Born in London in 1965, next up is the legendary guitarist Saul Hudson – famously known as “Slash.” Considered one of the greatest guitarists in rock history, Slash made a name for himself by being Guns N’ Roses’ lead guitarist. But like many great musicians, Slash struggled with illegal substances and alcohol for a number of years. Eventually, he left some of that behind and went on to pursue a very prolific solo career.
His talent is undeniable – have you heard the solo in “November Rain?” If you answered no, please excuse yourself to go and listen to it. While you’re there, add “Sweet Child O’ Mine” to your queue. He took his star power with him, starting Velvet Revolver, which was successful in its own right. But since 2016, Slash returned to Axl Rose, and the band continues to rock to this day.
Carlos Santana
You can just hear the sexy, moody, smooth guitar of Santana when you say his name. Born in Jalisco, Mexico, in 1947, Carlos Santana is a must-have on our list. Moving to San Francisco as a young man, by the time the fabled “Summer of Love” came around, he was a name in the area. But it was when he played Woodstock that he truly gained fame, and it was decided that he wouldn’t be “not-so-well-known” for long.
He’s received high praise over the years for his extremely melodic sound, with musicians such as Prince acknowledging Santana as a greater influence on him than Jimi Hendrix because “Santana played prettier.” Sometimes musicians have to err on the side of caution when discovering their sound or voice, with the legendary guitarist attributing LSD to finding his voice: “You cannot take LSD and not find your voice.”
Joni Mitchell
This Canadian singer-songwriter was born in Alberta in the 40s and is our first female on the list. Mitchell's very singular tuning style helped maximize the sounds in each and every chord. Drawing from a mixture of genres, she enjoyed folk, pop, rock, and jazz, and her songs often focused on social and environmental issues, as well as her personal take on love, confusion, disillusionment, and joy.
Towing nine Grammy awards and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she’s been hailed as “one of the greatest songwriters ever.” What makes Mitchell so unique is her ability to write songs with the same chords but in different tunings – one song had 50 different variations! Would you believe that at her age, she’s still performing? What a legend!
Brian May
Brian May, the legendary guitarist of Queen, has got quite an interesting back story. Born in London in 1947, Brian, like Tom Morello, is quite the Brainiac. He’s got a degree in Astrophysics! There are many jokes about how Queen took people into outer space with their music, but we’ll leave that for another time.
Musically, May gifted us with “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Stone Cold Crazy.” The guitar he used to play these epic tunes was actually built by him and his father! He used firewood to create his “Old Lady” or “The Red Special” – clearly, the guy is a genius. He’s also a multi-instrumentalist – check out his song “Doing All Right” to hear him tinker on the piano!
Eddie Van Halen
Dutch-American musician, songwriter, and producer Eddie Van Halen is undoubtedly one of the most remarkable guitarists of his time. The main songwriter and co-founder (alongside brother and drummer Alex Van Halen, Mark Stone, and David Lee Roth) of the American hard rock band, Van Halen. Born in Amsterdam in 1955, this pioneer of rock music was born to a father who was himself a clarinetist, saxophonist, and pianist. No wonder, it runs in his blood! His middle name, “Lodewijk” is the Dutch equivalent of “Ludwig” – and yep, you guessed it, he was named after the esteemed composer Ludwig van Beethoven.
As for his guitar-playing style, well, it was anything but classical. His unique pick-holding style sees him gripping it with his middle finger and thumb (as opposed to the traditional index-thumb combination), which allows him to drag his fingers across the strings. Some artists have likened this to sounding like he’s added another instrument to the mix. Tracks like “Eruption,” “Ain’t Talking ‘Bout Love” and “Hot for Teacher”, not to mention “Jump”, really have made rock history. And apparently, only when played by Van Halen. Mike McCready of Pearl Jam once said of Van Halen “You can play the things he’s written, but there’s an ‘X-factor’ that you can’t get.” Well said!