This section has been on hiatus for a small while so I thought I would resurrect it and talk about guitars today instead of lyricists. Josh will be back on soon. He’s been busy. Whoever says college is not tough is lying. Anyway on to skilled musicians, most of whom never needed to succumb to a specific major. Practice was obviously necessary. But, no physics class.
Biography and Music
Ritchie Blackmore dropped out of school at 15. It was one of the better decisions he ever made. Blackmore took an apprenticeship as a radio mechanic at Heathrow Airport and started receiving guitar lessons by Big Jim Sullivan, one of the most in-demand studio musicians of all time. He performed in more than one thousand charting singles over his career. No big deal or anything.
Blackmore’s first guitar was given to him by his father when he was 11. It came with a threat. His father promised to smash the guitar over Blackmore’s head if he did not learn how to play it correctly. So, a few classical lessons later, Blackmore was introduced to correct finger strokes and other various classical guitar techniques. This only helped him, but was not the reason why he became a true “highway star.” Deep Purple joke. Don’t worry about it.
Blackmore became your classic English guitarist. His upbringing in Middlesex, work for Joe Meek’s (famous English producer) studio, and backing of performers like Heinz, Screaming Lord Sutch and Glenda Collins all contributed to this label. In 1968, Blackmore teamed up with organist Jon Lord and formed Deep Purple. Deep Purple would eventually go down as one of the first hard rock (heavy metal) bands of all time. They, along with bands like Blue Cheer and even Black Sabbath were the predecessors of true hard rock. Blackmore’s playing somewhat spun the process into motion.
Style and Equipment
This section will describe why Blackmore stands on this list and, no, it is not just because “Smoke on the Water.” Blackmore is a very skilled guitarist. He understands the instrument and is able to play it with awesome proficiency. His riffs are catchy and his solos combine blues scales with elegant phrasing and minor scales most similar to classical European music. This interesting combination gives the music a dark but catchy feel. This can be heard in “Highway Star.” Take a listen:
Blackmore is a Fender Stratocaster man as well. His Strat’s have a scalloped fingerboard, which means the frets are almost scooped out to form a U shape. This is usually used by Shred Guitarists. Blackmore and Yngwie Malmsteen are two examples of guitarists who prefer this expensive process. Blackmore also liked to experiment with various pedals and guitar synthesizers with Deep Purple and his project Rainbow.
An example of a scalloped fretboard. This one is from Yngwie Malmsteen's guitar
His immense catalog of guitar work is just fantastic and his playing never lacks much. He stands as one of the better guitarists of all time because of this skill and his tremendous influence on a changing music population.
The Music Court 
#24??? More like top #5 , genre be damned! A true genious but not too many people know to what extent! There’s a whole lot more to the man then Made In Japan and Smoke On The Water!
Quite a compliment. Yes, he was an awesome guitarist, but top 5? That’s a little high don’t you think. Especially with the likes of Clapton, Hendrix, Allman, King, Robert Johnson and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Well, at least I went higher than the sometimes maladroit list by Rolling Stone which had him at 55.
I must agree with zohan…..Blackmore is #1 to me. It’s not just what he plays but how he plays it and how it fits into the song (talking studio recordings here, he can get out in left field live). The feeling, the sound, the timing….he’s got it all in spades with the exception of using a slide…
I believe he is grossly underated…and Clapton, Page, and some others are grossly overated…Of course, when you get right down to it, its all in the ear of the listener.
That is a great point, It really is the preference of the listener. The answer of top guitarist will always vary. But, Blackmore is underrated and I do agree about that
Let put ALL songs that all TOP guitarist made…
with solo’s and influence in music… and everyting else…
and than let see who is BEST guitarist…
FOR ME there is no doubt:
1 place – Jimi Hendrix
2 place – Ritchie Blackmoore
but i prefer to listen RB…
For me he’s no1. As Don Airey says it’s because he thinks so much about what he plays… his solos are not only often technically breathtaking but also fit beautifully into the mood of the song so well. Over 5 decades he’s produced fabulous work on his Gibson E335, the Strat of course and now with his acoustic playing. Other guitarists have made their mark but Blackmore’s has been indelible, inspired more than a generation of players and continues on to this day.
Have a listen to this solo (address below) with snippets of 30 “shredders” and note that Ritchie Blackmore is the “Old Guy” in this group and his contribution unsurprisingly meshes right in….because in my opinion he was the first to play the style that the majority of top guitarists since have built upon. They may be faster and they may be better, but Blackmore put the style on the map in my opinion and played very proficiently and clean. That makes him Top 10 at the very least in any Rock/Metal list……
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaAkWy55V3A
Clearly these “top” lists are all so subjective. If I remember correctly this section was initially started by my best friend who put Blackmore at #24. I have yet to create my own list, but if I did I believe Blackmore would fall a little closer to the cream of the crop. He is a tremendous guitarist. Like I said above, it is a matter of preference. Thanks so much for the comments, and I will need to continue this list at some point so we can continue debating positions!