Obviously, anytime someone has a list like this, it will be subjective and open to a lot of debate. These are the musicians that I feel had the greatest long term impact on guitar players overall as the guitar was developed into a serious instrument for musical expression. I purposely limited myself to only ten, which is very difficult since there have been so many fantastic guitar players over the years. The ten are (in basic chronological order):

1. Andres Segovia:

Segovia made the guitar a respectable part of the classical music world, and demonstrated just how beautiful and virtuosic the guitar could be. His studies and approach are part of the standard lexicon of classical guitar to this day.

2. Robert Johnson:

Considered the original King of the Delta Blues, his influence extended beyond the blues genre into rock and roll, and folk among others. His intricate slide playing and haunting vocals have inspired countless bands including Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and more recently, The White Stripes.

3. Charlie Christian:

As guitar player for Benny Goodman, Christian brought the electric guitar to the forefront as a solo instrument. He was a pioneer who showed that the electric guitar could be more than just a rhythm instrument.

4. Merle Travis:

One of the key developers of a fingerpicking style using an alternating bassline that is used in country, bluegrass, and folk styles of music. The technique is named after him, “Travis” picking. Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, and Lindsay Buckingham went on to make great use of the technique.

5. Les Paul:

One of the first “tech head” guitar players. Not only is he a great player, he is a brilliant inventor who gave us the Les Paul guitar. He’s in his 90’s and still playing gigs– inspiration at it’s finest!

6. Chet Atkins:

He took fingerstyle guitar to new virtuosic heights, merging many styles of music together effortlessly. His melodic playing graced hundreds of recordings as a session player and as a solo artist. Besides being the prototype for professional Nashville session players, he was also a very successful producer.

7. Wes Montgomery:

Montgomery became one of the most influential jazz guitar players in the 1960’s due to his inventive playing that utilized an interesting octave technique where he would play melodies using octaves that he would strum with his thumb. In addition to playing jazz standards, he added instrumental renditions of pop tunes from such artists as the Beatles, setting the stage for later “smooth” jazz players like George Benson and Larry Carlton.

8. Jimi Hendrix

Do I really need to say anything here?

9. Jimmy Page

As part of Led Zeppelin, Page brought multi-layered guitar arrangements that included blending electric and acoustic guitars, using alternate tunings, odd time signatures, not to mention a violin bow!

10. Eddie Van Halen

Eddie brought a new level of intensity to rock guitar with his jaw dropping solo’s that of course featured his vastly influential finger tapping technique that inspired just about every rock guitarist from the eighties onward. Similar to Les Paul, Van Halen is also a tone chaser and inventor who enjoys experimenting with his guitars and amps to get the perfect sound.

If you haven’t heard some of these players before, I really encourage you to check them out. Also, come up with your own list of players, and try to justify each entry by researching their contributions to guitar playing. Find out who inspired them and dig deeper. Having a general sense of the history of the instrument will give you a better perspective on your playing, and provide a sense of how you fit into the scheme of things.