carlpenn said:

Please expound.

talk2bill2 said:

Doesn't the fact that he does play other instruments along with many different guitars qualify Prince as being close to the greatest?

If you want him to be, then yes. Who cares what everyone else thinks?

namepeace said:

Again MickG, what's "confusing about Hendrix's music?

I like prince's playing(especially live), but he's not even as good as Jesse

Honestly, I do not understand all this "Greatest Guitar Player" fuss or (even worse) the Rolling Stone ultimate list of greatest guitar players... seems like being an obsession or something.

See, my fav. guitar player is frank Zappa. Technically he isn't spectacular (though truley unique), but the ideas he develops etc. are fantastic. I never liked the Steve Vai-Joe Satriani type of perfectionism, since it appears cold to me. Or Al DiMeola (though I like his old works). It's like adding rally-stripes on your guitar...

Would anyone rate Dizzy Gillespie a greater trumpet player then Miles? Though it seems no one ever could play as fast as Dizzy...

He's an awesome guitar player but there are so many other's that are probably more accomplished. When you mention guitar players you must not forget to include guitarist's from not only rock and r&b but also jazz. And because I metioned jazz I'll throw Pat Metheny in the mix. He's a bad ass for real! TRUST ME.

SteamForest said:

Yeah, that's right... Mike Stern, Scofield, Django Reinhardt, too. John McLaughlin has his moments, too.

PurpleHouse said:

I have a clip of this cat, must be late 80's...early 90's (he has on a bill cosby sweater ) on the dave letterman show...crazy, crazy, crazy, ...Im sure something exists on youtube...everything else seems to...

No, he's 2nd best. Pat Metheny is the best guitarist.

I am no expert, but he´s the only guitarists that actually drives me wild. Otherwise quitar is my least favourite instrument, but when Prince playes it...

Of course he is not. He is one of the best mutli-instrumentalists of the last 30 years. That's already HUGE.

mikek1 said:

Prince has a lot more emotion in his way of playing than Van Halen or Vai who are just eccentric guitar players showing off their skills.

And Prince is not only a guitarist...

There must be a reason why this thread comes up so often.

As I've said before, Prince is my inspiration to play guitar. He is a very, very good guitarist, but technically there are hundreds of people who can do things that Prince has yet to do in public on guitar.

If you had to rank him among professional musicians as a guitar player, *within the Rock genre*, he is among the top ten.

There are metal players who can play faster and more intricate lines.
There are blues players who can play more songs in that genre.
There are jazz players who command a more masterful expertise of the guitar.
There are classical players who can do things on acoustic that many can't do with electic guitars and all the effects.

But Prince has got to be one of the most provocative, evocative musicians on guitar (or any other instrument). He is just...charismatic, attractive, powerful, masterful in the way he plays and presents himself. He plays one note and you feel as if he's played a symphony. He is not only a great guitarist, but also a great performer.

In that sense, ain't nobody better.

Another of his talents is his versatility. Not only can he play many different kinds of music on many different instruments, but he also composes all his own music.

So even as a die-hard Prince fan, I cannot say he's the greatest guitar player of all time. Andres Segovia, Steve Vai, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Ry Cooder, and John McLaughlin may all have something to say about that. But in the totality, Prince is a visionary musician and stellar performer.

He's my *favorite* guitarist. No need to call him the Best Ever.

You youngsters forget about Jeff Beck.

George Benson in his prime... or Adrian Belew... too good to chose one, if that should be necessary.

Wow! Yet another "Is Prince the Greatest Guitarist..." thread.

Alasseon said:

Great Response. You can't rank guitarists like you would a sporting event. It's such an individual question. Prince's musical mind make him interesting on any instrument. It's my personal opinion that most of those named heavy metal guys are not composers from their guitars but instead put on ridiculous displays of speed note playing that is not "musical".

BlaqueKnight said:

LOL!

As a voice of reason on this topic in many, many other threads, I gotta ask you--how often do you practice and how long have you been playing?

BlaqueKnight said:

BlaqueKnight said:

That is the best fucking emoticon of all time!

Beat that dead horse! Make it get up and dance. Beat that dead horse!

BlaqueKnight said:

.

MickG said:

I thought that meant kissing ass

If you "Right Click" on the image, and check it's properties, you will see the file is named deadhorse.gif

If that wasn't enough for you. Look at the animal. It looks dead. it isn't moving or doing anything to escape.

"Beating a dead horse" is a statement used throughout americas. It means over stating something to the point of unneeded action or words to achieve a point.

for example: if I was to go on and on about how that graphic is a dead horse, I would be beating a dead horse.

The joke is... A dead horse is dead, so beating it isn't going to make the horse work any harder or move.

Prince isn't the greatest guitarist of all time. Though, he just might perform great on the richest / smallest - guitarist of all time ratio.

MickG said:

As I'm reading this, I'm dying laughing!!! It positively *drips* with sarcasm but can also be meant in the nicest way.

LOL! Good job!

nurse said:

1st u should know that there is no "greatest" 'cause all us fans, musicians, experts, and geeks have a million different theories on what define's "greatest".... as far as bein a near 2nd 2 jimi, i would agree because in their eras they were among the caine's,obi wan's, morpheus' and neo's that broke, bent, and reinvented the rules of modern music....

Prince is definitely the most underrated guitarist ever...


But many people show all their ignorance by saying he's the greatest player of all time...

There are way too many better guitar players...

Some people should see and hear the very best players to see the difference...


Just take a look at Stanley Jodan :

http://media.putfile.com/Stanley-Jordan

He's able to play bass, rythm and solo at the same time with an electric guitar !!!
And he's not considered as the greatest player of all time...

The best guitar player.. hmm.. interesting question.

You see, the problem with a lot of those competetive guitar players is that, while they may be technically accomplished, they seem to play such boring music. I'm thinking satriani and malmsteen here. What determines whether you're a guitar hero? How many notes you can play per minute?

One of the most important things P incorporates in his music is his understanding of TIMING, and the idea that silence is as much a part of music as sound. Just have a listen to álexa de paris' or the solo in 'time waits for no-one' to get an understanding of what i think a true guitar-hero can do.

To sum up: a really good guitar-player 'talks' and 'sings'through his guitar, and knows how to touch you through what he's playing. Prince does this like noone else