I never "got" Jimmy Page. He was horrible live. Sloppy (perhaps drunk or stoned), totally unimpressive. He was a great studio guitarist though. Richards' greatness comes from his rhythm playing---probably one of the top rhythm guitarists of all time. Harrison probably rates because he was neither an innovator nor a technician but a "bridge" between Chuck Berry and the new sound.
An interesting challenge is on the "Abby Road" album in the guitar jam just before "The End." There are three guitars, according to the Beatles' biographer Jon Gould, and Harrison, McCartney, and Lennon were all playing lead, trading off. See if you can figure out who is who!
Getting back to Clapton and Beck: I got the sense after I heard Clapton with Cream live that at some point you heard everything he could do. It totally fit whatever he was playing---and that was the greatness of Cream, in that since they were all soloing all the time, the genius came in the mix of the three, not any one guy in particular. But every time I heard Beck, I got the feeling that "this guy is really holding back. He's teasing you with what he can do."
Hendrix was awesome the first time I heard him circa 1968---he had just come out with the Experience. But a year later, he just couldn't get it together, none of the rifs really were as good, and he appeared stoned. The audience was screaming for "Vanilla Fudge," who opened for him, 10 minutes into his set. It was sad.
And Geoff Emerick (the producer/engineer) said they did it live...in one take.
He said it was the only point in the Abbey Road sessions where John separated from Yoko saying, "Sorry, luv....not this time".