Rolling Stone’s new (and always controversial) greatest guitarists of all time list

[rayc]

You mean when he was allowed to write songs for albums and therefore his playing style - one that best suited his songs - was allowed to develop?

He played standard licks on the 1st few LPs - it was what was asked of him and what he knew. They were gigging & recording so often getting new ideas would've been quite difficult.

When you write "I feel" is it becasue that's what you feel or what you think based on listening? I can't seem to nail people down on the use of the "I feel" thing...rather like the impermanence of "I'm loving".

Doesn’t matter whether he was allowed or not. The fact is, he didn’t.

It never occurred. You can’t take a scenario and say it doesn’t apply simply because there’s another plausible scenario out there that could have happened.

Honestly Ray, you’re such a contrarian. It’s frustrating.

C'mon,
Having a different opinion isn't contrarian. It's a different opinion based on a different perspective. That is how I see it. I'm no Beatles fan but I do prefer George's post B songwriting to Paul's partly because of his signature sound.
The world of commentary & journalism seems to be light up by McCartney's coming tour and giving his revisionist statements credit. Perhaps that's why Rolling Stone's respondents rated him so highly.

I am, genuinely interested in the "I feel" thing. Seriously. It has replaced I believe, I think & I reckon in at least 50% of the world's English speaking social media writers & folk who speak on TV etc. I don't understand it because the education system, at least in NSW taught kids, very carefully, to preface opinion in persuasive writing with a squillion alternatives that make sense, while I feel doesn't. it's an open question for anyone to answer. Most folk use the phrase these days.

[WhiskeyJack]

The best member of the Beatles was George Martin.

The lord of the rings guy ?

[WhiskeyJack]

Doesn’t matter whether he was allowed or not. The fact is, he didn’t.

It never occurred. You can’t take a scenario and say it doesn’t apply simply because there’s another plausible scenario out there that could have happened.

Honestly Ray, you’re such a contrarian. It’s frustrating.

C'mon,
Having a different opinion isn't contrarian. It's a different opinion based on a different perspective. That is how I see it. I'm no Beatles fan but I do prefer George's post B songwriting to Paul's partly because of his signature sound.
The world of commentary & journalism seems to be light up by McCartney's coming tour and giving his revisionist statements credit. Perhaps that's why Rolling Stone's respondents rated him so highly.

I am, genuinely interested in the "I feel" thing. Seriously. It has replaced I believe, I think & I reckon in at least 50% of the world's English speaking social media writers & folk who speak on TV etc. I don't understand it because the education system, at least in NSW taught kids, very carefully, to preface opinion in persuasive writing with a squillion alternatives that make sense, while I feel doesn't. it's an open question for anyone to answer. Most folk use the phrase these days.

This is like reading the lyrics to a Bad Religion song. A quilt of too many big words for me.

[Armistice]

Lists are so people can have arguments and discussions in the pub, or in various online forms... as we are now doing. Good for business.

And I think the best post Beatles single from any of the members is RIngo's Photograph.

I didn't mind some Wings stuff at the time, much less so now - I sort of turned off McCartney completely around about Mull of Kintyre - execrable song IMO. Pretty much anything Lennon did solo had me reaching for the off switch. The occasional Harrison tune I don't mind, but a triple album? Really?

Nope, give me Photograph any day of the week over most of the assorted post Beatle individual outputs.

Plus he seemed the nicest, least pretentious man of the bunch.

I was too young, and the wrong gender, for Beatle adoration. Scenes of mass hysteria from young girls and women just had me turning off, irrespective of any actual merit in the recordings.

[rayc]

Te RINGO album is 100% brilliance as were his 1st two singles Back Of Boogaloo & It Don't Come Easy.

[CrowsofFritz]

Doesn’t matter whether he was allowed or not. The fact is, he didn’t.

It never occurred. You can’t take a scenario and say it doesn’t apply simply because there’s another plausible scenario out there that could have happened.

Honestly Ray, you’re such a contrarian. It’s frustrating.

C'mon,
Having a different opinion isn't contrarian. It's a different opinion based on a different perspective. That is how I see it. I'm no Beatles fan but I do prefer George's post B songwriting to Paul's partly because of his signature sound.
The world of commentary & journalism seems to be light up by McCartney's coming tour and giving his revisionist statements credit. Perhaps that's why Rolling Stone's respondents rated him so highly.

I am, genuinely interested in the "I feel" thing. Seriously. It has replaced I believe, I think & I reckon in at least 50% of the world's English speaking social media writers & folk who speak on TV etc. I don't understand it because the education system, at least in NSW taught kids, very carefully, to preface opinion in persuasive writing with a squillion alternatives that make sense, while I feel doesn't. it's an open question for anyone to answer. Most folk use the phrase these days.

I do not understand the point of this particular opinion, though.

Sure, context can explain the reality, but it doesn’t change it.

Paul was the better guitarist in 66-67 and George had yet to come up with anything to cement him in any list.

There’s no point in saying why that was the case.

If context matters, then I could have been on this semi-arbitrary list if the music industry gave my namesake band a shake. Same applies for anyone else on this sub—even Whiskey, who craps on his own guitar playing all the time.

[rayc]

Oh, I don't actually agree about Paul being the better guitarist.

[vomitHatSteve]

If context matters, then I could have been on this semi-arbitrary list if the music industry gave my namesake band a shake. Same applies for anyone else on this sub—even Whiskey, who craps on his own guitar playing all the time.

Honestly, we should do a worst 50 guitarists of the rebels where we all try to make the case for why we ourselves are the worst!

(I jerry-rigged a bass so that I wouldn't have to deal with those fiddly high strings!)

[WhiskeyJack]

Same applies for anyone else on this sub—even Whiskey, who craps on his own guitar playing all the time.

Because I am actually awful.

[WhiskeyJack]

If context matters, then I could have been on this semi-arbitrary list if the music industry gave my namesake band a shake. Same applies for anyone else on this sub—even Whiskey, who craps on his own guitar playing all the time.

Honestly, we should do a worst 50 guitarists of the rebels where we all try to make the case for why we ourselves are the worst!

(I jerry-rigged a bass so that I wouldn't have to deal with those fiddly high strings!)

That would be really fun if there were even 50 of us to rip to shreds.

[vomitHatSteve]

That would be really fun if there were even 50 of us to rip to shreds.

Counting ghost accounts?

Really, @Testing Yak is the worst, and everyone knows.

[Armistice]

@JD01 and I are equally the worst here at doing Larry Carlton solos from Steely Dan - we're also the best, seeing no-one else tried, but that's just a detail which we can probably ignore.

I'm the best Armistice style guitarist on the board, no doubt. Also, as above, the worst.

[JD01]

@JD01 and I are equally the worst here at doing Larry Carlton solos from Steely Dan - we're also the best, seeing no-one else tried, but that's just a detail which we can probably ignore.

I'm the best Armistice style guitarist on the board, no doubt. Also, as above, the worst.

I've not idea of the context of the above comment (I agree with you though) - as soon as I see anything about a list I generally tune out.

I do like Larry Carlton's playing. There's a few "virtuoso" style guys that don't just do guitar tricks, they make good sounding music... which is surely the point of it. I remember about 10 years ago I was thinking I might learn to sweep pick, I started practicing it and started making a bit of progress. But it is quite hard and then I just thought, what's the fucking point, I don't even like the way it sounds.

[Greg_L]

Lol I've never heard anyone sweep pick and have it make me like a guitar part more. If anything it makes me like it less.

[CrowsofFritz]

@JD01 and I are equally the worst here at doing Larry Carlton solos from Steely Dan - we're also the best, seeing no-one else tried, but that's just a detail which we can probably ignore.

I'm the best Armistice style guitarist on the board, no doubt. Also, as above, the worst.

I've not idea of the context of the above comment (I agree with you though) - as soon as I see anything about a list I generally tune out.

I do like Larry Carlton's playing. There's a few "virtuoso" style guys that don't just do guitar tricks, they make good sounding music... which is surely the point of it. I remember about 10 years ago I was thinking I might learn to sweep pick, I started practicing it and started making a bit of progress. But it is quite hard and then I just thought, what's the fucking point, I don't even like the way it sounds.

When I was 15 or 16, I tried to learn sweep picking. Like you, I was getting the hang of it, and also like you, I thought it was dumb for me to learn it because I don’t even like it. I used to do an extremely fast picado when I was obsessed with flamenco, though. It’d probably take me a month or two of heavy practicing to get back up to that speed.

My rock guitar soloing also sucks now, too. I’m pretty much way worse in every way than I was 10 years ago. I just haven’t played as much doing stuff like that.

[Lt. Bob]

Paul was the better guitarist in 66-67 and George had yet to come up with anything to cement him in any list.

can't tell ... did you know them then? Sit down and play with them?
You and everyone else knows absolutely nothing about their skills actually ..... all any of us know is whatever was allowed to be released on recordings.
Chances are I'm better than either of them but I have no recorded output.

But Friday I played git with a band I'd never met and they really didn't want me to but I kinda forced my way into it.
At the end they all came up and told me it was amazing to them that I could play shit I'd never heard mistake free and please plan on playing with them anytime I want..
That's something I personally judge git players on ... the ability to 'hired gun' your way thru a gig ..... could George or Paul do that?
Maybe ....... maybe not .... but I'll never know .... but for sure neither would in intimidate me in the slightest. Not anyone else for that matter ..... I'll get on stage with anyone ... Satriani .... Carlos .... you name 'em .... I'll stand toe to toe with them and I can guarantee you that some of them would have me walk away saying " hmm .. weren't as good as I'd hoped.

So saying one player is better than another is simply talk ... unless you've played with someone you can't really know how they play IMO.

[CrowsofFritz]

Paul was the better guitarist in 66-67 and George had yet to come up with anything to cement him in any list.

can't tell ... did you know them then? Sit down and play with them?
You and everyone else knows absolutely nothing about their skills actually ..... all any of us know is whatever was allowed to be released on recordings.
Chances are I'm better than either of them but I have no recorded output.

But Friday I played git with a band I'd never met and they really didn't want me to but I kinda forced my way into it.
At the end they all came up and told me it was amazing to them that I could play shit I'd never heard mistake free and please plan on playing with them anytime I want..
That's something I personally judge git players on ... the ability to 'hired gun' your way thru a gig ..... could George or Paul do that?
Maybe ....... maybe not .... but I'll never know .... but for sure neither would in intimidate me in the slightest. Not anyone else for that matter ..... I'll get on stage with anyone ... Satriani .... Carlos .... you name 'em .... I'll stand toe to toe with them and I can guarantee you that some of them would have me walk away saying " hmm .. weren't as good as I'd hoped.

So saying one player is better than another is simply talk ... unless you've played with someone you can't really know how they play IMO.

All we can do is judge by output. Doesn’t matter if I know them or not. The fact that all three are on the list means it’s not about skill.

[rayc]

Where's Tony Bourge anyway?

[Armistice]

Paul is doubtless, of the three guitar players who were in the Beatles, the best - the other two being dead. No contest really. But he was always insecure about it, to the extent that he put a hit out on Lennon and encouraged Harrison to smoke - the latter being more of a long term plan.

The 250 in the list are not the "best" guitar players, in Rolling Stone's opinion, they're the "greatest" - the two aren't the same thing at all.

Also, my cousin saw McCartney live in Sydney on Friday night - he is indeed still with us.

[CrowsofFritz]

The 250 in the list are not the "best" guitar players, in Rolling Stone's opinion, they're the "greatest" - the two aren't the same thing at all.

Yes. If it were strictly based on skill with the instrument, it would be filled with classical/flamenco players and shredders who can play cleanly.

Many of these players are not amazing. As I’ve said, anyone in this forum could have been on this list if we’d made it big and have the same skills we do now.

They’re the ones who have had the most listeners, the most people who have been inspired to play guitar, and as a result, influenced the style of future generations of players way more than all of us together.