Talk:List of rhythm guitarists

I removed some recent additions: Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd (his experiments with echo, feedback and various other psychedelic effects, as well as more traditional leads, clearly indicate he is a lead guitarist not a rhythm guitarist), and Pete Townshend (on the basis of DOZENS and DOZENS of recorded guitar solos, live and studio), as well as Henri Padovini of the Police, the predecessor of Andy Summers, who, like Barrett and Townshend, was (except for a brief period in which both Padovini and Summers were in the Police) the ONLY guitarist in the group (rhythm guitar implies the presence of a lead guitarist)! If a guitarist 1) plays a lot of guitar solos (a la Townshend), or 2) dominates the instrumental sound of the group with otherworldly sounds and effects (a la Barrett), or 3) at the very least, is the ONLY guitarist in the group (a la Padovini), then to call them rhtyhm guitarists (even though they may have a highly rhythmic style at times) is inaccurate. Cris Varengo 20:21, 01 March 2007 (UTC)
 * Also I'm pretty sure Dave Mustaine of Megadeth (added, I believe, after I made the above mentioned edits) is a lead guitarist too although I'm aware they have two guitarists and possibly trade off. But as he was the original lead guitarist of Metallica, I would say he definitely counts as a lead guitarist, not rhythm. However, I'm not going to keep deleting entries. If neither the contributors nor the readers really know the difference between a lead and a rhythm guitarist that's not my problem. In my opinion, all guitarists play rhythm guitar sometimes, but that doesn't make their primary role a rhythm guitarist if they have a reputation as a lead guitarist.Cris Varengo 17:59, 4 March 2007 (UTC)
 * Now someone added Brian Jones, so both Brian Jones and Keith Richards are on the list, that's both guitarists of the Rolling Stones, folks, they can't both be the rhythm guitarist because that would mean there is no lead guitarist. It's more accurate to put both of them on the list of lead guitarists, because they took turns on lead guitar. Just because a guitarist plays rhythm guitar sometimes does not make him a rhythm guitarist. A rhythm guitarist is someone whose predominant role in a band is rhythm guitarist and who rarely if ever solos. For example, John Lennon played a small handful of solos in the Beatles, but he was predominantly the rhythm guitarist; he played probably less than 5 solos in their entire recording career. So he would be a rhythm guitarist. I'm not going to keep editing this article, I just hope maybe someone reads these comments and people will stop putting names on the list just to see someone from a band they like on a list and really stop to think if they really qualify as a rhythm guitarist, if that is the definition of what they do. Cris Varengo 20:19, 12 March 2007 (UTC)
 * How are we determining rhythm? Brian May, Billy Corgan, and Billie Joe Armstrong are listed, why isn't someone like Slash or Kurt Cobain?

Not rhythm guitarists
I've gone through the list one by one and some people here aren't rhythm guitarists. Not sure what to do as I don’t want to be accused of vandalism - can someone who knows more about the subject help? (INXS-Girl 17:29, 18 March 2007 (UTC))
 * I know this makes me a dork, but as a musician I'm a nitpicker about things like this, and I gave up on this page, INXS-Girl. If you look at my comments above, I started out doing some editing and removed a few people who were definitely not rhythm guitarists, but people keep adding new names to this list and I'm pretty sure they're just doing it to see the names of people that are in bands they like on the list; either that or they are counting lead guitarists who SOMETIMES play rhythm or have a highly rhythmic style (but are still lead guitarists). I gave up editing the page and now I just rant on the talk page, which I'm pretty sure no one pays any attention to. If you want to take some names off the list, go for it, just try to justify it somehow on the talk page or the edit summary and hopefully you won't be accused of vandalism as long as you have a good reason to back up your edits. Cris Varengo 20:03, 19 March 2007 (UTC)


 * I've been pulling my hair out over the guitarists, drummers and lead singers pages, cleaning them up getting rid of vandalism (I spent 4 hours solid working on them a few weeks ago.) I think it's time to give up too. And no you're not a dork, you're like me; you work at something and then wonder why on Earth you bothered. It's just that little voice that keeps saying "Go back and see if the page is OK." But in the end I'm sure the place will carry on with or without us. (INXS-Girl 20:11, 19 March 2007 (UTC))


 * Very true. The grammar alone in some of these articles drives me nuts, but what can you do. Anyone can come on this site and edit. That's both the beauty and the downfall of Wikipedia. I'd say overall it's still pretty reliable, as long as people like you and I outnumber the people putting misinformation on here. But with pages like this one, it's hard to keep up, isn't it? :) Cris Varengo 20:31, 21 March 2007 (UTC)

Cite References Sources
If we start doing that isn't the page going to get too long and out of control like the other guitarists pages? Thanks INXS-Girl 13:07, 5 June 2007 (UTC)
 * It's a ridiculous template. It's just a list. Refs not req'd. I rm'd the stupid tag(stupid being an understatement) earlier, but a "tag-happy editor" stuck it back on. Wikipedia has 2 "scourge of quality" editing types. 'Inclusionists' and 'Taggers'. And a 'no ref' tag on, what is essentially, a simple list... is anal and unrequired. And consensus leans to that now. 156.34.142.110 13:24, 5 June 2007 (UTC)

Chris I wonder if your criteria isn't too rigid. You say that because Brian Jones and Keith Richards were guitarists in the Rolling Stones at the same time, that it logically follows that only one could be the lead guitarist, and one the rhythm guitarist. In that particular case, it may have actually been true that the roles were so divided; but is it so inconceivable that musicians could exchange roles from time to time, and song to song? Remember, too, in the case of the Stones, that while Brian Jones was in the band, yes, perhaps Keith was more a 'lead' player. But after Brian Jones' death, for a short period, Mick Taylor joined and played most of the leads, leaving Keith to develop one of the most important rhythm guitar styles in rock history. So are we to exclude Keith from the list because he also played some 'leads'. Wouldn't that be similar to excluding someone like John Lennon as a "lead vocalist" because he also sometimes sang backup?

Many bands of old had more than one guitarist, where both were skilled as rhythm players. When Duane Allman soloed in the Allman Brothers, for example, Richard Betts did a wonderful job of playing supportive rhythm. But the reverse was true as well; and Duane was a wonderful rhythm player. Roger McGuinn played many leads while in The Byrds, a group that included other notable guitarists, among them David Crosby, the great Clarence White, and Gram Parsons. Yet many of those distinctive chimey electric twelve-string rhythm parts were played by McGuinn. I don't see the rationale that a guitarist like Pete Townsend, who we have to thank (or blame, depending on your point of view)for practically single-handedly popularizing the use of the power chord, should be eliminated from the list simply because he played lead as well. Just listen to the driving acoustic guitar in "Pinball Wizard", and try to justify omitting his name from the list. (Because one can drive a car, doesn't mean that he/she cannot also walk.) In fact, there is a mindset that believes that any guitarist worth his salt ahould be able to play both "rhythm" and "lead". Most jazz players hardly ever even make the distinction - not because they are unskilled at one or the other.

In terms of historical significance, I believe the omission of Bo Didley from the list is a serious oversight. This guy may well have been the most powerful rhythm guitarist of the early years of rock n' roll. He had an enormous influence on the players that came up in the 1960s (and, in my opinion, many of today's "heavy" rock players would do well to go back and listen to some Bo Didley).

You have embarked on an admittedly tricky venture. But I'd be less concerned with the idea of a musician's being EITHER {lead} OR {rhythm}; and, if a player has recorded significant rhythm parts, let him be on here. I wish the list were not so heavily weighted with less significant players from recent bands, and that players from more eras and genres were represented. (There are some amazing rhythm players in Celtic, bluegrass, African, and Brazilian music.)

Thank you Brooklar (Brooklar (talk) 20:18, 5 October 2010 (UTC))

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