Top 10 New Blues Guitar Players – Agree?
Gibson recently published a listing of their top 10 list for current/new blues guitar greats…obviously this is subjective, and I wanted to give my opinion…
First, let’s look at their list:
1. Joe Bonamassa
2. John Mayer
3. Jack White
4. Eric Gales
5. Don Auerbach (The Black Keys)
6. Davy Knowles
7. Kenny Wayne Shepherd
8. Derek Trucks
9. Johnny Lang
10. Ben Harper
I agree with about half of this list, but here’s who I would swap/add
1. Joe Bonamassa – no argument here, this guy is rooted in the blues and can take it in so many directions with his talent
2. Derek Trucks – have to have him second, pure genius and with Susan Tedeschi he’s moving beyond his roots
3. Kenny Wayne Shepherd – yup, SRV is alive in well in the spirit and guts of Kenny Wayne
4. Gary Clark Jr – how can this guy be missing…so dynamic, skilled, pure foundation in the blues holding a ton of potential
5. Davy Knowles – definitely
6. Walter Trout – Blew me away in his latest concerts, the guy has found something special of late
7. Jimmie Vaughan – only because I think he is still re-inventing blues by keeping true to the roots, think he still has at least one more innovative CD in him, perhaps in a collaboration with someone else on this list
8. Doyle Bramhall II – hugely creative, great pedigree, played with Clapton for years, watch for him in the next few years
9. Buddy Guy – Yes, still MODERN after all these years!
10. ?????
Who would you pick as #10?
I’m on the fence with guys like Jack White, Johnny Lang, Colin James, and from my area there are guys coming up like Tony D (MonkeyJunk), David Gogo, and JW Jones…these are names you will hear more from in the coming years.
What would your list be? Leave us a comment.
Filed under New Blues by on Aug 12th, 2012. Comment. 
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Comments on Top 10 New Blues Guitar Players – Agree?
Top ten lists are so hard and so subjective. I listened and saw just about everybody in the early to mid-90’s after the death of SRV. I immersed myself in the music of the blues legends and the upcoming generation of blues guitarists. Then after the 90’s I became a much more casual listener. So I’m not as familiar with some of the newest artists. Two of my favorites are Mato Nanji of Indigenous and Jesse Davey of the English blues band the Hoax. I once saw The Hoax during a very rare American Tour warm up for Buddy Guy. Jesse Davey just blew me away from the first note. He has that amazing fat stratocaster tone and a natural feel for the blues. I also love, love, love Tinsley Ellis. Seeing him live is always a treat. When it comes to slide players I’m always blown away by Sonny Landreth and Roy Rogers. The sound Roy Rogers gets running an accoustic guitar through a Leslie revolving amp is something I’ll never forget.
Doug, thanks for these – haven’t come across Mato, so will be checking him out over the next few days. Agree entirely on Sonny and Roy.