RateItAll: The Opinion Network

Incredibly gifted guitarist, but wow, his guitar riffs were very complex and to do them Live with such uncanny savour was awesome. After a few songs though, he does tend to sound the same.

Lifeson is one of my favorite rythym players. When he switches to lead guitar he is above average. One of my favorite riffs is the opening bars of TOM SAWYER, so powerful it is almost thrash.

diffently one of the best of all time
also one of the most underated, Alexs solos are so full of feeling.
i am a guitar player my self and he inspired so much. if you just heard of tom sawyer and lime light then you need to listen to more because, thats is not his best work. you must listen to la villa strangiato or xanadu. and if you do listen to la villa strangiato then make sure you go on you tube and see the live version, unbeliveable!

He is the perfect example of a guitarist complementing the band. And if you've heard Rush, you know that is hard as hell to do. He creates magic.

Ya, I'm the same guy that gave Petrucci five stars, so obviosly I"m gonna put Alex up there. He doesn't shred in the mannner that is at all overindulgence yet he has the technical skill to mystify with his speed and accuracy. If all you've heard is "Tom Sawyer" and "Limelight", then you can not have an honest opinion on this man. Listen to "La Villa Strangiato" and "Xanadu" and then you will know. PS if you didn't have to hold back the tears after hearing "Subdivisions" followed by "Time Stand Still", then you are obviously Communist!

Perhaps not up to the standard of Satriani, but still awesome, and in the top 20 in the world. Of course, you don't really notice his talent that much hidden under Neil Peart's insane drum solos, and Geddy Lee's bass 'wankery' (see Leave That Thing Alone), but he is pretty amazing, and has some of the best chordwork I've seen, as well as some of the catchiest riffs... Big Al rules.

rush couldve spent more time on the songs and less on the wank.

So underrated it's sickening. Neil Peart completely overshadows him when you think of musicianship within Rush...and Peart deserves every compliment. Lifeson is such a footprint with Rush tracks that as good as Geddy Lee & Neil Peart are at their own respective instruments, it's Lifeson that creates the buzzsaw that carries most of the tracks. Endless top shelf riffs such as Limelight, Tom Sawyer, Red Barchetta and on and on. If you're looking for something a bit more obscure to check out listen to Fountain of Lamneth from Caress of Steel.

the sad part is he's not even the best musician in his own band.

Rush is a superbly talented group of three guys. Each one adds their talents to the others to blend into one of the best bands of all time. Alex Lifeson's riffs are non-stop. Even during the melody parts of the song, there are riffs and notes that give new meaning to the music and lyrics. They demand that the listener pay attention, or risk missing something vital to the plot of the song. Not many have a complete understanding of the blues background of rock like Alex.

a very talented musician.great arrangements

The Wet-Dry-Wet rig was invented by this cat back in the 70s before Eddie Van Halen was on the map ... so let's give credit where its due ok? Alex is a true innovstor, and if you can get any prog rock 3 piece with this skill level to sound this huge with a single guitar player filling in over what the bass line and drum room are laying on the bottom, you have a remarkable guitarist and innovator w/o peer in the rock world. One of the greats of the 20th century that influenced everybody who followed barring none. Hats off dude ...

Thing about Rush and prog bands in general is that there's no mistaking the quality of their musicianship. Shame that their music is such as load of pretentious, dull and joyless bilge then. Even though Rush are prime offenders, I recognise Lifeson's a decent player.

He's good, but in the big picture, he shouldn't be in the top 10. Love the sound he got on the Moving Pictures album. Geddy Lee's voice identifies that band and Neil Peart is a monster fo' sho'. If there was a "weakest link" in Rush, it would have to be Alex.

Good guitarist for Rush but not at the top.

I once read an interview with Jimmy Page in which Jimmy spoke highly of Alex's guitar playing. He has a great feel for emotional solos, like Gilmour, but the big difference is that Lifeson can BURN!

fishy stoopy pop

An uninspiring player at best.

Lifeson is beyond AMAZING! Incredible feel and emotion conveyed on the guitar. Lifeson 'paints pictures' with his highly expressive and technical playing, especially with diminished 7th chords and incredible melodic phrasing. One of the best rock guitarists of all time, hands down!