Revisiting 4 of Jimi Hendrix’s Favorite Guitar Players

Jimi Hendrix is considered by many to be one of the greatest guitarists of the 20th century, and it’s hard to disagree with that sentiment. However, every guitar legend has their influences and inspirations; nobody is born a guitar god. Let’s look at four times Jimi Hendrix named his favorite guitar players!

1. B.B. King

One of Jimi Hendrix’s favorite guitar players was none other than blues legend B.B. King. But in all honesty, few guitarists who blew up around the time Hendrix did would not cite B.B. King as an influence. He was the G.O.A.T. of blues guitar until his death in 2015, and few have managed to match his sheer talent and creativity as an instrumentalist. 

Hendrix loved him and emulated him often, so much so that Little Richard once got angry with him for trying to “copy” B.B. King’s playing style in Richard’s band. A few songs from Hendrix that sound very King-esque include “Voodoo Chile” and “Hey Joe”.

2. Otis Rush

Otis Rush is still revered today, but he sadly didn’t get as much attention as his blues contemporaries during his heyday. Hendrix, though, recognized Rush’s incredible talent and was clearly influenced by him.

One could say Rush took traditional blues and helped modernize it, which paved the way for new genres like blues rock and rock and roll as a whole. Hendrix changed the way guitarists in his generation played the guitar, but Rush changed the way guitarists played the guitar in his own generation before Hendrix.

3. Eric Clapton

Some fans might be surprised to hear that Eric Clapton was actually Jimi Hendrix’s idol. When Hendrix moved to London, he caught Clapton’s attention (and the attention of everyone in London, basically) almost immediately. During one Cream concert, Clapton invited the guitar god on stage to kick off a jam session in front of a crowd in 1966. Naturally, Hendrix left them all in the dust with a killer cover of “Killing Floor” by Howlin’ Wolf.

“He [Hendrix] got up and blew everyone’s mind,” said Clapton. “I just thought, ‘Ahh, someone that plays the stuff I love in the flesh, on stage with me.’ I was actually privileged to be on stage with him.”

4. Muddy Waters

Any guitarist who came up in the 1960s revered the blues icon Muddy Waters, and Hendrix was no exception. Hendrix even said that Waters was one of the very first guitarists he heard play as a young child. Waters was a cultural icon and spearhead in many ways, and one can’t help but wonder if Hendrix would have been as big as he was without Waters’ post-war influence and talent.

Photo by Andre Csillag/Shutterstock

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