10 Greatest Blues Rock Guitarists

10. Mike Bloomfield

Mike Bloomfield is probably an unfamiliar name for most fairweather fans of blues rock. Regardless, Bloomfield has earned his place among the rock greats for his incredible blues touch as well as his track record as a top tier session guitarist.

Bloomfield got his start in the blues act the Paul Butterfield Band, where he delivered performances that schooled every British Invasion guitarist as to how the blues was truly played. From there, he branched out into the modern rock revolution, where he ended up working with wordsmith extraordinaire Bob Dylan on his monumental album Highway 61 Revisited. Along the way, Bloomfield also contributed his guitar work to projects by blues belter Janis Joplin.

One of Bloomfield's biggest trademarks was more in restraint than flashiness. Rather than incorporate raucous techniques like feedback and distortion, Bloomfield played to serve the song with the right amount of flair and finesse. As the 60's signaled the dawn of the rock revolution, Mike Bloomfield's guitar work stands as the perfect balance between the blues expertise of Robert Johnson and the modern excitement of Chuck Berry. By never overplaying, Mike Bloomfield's guitar breaks have become essential parts of every song he's featured on.