I’m a bit embarrassed to list the best heavy metal guitarists when the group to choose from is so large. The problem arises from the large number of styles and sub-genres involved. Your choices depend on your style and who you listen to, be it glam, doom, progressive, classic, or any other type of heavy metal group. So for the short list of the best heavy metal guitarists, here goes …
Tony Iommi – Black Sabbath
Featured in concert as “the man who invented the heavy metal riff,” Iommi is a legend and original member of Black Sabbath. He plays keyboards and flute, as well as guitar, and has been associated with other groups such as Jethro Tull, Heaven & Hell, Mythology, and Necromandus.
Jimmy Page – Led Zeppelin
Page began his career as a studio session guitarist before founding Led Zeppelin in 1968. He has been described as “one of the most influential, important and versatile guitarists and songwriters of all time in rock history.” His inspiration to start playing the guitar was the song “Baby Let’s Play House” by Elvis Presley.
Kirk Hammett – Metallica
Also nicknamed one of the greatest heavy metal guitarists by Rolling Stone magazine, Kirk Hammett is a musician and songwriter. Hammett is known to always have his chopping hand taped up, due to the constant silence of the palm and quick chopping when on tour.
Eddie Van Halen as Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen is known for his innovative tapping, fast guitar playing, and high-frequency feedback. Along with the guitar, he is a keyboardist, composer and producer. He once claimed that he had learned all of Eric Clapton’s guitar solos “note for note” when he was 14 years old. Along with Eric Clapton, Van Halen says his main influence was Jimmy Page, “who was more like me, in a reckless and abandoned way.”
Randy Rhoads by Ozzy Osbourne
After Rhoads created the group Quiet Riot at the age of 16, he teamed up with Ozzy in 1979 to form Ozzy Osbourne. After a successful career with Ozzy, he mentioned to the group in the 1980s that he wanted to leave the group for several years so he could study classical guitar at UCLA. After Rhoads’ death in 1982, Ozzy stated that if he had lived, he did not think that Rhoads would have stayed with the band.
Angus Young – AC / DC
Young is best known for his wild and energetic performances and is definitely one of the greatest heavy metal guitarists of all time. He was 18 when he and his brother formed AC / DC. Young tried on various stage costumes, including a gorilla suit, Zorro, and Spider-man before settling on his schoolboy look. Young has influenced groups like Guns N ‘Roses, Slayer, Metallica, and Def Leppard.
While far from being a comprehensive list of the best heavy metal guitarists, there is no question that these artists have made a huge impact on the heavy metal industry.