"Stairway To Heaven" tops solo guitar survey

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1600667,0011.htm ^

[lunarbicep]

Guitarist Jimmy Page of the band Led Zeppelin has been voted the top guitar soloist of all time for the song Stairway to heaven.

According to contactmusic.com, Page's performance topped the survey held by the website aboutguitars.com and beat out the likes of Eddie Van Halen for the track Eruption.

The third place was occupied by the dual guitar solo by Allen Collins and Gary Rossington on Lynyrd Skynyrd's Freebird.

The top 10 guitar solos are:

1. Stairway to heaven - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)

2. Eruption - Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen)

3. Freebird - Allen Collins and Gary Rossington (Lynyrd Skynyrd)

4. Comfortably numb - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)

5. All along the watchtower - Jimi Hendrix

6. November rain - Slash (Guns N' Roses)

7. One - Kirk Hammett (Metallica)

8. Hotel California - Don Felder and Joe Walsh (The Eagles)

9. Crazy Train - Randy Rhoads (Ozzy Osbourne)

10. Crossroads - Eric Clapton (Cream)

[sauropod]

Been a longtime Trower fan.

Bridge of Sighs (song) is divinely inspired.

[scott says]

I wish I had the equipment that is available today.
Back then it was such a pain.
Now they have compact digital recorders and these tiny mics you can clip on your glasses that are excellent.
Too bad there aren't any bands that I would bother to record these days.

[Mr. Buzzcut]

Rock Around the Clock - Bill Haley

That's a great one, especially for its era.

[nuconvert]

Who can afford to go to all the concerts anymore?? Sheeeesh.

[chasio649]

Steve Vai...For the love of God

Larry Carlton... Kid Charlemagne

Joe Satriani....Flying in a blue Dream

[sauropod]

I'm a Danny Gatton (the Telemaster) fan...

I got to see him play twice.

Treasured memories.

[Mr. Buzzcut]

10.)Or How about Uli Jon Roth's "Metamorphosis" of "Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons" On Guitar,Huh? ((Has anyone else heard THAT?))

Roth on "Sails of Charron"!

[Mr. Blonde]

I love Tom Morello on Bulls on Parade. It sounds like nothing else made by a guitar.

[nuconvert]

You're lucky. He was incredible. I don't think there's anything that compares to "Funhouse". What a loss.

I got to see Roy Buchannon once.

[sauropod]

You get it.

Thank you.

[scott says]

That too...ticket prices are outrageous!
Plus , there really aren't too many bands that I would go to see.
The last show I went to was Tom Petty at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, a few months ago.
He was good, I enjoyed it.
Last time Van played out here, tix sold out in 12 minutes...
the scalpers wanted 300 bucks! Forget it!
I got the shows on DVD from trading connections any way.
Same with Bob...I just get the cd of the show from friends.....

[Mr. Jeeves]

400+ posts and nobody pings me??? ;)

My top ten wouldn't include any of these, with the possible exceptions of Randy Rhoads and Eddie Van Halen. Where is Steve Vai? Joe Satriani? Yngwie Malmsteen? Steve Morse? John Petrucci? If you prefer classic rock, where is Steve Hackett? Steve Howe? Alex Lifeson? Brian May?

This is more like a list of the Top Ten Guitar Solos Loved by Beer-Sodden Seventies-era "Rock and Roll" Dinosaur Fans Who Still Drive the Same Beat-Up '73 Camaro They Owned Back Then. ;)

Page, Hendrix and Clapton get "grandfathered" into every single one of these lists, when their primary contribution has really not been as players, but as influences to their vastly superior successors. Their time is long, long past. Far more young guitarists today grew up on Yngwie and Satch than Page and Clapton, and while both of those guys name Hendrix as a primary influence over their own playing, they have taken the art of rock/metal guitar light years beyond anything Hendrix ever produced. Either one could put five or six of their best solos on any such list before Hendrix merited mention of even one.

[sauropod]

I apologize for my caustic comment.

I was reacting to your Hendrix comment earlier. I found it difficult to take, not to put too fine a point on it.

There is a LOT of stuff available on the market that most folks are not aware of. I do not know what you have heard/not heard, but I suspect if you took in a few of these releases, you might change your tune.

[mrsmel]

Well what do I know, I LIKE "Benny The Bouncer" from Brain Salad Surgery,LOL.

[nuconvert]

"tix sold out in 12 minutes..."

That's the other problem!

Getting a CD of the show is fine enough with me, too. Does that mean we're old?? lol.

[sauropod]

I got to see Roy Buchannon once.

Me too. LOL! It was at some kegger on one of the athletic fields at SUNY Albany in about 1976.

He blew me away.

[Proud_texan]

"If you saw any live concerts of Spirit in the early 70s you might agree.

I saw them around '68 or so and I enjoyed it very much, always did like their music but I was surprised how much recorded stuff they used in their live show. Still like them.

Also had forgotten about Harvey Mandell from that same era, always enjoyed his instrumentals (can't say much for his vocals...).

[sauropod]

Page, Hendrix and Clapton get "grandfathered" into every single one of these lists, when their primary contribution has really not been as players, but as influences to their vastly superior successors. Their time is long, long past.

I wholeheartedly and completely disagree.

[Mr. Jeeves]

What have they done recently that sounds the least bit new? Clapton sounds exactly the same today as he did in 1969. They were innovators then, but they've done nothing to advance the art of guitar since...save to inspire younger players.

[nuconvert]

No apology necessary.

I think if you compare the playing of Gatton to Hendrix, you can see there's no comparison. Hendrix is a sloppy player. Maybe the drugs. But it's a lot easier to play fast and sloppy than it is to play fast and clean. Gatton is crisp, clean. He's just miles above Hendrix.