Everyone knows the usual suspects in those classic rock “best guitarists” or “greatest drummers of all time” lists. Same goes for bassists, lead vocalists and keyboard players.
So I thought I’d put together lists of my favourite rock musicians who are both bloody incredible, and not on any of these classic lists. In fact, after I made my lists, I went and checked Rolling Stone, Music Radar and Keyboard Kraze. If anyone on my lists was also on any of theirs, I took them off.
Here we go… in no particular order:
Best Guitarists
Paul Kossoff | Free
Elvis Costello | Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Ollie Halsall | Patto
Harvey Mandell
Kim Mitchell | Max Webster, solo
Pete Haycock | Climax Chicago Blues Band
John Higney | The Flaps
Kaki King
Mississippi John Hurt
Bill Nelson | Be Bop Deluxe, Red Noise, solo
Best Bassists
Colin Moulding | XTC
Gerald Johnson | Steve Miller Band
Colin Hodgkinson | Back Door
George Porter Jr. | The Meters
Marshall ‘Rock’ Jones | Ohio Players
Dee Murray | Elton John Band
Leo Lyons | Ten Years After
Jason Falkner | Beck, Brendan Benson
Robert ‘Kool’ Bell | Kool & the Gang
Julie Doiron | Eric’s Trip, solo
Best Drummers
Paul Francis | Tucky Buzzard
John Halsey | Patto
Joey Waronker | Beck
Don Kerr | Dinner Is Ruined & Rheostatics
Karen Carpenter | The Carpenters
Andy Newmark | Sly & The Family Stone, Pink Floyd, George Harrison
Robert Wyatt | Soft Machine
Patrick Keeler | The Raconteurs
Stevie Wonder
Steven Drozd | The Flaming Lips
Best Keyboardists
Brian Auger | Brian Auger & The Trinity
Bob Wiseman | Blue Rodeo, solo
Billy Preston
Adam Scone | Parlor Greens
Bernie Worrell | Funkadelic, Parliament
Graham Bond | Graham Bond Organization, Ginger Baker’s Air Force
Jimmy Smith
Sly Stone | Sly & The Family Stone
Brian Eno | Roxy Music, solo
Booker T. Jones | Booker T. & The M.G.’s
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Area Resident is an Ottawa-based journalist, recording artist, music collector and re-seller. Hear (and buy) his music on Bandcamp, email him HERE, follow him on Instagram and check him out on Discogs.
