Top 100 Rock Guitarists of All Time

[Willmark]

This isn’t another “Rolling Stone told me what to think” list.

I built this from the ground up with one goal: to separate actual guitar ability and musical impact from myth, nostalgia, and hype. Those three matter very much for certain guitar players.

A few things I care about that most lists don’t:

Completeness matters more than any one trait
If you can only do one thing—shred, riff, or vibe—you’re not cracking the top tier. The guys at the top can do *everything*: lead, rhythm, acoustic, electric, structure, and tone.

Context matters "Aka the Joe Satriani rule"
It’s one thing to sound great when the guitar *is* the song. It’s another to fit into a band, build a track, and elevate everything around you.

Real-world execution matters "Aka the Rory Gallagher rule"
Strip away the studio tricks. One guitar, one amp, live setting—who do you trust? That’s a huge separator.

Memorability matters "Aka the Ace Frehley rule"
If people can hum your solo, you did something right. If they can’t remember it five minutes later, that tells us something too.

Identity matters "Aka the CC DeVille rule"
Some players aren’t the most technical, but the second you hear them, you know who it is. That counts.

Foundation matters—but it’s not everything. "Aka the Duanne Eddy/Les Paul rule"
Early pioneers are on the list because they made it possible. But they don’t get ranked over players who took the instrument further.

Improvisation matters—but it’s a lane, not the whole highway. "Aka the Jerry Garcia rule"

So when you see rankings you disagree with—Hendrix not #1, Santana not top 10, Rory where he is—that’s why. This isn’t about who’s most famous or who gets the most magazine covers.

It’s about: Who can do the most, across the most situations, at the highest level.

Argue it all you want, that’s half the fun. But my list is consistent with itself all the way through, and that’s what I was aiming for.

Top 100 Guitarists
1 Jimmy Page
2 Eddie Van Halen
3 Eric Clapton
4 Jeff Beck
5 Eric Johnson
6 Ry Cooder
7 Steve Vai
8 Jimi Hendrix
9 Brian May
10 Duane Allman
11 Mark Knopfler
12 Randy Rhoads
13 Buckethead
14 Yngwie Malmsteen
15 David Gilmour
16 Stevie Ray Vaughan
17 Tony Iommi
18 Ritchie Blackmore
19 Tom Scholz
20 Lindsey Buckingham
21 Slash
22 Gary Moore
23 Prince
24 Pete Townshend
25 Rory Gallagher*
26 Vito Bratta
27 Warren DeMartini
28 Neal Schon
29 Gary Richrath
30 Ace Frehley
31 Mike McCready
32 Jerry Cantrell
33 Allan Holdsworth
34 Nuno Bettencourt
35 Joe Satriani
36 Angus Young
37 K. K. Downing & Glenn Tipton
38 Phil Collen
39 Ted Nugent
40 Kenny Wayne Shepherd
41 Dimebag Darrell
42 Kirk Hammett
43 Tom Morello
44 Joe Walsh
45 Derek Trucks
46 Shawn Lane
47 Adrian Smith & Dave Murray
48 Matt Bellamy
49 Vinnie Vincent
50 Billy Gibbons
51 Alex Lifeson
52 Zakk Wylde
53 Mick Mars
54 Mick Jones
55 Mick Taylor
56 Rick Nielsen
57 George Harrison
58 Frank Hannon
59 Jeff Healey
60 Duane Eddy
61 Eddie Cochran
62 C.C. DeVille
63 Robby Krieger
64 Steve Howe
65 Keith Richards
66 Carlos Santana
67 Jake E. Lee
68 Dickey Betts
69 Nancy Wilson
70 Joe Perry
71 Tommy Shaw & James Young
72 Mick Ronson
73 Peter Green
74 The Edge
75 Dick Wagner
76 Les Paul
77 Bo Diddley
78 Jack White
79 Brian Robertson & Scott Gorham
80 Mike Campbell
81 PJ Harvey
82 Chuck Berry
83 Martin Barre
84 Allen Collins
85 Buddy Guy
86 Johnny Marr
87 Jonny Greenwood & Ed O’Brien
88 John Fogerty
89 Nile Rodgers
90 Dave Navarro
91 Kim Thayil
92 Dave Davies
93 Dave Mustaine
94 George Lynch
95 Trey Anastasio
96 Andy Summers
97 Robert Fripp
98 Jerry Garcia
99 Kerry King & Jeff Hanneman
100 Kurt Cobain

* if we go by pure ability? Rory Gallagher could arguably be at #10. And doing it live? Him again.

[raider_kin]

And for a bit of meta commentary: most of the comments are about who is not on the list; less so about who is which is interesting.

Sorry about my first comment Willmark, it came out a bit nasty and I was just trying to mock the list, not you.

Lo siento mucho compadre, great post.

[Willmark]

Sorry about my first comment Willmark, it came out a bit nasty and I was just trying to mock the list, not you.

Lo siento mucho compadre, great post.

No need to apologize, I’ve got fairly thick skin.

What I’ve been trying to do is direct it towards good natured discussion rather than “get off my lawn!” /sarcasm

[Willmark]

Oh and @raider_kin back to Vinnie Vincent and my commentary about unfulfilled potential? Lack of discipline? Also add lack of focus to the extreme, he’s like Stevie Via on steroids if such a thing was even possible but actually can pull off phrasing and tone while going a million miles an hours.

Best description I can come up with him:
Vinnie is a hyperactive golden retriever confronted with 100 tennis balls:

Vai = “one ball, watch this”
Vinnie = “ALL THE BALLS!!!”

While I agree there are others close, Vinnie had so much potential, so little focus. That was my point.

[SuperRaider]

Another that should be on the list and maybe in the top 20 is Tommy Bolin playing “Wild Dogs”

[Willmark]

Another that should be on the list and maybe in the top 20 is Tommy Bolin playing “Wild Dogs”

He’s certainly interesting but has a few things going against him. If we go by my criteria I used to construct the list on the initial post he doesn’t make the cut.

And if we acknowledge his incredible talent and he was that “lane” is already occupied by Randy Rhoades: the “what if lane” Rhoades however brief achieved it. Bolin we caught glimpses.

Tommy is certainly a great player no argument there.

[SuperRaider]

He’s certainly interesting but has a few things going against him. If we go by my criteria I used to construct the list on the initial post he doesn’t make the cut.

And if we acknowledge his incredible talent and he was that “lane” is already occupied by Randy Rhoades: the “what if lane” Rhoades however brief achieved it. Bolin we caught glimpses.

Tommy is certainly a great player no argument there.

Well he did die at 25 so who knows what he could have done if he lived another ten years; but he did play on quite few different groups in that short time when he was alive…..Problem with Randy Rhoades is their really not much music out there that he did that was recorded…I agree the guy was great but one of the few that doesn’t really have big library on the music he did.

[Willmark]

Well he did die at 25 so who knows what he could have done if he lived another ten years; but he did play on quite few different groups in that short time when he was alive…..Problem with Randy Rhoades is their really not much music out there that he did that was recorded…I agree the guy was great but one of the few that doesn’t really have big library on the music he did.

Yep.

There are several on the list. Shawn Lane is another I had never heard of until I started compiling the list. His level of ability is insane, we’re talking Eric Johnson levels.

But like the guys we mentioned died young.

Now the flip of it is and what my list guards against is hype. And hype goes both way: Hendrix is the best example of this in one direction that if “he was the first and changed electric guitar.” He did and others pushed it even further. Hype in the other direction? A player who died young. We see the insane talent of Rhoades but I can’t place him higher because dying young is a two way street: had he lived longer is possible his skills would have eroded. Or never reached that peak again.

Or to put this another way? I’m as wary of what ifs as I am of legend and myth. My criteria is what can a player do with the guitar across all facets. The reason for that is hyper specific: to separate the person from their playing. And playing across all areas.

[RickRyb]

Not saying he wasn't great, but I always considered Rhoades a one-trick pony.

[Dr Death]

I'm not a "Chicago" fan but, Terry Kath should make the list.

Another guy that maybe doesn't meet the criteria but, he was a great player: Erik Brann from Iron Butterfly.

[SuperRaider]

I'm not a "Chicago" fan but, Terry Kath should make the list.

Another guy that maybe doesn't meet the criteria but, he was a great player: Erik Brann from Iron Butterfly.

Yeah Terry Kath was a great one

[raider_kin]

Is John Fogerty on the list and I missed him? He is more known for his songwriting but if you want to talk about laying down a groove and perfect soloing for that he's your man. Tempo and feel and groove not flash.

[raider_kin]

Yeah Terry Kath was a great one

Watch Kath solo on a live version of 25 or 624 (or is it 6 to 4?) Man can move.

[Willmark]

Is John Fogerty on the list and I missed him? He is more known for his songwriting but if you want to talk about laying down a groove and perfect soloing for that he's your man. Tempo and feel and groove not flash.

He is #88

[Willmark]

Yeah Terry Kath was a great one

Kath is one of those guys on my list that would be on the bubble right along with Crenshaw or Green. You could make the case for any of those three somewhere between #90 and 100 with the criteria given.

And I can equally see the reason for them not being in the Top 100.

[Willmark]

Checked for Steve Hackett on the list, and he's not there.

You blokes do know he invented string tapping, right?

Thought a bit more about this, best way to say it?

Hackett introduced the letters, Eddie and others turned it into a language.