...if you disagree.
Case:
- Not hair metal
- A lot of really solid and accessible tunes for a guitar-heavy record
- Some fairly bizarre and psychedelic undertones
- Incredible performances from the musicians (Vai, Bissonette, Sheehan)
- Solid production values
- Vai is more restrained on this one, but still has tons of great guitar stuff happening
Standout's: Skyscraper, Hina, Damn Good (my favorite).
The next best guitar record from that era:
Oh yeah, maybe this one is actually the best! I forgot when it was released.
Hundreds of great guitar albums. VH Mean Street. All Journey Stuff. Gary Moore's wild frontier. And for the more fusion minded:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Fatigue_(album)
RIP, Mr. Holdsworth!
Here it is on YouTube. https://youtu.be/g_TxIBJ7T0M
Guy Mann-Dude - Sleight Of Hand
.
Avoiding hair metal and in no particular order:
Sonic Youth - Evol, Sister, Daydream Nation
Dinosaur Jr - You're Living All Over Me
Opal - Happy Nightmare Baby
Fushitsusha - Live 1st
Frank Zappa - Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar
James Blood Ulmer - Odyssey
Pixies - Doolittle
Motorhead - Ace of Spades
SRV - almost all of his albums were in the 80s
The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy
ZZ Top - Eliminator
Big Black - Songs About Fucking
Galaxie 500 - Today, On Fire
Richard Hell and the Voidoids - Destiny Street
Spacemen 3 - Sound of Confusion, The Perfect Prescription, Playing With Fire
Sonny Sharrock - Guitar
An interesting question would be, what is the best 80s guitar-nerd record, and best 80s massmarket record with guitar?
Whenever I hear David Lee Roth now, all I can think about is that line he had in the Sopranos:
"I used to be able to write off condoms on my taxes."
(https://cdn.tvweb.com/img.news/NEJx5GWzuajyNJ_1_5.jpg)
Dubnobasswithmyheadman.
Mmm Skyscraper, I love you.