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Rolling Stone magazine's Top 100 Guitarists of all time list

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Rolling Stone magazine's Top 100 Guitarists of all time list

Old 08-30-03, 10:40 PM
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No Zak Wylde?
Old 08-31-03, 12:01 AM
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Originally posted by wendersfan
The issue with Stills and Young is of course that, while Stills is technically a much more accomplished player, there is little about his playing that is distinguishable. Young on the other hand, while technically not that great a player, has forged a very distinctive and unique style, which many people including myself find very appealing. The same could be said for Young's singing, also.
I understand your view on this and would like to add that I too
find Young's music very appealing. I wasn't intending my post as being critical of Neil as much as being glad to see Stills get his due. They both are unique and influential players.

I must disagree about Stills not having a distinguishing style. He has a very unique style of playing that I recognize easily. It's a mixture of blues, country, latin and rock & roll that I'm not sure anyone else quite equals.

The reason why Stephen's so often overlooked in my opinion is that he has let booze, drugs,etc. get in the way of his music. While Neil has continued to be creative and adventurous, Stephen has been content to take the easy way out. Ironically, Stephen is at his best these days when Neil comes on board.

The two of them together is total magic. What I's love to see is them getting back in the studio today for some real colaboration.
Old 08-31-03, 12:21 AM
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Originally posted by Hollowgen
where's Slash?
Exactly! And why isn't Kurt higher?
Old 08-31-03, 09:21 AM
  #54  
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Where the **** is Jason Becker??????


Jack White...in the top twenty???WTF
Randy Rhodes in the bottom twenty????


And of course I figured these guys wouldn't make the list:
- Emppu of Nightwish
- Jani of Sonata Arctica

Last edited by candyrocket786; 08-31-03 at 09:27 AM.
Old 08-31-03, 09:19 PM
  #55  
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dimebag darrell, marty friedman and jerry cantrell are easily top 15 or 20. maybe rolling stone is jerking our chain. no dean deleo or slash. i know cobain is a great songwriter but no great guitarist. list is seriouly messed up.
Old 09-01-03, 10:36 AM
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Originally posted by scroll2b
Exactly! And why isn't Kurt higher?
you are kidding ...... right














I hope....





Slash is a decent guitar player, and wrote some good riffs, but by no means should he be considered in a list of the 100 of the best guitar players. He's not THAT good. Niether is half that list. It's a joke, and the people who came up with it, know absolutely nothing about playing the guitar, that for sure.

As for Kurt Cobain, he is not a good enough guitar player to even be in the top 500, let alone top 100. I'm sure if he were alive, he would be the first to agree with me. Kurt even being on this list, ranks right up there with that White Stripes guy being on this list. Niether should be on it, or even considered, and it is insulting to someone like me, who has worked hard studying music and playing guitar for 23 years, to see that people would even consider someone so average for a top 100 list such as that.

Rolling Stone is a joke.
Old 09-01-03, 04:47 PM
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Originally posted by raiders757
Rolling Stone is a joke.

I second that!!!!!!!

Also, I noticed John Petrucci (Dreamtheater) was no where to be found on the list.
Old 09-03-03, 12:25 PM
  #58  
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I refuse to respect any best of/top guitarist list that puts Van Halen at #70, Crap Cobain in the top 20, and does not have the following:

-Paul Gilbert
-Nuno Bettencourt
-Joe Satriani
-Eric Johnson
-Steve Vai
-Slash
-Petrucci
Old 09-03-03, 01:55 PM
  #59  
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For argument's sake, I would agree with Cobain's inclusion not for his technical ability for what his music "did" to the industry when Nirvana broke out.

Maybe in 10 years you can say the same about Jack White, but it's too early for him to be on this list. The White Stripes are hardly revolutionary, but they are popular. Popularity shouldn't be a requirement for the list.

Nirvana and Cobain weren't revolutionary from a strictly mechanical standpoint, but the timing with which they erupted on the scene makes them so, especially when looking back at the music scene of the early 90s, so I don't begrudge him his spot on the list -- and the actual number position he's been assigned is, for the purposes of my point here, irrelevant.
Old 09-03-03, 03:19 PM
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Tom Verlaine is #56?????

Just another reason to crap on Rolling Stone, not that they need me to do it. They crap on their own name every month. Thank god my subscription ran out a few years ago.

My Personal Top Five Guitarists (not that anyone cares, but still)

1. Tom Verlaine
2. Richard LLoyd
3. Andy Gill
4. Bob Casale
5. Joey Ramone
Old 09-03-03, 04:08 PM
  #61  
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Originally posted by F For Fake
Tom Verlaine is #56?????

Just another reason to crap on Rolling Stone, not that they need me to do it. They crap on their own name every month. Thank god my subscription ran out a few years ago.

My Personal Top Five Guitarists (not that anyone cares, but still)

1. Tom Verlaine
2. Richard LLoyd
3. Andy Gill
4. Bob Casale
5. Joey Ramone
Considering my top five guitarists are:

1. Tom Verlaine
2. Robert Fripp
3. Robert Quine
4. Richard Lloyd
5. Johnny Marr

I'd say that I care quite a bit.

Andy Gill would be in my top 20, along with Johnny Ramone. Joey was a bit of a hack as a guitar player, may he RIP...
Old 09-05-03, 04:48 AM
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Eddie Van Halen at #70? Hate his band all you want (lately I have too) but the man can make a guitar bleed. Clearly a latent popularity contest IMO.
Old 09-05-03, 05:03 AM
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Originally posted by TeeSeeJay
For argument's sake, I would agree with Cobain's inclusion not for his technical ability for what his music "did" to the industry when Nirvana broke out.
No offense, but by that argument, shouldn't Sid Vicious be included for whatever he was fumbling at in his stint with the Sex Pistols since the Pistols had such a huge impact on rock? Not to say that Kurt Cobain wasn't a very capable musician but IMO you can't just include someone in a purely instrumental best-of category simply because they or their band ended up producing important music.
Old 09-05-03, 09:51 AM
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Originally posted by JesseCuster
No offense, but by that argument, shouldn't Sid Vicious be included for whatever he was fumbling at in his stint with the Sex Pistols since the Pistols had such a huge impact on rock?
Well, no. Sid played little, if any, on Never Mind the Bollocks. Most of the album was recorded when Glen Matlock was still the Pistols bass player, and I'd be willing to bet that whatever Matlock didn't play, Steve Jones did instead. Kurt Cobain's and Sid Vicious' musical abilities are in no way comparable.
Old 09-05-03, 10:14 AM
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Kurt Cobain was a hack.

That's not to say that he wasn't talented as a songwriter, but he was a hack as a player. It's not just that he only played simple, SIMPLE stuff, but it's because he couldn't even play that simple stuff well.

I'm a better guitar player than Cobain was - and I SUCK as a guitar player!

Eddie Van Halen was an original AND he was technically brilliant.
Randy Rhoads was an original AND he was technically brilliant.

Stevie Ray Vaughan had the best chops of ANY blues player ever (check out Live At The El Mocambo if you have any doubts about that - UNREAL), and he should be in the top 5.

Steve Morse is a fantastic player with a fairly unique style (combining Country with Rock and Jazz guitar styles).

This list just shows what a joke Rolling Stone is.
Old 09-05-03, 11:15 AM
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• Quoth candyrocket786 •<HR SIZE=1>Also, I noticed John Petrucci (Dreamtheater) was no where to be found on the list. <HR SIZE=1>


Dream Theater's not a famous mainstream band, and as such, you can't list him here. I avoided this thread until now, but like rubbernecking on the highway, I ended up looking, and it's clear they meant to name the list 100 Famous Solo Guitarists and Guitarists from Famous Bands. Ironically, I was actually listening to "The Dance of Eternity" when clicking on the thread, so Petrucci was the first omission to come to mind, followed quickly by Satriani and Morse.

The problem with these lists isn't our differing opinions, as we would likely each make up a different Top 100. The problem is that they're not even trying to objectively evaluate the greatest guitarists of all time; they're simply trying to compile some "names" that people will recognize. It is possible to make a list where not everyone is in agreement and yet doesn't completely suck and have such glaring omissions as to invalidate it entirely. I don't have a problem with a well-researched list (hell, I make my own for TV episodes), but if you're not qualified to do so, stay away from the topic. Rolling Stone has shown over the years that they're not even qualified to evaluate music in general let alone something as specific as guitarists.

das
Old 09-05-03, 12:51 PM
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Dream Theater = not famous

They are certainly just as big, if not bigger, than Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Television, Minutemen, MC5, or Yes (all of which showed up on that list).

Otherwise, I agree with you on yr comments about Rolling Stone.
Old 09-05-03, 12:58 PM
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Originally posted by fallow
Dream Theater = not famous

They are certainly just as big, if not bigger, than Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Television, Minutemen, MC5, or Yes (all of which showed up on that list).

Otherwise, I agree with you on yr comments about Rolling Stone.
I think Yes is more well known (simply because they've been around longer) but Dream Theater are hardly obscure.
Old 09-05-03, 04:24 PM
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Originally posted by wendersfan
Kurt Cobain's and Sid Vicious' musical abilities are in no way comparable.
My point was that a guitarist shouldn't be included on a list of great guitarists simply because the band he or she was in produced great music. That's what the person I was responding to seemed to be saying in defending Cobain's inclusion. I know Sid was borderline imcompetent and that there's no comparing he and the capable (though not 100 greatest ever capable) Cobain.
Old 09-05-03, 10:42 PM
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Agreed. This list is utter BS. The people polled probably have never played a guitar(much less an instrument) and probably judged by how well a song sells rather than the sound and technique of the guitarist.

Half of these names combined can't match up to either Satriani or Petrucci.

This from a guitarists point of view.
Old 09-07-03, 06:07 PM
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Don't know if anyone will ever read this, but let me chime in on the subject. This may be the single most ASININE CLUELESS list I've ever seen.

First off I've been studying Jazz guitar for the past 8 years & have been playing guitar for almost 20. And I IMO Stevie Ray Vaughan is the SINGLE GREATEST guitarist to ever live. The man has done things to this day that haven't been duplicated. He himself can play anything Hendrix ever did & play it BETTER than Hendrix. Clapton is listed above Vaughan & Clapton himself has said he literally cannot even play the guitar Stevie usues b/c the strings are so thick Clapton can't even bend them.

Second having a musical hack like Cobain on the list is a disgrace to musicians. I'm sorry to all the Gen X's that think the guy is their lord & savoir. But the man was a marketable package. As a guitarist he knows only ONE F'n chord.

Leo Kottke is not even mentioned on the list & the guy is responsible for a new genre of music in "New Age" even though he would never take credit for it. the man revolutionized finger picking & guys like Cobain, & other's in their prime couldn't play that style if they tried.

And to the guy or guys that said Edie Van Halen is a technically sound player, know about as much abotu guitar as the guys who made this list. The guy couldn't be farther from a technichally sound guitarist. In fact the technique he is most famous for is a about as sloppy as you get. The man is so overrated it's insane. He get's credit he doesn't deserve b/c he has a carefree style. The guy is not bad at all. He is just insanely overrated.

Another guy who is not on this list that I saw is Steve Vai who is one of if not THE GREATEST guitarist I've ever heard or seen at adapting any style under the sun. Somone mentioned Joe Satriani is better than anyone on this list. SATRIANI IS VAI's PROTEGE. The stuff Vai does is just mind-blowing.

I can go on & on w/ the things wrong with the list but that is enough.

Last edited by Sessa17; 09-07-03 at 06:12 PM.
Old 09-07-03, 06:24 PM
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Originally posted by Sessa17
Don't know if anyone will ever read this, but let me chime in on the subject. This may be the single most ASININE CLUELESS list I've ever seen.

First off I've been studying Jazz guitar for the past 8 years & have been playing guitar for almost 20. And I IMO Stevie Ray Vaughan is the SINGLE GREATEST guitarist to ever live. The man has done things to this day that haven't been duplicated. He himself can play anything Hendrix ever did & play it BETTER than Hendrix. Clapton is listed above Vaughan & Clapton himself has said he literally cannot even play the guitar Stevie usues b/c the strings are so thick Clapton can't even bend them.

Second having a musical hack like Cobain on the list is a disgrace to musicians. I'm sorry to all the Gen X's that think the guy is their lord & savoir. But the man was a marketable package. As a guitarist he knows only ONE F'n chord.

Leo Kottke is not even mentioned on the list & the guy is responsible for a new genre of music in "New Age" even though he would never take credit for it. the man revolutionized finger picking & guys like Cobain, & other's in their prime couldn't play that style if they tried.

And to the guy or guys that said Edie Van Halen is a technically sound player, know about as much abotu guitar as the guys who made this list. The guy couldn't be farther from a technichally sound guitarist. In fact the technique he is most famous for is a about as sloppy as you get. The man is so overrated it's insane. He get's credit he doesn't deserve b/c he has a carefree style. The guy is not bad at all. He is just insanely overrated.

Another guy who is not on this list that I saw is Steve Vai who is one of if not THE GREATEST guitarist I've ever heard or seen at adapting any style under the sun. Somone mentioned Joe Satriani is better than anyone on this list. SATRIANI IS VAI's PROTEGE. The stuff Vai does is just mind-blowing.

I can go on & on w/ the things wrong with the list but that is enough.

You have completely read my mind and are absolutely correct on everything you posted.

Just thought you should know that.
Old 09-07-03, 08:30 PM
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Originally posted by palebluedot
You have completely read my mind and are absolutely correct on everything you posted.

Just thought you should know that.
Thanks. The list just makes me mad. So do the posts, like people saying who great guitarists are that don't have a clue about what they are talking about. Much like the people that made this list. And I never even mentioned any brilliant jazz legends or Spanish musicians. But that is all the more reason I think Vaughan is the greatest ever. Jazz is so complex & technically sound, 98% of the people on that list could not seemlessly play a jazz song out of the blue. Vaughan does it with ease, & then in the beat of one note can switch to an insansely fast tempo blues song. And not play ONE wrong note. Given that, there is no style the guy coulnd't play. On top of that you could just feel the passion eminate from the man into his music. And he did all this on beat up, garbage guitar with custom made strings & neck that most people couldn't play a note on.
Old 09-07-03, 08:53 PM
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Personally, I'm shocked that RS included Brian May on their list considering that the magazine's hatred of Queen is well known. Roger Taylor wrote them a letter on an airplane's barf bag once.
Old 09-07-03, 08:58 PM
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Sessa17,
I agree with your point but if I read it correctly you state that "Satriani is Vai's protege." I think you have that reversed. Vai is Satriani's protege.
In Joe's early years he taught a few of today's respected guitarists. David Bryson (Counting Crows), Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Larry LaLonde (Primus), Steve Vai and Charley Hunter to name a few.

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