Famous Jazz and Rock Guitarists

Jazz and rock, both are popular musical art forms that are created significantly by guitars along with other instruments. Different sub-genres of the traditional jazz and rock music like jazz-rock fusion; or blues-rock have been innovated by various guitarists. Following are some of the greatest jazz and rocks guitarists:

Jimi Hendrix
Johnny Allen Hendrix, popularly known as Jimi Hendrix, born in 1942, was a famous guitarist, song writer and singer. He gained fame initially in Europe. The year 1967 was a milestone in his career when he won the hearts of Americans in the Monterey Pop Festival and again in 1969 at the Woodstock Festival. Jimi Hendrix created his own band known as The Jimi Hendrix Experience, whose Are You Experienced and Axis:Bold as Love are the most famous albums. Jimi Hendrix was a left handed guitarist and played his Fender Stratocaster upside down. He died at an early age of 28. He was a recipient of many prestigious awards. He has been included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and also the UK Music Hall of Fame. Jimi Hendrix is considered the greatest guitarist of all time, having influenced many other famous guitarists.

Eric Clapton
Born in 1945, Eric Clapton is a famous guitarist, composer, song writer and singer. Young Eric's life changed when his grandparents gave him his first guitar. He joined the band Yardbirds, and was with them for 18 months before he formed a band group called Cream. Also known as Slowhand, Clapton is an award-winning rock guitarist, associated with a variety of genres like rock, hard rock, blues-rock, etc. Eric Clapton is the only person to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame thrice; first as a member of Yardbirds, then as a member of Cream and later as a solo performer.

Jimmy Page
Born in 1944, James Page is a famous guitarist and composer. He was the member of the band Yardbirds for 2 years, from 1966 to 1968. Later, he was one of the founder members of the famous English band, Led Zeppelin. Jimmy Page is the most talented and versatile musician with hard rock, blues-rock and heavy metal being his genres. Besides the guitar, the musical instruments played by Jimmy Page include dulcimer, harmonica, mandolin, banjo, bass, etc. His famous solo Stairway to Heaven, is regarded as the greatest guitar solo. He has been included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, as member of Yardbirds as well as a member of the Led Zeppelin band respectively.

Jeff Beck
A famous rock guitarist and songwriter, Geoffrey (Jeff) Beck, was born in 1944. He was the member of the band Yardbirds, along with Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. Later he formed his own band called the Jeff Beck Group. His genres of music include heavy metal, hard rock, instrumental rock, and jazz fusion. He has won 4 Grammy Awards for the Best Rock Instrumental Performance, and is also inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Joe Satriani
Famous American instrumental rock guitarist, Joseph (Joe) Satriani, was born in 1956. Known for creating a variety of music like instrumental rock, heavy metal, jazz fusion, etc., Satriani has a record of maximum number of Grammy Award nominations. Satriani was chosen as a lead singer for a band tour by Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stone. His famous solo albums include Surfing with the Alien, Flying in a Blue Dream and The Extremist. Joe Satriani is influenced by all the above mentioned famous guitarists.

The other famous rock and jazz guitarists are Yngwie Malmsteen, Duane Allman, Carlos Santana, Eddie Van Halen, Slash, Angus Young, Keith Richards, Steve Vai, Ritchie Blackmore, Kirk Hammett, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Music is a craze among people of all age groups, and guitarists occupy an significant position among all musicians, no matter which part of the world they come from.