Favourite guitarist?

[metropolis_part_one]

Who is your favourite guitarist and why? Also, as a side-note, who do you think the most proficient guitarist is/was?

Here are mine:

Favourite: Petrucci
Best: Becker

[Ursa Major]

I don't feel qualified to say who the most proficient guitarist is. I just know what I like when I hear it.

My favorites in no particular order:

Dick Dale
Chet Atkins
Link Wray
Pete Townsend
Billy Zoom

Special mention to Scotty Moore who was probably one of the greatest accompanists in the history of popular music. Half of his genius was his ability to support his front man without outshining him (which he surely could have, if that was his intention.)

[El Greco]

What kind of guitarist ? Rock ? Jazz ? Classical ?

Hendrix was great.
For jazz, there have been a lot of great ones. I like Jeff Linsky a lot.
Classical, Raphael Rabello was unique and will never be surpassed. John Williams is still no.1 in live performances.

[eli54]

David Lindley:)

[whitefork]

Django Reinhart. So inventive and tasteful.

[Foofer]

Albert Collins - Very distinctive cool, crisp sound

[jj]

It's still Chet.

I'll let Knopfler in there somewhere, along with Norman Blake, too.

[Frostbite]

Chris Cheney of the Living End
Euroboy of Turbonegro
Ben Foster of the Riverdales

[arcticpenguin]

Leo Kottke
Mark Knopfler

[Bikewer]

Knopfler (great stuff on "Speedway at Nazareth")

Doc Watson. So damn musical....

Rockers- I still like Clapton. Not so fiery as some, but he's gotten quite lyrical over the years.

More blues guys than I can shake a broken wine bottle neck at...

[HarryKeogh]

faves...stevie ray vaughan, kirk hammett and jimmy page

most technically proficient? steve vai maybe...though i don't particularly like his albums but he knows his stuff inside out.

[epepke]

Joe Pass, because he didn't need anybody else to make jazz guitar sound good.

Django Reinhart, because he basically invented modern jazz guitar. (Yes, I can almost hear the quibblers twitching their fingers to tell me that I'm wrong. But that's my story, and I'm stickin' to it.)

[Ove]

Jazz : Django anytime
Modern Jazz : George Benson
Blues : Clapton - Stevie Ray - Rory Gallagher
Soul : BB King
Rock Lead : Richie Blackmore
Rock Rythm : Keith Richards-Pete Townsend
Country : Chet towers over them all

Ohh boy are there many and i haven't even mentioned Hendrix and Santana or Jeff Beck or ............

:D

[Yahweh]

Favourite guitarist?

You might know them from PalTalk, my favorite guitarists in know particular order are...

Hal Bidlack
Wolverine
LeFevre

[HarryKeogh]

Originally posted by Ove Rock Rythm : Keith Richards-Pete Townsend
[/B]

i'm pretty sure it was keith richards who said the reason so many guitarists nowadays plays so many notes is because they can't seem to find the right one.

i agree. we've all heard wild guitar solos and were impressed with the speed and accuracy but the ones that stick in my mind are the ones with SOUL!!!

[Ove]

Best: Becker

WHO??? (I'm not teasing/flaming you, a Google search turned up several)

[metropolis_part_one]

WHO??? (I'm not teasing/flaming you, a Google search turned up several)

Jason Becker, he was a neo-classical guitarist (like Malmsteen only I reckon he's even more technical). Neo-classical is like classical music but with a metal band instead of an orchestra and a FAST lead guitar playing all the tunes.

He has been paralysed for the last 11 years (totally paralysed except for eyes I think).

[Evolver]

Frank Zappa
Snakefinger
Todd Rundgren
John Etheridge
Robert Fripp
Mike Keneally

To name few. My list could go on and on.

[Monketey Ghost]

Zappa
McLaughlin
Fripp
Belew
Django
Collins (Dirty Dishes)
Van Halen
Gilmour
Knopfler (and yah, Speedway at Nazareth is brilliant)
East Bay Ray
Bob Dylan ( I love the way he picks on a single note when he runs short of ideas. It's hilarious)
Garcia (sometimes he stunk up the stage. Sometimes he was untouchable)

No particular order.

edited to add, Snakefinger! How could I forget Snakefinger??
D'oh!

[Cleopatra]

Van Halen, Al di Meola and of course Paco de Lucia

[arcticpenguin]

Does anyone else listen to Leo Kottke?

[JamesM]

David Pajo.

[Bikewer]

Funny bit about Kottke. Many years ago, when "6 and 12 string guitar" came out, all the local guitar heros were trying to cop his licks.
One fellow we knew agonized over a particular "sound" Leo was getting on one cut, and was getting frustrated over trying to duplicate it. It wasn't for months later that someone pointed out that the mysterious sound was a breaking string.....

[Cleopatra]

Originally posted by arcticpenguin
Does anyone else listen to Leo Kottke?

I do have a cd of his music but I can't say that I want to listen to it occasionaly the way I listen to Al di Meola for example. Some times I return home and I want to listen to Al Di Meola and Paco de Lucia.

Without being an expert I consider Kottke more "academic" performer but maybe it's just his repertoire. Al di Meola plays a lot of "Mediterranean" and gypsy music too. I happen to adore gyspy music maybe this is the reason why I prefer Al Di Meola. I think that both are considered by experts to belong to the same "class".

[Monketey Ghost]

Originally posted by Cleopatra
Van Halen, Al di Meola and of course Paco de Lucia

As the kids say, wicked awesome.

Especially Paco. I can't imagine playing without a pick, and flamenco players mostly utilize just two fingers.
Gaa-aaa-aah!
Intimidating.

[Evolver]

Originally posted by Cleopatra
Van Halen, Al di Meola and of course Paco de Lucia
John McLaughlin will fell slighted over this.

[Evolver]

Oh yeah, I forgot Steve Morse. His playing with the Dixie Dreggs is astounding.

[Cleopatra]

Originally posted by Evolver

John McLaughlin will fell slighted over this.

Indeed! Him, Al di Meola and Paco de Lucia have performed together!! I think I have the cd somewhere around here!!I have to find it!

No answers, a couple of years ago, I saw Paco de Lucia live in the ancient theatre of Herodeion in Athens.

At the end of the concert he performed genuine gipsy music -duende- only to set the theatre on fire! :)

[Mercutio]

Can't stand Van Halen, really, really can't stand Knopfler...Ok, fine, they are talented....blech.

Richard Thompson is the one I don't see mentioned thus far.

Django...oh, hell, yes...

[Monketey Ghost]

Originally posted by Evolver

John McLaughlin will fell slighted over this.

To be honest, McLaughlin was mostly a joke in the Trio. "Ooh, look at me playing acoustic!" I prefer his electric work... Mahavishnu days. And what he's doing with Remember Shakti in the past few years is just un-swear-word-believable. His playing has advanced. Remember how he used to be all right hand technique, and his left would lag? He'd lose focus in the middle of a phrase. Well, that's history. He's monstrous.

Cleopatra, PdL's just ridiculously, amazingly hot. You're so lucky, I've yet to see him! Although as always happens with great guitarists, when I do see him, I'll stare at his hands the whole performance.
I love players that can work an instrument so profoundly that I'm swept up in emotion. :)

[Mr. Skinny]

I've always been a fan of Ry Cooder. He's not a solo standout for the most part, but for myself, he's one of the best all around guitarists in that he can play behind so many different musicians with different styles.

He's put down licks for the Stones, Neil Young, John Hiatt, Clapton, Captain Beefheart, Zappa, John Lee Hooker, etc.

He call play nearly every style of music, including Jazz, Calypso, Hawaiian, Gospel, Salsa, and Ragtime, Folk, Country.....you name it.

He's a jack of all trades (and master of most). One of the best IMHO.

[Glory]

Andre Segovia

Glory

[Checkmite]

W.C. Handy, Muddy Waters, BB King, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, and Lightnin' Hopkins. Just because they are.

[Patricio Elicer]

Originally posted by Yahweh
You might know them from PalTalk, my favorite guitarists in know particular order are...

Hal Bidlack
Wolverine
LeFevre Hey Yahweh, you forgot to add Señor Flaco to that list.

Here's my list, just to name a few:

Andrew Latimer
Jimmy Page
Steve Howe
Robert Fripp

They fit in my music favorite style of all times, that is ProgRock

[Badger]

Originally posted by Glory
Andre Segovia

Glory

I second that!

And Ry Cooder too.

[Evolver]

Originally posted by Patricio Elicer
They fit in my music favorite style of all times, that is ProgRock

Not too many have the guts to admit that any more.

I'm glad you mentioned Latimer. I had forgotten him.

[epepke]

Originally posted by Evolver
Frank Zappa
Snakefinger
Todd Rundgren
John Etheridge
Robert Fripp
Mike Keneally

To name few. My list could go on and on.

I like anything Zappa, but I agree with what he said. "My guitar playing is fair."

That having been said, I think that the solo on "The Muffin Man" is one of the finest rock guitar solos I have ever heard. It wasn't complex; mostly pentatonic, but boy did it rock.

"Watermelon in Easter Hay" gets very high marks, too.

[Evolver]

Originally posted by epepke


I like anything Zappa, but I agree with what he said. "My guitar playing is fair."

That having been said, I think that the solo on "The Muffin Man" is one of the finest rock guitar solos I have ever heard. It wasn't complex; mostly pentatonic, but boy did it rock.

"Watermelon in Easter Hay" gets very high marks, too.

I've been spending the last few months listening to each Zappa disk while driving in my car (I'm on the road quite a bit). I think Frank was a bit modest. His soloing was often amazing. The only thing I fault him on are the riffs he chose to solo over. Especially in the later years, they always seemed to be one or two chord riffs the band behind him was playing.

[Nasarius]

Favorite: David Gilmour, Jimmy Page
Best: Jimi Hendrix

[Evolver]

Jimi was incredible. He invented a lot of what subsequent guitarists have been doing since. I kinda thought it would go without saying that he would be at the top.

[Monketey Ghost]

Originally posted by Evolver


I've been spending the last few months listening to each Zappa disk while driving in my car (I'm on the road quite a bit). I think Frank was a bit modest. His soloing was often amazing. The only thing I fault him on are the riffs he chose to solo over. Especially in the later years, they always seemed to be one or two chord riffs the band behind him was playing.

Yah. In concert, he'd set up the band for the solo sections by giving hand signals... "twirling his dreadlocks" was the signal to play a reggae riff.

I've heard various criticisms of his playing, some of them valid (I suppose ;) ) but am always amazed by his guitar work.
Personally I put him in a top ten, easily.

[epepke]

Originally posted by Evolver


I've been spending the last few months listening to each Zappa disk while driving in my car (I'm on the road quite a bit). I think Frank was a bit modest. His soloing was often amazing. The only thing I fault him on are the riffs he chose to solo over. Especially in the later years, they always seemed to be one or two chord riffs the band behind him was playing.

Zappa was willing to take chances and do actual improvisation. This, when it worked, was brilliant.

But he hit wrong notes. Like Thelonius Monk, he often as not made the wrong notes work for him. As he said, there are a lot of people who can play anything and not get any wrong notes, but he wasn't one of them.

For overall brilliance, I think that he is unmatched by any since Mozart, and possibly not matched by Mozart. I do not say this lightly. "The Black Page" is to anything Bach ever wrote as Georg Cantor is to Aristotle. But his brilliance was in his composing, which bled over into his guitar playing, not the guitar playing per se.

[Mark]

Originally posted by epepke


For overall brilliance, I think that he is unmatched by any since Mozart, and possibly not matched by Mozart. I do not say this lightly. "The Black Page" is to anything Bach ever wrote as Georg Cantor is to Aristotle. But his brilliance was in his composing, which bled over into his guitar playing, not the guitar playing per se.

As a composer I agree. As a guitarist, I think he was (sorry) pretty bad; technically proficient, but mostly tasteless. Again, though, as a composer I think Zappa was unmatched for innovation and sheer brilliance.

My list (as of today; it'll change tomorrow):

Richard Thompson
Freddie King
John Williams
Andre Segovia
Leo Kottke
Rory Gallagher
B.B. King
Chuck Berry
Jerry Garcia
Jerry Donahue

[DVFinn]

Robert Johnson

[Ralph]

Roy Buchanon.....his version of Hey Joe blows Jimmi's away.

Rory Gallagher.....another good one who died young.

Jeff Beck.......

I'll get slammed for this but---Neil Young----not a great electric lead player.......but who else can make a one note solo sound so good.................

[epepke]

Originally posted by Mark
As a composer I agree. As a guitarist, I think he was (sorry) pretty bad; technically proficient, but mostly tasteless. Again, though, as a composer I think Zappa was unmatched for innovation and sheer brilliance.

No need to apologize; I agree. Except that I think he really hit the sweet spot every once in a while. "The Muffin Man," "Watermelon in Easter Hay," "Sexual Harassment in the Workplace," and "Inca Roads" solos were great, as was at least one of the versions of "Black Napkins." But most of his actual guitar work was forgettable.

[Ove]

I'll get slammed for this but---Neil Young----not a great electric lead player.......but who else can make a one note solo sound so good.................

Why would anyone get slammed for that? .............Well perhaps someone might do it.;)
The lead guitar player in my first band was constantly practising the (accoustic)guitar work in "The needle and the damage done" and i still think it sounds wonderfull. It is also one of the few songs where the lyrics really gives me goosebumps.

:g1:

[Ralph]

Originally posted by Ove


Why would anyone get slammed for that? .............Well perhaps someone might do it.;)
The lead guitar player in my first band was constantly practising the (accoustic)guitar work in "The needle and the damage done" and i still think it sounds wonderfull. It is also one of the few songs where the lyrics really gives me goosebumps.

:g1:

He gets slammed on some of the guitar boards where there's a lot of kids who are into shredding.........

Yngwie Malmstein.....this kind of thing. I'd rather listen to Neils one note solos than some guy playing a bazillion notes/min. After about 20 seconds......that's about all I want to hear of that.

I like Neil's stuff because it's not technically difficult to play----(I'm not that good)...........but it sounds so right.

Needle & the Damage Done is one of the first songs I learned
on the acoustic........I love the way that sounds.............

[bozothedeathmachine]

Originally posted by metropolis_part_one

Favourite: Petrucci


Agreed. Could have guessed that too, with your name and all.

Edit: Not to mention that Metropolis: Part 1 is one of the greatest songs ever, and Metropolis: Part 2 one of the (if not the)greatest albums.

[Mr. Skinny]

Originally posted by Ralph
(snip)
Needle & the Damage Done is one of the first songs I learned
on the acoustic........I love the way that sounds.............

It was one of the first songs I learned on acoustic too Ralph.

Also, I credit Neil Young songs for forcing me to learn how to play a Dm chord......spawn of the devil, that chord. My fingers just never liked it.

[Ralph]

Originally posted by Mr. Skinny


It was one of the first songs I learned on acoustic too Ralph.

Also, I credit Neil Young songs for forcing me to learn how to play a Dm chord......spawn of the devil, that chord. My fingers just never liked it.

yeah...but master that along with Am,Em, D,F, and G..........and you can play 90% of his songs.......................

He was on Farm Aid last week with Crazy Horse. He did Hey Hey, My My and a cut from his new CD......I think the song title is "Save the Planet"........The whole thing is just D-Bb-F-C----but it just sounds soooo cool.

[Mr. Skinny]

Originally posted by Ralph


yeah...but master that along with Am,Em, D,F, and G..........and you can play 90% of his songs.......................

He was on Farm Aid last week with Crazy Horse. He did Hey Hey, My My and a cut from his new CD......I think the song title is "Save the Planet"........The whole thing is just D-Bb-F-C----but it just sounds soooo cool.
Agree, but don't forget that C chord, but then, come to think of it, if you can't master C, D, and G, I suppose you don't have any business playing guitar. :D

Saw the Farm Aid show last week as well. He's just so much better with Crazy Horse behind him somehow. Not sure what they have that compliments him so well.........

[Mark]

Originally posted by Mr. Skinny


It was one of the first songs I learned on acoustic too Ralph.

Also, I credit Neil Young songs for forcing me to learn how to play a Dm chord......spawn of the devil, that chord. My fingers just never liked it.

And Dm is, of course, "the saddest of all keys" as we Spinal Tap fans know so well!

[Evolver]

Originally posted by Mark


As a composer I agree. As a guitarist, I think he was (sorry) pretty bad; technically proficient, but mostly tasteless. Again, though, as a composer I think Zappa was unmatched for innovation and sheer brilliance.


Please explain how his guitar playing could be described as tasteless.

[Mark]

Originally posted by Evolver


Please explain how his guitar playing could be described as tasteless.

Often the same rapid fire flurry of 16th and 32nd note chromatic scales no matter what the mood or tempo of the song. A guitarist (or any other instrumentalist) should play what the song wants, rather than something to make themself look clever or agile.

Just my opinion.

[Evolver]

Thanks for your response.

I never thought of it that way. I always heard his soloing as an extension of his songwriting, extrapolating some of the same tendencies to rapid passages and odd-feeling time changes he used in his more interesting compositions into one guitar.

Echidna's arf gives me eargasms.

[Mark]

Originally posted by Evolver
Thanks for your response.

I never thought of it that way. I always heard his soloing as an extension of his songwriting, extrapolating some of the same tendencies to rapid passages and odd-feeling time changes he used in his more interesting compositions into one guitar.

Echidna's arf gives me eargasms.

Well, in some cases I agree with you. Some of the songs wanted that sort of thing, some didn't. To me, anyway. It is, of course, all subjective. Definitely a unique and brilliant artist, though.

[billydkid]

Originally posted by arcticpenguin
Does anyone else listen to Leo Kottke?

I was a huge Kotke fan for many years - since the early seventies. I don't really listen to music at all anymore, but I always liked Kotke. It's funny, Kotke played last month at a highschool near me (Ithaca) and I tried to get my sister to go with me. I only wanted to go if she went with me since she was a big Kotke fan. Alas, she is a bigger stick in the mud than even I am. And who is that other guy - Michael Hedges. He died in a car wreck, but man, if you haven't heard him check out some of his albums. Some of the stuff is simply staggering. Beyond believe that one guy is making all that sound with one instrument and no overdubs. by best, BDK

[shecky]

Richard Thompson, by far my fave.

His style is very recognizable, not flashy, yet emotional and always seems to twist my ear in a unexpected direction.

And he writes some of the most remarkable, gut wrenching songs of love, despair, anger, longing, bravado...

I do have little tolerance for most technically great guitarists. It's as if in striving to perfect the skill, they lose all ability to make decent music. They tend to make music for other guitarists to copy.

[LizardPeople]

Peter Green and blues era Fleetwood Mac.

[GroundStrength]

SRV, Clapton, Vince Gill

[wayrad]

Charlie Patton (on 6-string)
Blind Willie McTell (on 12-string)

[metropolis_part_one]

Originally posted by shecky

I do have little tolerance for most technically great guitarists. It's as if in striving to perfect the skill, they lose all ability to make decent music. They tend to make music for other guitarists to copy.

I can appreciate both, although I find that technically great guitarists are usually the only ones that can create something interesting to hold my attention. There are exceptions, but I generally look at it as learning another language in order to write poetry: if you haven't learnt the language properly, you can still come up with some interesting things, and even beautiful poems, but ultimately it is those who have mastered the language who have complete control over what they want to communicate and how they communicate it.

[whitefork]

Originally posted by metropolis_part_one
if you haven't learnt the language properly, you can still come up with some interesting things, and even beautiful poems, but ultimately it is those who have mastered the language who have complete control over what they want to communicate and how they communicate it. Now there's an image - who's the Pillory of the guitar?

[Mark]

Originally posted by Kullervo
Now there's an image - who's the Pillory of the guitar?

Nigel Tufnel.

[shecky]

Originally posted by metropolis_part_one


I can appreciate both, although I find that technically great guitarists are usually the only ones that can create something interesting to hold my attention. There are exceptions, but I generally look at it as learning another language in order to write poetry: if you haven't learnt the language properly, you can still come up with some interesting things, and even beautiful poems, but ultimately it is those who have mastered the language who have complete control over what they want to communicate and how they communicate it.

Well, to extend a metaphor, I'd compare technically great guitarists to poets of rhyme and meter, as opposed to writers of prose and ideas. Both have a clear understanding and control of the language. Perhaps I would come down in favor of the essay over the sonnet.

Of course, the metaphor is rather flawed. It's not as if any great guitarist is actually disfluent. Generally, it translates to the fact that some guitarists can play much faster than others. And too much than really needed.

Personally, I rarely heard good music from the likes of Jason Becker (bless him), Malmsteen, DiMeola, etc. Remarkable playing, indeed. But music that I found generally unlistenable and rather masturbatory. Which is why I tend to favor guitarists with interesting creative ability over speed or pseudo classical licks. Not that the two (technical skill and creativity) are mutually exclusive. Just that, IMO, they don't always make a appearance in the same person.

[Mark]

Originally posted by shecky


Just that, IMO, they don't always make a appearance in the same person.

But when they do...look out!

Richard Thompson
Leo Kottke
Charlie Christian
Robert Cray
Rory Gallagher
Jimi Hendrix

[shecky]

Originally posted by Mark


But when they do...look out!

Richard Thompson
Leo Kottke
Charlie Christian
Robert Cray
Rory Gallagher
Jimi Hendrix

You give fine examples of my point. :)

[Evolver]

I happen to like both the fast "masturbatory" solos, AND tasteful, melodic solos, depending on my mood. Sometimes the situation calls for the adrenaline rush of a thousand notes per second. I also sometimes like the totally disjointed playing of guys like Henry Kaiser and Fred Frith.

In short, I listen to most of the guitarists that have been mentioned here.

(I can't appreciate Neil Young's one-note solo, although Mike Keneally's "Johnny One Note" made me laugh at first listen.)

[Hexxenhammer]

No one has mentioned Junior Brown. One of my favorite guitar players country or otherwise.

[volant]

Originally posted by Hexxenhammer
No one has mentioned Junior Brown. One of my favorite guitar players country or otherwise. I was just about to... Jealous of that guitar he has, claims it came to him in a dream.

Albert Lee
Steve Wariner
Me :D

[Hexxenhammer]

Originally posted by volant
I was just about to... Jealous of that guitar he has, claims it came to him in a dream.
The Guit-steel is pretty cool.

Other faves of mine:

The Reverend Horton Heat
Unknown Hinson
Dick Dale

(can anyone tell I like rockabilly and surf?)

[metropolis_part_one]

Originally posted by shecky


Personally, I rarely heard good music from the likes of Jason Becker (bless him), Malmsteen, DiMeola, etc. Remarkable playing, indeed. But music that I found generally unlistenable and rather masturbatory. Which is why I tend to favor guitarists with interesting creative ability over speed or pseudo classical licks. Not that the two (technical skill and creativity) are mutually exclusive. Just that, IMO, they don't always make a appearance in the same person.

By 'technically great' I don't just mean those who can 'play fast', but those that have a greater knowledge of music theory, scales and the relationship between notes and chords etc. In general these are guitarists who are serious musicians and so naturally they are also able to play at great speed. I myself prefer tasteful technical guitarwork rather than 'mastubatory solos'; Daniel Gildenlow being a good example. If you know the rules, you can break them well, and to good effect, rather than producing the musical equivalent of scribbling on a bit of paper, or painting a soppy watercolour landscape.

[GroundStrength]

I wanted to add Jeff Healy. Blind-Laptop-player. Bada$$

[frisian]

Jimi Hendrix
Robby Krieger
Saul Hudson

[whitefork]

Originally posted by Hexxenhammer
(can anyone tell I like rockabilly and surf?) For too many reasons to mention, Poison Ivy Rorschach of the Cramps. Ooooh baby.

[Always Free]

Gary Moore, none better.

[fishbob]

The Gypsy Kings and The Three Kings -
Albert, Freddy, BB

[ggcarl]

While I appreciate the skill, artistry, and passion of the many fine guitarists whose names have already been dropped here, I don't see many classical or Brazilian guitarists. Some of my favorites, in addtion to the already-mentioned Andres Segovia (yes, there's an "s" at the end of his first name) and John Williams, are listed below.

Christopher Parkening -- Segovia's start pupil -- his playing is simply brilliant

Julian Bream -- plays a pretty mean lute, too -- his playng is so smooth and clean that sometimes I think I'm hearing a piano

Los Romeros -- Pepe, Celedonio, Celin, et al -- the so-called Royal Family of the [Spanish] guitar

Sharon Isbin -- a little rough around the edges, but still PFG -- she plays with a lot of passion

Sergio and Odair Assad -- their transcriptions for guitar duet of the works of Domenico Scarlatti are just as amazing as their playing -- these guys are wizards not only with classical music, but also contemporary Brazilian music

Bade Assad -- sister to the Sergio and Odair, and just as adept -- if only she would not sing she'd be perfect -- she plays mostly contemporary Brazilian music

Amsterdam Guitar Trio -- didn't record much, but what they did is superb

Narciso Yepes -- his heydey was around the same time as Segovia's -- he doesn't get mentioned as much as Andres, but he's every bit as good

Baden Powell -- despite the name, this guy is Brazilian, heart and soul -- his arrangements and playing are, IMO, the epitome of Brazilian guitar music

Toquinho -- yet another Brazilian, but far from an also-ran -- along with Baden Powell, and coupled with the legendary Vinicius de Moraes and Tom Jobim, they helped define Brazilian contemporary music

[Dorian Gray]

Susanna Hoffs of the Bangles
Guitarist from The Dead Milkmen
Guy that does the "United States of Whatever" song.

They rock my world.

I want to know what makes people think someone like BB King is one of the best guitarists who ever lived, yet Johnny Marr with his tearjerking melodic arpeggios goes unnamed? Same thing with Chrissie Hynde?

Why is Neil Young's one note guitar solo 'brilliant', but Andy Summers' one chord guitar solo rarely mentioned?

Why is Clapton still considered a great guitarist, when his music is so crappy now (what has he done in the last 15 years?)

I ask the tough questions.

And no one ever mentions Dave Gilmour or Alex Lifeson.

[roger]

As far as classical guitarists go, Kaori Muraji (http://melos.cau.ac.kr/zboard/view.php?id=data_video&page=4&category=&sn=o&ss=off&sc=off&keyword=&select_arrange=headnum&desc=asc&no=9) (also here (http://melos.cau.ac.kr/zboard/view.php?id=data_video&page=4&category=&sn=o&ss=off&sc=off&keyword=&select_arrange=headnum&desc=asc&no=5)) is a new favorite. I'm sure I'm not influenced by the visuals, no, not at all. :D

[Mark]

Originally posted by Dorian Gray
Susanna Hoffs of the Bangles
Guitarist from The Dead Milkmen
Guy that does the "United States of Whatever" song.

They rock my world.

I want to know what makes people think someone like BB King is one of the best guitarists who ever lived, yet Johnny Marr with his tearjerking melodic arpeggios goes unnamed? Same thing with Chrissie Hynde?

Why is Neil Young's one note guitar solo 'brilliant', but Andy Summers' one chord guitar solo rarely mentioned?

Why is Clapton still considered a great guitarist, when his music is so crappy now (what has he done in the last 15 years?)

I ask the tough questions.

And no one ever mentions Dave Gilmour or Alex Lifeson.

You think Chrissie Hynde is better than B.B. King? Well, as was once said of jazz, "Brother, if you gotta ask, you ain't ever gonna know." B.B. puts more heart and soul and tone into one note than most guitar players (myself included) can do in a whole chart full of notes. He's also a great singer.

I have yet to hear a Neil Young solo I thought was "brilliant." I do think fairly highly of (some of) his acoustic playing though.

Clapton is also a highly expressive guitarist...that you don't like any of his music over the last 15 years says a lot about your personal tastes in music; it says nothing about the overall validity of the music itself.

To my ears, Alex Lifeson plays with great technical brilliance but little real feeling. I like David Gilmour rather a lot, but don't think he is really what I would call brilliant; a good journeyman guitarist, to be sure, and no small feat, but not all that exceptional.

"They are worse than critics; they are amateur critics!"---Richard Thompson

[billydkid]

So noone else here has even heard Michael Hedges? Although he was a little be new agey his best stuff is simply staggering. As intricate and complex as Kottke is, Hedges took it to another level altogether.

[trasa]

I'd say the man behind my all time favourite lick: Conny Bloom of Electric Boys. Lips and Hips, about three minutes in to that tune you'll think your in heaven.

Ah, memories...

[crimresearch]

Hi all, I may as well make my first post on a topic near and dear to me.

Adrian Legg...besides nimble fingers and an exhaustive repertoire of licks and tricks, he has created a new guitar set up that allows him to maximize his talent through previously undoable chordal bends and on the fly tuning changes.

Roy Buchanan...Same thing...talent, taste, chops, and able to drive a guitar into uncharted notes and sounds.

Paul Nunis

[Evolver]

Originally posted by billydkid
So noone else here has even heard Michael Hedges? Although he was a little be new agey his best stuff is simply staggering. As intricate and complex as Kottke is, Hedges took it to another level altogether.

I never gave him much of a chance, being on the Windham Hell label. But then again, French Frith Kaiser & Thompson put out an album for them. And the Zappa Family Trust recommends his stuff. I may have to give him a listen.

[crimresearch]

Windham Hill is nothing if not inconsistent...besides Hedges material, which sounds like it would cause many New Agers to wet their pants ( Mommy!!! That man just made a jazz noise...and now he's all loud and stuff!!), they reissued one of John Renbourn's early albums (Sir Johnalot...) consisting of funky straight ahead jazz, and formal lute compositions...very out of step with the rest of their artists.

Anyway, Hedges is always worth a listen for technique if nothing else...I like him, but not everyone's cup of tea.

Paul Nunis

[uruk]

Guitar: Eddie Van Halen, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Segovia, Chet Atkins, Steve Howe, David Gilmore ( I love his solos).

Bass: Jaco Pastorios, Geddy Lee, Flea, The guy from Primus

[Evolver]

Originally posted by uruk


Bass: Jaco Pastorios, Geddy Lee, Flea, The guy from Primus

Nice choices.
The guy from Primus is Les Claypool.
I would add:
Stu Hamm
Chris Squire (before he got lazy)
Tony Levin (Elephant Talk still blows me away)

If I go look at my music collection I could probably go on all day.

[Mr. Skinny]

Favorite (electric) bass players:

Chris Squire (Yes)
Jack Cassidy (Jefferson Airplane)
Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck and the Flecktones)

[Evolver]

Just listened to some John Etheridge (Soft Machine, Wolf)

[Terry]

Originally posted by Mr. Skinny
Favorite (electric) bass players:

Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck and the Flecktones)

Definitely, Victor is great. I just got "Live at the Quick" on DVD, and it's amazing.

Now for old-timers, how about John Entwistle?

--Terry.

[Lord Muck oGentry]

Morten Alfred Hoirup.
Memo to Danes:thank you.

[Mark]

Bass players, my list:

Dave Pegg
Bootsy Collins
Gerry McAvoy
John Entwhistle
Rick Danko
John Dalton (former Kinks bass player)
Chris Hillman (even though he hasn't touched a bass in years)
Skip Battin

[volant]

How could I forget...

Michael Lee Firkins

[thrombus29]

Originally posted by billydkid
So noone else here has even heard Michael Hedges? Although he was a little be new agey his best stuff is simply staggering. As intricate and complex as Kottke is, Hedges took it to another level altogether.

I got to see him play on Long Island before he died, I kinda thought he was the best cover tune guy ever, and I never really appreaciated the technical skill that he played with untill I saw it live.

Don't have much use for some of the later "Ambient" type stuff that the later albums were filled with, but when he rocked, he rocked.

[Evolver]

Originally posted by Mark
Bass players, my list:

Dave Pegg
Bootsy Collins
Gerry McAvoy
John Entwhistle
Rick Danko
John Dalton (former Kinks bass player)
Chris Hillman (even though he hasn't touched a bass in years)
Skip Battin

Don't forget Stanley Clarke

[Mark]

Originally posted by Evolver


Don't forget Stanley Clarke

Oops!

[Evolver]

Man, I almost forgot Percy Jones.

the first time I heard Brand X I got very depressed because I knew my bass playing could never approach what he was doing.

[hawkins_anderson]

Without a doubt, Eric Clapton.

[kevinsbikes]

Very tough query...
Jazz: Earl Klugh
New Age: Ottmar Liebert
Classic Rock: Jimmy Hendrix
Rock: Eddie Van Halen
Blues: B.B. King
Crap: That bum on Central and Jefferson

[Hamhawk714]

Originally posted by HarryKeogh
faves...stevie ray vaughan, kirk hammett and jimmy page

most technically proficient? steve vai maybe...though i don't particularly like his albums but he knows his stuff inside out.


Kirk Hammett?I can see the other two,especially Page.Don't get me wrong, Metallica is still my favorite band by far despite the St Anger album.I just think Kirk is the weakest link.When they first came out he was probably their best musician,since then he doesn't seem to have gotten any better,in fact in concert alot of times he can be sloppy.How about Yngwie Malmsteen for pure power and speed?

[Mark]

Originally posted by Hamhawk714



Kirk Hammett?I can see the other two,especially Page.Don't get me wrong, Metallica is still my favorite band by far despite the St Anger album.I just think Kirk is the weakest link.When they first came out he was probably their best musician,since then he doesn't seem to have gotten any better,in fact in concert alot of times he can be sloppy.How about Yngwie Malmsteen for pure power and speed?

Jimmy Page? The most overrated guitarist in history, all categories. Blecch.

[Cleopatra]

Paco de Lucia released a new CD. Cozitas Buenas.

I heard the presentation of the CD in a Greek Radio Station a while ago.

Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000174LVQ/ref=sr_aps_music_1_1/202-6875456-5632639) has some samples.

In judeo-spanish cozitas means "little things". I don't know if this is the meaning in true spanish.

[Cleopatra]

This summer I went to a concert of a famous Greek guitarist who conducted an orchestra of 100 guitars in the ancient Odeion of Herodus Atticus under the Acropolis of Athens.

This is the version of " Liber Tango" that they rehearsed. :)

http://rapidshare.de/files/776250/02_Libertango.wma.html

[varwoche]

Jazz: Wes, Charlie Christian
Blues: BB
Rock: Hendrix

Some notables that haven't been mentioned: Bill Frisell, Drew Zing, Robben Ford, Tuck

[Mercutio]

Merc Jr. has started taking guitar lessons (ok, he has been taking them for several months now, and is better than I ever was), so we are beginning to hear lots of different music in the house, as he discovers guitarists of various different styles in many different genres.

It is quite fun to watch.

[rustypouch]

There are so many good ones out there, but one of my favourites, which has yet to be mentioned is Nick Drake.

[Mojo]

I didn't see this thread until it got bumped, and as it's my main instrument...

Jazz: Kenny Burrell, Grant Green, Bill Frisell
Blues: Charley Patton, Elmore James, Otis Rush
Folk: Martin Carthy, Martin Simpson
Rock: Hendrix

But there are so many others...

[crimresearch]

I've listened to all of the above, and love to liten to anyone who plays with great feeling, or has great tone and melodic sense, but as far as 'favorite' goes, I'm still sticking with Roy Buchanan, Adrian Legg, and more recently David Rawlings.

[Bentspoon]

There has been a lot of great guitarists listed but as a semi professional for 35 years

I will take Pat Metheny - he has always amazed me, overwhelmed me and left me in awe

not an easy thing to do


No other like him - a god among guitarists


Bentspoon

[Oleron]

Joe Satriani - ability and passion.

Vinnie Moore - used to be a straightforward fret burner but is now adding extra dimensions to his playing - listen to UFO's latest for an example.

[Morwen]

Originally posted by Cleopatra
Paco de Lucia released a new CD. Cozitas Buenas.
[...]
In judeo-spanish cozitas means "little things". I don't know if this is the meaning in true spanish.
Yup. "Cositas buenas" translates more or less to "little good things". I'll check the CD out. Thanks, Cleopatra!

[Boo]

Kottke
BB
Knopfler
Junior Brown
Bonnie Raitt


Best new kid in town.....Kaki King. I've been listening to her music for about 2 years now and finally saw her live in a small playhouse (Seating capacity 50, in attendance twice that). Her one piece that's starting to get some air play is "Playing with Pink Noise", however I encourage you to listen to a few of the other pieces including "All the landslides birds have seen since the beginning of the world". Her second CD is 'Legs to Make Us Longer'. Try it, I think you'll like it.


Boo

[bigred]

First I'm just impressed that anyone distinguished between "favorite" and "best."

No single one stands out in either case for me, but how about "best alive" (much shorter/easier than "best ever").....off the top of my head....

Pat Metheny
BB King
Steve Morse

...stand out from the rest, although I concede I might be missing someone. There are other greats, many that I'm sure have been mentioned, but I think those 3 stand out above the rest. I would add George Benson and Jeff Beck if I can qualify "on a good day" (as they aren't as consistent).

As for fav's, Beck, Larry Carlton, Eric Johnson and Skunk Baxter (one of the most under-appreciated guitarists ever IMO) come to mind.

[asthmatic camel]

Jeff Beck does it for me. A flawed genius, but a genius all the same.

[varwoche]

Originally posted by asthmatic camel
Jeff Beck does it for me. A flawed genius, but a genius all the same. The Yardbirds were my absolute favorite band when I was a knee-high, and Beck in particular was an inspiration as I was learning to play guitar. A couple of decades have passed since I've had any awareness of him. A few months ago I caught one of the episodes of a blues series that was on PBS. The program was in progress, and there's some unidentified chap tearing it up. Son of a bitch, it was Jeff Beck and he's better than ever.

[asthmatic camel]

Originally posted by varwoche
The Yardbirds were my absolute favorite band when I was a knee-high, and Beck in particular was an inspiration as I was learning to play guitar. A couple of decades have passed since I've had any awareness of him. A few months ago I caught one of the episodes of a blues series that was on PBS. The program was in progress, and there's some unidentified chap tearing it up. Son of a bitch, it was Jeff Beck and he's better than ever.

I have a treasured mpeg of Beck jamming live with Carlos Santana and Steve Lukather; stunning. When he's on form, Beck is brilliant but he's also produced some dross, probably just fulfilling recording contracts. "Wired" & "Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop" are two of my favourite albums.

[bigred]

Funny, I agreed w/you completely until you mentioned "Guitar Shop"....P-U....the .MP3 you have sounds interesting. I've heard a few, including one with Buddy Guy doing Mustang Sally. He isn't amazing on it, but not bad and but it's a fun listen.

IMO he had Wired, Blow by Blow, and There and Back...then "the rest." Some good, some horrific, but no others came close to those 3 (admittedly I haven't heard his latest but wouldn't hold my breath).

[crimresearch]

Was it the 'Live at the Apollo' anniversary, or some other 'Blues Summit'?

Anyway...Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Albert Collins, B.B. King and Jeff...it ended with everyone joining in a mass jam on some blues standard.

Jeff stepped forward when it was his turn to take a break, literally grabbed all the strings and pulled them across the neck in a snarl of feedback..and then one by one let them resolve into a chord, like a pedal steel player ...simply incredible...

After his break you could see the blues heavyweights looking at each other like..'You go next'...'Uhh-uhh man..*you* go next'...

[asthmatic camel]

Crim, all I can see from the clip is a sign showing what appears to be "Suntory Beer Sound Market '86". The gig is outdoors and all the players are having great fun. More than that, I can't say.

[crimresearch]

Ooopps...

Sorry, bad posting on my part.

I didn't mean to ask 'Was your mp3 clip taken from the Apollo Anniversary'?

I was referring to a Jeff Beck TV appearance, that I had seen one night while flipping channels, and asking if anyone could bolster my memory as to whether or not *that* lineup was from the Apollo show, or was it from some other blues show?.

[asthmatic camel]

Originally posted by bigred
Funny, I agreed w/you completely until you mentioned "Guitar Shop"....P-U....the .MP3 you have sounds interesting. I've heard a few, including one with Buddy Guy doing Mustang Sally. He isn't amazing on it, but not bad and but it's a fun listen.

IMO he had Wired, Blow by Blow, and There and Back...then "the rest." Some good, some horrific, but no others came close to those 3 (admittedly I haven't heard his latest but wouldn't hold my breath).

It's all a matter of taste, but I've always thought Beck to be way ahead of his peers (Clapton, Page etc.) when it comes to exploring limits and moving on. Sure, he's screwed up a few times, but I enjoyed Guitar Shop tremendously.

Each to his own. :)

[thrombus29]

I saw Jeff Beck and Stevie Ray Vaughn at the Wooster Centrum when I was in college (89 or 90?) it was Beck with the Guitar shop band(Tony Hyams and Terry Bozzio, no bassist) I was worried that he would be off cause he had a real hit-or-miss reputation as a live performer. Playing every night with Stevie Ray must have driven him because he did every song that you would have wanted to hear, and then did a 20 min long encore with Vaughn on "Going Down" Incredible.

That was my second best guitar show ever.

[varwoche]

How about favorite guitar solos? Mike Bloomfield's solo in on the song Another Country (with Electric Flag) completely rocked my world.

[asthmatic camel]

Originally posted by thrombus29
I saw Jeff Beck and Stevie Ray Vaughn at the Wooster Centrum when I was in college (89 or 90?) it was Beck with the Guitar shop band(Tony Hyams and Terry Bozzio, no bassist) I was worried that he would be off cause he had a real hit-or-miss reputation as a live performer. Playing every night with Stevie Ray must have driven him because he did every song that you would have wanted to hear, and then did a 20 min long encore with Vaughn on "Going Down" Incredible.

That was my second best guitar show ever.

Heh, I also have a clip of Beck and Stevie Ray playing Going Down, I'd imagine it's from the same tour. Poor old Stevie was a good player, but he only played one thing, over and over again...

[bigred]

Originally posted by asthmatic camel
Poor old Stevie was a good player, but he only played one thing, over and over again... ?? Weird, doesn't sound like SRV.

I saw him open for REO once. Still the best guitar performance I've ever seen. Also recall seeing him on Austin Citiy Limits or some such w/Clapton and Rbt Cray - he DUSTED both of them. I do not exaggerate.

[crimresearch]

With all due respect, dusting Clapton, or Robert Cray gives NO idea of how good a guitarist SRV really was...

And conversely, getting dusted by Jeff Beck doesn't diminish Stevie's abilities either...

We are talking about very good, super good, and superhuman here.
:D

[asthmatic camel]

Well, 12 bar R&B does get a bit samey after a while, however good the players.

[crimresearch]

I would argue that it is a rare player who can keep a 12 bar blues from becoming same old, same old.

But it can be done.

[RatBoy]

Hi, friends!

How about Duane Allmann and Dickie Betts... or Queen's guitarist, Brian May.

Favorites... Allmann, Betts, Hendrix, Beck, Buchanan, Eddie Van Halen (made quite an impression on a 20-year old when their first album came out in '78), Santana, Page.

Are any of them the BEST? I dunno. Don't much care. I like them; of course, I've heard a zillion others that I've thought were good, too - many of them already mentioned in this thread. Someone I thought was an excellent guitarist, and I'm almost embarrassed to mention him... Roy Clark!

:)

[crimresearch]

I wouldn't care to get into who is the' best' by any means...

I admire players who have a great tone, which means that I'll pick Lowell George over Duane every time.
I like Eddie vanHalen more for his variety of tones than for the tapping thing, which was decades old when he brought it to the pop charts.

Ernie Isley is a great guitarist who almost never gets a mention..so is Sonny Landreth.

And almost nobody in blues would have a gig, if Earl Hooker could take back all the signature blues riffs he created in his short career.

My own personal touchstone is if I listen to someone play, and wonder how in the world they did what they just did.
And as it stands today, there are only a couple of players who inspire that feeling in me...David Rawlings being the latest.

He isn't flashy, but he just shouldn't be able to do what he does with just an old archtop and his fingers.
Adrian Legg is the only guitarist whose playing eluded me to the point that I had to buy their video...and it turned out that his guitar is loaded up with mechanical devices that allow him to play passages unavailable on a regular guitar...but even without the gadgets he is a very creative and tasty player.

Ani DeFranco is also mining territory that I like.

Dan Crary plays with a flatpick, more intricately than many fingerpickers.

And of course, the old favorites such as Roy Buchanan and Jeff Beck and Carlos Santana and Al DiMeola, et al...and too many jazz and classical and ragtime guitarists to mention in one post.

Beyond that, almost everyone I hear lately is playing what FZ called 'wheedledy wheedledy whee'.
I can still enjoy the music , but it doesn't make me want to rewind to try and figure out how to play what I just heard...after this many years playing, such surprises are fewer and farther between than when I started playing, and everything I heard was a challenge.
:)

[bigred]

Interesting. PS I can't believe George's name came up....not because I don't like him, but that will have most people going....."who??" :) Allman was far ahead of him though, as well as the highly overrated Betts. All just IMO of course.

I've never been overly impressed with "gadgetry" for long per se (Van Halen's tapping, Beck's tonal twists etc)...sure it can be interesting and creative and great, but by itself it's for the most part just another tool to play well. And "playing well" is all I really care about in the end - whether it's electric, acoustic, tapping, chordal, finger-pickin, exploratory, straight-forward, etc etc. None of those are any better than the other by themselves...it's what's done with it.

[crimresearch]

"...electric, acoustic, tapping, chordal, finger-pickin, exploratory, straight-forward, etc etc"

Hey, you just described the sound I'm shooting for!
:)

[bigred]

lol. Good luck.

[Mojo]

Originally posted by crimresearch
I would argue that it is a rare player who can keep a 12 bar blues from becoming same old, same old.

But it can be done. Not often by me, regrettably. That's why I like to work with a decent harp blower.

[Jono]

My favourite guitarists are, because of their technical skills, creativity and my projection of their emotional depth in their expressions.

Yngwie J. Malmsteen,
Joe Satriani,
Eddie Van Halen,
Ritchie Blackmore,
Jimmy Page,
Jimi Hendrix,
Randy Rhoads,
Steve Morse,
Zakk Wylde,
Vito Bratta,
Roland Grapow,
Andy LaRoque,
Steve Vai,
Paul Gilbert,
Doug Aldrich,
Jeff Kollman,
Mike Almott,
Tommy Bolin,
Jake E Lee,
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Michael Romeo...

- to name a few

[clarsct]

Gotta go first with Hendrix
Page is really, really good, but he had his sloppy spots.
Robert Johnson
Frank Zappa
Brian May is precise, but not inspired. Same with Knopfler.
Hammet is good, but not great. It was St Anger that ticked you off about Metallica? Load and Reload were nothing to brag about.
What about Brian 'Jesus Freak' Welch of Korn?
I'm not sure he's one of the greats, but it's tough to see someone who was doing good turn around and kick his friends in the teeth...sorry..personal rant.

[crimresearch]

Did you mean Eric Johnson?

Because if you think old RJ was a great guitarist, you've got a lot of listening to catch up on. He was talented, but in no wise was he hot stuff compared to some of the guys in the big city.

Read 'Escaping the Delta' by ELijah Wald for a perspective on how RJ ranked among his peers.

[asthmatic camel]

Well, the thread is titled "Favourite guitarist" not "Most talented guitarist"

I can't say I care for Hendrix at all, however fast his fingers were. Similarly, I think Jimmy Page is overrated. An outsider from the world of rock whose work I've always enjoyed is Huw Lloyd-Langton, sometime Hawkwind lead guitarist. "Levitation" is a fine album if you can stomach the band's space-rock style.

[crimresearch]

Hawkwind?

Dayuum...you *are* old.

And you are right about the thread being 'Favorite'...
but my point was that Robert Johnson came by his popular status as a blues legend, or favorite, through non-musical means.

It would be like John Edward contacting you 100 years after you died, and telling you that Tiny Tim was now considered the King of Rock'n'Roll...
:(

[Mojo]

Originally posted by crimresearch
but my point was that Robert Johnson came by his popular status as a blues legend, or favorite, through non-musical means.

It would be like John Edward contacting you 100 years after you died, and telling you that Tiny Tim was now considered the King of Rock'n'Roll...OK, the "legend of Robert Johnson" was probably highly important to CBS's marketing of the King of the Delta Blues Singers album in the 1960s, but this doesn't explain his influence on Chicago blues (and in particular the "Southside" style) in the late 40s and early to mid 50s.

As an example, look at the gentleman I've chosen to use as an avatar for the time being. I'm sure I remember reading somewhere (I can't remember exactly where, and Google has been no help on this occasion) that he said something like that his music had three main components: "there's a little bit of Son House, a little bit of Robert Johnson and a little bit of Muddy Waters." For now I suppose we'll have to do with this (from the biography section of www.muddywaters.com):You see, I was digging Son House and Robert Johnson.You just have to listen to Muddy's early recordings on Aristocrat/Chess to see how much of an influence on him Johnson was, both in terms of style and material. When you consider how important Muddy was in terms of the development of post-war Chicago blues, and the other musicians active at the time who were also strongly influenced by Johnson (Robert Lockwood, Johnny Shines, Jimmy Rogers, Eddie Taylor, Moody Jones, to name but a few) you have to admit that Johnson was an important figure in the development of the blues even before the "legend" began to develop. Just compare the music of the people I've just mentioned to the music of, for example, Memphis Minnie or Big Joe Williams, both active in Chicago around the war years (and both absolutely wonderful, by the way) but neither of them significantly influenced by Johnson.

The really important thing Johnson did, in view of the later development of the blues, was to combine the left-hand style of pianists (and in particular Leroy Carr) with guitar styles.

Charley Patton was the boss, of course. Have you got the Revenant box?

[Mojo]

Originally posted by crimresearch
but my point was that Robert Johnson came by his popular status as a blues legend, or favorite, through non-musical means.

It would be like John Edward contacting you 100 years after you died, and telling you that Tiny Tim was now considered the King of Rock'n'Roll...OK, the "legend of Robert Johnson" was probably highly important to CBS's marketing of the King of the Delta Blues Singers album in the 1960s, but this doesn't explain his influence on Chicago blues (and in particular the "Southside" style) in the late 40s and early to mid 50s.

As an example, look a tthe gentleman I'

[crimresearch]

I'm not saying that RJ was a complete unknown, or that he was lacking in talent.

More that he died too young and left behind such a small body of derivative (in the best possible sense of the word) music which while advanced, was not revolutionary, or created in a vacuum.

And the 'deal with the Devil' story was no more original with him than much of his music.

Had he lived, he might have matured into a real legend, but we will never know.

And speaking of Charley Patton, here is a blurb from the Revenant website:

"Historical revisionism has writ large the name of Robert Johnson in blues annals while according Charley Patton a comparative footnote. One of the founders of Mississippi Delta blues, Patton (1891-1934) was already the long-reigning kingpin of Delta bluesmen when Johnson was still in short pants. Take a listen and hear why many consider Patton the best there ever was."

Sadly, I haven't the resources to add their set to my collection.

But I do have everything Earl Hooker ever recorded.
:D

[Dinsdale Piranha]

Just thought I'd contribute my .02 to this dormant thread.

Favorite axe slingers:
Steve Morse
Joe Satriani
Steve Vai
Tony MacAlpine
Frank Gambale
Vinnie Moore

Also add John Petrucci to the list. His new CD is the best thing I've heard in years.

One guy I'm going to miss is Shawn Lane. He could do things I've never heard anyone else approach.

Overrated? Kurt Cobain. He made it *cool* to play out of tune, out of key and acceptable to have zero chops whatsoever. He almost singlehandedly pushed an entire decade of guitar playing back into the garage.

Underrated: Tim Reynolds. Known for playing in the Dave Matthews Band. Tim used to front his own rock/fusion band TR3.
Incredible chops. He did some mind-blowing Hendrix covers and many of his own compositions.

Bass players:
Stu Hamm
Dave LaRue
Victor Wooten
Gary Grainger

That should cover it for now.

Dinsdale

[bigred]

Originally posted by Dinsdale Piranha


Overrated? Kurt Cobain. He made it *cool* to play out of tune, out of key and acceptable to have zero chops whatsoever. He almost singlehandedly pushed an entire decade of guitar playing back into the garage.
Wow, somebody else gets it. Never got the big to-do about Nirvana.

[Dinsdale Piranha]

Originally posted by bigred
Wow, somebody else gets it. Never got the big to-do about Nirvana.

I guess after the excesses of the pseudo-metal hair bands of the eighties, some people wanted to get back to a simpler, "stripped down" type of music. And they stripped it down, all right. Like an abandoned car in the South Bronx.

[crimresearch]

:D

[John de Combe]

I doubt that many in the USA will know who many of these are, but here are my top 6 in no particular order...

John Lees (Barclay James Harvest)
Sounds like he's revving a chainsaw rather than an axe. Good with the old wah-wah pedal too. Instantly recognisable.

Steve Broomhead (Maestoso / Mandalaband)
Everything he plays is spot on. Try out "One Drop In A Dry World" or the original "Maestoso" album.

Mike Oldfield
Amarok is a particular highlight.

Richard Thompson
Brilliant songwriter too, of course.

Ollie Halsall (Kevin Ayers, The Rutles)
Kevin Ayers is someone you should all be checking out anyway - he's written so many "skeptical" songs. Circular Letter, Guru Banana, Observations, Song for Insane Times...

George Harrison
Knows how to cook up something that fits a song like a glove

I tend to prefer guitarists who can massage the song they are performing on rather than their egos. These guys may not be technically any great shakes, but boy can they add something to a track.

[Mark]

Originally posted by John de Combe
I doubt that many in the USA will know who many of these are, but here are my top 6 in no particular order...

John Lees (Barclay James Harvest)
Sounds like he's revving a chainsaw rather than an axe. Good with the old wah-wah pedal too. Instantly recognisable.

Steve Broomhead (Maestoso / Mandalaband)
Everything he plays is spot on. Try out "One Drop In A Dry World" or the original "Maestoso" album.

Mike Oldfield
Amarok is a particular highlight.

Richard Thompson
Brilliant songwriter too, of course.

Ollie Halsall (Kevin Ayers, The Rutles)
Kevin Ayers is someone you should all be checking out anyway - he's written so many "skeptical" songs. Circular Letter, Guru Banana, Observations, Song for Insane Times...

George Harrison
Knows how to cook up something that fits a song like a glove

I tend to prefer guitarists who can massage the song they are performing on rather than their egos. These guys may not be technically any great shakes, but boy can they add something to a track.

Richard Thompson is not "technically any great shakes?" You may want to rethink that one! He is one of the few players who can play with great emotion and is also a great technician.

[John de Combe]

I said "may not". Not "are not".

Big difference.

[Mark]

Originally posted by John de Combe
I said "may not". Not "are not".

Big difference.

I meant no offence.

[John de Combe]

None taken - I was worried I'd offended you to be honest as you're obviously someone of taste and distinction. It's nice to find another fan of Richard Thompson!

[Mojo]

He even agrees with Pat Metheney (http://www.richardthompson-music.com/audiodownloads.asp) (see 7th item)!

(I haven't dared to listen to "Dear Janet Jackson" yet.)

[Mark]

Originally posted by John de Combe
None taken - I was worried I'd offended you to be honest as you're obviously someone of taste and distinction. It's nice to find another fan of Richard Thompson!

The first time I saw RT live, I was seriously tempted to give up playing myself...he's that good. (Fortunately, I was talked out of it!)

[crimresearch]

Originally posted by Mojo
He even agrees with Pat Metheney (http://www.richardthompson-music.com/audiodownloads.asp) (see 7th item)!

(I haven't dared to listen to "Dear Janet Jackson" yet.)

I agree with Pat Metheny too...

http://www.michaelcarosello.com/kennyg.html

[Jon.]

In no particular order:

Jimi Hendrix
Martin Barre (Jethro Tull)
Steve Rothery (Marillion)
Neil Young (nobody ever did grunge as well)
Jimmy Page
Jeff Healey (before he went jazz)

And one to watch out for: Danny Sveinson. This kid is 12 years old, and is in a band in Vancouver now called "Sonic City." He's got all the chops, and if he ever busts out of the guitar-god posing mould he's in now, he could be great.

[elliotfc]

John Squire!

[RedRatSnake]

It seems like there is still a good amount of Randy Rhoads video that has never been seen, I gave up long ago searching for new stuff cause the pool ran dry, ( So i thought ) Now it seems we have some hope that one day we will again get to see Mr RR in Action.

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=179730

[Reivax]

Technical metal guitarists:

Muhammed Suiçmez from Necrophagist
Tim Miller and Luke Hoskin from Protest the Hero
Paul Waggoner from Between the Buried and Me
Paul Masvidal from Cynic

Rock guitarists:

J Mascis
Mark Knopfler

Acoustic guitarists:

Elliott Smith

Insane shred guitarists:

Rusty Cooley
Michael Angelo Batio
Paul Gilbert
John Petrucci
Steve Vai
Yngwie Malmsteem
Buckethead

Special mention:

Youtube guitarist Eric Calderone.

Could go on forever...

[stanfr]

Me. Of course, as my alter ego 'Alien Guitar Abduction'

But aside from me, my biggest influences off the top of my head were:

Satriani
David 'The Edge' Evans
Danny Gatton
Shawn Lane
Buckethead
Eric Johnson
Tony Macalpine
Ochieng Kabaselleh
Blues Saraceno
SRV...

this just aint gonna work cause i could go on for hours--but if pressed ill put Danny G at the top of the list. And a nod to John Petrucci, since i took lessons from him when he was still dirt poor ;)

[manofthesea]

The man who taught my father 'slack key'. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabby_Pahinui

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=gabby+pahinui&mid=23B09017C20A729FF05223B09017C20A729FF052&view=detail&FORM=VIRE4

[s_pepys]

vernon reid. amazing sounds.

[RedIbis]

I'm glad the thread says "favorite" as opposed to "best" guitar player. When Guitar Player of Rolling Stone puts out these pointless polls they're always biased toward rock/blues electric players. I'll put these guys up there with anyone:

Sabicas
Paco Pena
Django Rheinhardt
Doc Watson
Tony Rice
Leo Kottke

[SumDood]

I'm glad the thread says "favorite" as opposed to "best" guitar player. When Guitar Player of Rolling Stone puts out these pointless polls they're always biased toward rock/blues electric players....

What I hate are the "Top Guitarist of all Time" lists you get that include the likes of Jerry Garcia and Kurt Cobain. No offense to either one or their music, both were fine guitarists, good songwriters and good performers, but they don't deserve to be on a "Guitarist list". If either Garcia or Cobain just played guitar and someone else did their vocals, there's no way they would make that list. If the list is "Top Guitarists" then the criteria for getting on the list should be playing the guitar. Otherwise call it "Top Musical Icons Who Also Happen To Play Guitar".

[calebprime]

None taken - I was worried I'd offended you to be honest as you're obviously someone of taste and distinction. It's nice to find another fan of Richard Thompson!

What I hate are the "Top Guitarist of all Time" lists you get that include the likes of Jerry Garcia and Kurt Cobain. No offense to either one or their music, both were fine guitarists, good songwriters and good performers, but they don't deserve to be on a "Guitarist list". If either Garcia or Cobain just played guitar and someone else did their vocals, there's no way they would make that list. If the list is "Top Guitarists" then the criteria for getting on the list should be playing the guitar. Otherwise call it "Top Musical Icons Who Also Happen To Play Guitar".

That's right. Garcia definitely not one of the top.

But...but. The counter argument: He had some form of absolute pitch, he loved music, he practiced or played out all the time, and some of his solos in the early 70's really have something.

He was also intelligent and shrewd, had an instinct for a good song.

But he was way too limited to be called any kind of great guitarist.

I haven't read back through the thread, but I'd have to make a similar point about Frank Zappa.

Very good composer, wonderful personality -- and mostly a real limited wanker on guitar. Vigorous modal noodling without ever locking in.

Garcia's solos are more linear, and even more musical overall, than Zappa's.

Which is saying something, but it's not a huge claim.

[calebprime]

I'm glad the thread says "favorite" as opposed to "best" guitar player. When Guitar Player of Rolling Stone puts out these pointless polls they're always biased toward rock/blues electric players. I'll put these guys up there with anyone:

Sabicas
Paco Pena
Django Rheinhardt
Doc Watson
Tony Rice
Leo Kottke

I've not heard of Sabicas, Rice, or Pena. If you're feeling generous, by all means post some Tube with these guys. I can learn from you, young man.

[Resume]

I haven't read back through the thread, but I'd have to make a similar point about Frank Zappa.

Very good composer, wonderful personality -- and mostly a real limited wanker on guitar. Vigorous modal noodling without ever locking in.

Garcia's solos are more linear, and even more musical overall, than Zappa's.

Which is saying something, but it's not a huge claim.

Which is why he would enlist the likes of an Adrian Belew or Steve Vai. Or Mike Keneally.

[calebprime]

yep

[RedIbis]

I've not heard of Sabicas, Rice, or Pena. If you're feeling generous, by all means post some Tube with these guys. I can learn from you, young man.

I'm almost jealous of someone who has not heard of these great players. Sabicas was a flamenco master from Pamplona Spain. There are many great clips, this is a fine example:

http://youtube/M6L6fyHHeDQ

[Sideroxylon]

Rowland S. Howard
James Williamson
John Lee Hooker
Angus Young
John McGeoch

[calebprime]

I'm almost jealous of someone who has not heard of these great players. Sabicas was a flamenco master from Pamplona Spain. There are many great clips, this is a fine example:

http://youtube/M6L6fyHHeDQ

server error. probably not me, as I'm on the newest of 2 computers, here.

[Captain_Swoop]

Tony Iommi, Dave Murray (Iron Maiden) Gordon Giltrap, Dave Gilmour, Gary Moore, My mate Mike Walker.

[RedIbis]

server error. probably not me, as I'm on the newest of 2 computers, here.

Sorry about that. I'm definitely not the master of the internets. If someone could remind me the steps to embed a video, I'd happily comply.

ETA: Does this work better:

http://youtu.be/M6L6fyHHeDQ

[Foster Zygote]

A partial list, in no particular order:

Frank Zappa
Django Reinhardt
Andy Summers
Alex Lifeson
Steve Howe
Dick Dale
Hank Marvin
Les Paul
Chet Atkins
David Torn
Vernon Reid
T-Bone Walker
Wes Montgomery
Julian Bream
Scotty Moore
Roy Clark
Tom Verlaine
Jerry Reed
Merle Travis
Jim Heath (The Reverend Horton Heat)
Danny Amis
Eddie Angel
Jeff Beck
George Harrison
Jimi Hendrix
Paco Pena
John McLaughlin
Junior Brown
Elmore James
Albert Collins
Mark Knopfler
David Gilmour
Marc Ribot
Robin Trower
John Lee Hooker
Albert King
Freddy King
B.B. King
Steven Wilson
Leo Kottke
Tommy Emmanuel
Larry LaLonde
Joe Satriani
Steve Vai
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Our very own Jon Durant
Brian May
Pete Townshend
Jimmy Page
Emily Remler
Joe Pass
Tolgahan Çoğulu
Adrian Belew
Robert Fripp
Brian Setzer
John Goodsall
Phil Miller

And this guy: Mike Oria
F9aAaK6KzHE&list=FLYDUaO7TkGyDygmXxVC1g0g&index=8&feature=plpp_video

[Jono]

Paco de Lucia?

[Dani]

Paco de Lucia?

Of course!

I don't have favorite guitarists, but:

Hendrix: hate most of his life performances, but his studio work is amazing. Maybe my favorite rock guitar player.

Mike Bloomfield: mostly pentatonic blues stuff, but boy, the guy had soul. He could play the 9th on a minor chord! :p But yeah, that sounds great most of the time.

Duane Allman: same as Mike Bloomfield.

Derek Trucks: enhanced version of Duane Allman in terms of scales.

Marc Ribot: kind of personal style. I love his work with Tom Waits.

Jim Campilongo: like Ribot, he's got a personal style. Very humorous, kind of dark sometimes.

Roy Buchanan: amazingly talented. Wow!

Sonny Landreth: amazing slide guitar player.

David Lindley: the same.

Ry Cooder: great personality, I love his overall work.

JJ Cale: kind of minimalist, but I absolutely love his sound.

Robben Ford: he can play anything, and still sound bluesy.

Jerry Garcia: love him in his context. Adventurous. You never know where that's gonna end, huh? Love the concept.

Freddie King: robust blues, and groovy.

Wes Montgomery: one of the masters of the electric jazz guitar.

Grant Green: Wes Montgomery on funky grooves.

Kenny Burrell, Bill Frisell, Chet Atkins, Joe Pass, Jimmy Bryant, Doc Watson... all of them amazing too.

And about Zappa. He's probably my favorite musician, and I enjoy many of his solos, but I wouldn't say he excels at that.

[Dani]

I don't have favorite guitarists, but:

Hendrix: hate most of his life performances, but his studio work is amazing. Maybe my favorite rock guitar player.

Just to show my consistency. Hey, what's the problem? I can change my views in a few seconds.

[Brainiac2]

Chet Atkins
Carlos Montoya

[RedRatSnake]

Wolf Hoffman ~ Accept

[Tony99]

Joey Santiago - Pixies
Johnny Marr - Smiths
Jack White
Robin Guthrie - Cocteau Twins
John Squire - Stone Roses
Thurston Moore - Sonic youth
Richard Lloyd - Television
Kevin Shields - My Bloody Valentine
Alvin Lee

[MostlyHarmless]

I can't quite say he's my favorite, but I think Jonny Cash was one of a kind!

[applecorped]

Dorothy "Dot" Wiggin

[RedRatSnake]

I can't quite say he's my favorite, but I think Jonny Cash was one of a kind!

Agreed

Tim :)

[TheShadow]

Favorite: Jerry Garcia
Why ? His mix of both accoustic and electric playing, and his unique and distinctive sound. As mentioned he had his highs and lows, but on the nights he was "on" ? Simply Magical.
One of my favorite accoustic recordings, was a show he played with John Kahn (Bass) at Oregon State Prison in 1982.

Best: Jimi Hendrix. I would suggest that "Best" to me means most naturally talented.
The recording of "Red House" from the 1970 NY Pop Festival is a little over eight minutes of audible ecstasy....

Clapton would be a very close 2nd place to me..

It's such a subjective question though, and there's so many different categories- I basically stuck to "Rock n Roll" and didnt delve into Jazz, or Blues etc etc...

[RedRatSnake]

Was listening to these guys today.

Robin Trower
Gary Moore
Pat Travers
Sonny Landreth
Mark knopfler

It was a good day

Tim :)

[Foolmewunz]

Everyone always leaves Charlie Christian off these lists.

As several has mentioned, there's no such thing as "best" guitarist, but there are all sorts of favorites and Christian is on my favorite list for quite some time. And, in favor of his musicality, I'd have to say he was technically up there with any of the later jazz guitarists who followed him (and were hugely inspired by him), and that Django is given far more credit as a force in music than Charlie, but that ultimately, Charlie influenced far more great guitarists. Tragically, he died far too young, but the recordings available show his brilliance.

[Border Reiver]

W.C. Handy, Muddy Waters, BB King, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, and Lightnin' Hopkins. Just because they are.


I agree with BB and Buddy Guy (Saw both this year), but I've got to disagree with Handy (he was a pianist), and while I count Muddy and Wolf as some of my favourite musicians they aren't great guitarists.

I would nominate

Buddy Guy
Eric Clapton
Robert Johnson
Mark Knophler
Santana
Angus Young

[Sideroxylon]

Rowland S. Howard
James Williamson Ron Asheton
John Lee Hooker
Angus Young
John McGeoch

Much as I like Williamson's work on Raw Power, I somehow put down the wrong Stooge.

[kidtwist]

Dave Rawlings

[Sticky Fingers]

Jerry Garcia. He has been both dissed and praised here.....
But for a "Rock" guitar player he was incredibly unique.

SRV also sticks out to me for the fact that he never seemed to have to search for a note.
It was just one continous flow.

[UKBoy1977]

I think Marty Friedman merits at least one mention for his work in Megadeth and his solo work. A very distinctive sound and technique though I think his best days are behind him.

Also surprised that no-one has mentioned Guthrie Govan. Not well-known, never had a hit but dammit if he can't play everything, ever, perfectly.

[RedRatSnake]

I will give Marty Friedman a thumbs up ~ http://www.sherv.net/cm/emo/happy/thumbs-up.gif

[Captain_Swoop]

Forgot Dickey betts.

and Angus!

[Sticky Fingers]

The Allmans without Dickey is like a ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
..............................................
///////////////////////////////////////
++++++++++++++++++++
?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????

[Captain_Swoop]

Dickey was the main man from the start. Duane was an ace guitarist but he died too soon to tell how he would have worked out as a songwriter and Gregg was just along for the ride. Heck, they even got another Pianist in to cover for him.

[Foolmewunz]

Dickey was the main man from the start. Duane was an ace guitarist but he died too soon to tell how he would have worked out as a songwriter and Gregg was just along for the ride. Heck, they even got another Pianist in to cover for him.

Duane was an "ace" but that was the problem, really. He was concentrating on being one, IMHO. If you listen to his work (and have an ear for guitar) on Derek and the Dominoes, it's really clear which of the two of the leads had the technical chops. Clapton's work is just so much more professional and clean.

In keeping with the "favorite" as opposed to "best" meme, I offer Skunk Baxter. Jimmy Page has been purported to have once said that the solo on Reelin' in the Years is his favorite. Considering all the really great guitarists who went through Steely Dan (including Fogarty's partner, Walter Becker, who's no slouch, himself), it's quite a feat to be the best of the bunch.

[Sticky Fingers]

In keeping with the "favorite" as opposed to "best" meme, I offer Skunk Baxter. Jimmy Page has been purported to have once said that the solo on Reelin' in the Years is his favorite. Considering all the really great guitarists who went through Steely Dan (including Fogarty's partner, Walter Becker, who's no slouch, himself), it's quite a feat to be the best of the bunch.

It's amazing how many studio musicians that Steely Dan used..........

But somehow, someway it always sounds like Steely Dan.
Must be a testament to the genius of those two and who they employed.

[jond]

Duane was an "ace" but that was the problem, really. He was concentrating on being one, IMHO. If you listen to his work (and have an ear for guitar) on Derek and the Dominoes, it's really clear which of the two of the leads had the technical chops. Clapton's work is just so much more professional and clean.

In keeping with the "favorite" as opposed to "best" meme, I offer Skunk Baxter. Jimmy Page has been purported to have once said that the solo on Reelin' in the Years is his favorite. Considering all the really great guitarists who went through Steely Dan (including Fogarty's partner, Walter Becker, who's no slouch, himself), it's quite a feat to be the best of the bunch.

FYI: Reelin In The Years was Elliot Randall. Becker's partner was Fagan. Fogarty was in Creedence. Skunk Baxter played many, many great solos on the first three Steely Dan records, but that wasn't one of them...

[calebprime]

FYI: Reelin In The Years was Elliot Randall. Becker's partner was Fagan. Fogarty was in Creedence. Skunk Baxter played many, many great solos on the first three Steely Dan records, but that wasn't one of them...

Duane was an "ace" but that was the problem, really. He was concentrating on being one, IMHO. If you listen to his work (and have an ear for guitar) on Derek and the Dominoes, it's really clear which of the two of the leads had the technical chops. Clapton's work is just so much more professional and clean.

In keeping with the "favorite" as opposed to "best" meme, I offer Skunk Baxter. Jimmy Page has been purported to have once said that the solo on Reelin' in the Years is his favorite. Considering all the really great guitarists who went through Steely Dan (including Fogarty's partner, Walter Becker, who's no slouch, himself), it's quite a feat to be the best of the bunch.

Was it Larry Carlton who played the solos on Don't Take Me Alive and Kid Charlemagne?

Those are peak Dan, because they've got some of the jazz sophistication, but they still really rock.

Nice fat, creamy distortion and sustain, and nice intervals in the solos -- some big wide leaps. Great expressive bending.

Later, it seemed like the guitar work on Fagen's tracks got jazzoid but too careful -- not really jazz, but not really rockin'.

Becker might have been responsible for keeping some of the good rock element in the Steely Dan sound. Just a hunch of mine. Not sure.

[jond]

Was it Larry Carlton who played the solos on Don't Take Me Alive and Kid Charlemagne?

Those are peak Dan, because they've got some of the jazz sophistication, but they still really rock.

Nice fat, creamy distortion and sustain, and nice intervals in the solos -- some big wide leaps. Great expressive bending.

Later, it seemed like the guitar work on Fagen's tracks got jazzoid but too careful -- not really jazz, but not really rockin'.

Becker might have been responsible for keeping some of the good rock element in the Steely Dan sound. Just a hunch of mine. Not sure.

Indeed it was Carlton on those two songs. Third World Man, too--one of my favorite bits. What lovely tone.

There was something magical about that period of Royal Scam and Aja, where they were rocking, hard, and putting forth jazzy chords too. Most importantly, the songs were written around melodies rather than riffs and grooves.

I had a theory I shared with Wayne Krantz while he was recording Two Against Nature (only to have his tracks replaced by Becker): While the world of digital audio gear makers were trying really hard to make computers seem more human, B & F were trying really hard to make humans sound more like computers. (Especially true on Fagan's solo albums and the latter two Dan records.) Becker was more of a jazzer than Fagan, actually. Fagan fancies himself a blues man, really. At least, that what I got out of the last tour I saw. But, man, Wayne was killing on that 1999 tour!

[jond]

And, while I'm here, I'll throw out a few of my own personal favorites:

Terje Rypdal (especially the Waves/Descendre era)
Steve Tibbetts
David Torn
Little Bobby Fripp

[calebprime]

And, while I'm here, I'll throw out a few of my own personal favorites:

Terje Rypdal (especially the Waves/Descendre era)
Steve Tibbetts
David Torn
Little Bobby Fripp

Funny you should mention Steve Tibbetts.

I was going to upload The Fall of Us All.

If you know of other Tibbetts that's good like this, share.

eta:

See these Dan tunes in Music Rec. thread.

[jond]

Funny you should mention Steve Tibbetts.

I was going to upload The Fall of Us All.

If you know of other Tibbetts that's good like this, share.

Here's a link to the two Dan tracks at issue. The other two (for now) are unrelated. There will be other tracks added later, too.

For short, I'm calling them Dan Don't and Dan Kid.



My two favorite Tibbetts records are: Man About a Horse and Safe Journey. Fall of Us All is very good, easily his most aggressive record.

[Duffy Moon]

Johnny Marr.
John Squire.
Will Sergeant.

[dafydd]

Me.

[NoahFence]

Chris DeGarmo

[DGM]

I saw Jeff Beck and Stevie Ray Vaughn at the Wooster Centrum when I was in college (89 or 90?) it was Beck with the Guitar shop band(Tony Hyams and Terry Bozzio, no bassist) I was worried that he would be off cause he had a real hit-or-miss reputation as a live performer. Playing every night with Stevie Ray must have driven him because he did every song that you would have wanted to hear, and then did a 20 min long encore with Vaughn on "Going Down" Incredible.

That was my second best guitar show ever.
That would be the Worcester Centrum. I was there! funny, I don't remember seeing you, or the date......... or much else..................:boxedin:

I always liked Mick Ronson. I saw him play with David Bowie. Elton John and Mott the Hoople.

On Bass. Gayle Ann Dorsey rules. :)

[RedRatSnake]

In 1989 ~ SRV was at Great Woods on June 25th, he was later at the Worcester Centrum on November 8th, ( The Fire Meets the Fury Tour )

Must have been one hell of a night ~ LOL


Tim :)

[Foolmewunz]

FYI: Reelin In The Years was Elliot Randall. Becker's partner was Fagan. Fogarty was in Creedence. Skunk Baxter played many, many great solos on the first three Steely Dan records, but that wasn't one of them...

I'm just a mess of errors in that post! (I have an excuse - my kid was in the hospital all night/day and I was without sleep). "Fogarty" was a slip of the tongue/keyboard. I know the difference. (I don't particularly like CCR and do particularly like Steely Dan.)

But I'm guilty of ignorance on the Elliot Randall item. I'm sure I've seen a video of Skunk doing that bit, and just assumed he'd done the original. My bad.

Oh, and as to jazz v blues, it started out as Fagan having jazz leanings and Becker blues. They may have both simply changed their interests around for the period you're talking about. I was hanging around with serious jazzoids during that early period and Fagan was considered "one of the boys".

[Sideroxylon]

John Fogerty

Someone has to give him some love. Did some great groovy jamming with CCR.

[Resume]

John Fogerty

Someone has to give him some love. Did some great groovy jamming with CCR.

How about he gave us iconic American swamp-rock riffs and didn't even know it at the time. ?

He rocks, big time. One of my all time faves.

[mewsmuse]

I was never really an Eric Clapton fan until I saw him live (wanted to see Roger Daltrey, who was opening for him!), but after watching him, I was hooked. Other favorites are George Harrison, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Alex Lifeson and Rick Nielsen. All geniuses.

[Captain_Swoop]

Steve Howe springs to mind and I always liked Mike Oldfields guitar sound. There is some ace playing on Tubular Bells (in all it's versions)

[jond]

I'm just a mess of errors in that post! (I have an excuse - my kid was in the hospital all night/day and I was without sleep). "Fogarty" was a slip of the tongue/keyboard. I know the difference. (I don't particularly like CCR and do particularly like Steely Dan.)

But I'm guilty of ignorance on the Elliot Randall item. I'm sure I've seen a video of Skunk doing that bit, and just assumed he'd done the original. My bad.

Oh, and as to jazz v blues, it started out as Fagan having jazz leanings and Becker blues. They may have both simply changed their interests around for the period you're talking about. I was hanging around with serious jazzoids during that early period and Fagan was considered "one of the boys".

Foolemwunz: no worries. But, I seriously hope your kid is OK. That is no fun at all-- far more important than anything Becker and Fagan ever had to say.

Oh, and: I was wrong about the year Wayne Krantz toured with the Dan. Turns out it was 1996. There are some videos on YouTube, well worth checking out. He did what I thought was the right thing: he played them like Wayne, not like the original players. For the rest of the world, Jon Herrington seems to be a better choice because he played the Carlton bits like Carlton, Baxter like Baxter. All really well. But without the unique voice that Wayne brought to the party.

[Sticky Fingers]

That would be the Worcester Centrum. I was there! funny, I don't remember seeing you, or the date......... or much else..................:boxedin:

What? Is this some kind of love fest?
I was at the gig as well. That makes three.
Now if only two others would step forward we might have the semblance of a quorum...

[Foolmewunz]

What? Is this some kind of love fest?
I was at the gig as well. That makes three.
Now if only two others would step forward we might have the semblance of a quorum...

What, there were 9 people at the concert? :eye-poppi

[Monketey Ghost]

Old thread is old! Some posters I miss seeing around.

Still loving Jerry Garcia. And still missing hearing that silvery, shimmering sound coming out of the p.a., washing me in notes. Sure, he played a "hippie sandwich" Doug Irwin guitar, but it sounded great.

One criticism of Jerry's playing I've heard over the years was he didn't know when to stop. I've listened extensively and somewhat thoroughly to his playing (say, analyzing his solos over a five-night-run at a given venue) and this criticism is actually one of his strengths; there are not many other players I've listened to where you could hear his ideas emerging, and if he didn't quite get what he wanted, "Let's play another measure or two so I can put an exclamation point on this solo."

[SumDood]

Wow, shame on me and everyone else for not previously mentioning Prince. Absolutely stellar musician, performer, songwriter and guitarist (as well as being able to play many other instruments). His tone on the solo at the end of 'Lets Go Crazy' still gives me chills. I loved the albums 1999 and Purple Rain growing up, but now that I'm a semi-accomplished guitarist I appreciate him on an entirely new level.

[Monketey Ghost]

Wow, shame on me and everyone else for not previously mentioning Prince. Absolutely stellar musician, performer, songwriter and guitarist (as well as being able to play many other instruments). His tone on the solo at the end of 'Lets Go Crazy' still gives me chills. I loved the albums 1999 and Purple Rain growing up, but now that I'm a semi-accomplished guitarist I appreciate him on an entirely new level.

Under-rated. Every time I've listened to his playing I've been impressed. When I first heard him play it was after I'd seen photos of that ridiculous guitar (the top-horn curly-Q) and didn't expect much.

Saw his Super-Bowl performance a couple years ago and was again impressed and this time I was pleased to see him playing that axe.

[calebprime]

Prince definitely has monster chops of the post-Hendrix variety. Taste? That's debatable. Complicated guy, that Prince fellow.

Probably can't play on changes, but Hendrix barely could, either.

Jimi would have learned, though, had he lived.

[Sticky Fingers]

One criticism of Jerry's playing I've heard over the years was he didn't know when to stop.

In terms of the whole band improv'ing, that wasn't an issue during their peak years.
The more the better. And sometimes it lasted x minutes.
Sometimes x plus 10.

In terms of his individual playing...........

Well Jerry's peak years were from the late 60's till at best the early 80's.
And the great thing about him was that his style "changed".
On a good day I can listen to it and pin it down to a single year.

But yeah. There did come a time when the endless noodling became his style.

Those are what we refer to as the Junk Years, or Junk Dead, or the Redd Foxx junk extravaganza.

[Monketey Ghost]

In terms of the whole band improv'ing, that wasn't an issue during their peak years.
The more the better. And sometimes it lasted x minutes.
Sometimes x plus 10.

In terms of his individual playing...........

Well Jerry's peak years were from the late 60's till at best the early 80's.
And the great thing about him was that his style "changed".
On a good day I can listen to it and pin it down to a single year.

But yeah. There did come a time when the endless noodling became his style.

Those are what we refer to as the Junk Years, or Junk Dead, or the Redd Foxx junk extravaganza.

We differ! I loved his playing during '89-'90. On a good day I can "pin it down" to a few-year period and am often wrong by at least a couple, where it isn't made obvious by who's singing or where there's MIDI involved

and I know the sound of the Wolf instantly, even if you handed me tracks with all else stripped away I could say if it was the Wolf or not. It was cool when he busted that guitar out again in '90.

But yah, the more the better! That was before the advent of the current crop of what has come to be known as "jam bands", a genre almost all of which I detest

[Sticky Fingers]

What, there were 9 people at the concert? :eye-poppi

14k entered. 12k exited. 8k were lost in the BigDig. 2k more during Romney's Great Awakening here.

And 1,991 laid their souls down on the anniversary of the Great Massachusetts Molasses Flood.

That leaves 9. And as yet only three are accounted for.

[Nessie]

Tosin Abasi

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=SZf655y29MQ

[Sticky Fingers]

We differ! I loved his playing during '89-'90. On a good day I can "pin it down" to a few-year period and am often wrong by at least a couple, where it isn't made obvious by who's singing or where there's MIDI involved

and I know the sound of the Wolf instantly, even if you handed me tracks with all else stripped away I could say if it was the Wolf or not. It was cool when he busted that guitar out again in '90.

But yah, the more the better! That was before the advent of the current crop of what has come to be known as "jam bands", a genre almost all of which I detest

All Heads have their opinion of what was the era.
I saw 100 shows from 81-94........
And while I loved it.............

I prefer the earlier stuff.
And some oldtime heads will say they peaked in '68.
(Not saying I am buying that...)

The 89-90 years were my peak years for attending shows.
And it was a blast.
Berkeley. Madison Square.
We won't see those times again.

[calebprime]

Tosin Abasi

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=SZf655y29MQ

Dead-on time.

Flawless picking technique. Doesn't always alternate-pick -- has that speed-picking thing where you go in the same direction when it's more efficient.

Great sound(s). Nice use of muting with palm of right hand.

Completely bombastic tune, no breathing room at all. The majesty of the quintal chord moved down a minor third.

No space for much besides sheer wired-ness, although he's physically relaxed when he plays this stuff.

Nice serious mien. He has beautiful hands. Not moving his left hand any more than he needs to. But spontaneous? Probably not. Rote playing.

Ahh, to be young. And discovering these things.

If you want, post something that shows some range? I'd be curious.

[Jono]

...Gary Moore...

This one is, in a way, a guitarist I've discovered in recent times. I've known about him for ages, heard a few songs here and there. But... a couple of years ago I found some of his older 'rockier' albums in a used-cd store and figured what the heck. Since then, I've assembled most of his stuff and graduallly realised just how talented and kick-arse a guitarist he really was.

As a repeated add, I have to name-drop Doug Aldrich again:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyx03co5Bv8

[Monketey Ghost]

All Heads have their opinion of what was the era.
I saw 100 shows from 81-94........
And while I loved it.............

I prefer the earlier stuff.
And some oldtime heads will say they peaked in '68.
(Not saying I am buying that...)

The 89-90 years were my peak years for attending shows.
And it was a blast.
Berkeley. Madison Square.
We won't see those times again.

No fooling. Those times are gone for good and only live as mp3 snapshots in my external drives.

I've been involved in a reviewing project: every sbd available to me from every year, tagging the best songs from each. The "best performances" list compiled from this is loooooooong.

They peaked in '68, '69, '72, '74, '77, '80, (some love '85, I don't much), '89-'90.

Jerry was an enigma; often good, occasionally great, and astoundingly so.

(as an aside I was amused recently to hear Jerry and Brent (the keyboard player for those who dunno) trading lines in a solo: guitar line, keyboard approximation... and then they play a run up the scale together. On the final notes of the scale where Brent plays the next logical note, Jerry appears to intentionally lose him by playing something unexpected. It was sonically hilarious)

[DGM]

They peaked in '68, '69, '72, '74, '77, '80, (some love '85, I don't much), '89-'90.



I saw them several times between 1977/80. They were always good but, their greatness was the atmosphere they created.

Old joke:

I went to a Grateful Dead concert straight........................... These guys suck.................:p



:boxedin:

[Monketey Ghost]

I saw them several times between 1977/80. They were always good but, their greatness was the atmosphere they created.

Old joke:

I went to a Grateful Dead concert straight........................... These guys suck.................:p



:boxedin:

Like my old fave: What do Deadheads say when the pot wears off? (What is this **** we're listening to?")

[Sticky Fingers]

Either you got the Grateful Dead or you didn't.
And the people who did get it run the gamat from musicians to incredibly straight people.
But it was an acquired taste.

And Garcia was a unique player.
And I remember reading an interview from him years ago talking about the Dead's rhythm guitar player Weir.

And he pretty much said that what made him sound great was that he stood out from the pack.
That electric rocknroll music at it's most basic was highly derivative, and Weir had developed a completely unique style. Granted this was in the 70's when Weir was at his best.

The Grateful Dead sort of stand off to their side when looking back at this era of great music.
And some will hate it and some will follow it to the end.

Me, I love it. Beyond the goodtimes. It is Americana music that no one has played before or since.

[RedIbis]

Prince definitely has monster chops of the post-Hendrix variety. Taste? That's debatable. Complicated guy, that Prince fellow.

Probably can't play on changes, but Hendrix barely could, either.

Jimi would have learned, though, had he lived.

Did you get a chance to listen to that Sabicas or Doc Watson clip?

[calebprime]

Did you get a chance to listen to that Sabicas or Doc Watson clip?

You are right, sir. I've been too scattered.

You've offered me something, and I should go back and listen.

Then Quarky is right. I should be trying to get back to doing my own music.

Will do.

[calebprime]

Sorry about that. I'm definitely not the master of the internets. If someone could remind me the steps to embed a video, I'd happily comply.

ETA: Does this work better:

http://youtu.be/M6L6fyHHeDQ

Sabicas -- utterly superior right-hand flamenco technique makes all kinds of colors and florid figuration possible -- executed as casually as taking a drink.

No-nonsense, even slightly jaded persona.

This is a man who plays his music and wouldn't tolerate hearing any theoretical b.s. about it.

His left-right coordination is sometimes casual to the extent that he has to play some fast lines staccato or detached -- but since he knows in advance how he plays it, he does it like that.

In other words -- the person, the music, the technique -- all one thing, all integrated.

He wouldn't be the type to record an album with hip-hop beats.

Love it. I'd be curious, again, about his range outside of Flamenco-ish stuff.

Not that he needs more range. He's fine where he lives. His music has everything in it he needs.

[RedIbis]

Sabicas -- utterly superior right-hand flamenco technique makes all kinds of colors and florid figuration possible -- executed as casually as taking a drink.

No-nonsense, even slightly jaded persona.

This is a man who plays his music and wouldn't tolerate hearing any theoretical b.s. about it.

His left-right coordination is sometimes casual to the extent that he has to play some fast lines staccato or detached -- but since he knows in advance how he plays it, he does it like that.

In other words -- the person, the music, the technique -- all one thing, all integrated.

He wouldn't be the type to record an album with hip-hop beats.

Love it. I'd be curious, again, about his range outside of Flamenco-ish stuff.

Not that he needs more range. He's fine where he lives. His music has everything in it he needs.

Nicely described. Sabicas is long gone so there are no new innovations for him. He is the seminal flamenco guitarist who influenced every flamenco player after him. He elevated the form in much the same way Segovia originally elevated the guitar beyond its folk origins.

Sabicas was a mercurial type, as you'd expect and when once asked how he was able to play with such physical dexterity, he admitted the guitar was not easy for him and took many years of devoted practice, despite how easy he made it look, and that many cups of strong coffee and good rioja wine helped a great deal.

[RedIbis]

Either you got the Grateful Dead or you didn't.
And the people who did get it run the gamat from musicians to incredibly straight people.
But it was an acquired taste.

And Garcia was a unique player.
And I remember reading an interview from him years ago talking about the Dead's rhythm guitar player Weir.

And he pretty much said that what made him sound great was that he stood out from the pack.
That electric rocknroll music at it's most basic was highly derivative, and Weir had developed a completely unique style. Granted this was in the 70's when Weir was at his best.

The Grateful Dead sort of stand off to their side when looking back at this era of great music.
And some will hate it and some will follow it to the end.

Me, I love it. Beyond the goodtimes. It is Americana music that no one has played before or since.

Count me among the Garcia fans. I'd put his work on Workingman's Dead, Blues for Allah and Reckoning up against nearly any rock guitar. Perfect he wasn't, but he accomplished what a great musician should and that is to connect on some sublime level with his audience. I miss him.

[Monketey Ghost]

Count me among the Garcia fans. I'd put his work on Workingman's Dead, Blues for Allah and Reckoning up against nearly any rock guitar. Perfect he wasn't, but he accomplished what a great musician should and that is to connect on some sublime level with his audience. I miss him.

I miss Garcia so much. *sigh*

Not the most technically brilliant, but he could make me forget I was in a tens-of-thousands crowd full of twirling, unwashed masses, because he wouldn't always play it right. As was said of the band, he wasn't the best at what he did, he was the only one who did what he did.

[bobdroege7]

Great to hear some support for Prince, I think he should play more, but you got to give the people what they want. Got lambasted for mentioning him as a great player on one of the other great guitar player threads on this site.

Personally, my favorite is Alvin Lee, and a great debate might be which hook do you teach a new guitarist first? Early ones for me were Clapton's "Sunshine of Your Love" and Lee's "Love Like a Man"

Not that I even consider myself at all talented.

I also like Elvin Bishop and Rick Miller, especially for their ability to really support the song.

I went through some different moods with Jerry and the Dead, from everybody must hear this, to don't pick up that cause it's addicting, to I'll let everyone else get a chance to see them, and finally to "I just want to hear "Dear Mr Fantasy" one more time"

If there is a God, then the day Jerry died, God realized I would be sad, but I wouldn't know, so he broke my canoe seat so I would be sad until I came out of the boundary waters to hear the news.

[applecorped]

Sabicas -- utterly superior right-hand flamenco technique makes all kinds of colors and florid figuration possible -- executed as casually as taking a drink.

No-nonsense, even slightly jaded persona.

This is a man who plays his music and wouldn't tolerate hearing any theoretical b.s. about it.

His left-right coordination is sometimes casual to the extent that he has to play some fast lines staccato or detached -- but since he knows in advance how he plays it, he does it like that.

In other words -- the person, the music, the technique -- all one thing, all integrated.

He wouldn't be the type to record an album with hip-hop beats.

Love it. I'd be curious, again, about his range outside of Flamenco-ish stuff.

Not that he needs more range. He's fine where he lives. His music has everything in it he needs.

Hack. Over-reaching, tenuous grasp.

[applecorped]

Either you got the Grateful Dead or you didn't.
And the people who did get it run the gamat from musicians to incredibly straight people.
But it was an acquired taste.

And Garcia was a unique player.
And I remember reading an interview from him years ago talking about the Dead's rhythm guitar player Weir.

And he pretty much said that what made him sound great was that he stood out from the pack.
That electric rocknroll music at it's most basic was highly derivative, and Weir had developed a completely unique style. Granted this was in the 70's when Weir was at his best.

The Grateful Dead sort of stand off to their side when looking back at this era of great music.
And some will hate it and some will follow it to the end.

Me, I love it. Beyond the goodtimes. It is Americana music that no one has played before or since.

+1

[applecorped]

89zM9pZzt0U

[RedIbis]

Hack. Over-reaching, tenuous grasp.

To whom are you referring?

If it's Sabicas I can only think you're trying to be funny.

[Captain_Swoop]

Rory Gallagher is worth a listen.

[Ethan Thane Athen]

Hawkwind?

Dayuum...you *are* old.



Er, they're still performing and releasing albums and tend to move with the musical times...

[Reno]

Matthieu Rachmajda

a young french guy who has many youtubes. Goes by the name 'Mattrach'

Worth having a look at.

[Monketey Ghost]

Rory Gallagher is worth a listen.

I have an Irish cousin who tried to turn me on to him many years ago, gave me a hits disc and I listened, underwhelmed.

What should I hear?

[Monketey Ghost]

*snipped youtubery*

Yes he does, yes he does. He most certainly has played some of the most jaw-droppingly awesome note sequences, and with deftly placed emotion.

He's been called the most advanced guitarist in any genre and I cannot deny. Nobody who hears him can deny, I do say!

[Sideroxylon]

I have an Irish cousin who tried to turn me on to him many years ago, gave me a hits disc and I listened, underwhelmed.

What should I hear?

Blues rock awesomely played?

[Monketey Ghost]

Blues rock awesomely played?

kinda knew what the genre was

It was acoustic stuff that left me impressed with better players. Suggest a good song, youtube/what-have-you