Rolling Stone's New School Of Guitar Gods
The latest issue of Rolling Stone updates the rag's "The 100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time" list of 2003 with a new crop of six-string deities. They didn't rank 'em, but they did prominently feature three: John Mayer, Derek Trucks, and John Frusciante. And like good little apostles, all three have divine praise for Jimi:
John Mayer: As for Hendrix, all guitar players feel that way: "I'm not him" ... The songs on Axis are an extension of beautiful guitar playing. You can almost hear Hendrix looking at the guitar as he plays, going, "I wonder what that does?" There is an element of discovery. Are You Experienced? is like a rough draft. Axis sounds like the colors on the cover.Derek Trucks: I almost feel like pedals are a cop-out. I hate to say it's always that way. Guys like Hendrix use them as their voice. But I've never had the urge.
John Frusciante: I'm an Electric Ladyland guy. His music always sounds perfect to me, because he's bending sound, taking care of music in every dimension. Where most people think of it in two dimensions, he's thinking of it in four. I don't think there's a better guitar player in history. He's not something that can be improved on. And there's the spirit that goes into it. He creates a place where you can be high and hang out and lose yourself. He's bringing out aspects of sound we didn't know were there. I feel there are people moving ahead on that front, but they're not so much guitar players -- like Aphex Twin and Squarepusher. They continue the work of Jimi Hendrix started, but not on guitar.
The rest of RS's picks come with cute descriptors. Jack's is the best.
The Avant Romantic: Nels Cline (Wilco)
Blues-Rock Warrior: Warren Haynes (The Allman Brothers Band and Gov't Mule)
Skynyrd Art-Theorists: Jim James & Carl Broemel (My Morning Jacket)
Prog-Metal King: Adam Jones (Tool)
Van Halen Meets Bootsy: Kaki King
Four-Armed Monster: Mike McCready & Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam)
Iron Man Of Hip-Hop Guitar: Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine)
Space Guitar Heroes: Chuck Garvey & Al Schnier (moe.)
The Extremist: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (Mars Volta)
Dark Side Of The Moon Explorers: Ed O'Brien & Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead)
Stoner Metal Ruler: Matt Pike (Sleep and High On Fire)
The Crawling King Snake: Jack White (The White Stripes and The Raconteurs)
We'll accept any additions you'd like to make to the new council of Mt. Olympus, as long as it's not Chris Funk. His chops are lacking, and we have video proof.
Posted at 4:51 PM
Tags: Derek Trucks | John Frusciante | John Mayer
Michio Kurihara
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Almost sounds like Trucks is dissing Hendrix. If anybody could get away with it he could, almost.
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The two best guitar players who will never be matched...Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn.
Jimi was the teacher, anyone else is just a student.
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Mick Barr!! Easily one of the best guitarists playing today.
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No love for any of the Drive-By Truckers? Jason Isbell should be on there at least.
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so is or isnt john mayer one of the top 5 guitarists on the planet? can we get an official unbiased ruling please?
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Junkyard Page: Josh Homme
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Junkyard Page: Josh Homme
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Stephen Malkmus???
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Jake Cinninger - Umphrey's McGee. He's one of the most ridiculous guitar players on the jam-band scene.
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Robbie Robertson.
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Jeff Lang - he's more blues than rock n roll, but arguably, the ony true rock guy here is Frusciante (and some would argue he's not even really rock, I'm sure). Having seen both Mayer and Trucks live (though not Mayer since '01), Lang's more reliably transcendental based on guitar chops alone. Plus, the last time I saw him, he broke a string during a solo, then used the broken string to bow-scratch the rest. Pretty fuckin' rock n roll.
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monte montgomery
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yeah, i agree. where's josh homme??
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JACK WHITE FTW
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graham coxon
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wow.. wow.. ok.. this list is horrible... to put Robert Johnson as number 5, and to not have Django Reinhardt on the list at all... wow.
Also.. if the list if "of all time" maybe it should include, I dunno.. a dude named Niccolo Paganini? eeer... Fernando Sor? Segovia? Paco de Lucia? I mean, they really want to claim "of all time???"
Also, Eddie Van Halen at #70 is pretty retarded... and where are the Slayer dudes??? Do these people even listen to music?
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I think there's a disappointing lack of indie and shoegaze on this list. Stephen Malkmus is a good selection, and you could make a case for Birgisson from Sigur Ros.
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What about Dave Knudson from Botch/Minus the Bear? I read somewhere mentioned as the Eddie Van Halen of hardcore/indie-rock
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um this is an interesting list. i'm confused as to how Prince couldn't crack the top 100 guitarists cos that dude has got chops. completely and absurdly underrated on the guitar, although i recall Eric Clapton mentioning that he thinks Prince is one of the top five or ten on his list.
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I must be Nostradamus..
http://2walls.com/Music/ranking_the_impossible.asp
oh yeah, and the Pixie Hicks won too damn many awards last night
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MARTIN TIELLI?
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prince, lindsay buckingham, john frusciante, porl thompson
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j mascis murders, too!
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I'm a huge U2 fan, but Prince is a way better guitarist than the Edge.
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This list also seems to be missing Four critical guitar players
1.Joe Satriani - He taught Steve Vai, Charlie Hunter, Kirk Hammett, and Larry LaLonde to play guitar.
2. Steve Vai -The guy played for Zappa when he was 19
3. Eric Johnson - Watch his concert on Austin City Limits and argue otherwise
4. Danny Gatton - This guy was the guitar players player. His body of work is incredible. His work is on you tube as well. Sadly he killed himself before he really "made" it.
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Any top 100 guitarist list that doesn't include Buckethead at least SOMEWHERE within it, has no credibility.
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Ah, yeah I can't stand his music, but I agree with Dan above about Eric Johnson. Say what you will about Black Flag and the Minutemen, I love 'em, but great guitar players? I think that there are a lot more "great" guitar players that would rise above them. Hell, even Prince isn't on there, and after that Halftime show, I'd toss him up there in the top 30.
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No Prince is outrageous. No Steve Vai is blasphemy.
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Dirty Indie Bluesman: Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys
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stop with the fucking skynyrd/mmj comparisons...it's such a cop-out get a fucking brain and think of creative descriptions
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How did Jack White beat George Harrison? Was this contest based on current popularity, and not skills on the chop? I think I'm gonna send Rolling Stones this t-shirt: http://teesmybody.com/funny-t-shirt/congratulations-idiot-t-shirt.php
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Joey Santiago of the pixies? Nick Drake?
Are there any women on the list?
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kaki king (first female ever on the list)
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Whew! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought that the glaring omission of Prince was more than just an oversight. Thank you responders!
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kubler.
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Leo Kottke.
Neil Young does more with his guitar with half the notes than most do with double.
Trey is one of the few pedal guys who is inseperable from them, not just a guy with chops and with pedals.
I'd say big bill broonzy but you'd laugh at me because you don't know any better.
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why is Prince left off of all these list? Did they not learn a thing at his RRHF induction ceremony... or the Super Bowl Half-Time Show? Let's see half these folks shred in the rain like he did!!
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Appreciate an informed opinion, but hate the obnoxious self-aggrandizement that often comes with them. Key to the highway for you, dannygutters.
Magic Sam? Earl Hooker? Elmore James?
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"Dirty Indie Bluesman: Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys"
God bless you, young man.
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Rolling Stone is officially a joke in my mind! No wonder I haven't picked up a copy in years. How can they leave Prince off of the list?
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Whoever said Kubler, couldn't be more right.
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matt ward... for sure
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SINCE THERE IS NO MENTION OF JOHNNY MARR ON THIS LIST, THIS LIST IS NULL & VOID......
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You absolutely can't leave Prince, Johnny Marr, Porl Thompson or Robert Smith off this list ... also, Steve Vai & Eric Johnson.
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No Prince, no Lindsey Buckingham, no Johnny Marr and no J. Mascis. Banish the list!!! BANISH I SAY!!!!!!!!!!
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Bonnie Raitt, Lindsay Buckingham
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No Matt Sweeney?
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I think that they were trying to establish a difference bewteen giants of 60-90 and 90 to present. That being said, this is a pretty paltry list because the following amazing, creative and talented guitarists failed to make the line up:
*issac brock of modest mouse (listen to their first few EPs and albums, the man cannot be matched)
*doug martsch of built to spill (best performance was w/the tree people in early 90s. cover of bigmout strikes again)
and because they seem to reach back into the 90s. Why not Guy Piccioto and Ian MacKaye of Fugazi. Hellooooo "Repeater" "The Argument."
BERNARD BUTLER OF SUEDE?????????????
This is further proof that the magazine is sliding backwards towards irrelevance and disgrace.
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That list was already pretty stupid back in 2003, when they put Eddie Van Halen at #70. It's pretty much been established for the last 15 years that he's all-time Top 5.
Oh, and Danny Gatton is in there, btw. Ironically, he's higher than EVH, at 64.
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I mean, seriously, do guys ranked WAY too low (Trey, John McLaughlin, Van Halen, etc.) owe Jann money, or something? Or is it more that Ry Cooder and The Edge have incriminating photos of him?
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Frusciante wipes the floor with most of these Blues Hammer bozos.
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matt bellamy.
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You guys just don't GET IT!
Everything on the list was bought by a MAJOR CORPORATION!!!
Perhaps even Stereogum's coverage of the list!!!
Don't get upset over something that was made by a bunch of CEO's. You don't get mad when your McDonald's french fries are cold. You just accept the fact that a major corporation can't possibly do everything right when the bottom line is $$$. Like the Grammys: EVERY ARTIST WAS ON A MAJOR LABEL. EVERY GRAMMY IS BOUGHT.
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Graham Coxon. I was actually flat out surprised he wasn't include on this list.
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Speaking from contemporary artists standpoint I believe these folks deserve mention.
1. Graham Coxon should certainly be in the top 20.
2. Anita Robinson from Viva Voce! That woman owns it.
3. Rick Bain. None of you have probably heard of him but if you had you'd agree.
4. M. Ward is amazing.
5. Gaz Coombes from Supergrass.
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nick zinner
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Has anybody ever heard of Chet Atkins? Not really my cup of tea but he is easily better than 90% of the people on this list.
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allison robertson of the donnas!!!
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if you go back to 92' and listen to Phish , you will see that Trey Anastasio may be the best of all time, and it's not easy to say that, i'm old school, grew up on Zeppelin, Hendrix, SRV, Floyd, the Grateful Dead, Allman Bro's, and seen over 500 concerts, but if you listen to phish from 92-98, you will understand
Also, anyone know a guy named Jimmy Herring, he is unreal, please go see Widespread Panic, he just took them to a whole new place
its great to see Chuck and Al (moe.) make this list because they are so good
Michael Kang can play whatever he wants, if he wants to that is
also, see Umphrey's
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Here's a partial (in both senses of the word) list of neglected greats whose playing I've really enjoyed over the years:
- Johnny Marr of The Smiths
- Bernard Butler of Suede
- John Squire of The Stone Roses
- Graham Coxon of Blur
- J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr
- Andy Gill of Gang of Four
- Keith Levene of Public Image Ltd
- Johnny Thunders of The New York Dolls
- Steve Jones of The Sex Pistols
- Mick Jones of The Clash
- Paul Weller of The Jam
- Noel Gallagher of Oasis
- Curtis Mayfield
- Bobby Womack
- James Honeyman Scott of The Pretenders
- Curt Kirkwood of The Meat Puppets
- Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top
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What. No Chet Atkins, Steve Vai, Malmsteen, Jerry Reed, Brad Paisley, Lindsey Buckingham, Prince, Dimebag, Ace Freeley, Ted Nugent, Billy Gibbons, Dan Tyminski, Vince Gill, Joe Satriani, Brent Mason, Jerry Douglas yes it is still a guitar, if this is an all time list all of these deserve a spot on there and like it or not Chet should be at no.3 or 4 at least. What great guitar player doesn't have the utmost respect for Chet Atkins, come on how could he be left off. And like it or not country is a genre that has produced many great guitarists. Somebody make a list that isn't a joke. Oh yeah what about some of the classical players also. Regular people may have never heard of them but people who love guitar certainly have. Maybe by placing their names on a list younger people may look them up and actually be more inspired by their insane musicianship. Crap like Rolling Atone should not even be read. It is basically becoming a tabloid.
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What. No Chet Atkins, Steve Vai, Malmsteen, Jerry Reed, Brad Paisley, Lindsey Buckingham, Prince, Dimebag, Ace Freeley, Ted Nugent, Billy Gibbons, Dan Tyminski, Vince Gill, Joe Satriani, Brent Mason, Jerry Douglas yes it is still a guitar, if this is an all time list all of these deserve a spot on there and like it or not Chet should be at no.3 or 4 at least. What great guitar player doesn't have the utmost respect for Chet Atkins, come on how could he be left off. And like it or not country is a genre that has produced many great guitarists. Somebody make a list that isn't a joke. Oh yeah what about some of the classical players also. Regular people may have never heard of them but people who love guitar certainly have. Maybe by placing their names on a list younger people may look them up and actually be more inspired by their insane musicianship. Crap like Rolling Atone should not even be read. It is basically becoming a tabloid.
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female poster queen alison robertson (the donnas)
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j mascis??? the guy is indie rock royalty. he's a never-ending solo.
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Whoever wrote this list is a mainstream suck up. John Butler is way more talented than John Mayer, just listen to Ocean. Eddie Hazel didn't make the list either. Ridiculous. Don't know what I expect from Rolling Stone, oversized toilet paper wad.
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"Whoever wrote this list is a mainstream suck up." This statement couldnt be more true. Does John Petrucci ring a bell. Other than Jimmy page, Petrucci is the greatest guitar player alive. This is a ridiculous list.
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No Johnny Marr?
No Jeff Buckley?
Still good to see Ron Asheton up high, though can't say I think Kurt Cobain is the 12th greatest guitarist...their's a difference between quality songwriting and actual guitar playing.
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David Gilmour. 1st solo.Comfortably Numb. Nuff said !!!!
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Donald Roeser, some of you may know him as Buck Dharma the lead vocalist and guitarist of Blue Oyster Cult. My god The Live version of Don't Fear the Reaper from the album Then and Now should be proof enough that he deserves to be on there.
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what about freakin zakk wylde?! he's the best metal guitarist alive today. go see him live or get doom troopin' on dvd. and no dimebag, kerry king or jeff hanneman, not to mention stevie vai. a list with david gilmour not in AT LEAST the top 20 has no credibility. the editors from fucking fhm what do you expect?
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What about Mike Einziger of Incubus he doesnt get any love.
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How can this list be valid when Curt Cobain is at 12 and there isn't even a mention of Billy Corgan?? Have these people forgotten Siamese Dreams' solo's wich melted your face off? A better guitar player than Cobain ever was and in my opinion a better song writter as well. Maybe Corgan has to die tragically for us to give him his due, which is retarded.
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Coupla head-scrathing omissions here:
* Bob Mould of Husker Du
* Ian MacKaye/Guy Picciotto of Fugazi
* Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins
* David Pajo of (most notably) Slint and Tortoise
* J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr
* Steven Malkmus/Spiral Stairs of Pavement
* Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins
* Paul Westerberg/Bob Stinson of The Replacements
It seems that they thought putting Greg Ginn in would cover the whole of punk/hardcore, and the bewildering inclusion of Kurt Cobain (at 12!) negates the rest of grunge/'alternative' rock.
Fricke I've always respected ya, but turds like Rob Sheffield can't tell the difference b'twixt shit and shinola.
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Cheers: I agree with the fellow who cites Buck Dharma for inclusion on this list; as well...how about Ian Gilmour from Saga and Alex Lifeson from Rush? They're great players (prolific too), and I am only sorry that they have been overlooked. Peace To All.
Tommy
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Rolling Stone of course sucks anyway, but this list is more proof.
How can people forget the legacy of Buddy Holly's guitar work? Holly was only around for a few years, but everybody knows his sound. It wasn't all vocals, people.
Also not on the list:
Ted Nugent
Martin Barre (jethro tull)
Other major disses are Angus Young, Tony Iommi, & Randy Rhoads way down on the list.
Pete Townshend & EVH not in the top 20
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This list was written by people that never played guitar. Sorry.
The biggest omission? Roy Buchanan. He should have been first on the list. The sounds that man made were totally incredible. His version of "Hey Joe" even blows Jimi away...
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Eddie Hazel
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Matt Bellamy-some of the best riffs being made today
Jake Cinninger-ALL AROUND ONE OF THE MOST TALTENTED GUITARISTS...EVER
Mike Einziger-deserves to at least be on the list, he is fantastic
Josh Homme-see matt bellamy
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JAKE CINNINGER people... has mastered literally every style. not to mention an incredible drummer. go on youtube and check out some of his stuff. ide reccommend mullet over
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WHat about Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Malmsteen, Eric Johnson, Paul Gilbert, and Buckethead? This has to be the worst list ever. Plus Van Halen is no. 80? What the F#@k!!!
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There are so many Great blues guitarists out there, (including those who have passed away)it's too big of a task to actually choose the very best of them all.
SRV, Buddy Guy, Luther Allison, Albert King... these are guys who could play directly from their souls, improvising until the cows come home and make you yearn for more. They have(had)that magic in their fingers that comes straight from their heart, manifesting the feeling in their music that conveyed to the listener as though it is being played just for them. When the listener is totally enveloped by the tone, the mood and the depth of the music and moved by it in a way that is surreal... that's what undoubtedly makes a great guitarist GREAT.
Just listening to SRV's long solos in a room without distractions is testament that he could make you FEEL what he's playing and find yourself somewhere in that mystical world of sound called THE BLUES.
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petrucci, satriani, vai, malmstein, etc...
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What about the Hendrix of acoustic guitar - Michael Hedges??? He was likely the most innovative and influential acoustic guitarist of all time!
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this list, as well as the original rolling stone list, was compiled by a consensus of lion-maned crusty guitar center/sam ash salesmen..
how is johnny marr not on this list? bernard butler? john squire?
lets give some props to guitarists who could craft fine melodies and harmonies and not just a bunch of sweep pickers and blues scale jockeys.
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If you want to hear great guitar playing listen to Mick Barr, Ron Jarzombek, Christopher Arp, Wolfgang Zenk, Daniel Mongrain, Muhammed Suicmez, Erik Rutan, Fredrik Thordendal, Peter Lake, Steinar Gundersen, Al Di Meola.....the list goes on, some you've heard off many more you never will hear...who's the greatest is debatable of course.
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jimi hendrix is the most overrated guitarist of all time. He only had one hit and the only reason people reckon he's so good is because he died.
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This list sucks corporate dick.
#1. Hendrix
= #4 = Petrucci
= #4 = Vai
= #4 - Satriani
Frusciante? are you shitting me?
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"jimi hendrix is the most overrated guitarist of all time. He only had one hit and the only reason people reckon he's so good is because he died."
Id argue with you, but you've already made it clear that you have the musical understanding of a chair. Id love to hear you play Guitar. Maybe your playing is more sterile than Frusciante's...because your lack of appreciation of Hendrix's musical expression hints that it is!