My 30 Favorite Guitarists of All Time — Pick 28
Welcome back to another installment in my ongoing series on my 30 Favorite Guitarists of All Time! Today’s pick is bending the rules a bit, as it’s actually two guitarists whose work together in the same band goes hand in hand with each other. Despite going in different directions in more recent years, these two are both primarily known for their work in said band with one of them having remained a member since its founding — so without further ado:
Number 28 on the list is a spot shared by guitarists Brad Gillis and Jeff Watson, best known for their work in Night Ranger! You may know Night Ranger from their power ballad smash hit Sister Christian, or even their sappy teenage love ballad When You Close Your Eyes. Don’t worry though, I didn’t just put two pop guitarists on this list! Despite Night Ranger’s best-known songs, these two (and most of the guys in the band) are heavy rockers at heart! Any further listen to the band’s early discography reveals that these two are exceptional riff writers, soloists, and have some of the best guitar tones ever dialed in. With Night Ranger having a twin-lead guitar lineup similar to bands across the Atlantic such as Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy, and Iron Maiden, Brad and Jeff have remained renowned in the heavy guitar community; Brad even had a short stint playing with Ozzy Osbourne!
Like the twin-lead guitar bands mentioned above, Brad & Jeff have always been equals when it comes to technical ability on guitar — and with both being from California, they had the chops to slug it out with all the hot shots on the burgeoning late 70s-early 80s L.A. heavy metal/glam metal scene. Although being from the northern half of the state, their playing styles are more in line with other NorCal guitarists from that era such as Ronnie Montrose and Neal Schon. Both also have very distinct playing styles from one another — with Brad opting for excessive but tasteful and melodic use of the whammy bar and harmonics, and Jeff going for a more technical approach along with being possibly the first guitarist to garner attention with an 8-finger tapping technique.
Favorite Album
It’s uncommon for any rock band to establish their sound and knock it out of the park with their first album. However, Night Ranger is among those that did! Dawn Patrol is one of, if not my all-time favorite album of the 80s — and what I consider a perfect album. There’s no weak songs on here, and it has what’s probably my favorite guitar tone on any album.
This album proves my point that these guitarists can write some riffs! One listen to songs like Sing Me Away, Penny, and Night Ranger and I guarantee you won’t forget them! As for lead guitar, the duo delivers here even more. They shine on individual spots like At Night She Sleeps for Brad and Can’t Find Me a Thrill for Jeff — but the duo aspect is really grounded on songs where the two share and/or trade off with soloing, such as the two miming each other then harmonizing at the end of Eddie’s Comin’ Out Tonight and the two dueling during the solo of the aforementioned Night Ranger.
Favorite Solo
It was quite tough trying not to bring this song up in the above section, because I consider Dawn Patrol’s opener as the best song on the album — and the song with its best solo. This solo works perfectly here as it’s split into two halves with each guitarist taking a half of his own; Brad Gillis takes the first half and Jeff Watson takes the second. For both guitarists, I consider their solos here to be their most memorable and definitely best to play if you can!
