As a fellow guitarist, I definately have my favourites. I've been playing for over 10 years and have many styles that influnce my playing including rock, metal, classical, and jazz. Instead of racking my brain trying to think of a list of guitarists I've taken many who were listed in this thread that I thought were great, and others who I think shouldn't really be on this list. However, it is all personal opinion so to each his own. Here are my comments:
David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) - Definately the reason I'm playing guitar today. I remember sitting and listening to Comfortably Numb years ago and
playing air guitar to the solo. As soon as I got my first guitar I just knew that I had to learn that song in it's entirety. I've played it live and it's definately a crowd pleaser. Gilmour has such a smooth playing style with
classic tones.
Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits and solo) - My second guitar idol. The song that did it for me was Brother's in Arms. I tried for ages to get that guitar tone but unfortunately Knopfler uses EMG active pickups and I wasn't willing to make the switch from my Seymour Duncan's to active EMG's. He is amazingly smooth with both rock, classical, and blues influence. He can play classical styling all with finger picking and still throw in the occational rock riff (Listen to "Private Investigation") or throw some country/rock runs in with smooth arpeggio's (listen to "Calling Elvis").
Lindsay Buckingham (Fleetwood Mac) - Not mentioned in this thread yet but a very under-rated guitarist. If you've ever seen Fleetwood live then you know what I mean. He plays everything finger picked and really rocks when he's on stage. Absolutely a pleasure to see live and will surprise most of you if you ever get the opportunity to see him play.
Lenny Kravitz - What can I say?? He's a one man band. Lenny plays all the instruments on all his albums and does all the vocals. He is less than a guitarist and more of an all around musician. Who else do you know that plays the drums, bass, guitars, and does all the front end and back end vocals on his album??
Joe Satriani and Steve Vai - I'm not really a Steve Vai fan but I've
listed these two together because Joe Satriani (Satch) taught Vai. They're both amazingly skilled guitarists and have done so much for the guitar and music industry, however, they're not a widely known in the mainstream. Also, they both given Ibanez guitars the recognition they deserve for creating amazing instruments. Satch's best work by far is on "Surfing with the Alien" and "Crystal Planet".
Kirk Hammet and James Hetfield - Metallica has made it really big in
their musical careers, however Kirk Hammet is WAY WAY WAY Over-rated. Sure he knows his scales and is fast, but he has very little feeling and emotion in his playing. Hetfield is such a versatile guitarist and his playing has such feeling. Kirk Hammet has to learn to slow down. His slower tunes is where he really shines.
Yngwie Malmsteen - His is good technically, but once again, anyone can learn their scales and learn to play them fast. Playing day in and day out, using extra-lite strings (8's) and getting your fretboard scalloped can make anyone fast. He is technically good but once again, has no feeling or emotion in his music.
Van Halen - Let's see, using a chisel to dig out enough space in your guitar to drop a humbucker, and then changing the guitar world with never before heard riffs and licks? Amazing!! I'm not a huge Eddie fan but what he has done in his time is incredible.
Eric Clapton - Ol' Slowhand is super smooth, and just makes the guitar sing. His music has matured over the years but he's never lost his charm on stage.
Oscar Lopez, Otmar Liebert, Jesse Cook - These guitarists are probably my favourite classical guitarists. Jesse Cook is a must see if you ever get the chance. (Listen to "Mario Takes A Walk")
Randy Rhodes - I am a huge Ozzy Osbourne fan and Randy was absolutely amazing. However, if you listen to any of his Quiot Riot material, it's exactly the same as all of the Ozzy material. However, in all fairness, I guess his short time in the industry and early death prevented him from showering us with more of his talent. Listen to "Dee" off of Blizzard of Ozz to hear his most versatile work.
Kurt Cobain - He shouldn't be renown for his guitar playing because in all honesty, he wasn't a stellar guitar player by any means. However, he should be renown for his song writing ability and influence on the grunge music industry during his reign. Dave Grohl is a much better guitar player. All Kurt ever did was play simple power chords with very simple minor-pentatonic solos.
Anyhow, I could go on forever but I'm getting tired. That's all for me for now!