Left-handed people are generally believed to be more creative and that may be true with guitarists. Even when left-handed guitars hardly ever come by, lovers of the instrument who are left-handed have always found their unique way around the guitar to play one designed for right-handed players even better.
Today, we are taking a look at some of the greatest left-handed guitarists that have ever lived. You may not even know that some of the guitar players that you have come to love are left-handed.
Greatest Let-handed Guitarists Ever
1. Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall “Jimi” Hendrix tops this list as he is considered to be the greatest guitarist of all time and among the most influential artists ever.
A Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, he started playing the guitar when he was only 15 and would go on to be the first guitarist to make extensive use of tone-altering effects units in mainstream rock.
When Hendrix started playing the guitar, there was nothing that would suit his left hand and he was not willing to learn to play the instrument with his right hand. Because of this, he flipped the guitar and played the instrument left-handed.
2. Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain is the founder of the American rock band, Nirvana. He is one of the most recognized left-handed guitarists ever. Coming from a musically inclined family, he got his first guitar as a birthday gift from his uncle when he was 14.
Kurt was introduced to punk rock by Buzz Osborne who was his classmate. He would go on to be considered to have one of the most iconic guitar tones in the history of the electric guitar.
3. Tony Iommi
Tony Iommi may be among the greatest left-handed guitarists ever, but his first love was drumming. He realized that the drum was too loud and instead, he decided to go with the guitar.
The Godfather of heavy metal guitar, the Black Sabbath man was involved in a carpentry accident that caused him some of the fingertips of his right hand, he was told that it was it for him as he wasn’t going to play again.
Rather than giving up, he chose to do, he chose to detune his SG three semitones and the result was one of the most amazing guitar tones in history.
4. Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney plays bass guitar hardly like anyone else. The Beatles musician was the son of a trumpet player and pianist. He was gifted a trumpet by his father for his 14th birthday. He sold the instrument in exchange for an acoustic guitar.
Initially, he wanted to play the instrument with his right hand but he found it rather difficult, he realized that Slim Whiteman played the guitar with his left hand, and so he also decided to follow suit.
5. Tim Armstrong
Tim Armstrong is another of the well-respected and greatest left-handed guitarists ever. With a powerful voice and distinct guitar skills, the punk rock musician also plays ska/reggae style upstrokes music.
6. Elizabeth Cotton
The first woman on our list is Elizabeth Cotton, an American folk and blues musician. She was born into a musical family and was already playing sings by the time she was 8 and she wrote music playing her brother’s banjo before she transferred her songs to the guitar.
A left-handed player, she was forced to, like others, learn to play the right-handed guitar by turning the instrument upside down. The product of her style would later be known as Cotton Picking.
7. Jimmy Cliff
Jamaican musician, Jimmy Cliff, is a multi-instrumentalist who is respected even more for his guitar-playing skills. A Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae, and soul musician, he was awarded the Order of Merit, Jamaica’s highest honor.
8. Albert King
Albert King is recognized for his album, Born Under a Bad Sign, which is considered to be one of the greatest blues albums that was ever made, he is even better recognized for his amazing skills with the guitar. The man is considered one of the most influential blues guitarists ever.
The 1983 Blues Hall of Famer and 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Famer was raised by a father who also played the guitar, although his father walked out on the family when the singer was only 5. The first guitar he ever owned was the one he constructed using a cigar box and a strand of broom.
9. Barbara Lynn
You’ll Lose a Good Thing hitmaker, Barbara Lynn grew up singing in the choir like many other great musicians. The talented rhythm and blues and electric blues singer started out playing the piano as a child, but she later found true love in the guitar. She plays the instrument with the use of a thumbpick.
10. Paul Gray
The Pig’s place as one of the greatest left-handed guitarists cannot be debated. The heavy metal musician, better known for Slipknot, is better recognized as a bassist. He started out playing the guitar before he switched instruments.
