Most OVERRATED and UNDERRATED guitarists

[lordsurya08]

It irritates me to no end when people list Van Halen and Slash as the greatest guitarists of all time.

Ven Halen could do insane tapping, but he didn't invent it, he just popularized it. And all his solos sound the same, have little innovation or emotion, and are just plain boring.

Slash is just meh. IMO Izzy Stradlin is a better guitarist.

And on the underrated side, George Harrison. He's hardly a showy guitarist, and rarely rocks out, but when he does he's awesome. Listen to the solos in Hey Bulldog, The End, and Something, the backing lines in One After 909, and the guitar work in And Your Bird Can Sing and She Said She Said. He really knows how to complement John Lennon's plain rhythm guitar and spice it up.

Hendrix isn't overrated, the guitar work in Slight Return is amazing. And Clapton is God. So is Duane Allman and B. B. King.

Kurt Cobain is pretty mediocre and so is Kirk Hammett. Angus Young is overhyped; all his solos sound the same as well (he's good songwriter though).

Prince is kinda underrated too. That man can play.

EDIT Dave Davies deserves a mention too. He has some sick solos in You Really Got Me and All Day and All of the Night. Tony Iommi is pretty awesome too.

And of course, Jimmy Page is one of the greatest of all time also. That goes without saying...

 

[Kyriakos]

I agree with most of what you wrote, but i wouldnt put Cobain and Hammet in the same sentence like that Hammet is an average guitarist, and not at all good in improvisation. I like some of the solos in the songs, but im not sure if he actually wrote them.

Cobain, on the other hand, is by no means a good guitarist. He did have an ear for interesting melody though, perhaps this came instinctively (who knows). In live performances he is ussually even worse at playing...

As for Clapton, well, i must confess i never really found him that interesting. I used to be good at soloing, and all the stuff Clapton plays appear to be the standard, no innovation. I recall one of (i think it is by him) Santana's quotes, according to which "you should always play the second phrase that comes to your mind, and never the first one). Clapton seems to be stuck at that normal, anodyne first phrase, but it just might be my own tastes

 

[sophie]

Harrison was definitely great. I'd put Dave Davies on that list too, definitely an incredibly excellent guitarist.

Another I'd put on that list is Robbie Robertson of The Band. While that whole band seems to be grossly underrated, Robertson definitely ranks among the top underrated guitarists. Just listen to the solo here.


Link to video.

From the last waltz. Clapton's strap breaks during a solo, Robertson picks him up without missing a beat, and does a pretty damn good job in the process. His solo later on in the song just makes me smile every time.

Another good solo:


Link to video.

As for other underrated guitarists. I don't consider Garcia to be underrated (ok maybe I do a little, since I consider him to be at least top 15 ever and most don't) but I definitely think that the Grateful Dead's rhythm guitarist Bob Weir to be seriously underrated. Definitely one of the best rhythm guitarists of all time.

 

[madviking]

Overrated - Cobain, Slash, Petty, Angus Young [sorry, but he isn't really that good...], every guitarist associated with an 80s glam metal band
Underrated - Mike McCready [aka the guy from Pearl Jam], Jerry Cantrel [AiC]

 

[SuperJay]

Overrated: Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, Slash, David Gilmour (yeah, I said it).

Underrated: Adam Jones, Prince, Jerry Garcia, George Harrison, Trey Anastasio.

PS: Owen, I think you and I should converse about music at some point. From your posts in these threads, I sense the Force is strong with you. (And our tastes definitely overlap.) I concede you may have a point about Bobby as a rhythm guitarist; I confess that his vocals turn me off so much that I'm inclined to dismiss him altogether, which isn't fair.

 

[Kyriakos]

David Gilmour is not overrated If for no other reason then for the fact that no one else sounds like him. I mean that has to count for something. As Flaubert once wrote "the main thing is to not look like your neighbour", in this case to not sound like him

 

[madviking]

Gilmour's name isn't thrown around aimlessly like many other guitarists' from the era, so he isn't overrated nor underrated in my book.

 

[SuperJay]

David Gilmour is not overrated If for no other reason then for the fact that no one else sounds like him. I mean that has to count for something. As Flaubert once wrote "the main thing is to not look like your neighbour", in this case to not sound like him

I don't think that makes him a "guitar god," though. Remember, the thread is about who is overrated, not who is good. Gilmour is great, no question... but he gets placed upon an altar that I don't think he deserves. (And I'm a HUGE Pink Floyd fan, too.)

Gilmour's name isn't thrown around aimlessly like many other guitarists' from the era, so he isn't overrated nor underrated in my book.

I find his name gets thrown around quite a lot as one of the best rock guitarists ever, primarily based on a few memorable solos from songs like "Comfortably Numb."

 

[madviking]

I don't think that makes him a "guitar god," though. Remember, the thread is about who is overrated, not who is good. Gilmour is great, no question... but he gets placed upon an altar that I don't think he deserves. (And I'm a HUGE Pink Floyd fan, too.)

This is a fair judgment.

I find his name gets thrown around quite a lot as one of the best rock guitarists ever, primarily based on a few memorable solos from songs like "Comfortably Numb."

But that's his work, not his name; his solo in "CN" is worthy of being ranked among one of the best; he earned greatness; he wasn't some guy who has a big name and never really preforms at the level the should be at; he never was a superstar as many other guitarists have been.

 

[sophie]

PS: Owen, I think you and I should converse about music at some point. From your posts in these threads, I sense the Force is strong with you. (And our tastes definitely overlap.) I concede you may have a point about Bobby as a rhythm guitarist; I confess that his vocals turn me off so much that I'm inclined to dismiss him altogether, which isn't fair.

I would generally agree with you, though rather reservedly. When I first got into the Grateful Dead (the very very first album I listened to of my own free volition was Europe '72, which remains to this day my all time most favorite album) I actually preferred the Bobby stuff (as I recall, Saturday Night was my favorite). As time went on, and my tastes expanded, I grew to prefer Jerry, as I feel has happened with the vast majority of Deadheads. There are definitely Bobby songs I hate (VoC comes to mind), and there are songs that I tend to shy away from (Playin in the Band tends to be a song I skip nowadays), but Bobby's still got some absolutely good stuff. El Paso, Me and My Uncle, Big River, Mexicali Blues, these rank among my favorite Dead songs. Also the Europe '72 version of Saturday Night is still simply superb (just the right amount of energy minus Bobby getting carried away with his Michael Jackson impression). That being said, you don't even have to listen to Bobby songs to appreciate Bobby's guitar work. Pick any song and just listen to his part. He really is a fantastic guitarist, and moreover one who often gets overshadowed because Phil Lesh is one of the greatest Bassists of all time and Jerry Garcia is one of the greatest Guitarists of all time.

 

[SuperJay]

But that's his work, not his name; his solo in "CN" is worthy of being ranked among one of the best; he earned greatness; he wasn't some guy who has a big name and never really preforms at the level the should be at; he never was a superstar as many other guitarists have been.

Oh, okay, I see what you're saying. Yes, he is a great guitarist, and yes, he's "earned" that moreso than some other guitarists who are considered great "names"... but I still feel like he's held up as "best guitarist ever" and I don't think he's quite that groundbreaking or innovative... so that's what I call overrated. But you're right, there are certainly guitarists who are more overrated than Gilmour.

That being said, you don't even have to listen to Bobby songs to appreciate Bobby's guitar work. Pick any song and just listen to his part. He really is a fantastic guitarist, and moreover one who often gets overshadowed because Phil Lesh is one of the greatest Bassists of all time and Jerry Garcia is one of the greatest Guitarists of all time.

That's definitely true. I'll take you up on that and pay more attention to Bobby's parts in any given song. Because you're right, I'm usually carried away by Jerry or Phil (or Bill or Mickey or Keith or...) and sort of overlook poor Bobby.

 

[madviking]

Oh, okay, I see what you're saying. Yes, he is a great guitarist, and yes, he's "earned" that moreso than some other guitarists who are considered great "names"... but I still feel like he's held up as "best guitarist ever" and I don't think he's quite that groundbreaking or innovative... so that's what I call overrated. But you're right, there are certainly guitarists who are more overrated than Gilmour.

If you need any clue of how big of a Floyd fan I am...please direct your eyes to my avatar.

 

[SuperJay]

If you need any clue of how big of a Floyd fan I am...please direct your eyes to my avatar.

Oh, believe me, man - I'm right there with you. Floyd is one of my favorite bands of all time - my favorite "classic rock" band by far (though I wouldn't categorize them as such, myself). I just think that Roger Waters and Rick Wright had as much to do with The Pink Floyd Sound (inside joke for the fans!) as Gilmour did.

IMO, Pink Floyd is a great example of a band that's greater than the sum of its parts - while it featured at least 3 stellar musicians (not knocking Nick Mason, but...) I think it carved out a completely unique space in rock music by harnessing the contributions of all four members, along with Syd Barrett in the early years. Floyd's success, influence, and lasting legacy doesn't rest on any one of its members, but on the synergy created by all four of them.

 

[downtown]

Nice catch with Robbie Robertson, Owen. Certainly his work went under the radar. Heck, all of The Band kind of did. Levon Helms should be as famous to Drummers as Bonham and Rich.

I'll throw Derek Trucks as an underrated guy, along with Prince, and echo Slash and Cobain as being overrated.

 

[SuperJay]

Totally agree re: Derek Trucks. Speaking of the ABB connection, Dickey Betts doesn't get the credit he deserves. He probably does among musicians, but among the general public, he's virtually unknown, despite being part of the Allmans' powerhouse guitar duo with Duane.

EDIT: Might have to throw Frank Zappa out there... he's definitely well-known as a bandleader, composer, and overall iconoclast, but I think he's potentially underrated as a guitarist.

 

[LAnkou]

well, Brian May is a name that isn't written a lot, but man, he had to be the guitarist of Freddie Mercury and he could stand out!!!

Andy Summers, Pete Townsend, Billy Gibbons and Jonny Greenwood are underrated guitarists according to my personal taste and what i can read on the web.
I agree that Kurt Cobain is overhyped, but i'm not so sure about Angus Young. He is so oftenly described as overrated that it isn't justice to all he brought to "Riff Rock". And how can he be overrated if everybody knows it?

As a non-english speaker, you always lack guitarists from groups that don't perform in english: Serge Teyssot-Gay (Noir désir), Mathieu Chedid (-M-), Jean-Louis Aubert et Louis Bertignac (Téléphone) for most famous french rock bands.
I've heard Jean-Jacques Goldman and Serge Gainsbourg are/were very proficient at playing too...

 

[Soda7777777]

Overrated: Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Kurt Cobain, Eric Clapton, Slash, The Edge, Prince
Underrated: Bernard Sumner, Johnny Marr, Kevin Shields, Dave Fielding

These are the guitarists that I feel are overrated and underrated. Mind you, I do feel there are guitarists who are well rated.
I included Prince on this list, because I'm from Minneapolis, and I have to deal with people trying to show of their Minnesota pride by saying Prince is the best guitarist ever. And well, it gets annoying after a while.
Jimmy Page, because of his sloppy guitar work.
Kurt Cobain, because Nirvana was the Cheap Trick of the 90s. Simply a pop band.
Slash, because everything Guns N Rose ever did was bloody awful.
Jimi Hendrix, lack of real talent. Seemed to need drugs to play well, and well, that isn't talent if you need drugs to show your abilities.
Eric Clapton, abilities are quite good, just has bigger reputation then he has talent.

 

[sophie]

Overrated: Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Kurt Cobain, Eric Clapton, Slash, The Edge, Prince

I disagree with half of that list.

Underrated: Bernard Sumner, Johnny Marr, Kevin Shields, Dave Fielding

Never listened to any of these dudes.

Jimmy Page, because of his sloppy guitar work.

Disagree. So awesome. Especially for his experimentation that he did with guitar work, such as his work with a violin bow. When you consider, not just his work with Led Zeppelin, but his very extensive work with The Yardbirds and as a session guitarist, you realize he really is a very talented guitarist.


Link to video.

This video made me rediscover just how awesome Led Zeppelin is.

Kurt Cobain, because Nirvana was the Cheap Trick of the 90s. Simply a pop band.
Slash, because everything Guns N Rose ever did was bloody awful.

I agree with this.

Jimi Hendrix, lack of real talent. Seemed to need drugs to play well, and well, that isn't talent if you need drugs to show your abilities.

I'm sorry, but this statement makes me a bit angry.

Eric Clapton, abilities are quite good, just has bigger reputation then he has talent.

Clapton is good. His one album with Blind Faith, I consider to be absolute genius. Clapton+Winwood=liquid gold.

Presence of the Lord is one of my most favorite songs evar.


Link to video.

 

[Glassfan]

Robin Trower on his Fender Stratocaster was one of the finest of the 70's. Steve Howe from Yes should get honerable mention.

 

[Communisto]

most UNDERRATED


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R.I.P.