- Features
With 2023 drawing to its inevitable conclusion, it’s about time we reflect on what has been a pretty stellar 12 months of guitar playing, and tip our hats to some of the players that made our world such a joy this year.
We’re talking about the game-changers, taste-makers and trend-setters of the electric guitar world – those who went above and beyond both on the fretboard and off it – delivering defining guitar music and reaching all-new heights, and whose achievements we’ll be talking about for years to come.
Without further ado, here the 2023 guitarists of the year…
Nuno Bettencourt
In April of this year, an always gunslinging, Washburn N4-brandishing, unapologetically candid Nuno Bettencourt told Guitar World, “As I was doing the album [2023’s Six], I was re-inspired to kind of go for blood again. I basically said, ‘I want to bring guitar playing back,’” before adding, “I just wanted to make [guitar] fun again.” Well, as we round out the year, it’s safe to say that Nuno clearly understood his self-imposed assignment.
Since late 2020, we’ve suffered from a lack of Edward Van Halen. Then our despair grew deeper when we lost Jeff Beck at the start of 2023. But with a flick of his magic wand and no warning, Nuno stood in the shadows alongside Rihanna during the halftime show for Super Bowl LVII. Then and there, Nuno had us; we were transfixed, thinking, “Was that Nuno Bettencourt?” before saying, “OK, yes, it was. But what now?”
Turns out that beneath piles of 15-years-in-the-making fairy dust was Rise, featuring a God-like solo that transported us back to Nuno’s 1992 MVP year, aka the year of his last Guitar World cover (until his August 2023 cover, that is). How about that?
Sure, back when Nuno was 26, it was obvious that he’d not only be on a GW cover but be crowned the MVP. But entering 2023, especially seeing as Extreme hadn’t been heard from in 15 years, Bettencourt was mostly thought of as just another guitarist within screaming distance of 60. We guess Nuno didn’t get the memo, as he curb-stomped his way through 2023 with the same balls-to-the-wall guts that made him famous back when More Than Words was a thing.
And so, is Nuno still the MVP? Absolutely. Has he inherited the throne from EVH? Probably. And yes, Nuno did bring guitar back to the forefront. But Nuno isn’t just an MVP or the heir to the throne; he’s a no-brainer as a 2023 GOTY.
Wolfgang Van Halen
After debuting on our GOTY list and the January 2023 cover of Guitar World, Wolfgang Van Halen reclaims a top spot with the release of his second Mammoth WVH album
