10 Greatest Rhythm Guitarists In Rock Music History

For all of the classics that the Who put out during their heyday, it's amazing to see them fly off the rails with Keith Moon in the back. Even though the drummer is known as the guy who keeps time, Keith was known for going off the handle whenever the song called for it, always throwing in little fills that never made sense until you heard them in the context of the song. Moon the Loon may have been behind the kit, but the one responsible with keeping time in the band was Pete Townshend more often than not.

While Pete has a few lead guitar breaks up his sleeve, his strong suit has always been what he was capable of as the one guitar player in the band, using his role to fill out chords on songs like Won't Get Fooled Again or creating those long sustained riffs that made the entire audience scream on Baba O'Riley. Since he only had the basic chords to work with, some of his best moments are what he's able to get out of his rhythmic style, like the strumming fanfare of Pinball Wizard practically being a hook all by itself.

Along with being the rhythmic foundation, Pete was always the anchor behind the group as well, having a hand in writing every single classic that they made and always focusing on the bigger picture at hand. Rock and roll may have been about having fun at the best of times, but Pete Townshend was the one who understood what power you had when you had a handful of chords and the truth at your disposal.