Rock Musicians

One of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century, Jimi Hendrix began playing guitar at the age of 15. As his career progressed, he became the first musician to use stereophonic phasing effects in recordings. Rolling Stone ranked him as the greatest guitarist and the sixth greatest artist of all time. He died under mysterious circumstances at the age of 27.

English musician, singer, and songwriter, Ringo Starr, gained international fame as the drummer for the rock band, the Beatles. Raised by a single mother, he had a difficult childhood. He sought solace in music and it became his vocation. After finding success with the Beatles, he embarked on a solo career as well.

Eddie Van Halen was an American songwriter and guitarist. The co-founder of the popular rock band Van Halen, Eddie is widely considered one of the greatest guitar players in the history of rock music. He is credited with popularizing the tapping technique, which is now used extensively by guitarists all over the world.

Keith Richards is a musician and songwriter. He is credited with co-founding one of the most popular rock bands ever, The Rolling Stones. Also a guitarist, he was ranked fourth on Rolling Stone magazine's 100 best guitarists list in 2011. Richards' look and characterization inspired the character of Captain Teague who appears in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series.

Along with his identical twin brother, Joel Madden, Benji Madden has been one of the greatest musical duos as far as twin siblings are concerned. A huge fan of tattoos, Benji Madden has several tattoos, including one of Benjamin Franklin, which is so big that it covers his entire back!

Brian Jones was an English musician credited with founding the world-renowned rock band, The Rolling Stones. He was also considered the original leader of the band before his fellow band members, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, took over the musical direction of the band. Jones became the first member of the infamous 27 Club, when he died at age 27.

Grammy-winning English singer Damon Albarn has previously been part of two major bands, Blur and Gorillaz, as their lead vocalist and primary songwriter. He has also performed as part of the supergroup The Good, the Bad & the Queen. His solo album Everyday Robots was nominated for a Mercury Award.

Guitarist Carlos Santana rose to fame in the late 1960s and 1970s with his rock band Santana. He introduced elements of Latin American jazz in his rock music to create unique songs. He is the recipient of ten Grammy Awards and three Latin Grammy Awards. Rolling Stone magazine listed him on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists in 2015.

Ronnie Wood is a musician and songwriter. Over the years, Wood has been an important member of popular rock bands like the Rolling Stones, Jeff Beck Group, and Faces. He is one of the few musicians to be inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. A cancer survivor, Wood serves as an inspiration to those fighting cancer.

English drummer, Charlie Watts, was best known as a member of the band Rolling Stones. He was associated with the group for almost 60 years. He began his career as a graphic designer for an advertising company and played with bands in his leisure time. He eventually started drumming full time with Rolling Stones.

Todd Rundgren is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is credited with forming popular rock bands, such as Utopia and Nazz. Regarded as a pioneer in the fields of progressive rock, electronic music, Internet music delivery, and music videos, Todd Rundgren's works, such as A Wizard, a True Star remain influential in the world of music.

Neil Peart was a Canadian songwriter, author, and musician. Best known as the drummer of the popular rock band Rush, Peart was nicknamed The Professor for his technical proficiency. In 1983, Neil Peart became the youngest person ever to be inducted into the Modern Drummer publication's Readers Poll Hall of Fame.

Known as one of the greatest musicians from the British Isles, Irish singer Gary Moore rocked the music scene since the 1960s. Known as part of rock bands such as Skid Row and Thin Lizzy, he gained fame as a fine guitarist who experimented with blues, rock, heavy metal, and jazz.

Donovan is a Scottish guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known for developing and popularizing a distinctive and eclectic style that blended many genres, such as folk, jazz, pop, calypso, and psychedelic rock. Donovan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, in 2012 and 2014, respectively.

Ace Frehley is an American songwriter and musician. He is credited with co-founding the rock band Kiss, for which he served as the original lead guitarist. Renowned for his aggressive guitar-playing style, Frehley was named in Guitar World magazine's Greatest Metal Guitarist of All Time list. He is also popular for playing guitars that emit smoke to create special effects.

Tinged with themes of female sexuality, the lyrics of PJ Harvey have redefined the place women occupy in rock music. While she was initially part of a musical trio named after herself, she later charted her own path as a solo musician. She is only artist to have earned the Mercury Prize twice.

Richard Wright was an English musician. He is credited with co-founding the popular band ,Pink Floyd, for which he also served as a vocalist and keyboardist. Wright contributed immensely to the success of Pink Floyd and his distinctive keyboard playing was a key component of the music produced by the band.

Pete Doherty is an English musician, artist, actor, writer, and songwriter. He is credited with forming the popular rock band, The Libertines, for which he also serves as the co-frontman. Pete Doherty has been struggling with drug addiction for many years now. He has also been arrested on several occasions for offences arising from drug use.

Billy Preston was an American musician and top session keyboardist who worked with popular artists like Ray Charles, Reverend James Cleveland, Sam Cooke, and the Beatles. A two-time Grammy Award winner, Preston struggled throughout his life with his sexual orientation. He chose not to come out as gay until before his death, due to his religious beliefs.

Greek composer Vangelis is one of the finest and most versatile figures in electronic music. He soared to international fame with his Academy Award-winning soundtrack of the film Chariots of Fire. Starting to learn the piano at age 3, he later experimented with jazz and rock-n-roll.

David Howell Evans, better known as The Edge, is a musician and songwriter. He first gained fame as the keyboardist, lead guitarist, and backing vocalist of the rock band U2. He is known for his signature style of guitar playing. Besides music, he is an advocate for human rights and is involved in numerous philanthropic endeavors. 

One of the most popular rock keyboardists of the progressive rock genre, Rick Wakeman soared to fame as part of the band Yes and later had an equally successful solo career. He had ditched his initial dream of becoming a pianist to start his career as a session musician.