I've been involved in many discussions and debates over great guitar players, past and present. Many have argued that the "Guitar Hero" is a thing of the past and there can never be another class of guitar players like Page, Clapton, Hendrix, Van Halen, Rhoads, Iommi, Vai, or Satriani. I'm not sure about that. But I do know that your opinion on this topic can most likely be directly related to when you grew up and developed your musical awareness and taste.
To that end, what qualifies someone as a “Guitar Hero”? You could certainly look at the previously listed names as innovators - players who created something that didn't exist before. If innovation is the determining factor, then perhaps there can be no new guitar heroes. Then again, I've been seeing and hearing a lot of amazing things being done with extended range instruments (guitars with more than 6 strings) that blows my mind! I'm 44. I became musically aware in the 80's and 90's so my guitar hero list (see below) most definitely reflects that.
Fast-forward to 2017. Can you name a Guitar Hero from today's music? If you're my age or older, this is probably a very difficult question to answer. Does that mean there are none? That's likely not a fair assessment. So who could qualify as a Guitar Hero in 2017? Let me throw out some names...Tosin Abasi, Misha Mansoor, Mark Holcomb, Jeff Loomis…these are just a few that I'm aware of (and only because I have a 21 year old son who shares my passion for music and shredding guitar players).
Who would you consider to be a Guitar Hero in 2017?
My Top 10 Guitar Hero's (not necessarily in this order):
1) Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen)
2) Ty Tabor (King's X)
3) Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath)
4) Jimi Hendrix
5) Stevie Ray Vaughan
6) Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin)
7) Steve Vai
8) Joe Satriani
9) Jerry Cantrell (Alice In Chains)
10) Dean DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots)