David Gilmour
Steve Howe
too many for #3-sorry....

les paul
EVH
Jimi Hendrix

It's dang near impossible to narrow it down to three for all time, due to the fact that each decade had its "game changers" who built upon what previous generations had created, but took a sonic leap forward. So here it goes by decade:

1940s
T-Bone Walker--He was what many players aspired to be in the 40s. He bridged jazz and blues. He influenced BB King, John Lee Hooker, Gatemouth Brown, Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones and a million other blues players. He did stage tricks (playing behind his head, doing the splits, etc.) long before Berry, Hendrix and other "showmen." He (along with Muddy Waters) was instrumental in promoting the electric guitar in blues.

Les Paul--instrumental in creating overdubs as well as other electronic gizmos (echo-echo-echo) we all take for granted today. Pioneered (but didn't create) the use of solid body guitars. Dang fine player, too.

Muddy Waters--he put together the prototypical blues (and rock) band, consisting of drums, bass, dual guitars plus piano and/or harp. He fought to be able to use his touring/show band as his studio band. And in the words of Wille Brown ("Blind Dog Fulton"), "Muddy Waters invented electricity..."; He (along with T-Bone Walker) was instrumental in promoting the electric guitar in blues. Even though his biggest hits were in the 1950s, he started out (and had established himself) in the 1940s.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

1950s
Chuck Berry--He bridged white hillbilly music and black blues. He added teenage lyrics to music that was fun but not fluffy. Stage antics (some deriviative, some original) that influenced later showmen. One of the first black artists to be embraced by the (white) record buying public. In the words of John Lennon, "If you were to give rock & roll another name, it would be called Chuck Berry."

Bill Carson--Not necessarily as a performer (although he was supposedly pretty salty in his day) but as co-designer/consultant on the Stratocaster Committee. He (along with Freddie Tavares, George Fullerton and Leo himself) made suggestions and improvements all along the way.

Buddy Holly--One of the first rockers to embrace the Strat; produced and wrote his own material; adapted the "Bo Diddley Beat" into a context that didn't threaten white listeners; sang string-laden ballads beside hard-edged (for the time) rockers; first rock & roller to wear glasses (pre-Hank Marvin, pre-John Lennon)...and all before the age of 23.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

1960s
Jimi Hendrix--if you need reasons why, you obviously aren't a guitarist.

Eric Clapton--ditto above, but here's some extras; was a member of four highly respected groups (Yardbirds, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Cream, Blind Faith) before briefly going solo then collaborating (Bonnie & Delaney & Friends, Derek & the Dominoes) and going solo again; created a tone people are still trying to get or are still debating ("woman tone"); played on several Beatles songs; stole a Beatles' wife; went through addiction back to sobriety and now reaches out to help others (it's become a cliche, but he did it first).

Don Rich--Buck Owen's guitarist, helped create the "Bakersfield Sound"; changed country music forever (for the better, IMHO). Died too soon.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

I guess I'm not a guitarist.

1. The Edge
2. Jimmy Page
3. Tie-Hendrix/SRV

Any player who is known by initials.
EVH, EC, SRV, you get the point.

who, Ole Scratch

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1. Buddy Guy/Jimi Hendrix: Buddy was doing Jimi before Jimi
2. Roy Buchanan: sometimes called the greatest unknown guitarist
3. Page

Of course, ask me in an hour & the list will have changed...

And wasn't Robert Johnson's teacher the crossroads devil?

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Cathy

surviving infidelity
marital affair

The Ventures
The Beachboys
The Beatles
That gets you to 1966 and then there would be.......

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

hendrix for giving the first steps in rock guitar

evh for the legatos, tapping and harmonics

kurt cobain for practically modeling what is todays rock scene (the guy may not be a good guitarrist but he had a message and a style)

Finally someone mentioned him. Man, the rest of you should be ashamed for letting this thread go three sheets without a mention. I am not saying that there have not been some excellent selections, but you have GOT to have this guy in the conversation. Just saying ...

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Laughing out loud with fear and hope, I have a desperate plan ...

You obviously missed my post in the first page where I placed Charlie Christian and Les Paul as a virtual tie but gave Les the edge because of his technical contributions which were also revolutionary.Of course if I hadn't taken this into account Charlie would have won hands down,he was the father of so many great riffs and techniques that are impossible to overlook.BTW I liked Bohemian's answer of "Robert Johnson's teacher"- brilliant.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Eddie Lang
Django Reinhardt
Andre Segovia