When I said satch was the greatest I know thats just my personal opinion and not everyones here.I do probably defend shredding guitarist more than I should but I myself am A big fan of it.I will be the first to admit that If i was any good at writing songs like neil young etc...I would probably slow down on the shredding.I get real defensive when I see someone make a statement that is so one sided and doesnt tell the whole perspective of it.Let me say that 1 million notes an hour all in 1 tempo isnt going to win any grammys but it is still an expresion of ones soul whether its self serving or not.Im not all about shred because my second favorite guitarist is neil young.To me guitar greats have to have something about their sound and technique that when i hear them it makes me want to drop whatever i am doing and get the "axe" out.Music is art, some people see picasso and say hes insane and some people love it, its all about personal preference.I will try harder not to say harsh things about other generations players.You are right this is not the 80s.
peace