Best lead guitar in rock´s history?

Best Guitar player in rock´s hsitory

  • Berry

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Beck

    Votes: 3 5.9%
  • Hendrix

    Votes: 13 25.5%
  • Blackmore

    Votes: 2 3.9%
  • Page

    Votes: 8 15.7%
  • Santana

    Votes: 3 5.9%
  • Van Halen

    Votes: 5 9.8%
  • Clapton

    Votes: 3 5.9%
  • Hammet

    Votes: 2 3.9%
  • Other

    Votes: 12 23.5%

  • Total voters
    51

droliver

Professional
I've never understood the Jimi Hendrix worship, I've always found his playing just too sloppy and not melodic enough (as some other commenters also expressed up thread). However, "Fire" by the Jimi Hendrix Experience is just balls out, spine tingling electric.

My favorite player of all the guys that are fairly well known is Richard Thompson.

He's really the last of the guys who came out in the late 60's Britain who are still working musicians and put out new material regularly. What makes him a little different then most of these other rock guitar greats is that he's an accomplished songwriter and is one of the more unique acoustic players around as well. His playing is much more distinct then a lot of the guys that come from the blues-based style of soloing and he does a lot of hybrid picking and multi-string bends that just stand out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNUFyPryV5M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyxR8iU3Jxs
 
I've never understood the Jimi Hendrix worship, I've always found his playing just too sloppy and not melodic enough (as some other commenters also expressed up thread). However, "Fire" by the Jimi Hendrix Experience is just balls out, spine tingling electric.

My favorite player of all the guys that are fairly well known is Richard Thompson.

He's really the last of the guys who came out in the late 60's Britain who are still working musicians and put out new material regularly. What makes him a little different then most of these other rock guitar greats is that he's an accomplished songwriter and is one of the more unique acoustic players around as well. His playing is much more distinct then a lot of the guys that come from the blues-based style of soloing and he does a lot of hybrid picking and multi-string bends that just stand out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNUFyPryV5M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyxR8iU3Jxs

Another great from RT.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bl0Ybw_iFxw
 
Genesis and Camel, yeah.Never too found on ELP as a group even if their members were great players by separate

Exactly.

Little known fact: Hendrix wanted to join ELP. Robert Fripp did, too, at first; a later quote of his, however, summed ELP up nicely:

"For a moment, it looked as if ELP were poised to be the Next Great Thing, capable of anything they wanted to be. That moment was very, very short."
 
Last edited:

kiki

Banned
Exactly.

Little known fact: Hendrix wanted to join ELP. Robert Fripp did, too, at first; a later quote of his, however, summed ELP up nicely:

"For a moment, it looked as if ELP were poised to be the Next Great Thing, capable of anything they wanted to be. That moment was very, very short."

Fripp, I can foresee him there, but hardly Hendrix.They didn´t really need another big ego..and while he certainly could have become a prog rocker, there was too much of blues and hard classic rock in him, so he wouldn´t have fit there.

It´s curious, because Cream went the same way as ELP.Only Rush was a long lasting trio.But I can see why: they worked as a team and they had the same vision about things.
 

bluegrasser

Hall of Fame
Fripp, I can foresee him there, but hardly Hendrix.They didn´t really need another big ego..and while he certainly could have become a prog rocker, there was too much of blues and hard classic rock in him, so he wouldn´t have fit there.

It´s curious, because Cream went the same way as ELP.Only Rush was a long lasting trio.But I can see why: they worked as a team and they had the same vision about things.

I love three piece bands, you have to be quite the guitar player to pull it off.
 

bluegrasser

Hall of Fame
I've never understood the Jimi Hendrix worship, I've always found his playing just too sloppy and not melodic enough (as some other commenters also expressed up thread). However, "Fire" by the Jimi Hendrix Experience is just balls out, spine tingling electric.

My favorite player of all the guys that are fairly well known is Richard Thompson.

He's really the last of the guys who came out in the late 60's Britain who are still working musicians and put out new material regularly. What makes him a little different then most of these other rock guitar greats is that he's an accomplished songwriter and is one of the more unique acoustic players around as well. His playing is much more distinct then a lot of the guys that come from the blues-based style of soloing and he does a lot of hybrid picking and multi-string bends that just stand out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNUFyPryV5M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyxR8iU3Jxs

True, Hendrix had a sloppy technique, so did Page, but it's his creativity in his playing, nobody played like the guy & his songs had that vibe ( Wind Cries Mary). Clapton & Townsend <sp were in awe of Hendrix, they even went together to one of his live gigs & came back awestruck.
 

kiki

Banned
I love three piece bands, you have to be quite the guitar player to pull it off.

Clapton said he was like the urban policeman trying to keep balance between the two B`s huge ego...well Lifeson did his job pretty well for Peart and Lee were really team players
ELP didn´t have a guitar did they? Lake was a bassist...
 

bluegrasser

Hall of Fame
Clapton said he was like the urban policeman trying to keep balance between the two B`s huge ego...well Lifeson did his job pretty well for Peart and Lee were really team players
ELP didn´t have a guitar did they? Lake was a bassist...

Greg Lake played guitar, think " Lucky Man,' which he wrote when he was twelve years old.
 

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
What's "best"? The most technically proficient? The fastest?
The most melodic"

For me, I've always loved the bluesy based guitarists that play with feeling and emotion and their solos just fit perfectly into the song. Guys that can do finger gymnastics without any soul are just boring for me. So for me, some of my favorites are:

Jimmy Page
Jeff Beck
Eric Clapton
Michael Schenker
Ritchie Blackmore
Tony Iomi
Rory Galagher
Mark Knopfler
George Harrison
Robin Trower
Johnny Winter
Pat Travers
Stevie Ray Vaugn
 
Last edited:

mental midget

Hall of Fame
hendrix just bled music and improvisational genius. sloppy sometimes for sure, he was stoned out of his mind half the time.

page...what can you say? maybe the greatest licks of all time. both he and jimmy were great composers.

eddie van halen...they're not my favorite group but hard to pick a more consummate guitar front man.

the speed demons don't hold much allure for me, rifling through runs with no taste or discretion isn't my cup of tea, although sure it's impressive.

if we're talking guitarists generally, i'd go back a little further for my personal GOAT choice: mr. django reinhardt. maybe the closest thing the guitar world had to a pagannini. if you're a guitar player and aren't familiar with his work and his story, i'd highly recommend doing a little research, your mind will be thoroughly blown. absolutely jaw-dropping improvisational skill, a true composer, and a true genius in the fullest sense of the word. absolutely one of a kind talent.
 
Jimmy Page.

Yes, he is for me also. He was born with a gift, yet he also honed his craft with a lot of dedication and a zealous pursuit. Besides being great at playing the guitar, Jimmy Page was one of the great music writers. He was a genius at creating great, imaginative guitar riffs and he could also complement the rest of his very talented band members so well.
 

stringertom

Bionic Poster
Jimmy Page.

Jimmy Page could play, no doubt but Jimmy Plagiarist could steal even better...I suggest you pull up well documented proof on youtube of his nefarious talent at stealing other artists' work and taking credit as though the stuff never existed before LZ1.

And that doesn't even mention his total ripoff of Spirit and Randy California's "Taurus" performed live on often on a tour where LZ opened for Spirit.

Hammer of the Godfathers of Plagiarism!
 
Last edited:

stringertom

Bionic Poster
Why has personnal bias always go behind Zepp?
Keeps being the same as before

The song remains the same bcoz it's true! See, I can do it too! But I'll give him credit. He even stole from Jeff Beck, his good buddy...with friends like that...
 
True, Hendrix had a sloppy technique, so did Page, but it's his creativity in his playing, nobody played like the guy & his songs had that vibe ( Wind Cries Mary). Clapton & Townsend <sp were in awe of Hendrix, they even went together to one of his live gigs & came back awestruck.

this

that's what it was that made him special, he was absolutely unique
 
A lot of guitarists couldn't handle how successful Page became and frankly Zeppelin didn't care what the media thought of them. Their fans were what drove them, yet beyond all that, it was how they relished making music together, that is Page, Plant, Bonham, and Jones. Unlike many others bands, they each played very big roles, with Page active as the creative force behind it all. Page is unquestionably one of the greatest ever, but there are so many great guitarists. Guitarists like Page, Hendrix, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, played with so much soul, but I do also really enjoy those players like Randy Rhoads, Eddie Van Halen, and the underrated Alex Lifeson as well. Rush was really quite amazing I think, especially from about 1975-1985 in terms of the rock music they created.

http://www.guitarlessons.com/guitarists/classic-rock/jimmy-page/

Jimmy Page was born on January 9, 1944, in the Heston suburb of West London. Jimmy first played the guitar at the age of 13, although the youth took a few lessons, he was largely self taught. He picked up the guitar after hearing Elvis Presley’s song “Baby Let’s Play House” and was highly influenced by lead guitarists who played for Presley, Scotty Moore and James Burton. Page also found great inspiration playing along with the recordings of American blues artists such as B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, and Muddy Waters. When Page was growing up, it was hard to find recordings by American bluesman, but the music had a cult following among would be guitarists in England at the time.

When Page was still only 13 years of age, he appeared on a television talent program called “All Your Own.” Page was part of a quartet which played skiffle music, a type of folk music that merges jazz, blues and country. His quartet played two songs, “Mama Don’t Want To Skiffle Anymore” and “In Them Ol’ Cottonfields Back Home”. When the host, Huw Wheldon, asked young Page what he wanted to do when he grew up, he responded that he would like to find a cure for cancer, “if it isn’t discovered by then”.

In the early days, Jimmy did a lot of busking, and found it hard to find bands to play with. Every so often when someone could get a gig together, Jimmy would find a band to play in, but his first long term gig came in 1962. Page was asked by Neil Christian to join his band, The Crusaders. Neil had been impressed with Jimmy’s playing after having seen the boy play a local venue. Page spent two years touring with The Crusaders and played on several of the band’s recordings. Page had to leave the band after developing glandular fever. He took a break from touring for a while to pursue painting, a second love. He explained his decision in a 1975 interview, “[I was] travelling around all the time in a bus. I did that for two years after I left school, to the point where I was starting to get really good bread. But I was getting ill. So I went back to art college. And that was a total change in direction. That’s why I say it’s possible to do. As dedicated as I was to playing the guitar, I knew doing it that way was doing me in forever. Every two months I had glandular fever. So for the next 18 months I was living on ten dollars a week and getting my strength up. But I was still playing.”

Page was still a student when he began taking work as a session musician. He quickly became the favored session man for producer Shel Talmy. The relationship with Talmy led to Page sitting in on sessions with some of the biggest names in music, The Who, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, Dave Berry, and Brenda Lee, among others.

Page was offered a spot with The Yardbirds when Eric Clapton left them, but turned it down initially because he had developed a lucrative session career and still worried about the health effects that touring had previously taken on him. He eventually did join the band however, first as a bass player, and later on guitar. The group recorded the album “Little Games” with Page on lead guitar. The band’s studio recordings were very pop sounding but they began to developer a heavier edge to their live shows.

The band fell apart in 1968, but Page wanted to fulfill concert obligations in Scandinavia. The only remaining member, Page had to put together a whole new band. He recruited Robert Plant on vocals and John Bonham on drums. Page was contacted by John Paul Jones, a bass player whom had played with Jimmy on a track with Jeff Beck. Jones asked to join the band and Page agreed. The quartet finished the tour as The New Yardbirds, but eventually came to be known as Led Zeppelin.

Page, having formed the band, had a very specific goal for the band, “I had a lot of ideas from my days with The Yardbirds. The Yardbirds allowed me to improvise a lot in live performance and I started building a textbook of ideas that I eventually used in Zeppelin. In addition to those ideas, I wanted to add acoustic textures. Ultimately, I wanted Zeppelin to be a marriage of blues, hard rock and acoustic music topped with heavy choruses — a combination that had never been done before. Lots of light and shade in the music.”

Led Zeppelin went on to become one of the most influential rock bands of all time. The group is credited with being one of only a handful of bands that led to the birth of heavy metal. The band remained one of the most popular acts in popular music for over a decade, stopped only by the death of drummer John Bonham.
 
Last edited:

bluegrasser

Hall of Fame
Lets not forget *Pete* of ' Who" fame, he was a riff machine. Just listen to ' Live at Leeds", he had the greatest fills, sounded like two guitarists (rhythm/lead) at times.
 

kiki

Banned
Page is one of the very few genious rock music produced
In the XVIII or XIX cent guys like him were named Beethoven,Verdi,Puccini,Schubert
As for Pete, he outclassed himself since he was good but not super guitar
He like Page was a leader and had that rare musical vision that went beyond his own playing capabilities, which I don' t place in top tier
Moon and Entwisthle were the best Who players but Pete and Roger were leaders and true musicians
The Who, like Zepp had a very special talent and their live Perfs were IMO the best of 60 and by very far
Led was just a better version but to me there was not a better band than Who until Zepp emerged
 

bluegrasser

Hall of Fame
Really it was a great period of music, not about the visual (video)
You really had to be a player, well b4 the two power chords and a ton of distortion. It's not living in the past like some trolls have suggested, there was so much good music/bands from that time.

Like the neo/classical period, a rich time where the music stills lives today from those great composers. There is some good music today, no doubt just not as commonplace.
 
Last edited:

kiki

Banned
those who worshipp the best ever paid clowns, the Stones.

somebody here even suggested to give WW (Watts and Wyman) top status¡¡¡

They lived off Richards mediocre riffs and Jaegger mediocre vocals since the late 70´s.Even if they capitalised on fomer inertia and still had a good album by 1979 (Some Girls), truth is there was little left for them to do in musical terms after Brian Jones ( their only real musician) death first and Mick Taylor ( their only real great player) departure later on.

Even if they are the absolute best at commercializing their image.
 

LeeD

Bionic Poster
I"m no expert on music for sure.
But Allman Bros guitar solo, Ramblin Man, seems glue'd to my memory circuitry.
 

monfed

Banned
Jimmy Page could play, no doubt but Jimmy Plagiarist could steal even better...I suggest you pull up well documented proof on youtube of his nefarious talent at stealing other artists' work and taking credit as though the stuff never existed before LZ1.

And that doesn't even mention his total ripoff of Spirit and Randy California's "Taurus" performed live on often on a tour where LZ opened for Spirit.

Hammer of the Godfathers of Plagiarism!

I don't claim to be some guitar expert because I'm not. I didn't know about the claims you make about Page being a plagiarist. No offence, but they seem rather preposterous to me. If what you say are indeed facts then how come he's not been exposed yet? I mean it shouldn't be that hard for a guy of his status to be called out by the media, so what's the hindrance?

Besides what you said, Page's guitaring is pure joy to my ears. Knopfler is my favourite but Page's stairway is the greatest solo I've ever heard, it's so damn smooth. Also Page has real feel on the guitar, he has that X factor which no other players seem to have. Also do note that I don't like Led Zepp, just Page's guitar work.
 

stringertom

Bionic Poster
I don't claim to be some guitar expert because I'm not. I didn't know about the claims you make about Page being a plagiarist. No offence, but they seem rather preposterous to me. If what you say are indeed facts then how come he's not been exposed yet? I mean it shouldn't be that hard for a guy of his status to be called out by the media, so what's the hindrance?

Besides what you said, Page's guitaring is pure joy to my ears. Knopfler is my favourite but Page's stairway is the greatest solo I've ever heard, it's so damn smooth. Also Page has real feel on the guitar, he has that X factor which no other players seem to have. Also do note that I don't like Led Zepp, just Page's guitar work.

Google "Taurus" by Spirit and tell me it isn't the foundation for STH. Go ahead, it takes a few keystrokes and a couple of minutes of listening pleasure.

Next, look into Joan Baez, Anne Bredon and "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You" and ask yourself how it was listed as a "traditional" song with arrangement by J. Page. The song was written less than a decade before LZ1.

If you're still in doubt, look up Led Zeppelin Plagiarism Part I on youtube. It's a bit longer...almost 10 minutes of original vs cover comparisons.

I have no qualms about their musicianship and talents...they're just not very honest about the origins of their songs.
 

LeeD

Bionic Poster
Your moniker, interesting.
G/F is always saying... I bought this $1,200 couch just for YOU (meaning me).
It's coming this Sat, hopefully. And the ottoman for it costs $450.
Not my cup of tea, I would have been ecstatic with a 200 dollar recliner.
 
Jimmy Page was a stellar musician even before Led Zeppelin and he's been a guitar legend in the years since then. They did not cater to music critics or really anyone. They just let the music that they as a group created take them on a journey. Each album was a "project" per Robert Plant and they just relished the whole process. Page said to Charlie Rose that the critics didn't have "any idea of what we were doing"..the music just "went right over their heads". So, critics of Zeppelin and Page, incredulous that they wouldn't stick to the formula of letting the music labels run things, instead of the band, tried to latch onto anything. Page was a stellar studio musician even before Led Zeppelin. He was one of the very best guitarists in England even by his late teens. Plus, he drew so much from American Blues, as did many English musicians. So, when Zeppelin took off and stood out as the great rock and roll band of the 70's, it's not surprising that they have their critics and naysayers. It comes with the territory when you are that good, innovative and just plain good. Other musicians, many in competition with Page and Zeppelin tried to cast stones. That ship has long sailed, as Zeppelin lives on with their fans and other musicians too. Imagine rock and roll music and guitar without Led Zeppelin's influence on it and then Page's greatness becomes clear. You can't fake that. No way, no how. All great music builds off the music before it and Led Zeppelin did just that with rock and roll. They were able to mold it in a way that it had never been molded before.

Page, having formed the band, had a very specific goal for the band, “I had a lot of ideas from my days with The Yardbirds. The Yardbirds allowed me to improvise a lot in live performance and I started building a textbook of ideas that I eventually used in Zeppelin. In addition to those ideas, I wanted to add acoustic textures. Ultimately, I wanted Zeppelin to be a marriage of blues, hard rock and acoustic music topped with heavy choruses — a combination that had never been done before. Lots of light and shade in the music.

That's just what they did too. They took what had been done before, learned from it, and then gave the world back a whole new brand of music. Led Zeppelin's music had their own stamp on it. The "jams of Led Zeppelin will live until the end of time" said the host at The Kennedy Center Honors a couple of years ago and he's right.

This is nice. These guys were rock maestros.

Robert Plant's tribute to Jimmy Page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ng5CzvCvfOE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0SIeN3KJSg (1975 interview with Robert Plant..."to reach the height of rock and roll soul"- Wolfman Jack)
 
Last edited:

Midaso240

Legend
I"m no expert on music for sure.
But Allman Bros guitar solo, Ramblin Man, seems glue'd to my memory circuitry.
Duane Allman would have to be up there in the top tier of guitarists. I don't believe he played on that particular track though due to his untimely death...
 

kiki

Banned
Jimmy Page was a stellar musician even before Led Zeppelin and he's been a guitar legend in the years since then. They did not cater to music critics or really anyone. They just let the music that they as a group created take them on a journey. Each album was a "project" per Robert Plant and they just relished the whole process. Page said to Charlie Rose that the critics didn't have "any idea of what we were doing"..the music just "went right over their heads". So, critics of Zeppelin and Page, incredulous that they wouldn't stick to the formula of letting the music labels run things, instead of the band, tried to latch onto anything. Page was a stellar studio musician even before Led Zeppelin. He was one of the very best guitarists in England even by his late teens. Plus, he drew so much from American Blues, as did many English musicians. So, when Zeppelin took off and stood out as the great rock and roll band of the 70's, it's not surprising that they have their critics and naysayers. It comes with the territory when you are that good, innovative and just plain good. Other musicians, many in competition with Page and Zeppelin tried to cast stones. That ship has long sailed, as Zeppelin lives on with their fans and other musicians too. Imagine rock and roll music and guitar without Led Zeppelin's influence on it and then Page's greatness becomes clear. You can't fake that. No way, no how. All great music builds off the music before it and Led Zeppelin did just that with rock and roll. They were able to mold it in a way that it had never been molded before.



That's just what they did too. They took what had been done before, learned from it, and then gave the world back a whole new brand of music. Led Zeppelin's music had their own stamp on it. The "jams of Led Zeppelin will live until the end of time" said the host at The Kennedy Center Honors a couple of years ago and he's right.

This is nice. These guys were rock maestros.

Robert Plant's tribute to Jimmy Page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ng5CzvCvfOE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0SIeN3KJSg (1975 interview with Robert Plant..."to reach the height of rock and roll soul"- Wolfman Jack)

I get it, yeah, BNO.Fact is respect and mutual admiration was there from the first moment.LOL at what happened in that first session together, think it was a garage, and Bonham just leaving his mates completely bemused.

all four band members shared a vision, a mission and, as Plant would put it, they were soul mates

Which other band stopped after one of their memebers passed away?

There was no Lennon vs Mc Cartney, Jaeger&Richards vs Jones, Gilian vs Blackmore, Waters vs Gilmour there.

That made LZ rule for 10 years.
 
Top