The Greatest Guitarists Of All Time, Ranked

Published on February 5, 2020 By Mathew Cohen

31. Duane Allman

One of the greatest ever slide guitarists, Allman’s decision to enter into music came when he and his brother Gregg saw B.B. King perform at a rhythm and blues concert. This led to the brothers forming the bands, Allman Joys and Hour Glass, before Duane decided to work as a session musician. It was during his work on Wilson Pickett’s album, Hey Jude, that Allman’s great potential started to be realized. Eric Clapton, in particular, was taken aback by Allman’s lead break at the end of the track “Hey Jude”.

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Upon the formation of the Allman Brothers Band, Allman’s career reached new heights. Not only did he achieve commercial success at the release of the album, At Fillmore East, but his improvisational skills and slide guitar playing would go down in history.