Guthrie Govan is the best guitar player alive today

Guthrie Govan is the best guitar player alive today

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I don't think Guthrie plays to be 'the best'. He just loves making music, to the best of his ability. Music is art, and can only be judged individually. He often mentions the 'flaws' he sees in his own playing. I'd doubt the rest of us would notice, but many great players do think they themselves 'suck'. Players like Allan Holdsworth and Jeff Beck are among the well known insecure guitarists. So is Guthrie the best? I say no he isn't. And neither is anyone else. But every time I hear a snippit of his playing, it seems like he's progressed a little more if that's even possible. We all strive to eek out a fraction of the goodness from our playing as these guys do and if that drives us on to be more accomplished players then that's only a good thing.
 
There is no real way to quantify best when it comes to music, but Guthrie is the most versitile player I have ever seen or heard. There is no style he is not capable of playing and his ability to play melodically even when in shred mode is remarkable. He does things I have seen no other guitarist do, I have been lucky enough to sit in a room with him and his 'noodling' whilst chilling out was frankly ridiculous. In short if I had to hire a player tomorrow for a session on behalf of a client that could make or break my career Guthrie would be my first choice by some margin.
 
A to the T said:
Odd. I just assumed a combination of women and jokers on the forum made up that 10%
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Jokers ok, women...? there was only one that I knew of, Nikki and I don't think she posts here any longer. If I'm mistake'n please point them out or if your out there sound off I would like to welcome you to the forum :).
 
This would be correct if playing guitar was a race but it's not. I can name 50 more successful guitarists than Guthrie. No I don't mean Steve Vai, Petrucci or Satriani. I mean people that have changed music evolution. Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page etc.

It's like saying the best poet is the person who's able to speak the fastest. So it's like comparing rap to poetry.
 
You just can't say what's "the best" of anything about something which isn't a competition....

Aaah, I forgot about Simon Cowell and all that. So maybe I'm wrong. (But that's where "taste" as a factor comes into the equation. I personally think the idea of guitarists competing is distasteful, whereas discussions about their relative merits are very interesting.)

But the Charvel looks very interesting - not because Mr Guthrie is the best, but because it looks like he's thought of some very good features, and if he's playing one, then clearly it's possible to do good things with it. Not that I'd do what he does with his; not being good enough, or wanting to play that kind of music.
 
Clark Kent said:
It's like saying the best poet is the person who's able to speak the fastest. So it's like comparing rap to poetry.
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I don't think your metaphor applies correctly: I think it should be: It's like saying the best poet is the person who has the most comprehensive vocabulary. And I certainly think Guthrie has a very impressive vocabulary.
Having said that, I think there are no 'bests' only favorites, and Guthrie sure is one of my favs. I think that people who believe that his only goal is 'speed' or 'technique for the sake of technique' have got to listen to Guthrie some more. He's so much more than just speed or technique.
 
Hi folks. Sorry I’m a bit late to the party, but I enjoyed reading this very strange thread and wanted to throw in my two cents. The reason I see it as strange is because I can’t think of anything more subjective than art (especially music), and in reality, 'the best' is just a matter of opinion. But, since this thread is just opinions anyway, I guess I’ll have some fun and give you mine... for what it's worth (which isn't much).

I’ve been watching Guthrie Govan for a long time… and have also learned a lot from him (he’s a very wonderful, gentle, humble man… and a fantastic teacher). But this thread is about GG being "the best" guitar player alive today. If 'best' is synonymous with 'versatile'… it’s hard to argue against Guthrie being the best guitarist… IF (and ONLY IF) one believes “the whole” is greater than "the sum of its individual parts.”

Yes, he is amazingly proficient in many different styles/genres... more so than any other guitarist I've heard to date. However, if one takes each of those styles (i.e. - “part”), he is less proficient than others who focus only on their own style (i.e. - “part”). Perhaps the title of this thread could have been more appropriately named, "Guthrie Govan Is 'The Most Versatile' Guitar Player Alive Today"… which is the conclusion many here seem to agree with, myself included. BUT... I don’t see best as being synonymous with versatile in many scenarios.

Let’s take Allan Holdsworth (someone previously mentioned that Allan Holdsworth is only good at being Allan Holdsworth. PS - Unfortunately, the great guitar legend Mr. Holdsworth recently passed away, RIP… however, Allan was still alive when that comment was made, and when the OP was created... so I think it’s only fair to still include him based on those reasons). In that style of music, Allan Holdsworth eats Guthrie for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (that’s not even taking into account AH’s unbelievably complex and beautiful chord voicing and intricate chord progressions).

If we’re talking traditional jazz, Guthrie can’t even come near the prowess of Biréli Lagrène or George Benson (not to mention even greater jazz guitar giants who have passed away... i.e. - Joe Pass and Wes Montgomery, RIP).

Gypsy jazz? Stochelo Rosenberg would send him packing.

In the country style, Albert Lee would essentially embarrass Mr. Govan, like Albert did to Steve Morse when they played together.

In rock, Eddie Van Halen surpasses him by light years (innovation-wise especially, along with his almost dance-like rhythmic phrasing in his solos, his historic iconic riffs, and of course... writing songs that appeal to the masses while simultaneously being a technical virtuoso and an innovative 'out of the box' guitarists' guitar player).

In neoclassical, Yngwie Malmsteen blows the doors off of him. I even recall reading about Guthrie himself mentioning how Yngwie literally blows his mind and dazzles him. I believe Guthrie's exact words were, "Yngwie is just ridiculous... every note he plays, no matter how fast, has a significant purpose and meaning."
I personally agree with Mr. Govan's assessment of Mr. Malmsteen in that regard.

Blues? Guthrie doesn’t have the feel of an all-out blues player who is soulfully engrossed in their style... and literally "lives" the blues (there are too many to name here)... so again, no.

How about finger-style guitar? Tommy Emmanuel, Chet Atkins, and Doyle Dykes would eat him alive.

I’ve never heard Guthrie play classical guitar, but I'm willing to bet the farm he’s no John Williams, Pepe Romero, or (Paco de Lucia, who unfortunately passed away after this thread was initiated...RIP)

The only genre Guthrie Govan could likely tear to shreds in his own right 'at this very moment' with no additional practice or fine-tuning needed (if he so chose) is heavy metal (not talking about 80’s hard/glam rock or neoclassical). As great as some of those hardcore metal players are, I think it is safe to say that Guthrie could make mincemeat out of the entire lot of them with his eyes closed, guitar behind his head, and only using two fretting fingers (like Django :D).

This is not to say that he doesn’t play all of these styles amazingly well, but, ya know... come on. A slice of butter thins out real quick when the slice of bread is too big.

So, is the whole “really” greater than the sum of its parts… especially when it comes to influencing a great many people (musicians and non-musicians alike) in numerous ways, and/or being remembered in the annals of music history? My personal “opinion” is no. That’s also my vote.
 
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JinjoVitis said:
The only genre Guthrie Govan could likely tear to shreds in his own right 'at this very moment' with no additional practice or fine-tuning needed (if he so chose) is heavy metal (not talking about 80’s hard/glam rock or neoclassical). As great as some of those hardcore metal players are, I think it is safe to say that Guthrie could make mincemeat out of the entire lot of them with his eyes closed, guitar behind his head, and only using two fretting fingers (like Django :D).
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Funny, I actually think he would struggle there more than in most other genres. I think Mattias Eklundh (could've been someone else though...) said that as well, GG doesn't have the aggression in his playing to do the heavier stuff. Of course he could do it technically, but his sound and playing style doesn't fit. Could you see him playing in something like Meshuggah or Nile? I couldn't. :D
I actually disagree with most of your post. Sure, he might not be able to play like Allan Holdsworth through an entire set, but he is not light years behind anyone (maybe except the Paco de Lucia flamenco style, never seen him do anything like that), and he wont be embarrassed by anyone. Extremely versatile, and one of the most musical brains I've ever met.
I do however agree that it is silly to try to quantify being the 'best' in this case. :) He is a beast though.
 
tonaholic said:
Bonamassa is my pick for that award
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I personally don't understand all the hoopla surrounding this Bonamassa guy. Maybe I'm missing something, but I just don't get it. I've seen him live in NC, and his music/playing was pleasant to my ear... but to put him in the same league as most of the guitarists mentioned in this thread? I'm just not seeing it. I'm wondering if this sensationalism and hype is akin to the Keith Jarrett fad. :p Hehe, those are the words of the late great Oscar Peterson, not mine. Here is Oscar’s quote from an interview in JazzTimes:

Oscar Peterson: “I don’t happen to be a Jarrett fan, I’ll be very frank with you. I think it’s a fad. Dizzy had a very astute saying that I quote many times: Before a concert one time Norman Granz asked the horns to keep their solos short because of time limitations. I remember Dizzy looked up and said, “Listen, I can play everything I know in four bars.” That is a comedic saying, true, but I watched a solo Keith Jarrett television special and … it was not necessary. He didn’t do anything. I don’t like to come down on somebody, but he’s kidding. I would sooner hear 15 minutes of Art Tatum than to listen to two hours of Jarrett. There is just so much you can do. I can play the piano and I can sit down and go through that kind of performance and buffalo X amount of people. I’m not trying to nail him to the cross; I just don’t believe in that type of performance. You have to be a little more concise, a little more selective in what you decide to do. Anything you have to say that bears saying, you don’t need two hours to say it in. You can say it very concisely within five minutes, believe it or not. This is what the great orators of the world maintain, and the same thing applies to music.”​

My personal opinion is that the same can be applied to Joe Bonamassa. At least Bonamassa doesn’t have an ego vastly disproportionate to his talent, like Jarrett does. But anyway, that's just my opinion, and we all know what opinions are like, don't we? And I have one just like everyone else. All that matters is that his music/playing affects you in a positive way. I mean, I rock out to Mario, Zelda, and Banjo-Kazooie music sometimes, and I think the composition is brilliant. Most of my peers think I did too much acid in the 70's, or that I'm joking with them or something. Who cares? It affects me in a positive way, so I couldn't care less what anyone else's opinion is. So keep enjoying Joe B.
 
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JinjoVitis said:
:p Hehe, those are the words of the late great Oscar Peterson, not mine. Here is Oscar’s quote from an interview in JazzTimes:

Oscar Peterson: “I don’t happen to be a Jarrett fan, I’ll be very frank with you. I think it’s a fad. Dizzy had a very astute saying that I quote many times: Before a concert one time Norman Granz asked the horns to keep their solos short because of time limitations. I remember Dizzy looked up and said, “Listen, I can play everything I know in four bars.” That is a comedic saying, true, but I watched a solo Keith Jarrett television special and … it was not necessary. He didn’t do anything. I don’t like to come down on somebody, but he’s kidding. I would sooner hear 15 minutes of Art Tatum than to listen to two hours of Jarrett. There is just so much you can do. I can play the piano and I can sit down and go through that kind of performance and buffalo X amount of people. I’m not trying to nail him to the cross; I just don’t believe in that type of performance. You have to be a little more concise, a little more selective in what you decide to do. Anything you have to say that bears saying, you don’t need two hours to say it in. You can say it very concisely within five minutes, believe it or not. This is what the great orators of the world maintain, and the same thing applies to music.”​
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Oscar Peterson...what can you say...I can only describe listening to him as "joyous"...and if I were cornered into making one of these "Who's the best piano player?" arguments, it might be him. Having said that, Mr Jarrett is a monster musician...period. But I was never a fan of the fusion era of jazz...and I wouldn't buy those records...I think maybe that's where Peterson was with Jarrett...I dunno...can't ask him anymore. :( ...but I think later on Keith settled down and has done work I like to listen to. But point taken, I love Chuck Berry...I love listening to him time and again...always will. I cannot say the same for a lot of the "obsessed with tone...or speed" folks. Don't get me wrong, on some days I love listening to Joe Satriani or Van Halen but most days, what with a hectic career...at the end of the day I like to listen to music...not butcher the high school teacher music or I just got my first period at Disneyland music.
 
200man said:
...at the end of the day I like to listen to music...not butcher the high school teacher music or I just got my first period at Disneyland music.
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:tearsofjoy::tearsofjoy::tearsofjoy: That's hilarious. I might have to plagiarize that one with my students.

Yeah, OP is one of my gods. When I listen to him, I sometimes wished I played piano instead of guitar during my lifetime (too late now... not much time left for this old dog :grin:). I'm with OP when it comes to KJ though. I just don't get what the hullabaloo is all about... like with Bonamassa. I get the hype with musicians like Oscar Peterson, Joe Pass, Eddie Van Halen, etc.... because their talent is almost inhuman... and their music is so much fun and so interesting to listen to. You never know what to expect from musicians like that... they always surprise you around every corner. It's not the some straight road in the middle of the desert that goes on forever and always 'looks' the same.
 
In my opinion, no one can be "the best" when it comes to art, music, film as it's very subjective to each of us. However, I agree Guthrie is one of the greats of our time. I finally got to see him live for the first time playing with Hans Zimmer. He didn't disappoint.
 
Strumzilla said:
In my opinion, no one can be "the best" when it comes to art, music, film as it's very subjective to each of us. However, I agree Guthrie is one of the greats of our time. I finally got to see him live for the first time playing with Hans Zimmer. He didn't disappoint.
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Thanks for reminding me about this Zimmer tour ! Just scored my seat for aug 5 in Chicago!
 
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