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And to be fair, it is supposed to be an "all time" list - which to me implies that anyone on it has to have made music that's been around for a while and is still influencing people and considered worthwhile.
For the same reason, most "All Time Great Movies" lists don't usually have many (or any) recent films in them. "Of all time" implies a classic, and that implies an element of timeless value and appeal, which can only be assessed after a certain amount of time has passed.
The worlds of art, music, film, etc., are littered with the cast-off remains of stuff that was briefly considered OMG AWESOME for a month, year, or decade and then faded into obscurity. Somebody could release what looks to us like another "Citizen Kane" tomorrow, but it won't be a classic unless it's still regarded that way 50+ years from now.
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Well put...
Also to be considered is influence and change: Did the artist (in any art form) have a lasting influence not only to others in their time but also to those following long after; and, did they cause a change or shift in how the art form was viewed and/or practiced long after they are gone? Consider someone like Beethoven: after the first performance of the 3rd Symphony (Eroica) Haydn was said to have commented "Everything is different from today." And it was. Beethoven radically changed everything in classical music that came afterward as few people have in history. There are guitarists on the Top 10/Top 100 lists who, as contemporaries of Hendrix had their styles, technique and compositions altered after seeing Hendrix play, live or on film/video or hearing his music. There is a reason people like Clapton, Townsend, Santana, Vaughn, etc., all cite the affect Hendrix had on their playing and the way they viewed the guitar. Forty years plus on and Hendrix still is an awesome influence on guitarists in particular and music in general...
There was an interview I once read in, I believe, Guitar Player Magazine, where the interviewer held a dual interview with Yngvie Malmsteen and John McLaughlin in the same room. Malmsteen was very arrogant and quite dismissive of Lauhglin, whom he apparently never met and knew little of his reputation as a guitarist. Every time the interviewer would try to move the conversation away form Malmsteen, Yngvie would cut him short. Malmsteen would also interrupt Laughlin in the middle of Laughlin's responses to questions. The interviewer eventually seemed to grow tired of Malmsteen and decided to ask Laughlin "What was it like to play and collaborate with Jimi hendrix?" Malmsteen did a 180 degree turn that must have caused him severe wind burn. "Oh man, you really paled with Hendrix? I'm so sorry, I had no idea...". Suddenly, Yngvie was all apologies to Laughlin and almost bowing down to him for the rest of the interview. Malmsteen may be able to play a gazillion notes a second and may possibly be a better technical technical player than either Laughlin or even Hendrix, but even an arrogant, self-centered/serving shredder like Malmsteen recognizes the genius of someone who will continue to be a benchmark long after Yngvie's work is in the dustbins of musical history...