER listened to Steve Vai.

Assuming we're only about rock guitarists, then:

1. Joe Satriani
2. Steve Vai
3. Yngwie Malmsteen
4. Paul Gilbert

Then, in no particular order: Buckethead, Petrucci, Howe, Johnson, Beck and maybe Carlton.

Freddie mercury is the best guitarist ever!....His guitar work on CLTCL is amazing!

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[b]mike hunt wrote: [/b]



Freddie mercury is the best guitarist ever!....His guitar work on CLTCL is amazing!

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But he only knew three notes !  That's what he said  :-)

Notes and chords are not the same.

And of course he meant that tongue in cheek... FYI, when Fred said 'I dress to kill' he didn't mean he was a murderer.