Working my way through some old magazines I found an edition of Mojo from 1996 in which they listed what the collective wisdom thought were the "100 greatest guitarists of all time".
This was pre internet of course and Mojo being a top selling magazine I remember it caused a bit of a stir at the time on the airwaves, and prompted quite a bit of irate correspondence...
FWIW the top ten were:
1. Jimi Hendrix
2. Steve Cropper
3. Peter Green
4. Keith Richards
5. Chuck Berry
6. Eric Clapton
7. Jimmy Page
8. T Bone Walker
9. Neil Young
10. Richard Thompson
I don't particularly agree with the final choice, but I was trying to think who would have come into the reckoning in the 25 years since the list was complied, either because of their growing influence on guitar music, or because they simply weren't around in 1996. Have to admit I was struggling. Jack White maybe, Derek Trucks..?
So is there anyone who you would say has come to the fore on the last quarter century as a genuine top ten "of all time" contender?
Comments
That list is not worth the toilet paper it’s written on. But then again it about fits the magazine that published it
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
That's my definition of a "great" guitarist, it's someone who comes along and creates an impact because they're doing something no-one else has done, and it leaves an enduring legacy.
This eliminates scores of popular widdlemeisters, I hesitate to name names 'cos I know I'm going to get flamed, but it also casts some doubt on the likes of Steve Cropper who I admire but second greatest guitarist ever..? Guys like BB King, Johnny Marr and Eddie Van Halen have had a much greater impact on the guitar music scene and by a long way. I'd even put Joni Mitchell up there.
I mentioned Jack White and Derek Trucks, but I'm not sure either of them will be talked about in another 25 years, there's guys like John Mayer who apparently it is illegal not to like, but leaves me cold. Annie Clark I find very interesting, but she's too "theatrical" to be taken seriously, her namesake Gary Clark is also interesting but combining different influences still isn't doing anything new.
Johnny Greenwood
Matt Bellamy
Derek Trucks
John Mayer
Jack White
I could happily name another bunch that are definitely influential/important but probably not top-10-worthy: Josh Homme, Dan Auerbach, Adam Granduciel, Gary Clark Jr, St Vincent, Jonny Buckland, Ed Sheeran, Jason Isbell, Bryce Dessner, Aaron Dessner, Albert Hammond Jr/ Nick Valensi Jonsi Birgisson...
Josh Homme is a bit of a dark horse that I think history will look kindly on. I met an ex road manager once who had been on tour with a fair number of bands, many of them household names, and he reckoned Josh Homme was the most talented musician he had ever seen and far and away the best guitar player extant. I think his reluctance to talk about gear and guitars in general maybe doesn't endear him to the guitar community.
Tony Iommi. Probably the single most influential rock guitarist ever.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein