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100 Greatest Rock Guitarists

digitaldreamdoor.com — Actually the list is 200 long, which obviously starts with Jimi and finishes with James Hetfield at the bottom.

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  • jtrost, on 10/12/2007, -9/+5Dave Navarro at 111? Now that's a rip off.

    Anyway this list provides no rationale for why each person was placed where they were. It's just a meaningless list of names without supporting text.
    • fnaqzna, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hell... Angus Young is better than Navarro. It says so right on the site!

      LOL.
  • omglazers, on 10/12/2007, -6/+6It's really an opinion list. It has no real BASIS or scoring system.

    I'm sure you can find someone who will say that James Hetfield (#100, Metallica) is better than Jimi Hendirx. This is not digg-worthy.
  • aywwts4, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Nice to see Jeff Beck not get the shaft at number four, but really... above Stevie Ray Vaughan?
    • motionblur, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Based on impact, influence, creativity, versatility, originality, technical skill and lasting popularity, then yes, Beck should be above SRV.
  • modularsky, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6this list is a load of crap, but Jimi Hendrix does deserve the win. The first few criterion "impact, creativity, originality" are certainly categories that he excelled in. I think he was surpassed on many levels by other guitarists but Jimi's influence is not to be underestimated and anyone claiming that he is not the greatest guitarist of all time certainly doesn't understand his context and full influence.
  • jimmyp, on 10/12/2007, -9/+6C'mon Digg, you're better than lame lists like these.

    Not to mention Billy Corgan isn't on that list.
    • Reducer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7That would imply that Billy Corgan is a great guitarist, when he really isn't. He's a VERY talented singer-songwriter though.
    • uncleLeo, on 10/12/2007, -9/+3@reducer, that's really sad you see it that way. billy corgan is one of the more creative and melodic players out there. if you haven't listened to the albums in full i would highly recommend it
    • jimmyp, on 10/12/2007, -7/+4He is a great song writer and a melodic guitarist, but he can also shred like nobody's buisness.
    • defythereds, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2have you ever seen him play live? he's pretty amazing. i looked at the list of the 100 best drummers and jimmy chamberlain only came in at 39 behind some guy named "Zigaboo Modeliste". jimmy is easily in the top 10 (#1 in rock music IMO). these lists are far too subjective to have any real merit.
    • Superflks, on 10/12/2007, -3/+0Completely agreed. If you were to listen to some of the solos he rips into in "pistachio medley" on the zero single disc, then all of you would be believers. Not to mention his solo on "cherub rock" being one of the best alt rock solos of all time.
    • malfureon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0And don't forget - Corgan is a lefty - though he plays unreversed on a normal guitar.
  • gk128, on 10/12/2007, -5/+7Where is Joey Santiago from the Pixies? How about Omar Rodriguez Lopez from At The Drive-In and Mars Volta?

    Also J.Mascus from Dinosaur Jr. is way better then he is ranked.
    • ohgr, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2"Also J.Mascus from Dinosaur Jr. is way better then he is ranked."

      I agree with you, but apparently this list was very biased towards Classic Rock, Early 70's Guitarists...
    • BadLeroy2000, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Amen to the Santiago/Pixies reference. The Pixies guitar sound is copied all over indie/alternative rock to the present day. Even Cobain admitted to ripping off Santiago and the Pixies when he wrote "Smells Like Teen Spirit". If that's not influence, then I don't know what is.
  • readme, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10Yngwie Malmsteen #15 what bollocks! Technically the Swedish meatball astounding but he couldn't squeak a melody out of his guitar a non-guitar player could enjoy for the life of him.

  • pwhalen, on 10/12/2007, -9/+2No John Mayer? but Tracii Gunns? WTF


    Lame...
    • MsterTanPants, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1wtf, man
      this is a list for rock guitarists,
      not for people who play girly sissy music
  • MagicalTrevor2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Haven't read the article yet, but, if it's "actually... 200 long", why the hell did you call it the 100 greatest?
    • lordignus, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Presumably because that's the name of the article on the site ;)
  • snausages, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Haha! Dave Mustaine is above Hetfield! Nice. :D
    • atomSmasher, on 10/12/2007, -7/+0oops I posted to the wrong person. mark this down.
    • PhoneJack, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2And Kirk Hammett is above Dave. Heheheh
    • resplence, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0That's because Dave can be a good lead guitar, as he used to be in Metallica. I think all of those listed are lead guitars. For being mostly a rhythm guitarrist, James is ranked pretty well.
  • ohgr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Well least this is the first time Kurt Cobain isn't number 1 for something.. he didn't even make the top 200.
    • MaxPowers, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9He'd be #1 for worst guitarist. (Nirvana fan BTW) lol
    • atomSmasher, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4That reminds me of the Rolling Stone Magazine's list for 100 Greatest Guitarists. Their list was sooo loaded with B.S. and popularity contest-like, they lost a bunch of reputation from their subscribers. That had Kurt Cobain at #12.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling_Stone_List_of_the_100_Greatest_Guitarists_of_All_Time
    • DougieD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Heh, Kurt was definitely an amazing musician, but his guitar skills weren't exactly on par. Just good enough to do what needed to get done.
    • ak47839213, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1when it comes to influence, cobain was amazing, but i can play better than him with my eyes closed! literally! but i liked his voice and lyrics
  • DannyD3000, on 10/12/2007, -9/+0Where is Les Claypool of Primus sure he's a base guitarist but James Hetfield of Metallica is on it and he plays bass.
    • readme, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Hetfield plays guitar. The big scary guy who does the money dance plays bass.
    • pwhalen, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Robert Trujillo is the bass player for Metallica



      http://www.metallica.com/page.asp?id=5227
    • Wezlanator, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1James Hetfield play rythem guitar for Metallica. Rob Trujillo plays bass.
    • DannyD3000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0My bad, I was confusing hetfield with their original bass guitarist cliff burton. thanks for setting me straight.
  • horrortaxi, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2This is lamer than lame. It's basically a list of 300 or so people who have picked up a guitar. There's no rhyme, no reason, NO POINT to this list.

    And this got promoted to the front page? What the hell's wrong with Digg?
    • MaxPowers, on 10/12/2007, -12/+5Go choke on a banana you sausage sucking flamingo in a wheelchair with a mango on your head wearing a nice pair of trousers dipped in dark chocolate
    • yomakaze, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3exactly..... lacking structure and objectivity.
    • horrortaxi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Thanks, MaxPowers! Now I can answer my question about what the hell is wrong with Digg--it's the users. Good luck in 5th grade next year.
  • happenchance, on 10/12/2007, -7/+5This list is bull... no way should Dimebag be down at 40 odd. He was one of the top ten guitarists in the world, without a doubt. Long live dime!
    • combatchuck, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3I agree. I have yet to hear anybody that can make their guitar scream like he did.
    • pillfred, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Mod this man up not down. Dimebag was a channel. The man could have ***** and pissed his pants, while falling down ***** on stage in the middle of a solo and not miss a beat.
    • Samek, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I strongly agree with you guys. Dimebag was a terrific player and should be up the latter. I can't believe they chose (right column) Petrucci as the 90s best guitar player over Dimebag. He might be far more skillful and but Dimebag wrote some of the best SOLOS and RIFFS of all time. God Bless Him for that!!
    • ak47839213, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0dimebag should be switched with kirk hammet on the list, but top 10?! ur kidding. dimebag is my personal favorite guitarist ever, but hes not one of the best ive ever heard. if this list was top 100 heavy metal guitarists, hed be in the top 3 easily
  • Computer_Kid, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5I think there are 200 famous guitarist
  • tiredguy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Although the list does have a somewhat eclectic method for ranking, I'm glad to see Gary Moore in there.
  • oOLiquidNightOo, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1huh, randy rhodes was in quiet riot? who knew. i mean, besides all of you black denim wearing metalheads out there. :)
  • SamuelLame, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1No Matt Bellamy? (Muse)

    Lame. No Digg.
    • moted, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4No Matt Bellamy?

      Reason: Their new album was crap.
    • weeFred, on 10/12/2007, -4/+0I'm really surprised not to see Matt, hes been the only real thing happening for good guitaring in the past 5 years.
    • LLXerxes, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1They're too young to count for anything. New bands don't have anything on the classics.

      BTW: Angus Young ahead of Pete Townshed and George Harrison? Uh, I think not.
  • JigsawX, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Glade to see Phil Keaggy make the list IMHO he should be higher than 16 thou :).
    • mzkw, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Nice avatar. Steve Rothery wasn't on this ***** list, what a shame, isn't it?
    • marcosagostos, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1That's exactly what I was thinking.

      There has always been a rumour going round that Hendrix gave credit to Keaggy as a great guitarist. The details of which are sketchy. Certainly anyone who has ever seen him will testify that this is possible.
    • marcosagostos, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Keaggy

      Question at the bottom elaborates a bit more.
  • Snakedal337, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Its like, all classic rockers on here. No offense, but believe it or not, there are some really good modern rocks as well...

    One band I was recently turned onto was drist, whos guitarist did most of the solos in guitar hero. He can defiantly play up there with the best.

    I am glad to see Tools guitarst made it though, and I don't quite think jimi deserves the top... he was no doubt highly influential, and an amazing guitar player, but theres been better.
    • quack3r, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Yup, its nice to see Adam Jones, as well as Morello on the list.
  • DAaaMan64, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6David Gilmour and Mark Knopfler will always be at the top of my list.
  • n3tfury, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5wow, yet another top "100" guitarists list. never seen one of these before o.O

    opinions, opinions, opinions.
  • culbeda, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2John Squire at 53... could have been higher, but I was glad to see he wasn't left off the list. Obviously this is an American Rock & Roll list, as the Stone Roses were a HUGE influence in the UK. (Oasis, et al.)

    Off to go listen to Stone Roses - "Break Right Into Heaven" and "Love Spreads"
    • Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Ah, the late great Stone Roses. Yeah, I forgot about John Squire. "I Am The Resurrection," or "Daybreak", or even "Standing There." Great stuff.
  • Ansible, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Buckethead is ahead of Frank Zappa. This list is such utter *****. Why do I even look at these things?
  • fifpro, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4John Frusciante at number 87?! he deserves to be way higher
  • inkubux, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Although I love incubus , What on earth this guy is on the list :

    150. Mike Einziger - Incubus

    Not that he is bad or something but I wouldn't recall him as one of the best guitarist on earth.

    My 2 cents
  • Lucian0, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1It is opinionated...just like its my opinion that Hetfield should be higher on the list than 200.
  • stretchdog, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I would've put Dick Dale up higher personally...
    • Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2I'd second that. Some of his stuff, like "Nitro," just kills me every time I hear it. And the way he taught himself how to play is pretty amazing. He gets a right-handed guitar, and he's left-handed, so what does he do? Just flips the guitar over and starts playing, and learns that way. Doesn't even bother to restring it. So all of his fingering and chord shapes are completely different than the norm.

      Along those lines, I'd recommend also listening to Jim Thomas of the Mermen, and even Eddie Angel of Los Straitjackets.
  • unlived, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Glad to see the metal guitarists having their due but I cannot believe that Piggy from Voivod is not on here..........
  • slunk, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2-Jonny Greenwood should be in the top 5.
    -J. Mascis should be within the top 25
    -Billy Corgan is an incredible guitarist who should be ranked within the top 25.
    -Kurt Cobain did not suck and should be within the top 50. Verse Chorus Verse has incredible, unique guitar work. Just because he couldn't solo like some of the wankers, namely Yngwie Malmsteen, doesn't mean he wasn't an incredible guitarist.
    -I still think Jimi is properly #1.
    • Radiowar, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4- Hardly.
      - If this was a list of most pretentious indie ***** bands then yeah
      - Nope
      - There was nothing unique or incredible about Kurt Cobain's guitar playing.
      - Sonny Sharrock did it first.
  • Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I was gonna say that Billy Zoom of X should've made the list somewhere -- and then I noticed at the very bottom of list of artists past the 200 mark. That guy is pretty amazing. His X stuff is great -- punk with skill, and rockabilly flashes thrown in -- but beyond that, he also has some classical training, as well as being able to play surf guitar like nobody's business, and I've seen what he can do when he throws all those influences together. He's pretty amazing.
  • afx1, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Why wasn't I included in this list?! *returns to my air guitar"
  • xChrisK, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3A lot of the people you guys are listing as "Should of made the list" really do not meet most of the criteria.

    "Criteria: - Guitarists are ranked for their impact, influence, creativity, versatility,
    originality, technical skill and lasting popularity in the genre of Rock guitar.

    Impact, influence, lasting popularity are all categories that newer, and mostly unknown, guitarists are lacking. I'm not saying that they wont meet these criteria in the future, I am just saying a guitarist that has been around 5 years and has 1-2 Cd's on a indie label has not had the time or chance to prove himself like most of the people on this list. Sure, they have the talent... but raw talent is not what this list is based on. It is only 1 aspect of the evaluation.
    • Molitor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I actually think the list was of guitarists they liked, then they made up some ambiguous criteria to justify it: "Impact, influence, creativity, versatility, originality, technical skill and lasting popularity in the genre of Rock guitar."

      Pete Townshend (The Who) at 54? He may not have had the raw technical skill, but he's first rate in the other categories... And he could do it while airborne. His worse career move was probably not dying after Who's Next. That would have improved his standing in random Internet top 100 lists tremendously.
    • PensivePenguin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I totally agree Chris. To refer to Wavey a couple of lines up, Billy Zoom is a technically great guitarist, but he doesn't fit the other criterion. He didn't make much of an impact, and how many people would even recognize his name? I love X, and specifically Billy Zoom's guitar work, but for the criteria listed, he doesn't even belong on the notable mentions at the bottom of this list.
    • 24Fretter, on 01/09/2008, -0/+0I total agree with you Chris Very well said. I think this list is awesome. Joe Satriani who ended up #7 even quoted this site for his upcoming European Tour witrh Paul Gilbert. You can't really please everybody, but this list was far more better than the Rolling Stones List.
  • strangerzero, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Chuck Berry should be in the top ten.
    • cawpin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Absolutely. They talk about influence and then put him at 20. I know it is high but he should've been in the top 10.
  • Hintzer22, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2if hendrix didn't do what he did on guitar, players like vai, satch, and Zappa would not be around. period! that's why hendrix is at the top! he was the most innovative player of the 60's and you can see that by all those players that took his creative playing, use of feedback, showmanship etc. and reused it in the 60's and 70's. keep in mind just because he is popular doesn't mean he is not a good player. the most popular things will tend to be the best or at least near the top of the list. Yes, Zappa was the *****! love the mothers of invention to death but you got to remember where Zappa got his approach to music.

    I personally think top ten or 100 lists are pointless for anything but especially for guitarists but oh well it happens every year.
  • Rollo_Tomasi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0i like lists like these because of discussions like this...it causes me to re think my ideas about certain gituarsts, re-listen to their music and look for the characteristics that you folks are posting about....so with that said here's a little slice of some live Stevie Vai...enjoy!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1J61TlPxKE&mode=related&search=
  • c4171, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Thurston Moore is verry high on the list (135). Kevin Shields isnt even in the top 200. Both of those are an outrage.

    Way to stick with the classic butt rockers and leave out some of the true innovators. I dont disagree with Jimi though. Still, no digg.

    Im helplessly bored with many of the top 100.
  • TomRemixed, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I'm glad to see Tom Morello (Audioslave, RAtM) and Alex Lieffson (Rush) on there. However besides Rush I was never an 80's rock fan so no digg.
  • ThomasCJohnson, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Sorry, George Harrison at 57? Uh, he's gotta be at least in the top 20. These guys need to go pick up All Things Must Pass, and the last 5 Beatles albums. Waaay more influential than, say, Tom Morello. If they are really measured by impact and influence, this list would be way different, and Hendrix wouldn't be first.
  • craniac, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0I would have expected to see Hank Marvin in there somewhere.

    Trevor Rabin played with Rabbitt back in the 70s before his days with Yes. It there is one error in attributing artists to bands, there are probably others.
    • noGoodNamesLeft, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Hank Marvin... not really *rock* guitar.
  • optimuscrime, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1This should read, "Greatest BUTT ROCK, CLASSIC ROCK, and JAZZ guitarists"
  • liberaltugboat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I love how half of the people who commented said Jimi doesn't deserve to be #1 but NONE of them gave an alternative. Maybe he is in the right spot? I havent heard anyone nominate any one else...
  • harumph, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2les paul is a glaring omission. george harrison at #57 is dumb, robert fripp at #43 is dumb, eddie hazel at #99 is really dumb. listen to maggot brain.
    there are a bunch of über technical lame-os like steve vai (bo-ring) cluttering up that list too. it was obviously compiled by someone with little understanding of anything besides dinosaur rock.
    boo.
  • Vancouver, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Slash should be higher...
  • CanuckMakem, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Brian May only 24th??? I hate these lists.
  • Wezlanator, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Metallica makes both guitarists on the list. That tells ya something. ;)
  • foritself, on 10/12/2007, -3/+0I've seen this list posted before (it is over a year old). Considering one of its criterium is impact, the lack of blues guitarists is rather strange. There's Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley, but I can't see Buddy Guy any where, who must be in with a shout.
  • rick2k, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2"he is nothing special besides the fact that he played an upside down guitar. others like steve vai and zappa had much more creativity, technical skills, and knowledge about their music. they are in there, but they need to be bumped up."

    Hahahah!

    What rubbish!! Do you even know who jimi hendrix is? ever heard him play?
  • Exploited, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1The list had a good number of people who deserved to be on that list, but I think a lot of others could have been replaced by other musicians maybe not as well known (Tommy T. Baron, any one?). I also agree the order is a little off.
  • majorbabu, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2guitar wanking must be some sort of criteria in this because Shawn Lane is #34. uhh, no thanks.
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