Who's your top 5 most influential guitar players ...

[Jean Pierre]

I have indicated chronologically
1/ Hank Marvin (in 1962, my first discovery of the guitar)
2/ Keith Richard ( yes in 1966 the Stones first period, discovery of playing with bended notes and blues)
3/ Eric Clapton , no comments God, in 70
4/ Marcel Dadi , discovery of finguer picking
5/ Pierre Bensusan (discovery of open tuning and in particular the wonderful DADGAD tuning)

(...I would have liked to continue in the Top 10, with Narciso Yepes, Django Reinhardt, Joe Pass, John Renbourn, David Guilmour, ...and then especially out of the ranking ..Roland Dyens


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcD0JM4xa54

...and many others

[AndyR]

On one level this is really difficult - I can't hear these people in my guitar playing...

(Also, bear in mind I'm talking about my guitar playing in a way you folks don't hear - what gets recorded on songs is a miniscule part of what I do on guitar. I very rarely record me "playing guitar", I'm always recording songs and figuring out parts.)

On the other hand, it's easy, I know exactly who I've been most influenced by - those who I've tried to copy over the years. We're talking note choices, chord inversions, "voice" (as in "tone" out of the hands and fingers), etc, etc...

There's LOADS of them, but the biggies were:

Billy Gibbons (1st few ZZ Top albums, definitely pre Eliminator)
Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple Mark II before they first ended after Who Do We Think We Are)
Brian May (everything he did with Queen when Freddie was still alive, especially up to and including Jazz... after that, live mainly, but I loved The Works too)
Stevie Ray Vaughan (that first album ... wow, and what he did on Lets Dance)

I'm stopping at 4 because - well, you'll see in a moment.

There are many others (eg where's Rory?!!!) but those are the ones in the first 10 years or so that I pored over, took to pieces, trying to figure out how they did what they did because I wanted to do it myself (incidentally, I'd be trying to sound like their electric personas but doing it acoustically most of the time - I've never really been one for acquiring the right amp/strings/etc ... I like to know, because that has some bearing on what they do, but mostly its touch and attitude)

And the 5th slot goes to....

Charlie Starr (of Blackberry Smoke)

I'm still getting influenced, even by folks I only discovered a couple of years back.

He was actually first on my list. At the moment I ADORE his playing - I end up in paroxysms of "WOWOWOW!" every time I watch him live. I was wondering why, and Mrs R said "Is it because he plays like you do?"

And she's right. He thinks/plays like I do... except SO MUCH better... and recently I've been learning to do more because he's solved some of the things I haven't managed to yet.

I still don't sound like him, that's never what I'm after... but because he's talking the same language or dialect as I do, I get what he's doing and I'm getting more tricks up my sleeve, even now. And the sound he makes... oh dreamy dreamy tone... and it's all in the fingers...

[Pete C]

This list has changed a lot over the years but thinking back over the last year these are the 5 I've listened to most over the last year, in no particular order:

The Edge - Always been up there for me since the early 80's

Slash - he's just a guitar hero

Johnny Marr - loved the Smiths and enjoy his recent solo work

John Frusciante - funky, rocky, great improviser

Nile Rodgers - the best funk guitar player

Despite trying to, I've never sounded like any of my guitar idols -  in fact their biggest influence has been some of the guitars I've bought:

Mick Jones of the Clash and Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols - my first cheapo Les Paul copy

The Edge - fell in love with his black 70's Strat with maple fingerboard and the GAS made me buy my first decent guitar - 1983 Jap Squier SQ Stratocaster. I couldn't get the all balck one and settled for an Olympic white (very Hendrix !)

Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller - Epiphone Sheraton

Slash and the Hawkins brothers (The Darkness) - my 2002 Jap Epiphone Elite series Les Paul (like a 59 faded cherryburst)

Johnny Marr - my Fender Jaguar

Finally come to realise that buying a particular guitar doesn't make me sound like any of my guitar idols - the last guitar I bought was a Reverend Jetstream - decided to just be myself !

[StephenM]

My five favorites are:  Neal Schon, Steve Lukather, Tom Scholz, Steve Miller, Billy Gibbons....  but I love many others as well..but all these guys really impress me....and Steve Howe as well

influenced my playing (I can hear alot of Neal Young in my playing.... I do like his music especially his live electric stuff)
Frank Zappa, not so much guitar playing as just letting it be ok to be weird...

my five favorite songcrafter guitarists... uh oh, I could get in trouble here.... PJD (I just wish he did more), Chapper (but he hides it well), Greeny (lots of chops and styles), Blooby, SE (awesome song progressions)... and Mike S
and there's alot more I like hearing too... 

[StephenM]

 a little unfair of me to start naming favorite SC guitarists because the fact is there are a bunch here that I like alot... suffice it to say that SC is one of the best things I have found in my musical life...and so thanks to the ones who started it...and keep it running....and to all who participate... here's to SC!!!
May it live on long after this dinosaur is extinct.....
blessings!!!

I could add to that I never really have tried to sound like any guitarist or copy them..likely because I didn't want that frustration...but I love so many of them...
and I failed to mention the guitarist's in Kansas... Kerry Livgren and Rich Williams

[IanR]

Ron Wood (Faces era)
David Gilmour
Chuck Berry
Ian Moss (from Aussie band Cold Chisel)
Elvis Costello

next five
Angus Young
Jimmy Page
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Peter Buck
Big Bill Broonzy

I don't sound like any of them but they all made me want to play guitar.

[Blooby]

Wow, this is going to be tough... In no particular order, knowing this could change tomorrow.

Michael Hedges
Robben Ford
John McLaughlin
Jimmy Page
Jack Pearson

I realized somewhat recently that I would add Alex Lifeson as an honorable mention for his unique take on chords.

[maxit]

John Denver
James Taylor
Bob Dylan
Nick Drake
Keith Richards

[StephenM]

Wow, this is going to be tough... In no particular order, knowing this could change tomorrow.

Michael Hedges
Robben Ford
John McLaughlin
Jimmy Page
Jack Pearson

I realized somewhat recently that I would add Alex Lifeson as an honorable mention for his unique take on chords.

I recently came across Robben Ford....he's really good... and I have listened to a bit of Michael Hedges years ago...super...good choices...

[Jean Pierre]

ah yes
I forgot in my list

Robben Ford

Jerry Reed

well I'll stop??I think I could make a top 5 list every day for several weeks