My Top 100 Guitarists: 60-41

60. Angus Young
Angus was neither innovative or original.  What he did was what countless other rock guitarist had been doing for over a decade, but the difference was, he fucking owned it.  A madman on stage, with his trademark school boy uniform (and occasional bare ass), he played like a bat out of hell and ripped some of the tastiest classic rock solos of all time.  Straight out of the Jimmy Page, Ace Frehley school or basic blues based pentatonics, Angus wore his influences on his sleeve and made no apologies.  One of the hardest rocking little men in all of music history, innovation be damned, it’s hard not to love what this guy did.
 

59. Frank Zappa
Zappa’s lead style might have been “step on the wah pedal and try and play some combination of notes no one has ever heard before really fast” but there was a bit of genius to it.  His greatest gift was clearly in his composing, and his constant “stunt guitar” parts reserved for more freakishly gifted players.  Trying to figure out what the hell he was doing on “riffs” like “Zombie Woof” or “Peaches en Regalia” is enough to make your brain explode.  His lead playing can get tedious, and sometimes I thought Zappa might be in on the joke, as evidenced by a song title like “The Torture Never Stops”, but when it comes to one-of-a-kind players, Zappa certainly comes to mind.
 

58. Dave Navarro
When hair metal was on it’s last legs and the new wave of alternative music took it’s place a few people seemed to be under the impression that none of these guys could play.  That this new generation abandoned chops to play noisy grunge.  Dave Navarro proved that not only were there some sick players in this new generation, but some of them might even be better than the countless spandex wearing clowns with hair spray.  Navarro remains my favorite of the many guitarists to pass through the Red Hot Chili Peppers and it’s a damn shame his perfectionism didn’t sit well with the rest of the band because One Hot Minute was an amazing album, and the band never had better lead playing. 
 

57. Mark Knopfler
Another guitarist to emerge in the “new wave” era although no one ever confused Dire Straits with The Sex Pistols.  Knopfler was a finger picking freak with a voice like Dylan.  Although the band would go onto become one of the biggest in the world in the mid-80s I still dare anyone to find a better clean solo than “Sultans of Swing”.  One of the best rock guitarists to never use a pick, the man is an unquestioned legend.

56. Alvin Lee
Back in 1994 there was a director’s cut of Woodstock released.  After waiting for what seemed like months for it to make it to the local Blockbuster, it finally arrived and we sat through four hours of hippy nonsense with occasional musical interludes.  Late in the film appeared a sweaty English man name Alvin Lee from a band called Ten Years After.  I never heard of him or the band, but when he launched into the intro to “I’m Going Home” my jaw hit the floor.  He was at least a decade ahead of his time, and was perhaps the first shredder in blues based rock.  Simply faster than anyone of his generation, I always felt he was a little too overlooked, perhaps because Ten Years After wasn’t exactly the best known band of it’s generation.  Lee however could rip it up better than anyone in the 60s.
 

55. Ron Thal
Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal is another in my “who the hell is this guy?” list of recent discoveries.  He replaced Buckethead in the new incarnation of Guns ‘n’ Roses, but his work with his own band is some of the most ridiculous instrumental music ever.  His style is uniquely his, playing with a thimble on his index finger that allows him to do insanely accurate tapping far beyond the limited 24 frets on his guitar.  Jaw-droppingly  fast, I’m not sure any guitarist blends tapping so seamlessly into his playing.  Make no mistake this guy is as big of a shredder as Kevin Nash in Secret of the Ooze.  The man is usually on stage with his trademark double necked guitar which features a fretless axe that he’s no slouch on.  He is also capable of playing ridiculous bluegrass runs and is a better finger-picker than all of us even if his main weapon is a regular pick.  Master of many styles, yeah he’s better than you.

54. Pete Hamm
Badfinger’s resident musical genius is known primarily as a tragic figure, and then a great singer.  A distant third on that list seems to be what a great guitarist he was.  Definitely of the blues based jam school common of his era, Hamm had a killer lead tone, excellent improvisational skills, and was more than adept at playing to the song.  Whether it’s the BBC rendition of “Suitcase” or the opening leads in “Lonely You” the man was a tremendous guitarist.  Point is listen to more Badfinger.

53. Pat O’Brien
Cannibal Corpse might be so chaotic that it’s sometimes easy to miss just what Pat O’Brien is doing.  When you watch the man play un-accompanied there might not be another death metal guitarist better.  Not just about playing fast, or making noise (ala Slayer), O’Brien can scale the fretboard with melodic intensity in the span of about 2 seconds.  He also knows a thing or two about abusing his fretboard, and ripping some ear piercing pinch harmonics, dive bombs, and arpeggios so fast you’ll want to quit playing.  He also got his start playing for the same band as my next entry.

52. Jeff Loomis
I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a fan of Nevermore.  That said you’d have to be deaf not to notice how incredible Jeff Loomis is on the axe.  Perhaps in spite of not being a huge power metal fan, the style does lend itself to Loomis’ own particular brand of melodic shredding.  The fact that the man attempted to cover Jason Becker’s “Perpetual Burn” let alone pulled it off is enough to include him amongst the best shredders period. 
 

51. Herb Ellis
A member of Oscar Peterson’s trio for a time, Herb Ellis was one of the fastest, sickest, jazz guitarists ever.  All but completely forgotten when listing the great jazz musicians his solo albums are a wonderful showcase of his incredible gifts.  The man had runs for days and his southern upbringing helped merge country styles to his blues and bop styles.  Faster than pretty much any guitarist before him, he could play sweet beautiful blues to sooth your soul and without a moments notice scale every fret in the blink of an eye.  The man would have been a legend if he were born two decades later.

50. Ihsahn
The lone guitarist known for black metal on my list, Ihsahn is a man of many styles.  With Emperor Ihsahn became skilled at contrasting and complimentary guitar parts, multi tracking everything and rarely ever even playing the same thing as his rhythm guitarist Samoth.  A ridiculously fast trem picker from the earliest Emperor days, he has since expanded his musical repertoire to include everything from folk to techno.  Along the way picking up some pretty incredible lead chops.  He is one of those musicians I’m pretty sure can probably do anything.

49. Carlos Santana
The unquestioned lord and master of the two note bend.  Few guitarists ever played with as much soul as Santana.  Sure his recent musical adventures are an embarrassment, but can’t blame the man for getting paid.  Hell even as bad as his Supernatural-era recordings have been, his playing has diminished a bit.  Arguably the first great lead guitarist to fuse jazz, latin, and blues styles together, Santana played like no one else.  The man had vibrato for days and could make one note melt your soul like no one else can.  “Europa” is still one of the most incredible instrumental tracks ever recorded.
 

48. John Mayer
I’ll probably catch a little bit of shit for this, but god damn have you heard this man play?  I knew he had some blues chops, if from nothing else his brief stint in a Dave Chapelle skit, but hearing some live recordings really opened my ears and eyes.  The man is probably the best white blues guitarist since Stevie Ray Vaughn.  He even went out with his own trio to play nothing but blues music, and pulled it off in spectacular fashion.  As a result he’s got a chance to hold his own against blues legends like B.B. King and Buddy Guy to name a few.  Perhaps not the most original player, but what he does, he does damn well.

47. Prince
Another on the list of guys who can do anything musically, Prince is a guitarist whose so good he got bored with his greatness and didn’t bother picking up his axe for damn near a decade.  Just as sick of a player as always, his reworking of "Let’s Go Crazy" turns his pop jam into a stoner song complete with an extended jam session.  When he wants to though few people can rip up the frets quite like him, and when inspired the man is a sight to behold.  Every so often you’ll get a performance like his on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to remind everyone, if he wanted, he could play better than you.
 

46. Bruce Kullick
Kiss’s fourth lead guitarist was in my opinion the perfect blend of his predecessors.  Able to play Frehley licks without copying him, capable of turning up the speed ala Mark St. John, and occasionally venturing into new and exotic musical territory like Vinnie Vincent, Kullick was probably Kiss’s best guitarist.  He contributed a slew of iconic solos and was responsible for writing most of Carnival of Souls, the last great Kiss album.  On “No, No, No” he was as 80s as they got, but he could certainly roll with the times as evident by his awesome solo in “Domino” from the Revenge album.

45. Dweezil Zappa
If we’re talking innovation and influence, Dweezil could never hold a candle to his old man, if we’re talking pure talent, then there’s no contest.  Dweezil seems to have inherited all of his father’s musical abilities and then some.  He can probably play anything, and has recently taken to adapting his dad’s music heading the Zappa Plays Zappa band.  Dweezil spent many a year forging his own style, and doing his own thing.  Proving in the process that he was as freakishly gifted at guitar as anyone.

44. Duane Allman
If I were to make a list of the most overrated guitarists of all time, Duane Allman would probably pop up there.  Granted being in the top 50 for me is saying something.  When it comes to slide guitar there probably was no one better.  The Allman Brothers have had some great players come and go over the years, but no one ever had quite the impact as the man who was the band’s namesake.  He could certainly hold his own against Clapton on the Derek and the Dominoes album, but perhaps his most memorable work could be found on the legendary Fillmore recordings. 
 

43. Erik Mongrain
I have no idea how I found this guy, but whoever first sent me a link to his televised performance of “Air Tap” I retroactively thank you.  This guy simply finds a unique open tuning and proceeds to slap, poke, and tap his guitar until it makes sweet beautiful music.  I have no idea how he does what he does and his concept of harmonies, and tap harmonics are unmatched anywhere in music.  A one-man band who uses his own percussive tapping to create layers of sound without the use of any over dubs.  Definitely in the harder than it looks category, Mongrain is as unique as any player to emerge in the 21st century.

42. Rodrigo Sanchez
The male half of Rodrigo y Gabriella, Rodrigo Sanchez is a god damn beast.  Part metal, part flamenco, part latin, and fast as holy hell.  His partner certainly deserves some credit here, but considering this is a list of my favorite lead guitarists, I had to omit her half.  They also represent perhaps the only band that every single person on earth likes.  Seriously I have never met a single person who has heard this band and disliked them.  It’s impossible not to, and those sweet, sexy Rodrigo solos can turn any song into a RyG jam. 

41. Tosin Abasi
You might not know the name, but the man behind Animals as Leaders needs no introduction.  Taking parts of fusion, death metal, and prog, Abasi has created some of the most memorable instrumental music in decades.  At the heart is his technical wizardry, whether ripping through a 7 or 8 string guitar.  No matter the time signature, or style he can play it.  The man’s leads flow in and out of the song that it never feels like “now it’s time for the solo”.  He just jumps in, jumps out, and drops a few measures of the sickest runs you ever heard while played over some incomprehensible time signature.  Of the new wave of technical freaks this guy is the total package.

My Top 100 Guitarists: 80-61

80. Allen Collins
I’m going to come right out and say it, Allen Collins is on my list because of “Freebird”.  Lynyrd Skynyrd had at one point three pretty damn good guitarists, but Collins is the man responsible for writing classic rock’s most enduring solo.  Seriously it would be a crime to leave him off of any greatest guitarist list for that song alone.  It doesn’t hurt that there were countless other amazing performances to go along with it.

79. Andy LaRocque
King Diamond’s main man on the axe was first made known to me through At the Gates and his mind blowing solo on “Cold”.  When I heard more from King Diamond and saw some of the man’s solos I was amazed.  His comprehension of harmony, speed, and sadistically overzealous abuse of his whammy bar all come together in a near perfect metal guitarist.  One who had a great influence on future death metal shredders like Chuck Schuldiner and Pat O’Brien to name just a few.

78. Chet Atkins
Probably the best respected and best known country guitarist ever (sorry Brad Paisley), Chet Atkins has a career that spanned multiple decades.  Despite being known for his finger picking ability, he was incredibly versatile, and ventured into jazz, flamenco, and even pop territory, all displaying his flawless finger picking technique.  Another player who would probably be a little higher on my list if I was more familiar with him, hopefully you’ll follow my lead and spend some time watching some of his retro clips on youtube.
 

77. Mike Keneally
Not exactly a household name in the freak guitarist sub-genre, Keneally was always one of the most overlooked and best players in the business.  He was part of Steve Vai’s touring band and anybody who can play harmonized runs with a man like that certainly is no slouch.  Keneally got some more time to shine in his own solo group as well as playing lead for Dream Theater front man James Labrie’s Mulmuzzler.  Seriously this guy is better than you.

76. Mattias Eklundh
Known for his band Freak Kitchen and making ungodly noises with his guitar Sweden’s highly eccentric Mattias Eklundh is one of the guitarists I discovered while researching this list.  His work is perplexing, and his absolute mastery of squeals and harmonics is second to none.  A certainly capable shredder whenever he feels like it, this man is in his own world and it’s not too common to find guitarists with so distinct a style emerging in the 21st century.

75. Tom Scholz
Boston’s musical genius was the multi-instrumentalist who brought an unprecedented polish to arena rock.  His guitar harmonies, unique solos, and damn near perfect songs helped elevate Boston into one of the biggest bands on the planet.  His technical ability might have been on par with others of his generation, but his mastery of all manner of sonic textures, multi-tracks, and harmonies are second perhaps only to Brian May.  He also gets bonus points for having one of the most recognizable lead sounds in classic rock.

74. George Harrison
Like I wasn’t going to have Harrison on my list.  The Beatles competent axeman never seemed to play a wrong note during his entire tenure with the fab four.  Harrison almost completely abandoned lead playing when he went solo, becoming a quite accomplished slide player in it’s stead.  The solo for “Let it Be” is still probably in my top ten for guitar performances (the one from the album mind you). 
 

73. Shawn Lane
Considered by some to be the fastest guitarist who ever lived, Shawn Lane was a late discovery by me.  A freak guitarist who made his professional debut at age 14 in Black Oak Arkansas, he later went on to his own solo career, and played with everyone from Ringo Starr to Johnny Cash, and Joe Walsh.  He passed away in 2003 at the age of 40 but not before leaving behind some mind-meltingly fast lead work.  Considered perhaps the master of the legato he was named by the American Guitar Institute as “the greatest guitarist who ever lived”.  So if you’re unfamiliar perhaps you should check him out.

72. Jeff Beck
On the list of classic rock legends who get their ass kissed, Jeff Beck is always somewhere near the top.  Perhaps a better technical player than Clapton or even Page, Beck never possessed 1/10th of their songwriting or innovation.  Beck was great in his own way and can still rip it up with the best of ‘em,  but to me he’s never been more than just another really good classic rock player.  Perhaps his best work is his fusion work in the mid-70s.  Do yourself a favor and pick up Blow by Blow.

71. Justin Hawkins
There are some players I love despite not being too terribly original.  I do put a premium on style, but some people just adopt what’s been done before and do it so damn well that I can’t help but love them.  Justin Hawkins from The Darkness is in that category.  A sick player raised on the same Thin Lizzy/Queen mix of soloing and harmony that so many others were, he has unabashedly adopted the classic rock style to what is truly the best rock band still around.  So many memorable solos, his playing is not to be overlooked.  In the world of super shredders and freaks who can play rings around anybody, it’s refreshing to hear someone who chooses his notes this wisely, even if he comes off as though he’s totally fucking off, far from it.  Doesn't hurt that he's also the most awesomely ridiculous looking person performing music right now.

70. Allan Holdsworth
When researching great guitarists this is a name that always pops up.  A jazz, prog, and fusion monster in shredding who is perhaps best known for his work with U.K., Allan Holdsworth is another player I am not terribly familiar with.  I’ve heard enough to know that this man is on a separate plane of existence.  His finger stretching runs and unorthodox leads are impressive enough, but when you combine it with other worldly speed and people take notice.  The man’s a beast.

69. Eddie Hazel
George Clinton told Eddie Hazel to “play like your momma just died” for the song “Maggot Brain”, and well Hazel has Clinton to thank for being included in this list.  That solo is one of the most beautiful slow burning solos in music history.  Hazel along with being an expert funk player might have used a wah pedal better than anyone in music, and that man could get some killer tones out of it.  A perfect fit for Clinton’s P-Funk craziness, Hazel adopted to all levels of eccentricities his insane leader was throwing his way.  However “Maggot Brain” is undeniably this man’s greatest gift to guitar playing.

68. Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan was always one of my favorite song writers.  Like many people circa 1994-97 I was obsessed with the Smashing Pumpkins.  It wasn’t until I knew more about guitar playing that I truly began to appreciate just what Corgan was doing with his axe.  A fan of many, many, many, many, many guitar overdubs he created an insanely heavy, rich sound, with occasionally dissonant but sometimes beautiful feedback harmonies, sick blues leads, and a mastery of all things chaotic.  He was naturally a May fan as well, and you can hear it.  Check out “Tribute to Johnny” for some of the best lead playing 90s rock produced.
 

67. Rudolf Schenker
The superior of the Scorpions lead guitarists was clearly Mr. Schenker.  An early proponent of the neo-classical style, his runs, harmonies, and leads were a huge influence on many later metal players, and he certainly held his own against even the craziest of coked-out hair metal guitarists.  I can’t necessarily blame people when they say a little Scorpions goes a long way, but I can listen to Rudolf all night long.
 

66. Tom Verlaine
Who?  The lead guitarist, vocalist, and all around creative force behind Television was a unique entity in the world of late 70s rock.  Television came to prominence as another in the string of punk/new wave bands starting in ‘77, but unlike their three chord brethren and fellow musicians who were dedicated to playing mind bogglingly simple songs, Verlaine dared to get weird with it.  His leads were unlike any of the classic rock demi-gods of his era, and holy shit a punk guitarist who dared to actually play guitar solos.  He had chops for days, and although highly influential he really was one of a kind.  Do yourself a favor and pick up Marquee Moon, everything on it is the stuff of guitar legend.
 

65. Mikael Akerfeldt
Let’s go ahead and say it, this man is Opeth.  For better or worse Akerfeldt has controlled the destiny of arguably the best metal band of the past twenty years.  A huge proponent of odd tunings, Akerfeldt has found a way to not only play some incredible leads but do it in keys and tunings no one else ever even heard of.  His music theory falls into the “this note sounds good so I’ll play it” school, he writes and shreds like no one else.  Opeth has had some other great guitarists along with Mikael through the years, but it’s always been Akerfeldt leading the way.  One of the most unique and best of all metal guitarists.
 

64. Erik Rutan
Did someone say metal guitarists?  Rutan played on what I think is the best Morbid Angel album, Domination before leaving (and returning) to form Hate Eternal.  A lead player who borrows from world music and some of the most unusual scales and phrasings heard in music.  He isn’t a shredder in the strict sense of “play fast”, but the man can tremolo pick with the best of ‘em.  “Faceless One” off of I, Monarch features some of the most unusual and sickest lead work in all of extreme metal.  In a genre known for chaos and speed, it’s truly unique when someone can stand out from the crowd.  He also gets bonus points for his great work as a producer.

63. Robbie Krieger
The Doors were a unique assembly of four completely different musicians.  Robby Krieger didn’t play like any guitarist of his era.  A fan of open blues tunings, he would take those same tunings and turn them into unique sonic structures, perfectly complimenting whatever ramblings Jim Morrison was spouting.  Not much of a traditional “lead” player he still had chops for days.  One of the more versatile players of the 60s, he was equally adept at playing jazz, blues, folk, and flamenco styles, and he incorporated all of it into his stint with the Doors.

62. Dean Herrera
Dean Herrera of Human Abstract fame has been with the band all the way through.  Occasionally joined by either A.J. Minette or Andrew Tapley, Herrera has brought a ridiculous command of complex riffs mixed with mind bending lead work.  A shredder in the strict sense of classical based playing, he loves his tight fast harmonized runs, and half the riffs for the band are basically shredded arpeggios and sweep picking.  I’ve never been a huge fan of their vocals, but I’ll listen to Herrera play anything.
 

61. Lindsey Buckingham
Time seems to have been good to Lindsey Buckingham.  Once it seemed like he was a criminally underrated and overlooked musician, songwriter, and guitarist, enough people seem to have realized he’s the only reason Fleetwood Mac could ever be called a great band.  Buckingham never really dropped his bluegrass upbringing, and used it to full effect with his sweet finger-picked Mac parts.  An incredible player who needed two people to replace him when he quit in the 80s, Buckingham joined those illustrious ranks as one of classic rocks most unique and best players.

My Top 100 Guitarists

Introduction
First of all welcome to my revised blog.  Some time ago I decided to make a blog about sports.  Well, one post later I abandoned for a life of obscurity.  So in the spirit of posting crap about things I have an opinion on I decided to revisit it, and dedicate it to everything not associated with film.  I’m still theoretically updating my old regular myworldoffilm site, so check it out if you want to know what I think about movies.  This is the catch all music, comics, sports, books, and anything else I think about writing about.  So to kick things off is my list of my 100 favorite guitarists.

I’ve opted to include almost exclusively lead guitarists, so don’t expect me to write an entry about how competent Malcolm Young is at strumming power chords, or how good Pete Townsend is at swinging his arm around.  These are my personal choices so 100% of you are going to disagree with nearly everything I write.  I accept that.  Considering I’ve been playing guitar for nearly 20 years now, I feel I’m somewhat qualified to talk about my favorite players.  Whether it’s guys who had a great style, were influential personally, or had chops up the ass, these are just the guys I dig.  It’s not all about technical ability but I am prone to liking shredders so be warned.  For at least this first entry I haven’t included clips, so that’s up to you, google, and youtube. 

I’ve written a little about each entry, mainly my personal take or a “why they’re on here” explanation.  I’m certainly open to hearing people bitch about whose too low or too high, so bring it on.  The entire list is finished as of this writing, so I’ll be updating it pretty soon.

100. Al Anderson
The main axe-man from Bob Marley’s Wailers deserves a spot here not just as a sole representative of reggae music but for the incomparable solo to “No Woman, No Cry” from the album Live!  A reggae man who had all the blues and pentatonic chops his state side classic rockers possessed, but naturally he was a little overshadowed by his legendary band’s leader.

99. Wes Montgomery
The master of octaves and one of Jimi Hendrix’s earliest influences.  In a time of brass and woodwind band leaders Wes Montgomery brought the electric guitar to the jazz loving masses, along with contemporaries Kenny Burrell and Grant Green.  He was also one of those rare jazz artists to show restraint on the instrument and use the “less is more” approach to soloing.

98. Les Paul
I nearly forgot Les Paul, and he deserves a shout out perhaps more for his inventiveness than actual playing (literally).  Part engineer, part ridiculously sick jazz shredder, he was a player far before his time.  The man could rip with the best of ‘em up until his final days, and every electric guitarist to pick up his namesake Gibson owes a debt of gratitude to this man.

97. Andy Summers
Andy Summers is one of those guitarists who you don’t even pay attention to until you attempt to learn what the hell he was doing.  His constant add-9 chords give even the most wide spanning paws a stretch and I’ve seen far too many people covering Police songs finding ways to cheat his parts.  A unique soloist who eschewed the traditional styles of his time, he was the perfect compliment to the best New Wave rock band ever. 

96. Mick Taylor
In a perfect world Keith Richards would have snuck in my list for his contributions to dirty, sloppy blues playing, but few people would ever question who the Stones best guitarist was.  His work in “Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’” is enough to include him among the all-time greats.  Didn’t hurt that he was also associated with the best era of the Rolling Stones.  Far more competent than Brian Jones, and he could technically play rings around Ron Wood, it’s a damn shame his stint in the Stones was so short.
 

95. Django Reinhardt
Another in the long list of “no list is complete without (insert name here)”.  Django was the original guitar god.  A French gypsy with three fingers who managed to set the bar for all jazz guitarists to follow.  Perhaps the first (aside from Robert Johnson) in the gone-too-soon sub-header of guitar legends, he deserves a special place for his influence if nothing else.

94. Alex Lifeson
Like Andy Summers, Alex Lifeson seems doomed to be listed as the third most important member of a legendary power trio.  With Rush from the beginning, Lifeson adopted a style all his own and despite toying with being another Jimmy Page clone on the first Rush album, he quickly abandoned that style and played like no one else before or since.  He was on of the first to bring jazz chops and endless vibrato to the world of classic rock and progressive music, and he truly is inimitable.

93. Ottmar Liebert
A German-born Spanish-influenced flamenco player, Mr. Liebert earns my esteem for making arguably the greatest guitar playing faces I’ve seen.  A guitar equivalent of Yanni, I’m not even sure he has ever played with his eyes open.  Nowhere near the speedster Paco de Lucia was, he doesn’t need to be as long as he keeps cranking out that sweet beautiful music.

92. Andres Segovia
I labored long and hard whether or not to include Segovia on my list.  No one who has ever heard him play can question his ability, virtually unmatched in the world of classical music.  The reason I was hesitant is because the fact that he is known as a solely classical guitarist, and I’d be doing that whole style of music a disservice by relegating it’s best known player to the bottom of my list.  A player who has influenced generations and whose teachings and transcriptions were widely embraced by the shredding generation of neo-classical enthusiasts. 

91. Kirk Hammett
Many people might know I’m a bit of a Hammett hater, and this goes beyond the typical Metallica sucks now argument.  Hammett has the WORST wah-wah sound in the history of music and his lead tone has always been mediocre at best.  Many of his runs sound like ass, but when the man really wants to try, he can concoct some incredibly memorable solos.  I only need to listen to “Blackened”, “Ride the Lighting”, or “Unforgiven” to know how good Hammett can be when he stops fucking off long enough to actually think through a solo. 

90. Kenny Burrell
Another jazz legend in the post-bop era, I’d probably have Burrell higher if I only had more of his music.  He does have the distinction of being one of the few guitarists to record with John Coltrane, and his Midnight Blue album is a landmark in the jazz-blues hybrid of clean lead playing. 

89. John Fogerty
John Fogerty is one of those classic rock guitarists who seems to be criminally ignored.  His main gifts were probably as a songwriter which is evident by the almost limitless gems he cranked out during the brief run of Creedence.  However his eccentric blues inspired country tinged leads in songs like “Susie Q” and “Effigy” make him as great as any player in his day.

88. Robert Fripp
One of the first rock guitarists to venture into the “what-the-fuck-is-he-doing?” territory.  King Crimson’s main musical force has collaborated with everyone from Brian Eno, David Bowie, and Peter Gabriel among many others, and he is the unquestioned master at making other-wordly sounds emanate from his guitar (sorry Tom Morrello).  An early proponent of odd-timings, odd-tunings, and experimenting with every sonic device he could lay his hands on.  There really isn’t another guitarist quite like him. 

87. Grant Green
More jazz for that ass.  Grant Green was arguably the best of the early sixties post-bop players who didn’t rely on swing and predated the fusion movement.  His Idle Moments album is a guitar playing essential and the title track is a textbook of sweet sexy jazz sounds.  He can also take some credit for tackling Latin sounds before they were “cool”, composing a hefty amount of his own tunes that are now jazz standards, he remains an icon from the Blue Note era.

86. Dave Murray/Adrian Smith

Iron Maiden’s original two axe-men were grouped together on my list for one main reason, I’ve never really been able to tell their playing apart.  Sure if you watch them live you’ll notice whose doing what, but their styles have been so complimentary over Maiden’s classic run that you really can’t have one without the other (sorry Janick Gers).  They also were Maiden’s main song-writers aside from the master himself Steve Harris, and helped contribute some of the sickest harmonies metal ever had.  Masters of vibrato and whammy bar acrobatics their style is so perfectly Maiden, and they really are two of a kind.

85. Martin Barre
Often overlooked because some people seem to just outright forget how awesome Jethro Tull was as a band.  Barre was the main axeman responsible for one of the greatest solos in rock history with “Aqualung”.  Capable of playing any of Ian Anderson’s increasingly pretentious odd-timing riffs, his soloing blended fundamental classic rock with some unique outside-the-box phrasing and some pretty killer legato runs.  He’ll never get the love Page, Clapton, or Hendrix got but the man was no slouch.

 

84. Davey Johnstone
When Elton John and Bernie Taupin were taxed with coming up with enough material for two albums a year (crazy coked out 70s contracts), they naturally put a lot of faith in their band to contribute.  Along with delivering some great vocal harmonies, Johnstone, who made his Elton debut on an acoustic 12-string rendition of “Madman Across the Water”, was a perfect fit for Sir Elton’s band.  The lead work on “Funeral for a Friend” is some of the best guitar playing of the decade, and if the stories I heard were true the “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” riff was all his as well.

83. KK Downing/Glenn Tipton
I’ll say I was never as big of a fan of Judas Priest as I was of their fellow country-men Iron Maiden, but the Downing/Tipton duo were always the better guitarists.  Like Murray/Smith I can’t really separate these two.  They were also big fans of the dual guitar solos and trading complimentary shredding lines like nobody else.  From Sad Wings of Destiny to Painkiller these two have been top notch.  Downing is no longer with Priest, so perhaps Glenn gets the slight nod for longevity, but these two were sick metal shredders even before such a thing really existed. 

82. Albert King
The man responsible for “Born Under a Bad Sign” has always gone down as one of the classic blues best guitarists.  If I had more of his music he’d probably appear a little higher on my list, but that seminal album is all I got to know him by.  A big influence on Hendrix and Clapton (who of course covered the aforementioned song with Cream), King has been reduced to something of a footnote by modern music historians despite the tremendous impact and influence he had in his hey day. 

81. Dave Suzuki
I can still remember the first time I heard Vital Remains “Dechristianize”.  For starters it was the fastest god damn thing I’ve ever listened to.  Then a few minutes in things slow down a bit and some of the sickest arpeggios start being ripped.  It was around then that I found out that the man responsible for those insane blast beats, was also playing those leads, and the bass for good measure.  Meet Dave Suzuki, a musician good enough to make you want to quit at three different instruments.  A death metal shredder who can tackle Yngwie and Lombardo.  I would say the best endorsement for Suzuki is that when the band was touring, he opted to play guitar over drums because they figured it was harder to find another guitarist to cover his parts.