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Strap on your air guitar and get ready to shred because we’re diving into the electrifying world of the best guitarists ever to grace the stage! From the blistering solos that melt faces to the soulful licks that tug at your heartstrings, these guitar heroes have left an indelible mark on music history. Whether you’re a die-hard rock fan or just love to jam out, this list of legendary pickers and strummers will have you dreaming of your own six-string stardom. StudyFinds consulted 10 expert websites to come up with our list of the best guitarists of all time to ever grace the music industry. Tell us who your favorite guitar player is – and why – in the comments below.
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Table of contents
1. Jimi Hendrix
With a flamboyant style and a sound that blended British rock and roll, American blues, jazz, and funk, Jimi Hendrix created something psychedelic and all his own, making his live performances something special to behold. A master soloist, he might always be the best guitarist of all-time. “Jimi Hendrix was the supernova of creativity that the electric guitar had been waiting for. It’s tempting to say that Hendrix was ahead of his time, and yes, it’s true, he was. There’s a stronger case explaining why he was born just at the right time,” states Guitar World.
Hendrix did what was never done before. “In just four years of mainstream success before his untimely passing, Jimi Hendrix changed the guitar world entirely,” notes LedgerNote. “He was one of the first to bring effects and the whammy bar to the guitar world, like fuzz distortion and wah-wah. … His rock and roll influences were early artists like Little Richard, Chuck Berry, and Elvis Presley. He created a lot of “firsts” such as the usage of certain effects, the rejection of the barre chord and fretting with his thumb instead.”
So, where did Hendrix start out? “In his early days, Jimmy James, as he was then known, played in rhythm sections, backing artists like Little Richard, B.B. King and Ike and Tina Turner. It isn’t until 1966, when he moved to London and formed the Experience, that Jimi Hendrix was able to cut loose and start getting the attention he deserved for his magnificent guitar work, writes GuitarPlayer. “Hendrix’s complete artistic vision included elements of blues, funk, rock, psychedelia and utter chaos. His frequent use of effects like the wah and Octavia pedal, pioneering studio effects like ‘backward’ guitar and flanging, and use of controlled feedback and the tremolo bar added another dimension to his music.“
2. Jimmy Page
Often named as one of rock music’s most passionate and revolutionary guitar performers, his own wide-reaching and eclectic tastes heavily influenced his songwriting and playing style. Finding stardom with Led Zeppelin, he experimented with echo effects and revolutionary techniques in the recording studio. “Of course, there’s no way to have this conversation without mentioning Jimmy Page,” writes Louder. “Jimmy wasn’t just a genius in the way he played, he was a genius in how he recorded too. Sometimes he would play a little crazy, a little out-of-the-box, but he was just incredible.”
What made him so unique? “An undeniably dark, yet folkloric sound, Page’s guitar captivates multiple generations of fans,” states History 101. “As the lead guitarist for Led Zeppelin, Page wrote music, and in the recording studio, he was known to be a true workhorse, always fine-tuning his guitar to produce the right sound. He’s best known for his work in songs such as ‘Dazed and Confused,’ ‘Heartbreaker’ and ‘Kashmir.’”
And Rolling Stone writes, “Listening to what Jimmy Page does on guitar can transport you. As a lead player, he always plays the right thing for the right spot – he’s got such remarkable taste. The solo on ‘Heartbreaker’ has such incredible immediacy; he’s teetering on the edge of his technique, and it’s still a showstopper. But you can’t look at just his guitar playing on its own. You have to look at what he did with it in the studio and how he used it in the songs he wrote and produced.”
3. Eric Clapton
This English musician has been changing the way we think about electric blues and rock guitar, and how to seamlessly blend them, since the 1960s. “Bluesy British bloke Eric Clapton has been a household name since his recording debut with the Yardbirds in 1963,” writes GuitarPlayer.
He has influenced a countless number of musicians along the way. “Eric Clapton is one of the greatest blues guitarists of all time,” gushes Music Grotto. “He has been a guitarist in several iconic rock bands, including The Yardbirds, Cream, and Derek and the Dominoes, and has had a prolific solo career as a guitarist and songwriter.“
“Clapton is God: that was the belief during his Cream and Derek And The Dominos days, when Eric Clapton was one of the most expressive players around,” states udiscovermusic.
4. David Gilmour
Pink Floyd’s lead guitarist was a pioneer in the use of echo and other effects to develop signature – and often psychedelic – sounds. “He’s known for his simple but huge riffs and ambient chords, full of blues phrasing, note bends, and plenty of sustain,” states LedgerNote.
Gilmour’s guitar solos are legendary for their moodiness and lyricism. “He was a fiery, blues-based soloist in a band that hardly ever played the blues – his sprawling, elegant, relentlessly melodic solos were as bracing a wake-up call as those alarm clocks on The Dark Side of the Moon,” writes Rolling Stone. “But Gilmour was also adept at droning avant-garde improv … and could be an unexpectedly funky rhythm guitarist.”
And Louder states, “A lot of what Gilmour does is about feel and emotion and atmosphere. It’s about that ability that he has to put something into a song that lifts it and sort of augments the meaning, that adds to it in a way that you can hear it many, many times and still get that emotion. It’s not just about soloing, either, it’s about what and how you play throughout the song. And David Gilmour is one of the masters of that.”
5. Jeff Beck
This British-born guitarist is best known for his time as Eric Clapton’s replacement in The Yardbirds and his genius solo work. “Beck is best known for his songs ‘A Day in the Life,’ ‘I Ain’t Superstitious’ and ‘Heart Full of Soul,’ and is a true solo artist,” writes History 101. “Beck has been innovative his whole career, combining sounds from all over the world, from Indian to jazz.”
Beck is a musician of wide-spanning skill and tastes, bridging genres and generations of music fans alike. Music Grotto writes, “While many from this era found greater commercial success, Beck turned his focus to innovative instrumentals on the guitar. He has bridged countless genres, from hard rock to jazz to electronica, and incorporated world music into his sounds. His virtuosity has earned him countless praise and acclaim over the years.”
And Guitar World writes, “Yet another genius player to emerge from the Yardbirds to carve out a singular career, Jeff Beck was the guitar player’s guitar hero. He was the player who eschewed the pick, used his Strat’s whammy bar as truly an extension of himself, and spent his career chasing down every dynamic he could find from the instrument.”
Sources used to create this list
- Rolling Stone
- udiscovermusic
- LedgerNote
- Guitar World
- Musical Instru
- GuitarPlayer
- Music Grotto
- Louder
- History 101
- Musicholics
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Even though I agree these 5 are some of the greatest I want to know how in the world y’all left of the two best of all time. #1 Eddie Van Halen!!! #2 Stevie Ray Vaughan!
My thoughts exactly
How Prince never makes these lists is beyond me. Clapton himself said Prince was the better guitarist between the two of them. Also, looks like this ignore a ton of genres that are more challenging than rock guitar. Classical, jazz, and flamenco guitar require amazing skill and restraint that cock rock guitarists just don’t have.
The purple one is indeed overlooked.
Greatest artist of all time.
No eddy van halen?you got to be kidding me.
You are spot on!!! EVH was streets ahead of all of these
I will agree to 2 maybe 3 out of the 5.. those are just automatic.. today there are so many bad ass guitarist out there and you will probably never ever hear them play.. It’s hard to make it in todays music world, you have to have the right contacts or just have one hell of a frontman to get signed…
Where Ritchie Blackmore?
Good God in Heaven above… Stevie Ray Vaughan is the best guitar player of all time, and it’s not even close…not even a little. His original songs, or a cover…didn’t matter. He did Jimi better than Jimi did Jimi. After SRV, nothing matters… plug in any name, except that talentless hack, slash…his name should’ve been hack…not slash.
Jason Becker, Guthrie Govan, Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, John Petrucci and Paul Gilbert are mandatory.
FIRST OF ALL. BUCKETHEAD IS WAY BETTER THAN ALL THOSE GUYS PUT TOGETHER. I’D FIND BETTER SO CALLED “EXPERTS”
Come on guys, it’s a shame no one mentioned Richie Blackmore, the gentleman who wrote the guitar schoolbook “Machinehead” in 1973?
That anyone in the world trying to learn is using since?
What about Tony Iommi?
Allen Colllins, Garry Rossington… …
I agree, this list is a re hash of list from the last 40 years… What about Steve Vai.. Dime from Pantera.. Randy Rhodes.. John Petrucci Dream Theater…. John 5… Just to name a few.. Live in the now
Absolutely not! Both Clapton and Gilmore said Beck was the best. A guitarist guitarist. Jimmy probably would have said the same but died before all this. So I believe this is a popularity contest rather than a skilmanship review
Exactly there is no one that compares to Beck except maybe John McLaughlin Eric Clapton can’t hold his jockstrap and is very overrated one-dimensional
Jimmy even said the guy from Chicago who died way to early was better then him. Eric Clapton and David G would probably be in the top 20. John Petrucci of Dream Theater is probably top 5.
Your list is outdated…they’re icons for sure. And at one the best. Drag yourself into the 21st century please! Not to mention EVH, SRV, Yngwie Malmsteen, should be on the list.
John McLaughlin
Kim Simmonds
Carlos Santana
Frank Zappa
The list could go for miles before you even got to the younger players.
George Harrison says “how did this happen?
Not a chance.
Jaja..Yngwie Malmsten är duktig på att spela skalor, men saknar känsla.
Rory Gallagher är honom överlägsen med ljusår.
Se på Youtube.
Gary moore too…
Gary Moore for sure. Should’ve been in the top 5.
Thank you
Other than the first 2, the next 3 could be any number of guitarists, (Blackmore for example) but probably not anyone from the current music era except maybe Jack White. Guitar seems to have not spawned anyone great or innovative. in the last 25 years or so.
Drums however seems to be the instrument of the innovative young musicians.
No EVH?
What “experts”?
You must be kidding
You’re absolutely right. For me EVH is king. There’s even Joe Satrani and Steve Vai.
Joe Walsh?
You forgot Blues Guitarist and vocalist Robert Ward. And Robert Cray and of
course Slash.
These lists always leave out Duane Allman, tragically short lived, but as good as any of them!
Another incredible guitarist … Mark Knopfel of Dire Straits …. Just watch his solo on Sultans of Swing … So great it brings tears to your eyes! His Mandela tribute at Wembley will give you chills, and he has Clapton playing rhythm for the show!! Clap shines his light on “Wonderful Tonight”
Saw Beck in the 60s and he was so amazing!
Matt Thorpe
Joe Bonamassa
Dave Mason
You need to expand your listening.
Every artist living or dead in the blue’s genre and all other pickers have said EC is hand’s down with JB the 2 Best Ever!!!
I have seen these “rankings” over the years and every one is wrong!! Terry Kath is without question the best rock guitarist of all time. Don’t believe me, ask Jimi Hendricks. In 1968 Jimi told another great upon seeing Terry play, “He’s better than me!”
Seriously! These people don’t know talent!!!!! Thank God I and many other musicians do!!!!
Need Prince and Dimebag Darrell to replace Page and Clapton. EVH to replace Gilmour.
Stevie Ray Vaughan would be my #1. Then Jeff Beck
All these are great guitarists. But the best one I ever seen was Terry Kath from the band Chicago. He died right in the middle of his awesome career the.best I ever saw. He gets no acknowledgment. Even Jimi Hendrix said he was the best guitarist he ever saw…????
It’s great for some extraordinary guitar players to shoot for the stars and reach for the outer limits but all rock and roll is great and rock and roll will never die
The oder was odd. Longevity and creativity matter. For me:
Gilmour
Beck
SRV
Hendrix
Clapton