For me, it's always been more about style than speed or number of notes. Also, uniqueness is huge for me too. And soul. Some guys can squeeze out more soul in four notes than other guys can in thirty.

Clapton--love him for being right at home in any style or genre.

Love and admire all the usual suspects. But one of my favorites is Mark Knopfler, who rarely gets mentioned is discussions like this but is a guitar genius in my mind. Still remember the exact moment I first heard "Sultans of Swing." Felt like life was different after that moment, much like the day I saw Blazing Saddles for the first time. Or maybe I was different. Or both.

This is what music does. It opens places in you that you didn't know were there and it puts places in you that weren't already there. I didn't know how much I needed this song or that song or this or that artist until I first listened.

There is a general consensus, but typically what makes a guitar player great in the eyes of an individual listener who is themselves a musician is their unique style. I'm a bass player, and my favs are guys like Stanley Clarke, Les Claypool, and Barry Oakley. All very different types of bass players but all great in their own way. Jaco Pastorious is widely considered to be our GOAT, and I dig his stuff but I like Flea's playing on older RHCP a lot more. It's all subjective. And I'm certain my opinion on what makes a guitar player great differs from the guitar players lol

Clapton gets a lot of grief because players say all he does is minor pentatonic scales. Maybe so, but his tone is so great, he's made himself a legend doing it. Page is a wizard of tunings. The Edge is a master of delay pedals... some say that's cheating, some say it's using technology. Again, he's made a killing off of it. I'm not real impressed by shredders who want to see who can play the fastest. I would rather listen to someone who puts feeling into their music. This is one of my favorites, Michael Chapdelaine. He's the only person to win both the classical and fingerstyle competitions in the same year.

(05-03-2018, 07:43 PM)UKWhoDey Wrote: There is a general consensus, but typically what makes a guitar player great in the eyes of an individual listener who is themselves a musician is their unique style.  I'm a bass player, and my favs are guys like Stanley Clarke, Les Claypool, and Barry Oakley.  All very different types of bass players but all great in their own way.  Jaco Pastorious is widely considered to be our GOAT, and I dig his stuff but I like Flea's playing on older RHCP a lot more.  It's all subjective.  And I'm certain my opinion on what makes a guitar player great differs from the guitar players lol

Bob Babbitt and James Jamerson would be my favorite bassists...... Jamerson's dead, but last I heard Babbitt was still doing Master classes....

(05-03-2018, 07:06 PM)McC Wrote: For me, it's always been more about style than speed or number of notes.  Also, uniqueness is huge for me too.  And soul.  Some guys can squeeze out more soul in four notes than other guys can in thirty.

Clapton--love him for being right at home in any style or genre.

Love and admire all the usual suspects.  But one of my favorites is Mark Knopfler, who rarely gets mentioned is discussions like this but is a guitar genius in my mind.  Still remember the exact moment I first heard "Sultans of Swing."  Felt like life was different after that moment, much like the day I saw Blazing Saddles for the first time.  Or maybe I was different.  Or both.

This is what music does.  It opens places in you that you didn't know were there and it puts places in you that weren't already there.  I didn't know how much I needed this song or that song or this or that artist until I first listened.

I dig me some Mark Knopfler.....Way Aye Man.

(05-03-2018, 07:43 PM)UKWhoDey Wrote: There is a general consensus, but typically what makes a guitar player great in the eyes of an individual listener who is themselves a musician is their unique style.  I'm a bass player, and my favs are guys like Stanley Clarke, Les Claypool, and Barry Oakley.  All very different types of bass players but all great in their own way.  Jaco Pastorious is widely considered to be our GOAT, and I dig his stuff but I like Flea's playing on older RHCP a lot more.  It's all subjective.  And I'm certain my opinion on what makes a guitar player great differs from the guitar players lol

Those cats are badass....but for me, no bass player convo is complete without Lemmy and Phil Lesh.

Forgot to add Jack White to the discussion....

(05-04-2018, 10:09 AM)Wyche Wrote: Those cats are badass....but for me, no bass player convo is complete without Lemmy and Phil Lesh.

I'd thrown in Cliff Burton   who was helping to write metallicas songs at one point.

But he was gone too soon.


Have we done this for Vocalist yet?

(05-04-2018, 04:49 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: I'd thrown in Cliff Burton   who was helping to write metallicas songs at one point.

But he was gone too soon.


Have we done this for Vocalist yet?

I think I may have done it before. Once again I have no musical knowledge so I go by what sound like great range to me. I think I went (for rock singer) with Klaus Meine, Rob Hanford, Freddy Mercury, Elvis and Geoff Tate.

Something that still gives me goose bumps. Love it (I know its old, but still awesome).

(05-03-2018, 08:38 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Bob Babbitt and James Jamerson would be my favorite bassists...... Jamerson's dead, but last I heard Babbitt was still doing Master classes....

Victor Wooten
Oteil Burbridge
Darryl Jones

(05-05-2018, 09:03 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Victor Wooten
Oteil Burbridge
Darryl Jones

There's a name I haven't seen in awhile...


There was a period in the 90's where I swear that every show I went to, he would be playing.  Sometimes as a little side project, sometimes filling in for a bass player who couldn't make the show.  Whatever the reasoning, I would swear I saw him play 15 times that year.

(05-06-2018, 01:22 PM)jfkbengals Wrote: There's a name I haven't seen in awhile...


There was a period in the 90's where I swear that every show I went to, he would be playing.  Sometimes as a little side project, sometimes filling in for a bass player who couldn't make the show.  Whatever the reasoning, I would swear I saw him play 15 times that year.

First saw him late 80's/early 90's when he was with Bruce Hampton's Aquarium Rescue Unit.  They used to come to this hole-in-the-wall dive in Knoxville called Planet Earth.  Dude was incredible.  He went on to play with a bunch of larger groups like The Allman Brothers.

Last I heard he was doing a lot of Jazz stuff.

(05-06-2018, 02:21 PM)fredtoast Wrote: First saw him late 80's/early 90's when he was with Bruce Hampton's Aquarium Rescue Unit.  They used to come to this hole-in-the-wall dive in Knoxville called Planet Earth.  Dude was incredible.  He went on to play with a bunch of larger groups like The Allman Brothers.

Last I heard he was doing a lot of Jazz stuff.

He played in RVA a ton, being a D.C. native...

(05-04-2018, 10:09 AM)WychesWarrior Wrote: Those cats are badass....but for me, no bass player convo is complete without Lemmy and Phil Lesh.