Lists that rank the greatest bands and artists in every metal genre.

Hard Rock & Heavy Metal

poll

No more is the guitar a boys only club, and it’s about damn time we celebrate and recognize. From Leah Woodard and Aliases to the always incredible Nita Strauss, this list is all about talent. The frenzy of female fronted bands is a sight to behold and a leap forward from the 80′s and 90′s when metal bands were 95% testosterone. Despite all that, women who play instruments besides their voice are under-utilized and under-recognized. Who else should be on this list? Vote up your favorite female hard rock and metal guitarists, and vote down any you don't think deserve a spot of honor here. Also, feel free to add anyone who's missing. You can also rerank this list any way you want.No list of brilliant female guitar shredders would be complete without the incomparable talents of legendary guitarists like Sarah Longfield, Liz Buckingham, Mia Coldheart and Lita Ford. This list also includes some incredible hard rock and metal guitarists you might not know -- but should. And to be fair, a lot of the women listed here should be on any list of the <a href="http://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/the-greatest-guitarists-of-all-time" target="_blank">greatest guitarists of all time</a> and the <a href="http://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/best-metal-guitarists-and-guitar-teams" target="_blank">best metal guitarists and guitar teams</a> -- not just because they're female. Gender does not matter when it comes to natural musical abilities. Need more proof? Check out this list of the <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/best-female-drummers/rockboy" target="_blank">best female drummers</a> of all time, or just vote on all the famous female guitar players on this list.

The Best Female Hard Rock/Metal Guitar Shredders

Band/Musician

Ranker Community

The most bananas stories and insane 100% true tales about the lives and behind-the-music antics of your favorite rock stars and legendary bands.

Freakin' Rock Stars

Musician/Band Trivia

Jimi Hendrix may have only played guitar on the world stage for four years, but he was and is still widely regarded as one of the most influential guitar players in rock history.

He was born into a poor family in Seattle and raised by an abusive father. After being discharged from the Army, Hendrix moved to London to become&nbsp;a studio musician and backup guitarist. His wild stage style, which contrasted with <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/introverted-rock-stars/ranker-music" target="_blank">his introverted personality</a> and included playing behind his back and with his teeth, would develop later - it was hardly suitable behavior for a backing&nbsp;musician.

It wasn&rsquo;t long before Hendrix fronted his own band and started to experiment with the possibilities of his instrument. He made a name for himself at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967, and by the time Woodstock came around just two years later, he had already set the world (and his guitar) on fire. No one, not even guitar legends like Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton, had ever heard anyone play like Jimi.

Hendrix&rsquo;s life story&nbsp;is laced with substance use. But that&#39;s not what this piece is about. Instead, let&#39;s celebrate this&nbsp;Rock God with wild tales of his creative exploits and storied career.

Wild Stories From The Guitar-Shredding Life Of Jimi Hendrix

General

Ann Casano

Music History

The life of a musician often comprises&nbsp;tumult, insanity, substance abuse, and plenty of joy.&nbsp;Pete Townshend's story is no exception. In his autobiography <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Who-Am-Memoir-Pete-Townshend/dp/006212725X/?tag=rankercom-20" target="_blank">Who I Am</a>, The Who guitarist outlines - with candor, humor, and insight -&nbsp;his wild life in the studio, on the road, and at home.He takes readers through his struggles with alcohol and anger, talks openly about his bisexuality, and shares his&nbsp;encounters with some of the biggest figures and events in rock history. Enjoy this collection of&nbsp;crazy Pete Townshend stories, pulled from the pages of Who I Am.&nbsp;

Crazy Stories About Pete Townshend, One Of The Most Influential Figures In Rock

Guitarist

Crazy Stories About Pete Townsend, One Of The Most Influential Figures In Rock

Christopher Shultz

Lists that rank the greatest musicians in America's most creative musical genre.

All That Jazz

Jazz

When jazz took the stage it forever changed the world of music. Jazz is infused into almost all genres of music, even subtly. Mastering any kind of guitar is hard enough, but mastering jazz guitar takes even more skill. Who are the greatest jazz guitarists of all time?&nbsp; &nbsp; The talented musicians on this list are known for being the all time greatest when it comes to jazz guitar. This includes musicians who are both living and dead. Many of these musicians also branched out into other genres of music, including rock and country. &nbsp; This list features the all time greatest jazz guitarists, ranked by the community's votes, and includes Wes Montgomery, Django Reinhardt, and Joe Pass. Vote up the <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-jazz-guitarists-in-the-world/ranker-music?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">best jazz guitarists</a> in history below, or add someone you think is great if he or she isn't already on the list.

Tal Farlow

The Greatest Jazz Guitarists of All Time

Greatest Jazz Guitarists of All Time | List of the Best Jazz Guitarists In History

Ranker Music

Metal

The best Eddie Van Halen guitar solos are among the best guitar solos of all time, period. In 1978,&nbsp;the Dutch guitarist revolutionized shredding&nbsp;on Van Halen&#39;s self-titled debut album, which included his legendary &quot;tapping&quot; cadenza, &quot;Eruption.&quot; In the late &#39;70s and through the &#39;80s, there were few guitarists as revered as EVH; not&nbsp;only did he continue to wow with his technical prowess throughout full albums like&nbsp;Diver Down&nbsp;and&nbsp;Fair Warning, but also, he brought these skills into the mainstream.

Van Halen&#39;s 1984 hit &quot;Jump,&quot; for example, saw the guitarist, who passed from cancer on October 6, 2020,&nbsp;blend his ornate solos with radio-friendly, pop-infused rock. Additionally, he famously provided the blistering guitar solo on Michael Jackson&#39;s dance hit &quot;Beat It,&quot; off the unprecedently popular&nbsp;Thriller&nbsp;album.&nbsp;

There are practically countless guitar solo gems throughout the <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-van-halen-albums-list/reference?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">Van Halen discography</a>, but it&#39;s up to you to decide which Eddie Van Halen solos are the best of the best. Vote up your favorite EVH solos below, and be sure to add any that you feel we may have missed.

The Best Eddie Van Halen Guitar Solos Of All Time, Ranked

Song

The 30+ Best Eddie Van Halen Guitar Solos Of All Time, Ranked By Van Halen Fans

Kareem Gantt

Ranking the best artists, groups, and songs of the musical form first hummed, hollered, and chanted by African Americans in the Deep South and the many subgenres that have sprouted from its roots into juke joints and playlists around the world.

I Got the Blues

Guitarists

There&#39;s nothing quite like the blues, and greatest blues guitarists are part of what makes this musical genre so special. This list of the most famous blues guitar players of all time, with photos, includes all the top blues guitarists from many decades. These are the most well known blues guitarists - legends of the blues guitar. Famous blues guitarists on this list have played all major styles of blues, from the Mississippi&nbsp;Delta to the streets of Chicago. Some of the most notable blues guitarists in the world are T-Bone Walker and B.B. King.

Who are the most famous blues guitarists? This list includes blues guitar greats from the early days of the blues and of course, many of the most talented blues guitar players today. Both white and Black guitarists are ranked on this list. These prominent blues guitarists are some of the best musicians around, and are well known in blues and guitar circles. This list of renowned blues guitar players is alphabetical. See also a full list of <a href="/list/blues-bands-and-musicians/reference">blues artists</a>, and a full list of <a href="/list/blues-rock-bands-and-musicians/reference">blues rock bands</a>.

The Most Famous Blues Guitarists

Blues Artists | List of Most Famous Blues Guitarists

Coley Reed

Hard Rock

Ranking the best Angus Young guitar solos of all time is a difficult feat. Practically every&nbsp;AC/DC song includes a blistering solo, thanks in large part to&nbsp;the band&#39;s historic emphasis on the legendary guitarist&nbsp;as its front man (both during the Bon Scott and Brian Johnson years). Nearly 50 years since the group&#39;s launch, Young is still in the studio and doing his famed duck walk dance onstage today, so suffice to say, the catalogue of solo choices is unfathomably deep.&nbsp;

While some of Young&#39;s best cadenzas&nbsp;achieve this status due to their pure ferocity, many too have gone down in history for their interaction with other elements of the songs they share. The guitar solos in &quot;Thunderstruck&quot; and &quot;Let There Be Rock&quot; are two noteworthy giants which meet both these criteria. But, regardless of why the&nbsp;segments on this list are included, they all share one commonality: they are among Angus Young&#39;s best moments throughout the expansive AC/DC discography.

Vote up your favorite Angus Young guitar solos below, and be sure to add any that you feel we may have missed.&nbsp;

Album and&nbsp;date on each song refers to American releases.

The Best Angus Young Guitar Solos Of All Time

The Best Angus Young Guitar Solos Of All Time, Ranked By AC/DC Fans

Will McCarthy

Classic Rock

Here are the best&nbsp;Jimmy Page guitar solos ever from Led Zeppelin studio recordings. Everyone knows Page&#39;s legendary &quot;Stairway to Heaven&quot; solo, but this magnum opus is only the tip of the iceberg for one of the <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/the-greatest-guitarists-of-all-time?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">best guitarists of all time</a>. And, while some of his most famous cadenzas come from Led Zeppelin live shows, which often featured Page playing guitar solos with a violin bow, this list focuses exclusively on recorded <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/best-led-zeppelin-songs?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">Led Zeppelin songs</a>.&nbsp;

Which Zeppelin tracks feature the best guitar solos ever? How many of the songs in this list do you think would also qualify for the 10 best Jimmy Page riffs of all time?

Vote up the best Jimmy Page guitar solos below, and feel free to add any that you think we may have missed.&nbsp;

The Best Jimmy Page Guitar Solos Of All Time

The 25 Best Jimmy Page Solos Of All Time, Ranked By Led Zeppelin Fans

The guitar is one of the most popular and diverse musical instruments in the world. It's permeated through dozens of genres of music, lending itself to help create some of the most moving and emotional pieces of music in history. The people on this list are masters of the guitar and are considered giants in the musical world.&nbsp;&nbsp;Whether you recognize these musicians or not, they've all carved a place out for themselves in the music world and have become influential and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/contemporary-classical-music-bands-and-musicians/reference">prominent figures in the industry</a>. If you love geeking out on music, we definitely recommend finding some of their music.&nbsp;This list is votable and rerankable, so take a look through and vote up your favorite classical guitarists.&nbsp;If you don't see someone on here who should be, feel free to add them, but this list is for living musicians only.

Paul Galbraith

The Best Classical Guitarists in the World

Best Classical Guitarists in the World | Greatest Classical Guitar Players on Earth

Rock

Many of history's greatest&nbsp;musicians are closely associated with a particular instrument, and that instrument becomes legendary in itself. Think Slash and his Gibson Les Paul, Stevie Ray Vaughn and his Fender Stratocaster, Jimmy Page and his double-neck Gibson SG and the list goes on. Over the years, many of music's most famous stars have had their prized guitars stolen from them. Sometimes it's the one they're most associated with, or in other cases it's just a cherished part of their arsenal.&nbsp;Some stories of guitar theft are truly incredible, as they're often never found again. One of the most legendary cases remained a mystery for several decades until it was finally recovered after what seemed like a lifetime. Let's take a look at some of the most unbelievable stories of guitarists who had their beloved axes taken from them.&nbsp;

10 Famous Guitars That Were Stolen And Never Recovered

Sean Kelly

Ranking Slash&#39;s <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-van-halen-solos/kareem-gantt?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">best guitar solos</a> ever is no easy task. In Guns n&#39; Roses alone, the&nbsp;legendary, Les Paul-toting guitarist, real name Saul Hudson was responsible for some of rocks most memorable solos in classics like &quot;November Rain&quot; and &quot;Sweet Child o&#39; Mine.&quot; Indeed, Hudson&#39;s storied career spans numerous other acts, such as his tenure with Velvet Revolver, his solo career, and his own group, Slash&#39;s Snakepit.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Whether you prefer the blistering solos of GNR-era Slash or the cadenzas of his later releases, the Slash discography contains no shortage of good guitar solos. But, it&#39;s up to you to decide which are the best of the best.&nbsp;

Vote up the greatest Slash guitar solos of all time below, and be sure to add any that you feel we may have missed.

The Best Slash Guitar Solos Of All Time

Lists about the tiny purple flamboyant musical genius and superstar known the world over by one name.

Prince: The Man, The Legend

Songs

When discussing the best Prince guitar solos of all time, it can be tempting to only talk about his live performances. Indeed, the Minnesotan musical legend has made history time and again with his legendary solos in live covers such as &quot;While My Guitar Gently Weeps,&quot; &quot;American Woman,&quot; and &quot;Creep.&quot;

However, to only focus on Prince&#39;s live solos is to disregard his illustrious body of recorded work. Over the course of a whopping 39 studio albums, Prince redefined what a guitar hero could be, as he infused his unique R&amp;B/funk hybrid style with blistering rock solos that would make Eddie Van Halen tremble. Whether you prefer the restrained solos of hits like &quot;Purple Rain&quot; or the rapidfire cadenzas of songs like &quot;Dreamer&quot; or &quot;Let&#39;s Go Crazy,&quot; Prince&#39;s guitar work is as eclectically impressive as his songs themselves.&nbsp;

There are countless good guitar solos in the Prince discography, but it&#39;s up to you to decide which are the best of the best. Vote up your favorite Prince solos below, and be sure to add any that you feel we may have missed.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Best Prince Guitar Solos Of All Time

The Best Prince Guitar Solos Of All Time, Ranked By Fans

Ranking the best Jimi Hendrix guitar solos of all time is no easy feat. Regarded by many to be the greatest guitarist of all time, Hendrix&#39;s solos were where&nbsp;the left-handed,&nbsp;Stratocaster-bearing&nbsp;legend shone most brightly.

Onstage, Hendrix was known for his antics, from playing guitar with his teeth, or upside down and behind his back, to straight-up setting it on fire. And, his live solos at festivals like Woodstock and Monterey Pop bore the substance to match his showmanship, such as, perhaps most notably, his rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. In the studio, Hendrix was a master of freeform precision, as seen in his hits like &quot;Purple Haze,&quot; &quot;Voodoo Child (Slight Return),&quot; and &quot;Little Wing.&quot;

It goes without saying, history contains no shortage of good Jimi Hendrix solos, but it&#39;s up to you to decide which are the best of the best. Vote up the top Jimi Hendrix solos of all time below, and be sure to add any that you feel we may have missed.

The Best Jimi Hendrix Guitar Solos Of All Time

The 19+ Best Jimi Hendrix Guitar Solos Of All Time, Ranked By Fans

Bands/Musicians

Jeff Beck is known as one of the <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/guitarists-from-texas/reference?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">best blues rock guitarists</a> of all time. This list of the best Jeff Beck albums includes pictures of the album covers when available. Jeff Beck’s discography is ranked from best to worst, so the top Jeff Beck albums can be found at the top of the list. If you want to know the Best Jeff Beck album of all time, this list will answer your questions. Beck's classics like Blow by Blow (1975) and Wired (1976) are revered by many, but you might be more of a fan of his latter-era experiments with electronic sounds, such as the 2010’s Emotion &amp; Commotion album. Beck also has the rare honor of being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice - first as a member of The Yardbirds in 1992, then as a solo artist in 2009.To make voting for your favorite records easier, we haven't included Jeff Beck’s singles, EPs, or compilations, so everything you see here should only be studio albums. If you think the greatest Jeff Beck album isn't ranked highly enough, vote for it so it receives proper credit. Make sure you don't just vote for critically acclaimed albums; if you have a favorite Jeff Beck album, vote it up, even if it's not necessarily the most popular.If you want to know what is the best Jeff Beck album of all time, this list will answer your question. Albums range from Beck’s solo debut Truth (1968) to There and Back (1980) to Loud Hailer (2016). These popular Jeff Beck CDs have been voted on by music fans around the world, so the order isn't just one person's opinion.&nbsp;

Wired

The Best Jeff Beck Albums of All Time

Musical Album

All Jeff Beck Albums, Ranked Best to Worst by Rock Fans

Reference

Zodiac

Every great guitar player has their personal style that lends itself to the zodiac. Even though the following guitarists might not have been born under their assigned astrological sign, their playing styles align with its emotional weight. Whether you're a sweet and tender Moonchild&nbsp;who flits and bends in the breeze like a jazzy, finger-plucked acoustic guitar, or the physical embodiment of a rough and raw <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/best-metal-guitarists-and-guitar-teams?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">heavy metal guitar</a>, you'll find yourself drawn to a&nbsp;guitarist based on your zodiac sign.&nbsp;Finding a&nbsp;guitarist based on your zodiac sign is easier than learning the intro to &quot;Smoke on the Water,&quot; especially since the hard work's been done for you. If you've contemplated learning guitar, consider some of <a href="https://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/the-greatest-guitarists-of-all-time" target="_blank">the best guitarists of all time</a>&nbsp;and their astrological playing styles to see which genre you should dabble in.&nbsp;

Which Guitarist Are You Based On Your Zodiac Sign?

Person

Which Famous Guitarist Are You, Based On Your Zodiac?

Jacob Shelton

Singers

You know the type - the spend the whole concert doing what they do best, but then suddenly they come out with a guitar strapped around them, barely strumming and hardly making any noise.

Lead Singers Who Look Stupid Playing A Guitar

Vince Hans

Guitarists lists at Ranker - the ultimate source for top 10, best of, funny, or factual lists of any kind - see how everything ranks