Heartbreaking tales of these fleeting stars
Prince was arguably the most talented multi-instrumentalist in music history. The accomplished musician could play guitar, bass guitar, piano, keyboards, synthesizer, clavinet, drums, percussion, saxophone, harmonica, and LinnDrum (drum machine).
Detroit-born singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens is known for his frequent use of the banjo. He also plays guitar, piano, drums, xylophone, vibraphone, and a variety of woodwind instruments, including the English horn.
John Entwistle is remembered as the bassist with the rock band The Who. The only member of the band with any formal music training, the "Ox," as he was affectionately nicknamed, played trumpet, French horn, bugle, keyboards, guitar, and harmonica.
English singer-songwriter PJ Harvey is proficient with an impressive range of musical instruments, including guitar, piano, trumpet, cello, autoharp, and saxophone.
Dave Grohl is one of the best drummers in the business, having first come to prominence with Nirvana. Now fronting Foo Fighters, Grohl is an equally skilled guitarist, pianist, and percussionist.
The lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, Trent Raznor is a celebrated multi-instrumentalist, comfortable on guitar, piano, mellotron, synthesizer, keyboards, bass, saxophone, cello, double bass, and drums.
Stevie Wonder is a virtual one-man band, although it is for keyboards and harmonica that he's especially known. But when called for, the Motown legend can turn his hand to drums, bass guitar, a range of percussion instruments, and the harpejji—an electric stringed musical instrument described as a cross between a piano and a guitar.
The manic and hyperactive Flea, founding member and bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, learned to play the trumpet as a kid. He still delights fans with the horn at concerts, and he's also pretty good on guitar and melodica, a handheld keyboard.
With his 1973 debut album 'Tubular Bells,' Mike Oldfield almost single-handedly pioneered the one artist recording, playing almost all the instruments. Primarily a guitarist, Oldfield's musicianship extends to keyboards, synthesizer, bagpipes, glockenspiel, mandolin, banjo, and, of course, tubular bells.
The Rolling Stones' lead rhythm guitarist played a wide variety of instruments on the the band's recordings, including sitar, recorder, and saxophone. He also guested on tracks by other bands, including as the saxophonist on the Beatles' 'You Know My Name (Look Up the Number).'
One of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music, Curtis Mayfield enhanced his funky sound with guitar, bass, piano, saxophone, and drums.
Philadelphia-born Todd Rundgren is known for his sophisticated and often unorthodox music, produced and recorded variously playing guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, or saxophone.
Sources: (Beatles Bible) (MusicTech) (Far Out Magazine) (Britannica)
See also: The greatest movie soundtracks ever
A gifted multi-instrumentalist, Paul McCartney is defined by his Hofner violin bass guitar. But even in his Beatles days, "Macca" played piano, lead guitar, and even the drums on some of the band's recordings. In all, McCartney is totally proficient with 54 musical instruments, and has recorded whole albums where he is the sole instrumentalist.
French composer and musician Jean-Michel Jarre is instantly associated with electronic, synth-led sound. Trained on the piano, Jarre is also a skilled guitarist and bass guitarist, and can play the difficult-to-master laser harp.
Steve Winwood is synonymous with classic '60's bands The Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, and Blind Faith. A natural on the keyboards, Winwood also plays guitar, bass, violin, and mandolin.
Pink Floyd's legendary guitarist is not often seen playing anything else, but Dave Gilmour is also skilled on the bass, keyboards, banjo, lap steel guitar, mandolin, harmonica, drums, and saxophone.
The consummate performer, David Bowie was another hugely gifted multi-instrumentalist. He used his skills on guitar, piano, mandolin, recorder, viola, cello, and the simple Stylophone (used to masterful effect on 'Space Oddity') to produce some of the most celebrated music of the modern age.
Beck David Hansen rose to fame out of Los Angeles in the early 1990s with a primarily experimental sound that utilized his skills as a multi-instrumentalist. He can play more than 12 musical instruments, including the guitar, drums, sitar, banjo, and glockenspiel.
One of music's most flamboyant and nonconformist characters, Frank Zappa once managed to forge a tune out of a bicycle. A self-taught musician and performer, Zappa was an accomplished guitarist and bass player, an excellent keyboards player, and was a dab hand on the Synclavier, and early synthesizer. He was also a useful percussionist.
As a member of a band that pioneered heavy metal and hard rock, Led Zeppelin bass guitarist and keyboardist John Paul Jones surprised many with his extra curricular music skills, namely with the mandolin, upright bass, cello, and lap steel guitar. And he's still playing these and more today.
One of country music's most famous faces, Dolly Parton is a gifted banjo player. But the singer-songwriter also pleases audiences with guitar, piano, autoharp, violin, saxophone, harmonica, and the delightfully named Appalachian dulcimer, a fretted string instrument of the zither family.
Sting has traveled a long way since his time with the Police. After the band split up in 1986, the bass player included elements of rock, jazz, reggae, classical, new age, and worldbeat in his music and by doing so extended his instrumentation. As well as various guitars, he plays piano, keyboards, mandolin, harmonica, saxophone, and pan-flute.
Ben Harper has been playing the guitar since he was a child. Fine-tuning his career, the Californian singer-songwriter became a virtuoso of the lap steel guitar. He also plays slide guitar, piano and keyboards, and—unusually—the vibraphone, an extension of his percussion skills.
André 3000's acclaimed 2003 video 'Hey Ya!' performed as a member of Outcast has him playing all the instruments, including bass guitar and drums. In fact, he's known for playing multiple instruments live, including keyboards, guitar, acoustic guitar, and tenor saxophone.
Nils Lofgren, a key member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and an occasional member of Neil Young's Crazy Horse, has put his multi-instrumental skills to good use over the years. Essentially an all-round guitarist, Lofgren is also totally at ease on the mandolin and the accordion.
Jonny Greenwood, the lead guitarist and keyboardist of English rock band Radiohead, also uses bass guitar, piano, viola, and drums to produce the group's distinctive sound. Interestingly, Greenwood has mastered the ondes Martenot, an early electronic musical instrument invented in 1928. He has used this on several occasions while recording the film scores he is also known for.
Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan began playing the ukulele at age four. She later studied classical guitar and classical piano, and these days numbers the harp and keyboards among the musical instruments she has mastered.
As a member of the Dixie Chicks, multi-instrumentalist Emily Strayer was known as Emily Robison. She has nailed the banjo, dobro, accordion, mandolin, sitar, and lap steel guitar, and can play the piano and violin. She's still a member of the band, today known as The Chicks.
One of the most influential music artists of the 21st century, Taylor Swift is a natural on the banjo. She can play guitar, too, and the ukulele, to fuse a country sound with a pop music vibe. And seated at the piano, her music takes on a whole new dimension.
Lenny Kravitz is familiar to many as a mean guitarist. But the New Yorker is also a standout pianist and keyboard player. What most people don't realize, however, is that Kravitz can also beat the hell out of drums.
Nailing one musical instrument is an effort for most, but how being able to play a dozen, and well enough to make you one of the world's top multi-instrumentalists? A fortunate few are able to to do just that, artists that are as comfortable on the guitar as they are on the piano or saxophone, and even a cello or violin. But who has the most impressive skills across a wide range of instruments, and what are they?
Click through and tune up with this list of some of music's greatest multi-instrumentalists.
Famous musicians who can play multiple instruments
These artists can play just about anything
MUSIC Musicians
Nailing one musical instrument is a challenge for most, but how about being able to play a dozen, and well enough to make you one of the world's top multi-instrumentalists? A fortunate few are able to do just that—artists who are as comfortable on the guitar as they are on the piano or saxophone, and even a cello or violin. But who has the most impressive skills across a wide range of instruments, and what are they?
Click through and tune up with this list of some of music's greatest multi-instrumentalists.