When learning another language, experts recommend that you immerse yourself in the language. The same principle applies when learning how to play guitar. Listening to the "10 greatest guitar players can be a source of inspiration, can encourage you to keep practicing your guitar lessons, and give you a goal to work toward. The following are my pick for the 10 greatest guitar players, listed in no particular order:
Jimi Hendrix - At one point, Hendrix couldn’t get a break in Nashville, and he ended his backup days with Little Richard in a contract dispute. He quickly realized, however, the value of innovation in playing guitar, as well as in putting on a stage show that fans would remember. It was his innovation, and his ability to play the guitar in any position with any body part, that consistently places him as one of the 10 greatest guitar players ever.
Band:The Experience, A Band Of Gypsies
Eric Clapton - Clapton can not only brag that he’s considered one of the 10 greatest guitar players in rock music and one of the greatest blues guitarists, but also that he has drawn huge crowds for his classical guitar concerts. His playing style is smooth, yet precise, and the guitar chords almost seem to flow from his fingertips.
Band:The Yardbirds, Cream, Derek and the Dominoes, Blind Faith, Solo
Robert Johnson - Although modern guitar players will often complain that Robert Johnson was out of time, out of tune, and you cannot understand his vocals, style of playing guitar was unlike anything else at the time, and set the pace for future generations of blues players. Johnson is also the guitar player often accused of having made the deal at the crossroads, selling his soul to the devil in order to be able to play.
Eddie Van Halen - The lightning speed and innovative sounds of Eddie Van Halen’s guitar are easily recognizable. They are even more impressive when taking into consideration that he is completely self-taught, having never had any type of guitar lesson. It has often been said, that it is easy for Eddie to be creative in his guitar playing techniques because he was never told how he could or could not play.
Band: Van Halen
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Easily one of the most well known modern blues guitarists, Vaughan’s music seemed to be pulled from the depths of his soul at times. While his guitar playing was smooth, it was the sheer amount of emotion in every note that drew people to his music and makes him one of my picks for one of the 10 greatest guitar players.
Band:Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble
Tony Iommi - For many people, Iommi is considered the first real metal guitar player, using a lot of distortion but keeping it completely controlled. His fiery style is even more impressive because his fingering hand is missing the tips of two fingers, requiring him to use rubber prosthetics when playing guitar.
Band:Black Sabbath
Jeff Beck - Many guitar players consider Jeff Beck to be one of the most well rounded guitarists in the world, able to produce incredible tones with what appears to be very little effort. Despite his ability to create amazing sounds with a great depth of feeling, he is rarely given the credit he deserves. I'll rate him as one of the 10 greatest guitar players.
Band:The Yardbirds, Jeff Beck Group
Jimmy Page - Formerly one of the hottest studio players in England, Page not only has the ability to write incredible guitar riffs, but he also has the ability to play them perfectly.
Band:Led Zeppelin, The Yardbirds
Randy Rhoads - Rhoads was perfect and precise in every note of his guitar playing, but did so with a great depth of feeling. Not only could he play the music, but he could write it also.
Band:Ozzy Osbourne
Joe Satriani - Satriani may well be the next stage in the evolution of guitarists. He has the ability to play music when he is goofing off that many guitar players will never be able match, even after years of practicing their guitar lessons.
Band:Joe Satriani
While this is by no means the definitive list of the greatest guitar players, and some would disagree with my picks for the 10 Greatest Guitar Players, it is an excellent starting point. By listening to accomplished players, those who are learning how to play guitar can find their inspiration.
10 Greatest Guitar Players
Guitars
Because electric and acoustic guitars are so familiar, it is easy to overlook the broad range of guitar types in existence. Not every guitar is the same, and guitar playing techniques can vary, giving guitar players the opportunity to try something new and different. Those who are learning how to play guitar, and even those who have played for a while, should take the time to examine the many options available.
Types of Acoustic Guitar
Under the heading of acoustic guitar, the most common types are flat-top, archtop and classical.
The flat-top guitar, true to its name, has a flat top and back, along with steel strings. The flat-top is the type of guitar most often seen in use by folk, country, blues and bluegrass guitar players.
The archtop guitar has a curved top and either a flat or curved back. Generally, this steel-string model features f-holes, similar to a violin.
The classical guitar is similar in appearance to the flat-top, but it usually has a wider fingerboard and is strung with nylon strings.
The acoustic guitar, however, cover a much wider range than just those three basic guitars.
Among the other types of acoustic guitars are:Resonator guitars are similar to flat-top guitars, with the exception of the metal resonator mounted in the top. Typically, resonator guitars have two sound holes, either small round holes or f-holes, although some resonator guitars have three or four sound holes. The idea behind a resonator guitar is that an aluminum resonator cone inside the body would increase the volume of the guitar.
Twelve-string guitars are flat-top guitars with twelve strings, generally arranged as six pairs of strings like a mandolin or lute. The highest pair of strings is tuned together, while the two strings in the other five pairs are tuned at octaves.
Russian guitars are acoustic guitars with seven strings, rather than six. Popular among Russian guitar players in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the guitars were typically tuned to an open G major.
Acoustic bass guitars have steel strings and are tuned the same as an electric bass guitar.
Types of Electric Guitar
Electric Guitar come in solid body, semi-hollow body and hollow body varieties, and typically have six steel strings. There are variations on the electric guitar, though, that may or may not be familiar to all those playing guitar.
Additional strings, in a variety of amounts, modify the sound and playing style of the electric guitar. Seven-string and twelve-string electric guitars are commonly known variations of the standard electric guitar. There are also eight-string electric guitars, as well as variations in the strings used. For example, most seven-string electric guitars have a low B string, but some guitar players prefer to use an octave G paired with the regular G, a modification that allows for some of the elements of twelve-string playing to be incorporated into a seven-string guitar.
Electric guitars also come with multiple necks. The most common neck variation is a double-neck, but some guitars even come with three, four or five necks.
All Guitar Players, no matter how many guitars they have seen, is highly unlikely to have seen or played them all. There are so many variations of acoustic and electric guitars that it would take weeks to touch them all, and years to master even a few.
The variety, however, allows even the most veteran player to never be bored with the instrument.
History Of The Guitar
The guitar actually has a mixed heritage, but the origins of the modern instrument can be traced back to Spain. In fact, the word “guitar” is derived from the Spanish word “guitarra.” Of course, for many beginning guitar players, the last thing they really want to know is the history of the guitar. In reality, however, knowing the origins of the guitar, as well as its extensive history, can help guitar players develop a deeper respect for the instrument. In addition, knowing how the guitar has evolved helps players understand the construction of the modern guitar.
Sometime around 40 AD, the Romans made their entrance into Spain, or Hispania as it was called. With the Romans came a musical instrument known as a cithara. The cithara was a type of lyre, but it was typically played by professional musicians. It had a wooden sounding box made of two tables connected by ribs. Above the box was a tuning bar, and the strings were stretched from the tuning bar to a tail piece on the box. Guitar Players played by strumming strings with one hand, while using the other hand to deaden the unwanted strings
.
In the 8th century AD, the Moors entered Hispania from the south. The Moors brought an instrument called an oud. The pear-shaped body of the oud was flat on the front, and bowl-shaped on the back, and it usually had more than one sounding hole. At that time, the most common oud had only four strings, and the neck was not fretted. Tuning was accomplished by turning the keys on the pegboard. Both the oud and the cithara were played with a pick, although the oud could also be played by slide and vibrato.
Eventually, the cithara and the oud were combined into two instruments: the Moorish guitar and the Latin guitar. The Moorish guitar retained the rounded back, multiple sound holes and wide fingerboard of the oud. The Latin guitar, on the other hand, had a more narrow neck, a flat back and one sound hole. Despite having only four strings, the Latin guitar of the 11th century is clearly the predecessor of the modern guitar.
The earliest six-string guitar is dated 1779, and was made by a member of the family of Italian luthiers, or stringed instrument builders, who developed the instrument.
By the mid-1800s, the guitar had taken on its familiar shape, and bracing inside the guitar had been changed to the modern fan style. The guitar’s evolution continued nearly one hundred years later with the invention of the electric guitar.Knowing the history of the guitar increases a guitar players’s ability to appreciate the details of the instrument. Most of us Playing Guitar have little difficulty identifying the features handed down from both the oud and the cithara, or in appreciating why that particular combination of features was used. A deeper appreciation of the guitar, and our guitar playing, leads to a deeper respect, which shines through when the instrument is played.
- Headstock
- Nut
- Machine heads (or pegheads, tuning keys, tuning machines, tuners)
- Frets
- Truss rod
- Inlays
- Neck
- Heel (acoustic) - Neckjoint (electric)
- Body
- Pickups
- Electronics
- Bridge
- Pickguard
- Back
- Soundboard (top)
- Body sides (ribs)
- Sound hole, with Rosette inlay
- Strings
- Saddle
- Fretboard (or Fingerboard)
How To Play Guitar
If you're ready for a guitar lessons program for serious guitar players that will teach you guitar playing skills on how playing guitar was REALLY meant to be played, then you owe it to yourself to find out just how easy it is to learn to play guitar using these advanced, and beginner guitar lessons.
Hello, My name is Derek Cockrum. I established this site to help you, (the beginner and advanced guitarist), discover the top guitar lessons available that will show you how to take your guitar playing skills to the next level. My staff, and I have personally reviewed and tested almost every guitar program out there, and have listed our top 3 recommended guitar lessons for serious guitar players below.
To your success,
Derek Cockrum
Is Without A Doubt My Number #1 Choice!"
Whether it is playing classical guitar at a university, acoustic guitar in a recording session, or electric guitar for thousands with a Grammy winning artist in an arena, Steve Krenz's musical excellence and versatility combined with a gift for communicating in an easy to understand and practical way is a major asset to his students and a key to the incredible success of Learn & Master Guitar.
Quality: Excellent
Support: Excellent
Description: It contains ten DVDs, five jam-along CDs and a 108 page book. It's a bit pricey, but if you're serious about really wanting to learn to play guitar, there just isn't anything better. Everything is super high-quality -- from the website, to the video production, to the pro guitar players they use for the Jam-Along CDs.
Learn and Master Guitar covers everything from the very basic guitar lessons through the most advanced techniques. There's no way we could list everything here, but here are a few of the things you will learn -- and master!
Foundational Techniques: Everything from tuning the guitar to the proper way to hold your pick, we carefully instruct you on all the basics. Even if you know nothing about guitar playing, we’ve got you covered!
Basic Chords: Many popular songs only require the knowledge of a few basic chords. You’ll learn them, master them, and be playing and jamming in no time with these guitar lessons!
Advanced Chords: Barre chords, two chords, major 7th and minor 11th chords and more. They're all here, but with Learn & Master Guitar, you'll learn a few at a time as you're playing guitar to fun songs and learning cool style techniques, with each new set of chords building on the last.
Advanced Electric Techniques: From Hammer Ons and Pull Offs to Advanced Bends and the Eddie Van Halen Technique, it’s all here. You’ll learn the musical concepts behind these techniques and discover how to use them in real guitar playing and soloing situations, just like the pros.
Mastering the Entire Instrument: There’s a lot more to the guitar than first position! As you progress through LMG, you will discover quick and easy ways to learn the entire fretboard. Any key, anywhere on the fretboard… that’s the goal, and with the "How To Play Guitar" secrets you learn with LMG, it’s actually quite simple!
Also...
What impressed me most, though, was that they also give free support after the sale. Once you buy the course, you get access to a members-only site where you can discuss your progress, post questions, and chat with other students. Steve Krenz, the author of the course, answers most of the questions himself and seems to be on the discussion board almost daily. This is a huge help!
Strumming Techniques
Reading Music and Tab
Ear Training
Techniques for Masterful Soloing
Major, Minor, and Pentatonic Scales
Alternate Chords & Chord Creation
and Much, Much More!...
Click Here To Learn More About Learn & Master Guitar.
"Doesn't Matter If You're A Beginner or Seasoned Guitarist,
Jamorama Has It All!" 
Company: Jamorama
My 2nd Choice
Quality: Very Good
Support: Excellent
Over 20,000 Users
Downloadable Software Courses
148+ Online Video Lessons
Full Jam Tracks Audio Training
No Shipping of DVDs or CDs - Best Software-Based Course
Jamorama Review: Jamorama is a guitar training course designed and produced by Ben Edwards, who is the acclaimed guitarist for the popular band "DegreesK". He has toured internationally and his course is one of the best guitar lessons for serious guitar players I have ever tested.
Jamorama is loaded with top-notch material, including 148+ online video lessons, Jam Tracks audio lessons, tons of guitar tabs, and his revolutionary "GuitEarIt!" It trains your ear to identify all the various guitar chords. I have trained many of my students using Ben's methods for years, and still find it among the best advanced & beginner guitar lessons training software for playing guitar available today.
Bottom Line: If cost is a factor and you enjoy taking guitar lessons from a computer, Jamorama is a great way to go. It is the best of the software-based instruction courses for wantabe guitar players.
Click Here To Learn More About Jamorama.
"The Beginner's Guide To Unlocking The Guitar
Is The Beginner Guitar Players Choice!"
Company: Unlocking The Guitar
Quality: Very Good
Support: Excellent
Description: Basic guitar lessons are a great first step for learning how to play guitar. These guitar lessons are arranged with the absolute beginner in mind. This first free lesson and the lessons to follow are easy. Though the program does not come with video, and not as detailed as Learn & Master Guitar & Jamorama, it's still a very good program, especially if you're just starting out playing guitar.
This course includes the new and revolutionary Muscle Memory Techniques, countless "Press & Listen" sound files (no downloading required), easy-to-understand chord charts, over 150 quality pictures, and step-by-step easy guitar lesson instructions for anyone wanting to learn how to play guitar! No matter what style your guitar playing, this information applies to you.
Bottom Line: Although it may not be as extensive as my top two choices, my first impressions of The Beginner's Guide to Unlocking the Guitar is that it's really a great first step to playing guitar for beginners.
Click Here To Learn More About The Beginner's Guide To Unlocking The Guitar.
Why I Chose "Learn & Master Guitar"
as my #1 Guitar Lessons Program
If you really want to learn how to start playing guitar then Learn & Master Guitar is your best bet. I've gone through many of the lesson reviews & guides that are out there and none of them can stack up to Learn & Master Guitar - "This course is in a class of its own."
I like that it provides training in a variety of musical genres and that it takes student guitar players all the way from beginner through very advanced instruction. The assignments are clear and easy to follow and the instructor has a very natural communication style that makes it easy to learn to play guitar. I also really liked the Jam-Along CDs. Having a CD to play along with while learning your songs makes the advanced and beginner guitar lessons a lot more fun! None of the other courses offer this.
With Learn & Master Guitar, you get it all: There's 10 Demonstration DVD's, 5 Play-along CD's, an easy to follow workbook, and much, much, more --- Truly a complete guitar players lesson package!
As I said earlier, What impressed me most was that they also give free support after the sale. Once you buy the course, you get access to a members-only site where you can discuss, with other guitar players, your progress, post questions, and chat with the other students. Steve Krenz, the author of the course, answers most of the questions himself and seems to be on the discussion board almost daily. This is a huge help!
Bottom Line: If you want something more substantial than a brief introduction on playing guitar, Learn & Master Guitar is the best guitar training course available anywhere. It really is in a league all it's own. It does cost more than the computer-based courses, but if you're really ready to get serious about your guitar playing, it's well worth the investment.
I give Learn & Master Guitar a perfect 10 out of 10 without hesitation.
Click Here To Learn & Master Guitar
Acoustic Guitar
The acoustic guitar may be the most familiar type of guitar for most guitar players. With its curved sides and steel strings, the acoustic has a look and sound that makes its presence known in folk, country, bluegrass, jazz, blues, and even some popular music. Many guitar players, however, are not as familiar with the beauty of the acoustic guitar design, or the varieties of acoustic guitar that are available.
Design
An acoustic guitar is designed to be heard without any type of external amplification. The woods commonly used for building acoustic guitars, such as spruce, mahogany and maple, are known to guitar makers as “tone” woods because they are more resonant than other types of woods. Inside the acoustic guitar, bracing is placed in such a way as to produce a quality tone, although the bracing style used may vary according to the maker. An interesting note about acoustic guitar design that is well known to luthiers: You can tell if an acoustic guitar is well made, and will subsequently produce a quality tone, by placing a lit match in front of the sound hole and then tapping the top of the guitar. In a well made guitar, the tap on the top will produce enough air to blow out the match.
Varieties of Acoustic Guitar
Not all acoustics are the same, and the different types of acoustics produce different sounds. The following are a few of the many varieties available:
Flat-top - A flat-top acoustic guitar is the type that is most familiar to most people. The back and sides of the guitar are flat. The tone produced by a flat-top guitar varies according to the maker, and many guitar players find they prefer one brand to another based solely on the tone.
Archtop - An archtop acoustic has a curved, or arched, top, and may have a flat or rounded back. The idea behind the archtop was to increase the amplitude of the sound produced by eliminating the standing sound waves inside the body of the guitar, thereby increasing the amount of sound released from the guitar. Not all those playing guitar will agree that the theory behind the archtop works, but there are many guitar players who prefer archtops.Bass - An acoustic bass is generally designed like a flat-top, but with bass tuning like that of an electric bass.
Classical - The classical guitar is similar to a flat-top, but with a wider fingerboard. In addition, the inside design of the classical guitar does not easily withstand steel strings, so nylon strings are used.
An acoustic guitar has variations in size, tuning, and the amount of strings. In addition, there are many manufacturers who now produce acoustic guitars with pickups that allow them to be plugged into an external amplifier when needed.
Just as different guitar players prefer different styles of music, they prefer different types of acoustic guitars. The wide variety of acoustics available makes it possible for those of us playing guitar to find something we enjoy. In addition, the design of the acoustic guitar ensures that whatever type guitar players choose, they will enjoy a quality tone that requires no external amplifiers.
Electric or Acoustic Guitar?
Your first step to playing guitar is to actually have a guitar in your possession. Of course, there are so many brands and models of both electric and acoustic guitars that it is difficult for new guitar players to know what to buy. I learned from my guitar lesson reviews, many beginners go with what their friends, family members, or favorite guitar players have, only to find they are not happy with their equipment. In reality, the best way for starting your guitar playing journey is to find the guitar that is right for you.
The following tips can help make buying your first guitar much easier:
Know Your Budget
Before you start looking for that perfect first guitar, you need to know how much you can reasonably spend on a guitar. Know what you can afford to pay in cash, as well as what you could possibly afford in monthly payments because some retailers offer payment plans. If you buy a guitar outside of your budget range, you will be more worried about how to pay for it than playing guitar. This also helps you when interacting with salespeople because they will be able to more easily guide you to the right guitar if they know your spending limits.
Get The Best Guitar You Can Afford
Better instruments play easier and sound better, so you are more likely to practice and really get serious about your guitar playing. If your instrument is clunky, easily falls out of tune, or sounds bad, you will have a difficult time determining whether you are making any progress with your guitar lessons. You will also have difficulty matching notes with any instructor, whether live or recorded, which will increase your frustration with your guitar playing. Remember that a good instrument will not make a bad player sound good, but a bad instrument can make a good player sound bad... especially when you are first starting out playing guitar.
Buy A Guitar That You Like
If you are not happy with your guitar, you will be less likely to actually stay on course with your guitar playing . Look for guitars that appeal to you, both in design and color. The more you like the way your guitar looks, the more you will want to actually touch it, and touching the guitar leads to your really wanting to start playing guitar.
Acoustic Or Electric Guitar?
One of the biggest questions for aspiring guitar players is whether to buy an acoustic or an electric guitar. Acoustic guitars are often the best choice for learning how to play guitar because they do not have the gadgets and shortcuts found on electric guitars. An acoustic guitar forces players to actually learn how to play notes and chords, as well as produce the right sound, without any help. In addition, an acoustic is more portable, requiring no amplifier or electricity, making it easier to practice your guitar playing anytime, anywhere.
Finding the right guitar for most guitar players does not have to be difficult, but it does require that you take the time to think about what is best for you. By knowing exactly what you can afford, and then buying the best and most attractive guitar in your price range, you will have an easier and more enjoyable time with your Guitar Playing.
