Women often enjoy less recognition than men. When music magazines make their lists of the best artists, the presence of women tends to be considerably smaller. If you talk about guitarists, it’s much lower, and not because there aren’t many as there are and very talented.
In the history of music, many women guitarists have left their mark and have made great contributions. We look at the 10 Amazing Female Guitarist In the History Of Rock n’ Roll:
Joan Jett
Joan Jett is one of the most popular guitarists. She is a singer and songwriter and has even developed as an actress. She is the leader of the band Blackhearts, and thanks to the success of “I Love Rock N’ Roll” Joan Jett gained international fame and became one of the great female references in rock history.
Jennifer Batten
Jennifer Batten for many years the guitarist for Michael Jackson. At the age of 30, she was selected out of 100 people to be part of the Bad World Tour with Michael Jackson. Although since she was 8 years old she played the guitar, but it was from that moment that she rose to fame and became one of the most recognized and talented guitarists of all time.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Sister Rosetta was a huge influence on Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, and Elvis Presley. Born in 1915, her moment of greatest musical splendor was in the 1930s. A powerful combination of her voice and undoubted talent on the guitar highlights the importance of her influence on rock and roll. Anyone who likes gospel, blues, and folk should listen to Sister Rosetta.
Orianthi
Orianthi is one of the most recognized guitarists today. She is considered a guitar virtuoso, and at 37 years old she has made history collaborating with Alice Cooper and Michael Jackson. Although she already had a consolidated career, she rose to world fame when Jackson chose her to participate in his “This Is It tour,” which, although it did not materialize, positioned Orianthi in everyone’s sights for her extraordinary talent. Listening to a solo of hers is enough to understand the reason for her fame.
Memphis Minnie
Memphis Minnie is one of the first female guitarists in history. Simply the course of music would not be the same without the presence of Memphis Minnie. She was born in 1897 and between 1940 and 1950 her fame had grown throughout the United States as a great performer and mistress of the stage. She is without a doubt one of the most influential blues artists.
PJ Harvey
PJ Harvey had a huge influence on the music scene of the 80s and 90s. She is said to be one of the great creative minds in the music industry and has been an influence and inspiration for bands like U2. Three of her albums appear on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Beverly Watkins
Beverly Watkins is a blues legend. She died on October 1, 2019, at 80 years old and, thanks to the Internet, her career has come to the fore again to obtain the deserved recognition. Beverly Watkins worked with B.B King, James Brown, and Ray Charles. Fortunately today you can still enjoy their music. In 1999 she released a CD to relaunch her career.
Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt is known for her great Slide technique, it didn’t take long for Raitt to receive an offer from Warner to launch her career as a guitarist. Throughout her long career that began in the 70s, Bonnie has managed to stay afloat despite all the changes that the industry has undergone, and has obtained recognition from the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame.
Nancy Wilson
There are few guitarists like Nancy Wilson of the group Heart. Her personality, her energy, and the incredible compositional detail of her guitar pieces have made songs like “Crazy On You” leave an indelible mark on the history of modern guitar music.
Elizabeth Cotten
Thanks to Elizabeth Cotten there is the technique to play guitar in the “cotten picking” way. She was born in 1895 and died in 1987, and was a great folk and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In 1984, she won a Grammy Award for her album Elizabeth Cotten Live. Her peculiar technique is due to the fact that she started playing the right-handed bass being left-handed, so she used her thumb for the melodies and the bass with the other fingers.