Added: 5 years ago
From: MeanGuitarist
Views: 357,996
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (330)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • Only non-musicians, star-struck fanatics and people with limited synapses "Rate" guitarists, singers blues artists as "The BEST'" at this, that or the other. The rest of us just play, learn and admire the skills of all of the guitar slingers mentioned in some of the comments. Even the ego-driven rants or the fawning, "STAR," obsessed get some good vids posted. Too many inane rants can be a bit irritating. Please check your ego at the door buddy!!! Johnny says, "Howdy pardner!" Luv, BluzCat

  • Completly amazing! 

  • Oh yeah. Winter of 88 cd

  • Winter, Allman, Beck, Clapton, Hendrix, SRV, Page. There are many great guitarists, but the best guitarist in the world hands down is Rocco "Clams" Scapatellismegmettifunicullifu­nicullaronzonosonobuoni. Check out his 1970 album "Songs for Grizelda" on Dot Records. It's amazing and Rocco still plays regularly at Bosco's Lounge on 199th Ave. in Ozone Park. It's right between the crack house and Capello's Auto Parts. 

  • No surprise Johnny picked Tom Compton. One of the best drummers around back in the day. Thumbs up Tom!

  • @fuxgood You are absolutely right Bill. Sets a really nice aggressive beat. I recall Compton from his early days in South London.

  • @sandman I got to meet Tom in Florida in 91...grate shows they did Tom is a nice guy...they all treated me well giving us back stage passes ...that was the Let me in tour..I was 21 at the time just a little kid that loved S.R.V. them I got the chance to meet Johnny..Pat Travers even came by for one gig ...something else sitting on the tour bus with Johnny and Pat ....All I did was lesson

  • The.  Winter of 88

  • that a ron paul t-shirt??!! said it before, this guy can go all day!!

  • that a ron paul t-shirt??!!

  • nuff said!!!!

  • Aguante Winter !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • for me is the best stranger bleus from a cover of julian sas look on you tube

    he's a create gitar player

  • There cannot be a best, it's impossible. we have different tastes, so out ideas of the best are only going to conflict. EVERYBODY, no more "best this and best that"

    "This is my favorite" is what we should from now on.

    Plus, Johnny Winter if one of my favorites, and to be he plays the best, it's not my fault, my ears what they hear, and I does my brain, which is me! xD

    I hope Johnny is getting better, healthwise.

  • Dang...

  • what about peter green? check out the fleetwood mac version of this song from their boston tea party album

  • this albin is a fucking god !!

  • re the clapton comparisons: 1) johnny smokes eric without a slide. 2) eric isn't even on the same planet as johnny playing slide. hands down, johnny is better. ec just has the whole 'rock star legend' thing going for him. eric's released a whole slew of crappy albums. all of johnny's are at least decent. don't forget ec's sellout to become the 'michelob man' wearing miami vice clothes and playing crappy pop music.

  • only teenagers argue about whos best, its like whos dick is bigger kinda thing...

    Johhny is a LEGEND.... one of the greatest of all time...

    he sings beautifully , lives the song and creates a natural kicking vibe that is REAL.

    He is way beyond being compared to anyone...

  • ...white blind man plays the blues - and all gets a whiter shade of pale....

  • all of you arguing about about your so-called "best" lists with no mention of Jeff Beck! What a crock.

    Johnny Winter - a true Texas Guitar Slinger

  • Johnny Winter will never be discounted as a premier bluesman. All this crap about this one being better than that one is bullshit. Each has their own and each is great. We all have our favorites but I don't believe one is better than the other. When you play at this level you either are good or you are not. Period.

  • @chef4cook you said it bro! Let's just listen and love the tunes.......

  • i LIKE JOHNNY THE BEST AS WELL ALWAYS HAVE -BUT ALL ARE GREAT-LAFITE OR MOUTON-ALONSO OR KIMI?

  • Johnny Winter Has been the baddest ass rock and roll blues guitarist on mother earth... He's made more great songs, played more concerts than any of them (living on his tour bus playing live) ... Johnny You Da Man Love Ya forever Guitar King ...

  • Man, this guy is the best, he got the style, technic and, which is important, carisma.

  • ok srv and johnny were great BUT srv was clearly better listen to srv and albert king blues at sunrise and it will be clear.

  • EC is good but I think Johnny has probably forgot more about the blues than Clapton ever knew.. Unfortunately Eric will take his place in line behind SRV and a few others...

  • Comment removed

  • You know how you can tell SRV is better? No one compares SRV to Jonny Winter.

  • Comment removed

  • @SuperBeibersucks

    cept stevie got his hops from the blass player johnny raised

    he woulda been nothin without shannon

  • @SuperBeibersucks JW was doing it 20 years before SRV. when SRV was born he was already cutting records and playing gigs, which he started doing at the age of 15. For me JW is a far better guitarist and singer, not to mention better slide guitarist, still love me some SRV thou =)

    go to Johnny's site the photo section, there is one of him and SRV, both smiling, probably taken in Italy in the 80's but i don't know for sure. They were friends, both kick ass. that's all that matters.

  • @Marco81Blues Well said buddy, I'm over 50 and Johnny is the man as far as live BLUES is concerned, nobody beats him as soon as he slipped that piece of metal in his pinky lol!!! I'd go to highway 61 anytime. I like SRV but Johnny in my whole existence is something else....... I always dreamed of playing slide like him....

  • @SuperBeibersucks ......SRV filled a commercial void for the blues ...Johnny is the blues.

  • very powerful singing voice....kinda rough..almost like Fred Turner

  • GREAT!!!! Johnny and his unique style no one will copy ever! Hope he'll be able to do it again now loosing his health problems!

  • He's great!!!!!!!!!  =)

  • this guy is awesome... And the bass and the drummer are awesome too.. Johnny is one of a kind.. That slide is insane !!!

  • . . . ,Rory G.,Buddy Whittington,Dave Hole,Coco Montoya,Earl Hooker,PeeWee Crayton,Luther Tucker and a hundred more I could think just off the top of my head.And I did not mention Jimi because the boy only had one blues tune worth a shit although it was a damn good one(RED HOUSE).So why does he come up in the in the blues equation?Hell if your a BLUES fan as I am you might think that Eddie Cochran was better at his age than jimi was!Just listen to"Eddie's Blues".Don't compare just feel the blues

  • Why is it every son of a bitch has to say somebody is better than somebody else?I've always loved JW!Butt I also love Popa Chubby, SRV,Clapton,Hollywood Fats,Albert Collins,Ronnie Earl,BB,Freddie,Albert &Little Jimmy King,Lightning Hopkins,Elmore James,Roy Buchanan,Little Charlie Baty,Li'l ED,Ronnie Baker Brooks,Lonnie Brooks,Elvin Bishop,T Bone,Gatemouth,Duane Allman,Otis Grand and truly one of my favorites the early Peter Green!Oh,and who have I forgot?How about Jimmy Thackery,Walter Trout..

  • @MrBluesmeister True....Why not just enjoy them all without all the comparing.....This guy is definitely good...

  • Comment removed

  • Comment removed

  • Fy fan vilken ton!

  • happy birthday and thanks johnny for all the great memories..

  • this makes me wanna buy a firebird

  • Great version. The Elmore James version came on my iPod and I thought I'd have a look at some covers. Johnny Winter is immense. I've got to say that the drummer did a good job too. That kind of beat is very tiering to play without a break! The original blows me away though, amazing drums. I don't know what he's up to on that take.

  • one of the best solo players i dont believe he died!!!!!!!!

  • @georgiadesm No, Johnny is Still Alive & Well As a matter of fact Happy Birthday today Feb 23, 1944 !

  • one of the best solo players

  • Thats Owning it folks.The #1 Master of the slide guitar. WHIP IT!!!!!!

  • JW, Rory Gallagher. What else do you need...

  • Genious

  • How come my 9/16" deep socket don't sound like that?

  • Maybe not the best...He's damn good though. What a clean sounding arpeggio scale master can sound like. Johnny Winter is the best Ambassador for the blues to my generation of music fan. In earlier generations, it might have been B.B. King or Son House, but for me this hybrid of electric rock and blues scales set the stage for record company's like Sony and Elektra to upgrade their recording and studio equipment and then sponsor later artists like SRV.

  • I was catching J.W. at Bogarts in Cincinnati late 80's early 90's and well......... it spke for itself. I miss those days. All I can say is I was lucky.

  • I like the the drum happenig in this song. Tha fellah has got the boogie in hes blood:D Playin' that kind of things with a single pedal ain't easy. But hey... he plays with Johnny winter so he can't suck...

  • Comment removed

  • Been watching Zappa, not trying but came to the conclusion Johnny is the Man!

  • Christ would of picked Johnny as one of his disciples!! God Bless JDW!!!

  • One of the very few Caucasians who embody the southern blues without seeming to be sli

  • the one and only king master of the slide guitar! damn whipit whipit!

  • i seen him on TV once 74?and he started to play lead without looking down at the frets the way everyone else does

  • texas via chicago, no one has his feel, except perhaps duane, and the slide will never quite be this jaw-dropping. forgot how this was live but this is an accurate reminder, nobody else i've ever seen or heard can do this, like wear yr central nervous system on yr pinkie and let it sing the body electric

  • Being from New York I have seen Johnny Winter many times since he always played the Schaefer and Dr.Pepper music festival he always delivered I got turned on to him by my elders...It's my own fault from johnny winter and LIVE is a must own for any Johnny Winter fanatic......Enjoy.

  • @notimeleftforyou Was at the J.W. and live tour at Greenville MEM.auditorium.Greenville,S.C.­meantown blues session went on forever.Derringer had to step back when Johny took off.Damn my ears are ringing just thincking about it.

  • Johnny Winter hypnotised me in my teens and I have never gotten out of the trance yet.

  • Other people play the blue, Johnny Winter is blues incarnate. RIP

  • @Attentionseekingnoob Ummm....... JW is STILL ALIVE AND WELL, noob.

  • @jukeking1 Ummm, first sort out your caps lock key, second stop being an ass and calling people noobs. Your profile claims you are 57 yet you act like an silly kiddie, maybe time to grow up?

  • Lol Iron Maiden certainly drunk on this sound to make the easy part of Charlotte the Harlot, it's resembles alot.

  • Saw this guy eons ago. Great stuff. An often overlooked player. Guess he's not mainstream enough. But he sure can rock the house.

  • He's AMAZING but I wouldn't call him the best, and I'm not calling him bad, but he's right up there with Clapton, and all the blues greats but once they reach a certain level of greatness it kinda levels out, theres no one best blues guitarist

  • @Noseheros Claptoon can't hold a candle to him, plus he sings better than clapton too.

    or he used to..unfortunatly. time doesnt forgive anyone

  • @Noseheros I guess you must have the blues because your thinking that clapton is better makes me grin. I guess we all have our own opinion. I do like Eric a lot think he is the best white english boy but can't match Johnny at his best.

  • @89easygoer Im not saying he's better Im saying Johnny is up there with clapton and once they reach a certain level u cant compare anymore...at the top of my list (I dont number it cuz u could argue that all deserve the #1 slot) is Duane Allman, Eric Clapton, Hendrix, SRV, Johnny Winter, David Gilmour and Jimmy Page...but thats not all of um, just some of my favorites, and thats just electric, if ur going acoustic Id say stephen stills, neil young, page,elmore james, robert johnson to name a few

  • @Noseheros thats all im sayin

  • @Noseheros "right up there with Clapton", what the hell are you talking about? You are comparing Surrey born Clapton with Johnny Winter, albino Texan blues guitar prodigy ? Clapton can only dream of being this good

  • @Noseheros You're comparing Johnny Winter to eric clapton? Clapton SUCKS! I can't figure out why people like him so much. his tone is awfull and he adds alot of orchastration to his live shows. Johnny Winter is a killer slide player and a killer guitar player, he SMOKES clapton. Johnny is a BAD MOTHER.

  • @KILLERDYNOCRUISERS People like hime because he plays guitar like a god LIKE Johnny Winter. Johnny Winter is maybe a better guitar PLAYER but Eric Clapton can improve like a god, so he plays a little bit with more feeling. But I agree Johnny Winter is a beast.

  • @KILLERDYNOCRUISERS I didnt compare, I said he's on par with clapton...I have to say Im not fond of 80's clapton but his 60's work is my favorite

  • @Noseheros If you are talkin' about blues, Johnny smokes clapton anytime baby...

  • @gfgranja If you're talking pure blues yeah, but I like 60's era Clapton more than Winter, and hendrix more than both

  • @Noseheros Hendrix is the king, no doubt about that.

  • smokin slide

  • smokin slide

  • Johnny Winter is the greatest blues guitarist living or dead. Just listen to his CD 'Let Me In', and it will become abundantly clear.

  • @guitboy63 That sounds almost good enough to be done by a black man

  • @guitboy63 I had let me in on cassette good shit

  • hell, there can't b any1 else that can play like this ..wrong .... Edgar Winter is great 2.....

  • There is nobody left on the earth that can play like that...

  • What the hell is the is constant comparison crap??? just enjoy all the greats for their individual efforts!!

  • @sixaxle you said it bro.... everybody should just listen and enjoy! Thats what music is all about

  • Johnny Winter is in his own class! You gotta love his hot licks....I wouldn't compare him to any other great guitarist...but then again I grew up listening to this s#*t....lotsof good memories!

  • Comment removed

  • To the Guy who wants to compare Clapton to Winter .... You are a Dumb Ass !

  • Simply the best

  • Nice sounds very good!!!!

  • Great stuff. I missed Johnny in los Angeles last week but I heard he was in fine form.

  • dddddddddddddddddddd

  • dddddddddddddddddddddddd

  • I agree Kevin . Those bass and drums are pushing hard. There isn't even 1 second of bass player shown here. who was it ? jon Paris? I like the sound of his Firebird and other guitars much better than the Lazer or whaterver his little G tarz are. I love all Johnny's licks but they sound alot more nasty out of his old set-up.

  • Best blues guitarist ever to play on three strings!!! Ever!! hahhaha okay people at least learn a little guitar befor you listen to this music....maybe a little Buddy Guy, B.B. King, or Eric fuckin Clapton will bring blues to your ears!!!

  • He was very good during this period.

  • imortal

  • uneffinreal

  • Long Live Johnny Winter!!! Isn't he just flat out awesome?! I was lucky to see him in the late 80's and he was great. A friend of mine saw him last month in Albany N.Y. and he said the opening number "incinerated" Johnny's opening act. He is coming thru SoCal this fall, I have got to see him again.

  • Oh my God! Why haven't I heard about him sooner... I've got to listen to more of this!

  • Awesome,bass and drums pushing hard!!!

  • Yeoooow!! My iphone melted! and listen to that bass player workin out to keep up.

  • One of the best...

  • Johnny Winter is just indescribably talented. The freedom in his music is unique.

  • i been listening to johnny since i was 14 am 45 now, still my favorite.God bless you johnny winter. greg.

  • @stratocaster1greg - I agree with you Greg…I first heard Johnny when I was 17 (55 now) and it blew me away, so to say…he is probably one one the main reasons I wanted to learn guitar. I remember thinking at the time, how can one guy play so many notes in such a short period of time, and still make it sound so shit hot...

  • @MrPnew1 Awesome! Yes, Johnny's one of the best!!!! God blessed him (and his brother Edgar) with major talent =)

  • Nobody really came close to this guy in either style or passion!!

  • There musta been a crater left on that stage after he left...!! Johnny is undeniably the BEST!

  • There musta been a crater left on that stage after he left...!! Johnny is undeniably the BEST!

  • Johnny is one of the most under-rated rock/blues guitarist of all time. Damn shame too. Of course his true fans knew JW was a genius, a prodigy on guitar. Damn few of the so-called greats can hold a candle to him!!

  • Very, very!!!

  • Saw slideplayer Eric Sardinas this week in San Francisco. Nearly got my ass kicked by some drunk ES fans because of my Johnny Winter Tshirt.... Still think Johnny is nr 1, sorry Eric. Enjoyed the show though.

  • Only a true master can make something that difficult look that easy.

  • Freakin Awesome

  • Amazing guitar playing, really... :)

  • Simply jaw-dropping. Johnny drives his drummer hard as he rips out some awesome blues. Thanks for posting.

  • Mad skills. It doesn't hurt that he has tentacles for fingers.

  • @briangpz Boney Moronie fingers

  • He looks bad ass with the Firebird. Much better looking than the Laser, sounds better too. But I have to say, I'm partial to the old Fender single coil sound. A good example is the 1970 version of Honky Tonk Woman by Ike and Tina Turner.

  • He still got the Blues!

  • Best blues guitarist ever, period!!!

  • @unclelight13 I'd have a hard time arguing with you there man. I mean, how ironic is it the man's white as a sheet and named WINTER and plays and sings like that! A gift from God if there ever was one!

  • @unclelight13 no man

  • @unclelight13 you nuts son? doesn't really compare to jimi or stevie ray vaughn , sure he is a great player but he isn't the best

  • @benbasketballgtar Obviously you know nothing about blues musicians!

  • @benbasketballgtar There is only one who could come close. I have watched both play the same venue together and seperate. If S.R.V. was alive he would tell you quick! J.W. and Jimi Hendrix are the 2 all time best that have ever lived! Maybe some day another will come along? No one I know own's it like J.W. period. If you know any guitar player who spend's less time in one spot on the neck of his instrument let me know! S.R.V. was good Son but he wasnt the one. Frank Zappa & Jimi said he was #1!

  • @mamasboy815 Give Rory Gallagher, Roy Buchanan and Kenny Wayne Shepherd a listen.

  • @eraffel Roy B. was a close friend. Kenny W. is up and coming and Rory kicks ass! None are close as far as that God given understanding of whatever it is that J.W. and Jimi possess? It is what it is though. Jiki said I wish I could get as blue as J.W. !

  • @mamasboy815 That's all well and good, and I hear your passion. But.....and this is a Big But....When asked what it's like to be the best, Jimi Hendrix replied "I don't know, go ask Rory Gallagher."

  • @eraffel A very humble man Hendrix was. He had this thing? Let me see if I can explain it. His guitar was only a part of the genius.If you listen to his lyrics you can see that . The guy was born into a tragic life but somehow it was made less tragic through this whatever it is? J.W. as far as it goes is a master of every guitar that is known! Listen to him on the international steel, the hardest to play. He dont miss a lick. He is, I have no doubt the best blues man outheir? Maybe I'me wrong?

  • thank you so much for sharing this video...who is the drummer?

  • Tom Compton

  • hell yeah!!!

  • I was at Cobo Hall in Detroit in about 1976. Peter Frampton opened for Winter. We were astonded at how good Frampton sounded. This was before the release of his Frampton Live thing. A real eye opener. Then Winter came out. He was using a new Erliwine guitar, or whatever it was. Then he switched to slide and went with the Firebird. Some girl behind me got very excited and stated, "Look Kevin, he's got the Majic guitar!" I cracked up. But, hell, she was right.

  • @teden20 wow what a great memory... i was often at the monteal forum back in the day, once actually saw johnny open for stevie... can't remember the year, 86 i think, maybe 85....

  • johnny winter rules

  • I saw JW live here in Denver a few years ago, and it was outstanding!!! He was very frail, looked to be in poor health, and appeared to be blind or nearly so, but goddamn could he play guitar!

  • I think he looks like that since he was born

  • Johnny Winter doing Dylan Live - Highway 61 is really boss.

  • Rock and Roll at its BEST!

  • you're gonna hate me for this, but i wish they put this on rockband, that would kick ass

  • Comment removed

  • johnny winter jest wielki-szkoda ze tak mało jest materiałów o nim-dzieki MEAN GUITARIS za ten film - thanks-i`m from poland

  • Man, this is the first time I've ever heard any Johnny Winter, it's fucking badd ass. Can anyone recommend me some other good stuff?

  • I really like "Still alive and well" from 1973 and two awesome albums from the 90:s called "Hey, where´s your Brother" and "Let me in".

  • yes anything johnny makes is badd ass. doesn't matter what you buy it is all fn great.captured live should fill your jones.enjoy.johnny winter is the greatest blues man in the whole fn world.always has been and always will be. greg cornett...!!!!

  • @samdathi Mean town blues from album "Progressive blues experiment" released in 1969. As a matter of fact I recommend you to listen to the whole album...many great songs...

  • @samdathi I highly recommend "Johnny Winter And Live" 1973, recorded in Florida. The band hated this recording as they all went straight to rehab after it was 'in the can'. But, here is the strangest thing...it is the best live recorded guitar music that has ever been produced. It WILL rip your head off. At the time, the junk was just right, and the band played like a Nazi bitch being chased straight into hell. I have never heard anything better.

  • It was recorded in 1970 and released on March 5, 1971. They toured from '70 - '71 and then Johnny went into rehab, Rick Derringer went to Edgar's group and that was the end of the AND band. It is a killer album, but check out the licks on Johnny's "Captured Live" album from 1976. I think he and Floyd Radford surpassed even the AND band in the amazing leads department!

  • I agree, Bopalena! Well said!

  • You rigth about it!

  • @Bopalena "Johnny Winter And" is a killer album. The original studio version was recorded in a single day. That makes many of my days seem kind of non-productive.

  • @SoberGeorge Damn, I never knew that album was done in one day! Johnny has said it's his least favorite album of his, but artists are usually a lot more critical of their own work than the general public. I happen to love that album as I do everything he's recorded since his first record "Schoolday Blues" in 1959. Johnny's the BEST!!!

  • @Bopalena Fucking Captured Live is the most mindblowing thing I have ever heard in my life. The "Sweet Papa John" solo alone is worth ten times the price of the record. AND is good, because it's Johnny, but Captured is in a world unto itself. LONG MAY JOHNNY REIGN!

  • @Bopalena JOHNNY WINTER IS THE GREATEST BLUES MAN IN THE WHOLE FN WORLD.THIS IS A PERFECTLY DONE SONG.BADDEST MF IN THE WORLD.GOT TO SEE HIM 9TIMES IN THE LAST 3 YEARS AND GOING BACK FOR MORE.BLUES FOREVER!!!!!

  • @gregoryc4 - I saw and hung out with him last month and he kicked ass like nobody's business and I saw Edgar play on Saturday night and he was equally as awesome! They're still beyond awesome and show no signs of slowing down. Those boys don't just play music. They play SUPERDUPER MUSIC OF THE GODS THAT KICKS THE ASS AND CARESSES THE SOUL!!! There's no such thing as too much Winter!!!

  • the best slide player and blues player ever!!

  • DAMMMMMMMMMMMM RIGHT...!!!!

  • next to Duane Allman maybee yes

  • What a magnificent guitarist. One of the all-time greats.

  • yes he deservse more credit i've been there since the 70's and he still gets it

  • Winters is arguably the best living blues axeman.Certainly there are very few even in his league.Slammin band,here,too!

  • Sweet! Nothing better than that Firebird in Johnny's hands! He has done so much for the Blues and has inspired so many musicians. Saw him not long ago at Toads in CT and at B. B. Kings in NYC with Edgar. Also at B. B. Kings again for the Hendrix Birthday special with Buddy Miles. Was honored to see him back in '93 in CT again in some small club with Edgar & Rick Derringer - WOW! Amazing! Have been doing his tunes with many of my bands for years, since the 70s - He deserves more credit!

  • There goes one badass mofo, two in fact *bows*

  • Just about anybody can enjoy Johnny Winter play all night -- he never runs out of licks!!

  • I could watch Johnny all night!

  • Terrific. Jeff Ganz is excellent as well

  • Amazing bassplayer...