Best Guitarists From '64-'74

[KingLouieLouie]

Well... I guess I'll start with the best guitarists from this era.... Again.. many to choose from and in no particular order...

1) Jeff Beck
2) Jimmy Page
3) Eric Clapton
4) Steve Hackett
5) Jimi Hendrix
6) Carlos Santana
7) Tony Iommi
8) Brian May
9) Robby Krieger
10) Pete Townshend

Honorable Mentions:
Dave Davies
Mick Taylor
George Harrison (forgot about him)

I know there are several more, but dont want to monopolize these type of posts like I always tend to!

 

[Rivercard]

Frank Zappa
John McLaughlin
Roy Buchanon

 

[jstadvl]

ok

Clapton
Beck,
Marino
Dudek
Trower
Hemdrix
Nugent
Green
Rhodes
West

 

[vince56]

Richie Blackmore <-- I didn't see anyone mention him yet. Highway Star rules.

Others I'd include:

Jimi Hendrix (no, really? )
Tony Iommi
Jimmy Page
Jeff Beck
Pete Townsend
Brian May

I never was a big fan of Clapton as a guitarist.... however he's a kickass songwriter, which is where it really counts anyway, IMO.

 

[jstadvl]

Didn't mean

to leave Blackmore out. Just alot of good players in that era. Clapton was much better playing loose back when then controlled as he does now.
Blackmore was the first, that I know of, to scallop in between his frets.
Interesting. I guess as this goes on alot of other names will come out.
I always like Page more for his creativity. Jeff Beck is absolutely awesome. I saw him live and could not believe how fast he really was.

 

[vince56]

Clapton was much better playing loose back when then controlled as he does now.

I agree.

 

[therealnod]

Anybody not putting Jimi first hasn't paid attention, and this is coming from a guy that thought Hendrix was overrated substantially until he heard the truth in hte form of evidence. Jimi was unbelievable, and I've never heard more head-scratchers from another guitar player. He's just unreal; he seems mythical, which is why I didn't believe in him for so long. Then I played, then I listened. Jimi doesn't have a peer; they don't exist. He's outside the box, farther than anyone could hope to become. This isn't idol worship, it's just the honest opinion of a guitar player. Jimi is best described thusly

The history of electric guitar will forever be told in two parts; before Jimi and after Jimi

That's not hybperbole, ok it is a little bit, but Jimi was GOOD. If you don't worship at the alter of Jimi, something's wrong with you.

Beck gets my 2nd place vote, Winter my 3rd.

 

[jstadvl]

I think

Hendrix paved the way for alot of stuff, but, I don't think he's the ultimate of the psychedlic sound he brought out of others. Frank Marino is a monster at it.
Don't get me wrong, Hendrix is in my all time tops. It's just so difficult to pick one guy that is "the player". Especially from that era.
No matter what type of music came along, as other hard rock guitarists faded out for a long vacation, Clapton was the chameleon constantly putting stuff out that was up on the charts.
The thing I love about Hendrix is that instead of bringing something back, he opened up the door to the future.
Listen to Marino. He takes that Hendrix psychedelic sound and just explodes it. Makes it absolute!

 

[therealnod]

OK, I went a little over the top. But only a little.


The problem I encounter in discussions about Jimi is the whole "psychedelic" pigeon-holing tendency. Jimi produced a lot of material in his short time. Most of it doesn't fit in the psychedelic realm, but in the bluesy, R&B strata. I'm not really a fan of Jimi's psychedelic fits, which are a lot less common than people seem to realize. Jimi was at heart a blues man, and he was the greatest blues guitarist I've ever heard, and it's not particularly close.

 

[jstadvl]

I would agree

his blues and jazz roots are definitely his heart and soul. The doors he opened can't be denied. As for the best? Again, I appreciate your taste and knowledge, but it's too hard to measure objectively. He is surely one of my all time favorites, but there are still, including some great blues players, that haven't been mentioned. I mean Johnny Winter, some one mentioned him is as outrageously gifted a bluesman as they come. Speed, delicacy, plays for the note, slides with the best of them. That's just one. Like I said, it's too subjective to pick a best. JMO bro.

 

[therealnod]

Almost to a man, guitar players seem to be incredibly deferential. That said, I've seen many, many guitar players say that no one's even in the same building with Jimi, and I even heard one say that no one's even on the same planet. That's obviously hyperbole, but Jimi has the tone advantage over everybody except SRV, IMO, and I've heard a lot of guitar solos, but I've never heard anyone make me stop and think "how'd he do that?" with anywhere near the frequency that Jimi does. There was just so much imagination in his playing, and he seemed to get lucky a lot and hit a note just so that had this incredible effect. I grant that Winter was insanely talented, but if they were cuttin' heads, I don't think I'd be outta line in saying Jimi'd win.


Sure, it's highly subjective, but arguing for Jimi is fun. I tell ya, I've listened to a lot of guitar playing, and no one captivates me like Jimi. There are areas where others may have an advantage, but Jimi just made his guitar speak like no other.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

I would first like to add a few more I've since thought of that havent yet been posted and then eventually will engage in the Jimi Hendrix discussion....

1) Steve Miller
2) Joe Walsh
3) John Fogerty
4) Neil Young
5) Ry Cooder
6) Steve Cropper
7) Zal Yanovsky
8) David Gilmour (I can't believe I had forgotten him earlier)
9) Jorma Kaukonen
10) Jerry Garcia

 

[vince56]

If I were alive in the late 60s/early 70s, I would've been a disciple of Richie Blackmore and Jimi Hendrix. Deep Purple would've far-and-away been my favorite band. No one was better in that era, and few have come close since. Only Joe Satriani, Stanley Jordan, and John Petrucci could even be mentioned in the same breath as those two.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

If I were alive in the late 60s/early 70s, I would've been a disciple of Richie Blackmore and Jimi Hendrix. Deep Purple would've far-and-away been my favorite band. No one was better in that era, and few have come close since. Only Joe Satriani, Stanley Jordan, and John Petrucci could even be mentioned in the same breath as those two.

I must admit that I've only been able to get into a handful of songs by Deep Purple..."Smoke On The Water" and Hush (obviously both of those), "Perfect Strangers", "Pictures of Home", and "Woman From Tokyo" (I like it the least out of the 5 I listed though).....

I guess the reason why I never have been able to fully appreciate them because of how their line-up would constantly change over the years, but I guess I should overlook that since Blackmore was a constant in that band.....

I am wondering, which singer do you prefer listening to...Evans, Gillan, or Coverdale?

Edit:
Have to add:
1) Randy Bachman
2) Neal Schon

 

[jstadvl]

Dp

was as good as it got for progressive heavy metal at the time.
Mark Farner, Mick Taylor, just so many to name.
DP-Highway Star,Space Truckin, Burn, StromBringer. Their lates-"Bananas" is a good come back album that stays to their sound. Another one of those bands that got better as they went on.