- Learn how the world’s most iconic guitar players shaped the music scene
- Discover interesting facts about the best guitarists of all time
- Figure out what all great guitar players have in common – and the “X factor” of the best guitarists out there.
The guitar world has come a long way since this instrument was invented. Nowadays, we have robust distortions, 12-string guitars, and more genres than we care to recognize.
More importantly, we have years’ worth of quality music, powerful solos, and gut-wrenching riffs to enjoy. We owe it all to people who’ve revolutionized guitars, and I’m here to tell you all about them.
Explaining the Criteria for the Best Guitarists in the World
A quick Google search of the term “best guitarist” will yield thousands of results – articles that list people we all know and love. However, I realized few articles truly describe “why” these guitarists are a cut above the rest.
First of all, music is entirely subjective. No one can tell you what or who to like. Every criterion below is meant to rate guitarists based on the following factors objectively:
- Guitar innovation: People who’ve invented, upgraded, or downright revolutionized a skill, technique, or a new genre of music by playing guitar.
- Consistency: Guitarists who’ve demonstrated exemplary skills live and on recorded albums over decades.
- Playing quality: Whether it’s a riff, a lick, or a groundbreaking solo, all guitarists vying for the “best of all time” title have expressed more with notes than many have with their entire music catalogs.
- Songs: The legacy of all iconic guitar heroes lives on through their songs. Great tunes have made their bands great, not the other way around.
- Live presence: All world-class guitarists have an overwhelmingly strong aura when playing live. They live, breathe, and bleed their music for their fans.
8 Best Guitarists of All Time
Jimi Hendrix
James “Jimi” Hendrix is the name “everyone” knows.
Even though his catalog comprises merely three albums, each of his tunes is a world-class hit and is the embodiment of his funky, idiosyncratic songwriting (and playing) style.
Speaking of which, Jimi is easily among the best-rounded guitarists of all time. He wasn’t the first to deploy hybrid picking techniques, but he inspired scores of modern-day virtuosos (e.g., Tosin Abasi from Animals As Leaders comes to mind) to experiment with this style and possibly take it up a few notches.
If you’re a long-term fan of Jimi’s, you may already know that his music career didn’t hit off from the get-go. Old-school rock & roll fans knew him as Jimmy James – a session guitarist who eventually created Jimmy James & Blue Flames. He formed The Jimi Hendrix Experience in ‘66, and ever since then, he went on to conquer new heights with each new gig and album.
Jimi was a left-handed guitar player who surfaced when brands didn’t make lefty models. Jimi was also extremely picky regarding how a guitar sounds and feels, so you don’t even have to guess it – he couldn’t find a guitar that would fit his needs and playing style. So, what did he do? He chose to play guitars that felt right upside down.
Most guitarists would give up or at least try to learn how to play a right-handed guitar. Jimi was confident that he was above this handicap and simply flipped the axe, changed the string layout, and revolutionized this “inverse playing” style. One of my friends plays this way, and let me tell you, it’s extremely difficult to follow him during rehearsals (especially at live shows) since he almost always looks like he’s soloing.
Jimi Hendrix played close to 40 guitars throughout his relatively brief career. One of his earliest instruments was the Gibson Flying V, which Jimi hand-painted in these vibrant psychedelic colors.
If you Google-search the term “Jimi Hendrix,” most of the images that would pop up would show Jimi with his thirsty Fender Strat ‘68. He famously played it at the Woodstock show back in ‘69. He was handed this guitar by one of Fender’s agents, who thought he would like it. As it turns out, he adored it.
It’s not the guitars or his quirky “upside-down” style that made Jimi as popular and recognized as he is today – it was his complete devotion to the “rock and roll experience” (hence the name of his band).
I never had the fortune to attend one of his concerts live, but even when I watch them on the small screen, his moves, presence, and aura are so enthralling that I can’t even imagine what people felt at that legendary Woodstock performance.
Jimi passed way too soon but left a timeless legacy. His songs are still on heavy rotation at radio stations worldwide, and his unique brand of psychedelic rock continues to inspire new generations to pick up the guitar.
Edward “Eddie” Van Halen
Words can’t describe what the late great Eddie VH has done for the global guitar community. He practically reinvented the rulebook with his finger-tapping techniques and popularized DIY guitar customization by tinkering and downright creating most of his gear.
When “Eruption” came on in 1978, the world held its breath. It stands as one of the most recognizable guitar solos almost half a century later. Tapping, hammering, and pulling the notes at lightning speeds, Eddie managed to awe the world in merely 10 minutes.
Circling back a few years before his magnum opus, Eddie built his “Frankenstrat” – the guitar he designed out of necessity, expressing that he was looking for specs that “did not exist.”
While most guitarists of that time would stick to their guns, Eddie was constantly looking for new gear to play and tinker with. He played a Mini LP, he had a headless Kramer, and he played on a Steinberger GL. He was the embodiment of what most guitarists call the “endless pursuit of tone.”
More importantly, he was an amazing human being. While many iconic rock stars can be “divas” on their headlining tours, Eddie was always a humble gentleman who loved nothing more than to work on his guitars, write songs, and spend quality time with fellow musicians.
Anthony “Tony” Iommi
The “grandfather of heavy metal,” the pioneer of heavy guitar tunings, and the spirit of perseverance – Tony Iommi is far more than just one of the best guitarists ever.
For the two people who may not know who he is, Tony Iommi is the co-founder of the legendary Black Sabbath, which is not only the world’s first heavy metal group but also one of the longest-standing music acts out there.
My deepest admiration for Mr. Iommi stems from the fact that he nearly lost his fingertips early in his career. As the story goes, he suffered an accident on a “guillotine-type press” (as he calls it) when he was 17. Every doctor he visited told him he would never be able to play guitar again, but that didn’t stop him.
Like Eddie made his guitar, Tony made his own prosthetics by melting bottles into small thimbles. Since playing guitar was still extremely uncomfortable, he dropped his tuning to C# Standard (1 and a half semitones below E Standard).
He literally bled for his music and invented the deepest, heaviest style of rock – a genre that mothered modern-day heavy, death, and, to a degree, black metal. Tony’s story wasn’t as widely known as it is today. He achieved worldwide fame by simply being an extremely skilled guitar player and composer.
Even with such a huge handicap, Tony shaped a ton of wonderful solos and riffs. Even though “Paranoid” is Black Sabbath’s most popular song, I think his unique playing style is better showcased in tunes like “A National Acrobat”, “Planet Caravan,” and “Symptom of the Universe.”
Besides the aforementioned feats, Tony has a few other significant contributions to the grand guitar world. No one can replicate his sliding techniques and the exquisite way he phrases his tones. Whether it’s a talent or a blessing given to him after the incident can only be speculated.
Sir Brian May
Brian May is not only one of the best guitarists who ever lived – he is also one of the most educated musicians to have ever walked the earth. How many people, non-musicians included, can you think of that had an asteroid named after them? Well, one is named after Queen’s co-founder and guitarist (a minor planet with a permanent designation 52665 Brianmay).
His scientific life was so prolific that I could probably write an entire article on that subject alone, but in short, he holds a BSc degree and an associate degree from Imperial College London in Physics; his research paper related to zodiacal dust clouds earned him a spot at NASA, he co-founded the International Asteroid Day, and is a proud holder of the Lawrence Burpee Medal.
Despite these contributions to the global scientific and geographical space, May’s heart was always in Queen and music. Call it a blessing in disguise, if you will, but Brian’s thesis wasn’t initially approved, which may have led to him being so committed to making a career in the music world (he submitted his survey of Zodiacal Dust Clouds in the early 80s, and it wasn’t approved until 2007).
Sir Brian May was equally prolific in his music life. He co-founded Queen with the late Freddie Mercury and his drumming pal Roger Taylor in 1970; since then, they have released fifteen full-length albums.
He also collaborated with a variety of high-profile artists, including Chris Thompson for “Radio Voices,” Tangerine Dream on “Starmus – Sonic Universe,” and Kerry Ellis for “Acoustic by Candlelight” and “Golden Days”. Sir Brian also briefly played with Hank Marvin, Meat Loaf, Lynn Carey Saylor, Cliff Richard, and a couple you’d never guess – Five Finger Death Punch (Blue on Black) and Lady Gaga (You and I).
Although he wasn’t the only songwriter in Queen, Brian wrote some of the biggest hits that the world loves to this day, like Doing All Right, Father to Son, Some Day One Day, One Vision, I Want It All, and a score of others.
Just like Eddie and Iommi, Sir Brian is also an inventor. His father helped him build the legendary Red Special because Brian couldn’t save enough money for a real Fender axe.
In a nutshell, and in my humble opinion, Sir Brian May is one of the most authentic guitarists, among the most prolific songwriters, and one of the gentlest characters in the music industry.
Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa’s guitar style is founded in rock, but his distinctive playing is as experimental and avant-garde as possible. Even though many progressive bands sprouted in the early 60s, there aren’t many that so seamlessly blend pleasurable melodies with quirky time signatures, odd fills, and bizarre solos into harmonious “tunes.”
Frank demonstrated his skills on numerous occasions by playing lead guitar and conducting The Mothers of Invention – a band that always had almost a dozen active members, including a lot of big hitters such as Euclid James Sherwood, Don Preston, Van Dyke Parks, Jeff Simmons, and many others.
If you’re asking, “Why would a rock band need a conductor?” listen to The Black Page. There are so many details in this “little” 7-minute piece, not to mention the unconventional chord changes and changes in tempo and key that occur so frequently that there’s almost a rule to be drawn.
The Black Page, Trouble Every Day, and Help I’m A Rock are just some of the tunes that should give you a glimpse into how meticulous Frank was when composing, recording, and playing his songs. If you want your mind blown, let me say that they’ve made a whopping 30 full-length albums together filled with tunes of similar complexity.
One of the reasons why I so strongly admire Frank Zappa is that he was one of the firmest advocates for rock music and anti-censorship policies.
As the story goes, the PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) committee was formed in 1985, and it was bent on censoring music featuring “questionable lyrical content”. Besides Frank, Dee Snider of Twisted Sister and John Denver were called before the Senate to defend rock and roll.
I watched the entire hearing, and with each second, my admiration for Zappa grew. He protected his music and the entire genre from censorship with a calm head, reason, and intellect.
As for his playstyle, Zappa probably wasn’t the fastest shredder in rock music, but his solos and licks were as unique as they come. Even though he sadly passed in 1993, he passed the torch to his son Dweezil Zappa, who continues playing music with his band “Zappa Plays Zappa.”
Tom Morello
The guitarists I’ve mentioned above have inspired millions to pick up a guitar and bring new revolutions about. I believe one of the best guitarists representing the new generation of rock & roll artists is Tom Morello – Rage Against The Machine’s guitar player.
The world probably knows Tom from his time in RATM, although it wasn’t the first group he belonged to. Morello surfaced on the USA rock scene by playing guitar in Lock Up. Even though the band was signed to Geffen Records, the biggest dream of countless acts during that time, it didn’t last long.
Rage was formed in 1991; ever since then, it’s been on and off for a couple of years until finally achieving a tinge of stability in 2019. Crossovers between rock, rap, and hip-hop were still fairly new in the early 90s. It was the twilight of the grunge era, so Tom and his bandmates had to double down on creativity to become and remain relevant.
What separated Tom from virtually all guitarists ever was his unique “playing” style. He learned how to create unique noises by combining vibratos and slides and plugging his guitar on and off at rapid speed. For this wild technique to work, Tom meticulously practiced until he found the “sweet spots” – notes and harmonics that transformed violent noises into “pleasurable” noises.
Unlike many big guitar names, Tom doesn’t spend most of his time in a tour bus waiting for fans to line up for autographs. He is fighting for a just cause to end discrimination and bias everywhere, starting in the music industry. My greatest respect goes to his skills and efforts to make the global rock community more wholesome.
John Petrucci
If I had to describe one of the most brilliant minds in the modern guitar world, I’d use these words: Hard work meets talent, out-of-the-box thinking, and creativity. John Petrucci is a guitarist that every band wanted to have, but he devoted his entire artistic being to Dream Theater alone and continues to do so nearly four decades later.
Before jumping to Petrucci’s groundbreaking style and personal gear, let me tell you a fun fact about Dream Theater. I’m sure all prog metal fans already know the age-old story: four incredibly talented people bonded over their love for music at the esteemed Berklee College of Music and decided to drop out to create a band. It’s like quitting Harvard Business School to trade penny stocks from home, but these talented individuals made history with this decision.
John openly wore his musical influences on his sleeve from the get-go. He deified Black Sabbath and Rush and fell in love with bands like Iron Maiden and Metallica a bit later on. Knowing that each Dream Theater album has a different concept and each song is strikingly different from the other, where should a fan of DT search for these influences?
For one, Petrucci “borrowed” the ultra-heavy tone of Black Sabbath. He even composed a few tracks in the same tuning as Black Sabbath (C Standard), such as In the Name of God, A Nightmare to Remember, and my favorite, Untethered Angel.
Similar to Tosin Abasi and legendary guitarists who play guitars with more than 6 strings, Petrucci also used a 7-string axe to create what eventually became fan-favorite hits, such as Caught in a Web, The Dance of Eternity, and Dystopian Overture.
Onto John’s musical achievements and style. As a kid growing up with guitar instructional CDs, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Petrucci’s Rock Discipline. This instructional video lasts almost two hours and showcases John’s favorite riffs, scales, practice examples, and improvised solos. It took me years to become musically “literate” enough to follow this video.
That leads me to one of the simplest yet most impactful techniques Petrucci had taken to perfection – alternate picking. All guitarists can perform a series of downstrokes and upstrokes; John Petrucci and a handful of his peers can do so at the speed of sound.
More specifically, he’s the only guitarist besides Michael Angelo Batio who can hit around 40 notes per second with his sweeps. While such speeds are more than commendable for prog guitarists, I can’t overemphasize how precise and articulate John’s playing is.
Besides his outstanding shredding capabilities and pinpoint accuracy, John is also widely recognized as one of the most creative songwriters of our time. Even though musical tastes are subjective, he pushed the envelope with Dance of Eternity quite far. Breakdowns, heavy riffs, hauntingly beautiful melodies, super-fast shredding, and seamless leaps between odd-time signatures – John and his DT pals made it flow so smoothly.
Arguably, his most iconic guitar is the one he used on the most iconic Dream Theater album – the Ibanez JMP100 is the tone behind Images and Words. Even though it’s a classic 6-string solid-body guitar made of basswood and rosewood, its custom DiMarzio pickups (Steve’s Special on the bridge and Air Norton on the neck) make it sound incredibly authentic.
Not many artists get rewarded with a Baritone signature, yet Ernie Ball made one for John. The Tobacco Burst JP BFR is a massive, deep-sounding guitar with a longer scale length of 27”, heavy-gauge 12s, and a super-low tuning. He didn’t use it as extensively as his other guitars, but you can hear the JP BFR on Dream Theater tunes like Panic Attack from Octavarium, Wither from Black Clouds and Silver Linings, and Out of Reach from Distance Over Time.
There would be no Dream Theater without John’s prized Mesa Boogie amp. While most of his peers would use stacks of Marshall amps and cabs, John Petrucci would rely on MB Road King, mini rectifier cabinets, and one of the best-rounded heavy-duty amps of its time, the Mesa Boogie Mark V tube amp.
John Petrucci “popularized” progressive metal. Before Dream Theater reached commercial success, this music genre wasn’t easy to consume. We have John and his bandmates to thank for their incredible musicianship and the ability to make such complex songs more digestible.
Tosin Abasi
Tosin is the founder of the legendary instrumental prog metal masterpiece Animals as Leaders, its lead guitar player, and one of the most exquisite individuals in the world of guitars. He brought another dimension to hybrid picking and ultimately made it his own, not to mention that he’s so well-versed in guitar gear and technology that some of the biggest players in the game, like PRS or Dunlop, couldn’t wait to collaborate with him.
Everything about his entry to music is interesting. Whenever I see how surgically accurate, controlled, and fault-proof his playing is, I need to pause for a second and remember that he’s a self-taught musician. Tosin Abasi is one of the handful of ultra-talented people who grasped the fundamentals of guitar playing from day one.
There’s a bit of a story that will ultimately lead to him forming Animals As Leaders. Tosin surfaced on the Maryland metal scene in 2000, playing with bands that achieved moderate success until he finally got the recognition he deserved in Reflux – a tech metalcore group that allowed his virtuosic skills to shine their brightest.
Tosin amazed talent scouts at Prosthetic Records, the label helmed by Dan Fitzgerald that signed dozens of high-tier bands like Gojira and All That Remains; even Lamb of God was under their wings for a while. Tosin was offered a solo deal, and that’s what the first iteration of Animals as Leaders was.
Abasi created a unique sub-genre in the prog metal world with this band and ultimately revolutionized the fingerstyle-hybrid picking playstyle. His guitar work is so intricate and deliberate that he needed custom guitars for his riffs to come to life truly.
During the early years of Animals as Leaders, his main workhorse was a custom-made Strandberg EGS – a headless 8-string guitar with an increased scale length, angled frets, and active electronics. I always found its shape awkward, especially since its wings feel a bit too far apart, but it’s an incredible axe with a distinctly smooth tone.
According to Strandberg’s engineers, the first version of the Headless 8-string was just a prototype. Tosin seemed to have liked it so much that he kept playing it until the final version (Strandberg #34 Demo with a Tinted Red body) was finally ready a few years later.
As Animals as Leaders grew, so did Tosin’s renown. He was welcomed into the Ibanez family and got his first Ibanez signature, the TAM 100, in 2013. TAM100 is a gorgeous 8-string solid-body guitar similar to his first custom-made Strandberg. Rocking gold-plated hardware and five DiMarzio pickups, this guitar paved the way for a design Tosin would ultimately work on with his proprietary brand.
Many people ask, “Why did Tosin leave Ibanez?” and that’s precisely the reason – he left in 2017 to create Abasi Concepts. With more freedom to explore the possibilities of more “modern” guitars, Tosin launched several series of cutting-edge guitars, the most prominent being the Larada 8-string.
Tosin’s approach to guitar-building is completely unique, but I think his biggest contribution to the guitar world lies in his playing style. You’ve probably heard of bassists playing their bass like a guitar, but the world wasn’t prepared for a guitarist playing guitar like an 8-string bass.
Tosin thumps, pops, slaps, and taps his guitars with such precision and speed that it almost seems easy. For a guitarist who doesn’t even need a pick to play faster and more articulate than most, Tosin raised the bar quite a bit and gave us plenty of homework.
Honorable Mentions
Mick “#7” Thomson
The “spooky” Slipknot guitarist Mick Thomson is famous for super-chunky riffs and exceptionally punchy guitar tone, or more specifically, “tones”. He played over a dozen guitars on Slipknot records and live shows from custom B.C. Rich models to Jackson King Vs. to Ibanez RGs, and even Fender Strats.
Even though Slipknot’s quirky style isn’t the perfect battleground for Mick’s shredding skills, his remarkably expressive form allows guitars to shine above multiple sets of heavy percussions in each song. Most guitarists struggle to keep up with one drummer, yet Mick always finds the right guitar and tone to fit into a collective of nine instruments.
Nita Strauss
From playing in an Iron Maiden cover band to performing with none other than the great Alice Cooper, Nita Strauss has achieved much in a relatively short period.
Her first steps into the music world followed Iron Maidens, which gave her enough exposure to join Alice Cooper’s band in 2014. Nita is an exceptional shredder with a mesmerizing stage presence and gives her all on every show.
After years of working as a session guitarist, Nita finally sprouted her wings and formed her solo band. With the launch of her first album, “Controlled Chaos,” she entered the big leagues and got signed to Sumerian Records, the label that had Animals as Leaders in its roster for a while.
Tim Henson
Polyphia, a math-prog rock band from Plano, TX, has been around since 2010 and is now considered among the best contemporary acts in this genre.
Tim Henson, the lead guitarist of this band, has the groove and vibe of a jazz player, the licks of an avant-garde instrumentalist, and the skills of a machine. Their tune “Playing God” perfectly describes what futuristic metal should sound like, and Tim’s there to make it happen.
Henson’s playing accuracy, speed, and control are comparable to the greatest guitarists out there. Ever since Polyphia was conceived, Tim and his band were on a soul-searching mission, looking for ways to further cement or redefine their style and genre.
With such a varied skill set and a mind open to sonic exploration, Tim’s potential to grow as a guitar player is virtually limitless.
Ichika Nito
Ichika Nito is one of the youngest stars in the guitar world who rose to prominence in 2018 by uploading unique (and often more intricate) covers of popular songs, like “Can’t Stop” by Red Hot Chilli Peppers.
While many modern-day guitarists strive to be as fast as possible, Ichika stands out with his remarkably expressive playing. The emotions behind his strikes and taps are almost palpable, and even though his playstyle can be characterized as complex, he never seems to overplay.
He recently joined Clara Benin as a featured artist on the song “Reflection,” showcasing his more tender sensibilities and proving how multi-faceted he is as a guitar player.
Wrapping Up
Thousands of people can be considered among the greatest guitarists of all time. I wanted to share the fascinating stories and achievements of the five guitar players the entire rock community practically worships. These guitarists have changed the way the guitar is played and music is made, so they’ve more than earned their titles.
