My list is pretty retro because I haven't kept up with a lot of newer music 1. Stevie Ray Vaughn - Eric Clapton once said that every guitarist makes some mistakes but is able to cover them up so that nobody but another guitarist would notice. Eric said that SRV doesn't make mistakes The rest in no particular order Eric Clapton - His enormous body of work speaks for itself Jerry Garcia - Jerry won't make everybody's list but he is underrated. Jerry was incredibly versatile and was great on everything he did Jimmy Page Freddie King - was the role model and inspiration for SRV Duane Allman - Was the embodiment of Southern Rock Jimi Hendrix Eddie Van Halen Albert King Billy Gibbons - Maybe not thought of as one of the greatest ever but his hard driving rock riffs epitomize the ZZ Top sound. The Bengal B Founding Fathers of Rock n Roll goes to: Drum roll please: ratatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatatattatattatatat: Chuck Berry with special thanks to Marty McFly without whom Johnny B Good might have still happened but still might not have happened. Up and coming future Hall of Famer - Tallan Noble Latz Tallan is still only 13 and he first came to national attention at the age of 8 on one of those America's got Talent shows. Plays blues like SRV, Hendrix, Buddy Guy - You name it. He is already master of the blues guitar and just wait until he is 35 or 40 and has the gravelly blues voice from to many cigarettes and too much whiskey and the blues soul of somebody who has been cheated on by too many women. Honorable Mention: Buddy Guy, BB King, Johnny Lang, Joe Satriani, Johnny Winter, Albert Collins, Ry Cooder, and anybody else who's music I love but have forgotten about
1) Jimi Hendrix 2) Jimi Hendrix 3) Jimi Hendrix 4) Jimi Hendrix 5) Your pick. Ask any of the guys on the previous list and they'll agree with me...
1. Clapton. No one can touch him in blues and rock. 2. Jimmy Page. Remarkable technique and taste. 3. Albert King. The velvet bulldozer. 4. Stevie Ray Vaughn. Everybody since SRV has been influenced. 5. Hendrix. Short career, we never got to hear his style evolve. 6. B.B. King. Long career, we got to hear everything he's got, which is a lot. 7. Keith Richards. The best riffs in rock. Hugely influential. 8. Jeff Beck. Lyrical and musical, but right in your face. 9. Duane Allman. Precision with amazing style. 10. Pete Townshend. Inventor of the power chord, he showed that a band could have just one guitarist.
I've heard the name Jeff Beck numerous times over the years but never made the effort to listen to his music (although I'm sure I've heard it often and not realized it was him). He's playing with ZZ Top this summer near my house and it's one of the shows that I'm going to make an effort to see. I'm far from being an expert on this topic but guessing that you could make a list for those that are technically proficient and can play any scale at any speed or another list that simply "sounds good". Jimi Hendrix fits the "sounds good" label for me. He had that really good balance of being able to play a million miles per hour yet most of it was also laid back and relaxed.
I'll also add that my favorite "sounds good" music of all-time may be The Allman Brothers. However, I never know if the songs I'm hearing are with or without Duane Allman. I heard a live version of Blue Sky on Sirius recently and it released more endorphins during the song than I may have ever experienced before (for one song). It's pretty amazing that Duane Allman is always at the top of these lists, yet he died at 24 and his band continued to make a lot of great music after him.
If you heard the Yardbirds, you've heard Jeff Beck. Having said that, it should be noted that the Yardbirds had Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page at various times when they were hot. Those guys never had anything but a top-10 guitarist.
Very solid list. For me a few names missing. Mostly, Brian May. After that Ritchie Blackmore and Malmstein.
Your list is a lot like mine. I would have put Keith Richards and Pete Townshend on my honorable mention only I didn't think about them at the time. Also I have to add Carlos Santana to the HM