FROM THE RIDICULOUS TO THE SUBLIME

We’re ready for argument. Below are The Guitar Heroes Of Rock ’n’ Roll as we see them — at least in late 1981 —and it hasn’t been easy. Hero criteria? Well, let ’em play guitar, but let ’em play it good: Ray Dauies plays guitar but isn’t one; Dave Dauies plays guitar and is. The distinctions are fine. Keep in mind our purposeful limits —it's got to be rock ’n’ roll, not blues, not jazz, not folk. For euery B.B. King. John McLaughlin and Bert Jansch, there’s a Luther Allison, John Abercrombie and Dauy Graham until, eventually, there’s a GUITAR HEROES special edition that’s 500 pages long and costs 10 bucks. We had to trim it down. Tacked on the end of each entry are the guitar models each subject uses; those entries debatable or unknown are left blank. —Ed.