top 100 guitarists of all time...............

Keira-WitherKay

i was in exclusive books........ as always and saw the cover to the new .."Classic Rock" magazine.... and yep on the cover again ...it's the list of 100 best guitarists of all time.......... never know how to take this kind of article cos perspective is so important....i can't recal if they specified rock guitarist or not tho....or even electric guitarist ............ so wonder if some classical players or flamenco players like paco de lucia made it... i did see al di meola on the list tho......... so it wasn't all rock players

btw i never bought it ...... and the acoustic guitar magazine was sold out ..... damn .......

but sure it could spark a debate here.............. so what you guys think about these kinda articles.........

peace and light
keira

Frans-B--Cocq

No need to read those. #1 is always Hendrix. Then there's Van Halen somewhere among the top ten. Django Reinhardt is there, Steve Vai is, Charlie Christian, etc... A different list would be interesting to read one day.

AlanRatcliffe

Generally they are a bit static from year to year and at the best of times tend to be a bit more of a popularity contest than an honest look at the greatest players. Anyway, it's incredibly difficult comparing different types of guitarist too - how can you compare Steve Vai to Julian Bream or Paco?

I'd like to see a list of the top ten in each and every genre (and sub-genre) as voted for by the instructors at the best music colleges around the world. That would be a better way to approach it. Massive undertaking, but that would be the closest thing to a list you could take seriously.

Renesongs

This reminds me of the infamous Rolling Stones Magazines Top 100 Guitarists lists. You can choose 100 excellent guitarists and you will have probably left out at least 200 more that are arguably equally virtuoso. To publish these lists is basically a foot shooting exercise. 8)

[deleted]

I like to judge on versatility as well as musicality. Although I don't much see the point. 100 is quite an arbitrary number. It's not like sport where there is a reason for the competition.

Bob-Dubery

Alan Ratcliffe wrote: I'd like to see a list of the top ten in each and every genre (and sub-genre) as voted for by the instructors at the best music colleges around the world. That would be a better way to approach it. Massive undertaking, but that would be the closest thing to a list you could take seriously.

How many guitarists would fall through the cracks between genres? And a place should be found for guitarists who had a major impact even though they may have been surpassed since. If you were working on a list of the 50 greatest scientists you'd want Issac Newton in there even though some of what his work is now redundant.

Bob-Dubery

Keira WitherKay wrote: but sure it could spark a debate here.............. so what you guys think about these kinda articles.........

The trouble is that there's often input by readers, and they tend to vote subjectively or unthinkingly or for reasons that are nothing to do with what the poll is trying to measure.

It's like watching the results for Strictly Come Dancing - too often the rankings do not reflect the merits of the performances so you have to conclude that the audience is voting on the basis of "from my home town", or "I like Eastenders and this dancer is in it" or tightest buns, nicest smile etc. The professional judges will have tried to be objective and have to motivate their scores, the great public are voting on some other basis. Sometimes I think the idea is just to cock a snook at some judge they think has been a bit harsh. The consequence is that you can dance very well and be voted off whilst some palooka with two left feet (on a good night) but a winning smile continues.

The Rolling Stone poll showed the nature of the beast. Kurt Cobain came in at 12. Now I have no problem with the notion that Cobain was an important figure in rock music, but to rank him ahead of Jeff Beck (14), Jack White (17), Richard Thompson (19), James Burton (20), Mark Knopfler (27), Stephen Stills (28) etc etc AS A GUITARIST was just ridiculous.

Steve Vai didn't make the list BTW, neither did Joe Satriani and Al di Meola. The list was compiled in 2003.

They did get a few acoustic players in, but this highlighed another problem with such rankings. How, for example, do you go about ranking Bert Jansch against Johnny Ramone?

These polls are actually impossible, and only somebody who knows zip about guitar playing would take them seriously.

DonovanB

X-rated Bob wrote: Kurt Cobain came in at 12.

I saw the "list" once where he was at no 2... Thats when I stopped even bothering.

The only time we can say one is better than the other is if they do exactly the same thing so it can be measured. So in Essence, Jimi Hendrix would have sucked at being me so therefore I am no 1 on my list ? (even above Alan)

[deleted]

These lists are always BS.

Nobody really pays attention to them right?

Is Tommy Emmanuel on that list? probably not... if he is not one of the best guitarist to ever live.

Steve Vai says when he saw TE play for the first time he was "stunned into silence" "Tommy Emmanuel is not the future of guitar, because in the future, NOBODY will be able to play like Tommy"

Then I again i see Steve Vai isn't on the list... oh my blood is boiling >☹

Kurt Cobain @ 12? hahahahaha What a great role model he was. does anybody still listen to Nirvana anyway? I think there music died slowly after him...

Whatever, is all that comes to mind when I see a "greatest guitarists of all time anything"

[deleted]

X-rated Bob wrote: The Rolling Stone poll showed the nature of the beast. Kurt Cobain came in at 12.

Oh come on Bob! There was that solo in Come as you are?! Blistering!

?

DonovanB

not to mention the intricate chord progression in "About a Girl"

chris77

Ja those lists are k@k hey. Only good for heated debates when the wine starts flowing. ( Besides everybody Clapton is the best right, Right?) I was and to a degree still am a huge Nirvana fan. Cobain is imo one of the most influential players in recent times. But in the top 100 greatest category? Me thinks not so. The list in Classic Rock is actually a fairly decent effort. Instead of choosing the 100 greatest players they asked well known guitarists (mostly rock/metal players) too choose their favourites. So theres a 100 different players each choosing his favourite, in no particular order and unranked. A few interesting choices came out - John5 voted Chet Atkins, Brian May said Lonnie Donegan and Tony Iommi reckoned Django Reinhardt. My favourite pick was Jimmy Page giving the honour to Jack White! Hows that for a compliment... So as far as lists go the Classic Rock one was something different and actually quite well done.

[deleted]

Stratisfear wrote:
X-rated Bob wrote: The Rolling Stone poll showed the nature of the beast. Kurt Cobain came in at 12.
Oh come on Bob! There was that solo in Come as you are?! Blistering!

?

HAHA ?

Bob-Dubery

Keira WitherKay wrote: btw i never bought it ...... and the acoustic guitar magazine was sold out ..... damn .......

You mean there are people out there (present company excepted of course) who actually want to buy a magazine that focuses on ACOUSTIC GUITAR!?

Well I'll be hornswoggled.

[deleted]

X-rated Bob wrote:
Keira WitherKay wrote: btw i never bought it ...... and the acoustic guitar magazine was sold out ..... damn .......
You mean there are people out there (present company excepted of course) who actually want to buy a magazine that focuses on ACOUSTIC GUITAR!?

Well I'll be hornswoggled.

The ONLY subscription I have is Acoustic Guitar Magazine... ?

BTW is Derek Trucks on that list? Probably not... We should cull all the basterds who write these lists ?

AlanRatcliffe

X-rated Bob wrote: How many guitarists would fall through the cracks between genres?

That's why you'd need a whole host of sub-genres.

If you were working on a list of the 50 greatest scientists you'd want Issac Newton in there even though some of what his work is now redundant.

May be a bad example. ? Newtonian physics has been built on and expanded, but it's still just as valid today as it was in the 17th century.

Bob-Dubery

Brentcgp wrote: BTW is Derek Trucks on that list? Probably not... We should cull all the basterds who write these lists ?

He was in the Rolling Stone list. So was Duane Allman.

Bob-Dubery

Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
X-rated Bob wrote: How many guitarists would fall through the cracks between genres?
That's why you'd need a whole host of sub-genres.

It's still problematic because some players don't fit neatly into a genre. Where do fit in Prince for example? Not saying that he's one of the best of the best, but he's at least worth considering. Or Jeff Beck? And the boneheads (not your good self, the boneheads who run things at the magazines) would probably have "acoustic guitar" as a genre and chuck John Fahey, Martin Carthy, Bert Jansch, Bruce Cockburn and Gary Davis in against each other.

I understand your point, but I have a problem with genres because they do tend to exclude some very original artists. Or you end up with a kind of calculus that breaks genres into sub-genres and breaks down the sub-genres and we end up with just infinite graduations of "music" (which I'd prefer).

X-rated Bob wrote:
If you were working on a list of the 50 greatest scientists you'd want Issac Newton in there even though some of what his work is now redundant.
May be a bad example. ? Newtonian physics has been built on and expanded, but it's still just as valid today as it was in the 17th century.

Yes. Bad example. Because the kind of expert you are talking about would understand Newton's place in the scheme of things. I was trying to make the point that you can be great because of your contribution at the time you made it and remain great even though you have been surpassed by someone who came after you.

Renesongs

I think the clowns that draw up 100 best whatever lists should stay away from music and the arts and apply their skills at something like grand prix racing or boxing or something equally mindless ?

baseline

in today's times it seem that you are only rememberd for your last record, there is always someone trying to knock you off the top,
but i think the greats all have the staying power,