Hendrix Tops List Of Greatest Guitar Solos

[Phatie]

Hendrix Tops List Of Greatest Guitar Solos
Gilmour, Knopfler, Page Follow Rocker On List

POSTED: 2:58 pm EDT September 8, 2006
UPDATED: 3:45 pm EDT September 8, 2006

NEW YORK -- When it comes to great guitar solos, Guitar One magazine said Jimi Hendrix tops the list

According to the magazine, Hendrix's solo on "Machine Gun" is No. 1 on its list of the 101 Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time.

The magazine said Hendrix "can conjure the sound and fury of war -- bombs, guns, diving fighter jets, showers of ammo -- in a single three-and-half minute guitar solo."

It beats out David Gilmour on Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb," which the magazine described as "not overrated, simply transcendent."

Mark Knopfler's solo on "Sultans of Swing" by Dire Straits is third, followed by Jimmy Page on Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven."

Hendrix comes back to take fifth place, for "All Along the Watchtower."

Just making the list at 101 is Brad Gillis, on Night Ranger's "Sister Christian."

Guitar One's guitar solo issue comes out Sept. 19.

[fast98dodge]

Jimi was definitely the man...

[muffdiver]

Yes , he was...
How can ya not love Jimi.....?

[cokemach1]

Jimi's the best. No doubt. Always will be to me.

I like the recognition for work he did with The Band of Gypsys (Billy Cox & Buddy Miles). That is some of his best work and it never gets any airplay. Maybe I need to get satellite radio.

So much for people saying he is "just effects pedals", eh Eddie?

You know, people tend to knock Jimi as not being that great because some people think he kind of gets forced down their throat. I can understand that. But when you listen to ALL of his stuff, he doesn't get blocked into one guitar genre. Listen to Electric Lady Land. You can pick out so many guitar styles from that one album, it's incredible. Don't listen to the press, pick up some obscure stuff and you'll see (if you aren't that big on Jimi).

He could do it all. If you get a chance to read anything from the musicians that played with him and the musicians that played "against" him at the time, it's funny how they to this day are still in awe.

Thank God for Jimi.

[graeme]

Jimi's the best. No doubt. Always will be to me.

I like the recognition for work he did with The Band of Gypsys (Billy Cox & Buddy Miles). That is some of his best work and it never gets any airplay. Maybe I need to get satellite radio.

So much for people saying he is "just effects pedals", eh Eddie?

You know, people tend to knock Jimi as not being that great because some people think he kind of gets forced down their throat. I can understand that. But when you listen to ALL of his stuff, he doesn't get blocked into one guitar genre. Listen to Electric Lady Land. You can pick out so many guitar styles from that one album, it's incredible. Don't listen to the press, pick up some obscure stuff and you'll see (if you aren't that big on Jimi).

He could do it all. If you get a chance to read anything from the musicians that played with him and the musicians that played "against" him at the time, it's funny how they to this day are still in awe.

Thank God for Jimi.

Absolutely spot on.
Jimi was to the electric guitar what John Coltrane was to the tenor sax or Jaco pastorius to the bass or what Keith Jarrett is to Jazz piano or Miles Davis to jazz trumpet etc etc etc etc
He transcended the physical limits of the instrument and created pure music.

[Double Down]

I have to get this off my chest: I don't get the love affair with Jimi Hendrix. I'm not gonna bash the guy because I know that would make me look like an idiot. But I truly believe it was his death that added to his legend, not necessarily his playing. I'm sorry, but I just think guys like Eddie and Jimmy Page were far more creative and inspiring.

I also want to go on record as saying Hendrix' Star Spangled Banner is the most overrated piece of music out there.

There, I said it.

[hatchetforce]

Absolutely spot on.
Jimi was to the electric guitar what John Coltrane was to the tenor sax or Jaco pastorius to the bass or what Keith Jarrett is to Jazz piano or Miles Davis to jazz trumpet etc etc etc etc
He transcended the physical limits of the instrument and created pure music.

Graeme, that is a great post. I often play Hendrix, Coltrane, Jeff Beck, and Miles Davis throughout the day.

[cokemach1]

I have to get this off my chest: I don't get the love affair with Jimi Hendrix. I'm not gonna bash the guy because I know that would make me look like an idiot. But I truly believe it was his death that added to his legend, not necessarily his playing. I'm sorry, but I just think guys like Eddie and Jimmy Page were far more creative and inspiring.

I also want to go on record as saying Hendrix' Star Spangled Banner is the most overrated piece of music out there.

There, I said it.

You are correct in talking about how death generally tends to make one's career that much bigger.

Star Spangled Banner - it ain't just about the music, it was about a statement about the times back then. Music is huge, but that version takes on more than music. That's why it gets the press.

To me, as much as I think Eddie is the best guitar player on the planet for Rock, Jimi hit a lot more than that (just Rock), and in a short time, also within the same album. That is one of the great things about him. Eddie has never really done that in my opinion. On the other side, the bad thing for Eddie now is that he is kind of boxed in to what we are accustomed to hearing from him (so if he tries something different (parts of VH III for example) people are going to reject it). That's part of Jimi's greatness, although he was not around as long as Eddie, so he may have eventually dealt with what Eddie has dealt with as far as trying new things. Jimi didn't have that in general in his short time (you can make the argument that his management tried to box him in - Michael Jeffrey hated The Band of Gypsys, for instance - worried about the dollar by white people not being spent, and yes I'm white - this was a reality of the music biz back then).

Like I've said before, you can take what the public perception of Jimi's music is (Purple Haze, Purple Haze, Purple Haze), then pick up Electric Ladyland (the stuff that doesn't get airplay) or even The Band of Gypsys albums. Those are all over the place, and yet it all fits together.

Don't see how you can hit the creative argument though. Just doesn't hold water to me. Creativity to me is doing a lot of different genres and styles. Eddie hasn't done that, Page hit Rock and Blues and not much else in my opinion (although I love him - don't mean to slam - not trying to). Jimi did more than just those genres in a fifth of the music making time, no question. Now, you may not like some of the others styles Jimi hit, but I guess that part is just to whether or not you like them or not.

Now, I'm not trying to convince you of me being right and you being wrong (because opinions all suck and there IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG HERE). If that's your opinion, cool.

Rock on JumpTheHotTeacher! I respect your opinion. Sorry about being too long in this. When you get down to it, I guess it doesn't matter. Just opinions flying around. The world needs more opinions, doesn't it ?

[smithjc]

I don't get the Mark Knopfler vote for Sultans of Swing. The guitar work was okay but I don't think it deserved to be that high up on the list.

And where the eff is Clapton's work from Layla????

EDIT: How the eff did I forget to mention the great Jimi?? The original Top Jimi, IMO. Star Spangled Banner is epic and so captures that moment in time.

[YankeeRose]

Eruption by Van Halen should be 1.

Stairway To Heaven by Led Zeppelin is 2.

[Double Down]

Our own bias VH aside, I really believe Eddie could have 10 songs in the top 15. Any guitar solo list has to start and end with Ed.

[ziggysmalls]

Count me as one of the people that don't automatically put Hendrix as the best guitarist ever. While he was great, I also think that had he lived he would be viewed similar as Jeff Beck. Nobody's fame has ever took a hit for dying early. Jimi, Janis, Jim, Randy, SRV, Kurt, etc are all more popular now then they were when they were living.

While I agree he is tremendously influence wthin rock guitar, his solo's leave a lot to be desired. He was a witch with his rhythm playing but we best remember his leads for the showmanship rather then the notes he played.

Think about it this way. Do you think more people tried to learn Eruption over the years then the Star Spangled Banner? I have definitely have heard the tapping segment more times then any other solo in Guitar Center for the last 20 years.

I still think the dude was great but more for his songs and rhythm playing rather then his leads.

[willy4pres]

I understand where people are coming from when they say they don't understand all the hype surrounding Jimi. But if you think about it Jimi was SO much better then anybody playing in his era (that played the type of music he played). He seemed to not give a shit about anything that was played before him yet at the same time combined every single interesting prior influence imaginable.

If you listen to any of his version's of "Driving South" I think it best describes what it is that made Hendrix amazing to so many of us. If he and the band jammed that tune for 8 minutes you would hear about 3-5 minutes of crap coming out of the speakers with the remaining time being something cool to listen to. To a lot of people that doesn't cut it, Ed didn't waste 10 seconds of crap on anything he has ever done (exclude How Many Say I please) so it falls short for many people. To some of us the remaining minutes are pure genius that's just chilling to listen to. To me "Machine Gun" from B-O-G isn't a song, it's pure beauty in audible form, but I can understand how people couldn't get into, it's almost not even a song.

Ill put it this way. For me, watching Ed play guitar on Live Without A Net makes me want to pick up my guitar and play. Watching Jimi play at Woodstock (on that new DVD) makes me never want to pick up a guitar again.