Religion...well, I know many very secular people who are more religious than the most fanatical religious people you can think of. There are extremes in everything. Now music? It's not a bad thing to be "religious" about. Make it a routine...something you dedicate yourself to. It is a gift that touches mankind deeply and always will. I'm not an atheist due to the fact that it's difficult for me to believe that we accidentally have the ability to contemplate what this is all about (life that is;-)
When I really got serious about guitar was when I heard Clapton with Cream for the first time. My mother and some girls from her office took me to see Jimi Hendrix at the Filmore in San Francisco. How many kids can say their mom did THAT for them?

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I love blues, fusion, jazz, even classical.
If I had to make up a list?
Clapton
Hendrix
Robben Ford
Larry Carlton
Steve Lukather
Jay Graydon
Herb Ellis
Joe Pass
Vince Gill
Bonnie Raitt
Lowell George
Duane Allman
Wes Montgomery
Joe Walsh
Don Felder
Sonny Landreth
Derek Trucks
John Mayer
Don Neary (great old jazz player/teacher)
See what happens? It's endless...I've heard too may people I really like.