Squonk wrote
Some have been mentioned
Carl Verheyen
Neil Schon - especially his solo stuff
Phil Keaggy - monster guitarist
Steve Hackett - got out of Genesis just in time
Martin Barre
Jan Akkerman from Focus
Steve Hillage
Warren Haynes - tone to die for
Snowy White
Alex Lifeson
Still huge amounts
I have to say I can't see how Keaggy, Schon, White and Liefson are underrated. They just don't get called the greatest player on earth, but they get their fair share of lauding. So did Akkerman at one time, he was a hot item in the 70s but doesn't have a high profile these days.
Barre I think qualifies - largely because he's played 2nd fiddle within Tull, and I mean musically and not just in terms of personality. I heard some stuff off of one of his solo albums and was quite surprised by it. He's got more chops than he lets show (at least on record), and his own personal musical vision is different from Ian Anderson's.
