Biggy Stardust's Top 10 Greatest Guitarists of All Time (Part 3 of 3)!

3) Michael Bruce (Alice Cooper). Of all the 70's American rock lead guitarists, Coop had one of the best. Bruce's guitar tone was as recognizable as, say, Ace Frehley's and Buck Darma's. I've always felt though that he approached his leads with a little more subtlety. His solo's weren't quite as big. He rarely pulled out a "barn burner". His lead work actually was more rhythmic and flowed within the spirit of the songs he was playing. Some of that was probably by design, but also out of necessity. Bob Ezrin produced both Kiss and Coop's records. Kiss's records were far more pure guitar/bass/drums.....where as Coop's incorporated brass, keys, and strings in addition to the standard gutar/bass/drums formula. An Ace Frehley type solo probably would of been out of place on an extremely orchestrated record like "Killer". A good example is my favorite Michael Bruce moment, when he comes in (almost underneath) the brass solo on "Under My Wheels".

2) Dave Davies (The Kinks). Davies created the guitar riff and the power chord. Period. End of story. This trandscends punk or metal. That alone makes him as important to guitar and rock-n-roll as Les Paul or Chuck Berry. There are 2 reasons why he is so important. For one, the chunky way of playing to make a harder, more defined guitar part, the riff. But "the riff" wouldn't have been as effective without the distortion that he pretty much single handedly created by getting the tubes hot, turning up the volume much louder than normal, and cutting slits in the speaker cones to get that unique sound. Favorite Dave Davies moment? The riff for the underrated Kinks number "Till The End Of the Day".

1) Johnny Ramone (The Ramones). I can say without hesitation, Johnny Ramone is my #1 favorite guitarist of all time. He played NO leads. He had NO flash. But his rapidfire, machine gun downstroke is probably the greatest sound to these ears. The Ramones, minus Joey, were nothing but a perfect rhythym section. People can argue the inception of "punk", and point to Dave Davies, Ron Asheton, Pete Townsend, or Johnny Thunders. All of which contributed. But without Johnny and the rest of the Ramones (and that first album) "punk" as we know it wouldnt have been the same. And rock-n-roll for the following 30 years (post 76) would have been far different. They way he used his guitar as a jackhammer sets him apart from any guitarist before him. Johnny's created way of approaching guitar has probably spawned more bands than any other guitarist in history. My favorite Johnny Ramone moment? EVERYTHING he played on "Ramones", "Leave Home", "Rocket To Russia", and "Road To Ruin".

Alright...that's it. A top 15 or top 20 list would of most definitley included Ace Frehley, Tony Iommi, Johnny Thunders, Pete Townsend, and Larry Parypa. Now back to the regular blogging fare!

Biggy Stardust's Top 10 Greatest Guitarists of All Time (Part 2 of 3)!

7) Elliott Easton (The Cars). The Cars get no respect. They're dismissed simply as another 80's new wave pop band. Starting in the 70's in Boston, The Cars were a great ROCK band with GREAT songs. Sure......they had rode the New Wave when it was happening. But the band had a great song writer and a distinctive sound. Easton's guitar had a unique compressed lead sound that sticks out. I always thought he was the "rocker" of the group who probably would of fared well in a more overtly "hard rock" band at the time. Favorite Easton moment? The over indulgent whammy bar tinged solo in "Tonight She Comes". No other guitarist could of pull it off in THAT song without me cringing.

6) "Fast" Eddie Clark (Motorhead). It's really cool to love Motorhead. Correction...it's really cool to say you like Motorhead and have their patches, although most people only own a "best of" and could only really sing you one or 2 songs. But most people atleast know them by name, and their equally (if not more) infamous leader Lemmy Kilmister. Lemmy is worthy of the hype for sure. But I've recently formed the opinion that WITHOUT Fast Eddie....the Motorhead "sound" doesn't exist. Motorhead has always been called HEAVY. But I don't think they were NEAR as heavy as they are now, and sadly so. What has recently struck me is the way he acheives such a great metal/rock guitar tone with a single coil strat. Ofcourse that was probably a hold-over from his previous blues background. Yeah...Fast Eddie was no metal or rock guitarist....just a bender in a blues band in England. I think his lack of hard rock upbringing was a huge benefit to the group. Favorite Fast Eddie moment? His opening lick in "Fast and Loose".

5) Jerry Reed. I grew up a fan since I was a kid. In fact, the first three 8-track tapes I knew as a kid were Kenny Rogers, The Statler Brothers, and Jerry Reed. Now, don't get me wrong, I am no authority on Jerry Reed. My knowledge of his music exists in my memories, and a few "best of's" that I've bought/downloaded over the more recent years. But as far as 6-string country "pickers" go, Jerry Reed was the guitar-hero of the landscape for that era of the genre'. My favorite Jerry Reed pickin'? His aptly titled song "Guitar Man" (Later covered by Elvis, w/ Jerry Reed playing session guitar on that version as well!).

4) Steve Jones (Sex Pistols). Enough can not be said about the unknowing genius of Jonesy. That sort of brillance only comes along once in a lifetime and it only lasts a mili-second. The "Bullocks" record would not of been AS good if it were recorded 5 years later with a slightly more seasoned and confident guitarist. His "solos" werent proper..or clean....or credible. But they were great and they were the only kind of solos that would of fit on those songs. Favorite Jonesy moment? His "solo" on "EMI".

dunnn.dunnn..dun dun dun....danananana dun dun dun: The greatest guitarists in history (Part 1 of 3)

Ok...I've been inactive with the blog and have been WANTING to write. But...this 2nd shift gig is kicking my ass and making me lazy the other 16 hours of the day that I'm NOT at work. However...today is Friday and I have a little burst of energy before I punch that clock. And..I've been wanting to do my own list of favorite 6 string slingers to combat those other bloated lists that always end with Jimmy Page and Jimmy Hendrix. Some of my pics may be obvious...but several probably have never shown up on ANY list. Anway....without further a do.....

BIGGY STARDUST's TOP 10 GUITARISTS OF ALL TIME (part 1)!!!!!

10) Deniz Tek (Radio Birdman). RB were a a wonderful Austrailian punk rock band from the early 70's that combined the sonic attack of Detroit's MC5, along with the surf rock reverb of the Ventures. Tek was actually FROM Detroit and brought that sound along with him to Birdman. I have always thought that he should part of that group of guitarists that included Wayne Kramer and Ron Asheton. Sadly, his name isn't as recognizable as their's. Favorite Tek moment? His solo in the Birdman tune "Snake".

9) Eddie Ojeda/Jay Jay French (Twisted Sister). Yes...I put 2 guitarists in one spot. I group them together because they are really one....kind of in the same way Tipton and Downing are thought of. Anway, I imagine alot of people would say "Uh...you mean those guys from that We're Not Going To Take Anymore video?" But yeah, I highly admire this band along with these 2 guy. TS provided the soundtrack to my youth. But upon further investigation, Twisted Sister had alot more to offer than a few campy video's. First off, of all the bands of that time...I'd say their obvious competetion would be Motley Crue and WASP. However, they lacked the fake L.A. feel to their music. Originally and always from Brooklyn, Sister actually retained a certain level of danger. I always thought Quiet Riot and Ozzy were a joke...but Dee Sinder and the boys could, and would, kick your ass up and down the street. And probably still would today. Also, I've also recognized that Eddie Ojeda, despite his nickname "Fingers", never feel into the trap of having to churn out meaningless Randy Rhodes/EVH finger tapping nonsense. He stuck closer to a blue structure and never really deviated. Favorite moment? The controlled feedback that runs underneath most of the song "Stay Hungry".

8)Brian May (Queen). I'm a Queen fan. But I really think I'm a BIGGER fan of Brian May. Queen songs that feature less Brian May interest me very little. I enjoy the multi-instrumenalist aspect of the whole band. But it's Brian's guitar sound that holds them as a unit and binds them and keeps them constant. A unique guitar sound is something not found everyday. His sound is SO unique that he can be recognized with the plucking of ONE note on his self-designed/constructed guitar. Favorite Brian May moment? His solo on "Stone Cold Crazy".

Anyway....3 down, 7 to go. To be continued soon....