RateItAll: The Opinion Network

I give him a 5 only because he is the biggest influence of all time, and he was indeed a titanic guitarist, amazing how the greatest guitarist died so young?

THE GREATEST

God existed. And Died. and I'm waiting for the resurrection day, whit a burning guitar and a whole life to dance and love

have you experienced hendrix?
its pretty fuckin flyy.

He is the Best Guitarist of All Time

most amazing guitarist of the 60s!

f****** sweeeeeeeeeet!!!!!

Fuckin amazing

inspirational, original, legendary.

C'mon, folks...five stars is the only possible rating.

Heard that he is the best guitarist of all time.. but I dont dig his music

he is the og guitar hero

The best ever!

he awesome!!

Who is he??

Overrated, but he's ok.

BEST GUITARIST EVER!!!!!!!!!!!

awsome but not the best..

The Gold Bar Standard

you kidding, Hendrix is the God of Gods of rock

Definitely my pick...

one of the greatest...

Criteria to be the Greatest Guitar Player of All-Time: 1. Must be able to play a guitar with your teeth, behind your back or any other non-traditional way 2. Be able to play a right handed guitar left handed (even though it is strung for a left handed player) 3. Flailing around the stage, this includes dry-humping your guitar and amplifiers and sometimes setting your guitar on fire(see picture above) 4. This part is crucial, you must be able to tweek your face so much that you appear to be playing your guitar with your "Soul", because this step will show your greatness. 5. You must be able to bend your strings, this is an un-natural act for a guitar player, because it is not a basic technique for a guitarist and this would make you unique amongst other guitar players 6. Absolutely do not play with skill and dexterity, just play sloppy and with lots of distortion 7. Appeal to the drug culture and die young to further your legend before your auidence can get bored with your abilities.

I just saw a documentary on Hendrix and there were some things in it that I did not know, and it supported my argument in a way. The last three concerts that he played, he got booed off the stage because he wasn't doing his idiotic act of dry humping his equipment and lighting his guitar on fire and that is what the crowd wanted to see (which backs up my argument that people were more into the spectacle then the music or they were bored with his abilities). The film also stated he was not playing very well during his last performances and he wasn't doing his normal act of acting like a fool on stage, which would normally mask his inadequacies as a guitar player. This proves that without the "Show" he is a third rate guitarist at best, so go ahead and make lame-ass excuses that his drug use was to blame for his terrible playing in those last three concerts, when in actuality it was his lack of talent that was the culprit. Jimi's playing lacked emotion of any kind and that's what made him such a dull artist.

His guitar playing is incredible, but his music really shines as inspirational for thousands of egomanic guitarists, who thought perhaps I could play like that some day. Yeah, Right!

A left handed genius

Clapton wasnt God-Jimi was!!!

He is probably the greatest guitarist next to Carlos Santana

greatest guitarist ever!!! he's my hero!

Haven't heard his music

eep, haven't herd him.

purple haze

Jimi Hendrix!!! What's not to like.

shit people still try to make them string sing like Hendrix!!

LOVE THAT ROCKIN GUITAR!!!!!!

All Along the Watch Tower!

c'mon, setting a guitar on fire?! How cool is he????

Jimi is rock and roll guitar playing and you're a moron if you can't recognize that.

Used to listen to him a lot.

it just depends on what type of music you are into. i belive he is an amazing guitarist, but stevie ray vaughn was better. just my opinion.

He was a god, so he's still.

STAR SPANGLED BANNER!

best guitarist to ever roam the earth.

No one beats Jimi.
But for jazz - it's Wes

Has a place in history, but isn't quite the top dog.

Jimi hit a chord with people at a specific time with what he did. Technically, he was not the greatest, but he did forever change the perspective of what you could do with a guitar in popular music. Chuck Berry made guitar a lead instrument, Jimi made the guitar the only thing that mattered. I don't however believe he could play the same thing twice even if he tried. Only Slash has been as unique a character through his playing, but many others have and had more ability on the instrument than Jimi. A true artist, but not the greatest guitarist of all time.

wtf how is jimi not 1st

He was a big part of rock n roll history and he pretty much had it all as a guitar player, but I have to agree that there is no such thing as the greatest one. Each one of them had a different style of playing, it's like comparing tow different instruments.

Good, but I think he is overrated.

Sweet guitarist

Deserves #1. He is truly the all around best guitarist that has ever lived; and it will probably be that way for a very long time if not forever.

Hendrix the best for this millineum.

IF YOU HAVE LISTEND TO HIM YOU WON'T NEED THIS COMMIT TO THINK HE IS THE BEST ALL AROUND GUITARIST EVER

terrible guitarist

There is no one, single "best guitar player of all time", but Jimi Hendrix certainly belongs listed with those less famous others who should also be at the top, like Hubert Sumlin (for his magnificent work with Howlin' Wolf, who by the way was no slouch on guitar himself), Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Lightning Hopkins, John Hurt, John Fahey and Leo Kottke (who hasn't gotten a single vote yet) just to name a few off the top of my head. Naturally, with everyone allowed to participate regardless of qualifications or lack thereof, this list is really a popularity contest. If it wasn't, Jeff Beck would be way higher on the list than his fellow Yardbirds, Page or Clapton.

None of these cats even belong on the same list as Hendrix. He indeed is and was the greatest guitar maestro who ever lived.

Why should Hendrix be number one? Some say he was the greatest ever. Others say he was sloppy. I think he was both at times. His greatest live performances took the guitar where no one else has been able to go. His worst live performances were sloppy. Can anyone listen to the live performance at Berkeley in 1970 of Hear my Train aComin and not hear the greatest guitar performance ever? Or the live Machine Gun on the Band of Gypsys album? Most of us get it but there are some who cannot. I am not sure why. Maybe the way they perceive music, works differently. Bad genes? Just kidding. No Im not. Im still waiting for the next Hendrix. That person is not out there by my reckoning. With Hendrix at 100 I rate Jimmy Page around 65, Stevie Ray Vaughn 64, Eric Clapton 55, Buddy Guy is a great singer but has a swollen head about his guitar abilities 63. There are others who rate in the low 60s but the names I listed will give you an idea where Im at. Christopher Parkening is one of the best living guitar players ever but he plays classical stuff. There is soul in his playing and that is what Hendrix was all about. Emotion taken to the max. In order to break a rating of 80 in my book the Hendrix successor will have to have the ability to express emotion to the max. And thats all I gotta say about that.

Hands down, Jimi was and stil is the master! RIP!

Few guitarists are as sloppy as this guy.

Best ever hands down. He was the innovator. Made flahsy performaces OK and crazy solos a must for every song. Listen to Voodoo Child and Purple Haze then youll c what im sayin.

Indeed, this man was a legend. So many were influenced by him, Including Joe Satriani, so, you have to stand at attention when Jimi plays.

Best Guitarist EVER!

No need to comment, no one played guitar like him.

Hendrix, by today's benchmarks, was a mediocre guitarist. (And thats only because he was a pioneer of sorts). By the 60's and early 70's benchmarks Hendrix was a crazed genius prodigy. Man, how things change. He did pioneer controlled distorted feedback and actually by the time of his death I think he had a good mastery of it. Besides that and I suppose pioneering crazy, (and stupid), antics while playing live, Hendrix really was in my opinion, at best, a very good, and fairly inventive guitarist of his generation.

When I listen to his rendition of his original live version The Star Spangled Banner, I cant help but laugh. Sounds like a 12 year old trying to play the guitar like a modern rock guitar God... I simply have only been able to bear the full thing maybe twice.

He was a VERY good song writer. No doubt about that.

The main contribution Hendrix made to the truly great guitarists that followed his overall minor achievements was what might be possible with the guitar. Although he NEVER achieved those possibilities as a guitarist himself. Well, remotely. Maybe had he lived longer? Did fewer drugs? Who knows? But look at the level of guitar virtuosoic talent that someone like Eddie Van Halen achieved by age 17. Or Malmsteen at 17. Or Vai at like 16. Rhoades at 14. You really have to be truly great to play at those levels at such young ages. Hendrix was still just making electric noise in his early twenties.

And I know people will say had it not been for Hendrix there would be no EVHs. BS. There was Clapton, and many others who pioneered the electric guitar much more than Hendrix ever did.

Hendrix?....Way over rated as a guitarist. Way under rated as a songwriter.

One other thing...Hendrix claimed his live "Star Spangled Banner" was a total improve. BS again...I bet he practiced that junk for months...waiting for the right oppurtunity to play before the biggest audience possible and claim it an improve. At the time he was deep in debt and legal troubles. So he was working hard to break into the lucritive US market. Well he fooled almost everyone. Worked great too...got him a lot of national exposure...good and bad...and a guest spot on the Dick Cavet show in front of millions of viewers. Probably worked out for him better then his wildest dreams

There would have been no other guitar gods if Hendrix didn't show them what you could do with (and to) a guitar. His albums do not do him justice - check out the live stuff and then consider that nobody was doing anything close to that during his time. Page and Clapton were playing standard blues compared to Jimi

R U KIDDING ME NUMBER 4? jimi hendrix is coolist

R U KIDDING ME NUMBER 4? jimi hendrix is coolist

jimi hendrix is extremely overrated

He is way too overrated listen to him then somebody like Jimmy Page from led zeppelin or Kirk Hammett of Metallica and its easy to see that he wasn't that great good but not the best

HENDRIXXXXXXXXX

Yes he is a good guitarist