Five criminally overlooked guitar heroes
Never has there been a debate as linear and one-note as that surrounding the “best guitar player in the world”. We only tend to think about one thing, which is how much a guitarist can shred. Sure, there is something massively alluring about seeing someone like Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Jimi Hendrix, or Jimmy Page kill it during a solo, but there is so much more to music and the guitarist than that.
The first time anybody heard the solo to ‘Stairway To Heaven’ or ‘Eruption’, our jaws dropped to the floor. It’s not normal for people to play the guitar at such speed, with such a huge amount of energy and aggression, but also melody. Because of how far removed it seems from what’s natural, we become infatuated, but there is much more that comes with playing a six-string than just a good solo.
Many rhythm guitarists, or guitarists who play lead more subtly, are responsible for making the foundation that amazing songs are built upon. Their approach isn’t as in-your-face, as they are keen on having the guitar contribute to a song rather than build it around the guitar.
This is just as impressive as some of your favourite shredders do, and it’s about time we gave the overlooked guitar heroes the credit they deserve. There are a lot more than these five, but here are some of the most underrated guitarists of all time.
The five most underrated guitarists:
Prince
Prince is judged for being Prince. He was such a sensational musician, artist, and visionary that people can’t look at the individual talents that put him together simply because there are too many to consider; it’s like staring at the Bayeux Tapestry from half a metre away. Prince remains in his own category, but if you were to pick him apart, you would find he is one of the best vocalists, guitarists, and visionaries of all time. There is just too much happening for people to be able to appreciate these various facets.
When you sit down and listen to Prince’s guitar playing, there is no denying he had the art of six-string perfected. Whether he was writing a disco tune, a rock song or something slow and peaceful, he had the talent to make it look borderline easy. He could shred, too. If you haven’t seen his solo at the end of his Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne’s cover of ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’, do yourself a favour and watch one of the most overlooked guitar heroes in the world do what he does best.
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell had a unique way of looking at the guitar. Where some people see six strings and believe they only belong to one instrument, Mitchell saw an entire brass band. “When I play guitar, I hear it as an orchestra,” she said, “The top three strings being horn section, the bottom three being cello, viola and bass – the bass being indicated but not rooted.”
Her unique approach to the guitar meant that her music takes on a life of its own. She is impossible to copy, and anybody who tries to embody her style falls flat. David Crosby once commented on this, saying, “These odd tunings […] have tripped up thousands of artists trying to figure out how to get ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ to sound like her ‘Big Yellow Taxi’.”
Muddy Waters
Most people who are into guitar music know who Muddy Waters is, but his significance in the world of rock is severely understated. While many see the name and recognise it as belonging to one of the greatest R&B guitarists to ever take to the circuit, they fail to recognise the part he and his unique guitar-playing ability had on rock.
When Muddy Waters first came to the UK, his tour was seen by Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and nearly anybody who went on to make rock music in the ‘60s. If not for his energetic approach to playing solos and different bars, we likely wouldn’t have this modern interpretation of rock music.
Malcolm Young
It’s hard to take centre stage when Angus Young is rolling around on the floor and playing one hundred notes a second, but Malcolm Young was devoted to the guitar and had music in his heart until his final moments. “One of the last records I ever played him was The Rolling Stones when they were doing a lot of blues tracks [2016’s Blue and Lonesome],” said Angus when discussing his brother’s final few months, “He just thought it was great.”
AC/DC is renowned as one of the best hard rock bands in the world. Their approach was simple but effective. Songs only used three or four chords, but they were arranged so perfectly that they sounded huge. Malcolm was behind many of these riffs and is responsible for some of the most iconic music in rock.
Terry Kath
Terry Kath might just be the most underrated guitarist in the world. Chicago wasn’t the most guitar-centric band; they had great vocal harmonies and a brass section that often detracted from the guitar sound on records, but when you listen to what Kath was doing, his talent is undeniable.
Don’t believe us? Maybe you will believe someone widely considered by shredding purists as one of the best guitarists to ever take to the stage: Jimi Hendrix. When Hendrix saw Kath play, he was in awe of his talent and, as a result, called the Chicago guitarist “The best guitarist in the universe.”
