David Howell Evans (born 8 August 1961), more widely known by his nickname and stage name The Edge (or simply just Edge), is an Irish (Irish people) musician known best as the guitarist, keyboardist, and main backing vocalist for the Irish (Republic of Ireland) rock band U2. His distinctive electric guitar timbre and percussive (percussion) style of playing, along with his use of digital sound processing ? delay (delay (audio effect)) in particular ? has been crucial in defining U2s unique sound. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine named him at #24 on its list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".