Which guitarist(s) do you feel play at the peak technique-wise while still serving the song?

[Jacksonluvr636]

Jon Levasseur

 

[xzacx]

Eddie Van Halen.... mAAAAAAnnnnn...

I'm not a big Eddie fan, but I have to agree with this. As much of a "guitar hero" as Eddie is, it was never at a detriment to VH songs.

I'd add Randy as the best for me - similar to EVH in the way I feel he always complimented the songs without making them about him. (I just happen to like those songs a lot better than VH songs.)

 

[Flemmigan]

Although most of their music isn't bursting with shreddy technicality (at least these days), I have a huge composition mancrush on Cameron Maynard from The Contortionist. His leads are always tasteful and serve the song well. Some examples are Causality (~2:30 and ~3:30), Absolve (4:10), and Flourish (interlude).

Robbie also writes some really cool riffs, but his style is more straight 16ths or 8th note triplets. In comparison, Cameron's are less technical but more soulful, which I dig.

Second Dustie Waring and Paul Wagoner (especially Dustie though because he gets recognized less often as an amazing lead player) and Jakub Zytecki (amazing phrasing!).

 

[QuantumCybin]

Alex Lifeson. Being in a 3 piece I always felt he had such a good balance between rhythm and lead

 

[feraledge]

Another vote for Angel. I'd say everyone in Obscura, but particularly Fountainhead.

 

[Paul Gilbert]

Eric Johnson
Guthrie govan
Ryan knight
Fredrick thordendal/marten hagstrom
Justin Lowe/Trent hafdahl
Paul Ortiz

 

[Bobro]

Another vote for Guthrie Govan.

Also, some might disagree and say he's too "technical", but I think Dominique Forest Lapointe's virtuoso bass playing is musically amazing. and the mind-blowing technical ability never overwhelms the musicality. How a person can have such clean intonation at such speeds just makes my head explode, and that's one way you can tell a finger-wiggler from a real musician, because you have to have enormous ears to have intonation that perfect.

 

[AxeHappy]

Another vote for Angel Vivaldi. Pretty much the most glorious melodic and phrasing choices around right now.

 

[Bobro]

Another vote for Angel Vivaldi. Pretty much the most glorious melodic and phrasing choices around right now.

Thanks for the tip, have to check them out! I'm a total sucker for "melodic".

 

[Seabeast2000]

Thanks for the tip, have to check them out! I'm a total sucker for "melodic".

Me too. Hmm, looks like Ibanez missed the endorsement opp with him per Wikipedia.

 

[JSanta]

Guthrie Govan also gets my vote. I think if you look at the his contributions as a whole, from solo stuff, The Aristocrats, Steven Wilson, and Hans Zimmer, he fills every role without a single unnecessary note. His phrasing is so spectacular. He really reminds me of a lot of the great jazz saxophonists (Charlie Parker, Ornette Coleman) in that every note mattered and was there for a reason.

He's easily been my favorite guitarist since I had a copy of Erotic Cakes sent over from the UK in 2006.

 

[Spaced Out Ace]

Off the top of my head, I'd have to say Ace, Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Marty Friedman, John Sykes, Slash, and Jimmy Page are definite contenders. In Jimmy's case, though, it depends on how fucked up he was, but on records, he definitely fits in with the thread topic.

 

[Andrew Lloyd Webber]

I would also like to add to this list the great number of players I aspire to steal licks from in the course of my daydreams - but have never gotten around to stealing from, due to the effort required. I would also like to remove from this list any that I have, that others have mentioned. They are old-hat.

 

[Velokki]

Andy Timmons & Jakub Zytecki <3

 

[The Mirror]

This is basically a longer form of what @KnightBrolaire already said, but I think it is a very valid answer in this thread.

So, Devin Townsend.

In case not anyone knows, this guy can totally play the guitar, just watch his 10 minute aptly named "Willy Wanka" video from EMG TV.



In these 10 minutes he gives you a perfect medley of some of his craziest instrumental parts.

But then again, he absolutely knows when not to do stuff like this.

He has songs and sometimes even nearly full records in which the guitar is nothing but a supporting instrument that gives room for the vocals or other parts. Casualties of Cool in it's entirety has probably not a single guitar part that you couldn't play after half a year.

Or his very poppy oriented metal songs, which consist of nothing but simple power chords. You can play the rhythm parts of Supercrush! with one finger.

I just love that he knows what his songs need. Though sometimes there is not enough guitar in his stuff, which culminated in the rest of the DTP downright forcing Devin to play some solos on Transcendence.

On the other hand. Deconstruction.

 

[Andromalia]

Dave Murray. Although not the most technically difficult by far from all the people cited here, he can play his licks effortlessly live and very cleanly, while not making it feel like a forced solo insert. In comparison Adrian Smith is clearly more in trouble while Janick Gers just ignores half of the original solo. XD

 

[Curt 8771]

I'm partial to Paul Gilbert. His Fuzz Universe album is fantastic.

 

[Louis Cypher]

Paul Gilbert being mentioned reminded me actually of Bruce Bouillet and in-particular his playing on The Scream's debut album. Possible sacrilege I know but even on the Racer X albums he was on, I did prefer Bruce's playing to Pauls.....

 

[mcleanab]

Randy Rhoads, Paul Gilbert ("Viking Kong" especially), Nuno Bettencourt, and the entire band Rush... every guitar solo from HEMISPHERES on to HOLD YOUR FIRE always felt like a whole band solo...

 

[Andrew Lloyd Webber]

The Beach Boys! Yngwie! the Beatles! Dread Zeppelin! Robert Goulet!