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.

[Willmark]

McCartney is up there obviously as a musician.
Same for John Paul Jones of Zep. Dude was very underrated, very talented in a lot of ways.

[vtraider]

sheila e was hot as f[raiders_icon]ck pulling a dude from teh audience and doing a lap dance on him

Whoever that dude was he was a lucky SOB. Closest I ever got to something like that was getting pulled on stage at 5 years old to do jumping jacks with Olivia Newton John

It was right then at 5 years old I realized I liked women in leotards

[mstrbass2000]

McCartney is up there obviously as a musician.
Same for John Paul Jones of Zep. Dude was very underrated, very talented in a lot of ways.

damn right, paul is a top bass player that gets over looked just because he's a great singer songwriter but if you listen to the bass line...great

[mstrbass2000]

Whoever that dude was he was a lucky SOB. Closest I ever got to something like that was getting pulled on stage at 5 years old to do jumping jacks with Olivia Newton John

It was right then at 5 years old I realized I liked women in leotards

i bet that dude just about creamed himself...sheila e was looking damn hot and that grinding was like a pro

[Dr Death]

[Dr Death]

[raider_kin]

The man can play. Love to see a guy who can shred but still plays a lot of nice melodic.

[Dr Death]

The man can play. Love to see a guy who can shred but still plays a lot of nice melodic.

I've followed him for a few years now. I can't play at all but, I recognize talent when I hear it. It's been said by more than a few (and some very good players in their own right) that Guthrie might just be the best guitarist alive/ever... so far. I'm not ready to go there but, he is definitely among them.

[Xramfan]

Anybody mention Glen Cambell?

[mstrbass2000]

terry kath the best guitar player that nobody knows, jimmy hendrix called him the greatest

[Xramfan]

I can honestly admit at 60 I have never considered Glen Campbell a “guitarist” until I recently watched an old interview with Ted Nugent who was asked “Who is #1?” After saying it is all subjective, Ted didn’t hesitate and said “Glen Campbell”. I can’t believe after all these years I never really listened to his musicianship.

[raider_kin]

I can honestly admit at 60 I have never considered Glen Cambell a “guitarist” until I recently watched an old interview with Ted Nugent who was asked “Who is #1?” After saying it is all subjective, Ted didn’t hesitate and said “Glen Cambell”. I can’t believe after all these years I never really listened to his musicianship.

His singing career overshadowed what a brilliant player he was. Studio musician with the Wrecking Crew.

[Dr Death]

terry kath the best guitar player that nobody knows, jimmy hendrix called him the greatest

Jimmy Hendrix supposedly said the same thing about Rory Gallagher, too. Take all that stuff with a grain of salt.

[Willmark]

I can honestly admit at 60 I have never considered Glen Campbell a “guitarist” until I recently watched an old interview with Ted Nugent who was asked “Who is #1?” After saying it is all subjective, Ted didn’t hesitate and said “Glen Campbell”. I can’t believe after all these years I never really listened to his musicianship.

I think a lot of things worked against Campbell in that regard.

That said? Dude playing the William Tell Overture is insane. Especially this one:

[Dr Death]

McCartney is up there obviously as a musician.
Same for John Paul Jones of Zep. Dude was very underrated, very talented in a lot of ways.

Jones was arguably the best musician in the band. He was, IMO, the member that was most important to what Zeppelin became. Without him Zeppelin would not be... as we know them.

To be fair, Zeppelin was the rare assembly of four guys that none of which could be replaced and continue with the same success. The Beatles and Led Zepplin were the two bands that could never have been, without the four members and the magic chemistry between them.