Category: Miscellaneous Writings

Much is written in guitar webzines, music publications, guitar forums, and blogs about various guitarists throughout the history of modern music and, in particular, how these guitarists compare over what is now a seventy year period. I need to pick a reasonable starting point, so I’ll begin with the blues craze of the 1950’s. Many of the blues guitar greats were poor black men from the deep south and each of them had to develop their own unique style and musicality.  The pain in their songwriting was palpable, and they had only each other to learn from. Those were competitive times, with relatively few black musicians acquired a much coveted recording contract. Even fewer owned a decent guitar. There was little money available to these artists, including those at the top of the food chain. What they had was a love of playing guitar melded with a strong sense of wanderlust. Various forms of blues music evolved ranging from the Deep South’s Delta blues to Appalachian blues, to Chicago blues, and some of these bluesmen drifted to LA, where everything seems to happen in the music world. There was even what became a pilgrimage-based studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, which recorded all sorts of artists from Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Buddy Holly, and, as time went quickly by, Southern Rock bands like the Allman Brothers and Lynard Skyward, to trendsetters from across the pond, the Rolling Stones and singer-songwriters like Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell. In this crucible where greatness fused with musical direction, many stars were cultivated, people who would go on to become music icons. Even the session musicians who worked for the studio became well known in their time.

It was a time of predominantly healthy competition, before the big named record producers got a rope around this hopeful few to launch the next big names in music, which was quickly evolving from blues to rock n’roll and the folk craze of the 1960’s. The music industry was evolving at an unprecedented pace and agents and managers were fast becoming an important aspect of the business. Unfortunately, for the musicians themselves, they were struggling to understand things like contracts and royalties while at the same time attempting to navigate this “brave New World” where virtually everything was caught in the throes of constant change.

As a guitarist in some of the big-named bands of the time, you were being pulled in different directions, the most complicated of which was how to build your name as an individual with a very important role to play in the overall context of a band. How to be successful as a guitarist while playing a sort of side role, or role as a “sideman” to the “frontman” (usually the singer). Every guitarist had to wrestle with how to keep everyone happy, including themselves. Each had to figure things out for themselves and it could be a tricky road, fraught with crossroads that might lead to nowhere. I can’t imagine being a twenty-two year old musician trying to navigate such complicated and potentially hazardous waters.

Early on, many incredible artists chose to take on opportunities as session guitarists. For a period, even famed guitarists like Don Felder, Duane Allman, and Jimmy Page took regular paying jobs to make ends meet. Fortunately for us, some of the best answered the call to arms and went on to join some of the greatest bands of all-time. Today, rather than take the likely long road to success, numerous guitarists choose to report to their day jobs at the studio. For those with families to feed, this is a viable option in terms of getting paid for being a musician and it is from this perspective that throughout guitar-god history, there have been many session guitarists who are just as talented, if not moreso, than their hard rocking counterparts. What you should understand about being a session guitarist is that these guys (and gals) need to have the ability to morph their chops to accommodate multiple musical genres, and they need to do it at the drop of the hat, day in and day out. But, without the associated fame, they seldom become household names or make capricious lists of the “Greatest Guitarists of all Time”. While this is a shame, it is the way things work in the business of making music.

In my mind, the first guitarist to come along armed only with the early blues artists to learn from was Chuck Berry. It is only after his moment in the sun that others like Keith Richards would come onto the scene. Richards has stated many times that his greatest guitar heroes were among the blues artists of the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s and that early rock n’ roll artist Chuck Berry was his biggest influence. There are several videos on YouTube where you can see them collaborating or simply performing an impromptu jam session. I think it suffices to say that Chuck Berry’s influence was as great as his success. I would be curious to know if the fresh crop of up and coming guitarists today tap into Chuck Berry’s playing, style, and performing capabilities that made teenage girls everywhere scream with delight. Many would follow, but he was the first.

Certainly the brightest star to emerge into the limelight of Chuck Berry was Jimi Hendrix. Clapton, Page, and Beck would come just a bit later and all three are on record stating that Jimi Hendrix was among their greatest influences. Since Hendrix’s tragic death came at what was only the beginning of his prime, we will never know just how far his gift would have taken him. But virtually every guitar great credits him with being the valedictorian of his class.

There are simply too many “Guitar Gods” to list and that’s not the objective of this feature. What is, is the problem with comparing them. Perhaps there are lists of great artists of all flavors but I haven’t seen them. The analogy is that comparing history’s best writers, painters, sculptors, and the like would be impossible; that is, to the extent that these comparisons would be viable. It can be argued that great musicians are just as gifted as artists of any kind. How could we possibly compare Bach to Mozart, or Mozart to any of history’s virtuoso composers. What about Van Goh to Monet? There are centuries to sift through. 

There are also the performing aspects of being a guitar god. There’s an athletic component to quickly moving around on a stage while wielding the guitar like it’s some sort of specialized martial arts weapon. Granted, being extremely athletic isn’t a prerequisite to being a great guitarist. For, whatever reason, guitarists like BB King and Jeff Healey have been relegated to seated performing for decades, Still, they are among the most gifted musicians that come to mind. I think you get my point. For the most part, being a guitarist is being a performance artist, at least inasmuch as being the lead guitarist in a rock band. Chronicling through time and taking a good look as to whom we vote for on any of these guitar-great lists can be like witnessing high-level circus acts, where an incredible amount of work goes into creating fluid, graceful movement. If these performances are set to some really powerful music, which suits the type of performance, all the better. It is a thrill to go to a Cirque de Soleil show and watch such performers in action. I think it’s equally as thrilling if, like me, you’ve had the opportunity to go to a Who or Led Zeppelin concert and watch Pete Townsend leap from atop his twin Marshall stacks or bear witness to Jimmy Page setting the fingerboard ablaze while flying up and down the neck of his Les Paul. It also takes more than a little hand-eye coordination to elevate one’s self to being among the best.  On top of that, there are the thousands of hours of practicing the craft and making difficult choices in how to spend one’s time. This is what I think of when the word “sacrifice” is put on the table. Heck, I get excited watching the antics of Joe Walsh moving around on stage while making some of the best “guitar faces” known to man.

Among the pitfalls in comparing guitarists who have achieved demigod status is the plethora of differing musical genres they represent. Though closely related, playing blues is quite different than playing jazz and metal is worlds apart from country. So just how is it that some guitarists are comfortable joining a great player (from a different genre) who’s going to be playing well within their comfort zone while the invited guitarist has an altogether different background? It’s because the invited guitarist is so good that they can play across multiple genres with equal aplomb. Think about how intimidating accepting such an invitation would be to a mere mortal guitarist. I also find it intriguing that this sort of thing is reminiscent of one gunslinger standing out in the street in a carefully chosen spot and “calling out” another infamous shootist from within the relative safety of a crowded saloon. There has to be some serious level of competition felt by each of the gunmen and some giant egos hidden behind their cold, black eyes. Yet, far more often than not, the egos in a guitar-based “calling out” seem to be left at the door while both guitarists go at it with equal looks of concentration and sheer joy for those few precious moments or an entire set, or more. I love this about musicianship!

One of my criteria for someone to be referred to as a guitar god is that they can play across multiple musical genres without missing a beat, as discussed in the above paragraph. Another of my criteria is that in order for someone to consider themselves as among the best (a truly complete player) they should be able to play both guitar modalities, electric and acoustic, equally well. I think you’ll find that many of your guitar favorites can do this, as they long ago realized the value in playing both, each form lending prowess to the other. But I also think you’ll find just as many guitarists who find their way to making some list without bearing that medal of honor. I have played both electrically and acoustically since I began my guitar journey, and I can offer testimony as to how much more difficult (but rewarding) it is. Not one of my guitar heroes plays one form to the exclusion of the other.

(Public Domain)

Another key component that I have a ton of respect for is those guitarists who add slide guitar to their arsenal of skills. For those of you who have tried (as have I) to learn slide, you well know how difficult it is. I would equate it to learning an entirely different instrument. Guys (and gals) like Duane Allman, Dickey Betts, Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, Bonnie Raitt, and Joe Walsh are tremendously gifted. If they’ve got this form of playing under their belts, I tend to view them in a brighter light.

I’ve mentioned but a few guitarists who have rightly been bestowed the guitar god title. These are players who came off the top of my head. I used no list in coming up with names, though I am sure I’ve missed a few that I would have liked to include. Vince Gill has already popped into my head. The guy is certainly good enough to make anyone’s list, from his masterful picking skills and overall musicality to his gilded tenor voice. The latter brings to mind another criteria that raises the bar. Singing and playing simultaneously is extremely difficult, particularly at the level that Vince is able to do it. It is very much like playing two instruments at the same time and finding more and more novel ways to weave the two together.

Last, you may not recognize one of the guitarists in the final four photos, but, to me, his trademark skull cap and wry smile are dead giveaways. His name is Greg Koch. He was classically trained and I believe holds a master’s degree in jazz from one of the finer music schools in the Midwest. He is, perhaps, best known as test pilot for Wildwood Guitars in Louisville, Colorado. There are literally hundreds of videos showing he and his chops while playing the latest in high-end guitars from Gibson and Fender. His prowess on the fingerboard is unmistakable, as he makes run after run showcasing the tonal spectrum of each guitar. He does this with humor and humility, seamlessly flying up and down the neck covering a half-dozen genres at alarming speed and somehow making them sound like they belong together. On a list of the most underrated guitarists, I would place him in the number one slot. Do yourself a favor and jump on YouTube to search Wildwood Guitars or Greg Koch, and, after seeing him in action, I am certain you’ll agree.

I hope that I’ve done a decent job of getting my point across such that the next time you peruse a list compiled by some music publication, you’ll do so with an open mind toward the thousands of guitarists everywhere, grinding it out one small venue at a time all the while dreaming of the day when they’re named. Or, dive into the world of those session guitarists I spoke of. It is as likely as not that they already have the chops to make it. Let’s hope that the next, latest list is based more on merit than on popularity.