My list: At the top of my list can be no other but James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix, the man who conquered the London guitar scene the way Alexander the Great conquered the known world. Below Hendrix: Brian May Chuck Berry Dave Guilmour Peter Frampton Carlos Santana Nuno Bettencourt (Extreme II - Pornograffiti was my introduction to hard rock beyond the '70s) Yngwie Malmsteen Unfortunatly I have never heard Frank Zappa or Steve Vai; from what I've read I think I'd like their music (I think I'll order Flex-Able, which I've heard is Steve Vai trying to sound like Frank Zappa...) I like Clapton, Van Halen and Stevie Ray Vaughn, but not enough to put them on the list...

YES - Brian May, Brian May !!

Can't argue. Jimi Hendrix is number one. Besides, he is a Sag' born Nov 27th. 11/27/42. He dominated the guitar. Electric! BB King is number two. He rocked the Armadillo World HQ and the wall mural at the AWHQ of hime with an armadillo exploding from his chest is classic, a visual representation of the way his sound exploded into space. Stevie Ray Vaughan does make my list at number three. Again, the Austin bias prevails. We have a statue of him by Town Lake. Pete Townshend is number four. On the strength of his Woodstock performance alone, that will be etched in to the minds of generations to come. That had to get your blood going. Neil Young. Crazy Horse that he is. Number 5. George Harrison at 6. All Things Must Pass. See http://www.spring.net/beatles Jerry Garcia is number 7. His old Band still plays as the Other One. His long, aimless riffs were classic. 8. Santana. On the strength of his Spirit. And the fact that I went to a lot of his concerts in a Universe Far Away. 9. Steve Cropper, under rated usually. I read somewhere "This guy had such a distinct sound and played with so many greats;Sam and Dave, Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, The Blues Brothers. He helped create the early rock'n'roll sound which spawned so many of these other great guitarists and almost nobody knows his work. That is a shame." 10. Steve Winwood. There's no logic to this choice, it's purely emotional. A few honorable mentions: Jeff Beck Jimmy Paige Allan Holdsworth - Steve Vai hailed him the Master Eddy Van Halen Pat Metheny Eric Clapton Chuck Berry - saw him play too, at the Santa Rosa Fairgrounds. T Bone Walker Keith Richards - some day the only thing left on the planet will be cockroaches and Keith Richards. Robert Johnson Charles Christian Peter Green Richard Thompson Steve Vai Tony Iommi Buddy Guy Jimmy Nolen Joni Mitchell

Hmm... I mentioned Clapton in my first post, but neither of his successors with the Yardbirds. Thanks for adding them. I left out Jeff Beck 'coz I haven't yet heard anything of his, and I left out Jimmy Page because all I know of him is his work on Led Zeppelin IV, and Bonham is more prominent in that album than Page... In fact, the folks on your list I have heard (as opposed to those I have heard of) are: BB King (VERY skillful player, but oddly not one of my heroes...) SRV - I have a SRV & Double Trouble Greatest Hits album; I guess I'm not a fan of Texas Blues, which would explain why I completely forgot to mention Billy Gibbons earlier... Pete Townsend - created a real dilemma for punk: his early work (e.g. "My Generation") was everything they wanted to be but his later work (e.g. "Tommy") was everything they wanted to get away from. Sad to say, I am most familiar with his work through the opening credits of CSI - Crime Scene Investigation, then again, my interest in Queen really began with the opening credits of Highlander - The Series... Neil Young - I only know his work through CSN&Y and am not sure which guitarist is which when listening to the music... George Harrison - For some reason, he does not impress me as a guitarist. Carlos Santana - also on my list Steve Cropper - I left him off my list because I couldn't remember any of his tracks. Have since remembered "Green Onions" and "Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay". Steve Winwood - I have heard him only on "Gimme Some Lovin'" by the Spencer Davis Group. I do not remember any guitar from that song, unless the opening riff is guitar and not bass as I had thought. WHAT A VOICE! And at SIXTEEN! Jimmy Page (see top of post) Eddie Van Halen (mostly the "Beat It" solo, do the music videos for "Jump" and "Hot For Teacher" count?) Eric Clapton (favourite is his uncredited solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on the White Album) Chuck Berry (on my list, too) Keith Richards - Thank you! Now how could I have left off the guy who created the riff for "Satisfaction"? ("Keith Richards - some day the only thing left on the planet will be cockroaches and Keith Richards." - Cher will not be pleased with this statement... Saw a documentary of a Chuck Berry tour managed by Keith Richards, and Richards looked older than Berry...) Joni Mitchell, but I've never heard any truly inspiring guitar playing from her. Her lyrics and singing, on the other hand... I have never heard of Jimmy Nolen. Who is he? Apart from those, there are a lot of guitarists on your list that I have heard OF and whose music I would like to hear - Jerry Garcia, Jeff Beck, Allan Holdsworth, Pat Metheny, T-Bone Walker, Robert Johnson, Charlie Christian, Peter Green (who wrote "Black Magic Woman" for his band Fleetwood Mac), Richard Thompson & Buddy Guy. I am not sure I want to hear Tony Iommi...

BTW, who was the guitarist who played the intro to "When Doves Cry"? Was it Prince himself? A guitarist with his band? A session player?

Hi all "I am not sure I want to hear Tony Iommi..." Did you hear him play Paranoid with "the Madman" at some stage and be deafened? Rob

Kia Ora Roger Waters - Perhaps the best guitarist I have seen, with very interesting solo works like Amused to Death, Radio KAOS and Pros and Cons of Hitch-hiking David Gilmour - Duelling with Waters for title of best guitarist, Comfortably Numb guitar solo one of his finest moments John Denver - Multi-talented, but writing gentler songs than the aforementioned yet to hear this man live would have been a dream come true Doyle Bramhall II - Good vocals on Roger Waters: In the flesh, and good guitar Andy Fairweather-Low - guitarist with some flair in Roger Waters: In the Flesh, and is apparently a key member of Eric Clapton's band Snowy White - performed with distinction on Roger Waters: In the Flesh, and Roger Waters: The Wall - live in Berlin Geoff Maddock - on here not because he is my cousin, but because Goldenhorse and NZ music would be much the worse without his talent. Can arrange orchestral music as well. Rob