10 Greatest Hard Rock Guitarists Of The '70s

10. James Young - Styx

Styx have had a bit of a complicated relationship in the rock sphere to say the least. While their core fanbase never abandoned them across over 4 decades, there has been just as much rancor thrown at Tommy Shaw and Dennis DeYoung for the grating songwriting and almost manufactured sensibilities. Even though there were plenty of cheap shots made, did y'all just forget about J.Y. Young?

No matter which era of the band you come across, Young's guitar lines are some of the hardest sonic forces in the entire mix. Whether it's going through the pop hits like Come Sail Away or something like Blue Collar Man, Young is always the glue that holds everything together, with just the right mix of Zeppelin like blues and just the slightest dash of prog rock to make everything go down nicely.

Take something like Renegade for example. Yeah, the actual story of a runaway may sound pretty generic by rock standards...and then the track gives way to a solo that will leave you dumbfounded after you hear it. In addition to being a masterful guitarist, Young's touch behind the mic and in songwriting has given every Styx album a proper edge. Despite a lot of Styx albums having more than a lot of cheese on display, J.Y. is the one aspect of the music that has aged gracefully over the years.