I guess what I was trying to say in the previous post is that blazing technique with no or very few viable, tasty musical ideas is nowhere and for me unlistenable.By the way, Peter Green was and is killer but he had a 10-15 year hole in his career when, among other things, was a grave digger. |
Peter Green was more true to traditional blues than Clapton is/was. Duane Allman was one of the best blues guitarists but he is know as a southern rocker, mentioned already Roy Buchanan, Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Rory Gallagher, J. Giles (go hear his blues CD called Blues Time), T-Bone Walker, NOT Buddy Guy, Ronnie Earl (one of the best still alive today), Stevie Ray, BB King, Albert King, etc. |
Crega, SRV blows Eric away as a blues guitarist. I know personally, I have been playing for 30 years. Go rent the Austin DVD of SRV and then tell me what you think. Stevie Ray was responsible for bring blues back to the forefront of music single handedly. Everyone admitts that, and Dick Betts and the Brothers owe their revival to him (per Dicky).
Stevie mastered the traditional blues licks and played with more emotion than most players ever hope to.
Rent the DVD. |
If I (Or better yet, Ken Burns) were to educate someone on the important contributions to blues guitar playing I believe Eric Clapton would be considered more of an evanglist, than the genuine article. Yes he's skilled and well versed, but when I see the likes of Buddy Guy on stage, I know I'm seeing the real deal. No offense to Clapton fans. |
You know I'm always astonished and even a little angered when talk of "best" blues guitarist begins with some British knock off. Now I know that I'm selling Clapton a little short, but he himself will be the first to acknowldge that he is more of a student of the music as opposed to an inovator of it. Also, what is a blues guitarist? Are we succombing to coporate lables? Wes Montgomery played plenty of blues--12 bar and otherwise. I think that idea of the "best" guitarist is pointless. Sorry if I offend, but music, IMHO, transcends any simple ranking such as this. Okay. I've ranted long enough. I'll shut up now. |
There never really is a best of anything, but if forced to choice I'd say Albert King is the master. |
I have scene and heard most of the greats mentioned here .... and they all have their individual strengths. hendrix for the looseness of his interpretation, clapton for his technical, finely polished genre-bending skills and buddy guy for the sheer dedication and soulfullness in regards to the blues. However, the most engaging electric blues that I have ever experienced took place at a Johnny Winter show in Toronto about twelve years ago. It was held outside at a partially covered venue. Mid-way through the show a violent thunderstorm from Lake Ontario (30 yards away) suddenly bore down on us. We all rushed toward the stage for cover. Instantly, there was an incredible energy in the air. Johnny kicked things into very high gear and drove home the some rockin' blues which had to be experienced to be believed. That evening still echoes in my mind as one of the greatest unexpected music experiences that I have had the pleasure to been part of. |
the late great johnnie copeland---when he went back to playing a les paul and not pevey---he was at durham bull blues festival in 89 or 90 and lonnie brooks and his son (dont know his name) played--but copeland was just dead on --if you can dig up a live cd or tape he was great for this one show--it was as good as freddie or bb he just had the tone that night |
In my younger concert going days, I had the opportunity to see Hendrix four times, Clapton with Cream several times, as well as with Derek and the Dominos, Delanie and Bonnie and Friends, and Blind Faith, as well as some really great blues-based guitarists such as Albert King, Freddie King, Mike Bloomfield, and Duane Allman.
Who was the best guitarist I ever saw live? Without a doubt, Johnnie Winter. I saw him at the Fillmore west when he was with Rick Derringer in his Johnny Winter And tour and he not only blasted my ear drums away (they rang for hours), but he played with such unabandoned fire and passion that it left me floored. Unfortunately, I just missed a chance to see him in the Sacramento area when he appeared recently, but he was/is an amazing guitarist. |
The most influential white/bluesman guitarist is someone you never heard of.... Well that's probably not true here since this is a "hip room" judging from the all the previous knowledgable postings (over 2+ years!!!).
Anyway it's a guy called Dave van Ronk. Seriously. Even those of you that know of him probably don't feel he belongs here, but his invaluable contribution, even besides his superb guitar playing (finger-picked acoustic heavily influenced by Rev. Gary Davis) is that he was the FIRST white person, at least not born in a southern milieu & perhaps even including that as far as I know, to perform the blues in the exact same style & intensity as the black bluesmen, starting in the '50s. No namby-pamby vocals or smoothing out jagged rythyms or substituting "nice" lyrics for the Eisenhower era audience. He wasn't mimicing the black style either, he was respectful but a pretty funky & earthy guy. A wheezy voice not unlike Joe Cocker. He hollered & swore & sweated & had a remarkably intricate country blues picking style. No compromise blues. He taught guitar to many of the folkies, later rockers, who came out of Greenwich Village in the 60s. His albums were known in England's folk & blues circles in the pre-Beatles 60's. The arrangement of House of the Rising Sun on Dylan's first album was literally stolen from Dave's act, causing the dissolution of their friendship. The BEST guitarist...maybe not, but I felt his passing last year went just as unnoticed as his key contribution to popular music has. Perhaps some of the young players here might run across some of his early bluesy LPs sometime & give a listen.
As for Clapton being tired, maybe. But you have to realize when that first album came out in, oh 1964, nobody was playing like that. Nobody outside of the clubs in the southside of Chicago that is & most of America was utterly oblivious to that. We were being force fed pop acts and even those r&b acts & bluesy rockers like the Stones, Kinks & Animals that broke through had nothing that compared to EC's sound -sustain & distortion- as well as his speed, accuracy and feeling. It was stunning at the time, and that stuff all through the 60's & early 70's still stands up today. Beck & Hendrix & all the rest followed EC and stood on his shoulders, just as he admits he stands on the shoulders of Muddy, Freddy, BB and all the other, up to then, ignored greats. |
Dude, you must be kidding? |
Phasecorrect gets my vote. Jeff Beck continues to grow and experiment, not content to play it safe and comfortable. Check out the energy and chops on "You Had It Comming" |
Catch John Renbourn doing his version of Robert Johnson and you will be blown away. The man is a master guitar player and can play blues, renaissance, medieval, ragtime, jazz....whatever. I just saw him in Berkeley on his recent tour last week. He'll be at Columbia University for five nights, I think.
He has a couple of live albums with Stefan Grossman that are spectacular and full of blues (cocaine blues, methinks is on one and great) and ragtime. |
RE: Cpdunn99.wow...very old thread...very relevant subject. Is the auther still around? I printed it for further study. One entry: from Cpdunn99..there are blues guitarists...there are blues-sounding guitarists, and that's Clapton. Damn!...well said. |
I think Clapton had the major inspiration to play the blues. Certainly Mike Bloomfield, Peter Green and Duane Allman are excellent players too.
I'm sorry but I don't think Johnny Winter can really be considered a great bluesman. Probably because he reminds me Hendrix too much (for example hear the many live versions of the fantastic "Red House" and then the many Winter's blues-rock standards like "It's my Own Fault").
Also don't forget that the greatest slide player in the blues-rock area was certainly Duane Allman. He inspired a lot of slide guitar players from Michael Messer to Dave Hole.
bye. |
Green and Clapton recorded some great material, as did many of their inspirations. Like others, I find it difficult to select a best blues guitarist. However, if forced to select, I believe Clapton is the single greatest and that the studio Layla album was his greatest work. Yes, his work with Mayall and Cream was great, but the passion expressed on the entire Layla album, along with Duane on slide, remains my absolute favorite. Shows what losing the love of your life and a drug problem can help create. That boy was seriously Blue at the time! Raw and unpolished. |
As great as Eric Clapton and Peter Green were/are as guitarists, I can't, under any circumstances consider them among the greatest Blues guitarists. NOT EVEN CLOSE! The greatest Blues players emote in a way that is completely separate from technique. Clapton and Green are great, great guitar stylists with technique to burn. However, neither Clapton nor Green have ever conveyed to me the manic terror of Buddy Guy, the frank sexuality of Albert King, or the threat of imminent violence of Son Seals. I don't see it as a race thing either as Stevie Ray was eminently capable of throwing down. |
Hendrix blew everybody out of the water and there hasn't been another since, though SRV came close. |
Over the years I've been lucky enough to hear Hendrix at the Fillmore West and Monterey (yeah); Clapton at the Fillmore West; Gatton in D.C.; Duane in SD and LA; Cray in Tacoma; Page in Oakland; and Buchanan in LA and SF twice. For me, Roy will always be the man - I have never witnessed another musician motivate an audience the way he did. |
I'll take Clapton over Green, check out Live In Hyde Park to see what Clapton can do. As far as the best Blues Guitarist it has to be Buddy Guy check out the JSP recordings he is a living Blues Legend. Others I love Freddie King, Albert King, Roy Buchanan, Mike Bloomfield, Luther Allison, Robert Johnson, SRV, Hendrix, Robben Ford, Ronnie Earl, Chris Duarte, Bill Perry. |
clapton is great and green is fantastic but buddy guy is the man!the real deal! i saw him twice and it was aunbelievable experience!try the albums:buudy guy the real deal,slippin in,and sweet tea.happy listening!! |
Danny Gatton, Danny Gatton, Danny Gatton...Eric who? |
Boas2 he asked for the best blues geetar player which Danny was not. He was (still is) the best in my book always!
Happy pickin' Danny where ever you are now! |
I like most cited, and below is certainly not the "best" as its simply too difficult a task in mind but I do think they r major omissions.
BB King
Jimmy D Lane
Lucky Peterson
Kelly Joe Phillips
Duane Allman |
Ive never beem much of a Clapton fan even with Creem,to busy listening to Hendrix.I like Peter Green better then Clapton IMHO |
EXCUSE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
DUANE ALLMAN, by a large margin, don't even think twice about it. |
And right behind him was Roy Buchanan, if you have not heard Livestock, you might try finding the record. |
The initial question to this thread was....Does anyone know of any DVD of SRV at Alpine Valley,his final concert. |
They're all great gitarists in their own right. |
no, the initial ? was, who is better Green or Clapton? |
As with many threads about music preference and experience, this one has evolved well beyond the original question, which many shared their opinion of as well, above.
Another incendiary talent not mentioned, is a guitarist that was not strictly blues, but used it as a flavor much in the same way that Hendrix did. John Mclaughlin is a giant talent and one of the most technically brilliant to have ever picked up a guitar. He is also one of the few legends that innovated through blues, Rock and beyond into something extraordinary. You simply could not classify Mahavishnu music in simple terms because it spanned, and expanded beyond categorization.
Regarding SRV, I recall a tribute on PBS in which fellow bluesmen Buddy Guy and Eric Clapton eulogized Vaughn by saying in essence, that Stevie didn't play music, the music played him-- as if it were being channeled through his being. Buddy took his hat off to Stevie in such a sincere and reverent way, both my wife and I choked up a bit in watching his comments. Clapton stated that, though his confidence in his own playing was strong, he saw himself more as a student of the blues, repeating practiced licks well learned. Clapton said Vaughn possessed a lightning bolt of inspiration and raw talent, that he was in awe of and could never match.
This doesn't mean SRV was "the greatest", because there is no such thing, but to have your peers speak with such reverence and awe of your talent should put Vaughn on anyones "best" lists
I witnessed that raw, inspired energy coming off of Vaughn when watching him play, as if neither he nor the audience knew what was coming until it was right there on his fingers. J. Winters, Buchannon, Allman, Guy, Mclaughlin, Hendrix and King (both Albert and BB) were the only others I experienced that seemed to be played by the music, rather than playing it. Beck, Steve Earl, Richards and Page get honorable mention. I would offer that group up as my personal all stars of the guitar. |
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Saw SRV many times with Paul Ray & The Cobras, and then with Double Trouble when living in Austin, TX in the '70s--'80s. I don't think anyone has mentioned Denny Freeman, who taught SRV plenty as lead guitarist in the Cobras, and later supplied Angela Strehli's band his chops, among many others.
For sheer fun and live playing, Albert Collins gets my vote. He could take and an audience wherever he wanted with his stinging ring.
Clapton or Green? Green. He is the only cat who B.B. King commented that his tone/playing scared him. All of the players mentioned above have made great contributions. |
When Clapton was asked this exact question he replied, Buddy Guy. I guess it would depend on the style of guitar you favored. Green was more of a Britist Blues guitarest and his best work can be heard on the original Fleetwood Mac material put out on the Blue Horizon label. Claption on the other hand played excellent rock blues that is portrayed by the Cream material. Either way, you will hear some of the best guitar work ever. |
Johnny Copeland is the blues. I saw him live in Houston TX, and I'm still speechless to describe his performance. Technical ability the blues does not make....its comes from a life experience. It really shows in Copeland's guitar playing. He was ill when I saw him with heart problems, and was one hour late coming out to do the late show. Once he got out there, he brought the house all the way down!!!! Rest in peace, Johnny. |
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SRV hands down, but only if Jimi Hendrix is not considered blues.
I would pick Hendrix as the all around "guitar god". |
Clapton was great...WAS....it seems to me he only reached great heights when he was pushed by a formidable partner in his own band...Cream (Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker), Bluesbreaker days (John Mayall) etc. In a way, Paul McCartney was the same: he needed Lennon. As for BLUES, I vote 4 Buddy Guy, BB King, SVR, Kelly Joe Phelps, Jimmy D. Lane, and among the young guys Derek Trucks and the lead guitarist of Indigenous (forgot his name...Manny something? |
Clapton was a decent blues guitarist. He was popular, but he didn't play anything spectacular. He wrote some good pop/blues songs, but to say he was a great, I don't know - show me some challenging riffs that he did. I haven't heard anything new or difficult to play. BB King had more expressiveness in his playing and many others have as well. SVR, well his guitar style was redundant to me, but he had more talent in his big toe than Clapton.
There are many others nowadays. Clapton was yesteryear.
Rob |
All I can say is that with SRV, Clapton, and Jonny Winter at my disposel as well as others for electric blues style guitar I find myself putting in Jonny Winter.
Now for blues try track 8 on the Greetings From The West DVD by Dan Fogelberg. People can play and then people can play from the soul. Speed is not what it is about.
I don't know if the song is on the CD or not.
Just one persons opinion, who does not have the extensive listening experience that others here have.
Remember to take the system as a whole. |
clapton? green? lisen to buddy guys album stone crasy !!! |
Clapton, Green? Buddy Guy. Everybudy has his own style, i know. I love Vaughans -dirty poole- live also, but we are talking about the best blues guitarist ever. Vaughan, Hendrix, clapton, Beck, they all once said that Guys the best. Started recording in the 50s and still playing... Listen to the album- stone crazy- or tracks like slow blues and sweet black angel and youll know wat i mean... And between these 2 its clapton, but he seldom shows it of. Slowhand and Vaughan did a lot live with Guy. Jimi Hendrix taped a performance of Buddy once to learne from it when he was a kid. And Jeff Beck said: i didnt know a strat could sound like that, referring to Buddys -slow blues-. Well the whole album i think. A man and the blues track 5. And 7,8, the solo at 3.24 min!, and 10 not to forget. listen good to it! |
Clapton... best blues guitar player?
What new sound, emotion, riff, trick, style... (that somebody else had not done before) did he ever contribute to the guitar playing?
He has not advanced electric guitar playing in any way and it is anfair to a lot of great guitar players to even talk about Clapton.
At best, he is mediocre.
Experienced... yes.
The best? He is miles behind. |
I hav'nt read every message so if this has been covered ,sorry. As a musician who has played guitar for 30 yrs I have an opinon on this. Firstly the question asked here is valid and innocent enough and I'm not out flame anyone just impart some of my limited wisdom. I believe that it is not possible for the likes of Eric or S.R.V. (one of my favourites) to be Blues guitarists. They are blues imitators! Great ones! and there's plenty of them out there...to reproduce the scales and inflections not matter how well is simply that...reproduction...well that's what music is you say, well yes and no. My question is what is a blues musician? And in the history of blues music lies the answer. Blues music and it's scales were derived from the natural inflections of the speaking patterns of the people of the region it was created unless you are rasied with these speach inflections anything else is imitating no matter how good.
It's a bit like saying your Italian just because you've learned the language. I'm not anal about this, or anything really and dont let this detract from me enjoying and learning from these great musicians but a white boy raised in the UK a true blues guitarist? I wonder what Eric would say. And before I get flamed, I understand the need for genre identification, and blues imitation is still blues..is'nt it??? |
Their are alot of Albert King impersonators still copying
his style. I personally like Albert Kings style the best,
Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, Bobby Rush are right there on my list also. Though Stevie Ray, IMHO is the most fluid, natural guitar player I have ever heard. I just went
to the SF blues festival a few weeks ago and Buddy guy and
Santana were pretty darn awesome playing side by side. |
Neither is close to the "best." I know I have posted here before, but this thread won't seem to go away.
When you start listening to a lot of really good blues players--ones who can elicit emotion from six strings--you will start to realize that Clapton and Green are just imitators. There's little doubt that Clapton is sincere in his various homages to the greats, but a few strums by Lightnin' Hopkins will do more for your soul than anything that Green and/or Clapton can. If you don't believe me, just put on "Goin' Away," turn out the lights, sit back with some whiskey, and you'll hear the truth of the matter. |
love 'em both, but for "goose bumps per lick" give me duane allman. i could listen to "goin' down slow" everyday...i have the blues |
Crazy4Blues,
You said that well.
Rob |
Neither. Mississippi, home of the best gospel and blues guitarist and myself, will tell the story. You can verify this with Mr. Clapton and Mr. Green to be sure, if you wish. Situated south of Tennessee, east of Arkansas Louisiana and west of Alabama, this state has and consistently produces some of the greatest blues-playing guitarists of all time. Ask Mr. Johnson or Mr. B.B. King if you want to verify this. Don't mean to give you the blues, but the truth hurts sometimes. |
Clapton had some moments, (with Mayall, Cream, and Derek and the Dominos), when nobody elses's chops or speed were a match for his feeling, but that's still only a few moments, and none since,(Layla),1970! Green may never have developed the way he did without Eric as an example, but as far as pure insane blues feeling, he not only out-did Eric, but also out-bluesed his mentors: BB King, Freddy King,and Otis Rush. The guy is just bluesy, which I don't really feel about Clapton. Of course Green's good stuff was never to return again after,(Live at the boston Tea Party),1970!! At least it was because he went nuts, not because he sold out. BB must be given credit as the source for all modern blues lead; he is the -main- influence on Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, and Freddy King, and so, of course, all that come after them. The only one who escaped the BB influence was Albert King, whose influence more recently on SRV and a million club players, has suprassed BB's influence. As far as pure ability, SRV is tops, as no other player is so adept at both the slow , soulful style of playing -and- the lighting quick, high-energy stuff. |
