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1. Comfortably Numb - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
2. Stairway To Heaven - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
3. All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
4. Freebird - Allen Collins (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
5. Maggot Brain - Edie Hazel (Funkadelic)
6. Texas Flood - Stevie Ray Vaughan
7. Eruption - Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen)
8. Highway Star - Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple)
9. Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers - Jeff Beck
10. Hotel California - Don Felder/Joe Walsh (Eagles)
11. Mr Crowley - Randy Rhoads (Ozzy)
12. Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix
13. Time - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
14. Layla - Eric Clapton/Duane Allman (Derek & The Dominos)
15. Sweet Child O’ Mine - Slash (Guns N Roses)
16. Cliffs Of Dover - Eric Johnson
17. Nottingham Lace - Buckethead
18. For The Love Of God - Steve Vai
19. Voodoo Child (slight return) - Jimi Hendrix
20. November Rain - Slash (Guns N Roses)
21. Shine On You Crazy Diamond - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
22. Blue Sky - Duane Allman/Dickey Betts (Allman Brothers Band)
23. Satch Boogie - Joe Satriani
24. Lazy - Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple)
25. Crazy Train - Randy Rhoads (Ozzy)
26. White Room - Eric Clapton (Cream)
27. Rock You Like A Hurricane - Matthias Jabs (Scorpions)
28. Sultans Of Swing - Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits)
29. One - Kirk Hammett (Metallica)
30. No More Tears - Zakk Wylde (Ozzy)
31. Since I’ve Been Loving You - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
32. Floods - Dimebag Darrel (Pantera)
33. Black Star - Yngwie Malmsteen
34. Atom Heart Mother - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
35. Red House - Jimi Hendrix
36. Big Sur Moon - Buckethead
37. The Rocker - Eric Bell (Thin Lizzy)
38. Those Were The Days - Eric Clapton (Cream)
39. Bohemian Rhapsody - Brian May (Queen)
40. While My Guitar Gently Weeps - Eric Clapton (The Beatles)
41. Fade To Black - Kirk Hammett (Metallica)
42. Dream - John McLaughlin (Mahavishnu Orchestra)
43. Sound Chaser - Steve Howe (Yes)
44. Alive - Mike McCready (Pearl Jam)
45. Mood For A Day - Steve Howe (Yes)
46. Aqualung - Martin Barre (Jethro Tull)
47. Stone In Love - Neal Schon (Journey)
48. Child In Time - Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple)
49. Like A Hurricane - Neil Young
50. Dreams - Duane Allman (Allman Brothers Band)
51. Cortez The Killer - Neil Young
52. Over The Mountain - Randy Rhoads (Ozzy)
53. Money - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
54. Killer Queen - Brian May (Queen)
55. Two Minutes To Midnight - D. Murray/A. Smith (Iron Maiden)
56. Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad - D. Allman/E. Clapton (Derek & The Dominos)
57. Southern Man - Neil Young
58. Kid Charlemagne - Larry Carlton (Steely Dan)
59. Surfing With The Alien - Joe Satriani
60. Little Wing - Stevie Ray Vaughan
61. Heartbreaker - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
62. Too Many Humans - Buckethead
63. Under A Glass Moon - John Petrucci (Dream Theater)
64. Desert Rose - Eric Johnson
65. Dazed And Confused - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
66. Tender Surrender - Steve Vai
67. Still In Love With You - Gary Moore (Thin Lizzy)
68. Bold As Love - Jimi Hendrix
69. Don’t Keep Me Wondering - Duane Allman (Allman Brothers Band)
70. Ramblin’ Man - Dicky Betts (Allman Brothers Band)
71. Always With Me Always With You - Joe Satriani
72. Tale Of Brave Ulysses - Eric Clapton (Cream)
73. Stranger In A Strange Land - Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden)
74. You Really Got Me - Dave Davies (The Kinks)
75. 25 Or 6 To 4 - Terry Kath (Chicago)
76. Devil Takes The Hindmost - Allan Holdsworth
77. Have A Cigar - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
78. Trademark - Eric Johnson
79. La Villa Strangiato - Alex Lifeson (Rush)
80. Super Stupid - Edie Hazel (Funkadelic)
81. Stranglehold - Ted Nugent
82. Beyond The Realms Of Death - Glenn Tipton (Judas Priest)
83. Bulls On Parade - Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine)
84. Unrestrained Growth - Buckethead
85. Miserlou - Dick Dale
86. Far Beyond The Sun - Yngwie Malmsteen
87. Brighton Rock - Brian May (Queen)
88. Dogs - David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
89. Master Of Puppets - Kirk Hammett (Metallica)
90. Beat It - Eddie Van Halen (Michael Jackson)
91. Sow Thistle - Buckethead
92. Whipping Post - Duane Allman/Dicky Betts (Allman Brothers Band)
93. The Way It Has To Be - Shawn Lane
94. 21st Century Schizoid Man - Robert Fripp (King Crimson)
95. War Pigs - Toni Iommi (Black Sabbath)
96. Dreams - Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen)
97. Padmasana - Buckethead
98. Whole Lotta Love - Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
99. Working Man - Alex Lifeson (Rush)
100. Love Is The Law - John Squire (Seahorses)

1. Jimi Hendrix* - Jimi Hendrix Experience
2. Eric Clapton - Yardbirds, Cream, Derek & The Dominos, Solo
3. Jimmy Page - Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin, The Firm
4. Jeff Beck - Yardbirds, Jeff Beck Group, Solo
5. Eddie Van Halen - Van Halen
6. Stevie Ray Vaughan* - Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble
7. Joe Satriani - Solo
8. Ritchie Blackmore - Deep Purple, Rainbow, Blackmores Night
9. Steve Vai - David Lee Roth, Whitesnake, Solo
10. David Gilmour - Pink Floyd, Solo
11. John Petrucci - Dream Theater, Liquid Tension Experiment
12. Randy Rhoads* - Quiet Riot, Ozzy
13. Allan Holdsworth - Solo
14. Paul Gilbert - Mr. Big, Racer X, Solo
15. Yngwie Malmsteen - Rising Force, Solo
16. Phil Keaggy - Glass Harp, Solo
17. Jason Becker - Cacophony, David Lee Roth Band, Solo
18. John Mclaughlin- Mahavishnu Orchestra
19. Duane Allman* - Allman Brothers Band, Derek & the Dominos
20. Chuck Berry - Solo
21. Eric Johnson - Solo
22. Steve Howe - Yes, Solo
23. Neal Schon - Santana, Journey, Solo
24. Brian May - Queen
25. Gary Moore - Thin Lizzy, Colosseum II, Skid Row, Solo
26. Bo Diddley - Solo
27. Steve Morse - Deep Purple, Dixie Dregs, Steve Morse Band, Solo
28. Carlos Santana - Santana
29. Tony Iommi - Black Sabbath
30. Buckethead - Solo, Praxis, Thanatopsis, The Deli Creeps, Cornbugs, GNR,
31. Mark Knopfler - Dire Straits, Solo
32. Marty Friedman - Cacophony, Megadeth, Solo
33. Nuno Bettencourt - Extreme, Mourning Widows
34. Shawn Lane* - Black Oak Arkansas, Willy, Solo
35. Kirk Hammett - Metallica
36. Uli Jon Roth - Scorpions, Solo
37. Terry Kath* - Chicago Transit Authority
38. Alex Lifeson - Rush
39. Frank Zappa* - Mothers of Invention, Solo
40. Rory Gallagher* - Solo
41. Dimebag Darrell* - Pantera
42. Peter Green - Fleetwood Mac, Solo
43. Robin Trower - Procal Harum, Solo
44. Slash - Guns N’ Roses, Slash’s Snakepit, Velvet Revolver
45. Mick Taylor - John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Rolling Stones
46. Robert Fripp - King Crimson
47. Tom Morello - Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave
48. Michael Schenker - Scorpions, UFO, MSG, Contraband
49. Ry Cooder - Solo
50. Angus Young - AC/DC
51. Keith Richards - Rolling Stones, Solo
52. Michael Angelo Batio - Nitro, Solo
53. John Squire - Stone Roses
54. Pete Townshend - The Who
55. Steve Hackett - Genisis
56. Zakk Wylde - Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society
57. George Harrison* - Beatles, Traveling Wilberys, Solo
58. Alvin Lee - Ten Years After
59. Dave Davies - Kinks
60. Jerry Cantrell - Alice In Chains, Solo
61. Steve Stevens - Billy Idol
62. Johnny Winter - Solo
63. Dickie Betts - Allman Brothers Band, Dickey Betts & Great Southern
64. John Cipollina* - Quicksilver Messenger Service
65. Kenny Wayne Shepherd - Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band
66. Steve Cropper - Booker T. & MG’s/Stax sessions
67. Adrian Belew - King Crimson
68. Joe Bonamassa - Solo
69. Steve Lukather - Toto, Solo
70. Jerry Garcia* - Grateful Dead
71. Joe Perry - Aerosmith
72. Prince - Prince & The Revolution
73. Kim Mitchell - Max Webster, Solo
74. Adrian Smith - Iron Maiden
75. Dave Murray - Iron Maiden
76. Neil Young - Buffalo Springfield, CSNY, Solo
77. Billy Gibbons - ZZ Top
78. Tony MacAlpine - Solo
79. Mike McCready - Pearl Jam
80. Adam Jones - Tool
81. Gary Hoey - Solo
82. Leslie West - Mountain, Solo
83. Peter Frampton - Humble Pie, Frampton’s Camel, Solo
84. Dick Dale - Del-Tones
85. Vito Bratta - White Lion
86. Mickey “Guitar” Baker - 50’s sessions/ Mickey & Sylvia
87. John Frusciante - Red Hot Chili Peppers
88. Ronnie Montrose - Montrose, Edgar Winter Group
89. Mick Ronson* - David Bowie, Solo
90. Roy Buchanan* - Solo
91. Warren Haynes - Allman Brothers Band, Gov’t Mule
92. Vinnie Moore - Alice Cooper, Solo
93. Robbie Krieger - Doors, Solo
94. Chris DeGarmo - Queensryche
95. Jake E. Lee - Cutting Crew, Ozzy, Badlands, Solo
96. Glen Tipton - Judas Priest
97. Joe Walsh - James Gang, Eagles, Solo
98. K.K. Downing - Judas Priest
99. Eddie Hazel* - Funkadelic
100. Alex Skolnick - Testament
101. Doug Aldrich - Burning Rain, Dio, Whitesnake, Solo
102. Michael Romeo - Symphony X
103. Vernon Reid - Living Colour
104. Gary Richrath - REO Speedwagon, Solo
105. Link Wray - Link Wray and his Ace-Men
106. Allen Collins* - Lynyrd Skynyrd
107. Larry “Ler” Lalonde - Primus
108. Randy Bachmann - Guess Who, BTO
109. Jeff Healy - Jeff Healy Band
110. Greg Howe - Solo
111. Dave Navarro - Janes Addiction
112. Scott Gorham - Thin Lizzy
113. Ted Nugent - Ambouy Dukes, Damn Yankees, Solo,
114. Vivian Campbell - Dio, Whitesnake, Def Leppard
115. Paul Kossoff* - Free, Back Street Crawler
116. Ritchie Kotzen - Poison, Mr Big, Solo
117. Brian Robertson - Thin Lizzy, Motorhead
118. Andy Summers - Police
119. John Sykes - Blue Murder, Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy
120. Scotty Moore - Elvis Presley
121. Gary Rossington - Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rossington Band
122. Ty Tabor - Kings X, Jelly Bean, Poundhound, Jughead, Platypus
123. John Fogerty - CCR, Solo
124. Ron Wood - Faces, Rolling Stones
125. Ace Frehley - Kiss
126. Akira Takasaki - Loudness, Lazy
127. Michael Wilton - Queensryche
128. Cliff Gallup* - Gene Vincent’s Blue Caps
129. Richie Sambora - Bon Jovi
130. George Lynch - Dokken, Lynch Mob
131. Reb Beach - Winger, Dokken
132. Nick Drake* - Solo
133. Tommy Bolin* - James Gang, Deep Purple
134. Kerry King - Slayer
135. Thurston Moore - Sonic Youth
136. Harry Cody - Shotgun Messiah
137. Lowell George* - Little Feat
138. Tracii Guns - Guns N Roses, L.A. Guns
139. Tom Scholz - Boston
140. Buck Dharma - Blue Oyster Cult
141. Jorma Kaukonen - Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna
142. Richard Thompson - Fairport Convention, Solo
143. Trey Anastasio - Phish
144. Janick Gers - Iron Maiden
145. Mick Box - Uriah Heep
146. Johnny Marr - Smiths, Electronic, Johnny Marr & The Healers
147. Blues Saraceno - Poison, Solo
148. Lowman Pauling* - “5″ Royales
149. Timo Tolkki - Stratovarius
150. Mike Einziger - Incubus
151. John Christ - Danzig
152. Jonny Greenwood - Radiohead
153. Phil Collen - Def Leppard
154. Andy Timmons - Danger Danger, Ceili Rain
155. Steve Gaines* - Lynyrd Skynyrd
156. Ron Asheton - Iggy Pop, Stooges
157. James Burton - Ricky Nelson, Elvis Presley
158. Mark Kendall - Great White
159. Lindsey Buckingham - Fleetwood Mac
160. Jennifer Batten - Jeff Beck, Michael Jackson, Solo
161. Matthias Jabs - Scorpions
162. Carl Perkins* - Solo
163. Wayne Kramer - MC5
164. Nils Lofgren - E Street Band
165. Michael Sweet - Stryper
166. Robbie Robertson - The Band, Solo
167. Frank Hannon - Tesla
168. Trevor Rabin - Yes
169. Brian Setzer - Stray Cats, The Brian Setzer Orchestra
170. Martin Barre - Jethro Tull
171. Kim Thayil - Soundgarden
172. Pat Travers - Pat Travers Band
173. Dave Mustaine - Metallica, Megadeth
174. Rik Emmitt - Triumph
175. Eddie Cochran* - Solo
176. Frank Marino - Mahogany Rush
177. Justin Hayward - Moody Blues, Solo
178. Tommy Skeoch - Tesla
179. Warren DeMartini - Ratt
180. Syd Barrett* - Pink Floyd
181. Don Felder - Eagles
182. The Edge - U2
183. Brad Gillis - Night Ranger, Ozzy
184. Andy Powell - Wishbone Ash
185. Mick Mars - Motley Crue
186. Billy Duffy - The Cult
187. Randy California* - Spirit
188. Eric Bell - Thin Lizzy
189. Lita Ford - The Runaways, Solo
190. Jeff Hanneman - Slayer
191. Mick Jones - Foreigner
192. Stone Gossard - Pearl Jam, Temple of the Dog
193. Duane Eddy - Solo
194. Mike Campbell - Tom Petty/ Heartbreakers
195. Glen Buxton* - Alice Cooper
196. Daron Malakian - System Of A Down
197. Steven Stills - Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y, Solo
198. Roger McGuinn - Byrds, Solo
199. J. Mascis - Dinosaur Junior, The Fog
200. James Hetfield - Metallica

Guitar players that were not listed in the top 200 list - in no particular order.

John 5 - Marylin Manson, Solo
Johnny A. - J.Geils Band, Solo
Jan Akkerman - Focus
Dave Alvin - Blasters
Sam Andrew - Big Brother
Jeff “Skunk” Baxter - Doobie Brothers
Brendan Bayliss - Umphrey’s McGee
Brian Benoit - Dillinger Escape Plan
Steve Blaze - Lillian Axe
Mike Bloomfield* - Electric Flag
James Dean Bradfield - Manic Street Preachers
Erik Braunn - Iron Butterfly
Paul Burlison* - Rock ‘n’ Roll Trio
Toy Caldwell - Marshall Tucker Band
Jeff Carlisi - .38 Special
J. Randall Casey
Alex Chilton - Big Star
Steve Clark* - Def Leppard
Kurt Cobain* - Nirvana
Rusty Cooley
Ian Crichton - Saga
Dean DeLeo - Stone Temple Pilots
Rick Derringer - McCoys, Edgar Winter, Solo
Mark Doyle
Elliot Easton - The Cars
Mattias “IA” Eklundh - Freak Kitchen
Francesco Fareri
Mark Farner - Grand Funk Railroad
Roger Fisher - Heart, Clever Bastards
Oz Fox - Stryper
Reeves Gabrels - Tin Machine, Solo
Eric Gales - Eric Gales Band
Noel Gallagher - Oasis
Mel Galley - Trapeze, Whitesnake
Amos Garrett
Henry Garza - Los Lonely Boys
Neil Geraldo - Pat Benatar
James Gurley- Big Brother
Michael Hauser* - Widespread Panic
Yusi Hirotatchi
Marty Lee Hoenes - Donnie Iris
Wolf Hoffmann - Accept
Josh Homme - Queens Of The Stone Age
Dan Huff - Giant, session player
Steve Hunter - Alice Cooper, Lou Reed
James Iha - Smashing Pumpkins, APC
Chris Impellitteri - Impellitteri
Bobby Ingram - Molly Hatchet
Ernie Isely - Isley Brothers
Jesse Johnson - The Time
Mick Jones - The Clash
Ronnie Jones
Ira Kaplan - Yo La Tengo
The Great Kat
Danny Kirwan - Fleetwood Mac
Greg Koch
Joel Kosche - Steve Walsh
Bruce Kulick - Kiss, Union, Solo
Andy Latimer - Camel
Kerry Livgren - Kansas
Jeff Loomis - Nevermore
ANAND Mahangoe
Hank Marvin - The Shadows
Dave Mason - Traffic, Solo
Lars Eric Mattsson
Curtis Mayfield - Impressions, Solo
Henry McCullough - Wings
Thomas McRocklin
Mike Miller - Godhead
Bob Mould - Husker Du
Bill Nelson - Be-Bop Deluxe
John Norum - Dokken
Aldo Nova
Michael Orlando
Andy Partridge - XTC
Marcus Paus - Mr. Cucumber
Rod Price - Foghat
Sean Clavin - Roy Rogers Jr. Band The Highriders
(Hi Sean! hehe - CM says hi)
Robert Quine* - Richard Hell & Voidoids
Mick Ralphs - Mott the Hoople, Bad Company
Johnny Ramone* - Ramones
Josh Ramos - Ramos
Elliot Randall - Steely Dan
Chris Rea
Nile Rodgers - Chic
Todd Rundgren - Utopia, Solo
Stevie Salas
Claudio Sanchez - Coheed and Cambria
Al Schnier - Moe.
Andy Scott - The Sweet
Tommy Shaw - Styx, Damn Yankees
Kevin Shields - My Bloody Valentine
Hillel Slovak* - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Roger Steen - The Tubes
Leigh Stephens - Blue Cheer, Solo
Nick Sterling
Travis Stever - Coheed and Cambria
Joe Stump
Terry Syrek
Marv Tarplin - Miracles/Motown
Ron Thal - Bumblefoot
Tommy Thayer - Kiss, Black N’ Blue
Pat Thrall - Pat Travers Band, Meatloaf
Mark Tremonti - Creed, Alterbridge
Walter Trout - Walter Trout and the Radicals
Vinnie Vincent - Kiss, Vinnie Vincent Invasion
Jeff Watson - Nightranger, MSG
Ben Weinman - Dillinger Escape Plan
Paul Weller - The Jam, The Style Council
Jack White - The White Stripes
Snowy White - Pink Floyd, Thin Lizzy
Roy Z - Bruce Dickinson Band
Neil Zaza
Billy Zoom - X
Vinnie Zummo

“I’ve always felt that blues, rock ‘n’ roll and country are just about a beat apart.”-Waylon Jennings (1937-2002)

“We don’t like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out.” -Decca Recording Company rejecting the Beatles, 1962

“It’s much too late to do anything about rock & roll now …” - Jerry Garcia / Grateful Dead

“It occurred to me by intuition, and music was the driving force behind that intuition. My discovery was the result of musical perception.” (When asked about his theory of relativity) - Albert Einstein

“Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn. They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art.” - Charlie “YardBird” Parker

“There are more love songs than anything else. If songs could make you do something we’d all love one another.” -Frank Zappa

While Chuck Berry introduced the world to “the guitar hero”, and The Beatles standardized the four piece band, it would be bands like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and The Jimi Hendrix Experience who would most exemplify the guitar hero as a member of band rather than a solo artist (although some may argue Hendrix was a solo artist).  Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page (who previously played with the Yardbirds, and with countless bands as a session musician) quickly became one of the biggest guitar gods of all time with his massive stage presence and his massive sound.  Although many people associate Page with the Double-Neck Gibson EDS-1275 (which he uses live to play the legendary Stairway to Heaven), and his first famous guitar was a 1959 psychedelic Fender Telecaster given to him by Jeff Beck, his number one guitar was his 1958 (and #2 1959) Gibson Les Paul.  Like the Telecaster, the Les Paul was invented by Les Paul and was one of the first electric guitars ever made.  With his unique playing style, including using a violin bow across his guitar strings, Jimmy Page is to the Les Paul as slicing is to bread.

Since Page, countless number of guitar players have made the Gibson Les Paul their main ax, including: Ace Frehley (KISS), Stone Gossard (and Mike McCready #2 ax) (Pearl Jam), Slash (Guns’n'Roses), Pete Townsend (The Who 1973-78), and Neil Young (when not playing an acoustic) while signature models have been made for artists such as Zakk Wylde (Bullseye) and Joe Perry (Boneyard).  Jimmy Page would also regularly be seen playing a Danelectro (which had various parts from two 1959 DC models), usually on songs that were in an alternate tunning. Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin’s influence can be seen predominantly in nearly all blues-rock/hard-rock bands and the infamous hair metal bands of the 80s.  Although it seems like centuries since the legendary original lineup of Led Zeppelin played live, hundreds of bands still credit them as their number one influence and Jimmy Page’s costume wearing stage antics can still be seen today, if you know where to look.  You don’t have to look very hard to find the Les Paul though, as it is still featured predominately in music as a leader in the high-end, top-quality guitar category.

 

The Guitar in Vermeer’s Paintings

Vermeer portrayed the guitar only one time in his oeuvre, in the late Guitar Player. “Vermeer’s compositional organization of this picture may be linked to his decision to depict a guitar player rather than a lute player. The guitar was just coming into vogue in the late 17th century as a popular instrument for solo accompaniment. The music it created was bolder than that of the lute, in large part because its chords produced a resonance not possible on lute which had begun to take on associations with an idealized past, a sophisticated era where music had been enjoyed and contemplated for the purity of its sounds. The bright and direct character of the Guitar Player thus, spoke more to the modern world of music represented by the guitar than to the conservative and contemplative traditions of the lute.” 1

Vermeer obviously took great delight in the purely pictorial representation of the instrument as well. The painting is a technical ‘tour de force.’ Maximum attention was paid to the rendering of the decorative black and white inlay of its border whose visually “staccato” effect intensifies the painting’s crisp, electric atmosphere and lends a rythmic note consonant to the painting’s musical theme. The ornate hand-carved sound hole (see right) is rendered in an astounding calligraphic shorthand of thick blobs of impasto paint which miraculously describes the way light rakes across its uneven shiny surface.. But perhaps the most subtle technique has been reserved for the painting of the instrument’s strings. If carefully observed, we find that some of them are strongly blurred (see right) to suggest vibration in a quite unconventional manner which finds few parallels in 17th century painting. Thus, Vermeer has painted movement rather than substance.

The Guitar Player (details)

Classification
The guitar belongs like the cittern to the lute family and is therefore likewise a ‘”composite chordophone” (Hornbostel-Sachs; see “lute”). It is usually plucked or strummed with the fingers.
The Guitar
Dutch: gitaar
French: guitare
German:. Gitarre
Italian: chitarra
Spanish: guitarra

History

There exist various theories about the guitar’s origin. Some thought it as a remote descendant of the ancient Greek kithara, suggested by the etymological relationship of “kithara” and “guitar.”  Others have seen early ancestors among the long-necked lutes of Mesopotamia or in an instrument with curved sides and a flat back represented in a Coptic tomb in Egypt. From the 1st to the 4th century A.C., examples of short-necked lutes with guitar shape were found in Central Asia.

In the early Middle Ages the Arabs (Moors) passing through Egypt on their way to conquer North Africa and Spain, may well have brought with their instruments the cardinal features of the guitar to Western Europe, so that the Arabic influence in Spain prepared the ground for the development of the guitar in Europe. Hence the name “Guitarra Morisca” for a kind of guitar with a long neck, an oval soundbox and several sound holes on its soundboard. It is depicted in the miniatures to Alfonso el Sabio’s famous Cantigas de Santa Maria (2nd half 13th century), together with a “Guitarra Latina”  with distinctive curved sides, which has been developed then into the form of the guitar known to us today.

Very important for the spread of the guitar (and other musical instruments) were the many traveling Troubadours in the Middle Ages, who greatly enriched the musical culture on the continent. By the 15th century the four-course guitar emerged as the most popular, but the number of courses (pairs of strings) became more and more variable.

In the 16th century, the lute had become the favorite instrument of most European aristocracies except in Spain where it had been associated with the Moors and their oppressive rule. So, while appreciating the music written for the lute, the Spaniards searched for another instrument and turned to the popular “guitarra” with its four courses. However, this instrument did not possess a sufficiently adequate structure to meet the requirements of complex polyphonic music. Moreover, the Spanish nobles regarded it with contempt seeing it was the instrument of the common people. Thus, the four-course guitar was duely enlarged and got six courses. This new instrument came to be known as the “vihuela” and had its “Golden Age” in the 16th century. The large type of the vihuela was somewhat longer than the modern guitar, and the neck had twelve frets. Among the more famed vihuela players were Luis Milan (born 1500), Luis de Narvaez and Alonso de Mudarra whose compositions for the vihuela (published in Spanish tablature in 1535, 1538 and 1546) were some of the finest instrumental compositions of the Renaissance.

16th century guitars were much smaller than the modern guitar (Juan Bermudo described the Spanish guitar in his Declaración de instrumentos musicales 1555 as smaller than the vihuela). This fact is evident in contemporary iconography and by the technical requirements necessary for playing with the left hand as indicated in surviving musical scores. The four-course guitar remained very popular by the common people throughout the 17th and 18th centuries because its limited range of courses made it useful for playing light dance settings or simple accompanying chords for all the popular songs.

The earliest surviving music for the four-course guitar appears in the collection for vihuela by Alonso Mudarra (Seville 1546). The earliest Italian source is Melchiore de Barberiis’s lutebook of 1549 with four “fantasias” for guitar. Paolo Virchi published the collection Libro de la tabolatura de chitarra in Venice. Above all, music for the four-course instrument flourished in France. Guillaume Morlaye’s first guitar book of 1550 is lost, but various of his compositions appeared in a series of guitar books published by the printers Granjon and Fezandat (1552-1555). A concurrent series was published at about the same time in Paris by Adrian Le Roy and Robert Ballard with music by Le Roy, Grégoire Brayssing and other masters. The repertory in these publications comprises a wide range of material from simple dance settings, intabulations of chansons and psalms to rather fine fantasias, and demonstrates the existence of  a true school of guitar playing in France in the 16th century.

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
listen here MP3 audio-file of:
Folias d’Espagne
by Gaspar Sanz (c. 1640 - c. 1710),
performed by Roland Ferrandi

Typical four-course guitar:
detail of the title-page of  Guillaume Morlaye’s Premier livre de chansons … en tablature de guiterne (Paris 1552)
Note the small size of the guitar in comparison with the book on which it rests.
St. Gallen, Kantonsbibl. (Verdiana), Vad. Slg. P3050]

A 5-course-guitar with 10 gut frets
and the typical ‘moustache’ at both
sides of the bridge.

The five-course guitar emerged in the 16th century at first in Italy as a development and transformation from the four-course type with the emphasis on brighter, higher-ranged music. It was used both for accompanying the voice and in continuo ensembles.

Even five-course guitars seem to have been small instruments. One of them made by Belchior Dias in 1581 is only 76,5 cm, with a string length of 55,4 cm. Other features of the instrument – shared by other plucked instruments of the period – were an ornamented rose instead of an open sound hole (which later appeared in the 19th century), gut frets tied round the neck (usually eight to ten frets) and a lute-type bridge set low on the table. The tuning was usually E-B-G-D-A, like five strings of the modern guitar. The difference was that the fifth course of the Baroque guitar was not really a bass string.

A derivative of the five-course guitar was the “chitarra battente”, which had been developed in the mid-18th-century. It is characterized by a slightly vaulted back instead of the flat one, which was often decorated with stripes of ivory or other decorative material. Its popularity (it seems to have been used primarily for folk music) is attested to by its frequent representation in paintings.

From Italy, the popularity of the five-course guitar spread throughout Europe during the 17th century. Its popularity brought an increasing number of professional guitarists to demand compositions of greater complexity and more refined style. With further developments  in playing technique, many talented performing guitarists had become composers and teachers as well.

One  of the most important guitarists in that time was the Italian Girolamo Montesardo, whose work is an illustration of guitar music in the early 17th century. But the most talented of all was  Francisco Corbetta (c. 1615-1681) who worked at the Royal court of Louis XIV in Paris as well as at the Royal court of Charles II , himself an enthusiastic guitar performer. in London. He dedicated one of the two different editions of his Guitare Royalle (1671 and 1674) to each of these kings. Corbetta’s presence in the Netherlands is attested by the publication of his Varii scherzi di sonate per la chitara spagnola in Brussels 1648. One of his many pupils was probably the French Robert de Visée (c. 1650 - c. 1732/33) who succeeded Corbetta at the French court and was  formally appointed guitar teacher to the king in 1719. Visée’s Livre de guitare dédié au roy (1682) and Livre de pièces pour la guitare (1686) mark the high point of French Baroque guitar literature. Visée also produced a collection of excellent pieces for theorbo and lute.

The greatest Spanish guitarist was the priest Gaspar Sanz (c. 1640- c. 1710). Early in his life he received a Bachelor of Theology degree from the University of Salamanca and later went to Italy to study music. In Naples, he became an organist and afterwards studied the guitar and became acquainted with the works of Foscarini, Granata and Corbetta in Rome. His three-volume work Instrucción de música sobre la guitarra española, which appeared in eight editions between 1674 and 1697, was the most comprehensive guitar manual of its time. It was enormously popular, particularly in Spain. It included about 90 compositions, most of them dance pieces in the Spanish or Italian style.

In Northern Europe, the guitar achieved the greatest popularity in Germany. Before long, an impressive number of guitarists and composers were able to rival the Italians, especially in the 18th century. The first German composers were Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672) and Samuel Scheidt (1587-1654), followed later by Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706) and Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), with whom the German Baroque music reached a culminating point.

Chitarra battente made
after a Sellas-instrument
by Martin de Witte, NL 2000

With improvements in technique and an ever-growing demand of musical instruments,  the number of excellent instrument makers grew and business flourished. The most famous guitar makers of the Baroque period were the French René, Alexandre and Jean Voboam, the Italians Matteo, Giorgio and Domenico Sellas as well as Antonio Stradivari, and the German Joachim Tielke, the most outstanding guitar maker in Europe. Tielke’s elaborately decorated guitars were consistently of the highest quality and represented the exceptional quality of German craftsmanship. Although a good number of richly decorated Baroque guitars have survived, preserved by the European aristocrats, the plainer models with relatively little decoration were far more common.

The nature of the guitar changed noticeably in the middle of the 18th century along with the musical styles in general. The primary use to accompany the voice together with an arpeggiated style similar to that of a keyboard instrument (harpsichord) required true bass notes and stressed the use of a bourdon on the fifth course. The baroque guitar began to closely resemble modern guitar both in character and playing style. Soon, even the double courses in octaves were abandoned in favor of single strings, and in 1785 a sixth string was indicated. The guitar is one of the few historical instruments which never lost its popularity even though it underwent extensive changes in form and technique, especially in our age of electronic music

Structure

The typical form of the guitar with its incurved sides is similar to that of the fiddle and may point to an earlier bowed form of a lute which appeared in 11th century Byzantine miniatures. The back of the “normal” guitar is flat. Along the fingerboard are complete gut frets tied round the neck. The bridge is similar to that of the lute, fixed on the table and with a typical decoration in form of a “moustache” at both sides. The strings were normally made of gut. From the 15th to the 18th century the sound hole appeared as a decorated rose, then it was open like at the modern guitar. Average measurements of the Baroque guitar were an overall length of about 92 and a string length of 63-70 cm.

Most of the guitar music called for the characteristic “re-entrant-tuning”with various modifications for the tuning of the respective courses, depending on the style of the music. So it was up to the player to decide which of the variety of possible tunings and stringings was suitable for each source of music; and this was not always easy.

right: guitar made by René Voboam, Paris 1641, left: guitar made by Domenico Sellas, Venice, c. 1670

Guitar Tablature

Guitar music from the period was usually noted in various kinds of tablature, according to that for the lute. The earliest notation specifically for the five-course guitar seems to have appeared in an Italian manuscript of 1580 containing the top parts of madrigals and canzonettas from various composers such as Marenzio and Vecchi. An important innovation was introduced by Girolamo Montesardo in his Nuova inventione d’intavolatura (1606), although the system was used in at least one earlier source of song manuscripts, dated 1599 (Chigiani). In Montesardo’s system each left-hand finger position for the 27 most usual chords was denoted by a single letter of the Italian alphabet, hence the name “abecedario italiano” or “alfabeto Montessardino”. In five-line Italian tablature the symbols were arranged above or below a horizontal line, where “above” meant a chord struck upwards, and “below” a chord struck downwards. Note values were shown by capital or small letters or by spacings between the dashes. Sometimes the horizontal line was broken up into a number of short equal segments, each representing a bar of music. Numerous modifications, additions and improvements were made by the leading 17th century guitar players like Foscarini, Millioni or Sanz. The most important improvement was the introduction of symbols for discords. The system was obviously easy to learn and very cheap to print, and a considerable amount of music in “alfabeto”is still extant, most of them from the 17th century. After 1750 guitar music was written in conventional staff notation, an octave above the sounding pitch.

Alfabeto-tablature by Gaspar Sanz, called “labyrinth” by himself. Each square of the chord grids show both the minor and major chord shapes. (from Sanz’ Instrucción de música sobre la guitarra española, 1674).

Playing Technique

In the performance of polyphonic music the technique of playing the guitar was similar to that of the lute: the right hand was supported by the little finger resting on or near the bridge and the strings were plucked by the thumb and the first two fingers. Such a position was made possible by the low height of the strings over the table.

The technique of plucking the strings individually was called in Spain “punteado” (in Italian: “pizzicato”). Another technique is the strumming of chords by sweeping the hand back and forth over all the strings at once - the “rasgueado” (It. “battuto” or “battente”), providing a piece with a particular character.

A new style of guitar music began to appear with Giovanni Paolo Foscarini’s second and third book (1629). Although one of the chief assets (and a true idiom of the guitar) was its ability to play block chords in a rhythmic strumming style, Foscarini adapted the lute technique in combination with the strummed chords to create a mixed style of solo guitar playing. This new mixed style was used then by the finest guitar composers of the 17th and early 18th century, and it was A. M. Bartolotti, who produced in his two books of 1640 and c. 1655 the first fully developed, masterful examples of this new style, which were some of the finest Baroque guitar music of the 17th century.

The most famous guitar players and composers of that period, Corbetta, Foscarini and Sanz, treated in various books also the aspects and problems in guitar continuo playing. In addition to devising accompaniments from the harmonic indications of the “alfabeto,” the 17th-century guitarists had also to learn to read and improvise a continuo accompaniment from the bass line (both with and without figures). Although the Baroque guitar was often unable to sound the true bass note because of its tunings, an idiomatic continuo accompaniment could be realized for the proper harmonies. The most thorough and extensive instructions were given by Nicola Mattei in his Le false consonanse della musica (c. 1680) and later in the English version The False Consonances of Musick (1682). This tutor for guitar continuo playing is one of the most useful and detailed of any 17th century continuo treatise for any instrument (including keyboard).

Iconographical Meaning

As a favoured instrument in the lower class for accompanying songs and dances the guitar appears frequently in tavern scenes or scenes of the peasants’ daily life including their “merry companies.”

Although a stringed instrument which normally stands for harmony in love and family, the guitar and its music, especially the Spanish with its pointed strumming of chords and sometimes strange harmonies and rythms, suggest rather a kind of “Mediterranean” flair, and in the pictures showing guitar players from the middle and upper class we see mainly proud young men often fanciful dressed looking rather like triumphant heroes than in a respectful courting and devotion.

The Beatles: Introducing the World to the Rickenbacker

Although all of The Beatles are more well known as songwriters rather than guitar heroes, their guitars and guitar playing have had a huge influence on nearly all music released since their existence.  No other guitar brand has had more of an impact from the Beatles than the Rickenbacker, and no other band has featured the Rickenbacker as well as the Beatles.  Acquired by John Lennon in Hamburg in 1960, the 1958 natural finish Rickenbacker 325 was described as his “dream guitar” and was the first Rickenbacker acquired by any of the Beatles.

Lennon soon made this guitar his own through various modifications, including replacing the control knobs, replacing the Kauffman Vibrola tailpiece with a more reliable Bigsby and removing the wiring to the middle pickup (whether this was done intentionally or not is still in question).  However, the modification that had the largest impact had nothing to do with the sound of the guitar.  Somewhere between October and Decemeber 1962, John Lennon refinished his 325 to be all black.  By simply changing the colour of his guitar, Lennon proved that appearance is just as crucial as sound when it comes to guitar choice.  Not to be outdone by Lennon, lead guitarist George Harrison soon found another Rickenbacker that would change the sound of the 60s forever.

Although not his first Rickenbacker (he had acquired a 425 a year earlier), in 1964 George Harrison acquired a Rickenbacker 360/12; the first ever electric 12 string guitar. Actually, to be more precise, George Harrison’s 360/12 was the second electric 12 string ever made and was given to him as a gift from its inventor.  Unlike the first 360/12 prototype, George’s 360 had the lower octave string strung above the higher octave on the four lower strings, and would be the basis for how all subsequent instruments would be strung.  The 360s headstock that featured two sets of machine heads at 90 degrees to each other giving it a sleek and low profile and also according to Harrison making it “so that even when you’re drunk you can still know what string you’re tuning.”  The 12 string jangle was soon emulated by bands like The Who flooding the music industry and soon became the trademark sound of The Byrds.

Prior to the Rickenbacker, Harrison can be seen playing a 1962 Chet Atkins Grestch Country Gentleman on their 1964 Ed Sullivan performance, which also highlights John’s black 325 and Paul’s violin bass.  Harrison’s original Country Gentleman fell apart after much use, and received a new one just before the famous airing. The Country Gentlemen is a peculiar guitar which looks like hollow body but is actually a large bodied solid guitar who’s F-holes are painted on.

Although Paul was given Rickenbacker 4001S left-handed bass in 1964 (the first left handed bass he had seen), he was most recognized for playing his Hofner 500/1 violin bass.  McCartney liked the Hofner for its simplicity and its symmetry, since he would flip a right handed model around to play it left handed. The violin bass became notoriously linked with the Beatles bassist, and remained his #1 instrument throughout his career. Later, Lennon would make the Epiphone Casino famous, most notably during the Let It Be rooftop performance. Harrison played a custom rosewood Fender Telecaster during the album Let It Be, however he would be most recognized for his psychedelic Fender Stratocaster “Rocky”, which he used on Magical Mystery Tour.

Harrison continued to play his original guitars, and can be seen on the cover of his 1987 album “Cloud Nine” with his Grestch Duo Jet; one of the first guitars he owned.  Even though as guitar-showmen, Lennon and Harrison were nothing compared to the wild Chuck Berry, they demonstrated to generations of guitarists to come how a rhythm (John) and lead (George) guitarist should play together with their inherent chemistry and excellent talent as musicians, which they reflected in their choice of guitars.

Although many guitarists have maintained true to the few instruments mentioned above, some guitars have popped up as fairly popular over the years and some guitarists have made relatively unheard of guitars their own.  Most notably in this second category is Brian May of Queen, and his Red Special.  What makes this guitar so special is that May, with help from his father, designed and built the guitar himself out of wood from an old fireplace mantel.  Since it is a true one-of-a-kind, it has a very unique sound that only Brian May can achieve, however several attempts have been made at a Red Special replica.

Guitarist Eddie Van Halen, famous for inventing the technique of “tapping” after studying Jimmy Pages solo on “Heartbreaker” made his own “Frankenstat”, which is easily recognizable by its unique red, white and black stripes. Kurt Cobain, like Hendrix and McCartney, played left handed and was most famous for playing a 1965 Fender Jaguar and a 1970s Fender Mustang, both of which were left handed guitars. Cobain designed his own “Jag-Stang”, a combination of the Fender Jaguar and Mustang, although he never played the instrument live making many believe he was never satisfied with the instrument. As previously mentioned, Cobain became famous for destroying his guitars at the end of Nirvana’s concerts, however unlike smashing pioneer Pete Townsend (The Who) who would destroy his best instruments, Cobain would typically smash cheap Japanese made 90s Stratocasters, whose neck-bolts were often loosened to ease in the destruction, and often allowing the instrument to be re-assembled, and smashed again at the next show.

Paul Reed Smith guitars have also become popular as a blend of the Gibson and Fender sound, but with only high end models available, it isn’t for everyone. PRS guitars feature decorative inlays with bodies made of mahogany, with or without a maple top, and can be seen played by legendary Carlos Santana and Mark Tremonti Creed.  The Gibson Flying V and Explorer has also been a big success with artists such as Lenny Kravitz, The Edge of U2 and Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters taking a shine to these classics, and a Flying V was even used by Hendrix early in his career.  One of the most innovative guitarists in recent years is Jack White of the White Stripes.  Most famously known for using a bright red 1964 JB Hutto Montgomery Airline which is made of “res-o-glass” material, White chooses guitars that are relatively unknown making every guitar he uses his own.  Other guitars used by White include the similar looking hollow-body Harmony Rocket and 1970s Crestwood Astral II, and a 1950s Kay Hollowbody whose huge sound chamber give it a bone crushing sound exemplified by White’s masterful work with the guitar slide.

The list of famous guitars and famous guitarists is never ending, but one thing is quite clear.  There is no such thing as “the perfect guitar”.  Some guitarists like Carlos Santana seek the perfect tone and will pay any amount to achieve this tone, while others like Jack White simply search for a guitar that suits there style, even if it only cost them $100 at the local pawn shop.  Many prefer to stick to the classic Fender or Gibson name, while others may search high and low for a unique guitar they can truly call their own. No matter what kind of guitar player you are, when it comes to choosing your own ax it all boils down to which guitar inspires you the most, suits you the best and most importantly, how you play it.

Without question, the first guitar hero was Chuck Berry. Without him, the music of today and the “guitar hero” may have never existed.  By the mid Fifties, he had practically invented rock and roll, or to quote John Lennon, “If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it ‘Chuck Berry’ “.  Berry not only mastered his guitar playing, he did it with style; showing all future guitarists how to be as visually entertaining as they are sonically.  The most well known of Chuck Berry’s moves is the “duck walk”, which is emulated by Marty McFly in the classic film Back to the Future and made equally as famous by Angus Young of AC/DC.

Berry’s #1 guitar was the semi-hollow body Gibson ES-335, which has a solid wooden block running through its center and was the first semi-hollow guitar commercially available.  The ES-335 has a more “woody”, mellow sound than a solid guitar providing his trademark sound on songs such as Roll Over Beethoven,  Rock and Roll Music,  Johnny B. Goode and Maybelline (which was named after a mascara case in his dressing room).  Influencing bands such as The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Who, Bob Dylan and The Beach Boys, Chuck Berry’s songs, style and sound have been copied, stolen and covered but never duplicated.

Since Chuck, nearly every famous guitarists has at least once used the Gibson ES-335 making it arguably the most popular semi-hollow guitar on the market. Included on this list is jazz musician Larry Carlton, Roy Orbison, Joe Perry (Aerosmith) and Tom Delonge of Blink 182 has his own signature ES-335 (even the endangered Panda has been seen with this beautiful instrument).  Legendary blues player B.B. King has used the ES-335, but is more famous for using his custom made Lucille, which is a modified ES-355, the top model thin-semi-hollow guitar made by Gibson.  Modifications include a maple rather than mahogany neck, lack of upper F-hole and has the word “Lucille” in its headstock. While Lucille may be the most famous hollow body of all time, it was Chuck Berry and his ES-335 that made Rock and Roll and the guitar hero what they are today.