The Most Underrated Guitarists of All Time

Rolling Stone magazine pretty much hit the spot when they published their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. The list is mostly comprised of mainstream acts as you would expect from RS. Hendrix, Clapton, Page and Richards were obviously listed as the top 10. And while there were some nice surprises in the list such as Joe Perry from Aerosmith, Edge from U2 and Joan Jett, the fact that they left out the two greatest guitarists of our time didn't sit easy with me.


I'm talking about the legendary Slash and the virtuoso Matthew Bellamy.


The introduction of the list in Rolling Stone reads, "They built their own guitars, stabbed speaker cones with pencils, shattered instruments and eardrums — all in search of new ways to make the guitar cry, scream, whisper, shout and moan. And when that wasn't enough, they turned up the volume. They are the 100 greatest guitarists, and these are their sounds and stories."


Slash may have not been famous for building his own guitars, but he definitely created a new sound from his Les Pauls that ended up saving Rock n' Roll in an age when it was commandeered by make-up-masqueraded glam queens. He welcomed us to the jungle and he took us to paradise city, and he didn't even make the top 100. What a shame.


Now for Matthew Bellamy, the successor of Hendrix, who plays with the British alternative rock band, Muse, his omission comes as less of a surprise. The American press has always been hard on him and his band. Everywhere else except in America, Muse are considered gods. Their shows are considered the best. All the musicians are considered the best at what they do, and for good reason. Bellamy has created a new sound for the guitar through a combinations of effects similar to Tom Morello, but he still plays with a skill that easily matches Jimi Hendrix.


It's no surprise then that the international press actually acknowledges his accomplishments. Total Guitar magazine ranked him #29 in their list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time and NME magazine ranked him #14 Greatest Rock 'N' Roll Hero of All Time. He placed ahead of Bob Dyaln and John Lennon. Think of what that says of the man.


What more do these guys have to do before they can be properly recognized in America?