Most Underrated Guitarist Of All Time

Lester FLATT ????
How'd he get in there ?
Earl Scruggs used to play all the guitar instrumentals on the Flatt & Scruggs live shows and albums....yes, that Earl.

There...I'm being both subjective and analytical.... :lol: :lol: :shock:

Lester often played instruments other than the guitar. When he was with Charlie Monroe's Kentucky Pardners he taught himself to play mandolin 'cause Charlie already played the guitar.

But his main instrument was guitar, which he played with the Blue Grass Boys starting in early 1945, Scruggs didn't join until Christmas of the same year. Earl played the 5 string banjo, not the guitar . . . at least according to Lester's biographer Lance LeRoy, who also worked as the band manager. He stated:

It took Earl's three-finger roll on the five-string banjo to supply the music's single most distinguishing characteristic. The four other parts were already here; he added the fifth one that is absolutely essential if you are going to have bluegrass music. The sound of the banjo played with a three-finger roll has always symbolized ‘bluegrass' to both fans and the general public as well. I doubt that any other of the instruments even come close.
“Now I'm certainly not suggesting that Earl created bluegrass music, but then again neither did any other one individual. Bill Monroe was the band leader and, as a Grand Ole Opry member, provided the forum. Whether through fate, blind luck or whatever, he assembled what I think is the first and the best group ever to play bluegrass. Nobody has been able to improve on it since. For all this, he richly deserves to be called the ‘Father of Bluegrass Music'. It's one of those honorary titles that befits the role he played in that band. Bill Monroe has been symbolic of bluegrass music throughout the world for a long, long time. In reality, though, bluegrass had a number of fathers.”

Scruggs did start out playing banjo, but he wanted to play guitar.

Scruggs quite in early 1948, and was followed by Lester. They then formed Flatt, Scruggs and the Foggy Bottom Boys.

With Mercury records, Scruggs moved his banjo style over to the guitar, and Lester just kept on being Lester -- playing some great rhythms and not showing nearly the full scope of his talent.

Lester was without Scruggs from '69 onward.

And he is a very fine guitarist. There are plenty of recordings of his playing around -- basically anything from before 1948 and anything after 1969, and a few things in between. And while he isn't as stylistically unique as Scruggs, he's still fabulous.

So, when asked for an under-rated guitarist, who better to pick than someone that most people forget even played guitar? :)

Who get's your vote for the most underrated guitarist out there?

My vote goes to Prince.

-Cobra

I suppose this is very subjective, and your personal taste in music plays into it. 2 guys I think are great and under-rated would be Jorma Kaukounen (hope I spelled that one right) and Richard Thompson. BTW I agree that Lester Flatt was great, wasn't he the first guy to use a walking bass line?

Eric

Who get's your vote for the most underrated guitarist out there?

My vote goes to Prince.

-Cobra

I suppose this is very subjective, and your personal taste in music plays into it. 2 guys I think are great and under-rated would be Jorma Kaukounen (hope I spelled that one right) and Richard Thompson. BTW I agree that Lester Flatt was great, wasn't he the first guy to use a walking bass line?

Eric

People who know these guitar players do not "underrate" them. As said above, there is a difference between unknown and underrated. Anyone who knows the works of Jorma and RT know how good they are. In the case of RT, I think his songwriting is more important than his playing, because he excels so in the writing aspects. His contribution to our musical culture has been much broader than just as a guitar player.

Saw a good t-shirt a few years back "If you don't know Jorma, you don't know Jack"

My bad, I just misinterpreted unknown and under-rated. I was playing in the park one day, and another guitarist asked me who my favs were. I mentioned Jorma and got a blank stare- Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna didn't seem to ring a bell with the kid either.
Eric

The Cars guitarist. Dang, forgot his name, but he is under-rated.

The Cars guitarist. Dang, forgot his name, but he is under-rated.

Elliot Easton

Roy Buchanan is underated & sometimes forgotten.

Roy Buchanan is underated & sometimes forgotten.

AMEN to that :!:

Derek Trucks...So many people have no idea who he is, and he's an incredible musician. Touring with Clapton right now. Isn't he Susan Tedeschi's husband? Now She can play!!!

Randy California

Walter Trout doesn't get the recognition he deserves ! :wink:

Saw him last week ("inspiring")

The guy that was supporting was darn good as well "Larry Miller", a very very enthusiastic player from the UK

In my humble opinion, the most underrated guitarist of all time, is the one who is playing a Fender Stratocaster in Twistedlefty's avatar.

Derek Trucks...So many people have no idea who he is, and he's an incredible musician. Touring with Clapton right now. Isn't he Susan Tedeschi's husband? Now She can play!!!

yes and agree.

Absolutely Roy Buchanan...Danny Gatton...Buddy Miller...and I do believe that Richard Thompson is definitely underrated as a guitarist. Of course he's an excellent songwriter, but his guitar playing is simply amazing to me. I saw him open for Bonnie Raitt (also great on slide) years ago and playing acoustic-electric throughout the set, he was mesmerizing.

Hey - I love the Pixies!!!!
Had 'em on vinyl before the whole Nirvana thing.
Which of course led me to be a sorta grunge rocker before the Seattle scene erupted.
We (my band) looked grunge & played grunge in the late 80's. (when rock was DEAD)
I played with tons of feedback and runaway distortion, screamed my vocals, and wanted to smash cheap Japanese Fenders
on stage.
(Other influences besides the Pixies at that time for me were; James Gang, Free, and the Sex Pistols.)
Then in the early 90's - Nirvana broke out. (yes I know they had an album before Nevermind - we in Chicago didn't
hear about them until Nevermind)
Which prompted me to go acoustic (Neil Young!!!!)
And then soon after - all the grungers went acoustic too - So ..... I quit! And went back to playin' the blues in my room. :P

Love Roy Buchanan - Great tone and dynamics.

Anyway - my vote for most underrated guitarists are;
Terry Kath from the original Chicago/CTA lineup - up to his death in ...... 78???? (most underrated vocalist as well)
And
Danny Kirwan from the original Fleetwood Mac.
And maybe Paul Kossoff from Free

Ken