Top 10 Underrated Hard Rock & Heavy Metal Guitarists

1. FRANK MARINO

Technically the greatest guitarist ever, in my humble opinion. Often maligned as simply being a Hendrix clone, nothing can be further from the truth. No one touches Marino when he starts letting fly ... which is often, whether live or on record.

2. TED NUGENT

Known more as a guitar showman, The Nuge's playing abilities are often slagged due to his humongous ego and political affiliations. However, strip away the peripherals and what you have is one of the greatest rock guitarists of all time.

3. TONY IOMMI

The undisputed champion of the world with respect to heavy metal riffs, however, his soloing is largely ignored. Shame.

4. ERIC SARDINAS

The man is the king of blues-rock slide guitar. His use of an electric resonator guitar gives him his unique sound.

5. STEVE JONES

Many belittle the technical prowess of punk bands, including the Sex Pistols guitarist. However, take a listen to the guitar work on Never Mind The Bullocks, as well as his Fire & Gasoline solo album, and stand corrected.

6. ASHMEDI

The Melechesh guitarist's use of Middle Eastern influences in his riffing is totally unique.

7. GARY JENNINGS

Second only to Iommi in the riff creation department, the Death Penalty/ex-Cathedral member's riffing and soloing are world class.

8. PAUL CHAPMAN

When it comes to accolades with respect to guitar work in UFO, the large majority point to Michael Schenker's contributions. However, if one were to check out the guitar work on the sadly underrated No Place To Run/ The Wild, The Willing And The Innocent/Mechanix troika you'll find some truly blistering, as well as tasteful, soloing from Chapman.

9. JOHN RICCI

When you want to understand the definition of OTT (over-the-top) guitar histrionics, look no further than the shredding provided by Exciter's guitarist.

10. DENIS "PIGGY" D'AMOUR

Otherworldly and discordant, Piggy made Voivod sound totally unique.