Let’s talk guitar players

[BamaSC]

I’ll fill this list more as we go, but as a guitar player, I’ve never been one to say X guitar player is better than Y guitar player. I tend to lump them in groups. There’s the pioneers, virtuosos, exceptional, excellent, and those that don’t fit but deserve mentioning.

For me, the pioneer group is reserved for those that moved the needle and changed the way people think about guitar. They may not be the best technically, but changed the way people approach guitar. For me, it starts with Robert Johnson, and includes Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, and Eddie Van Halen.

For the virtuoso group, I have Glen Campbell, Roy Clark, Jerry Reed, Chet Atkinson, Eric Johnson, Jeff Beck, Alan Holdsworth, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Uli Jon Roth. These are guys that can play anything pretty much better than anyone else regardless of genre.

Exceptional would be Stevie Ray Vaughan, Randy Rhodes, David Gilmour, Mark Knophler, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Alex Lifeson, Buddy Guy, Steve Hackett, Steve Howe, Steve Vai, Steve Stevens, well, this list gets long.

Ones I think don’t quite fit but deserve mentioning is Pete Townshend, Rick Nielsen, Jamie West-Oram, and Angus Young.

This is a starting point and not a complete list. Let me know who I left out, who I have wrong, etc. Let’s have some fun with this.

I know I’m missing a lot here. My hope is y’all can turn me on to someone I haven’t given enough listening to.

 

[92tide]

i'd give you a full banjeaux for this, but ...

lots of really good bluegrass pickers, but i'm particular to doc watson and tony rice. the little i've seen of him, billy strings is absolutely out of this world

molly tuttle pops up in some of my apple music algorithms and she's pretty good

 

[oskie]

Tommy Emmanuel would be at the top of my list.

 

[BamaSC]

i'd give you a full banjeaux for this, but ...

lots of really good bluegrass pickers, but i'm particular to doc watson and tony rice. the little i've seen of him, billy strings is absolutely out of this world

molly tuttle pops up in some of my apple music algorithms and she's pretty good

I always wanted a full banjeaux. I’ll keep trying. And I am actually kinda starting to listen to more bluegrass. I’ve always liked it, but it’s been far in the background. I’ll check them out. Thanks!

 

[It Takes Eleven]

Man, great thread, there's just so many, hard to mention them all. You have Joe Bonamassa, Rory Gallagher, and I love Marty Robbins, and I enjoy the Americana songwriters who can a pick a bit, like Tyler Childers (I love his picking on Lady May).

 

[BennyHoover]

I've also gotten away from rock and into folk and bluegrass in my middle years here. On hollow body it's Jerry Miller right now for me, not the one that recently passed, but the one that plays lead for Eilen Jewell. Check out "Dusty Box Car Wall" on YouTube. If I can expand the field to mandolin players, I really enjoy Sierra Hull who's in the virtuoso group ("Black River") and Sarah Jarosz who's one level down probably as a player but she plays an octave mandolin which has a beautiful sound ("Blue Heron").

 

[92tide]

I've also gotten away from rock and into folk and bluegrass in my middle years here. On hollow body it's Jerry Miller right now for me, not the one that recently passed, but the one that plays lead for Eilen Jewell. Check out "Dusty Box Car Wall" on YouTube. If I can expand the field to mandolin players, I really enjoy Sierra Hull who's in the virtuoso group ("Black River") and Sarah Jarosz who's one level down probably as a player but she plays an octave mandolin which has a beautiful sound ("Blue Heron").

sarah jarosz is awesome. her trio, im with her along with aoife odonnovan and sara watkins is really good too. i almost mentioned sierra hull too

 

[Its On A Slab]

Those are some good guitar players, but if I'm. going to name great guitar players, I'm going with jazz.

Pioneers like Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. Later, on, Wes Montgomery and Pat Metheny. Joe Pass, John Scofield.

I've seen Pat about 4 times already. Both in his more fusion-related Pat Metheny Group, and in trio format, more free form. Always a great night of good music.

 

[bamaga]

Those are some good guitar players, but if I'm. going to name great guitar players, I'm going with jazz.

Pioneers like Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. Later, on, Wes Montgomery and Pat Metheny. Joe Pass, John Scofield.

I've seen Pat about 4 times already. Both in his more fusion-related Pat Metheny Group, and in trio format, more free form. Always a great night of good music.

Great group, I’ll add George Benson. Great guitarists are largely subjective, depending on musical taste, and we haven’t really touched much on Blues Guitarists .
or, no mention of Curtis Lowe who was the finest picker to ever play the blues.

 

[Its On A Slab]

Great group, I’ll add George Benson. Great guitarists are largely subjective, depending on musical taste, and we haven’t really touched much on Blues Guitarists .
or, no mention of Curtis Lowe who was the finest picker to ever play the blues.

Also, Chet Atkins is always mentioned among the greats.

I retired in December. Picking up my guitars again was among the list of things I looked forward to in retirement. I've been so busy with other pursuits that I haven't gotten around to it yet.

I have:
Fender CD-60SCE Dreadnought acoustic-electric
Fender Squier Telecaster electric

as well as my ancient college(purchased 1979) Applause (Ovation knockoff) acoustic.....great tone, but horrible on my fingers due to the difficult fingering. It was made so cheaply that the fretboard isn't adjustable.

I need to knock off the dust. .

 

[Bazza]

 

[Ledsteplin]

You left all the women out. Shame on you! LOL

Orianthi

Orianthi Penny Panagaris, known mononymously as Orianthi, is an Australian guitarist, singer and songwriter who rehearsed in 2009 with Michael Jackson in preparation for his This Is It concert series, and performed with Alice Cooper's touring band.

Born in Australia, Orianthi Penny Panagaris was inspired to learn guitar at a young age after discovering her father's vinyl collection. She went on to become an award-winning world-class virtuoso guitarist.
And she's pretty hawt.

 

[Ledsteplin]

Orianthi May 14, 2026 concert

 

[OakMtn4Bama]

Zappa. Nuff said.

 

[TideEngineer08]

I was hoping someone would mention Tommy Emmanuel.

Phil Keaggy is one I rarely see mentioned.

Roy Clark was amazingly talented and hugely underrated. Go look up his version of "Malaguena."

Prince was a great player as well.

More modern day for me is Mark Tremonti. He can absolutely shred. This was rarely displayed during his Creed days. With Alter Bridge he did do more, but you have to look up his other material to get a realization for just how talented he is. And he's an underrated singer as well.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

I’ll throw in a few guys from Metal that get overlooked.

Marty Friedman - Megadeth
Gary Holt - Exodus
Kirk Hammett - Metallica (1980’s version)
George Lynch - Dokken
Alex Skolnick - Testament

All of them could absolutely blister a fretboard at their respective peaks and most of the time their leads and solos were also in service of the songs and not just mindless shredding.

Friedman is a Genius especially and shifted to Jazz for a while because he got bored with Metal…lol

My favorite player ever is probably still Hendrix.

If extraterrestrials showed up and wanted to know “What is Electric Guitar?”

I would suggest playing Machine Gun Live from the Fillmore East 1970

He’s not out of his mind on acid for once (lol) and puts on an Exhibition of Guitar Mastery and recreates the Soundscapes of War with a single instrument with six strings.

Nobody else who has ever walked this earth could have come up with this except Jimi.

YT - Hendrix Machine Gun Live