MY TOP TEN FAVORITE GUITARISTS OF ALL TIME:

1) Jimi Hendrix. You probably saw that coming. Not only was Jimi an absolutely fantastic guitarist, he was a great songwriter, too--Little Wing, Fire, Wind Cries Mary, Red House, Remember, Voodoo Child and all that.

2) Pete Townshend. You probably saw that coming, too. Pete's a fab guitarist, but like Jimi, also a fabulous songwriter. ♥ I've babbled fangirlishly about him enough already. Pick an entry at random--I'm sure you'll find something about him somewhere. I have a not-so-secret fangirl crush on the man. I'm so pathetic. But that's not the point. He's a wonderfully creative person and can play anything you throw at him, but I think he does the guitar the best. There's something... different, almost mystical, about the way he plays. I'm not quite sure how to explain it.

3) Criss Oliva. He was the guitarist for Savatage until 1993 (killed by a drunk driver) and I think he's sadly underrated. He does some absolutely mindblowing work--especially on Hall of the Mountain King, Silk and Steel, Sirens, and Jesus Saves. Ahh, my childhood.

4) Tony Iommi. Come on--the man is missing a bunch of fingers, but still manages to play some fucking brilliant, dark, evil-sounding guitar. Wow.

5) George Harrison. His guitar wasn't as wild or insane or LOUD as some of the other people on the list, but that's precisely the point. George wrote and played wonderful music that made you think, made you laugh, and made you listen to it instead of just throwin' up the horns and rocking the fuck out. Which you could still do--but George had a lot of deep, thoughtful guitar in his songs.

6) The guys from Thin Lizzy. I love Thin Lizzy, but dammit, I can't remember any names except Phil Lynott and Mr Gorham (whose first name escapes me--it's either Scott or Brian... I'm so bad. *hangs head*) At any rate--great guitarists, work well in harmony, like on The Boys are Back in Town.

7) Jerry Garcia. Same reason as Tony Iommi... but reflected. Where Iommi's guitar is wonderfully dark and evil-sounding, Jerry's is peaceful and thoughtful and relaxing. I like it a lot. Plus, Jerry was just awesome all over.

8) Donita Sparks and Suzi Gardner. Wow. That's all I've got to say. Well, not really. These are the guitar ladies from L7. Their music is just bad-ass. It's hard, it's loud, and it's completely unlike a lot of "chick music." Where on the one hand you have Mariah fucking Carey moaning about her boyfriend with the cookie-cutter dance beat in the background, on the other, you've got L7, screaming about people who get on their shitlist with some loud, pissed music. They're pissed, they're women, they won't be quiet and sexkitteny like they're "supposed" to be, and I LIKE IT! Rock on, riot-grrls!

9) Joan Jett. Joan Jett is an awesome woman. Not only is her singing fabulous, so's her guitar work. In my opinion, anyway. She's bad-ass. Just about the same reasons as L7, really, except Joan came first. :P

10) Stevie Ray Vaughan. Childhood favorite; I still love his songs, and his Jimi Hendrix covers are great. I didn't know Little Wing was a Jimi Hendrix song until quite awhile down the road. I like Jimi's original more, but holy hell, Stevie came close to doing it just as well.