slidebluesman Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 100 Greatest Blues Artists 100 Greatest Blues Guitarists Top 100 blues players of all time. 1. T-Bone Walker 2. B.B. King 3. Stevie Ray Vaughan 4. Robert Johnson 5. Albert King 6. Eric Clapton 7. Buddy Guy 8. Mike Bloomfield 9. Peter Green 10. Johnny Winter 11. Otis Rush 12. Muddy Waters 13. Ronnie Earl 14. Freddie King 15. Earl Hooker 16. Elmore James 17. Albert Collins 18. Hubert Sumlin 19. Duane Allman 20. John Lee Hooker 21. Son House 22. Robert Cray 23. Jimmie Vaughan 24. Billy Gibbons 25. Lonnie Johnson 26. Roy Buchanan 27. Duke Robillard 28. Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown 29. Blind Lemon Jefferson 30. Charley Patton 31. Ry Cooder 32. Mississippi John Hurt 33. Robben Ford 34. Son Seals 35. Robert Nighthawk 36. Magic Sam 37. Luther Allison 38. Mississippi Fred McDowell 39. Jimmy Thackery 40. Roy Rogers 41. Warren Haynes 42. Lonnie Brooks 43. Kelly Joe Phelps 44. Mick Taylor 45. Lightnin' Hopkins 46. Jeff Healey 47. Earl King 48. Lonnie Mack 49. Blind Willie Johnson 50. Johnny Copeland 51. Alvin Lee 52. Gary Moore 53. Big Bill Broonzy 54. Kim Simmonds 55. Elvin Bishop 56. Walter Trout 57. Taj Mahal 58. Guitar Slim 59. Sonny Landreth 60. Robert Jr. Lockwood 61. Scrapper Blackwell 62. Shuggie Otis 63. Fenton Robinson 64. Amos Garrett 65. Steve Cropper 66. Coco Montoya 67. Joe Bonamassa 68. John Hammond 69. Alvin 'Youngblood' Hart 70. Lowell Fulson 71. Keb Mo 72. Smokin' Joe Kubek 73. Rod Price 74. Rory Gallagher 75. Little Charley Baty 76. Wayne Bennett 77. Southside Lenny 78. Blind Blake 79. Tinsley Ellis 80. Hollywood Fats 81. Derek Trucks 82. Guitar Shorty 83. Hound Dog Taylor 84. Kid Ramos 85. Dave Hole 86. Bonnie Raitt 87. Matt 'Guitar' Murphey 88. Pee Wee Crayton 89. Harvey Mandel 90. Joe Louis Walker 91. Eddie Taylor 92. Snowy White 93. J.B. Lenoir 94. Skip James 95. Anson Funderburgh 96. Chris Vachon 97. Little Milton 98. Blind Willie McTell 99. Luther Tucker 100. Stan Webb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Electrophile Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Maybe I breezed through the list too fast, but where the hell is Duane Allman? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Melanie Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 #19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walter Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 This is according to what or whom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Electrophile Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Thanks, Melanie. Great to see him in the Top 20, though personally I'd put him in the Top 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sagittarius Rising Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 For what it's worth Gatemouth should be in the top 5. He has a very unusual percussive style and is one of the most emotive guitarists I have ever heard. That man defines blues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyGun Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Duane Allman is #19? Is this list making fun of us? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookieshoes Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Ridiculous list. They always are. There is no way to judge this type of thing. So, the lists end up having the imitators at the top of the list, and the originators thrown in as afterthoughts much further down below. I don't know where that list came from, but they're all the same. Any rock fan would tell you that Clapton was a great blues guitarist. But how could one place Clapton above Muddy Waters, Otis Rush, Elmore James, Freddie King, Hubert Sumlin and all of the other pioneering guitarists that Clapton and his peers were imitating? Total nonsense. Speaking of which, any list which includes Joe Bonamassa, Derek Trucks, Stevie Ray Vaughan and NOT Jimi Hendrix, is completely absurd. Hendrix was the original inspiration for all of the white boys in the US who currently play "the blues". They can claim that they were really inspired by the original blues masters from the 20's and 30's all they want, but that's the standard canned response to hide their true influence: blues via pop and rock records. Hendrix's "Red House" was THE template for all subsequent blues playing in rock and roll in the US and England. Marshall Amp + Fuzz Face. Undeniable. Makes Vaughan, Bonamassa, Trucks, and countless other dudes in jam bands completely meaningless as contributing players. Stevie Ray Vaughan's ranking at #3 in particular shows the true nature of the list. Seriously, a Hendrix imitator, with a one-dimensional schtick wearing those hats poncho and boots, pretending to be some kind of traveling blues nomad, gets placed as the third "greatest" blues guitarist? Seriously? Over Robert Johnson, who essentially INVENTED the blues guitar as we know it. No my friends, no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyGun Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 SRV is one of the greats when it comes to blues. puting him on the same list with joe bonamassa and derek trucks is a total disgrace. SRV #3 is a very reasonable place for him, i dont love any list cause i like them all, but not giving SRV the respect he deservs is somthing that makes you really really deaf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jahfin Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Much as I love Jimi Hendrix, when it comes to favorite blues guitarists he's not exactly the first person to come to mind. Probably because I tend to think of psychedelia first when it comes to Hendrix. As for SRV, his appreciation for Hendrix aside, I never saw him as an imitator or an imposter of any kind. In the 80s, he put the blues back on the map amidst a sea of empty synth pop and rudderless MTV New Wave that had more to do with fashion than music. He didn't do that by imitating Jimi Hendrix, he did that by being true to himself and all of the blues artists he'd been influenced by. When I first heard of him he was cutting records with the likes of Albert Collins and Johnny Copeland, recordings that were cemented in the blues. In regards to the blues, the reason I first sought out records by Son House, "Howlin'" Wolf, Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson in the 70s was because of Clapton, Skynyrd and Led Zeppelin. To my way of thinking, there's a place for all of them on any list of blues guitarists. The order of the list is going to be different for everybody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyGun Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 (edited) This is not any imatation, this is SRV himself. damn i miss him... Edited May 26, 2011 by JimmyGun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheStairwayRemainsTheSame Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 To override the other people I'm going to vote for number 1: Peter Green. His Tone, phrasing, passion, melody, some technical abilities (especially amongst contemporaries in the 60s) and he was a white blues musician that could sing (no offence Eric). Also made it into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. Pagey should have been in their sometimes he is much better at the Blues then people like Joe Bonamassa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Rider Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 (edited) Ridiculous list. They always are. There is no way to judge this type of thing. So, the lists end up having the imitators at the top of the list, and the originators thrown in as afterthoughts much further down below. I don't know where that list came from, but they're all the same. Any rock fan would tell you that Clapton was a great blues guitarist. But how could one place Clapton above Muddy Waters, Otis Rush, Elmore James, Freddie King, Hubert Sumlin and all of the other pioneering guitarists that Clapton and his peers were imitating? Total nonsense. Speaking of which, any list which includes Joe Bonamassa, Derek Trucks, Stevie Ray Vaughan and NOT Jimi Hendrix, is completely absurd. Hendrix was the original inspiration for all of the white boys in the US who currently play "the blues". They can claim that they were really inspired by the original blues masters from the 20's and 30's all they want, but that's the standard canned response to hide their true influence: blues via pop and rock records. Hendrix's "Red House" was THE template for all subsequent blues playing in rock and roll in the US and England. Marshall Amp + Fuzz Face. Undeniable. Makes Vaughan, Bonamassa, Trucks, and countless other dudes in jam bands completely meaningless as contributing players. Stevie Ray Vaughan's ranking at #3 in particular shows the true nature of the list. Seriously, a Hendrix imitator, with a one-dimensional schtick wearing those hats poncho and boots, pretending to be some kind of traveling blues nomad, gets placed as the third "greatest" blues guitarist? Seriously? Over Robert Johnson, who essentially INVENTED the blues guitar as we know it. No my friends, no. You're exactly right.To place Stevie Ray Vaughn ahead of Muddy Waters as a blues artist is just plain incorrect. Stevie Ray Vaughn, as good as he was, never surpassed Muddy Waters. Muddy Waters could roll one song out after the next from sheer memory and a seemingly endless repertoire, and he played guitar. As a front man and vocalist, Stevie Ray could not top Muddy Waters. And Stevie Ray Vaughn learned from Albert King, who was already outstanding, but I seriously doubt that he ever surpassed Albert King in all that he did, despite the niche that Stevie Ray carved for himself. And James Cotton and Sonny Boy Williamson are missing from the list, I guess because they're not guitarists. But Howlin Wolf played guitar, and as a vocalist and front man, good luck in topping him. And no Hendrix? Red House was/is a blues song. Edited May 27, 2011 by Silver Rider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virginia Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Love Otis Rush! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 I also think SRV is one of the best. List are list, at least this one has some really great names. As BB King is my favorite blues guitarist...then put a few more of the greats with him.... Rock Me Baby-BB King/Eric Clapton/Buddy Guy/Jim Vaughn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixpense Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 A joke of a list. Failure to mention Jimi Hendrix! With no Hendrix, many of those on the list (including the late great Stevie Ray) would be very different players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 A joke of a list. Failure to mention Jimi Hendrix! With no Hendrix, many of those on the list (including the late great Stevie Ray) would be very different players. Really..listen to this interview:-) B.B. King and Buddy Guy on Meeting Jimi Hendrix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jahfin Posted May 26, 2011 Share Posted May 26, 2011 Good to see Johnny Winter get a mention as he's seemingly forgotten by most and is left off most any list of great guitarists. He's also yet another person that's deserving of being inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame but most likely never will be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badgeholder Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_ob9ugzYtg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jahfin Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 (edited) For anyone that's never seen it, I highly recommend checking out this very excellent documentary. I didn't know until just now that it's available on DVD. That means I can finally upgrade my well worn VHS copy after all of these years. Edited May 27, 2011 by Jahfin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross62 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 For anyone that's never seen it, I highly recommend checking out this very excellent documentary. I didn't know until just now that it's available on DVD. That means I can finally upgrade my well worn VHS copy after all of these years. That's a worthy inclusion for sure.I'd also suggest searching for the Biopic "Can't you hear the wind howl" narrated by Danny Glover which has an interview ,among others with Johnny Shines who travelled and played with RJ for a time.It goes into the "soul selling" deal and the "possible poisoning" of Robert Johnson too.Keb' Mo' acts as RJ. As for the list,it's just another list,like polls.They all mean different things to different people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggie29 Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 Where is Sonny Terry? Sad to say I'm over the blues and have been for some time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strider Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 (edited) Big Bill Broonzy and Rory Gallagher need to be higher...much higher. And yes, if you're going to have Eric Clapton, SRV, and Billy Gibbons on the list, then you'd damn well better have Jimi Hendrix, too. And where's Robin Trower? I'd put him on before Gary Moore and Snowy White. But what really irks me is that there is no citation of where this came from. I hate posters that post uncredited lists...hell, uncredited anything. Sorry to be so anal, but it's a pet peeve of mine. So is this list from some blues magazine, a music blog, or made up by the poster himself? Edited May 27, 2011 by Strider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the chase Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 There's some greats missing...I agree Robin Trower for one. Jimmy as well but I guess he's not considered a Blues purist. But it's not bad. I'm very glad to see the late Rod Price included. (though he deserves to be placed higher than #73) AMAZING SLIDE GUITARIST .... check out his 2 solo albums OPEN and WEST 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazedcat Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 Muddy Waters for my money is the greatest of all Blues artists but really, was he a great guitar player? SRV has gotten ripped here but having actually seen him live several times at his peak, I dismiss that entirely. He was real, authentic and played with emotion. That's rare in a guitar player, most can play blues easily but not many can dig deep emotionally. SRV always did. Johnny Winter should be in the top five though. Not to get racial but out of all the white guitar players who are considered "blues men", Winter is the best of them all. He's authentic in every way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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