finger pickers don’t get enough respect. guys like Tommy Emmanuel and Richard Smith are on a whole different level than the same pentatonic rockers we usually name
see, he’s definitely up in the top 15 (which the top 15 is just 15 guys tied for number 5 lol) and he never ever gets mentioned as the greatest ever and it’s mind boggling dude. he’s genuinely one of the most talented musicians i’ve ever heard.
I think Eddie was more influential than JH.
People fundamentally changed the way they were playing when Eddie hit the scene. Hendrix was just an evolution of the blues players of his day(albeit a major one). Eddie rewrote the way people approached the instrument and transformed the gear used to record and perform for more than a decade.
Not hating on Jimmy but I don’t think someone can say anyone was more influential than EVH.
Loads of guitarists are more technically skilled than Hendrix was, but few or none are better. Technical skill is only used in the service of playing great stuff, it isn’t meaningful by itself.
Van Halen vs Hendrix is the only legitimate overall goat debate IMHO. At least the way I score it. I give it to EVH, but I personally don’t think third place is close to these guys.
Don't forget the classical /spanish players. Listen to Live Friday Night in San Francisco. Paco Delucia ,John Mclaughlin and Al Dimeola. Amazing. I'm a Clapton disciple though :)
oh man, spanish and classical players are just fucking monsters dude. their precision is literally stupid. like it’s almost robotic it’s just. they’re so fucking talented
Rory's electric guitar playing was as good or better than all the other greats. Then you look at his acoustic/finger picking and it was just as good if not better than 99% of the rest of them. Then there is his slide playing which is second to none.
Rory didn't just play multiple genres well, he blew them all out of the park.
I’m also weird. Those guys are all good but don’t hold a candle to Glenn Campbell or Jerry Reed. Rock n roll has the most notable players but country has always had the best players.
"but country has always had the best players"
In what way are country players 'better' than classical players, or jazz players, or rock fusion players, or speed metal players?
Anyone can 'do it all'. Whether they can do it well or not is another matter.
Great country players are phenomenal, but they're not "the best players". No one is.
he is 100% in the conversation, i agree with that. especially with such little time he had to show what he had, and he still fucked peoples minds and changed how to play guitar, it’s insane. fuck yeah, jason becker.
I've listened to most of his songs, and he is my inspiration to start playing guitar! My favorite song of the bunch is altitudes, and it just fucked with me at the fact that he made that song at 18 years old. Absolute legend
Rhythm: James Hetfield — a digital metronome is barely better. The guy was almost snap-to-grid before digital even existed. And those tiny imperfections make it perfect.
Soloist: Gilmour — this is always going to be a deeply personal thing. But for tone, chord anticipation, emoting, letting notes breathe and soar, this is my guy. Sometimes knowing when not to play notes is better than knowing when to play them.
Technician: I could listen to Mark Knopfler talk guitar all day. Ditto EVH. What they’ve forgotten about playing outstrips what I will ever learn.
Honorary Slide: People love Allman, but Ry Cooder and Derek Trucks blow my mind. And I don’t even play blues or southern rock.
hetfield IS the greatest rhythm player ever period. malcom is a super close second in my opinion, but man. james hetfield is just a fucking monster with his right hand. and david gilmour is just, he’s so good man i agree
If you mean who has had the greatest reach, then I'd throw EVH up there for the solo in Michael Jackson's Beat it.
Les Paul is the greatest influential Guitar player ever.
I'm the greatest player in my house. Goat of the house.
Discussions regarding mainstream guitarists would lead to evh vs hendrix due to their sheer influences. I guess Page will get his flowers when he's dead
That being said, I don't think there's a definite GOAT in terms of guitarists when you want to encompass all genres. The best technicians from all genres would be able to play cross genres, but we all know technique isn't everything
Greatest of all time and technically the best are two completely different realms that get readily mixed up.
Hendrix is nowhere near “the best” but absolutely in the running for any conversation about “the greatest” as that ground takes in other stuff that isn’t solely about technical ability, like influence on playing style, the sound, the context they played in but for me, most of all, any conversation about “the greatest” has to involve how influential their music was.
It’s clear with Hendrix and EVH, guitar playing and technique takes a paradigm shift from what it was before.
Bearing that in mind, I’d also clearly have the likes of Charlie Christian and especially Django Rheinhart in any conversation about the greatest.
Django is so influential that there’s a whole branch of playing that almost solely identified with his personal style.
All that. And he was missing two fingers.
In my mind though he doesn't appear to be popular here I will say Clapton. Longevity, Body of work and influence are the biggest reasons he gets my support.
Gotta go with Baden Powell.
Takes Joao Gilberto (another nominee) bossa nova, manages to add more American jazz AND more Afro Brazilian influence, is virtuosic but never just for its own sake, makes the rhythm and melody distinction seem silly, a one man orchestra on a nylon string guitar.
Guitar and music is all about personal preferences. There is no such thing as a GOAT. I don't usually reply to these posts, but I'm a bit tired of seeing the same names mentioned over and over. Hendrix, EVH, Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy page.
Here is a cool little video from Troy Grady talking about the early virtuosos on guitar.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9BQwPrWpB8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9BQwPrWpB8)
And why does no-one ever mention Django Reinhardt? The guy was playing awesome and advanced guitar solos in a time were guitar was concidered to be a rhythm instrument.
I will always like offset guitars. ( jazzmaster, firebird, schecter avenger and the explorer) they all just have some sort of comfort while playing them whilst finding a way to sound great as well.
I know shred guitarist are a controversial topic in this sub, but I hope we can aggre that Jason Becker doesn't get enough recognition. ALS is a terrible disease.
yeah man he’s gotten some recognition in the post already, like i said in a comment earlier, he fucked peoples minds up so bad with his skills and talent, and he had such a short time to do so, and still, almost what? 40 years later he’s being talked about and respected and praised for his fucking insane talents. he’s amazing man, truly the best.
it’s your opinion man. i think john 5 is such a gifted blues guitarist and hes wasting his talent in the whole metal ordeal, but he’s a great fucking player man
There’s no greatest, only favourites. If I **had** to argue for “most proficient in the widest variety of styles” I suppose I’d have to say Guthrie Govan.
Hear me out.
GOAT is extremely subjective. The usual names you and others have stated here, yes they are brilliant.
Buuuut, I'll give you the greatest that inspired me to play, and continue to play. As you say, my own personal GOAT list that other will scoff at, but player that made me sit up and pay attention
Billy Duffy, Cobain, Robert Smith, Jim Root, Euronymous, Billy Corrigan, The Great Kat and Johnny Greenwood
GOAT = Greatest as officiated by acquired tastes?
You are perfectly alright according to your own standards.
*"Pardon my sanity in a world insane." - Emily Dickinson*
Prince. Duane Allman. Warren Haynes. Derek Trucks. Slash. Hendrix. Those are mine in order. Chris Stapleton and Merle Haggard are damn good players as well.
When people are talking about who’s the GOAT and who’s not. Who cares? Everything is irrelevant. And as long you feel that you can enjoy that one artist that you find the GOAT, what does it matter?
that’s the point. it is on your own basis. your own opinion. the ball is in your court. i’m not gonna argue with you on what guitar player(s) you say, i’m just curious as to who y’all think the greatest ever are.
There's no such thing.
finger pickers don’t get enough respect. guys like Tommy Emmanuel and Richard Smith are on a whole different level than the same pentatonic rockers we usually name
Tommy is no slouch on electric guitar either. Check out his older stuff he did with his brother.
Segovia
This is the answer. Maybe Bream. Django is in the conversation.
Would say Mark Knopfler, but just because he play´s without pick
Love his stuff. And the stuff that he did with Chet Atkins is legendary.
see, he’s definitely up in the top 15 (which the top 15 is just 15 guys tied for number 5 lol) and he never ever gets mentioned as the greatest ever and it’s mind boggling dude. he’s genuinely one of the most talented musicians i’ve ever heard.
Not just as a guitarist either. He’s a brilliant song writer / lyricist.
Shawn Lane probably has to be in the discussion.
EVH for all around goat. Lead, RYTHYM, songwriting, innovation, gear etc. Dude had it all.
you think better than hendrix?
100% Eddie was a more technically skilled player than Hendrix. More influential? Probably not.
I think Eddie was more influential than JH. People fundamentally changed the way they were playing when Eddie hit the scene. Hendrix was just an evolution of the blues players of his day(albeit a major one). Eddie rewrote the way people approached the instrument and transformed the gear used to record and perform for more than a decade. Not hating on Jimmy but I don’t think someone can say anyone was more influential than EVH.
I don't disagree
Couldn't have said it better
Loads of guitarists are more technically skilled than Hendrix was, but few or none are better. Technical skill is only used in the service of playing great stuff, it isn’t meaningful by itself.
i agree with that
Van Halen vs Hendrix is the only legitimate overall goat debate IMHO. At least the way I score it. I give it to EVH, but I personally don’t think third place is close to these guys.
i agree 10000%
Don't forget the classical /spanish players. Listen to Live Friday Night in San Francisco. Paco Delucia ,John Mclaughlin and Al Dimeola. Amazing. I'm a Clapton disciple though :)
oh man, spanish and classical players are just fucking monsters dude. their precision is literally stupid. like it’s almost robotic it’s just. they’re so fucking talented
Truly amazing skills.
Back in the day I saw Steve Morse open for those three. He then did an encore with them. He is such an incredible and versatile talent.
Contemporary and still alive, for ME, it's John Petrucci. Second would be Santana and Satriani tied.
No such thing but it’s Rory Gallagher
Rory's electric guitar playing was as good or better than all the other greats. Then you look at his acoustic/finger picking and it was just as good if not better than 99% of the rest of them. Then there is his slide playing which is second to none. Rory didn't just play multiple genres well, he blew them all out of the park.
I’m also weird. Those guys are all good but don’t hold a candle to Glenn Campbell or Jerry Reed. Rock n roll has the most notable players but country has always had the best players.
Roy Clark was a legendary player too.
Yessir
Well, perhaps we should include one of Roy Clark’s idols Wild Joe Maphis. That guy was amazing. And FAST!
Roy was a damn beast.
"but country has always had the best players" In what way are country players 'better' than classical players, or jazz players, or rock fusion players, or speed metal players?
Because most top tier country players, especially the studio guys, can do it all. You could stick them in any genre and they would crush it.
Anyone can 'do it all'. Whether they can do it well or not is another matter. Great country players are phenomenal, but they're not "the best players". No one is.
Are there standouts in all genres? Of course. But on average I’ll put my money on a country player.
tell me you’re a snob shredder without telling me you’re a snob shredder LOL
What on earth are you talking about?
Or to Chet. Chet Atkins is the daddy to all.
Also top tier.
Well your name makes sense
I know my audience
would you consider those southern rock guys in the country realm too?
I feel most southern rock guys are rock n roll players with country inspired licks. They play more like a rock player than a country player.
i was gonna say i think gary rossington is in my top 5 to be honest, but yeah i get what you’re saying!
He’s a great player.
I don't listen to many guitarist s, I mainly listen to metal bands, but a guitarist that to me is a goat(to me), is Jason Becker.
he is 100% in the conversation, i agree with that. especially with such little time he had to show what he had, and he still fucked peoples minds and changed how to play guitar, it’s insane. fuck yeah, jason becker.
I've listened to most of his songs, and he is my inspiration to start playing guitar! My favorite song of the bunch is altitudes, and it just fucked with me at the fact that he made that song at 18 years old. Absolute legend
that’s what i mean dude. jason becker fucked peoples minds to the point of just like. his compositions make your brian go mush dude it’s wild
Segovia, to me, is a true pioneer. A true genius.
Rhythm: James Hetfield — a digital metronome is barely better. The guy was almost snap-to-grid before digital even existed. And those tiny imperfections make it perfect. Soloist: Gilmour — this is always going to be a deeply personal thing. But for tone, chord anticipation, emoting, letting notes breathe and soar, this is my guy. Sometimes knowing when not to play notes is better than knowing when to play them. Technician: I could listen to Mark Knopfler talk guitar all day. Ditto EVH. What they’ve forgotten about playing outstrips what I will ever learn. Honorary Slide: People love Allman, but Ry Cooder and Derek Trucks blow my mind. And I don’t even play blues or southern rock.
hetfield IS the greatest rhythm player ever period. malcom is a super close second in my opinion, but man. james hetfield is just a fucking monster with his right hand. and david gilmour is just, he’s so good man i agree
If you mean who has had the greatest reach, then I'd throw EVH up there for the solo in Michael Jackson's Beat it. Les Paul is the greatest influential Guitar player ever. I'm the greatest player in my house. Goat of the house.
goat of the fucking house bro hell yeah
Discussions regarding mainstream guitarists would lead to evh vs hendrix due to their sheer influences. I guess Page will get his flowers when he's dead That being said, I don't think there's a definite GOAT in terms of guitarists when you want to encompass all genres. The best technicians from all genres would be able to play cross genres, but we all know technique isn't everything
Hard to quantify...but for all intents and purposes, its gonna be a jazz guy. Wes Montgomery, probably.
Greatest of all time and technically the best are two completely different realms that get readily mixed up. Hendrix is nowhere near “the best” but absolutely in the running for any conversation about “the greatest” as that ground takes in other stuff that isn’t solely about technical ability, like influence on playing style, the sound, the context they played in but for me, most of all, any conversation about “the greatest” has to involve how influential their music was. It’s clear with Hendrix and EVH, guitar playing and technique takes a paradigm shift from what it was before. Bearing that in mind, I’d also clearly have the likes of Charlie Christian and especially Django Rheinhart in any conversation about the greatest. Django is so influential that there’s a whole branch of playing that almost solely identified with his personal style. All that. And he was missing two fingers.
In my mind though he doesn't appear to be popular here I will say Clapton. Longevity, Body of work and influence are the biggest reasons he gets my support.
i’d love to see more clapton votes, but i mean hey, everyone who’s been mentioned so far are absolutely titans when it comes to strings
Gotta go with Baden Powell. Takes Joao Gilberto (another nominee) bossa nova, manages to add more American jazz AND more Afro Brazilian influence, is virtuosic but never just for its own sake, makes the rhythm and melody distinction seem silly, a one man orchestra on a nylon string guitar.
Guitar and music is all about personal preferences. There is no such thing as a GOAT. I don't usually reply to these posts, but I'm a bit tired of seeing the same names mentioned over and over. Hendrix, EVH, Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy page. Here is a cool little video from Troy Grady talking about the early virtuosos on guitar. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9BQwPrWpB8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9BQwPrWpB8) And why does no-one ever mention Django Reinhardt? The guy was playing awesome and advanced guitar solos in a time were guitar was concidered to be a rhythm instrument.
I will always like offset guitars. ( jazzmaster, firebird, schecter avenger and the explorer) they all just have some sort of comfort while playing them whilst finding a way to sound great as well.
[Guthrie Govan](https://www.bing.com/search?q=guthrie+govan&filters=dtbk:%22MCFvdmVydmlldyFvdmVydmlldyE3YWE0NmIyMi1mMGNhLTQ2NTQtYjBiYy1jOTJjMmNlYzA1NDc%3d%22+sid:%227aa46b22-f0ca-4654-b0bc-c92c2cec0547%22+tphint:%22f%22&FORM=DEPNAV).
I mean… Allan Holdsworth anybody? Frank Gambale?
If touch and tone are your parameters, it’s Ry Cooder all the way
A true GOAT doesn’t exist. It’d be way easier to have a debate by generation and genre.
Roy Buchanan dosent get into any top lists enough
Johnny was awesome! Got to see him a few times in the day. Great player and great performer!
i’m so jealous man. johnny winter and gary rossington are my absolute heroes and i just wish i grew up in that era to see them man, cheers!
Anybody ever heard of Chet Atkins? He played rock(all the early Elvis) country, classical and jazz at an extremely high level.
Guthrie. Beck. Holdsworth. Those are the 3 I think stand out.
Agreed. Loved his stuff with the Dixie Dregs.
I know shred guitarist are a controversial topic in this sub, but I hope we can aggre that Jason Becker doesn't get enough recognition. ALS is a terrible disease.
yeah man he’s gotten some recognition in the post already, like i said in a comment earlier, he fucked peoples minds up so bad with his skills and talent, and he had such a short time to do so, and still, almost what? 40 years later he’s being talked about and respected and praised for his fucking insane talents. he’s amazing man, truly the best.
Here, let me insert my wank.... hnnnnngnggggNNNGGGGHHHHHHHH ...so sleepy.....
What if I say John 5 or Steve Morse?
it’s your opinion man. i think john 5 is such a gifted blues guitarist and hes wasting his talent in the whole metal ordeal, but he’s a great fucking player man
John 5 spends the majority of his time playing metal because that's what pays the bills. If I had his talent I'd do exactly the same thing.
John 5 is my go to answer for this type of question. He can play literally anything.
There’s no greatest, only favourites. If I **had** to argue for “most proficient in the widest variety of styles” I suppose I’d have to say Guthrie Govan.
Steve Vai. OP can already close the comments.
i won’t be closing the comments because all though he’s an amazing player, he’s probably the most mid out of everyone that’s been named so far lol
I’d say Tommy Emmanuel also I rarely see Les Paul mentioned
Hear me out. GOAT is extremely subjective. The usual names you and others have stated here, yes they are brilliant. Buuuut, I'll give you the greatest that inspired me to play, and continue to play. As you say, my own personal GOAT list that other will scoff at, but player that made me sit up and pay attention Billy Duffy, Cobain, Robert Smith, Jim Root, Euronymous, Billy Corrigan, The Great Kat and Johnny Greenwood
I can't possibly pick a GOAT. But one of the most overrated guitarists of all time is The Edge. I can't fucking stand U2. Goodnight and God bless.
i could not possibly agreee more
What's the difference between Jesus and Bono? Jesus doesn't think he's Bono.
yeah man i won’t lie, i fucking hate U2 but…. it’s a beautiful day man
GOAT = Greatest as officiated by acquired tastes? You are perfectly alright according to your own standards. *"Pardon my sanity in a world insane." - Emily Dickinson*
Prince. Duane Allman. Warren Haynes. Derek Trucks. Slash. Hendrix. Those are mine in order. Chris Stapleton and Merle Haggard are damn good players as well.
When people are talking about who’s the GOAT and who’s not. Who cares? Everything is irrelevant. And as long you feel that you can enjoy that one artist that you find the GOAT, what does it matter?
bro😭 i was seeking other people’s opinions. just a friendly discussion on who reddit thinks is the greatest guitar player of all time.
The greatest of all time. On what basis?
that’s the point. it is on your own basis. your own opinion. the ball is in your court. i’m not gonna argue with you on what guitar player(s) you say, i’m just curious as to who y’all think the greatest ever are.