Rolling Stone Released Their Updated List of The Greatest 250 Guitarists Of All Time, And You're Going To Want To Sit Down For This.

Last week, Rolling Stone unveiled its list of the Top 250 Guitar Icons, marking its first revision since its 2011 Top 100 edition. It's safe to say this new lineup has stirred the pot among guitar enthusiasts worldwide.

This new list presents notable deviations from previous editions that seemed dominated by familiar male faces. Notably, Eric Clapton ranks 35th, while iconic guitarist Slash doesn't even crack the top 100. And some new additions appear totally random.

Creating such lists is never straightforward. While audience voting can be skewed by online campaigns, expert panels can be swayed by individual preferences.

As everybody knows, Rolling Stone has been on the cusp of irrelevancy for years now. They've resorted to pumping out what are essentially buzzfeed-like articles on a monthly basis now where they rank various musicians or bands, stir up controversy by purposely fucking somebody over, or ranking somebody insanely high, and then letting us idiots take the bait and give them clicks.

I fully realize that I am defeating the entire purpose of this very blog by admitting this, but just work with me a little here.

(Sidebar- one of my favorite Rolling Stone moments, that epitomizes everything wrong with the company now came last month when they ran this story about Elon Musk, who they called the "owner of failing social media platform"

Lists of this nature should ideally foster discussions and eventually shift cultural perceptions. In that light, one could argue that featuring Sister Rosetta Tharpe at the sixth spot is commendable, as she's positioned ahead of many she influenced, like Keith Richards and Clapton.

Yet, the rationale behind this list seems inconsistent. At 250 entries, one would expect a broad representation. However, key contributors like Misha Mansoor, who has significantly influenced modern metal, are completely missing.

I posted this on twitter and there were some great responses- 

While a modern titan like Lucy Dacus is acknowledged, influential figures like Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker are surprisingly not.

Several influential guitarists who may not be mainstream but have significantly shaped music were also ignored. Names like Tommy Emmanuel, Joe Bonamassa, and Eric Gales. Even renowned guys like Neal Schon and George Benson are missing, despite their undeniable contributions.

And, it's puzzling to see Jack White at 32, but no mention of Dan Auerbach, both of whom have been pivotal in modern guitar music.

(sidebar- for Jack White fans this is a must watch)

Obviously, Clapton got fucked over because Rolling Stone is woker than woke now, and he's been marked a looney tune. 

Way to remain impartial and resolute RS.

So they penalized him. But a lot of people raised some other great points. Like why is Jerry Garcia ranked so low? Why is country so disrespected as a whole and why is Vince Gill, one of the lone country artists on it, ranked so poorly?

The strangest part of the list to me were numbers 20-14.

#20 - Stevie Ray Vaughn

#18- Tom Morello

#15 - Keith Richards

#14 - Prince

You're telling me there are/were 13 better guitarists than those 7 guys?

I'm by no means a guitar expert, but to me this is one of the most mind blowing things I've ever seen, or heard.

We discussed this list, and what our own lists look like on Barstool Backstage this week. Check it out here and tell us why you think we suck. 

Get your tickets for Weish Fest 2024 now! 

p.s. - I know why this Rolling Stone list sucks so bad. And it seems that Rolling Stone's methodology has shifted since its 2011 edition. While the previous list consulted actual artists, this one relied on the magazine's in-house team. Aka nerds, journalism majors, and bitter people with axes to grind.