I started playing guitar in my early teens, and my first "guitar hero" was Ralph McTell. I finally managed a self-taught approximation of his playing technique, although I still can't get all the nuances of his playing, more than 40 years later.
Then, a friend got me into the early Jackson Browne albums, and I loved the playing of his accompanist, David Lindley. What little soloing I do, is very heavily influenced by those early records.