Who is your overall favorite guitarist?

Guitar is obviously the most important instrument in Blues and Rock music. But prior to the mid-60’s, it’s primary function, it’s role in the making of Rock ’n’ Roll (as opposed to Rock), was NOT the playing of a solo. First Clapton and then Beck in The Yardbirds, then Hendrix, Clapton and Peter Green in John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, and Page (along with many other guitarists) changed that. Their Blues-based playing (George Harrison was a Chet Atkins/Carl Perkins/Scotty Moore/James Burton influenced player, Keith Richards almost purely Chuck Berry) brought the guitar solo front-and-center, and a guitarist’s talent became at that time assessed first-and-foremost in terms of his abilities at playing a Blues-scale solo.

In 1971 I had had it with jamming, and made a considered, deliberate decision to involve myself exclusively with songwriters, singers, and musicians who were focused on the playing of superior songs. I was not alone in that; Nick Lowe was following that path in The Brinsley Schwartz Band, Richard Thompson the same in Fairport Convention (though he could and did play great solos. Not Blues-scale ones, however.), as did the guys in Fleetwood Mac after Peter Green left, Moby Grape, Spirit, Little Feat, NRBQ, and many others. In my opinion, many of them made that decision after hearing Music From Big Pink, but that’s another story ;-) .

But the influence of The Yardbirds, Cream, Hendrix, and Led Zeppelin remained overwhelming. The style of guitar playing found in the music of those artists (and those they influenced) was the new norm. I sadly watched as the departure of pianist Matthew Fisher from the great Procol Harum resulted in the guitar playing of Robin Trower shift from contributing excellent song parts to, yes, primarily playing Blues-scale solos. Procol Harum, a group whose music with Matthew Fisher had been song-focused, and those songs Classically-informed. Trower’s subsequent guitar playing turned Procol Hrum into just another white Blues-based band. What a shame.

In 1974, I was talked into jamming by a guitarist I had met. He had a nice Gibson L-5 (the guitar Jerry Miller played in Moby Grape, a fantastic instrument), so I figured how bad could he be? He was terrible. He brought along another guitarist who, while better, was just another average Blues player. I cut the jam short, and mentioned The Band, to give them an idea of the kind of work I was looking for. The second guitarist said something to the effect that he didn’t think much of Band guitarist Robbie Robertson’s playing. I started pointing out examples of what I considered great guitar playing on the Band’s albums, and all I got out of the guy was a blank stare. I then realized, the guy related only---solely---to guitar playing in terms of Blues-scale solos. All Robbie’s beautiful, musical, song-enhancing guitar parts were wasted on him. Pearls before swine.