20 Greatest Guitar Solos Ever, With Videos

[Nick VR4]

20 Greatest Guitar Solos Ever, With Videos
Guitar World (http://www.guitarworld.com/) has complied a list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Solos (http://guitar.about.com/library/bl100greatest.htm)". Over the last few days the Howard Stern Show (http://www.howardstern.com/) has been playing clips from the list. We've found listening to these great classics a very moving experience, so we took it a step further and dug up a video link (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2007/01/100_greatest_gu.html#more) for each of the top 20! Listen and watch (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2007/01/100_greatest_gu.html#more) the musical genius and mastery that made these classics famous!
The videos are absolutely amazing! Found some of the first live performances of songs from Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Berry, to Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana, to Highway Star by Deep Purple. Are you ready to ROCK? (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2007/01/100_greatest_gu.html#more)... Jump right in, or scroll to the bottom and read some info we put together on these clips....
1. Stairway To Heaven - Jimmy Page (http://youtube.com/watch?v=nt0tyGWIKKw)
2. Eruption - Edward Van Halen (http://youtube.com/watch?v=IvoqODsulkk) (Option 2) (http://youtube.com/watch?v=HDUYIkq975Y)
3. Freebird - Collins/Rossington (http://youtube.com/watch?v=lZN4fBC2s00)
4. Comfortably Numb - David Gilmour (http://youtube.com/watch?v=hFKm3AEdG4w) (Option 2) (http://youtube.com/watch?v=Mes_BvrEDII)
5. All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix (http://youtube.com/watch?v=dOz0WTdIB0w)
6. November Rain - Slash (http://youtube.com/watch?v=4ZSTFRKIjbs)
7. One - Kirk Hammet/Metallica (http://youtube.com/watch?v=GxdqD8zAXps)
8. Hotel California - Don Felder/Joe Walsh (http://youtube.com/watch?v=el3DE_LqcQI)
9. Crazy Train - Randy Rhoads (http://youtube.com/watch?v=KTQ-pah64y0) (Option 2) (http://youtube.com/watch?v=gGOKXk_TBSA)
10. Crossroads - Eric Clapton (http://youtube.com/watch?v=BXTrmwQuSZQ)
11. Voodo Chile - Jimi Hendrix (http://youtube.com/watch?v=TGz_s-l5zEs)
12. Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry (http://youtube.com/watch?v=LsHPBDa8ts0)
13. Texas Flood - Stevie Ray Vaughan (http://youtube.com/watch?v=YDBIbJKjAZQ)
14. Layla - Clapton/Allman (http://youtube.com/watch?v=yMhUG2B5qOs)
15. Floods - Dimebag Darrel (http://youtube.com/watch?v=w_Tol4nP6Os)
16. Heartbreaker - Jimmy Page (http://youtube.com/watch?v=jOdPGxji30c)
17. Cliffs Of Dover - Eric Johnson (http://youtube.com/watch?v=M0Sm-14F7cI)
18. Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix (http://youtube.com/watch?v=NT86jjGz60k)
19. Highway Star - Ritchie Blackmore (http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?ei=UTF-8&p=Deep+Purple+Highway+Star&b=7&oid=5a7afb4032712b0b&rurl=www.youtube.com&vdone=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.yahoo.com%2Fvideo%2Fsearc h%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3DDeep%2BPurple%2BHighway%2BStar)
20. Bohemian Rhapsody - Brian May (http://youtube.com/watch?v=veTm1sZz2eo)
More we loved:
26. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Kurt Cobain (http://youtube.com/watch?v=rAhqsnmo_LA)
36. Black Star - Yngwie Malmsteen (http://youtube.com/watch?v=iPtLcfkrPIE)
56. War Pigs - Tony Iommi (http://youtube.com/watch?v=xtqy4DTHGqg)
59. You Really Got Me - Dave Davies (http://youtube.com/watch?v=kMw3qO20yRs)
80. You Shook Me All Night Long - Angus Young (http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?p=You+Shook+Me+All+Night+Long+&ei=UTF-8&b=0&oid=692e98e70192c1d2&rurl=music.yahoo.com&vdone=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.yahoo.com%2Fvideo%2Fsearc h%3Fp%3DYou%2BShook%2BMe%2BAll%2BNight%2BLong%2B%2 6ei%3DUTF-8)
81. Sweet Jane - Hunter/Wagner (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw)
96. Honky Tonk Women - Keith Richards (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGdymckAcw0)
97. Cherub Rock - Billy Corgan (http://youtube.com/watch?v=e9-mmrOXirg) (sweet faced baby Billy smiling away)
Bonus: Just an AWESOME find not to be missed... Stevie Ray Vaughan, BB King & Albert Collins "Texas Flood" 1988 (http://youtube.com/watch?v=nPnXtfSY3LQ)
Video selection note: Preference was given to: direct clips of the solos, live performances, oldest version, clearest sound and look at finger work, but in some cases we had to include the whole song, most of the time the solo appears in the first half.
This took us 2 days of work to put together. Lots of sorting through string work demos, air guitar renditions, bad quality videos, covers, etc. We hope you find this to be the definitive list!
Footnote: Even if you disagree with Guitar Worlds choices, we've found that most lists include the same solos (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar_solos), just in different rankings... Guitar One Mag's list of 101 all-time rock solos (http://blogs.usatoday.com/listenup/2006/09/best_guitar_sol.html)
Copyright note: We recently came across a list of The 50 Greatest Cartoons (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2006/12/the_50_greatest.html) and spent a few days putting together a kick-ass list with a link to a video of each one. A few of the cartoons got shut down for copyright issues. We really hope the artists in this list and people who represent them "get it" that the clips raise the awareness of these great guitar solos and may generate sales from old and new fans!
Photo above by of Eddie Van Halen by Roger Fisher (http://www.rogerfisher.com/)

Posted on January 23, 2007 in Get Your Freak On (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/get_your_freak_on/index.html) | Permalink (http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2007/01/100_greatest_gu.html)

[pitslayer]

right now as a guitarist, who has been playing gutiar for nigh on 13-14 years(yeh i started young) i completely disagree with all of the way that is
1. Stairway To Heaven - Jimmy Page---wow this is so hard to play it
2. Eruption - Edward Van Halen (Option 2)---EVH hes awesome but no no2
3. Freebird - Collins/Rossington---skynyrd wtf, skynyrd are amazing, but there solos are the easy things in the world, look at me im playing one scale from the pentantonic just moving around the fret board
4. Comfortably Numb - David Gilmour (Option 2) hahaha
5. All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix--hendrix isnt amazing, i can play that song with my eyes closed
6. November Rain - Slash-slash is good, he deserves this no5 spot
7. One - Kirk Hammet/Metallica--meh, its metallica, now forgive me if im wrong, but doesnt this song, start the same as fade to black, and dont they again use this in sanatarium, to repetative
8. Hotel California - Don Felder/Joe Walsh--i agree
9. Crazy Train - Randy Rhoads (Option 2)---this guy should be up near the top, randy rhoads was a legend, no one else can shred like him or play like him ever
10. Crossroads - Eric Clapton-clapped out, his playing is highly over rated, same stuff over and over again
11. Voodo Chile - Jimi Hendrix---same as all along the watch tower, but not as good
12. Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry---this man has mastered the blues scale well done, have a biscuit...you know if you move what your playing there down a fret you`ll make another song, blues is crap,
13. Texas Flood - Stevie Ray Vaughan---ive looked at this guys stuff, hes a joke
14. Layla - Clapton/Allman---again, same as above, do you know he basically uses the same chords in this song and same scale, as tears in heaven
15. Floods - Dimebag Darrel---no15....yet 5 time world guitar champion, undefeated, and wasnt allowed to enter on the 6th year...who ever wrote this is a reall guitar player he should be up to the top
16. Heartbreaker - Jimmy Page---over rated
17. Cliffs Of Dover - Eric Johnson---pretty good
18. Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix---why so much hendrix
19. Highway Star - Ritchie Blackmore
20. Bohemian Rhapsody - Brian May----should be closer up to the top, very few people can play like him on gauge 8 strings, i can
More we loved:
26. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Kurt Cobain---wow, isnt this the solo that stays on the same chord
36. Black Star - Yngwie Malmsteen---very good, got to far up his own arse thow
56. War Pigs - Tony Iommi---further up
59. You Really Got Me - Dave Davies---uh?
80. You Shook Me All Night Long - Angus Young----again should be further up
81. Sweet Jane - Hunter/Wagner
96. Honky Tonk Women - Keith Richards
97. Cherub Rock - Billy Corgan (sweet faced baby Billy smiling away)

so if there the greatest solos ever.....wheres satriani...wheres Vai....wheres mick mars....pink floyd should be in there....worst guitar list ive ever seen.....wheres steve morse?????
they put stairway to depression ahead of this by steve morse
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk_GMvIea6s

[Japow]

Dont beat me up here, but as a bassist myself, many of us can play these solos because we've heard them & had the charts.

Try composing anything as original & majestic. Besides never having to ever work again, you'll go down in history.

IMO this is a good list & no doubt 20 best solos could become 40 or 50 if needed.

[pitslayer]

lol its not a case of i can play this that and myself lol....its just that its the same scale mostly over and over again.....the who behind blue eyes....ive written out a whole new solo for that, and medley work, which is so much better than what was orgianlly written there.....sorry but that is the worst list of guitar solos ever....missing loads of stuff

japow, check this out for base thow lol i cant even play that song on guitar lol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38QoyEF2_RA

[ANTHONY]

i loved the eagles

[stuey]

Not sure about some of those choices, a few obvious ones missing, but interesting viewing and well put together... I don't think it's supposed to be hardest to play, most creative or fastest etc, but more landmark and melodic, anthemic, whatever..
I agree alot of players like Clapton, hendrix etc wouldn't get much of a look in now, because of what's come since, but put it in perspective and take into account vibe/feel/sound etc.. Shredding is not what it's all about, and maybe in another ten years you'll appreciate what BB King, etc were about. I love great fast playing but any idiot can wiggle their fingers quickly !

[MPBVr4]

Great collection Nick. All sounded good to me a "wanna be" player still struggling with standard 12 bar blues/pan ,

[Nick Mann]

A French and Saunders comedy (?) clip always springs to mind when talking about good guitarists. Not funny, but an interesting selection of guitarists:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cIdJFmFkag

[ANTHONY]

A French and Saunders comedy (?) clip always springs to mind when talking about good guitarists. Not funny, but an interesting selection of guitarists:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cIdJFmFkag1st time i'v seen that Nick ...fantastic

[I-S]

Of course they're all the same chords: http://youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM

[Legnum Lad VR4]

damn why aint Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd on that list

[Nick Mann]

You mean different to the one at number 3?

[Legnum Lad VR4]

You mean different to the one at number 3?


thats what i get for posting at 3 in the morning

ignore me haha

[Throbbe]

wheres mick mars

Bwahahahahaha etc. I love the Crue, and Mick Mars seems a damned nice bloke, but he'd be the first to admit he's a decent covers band guitarist that got lucky.

If you're talking the shred gods, and generally it's not my cuppa, I'd have to add Petrucci in there too.

Couldn't really pick a favourite guitarist, but Richard Thompson has to be in there somewhere. I love some of the stuff Marty Friedmann did with Megadeth, and the contrast with Mustaines style worked really well. No arguments on Dimebag, although I prefered the earlier stuff when they still had some glam influence. I'm a fan of the stuff Bryan May was doing fairly early on with Queen too, the wire choir thing was fantastic, but that's as much about production as playing. Kim Thayil, especially the insane guest solo on Naked and Famous by Presidents of the USA. Johnny Marr and John Squire were both great when reigned in by the Smiths and Stone Roses respectively, but I don't rate their later stuff so much.

Oh, and Slash was only the second best guitarist in G'n'R, but you'll have to buy me a pint some time so I can bore you with my explanation. :scholar:

Oh, and Jerry Cantrell.

and Dave Navarro. Actually, scratch everything there and just Dave Navarro, but not with the Chili Peppers, they never really worked together imo.

[pitslayer]

Bwahahahahaha etc. I love the Crue, and Mick Mars seems a damned nice bloke, but he'd be the first to admit he's a decent covers band guitarist that got lucky.


Oh, and Slash was only the second best guitarist in G'n'R, but you'll have to buy me a pint some time so I can bore you with my explanation. :scholar:


i love the crue aswell....but have you actually heard mick mars, not playing in the crue? he is a superbly awesome blues guitarist, much better than the solos played in crues songs. he is phenomanel, even in the crue he is so much better than clapton or hendrix


and as for the same chords...i mean same pentatonics....look at skynyrd, sweet home, the solo is all in G, and just stays there....doesnt move just stays there....
iconic solos maybe but to be top 20 of all solos ever no

[Pete M]

What? Nothing from Gary Moore? 'Story of the Blues' and 'Loner' are two of his that contain IMHO great solos.

Nirvana? Erk!, sounds like it is not written in any one key, but just moves all around the scales. Truly fingernails on a blackboard stuff.

SRV - Excellent

Where's Carlos Santana? He has done some fantastic stuff.

Some Alan Parsons Project tracks have good solos too.

I may be an old fogey, but it did say 'Ever', which means older stuff too.

[Throbbe]

i love the crue aswell....but have you actually heard mick mars, not playing in the crue? he is a superbly awesome blues guitarist, much better than the solos played in crues songs. he is phenomanel, even in the crue he is so much better than clapton or hendrix


Must admit I haven't heard him playing bluesy stuff. I'll have to look out for something. Have you ever read the Motley Crue biography 'The Dirt'? Fantastic book.

Never really liked Clapton, but you have to admit he did introduce a lot of people to blues musicians they otherwise wouldn't have heard of.

I've never really made my mind up on Hendrix. It's an odd thing to say about someone that's seen as a guitar god, but I think he's a bit underated by a lot of guitarists! I worked in a guitar shop for quite a while and one of my favourite tricks was to stop people playing Hendrix and then get them to play it without any distortion. It shows a lot of people up!

I left Kerry King from Slayer off my list too. I love the fact that within about 3 notes you can tell it's him playing. Even stuff he's done outside Slayer. Listen to the solo from No Sleep 'till Brooklyn sometime.

While I used to play a bit I was never really into a good solo for its own sake. It's got to fit in the context of the song, in the same way that the guitarist has to be part of the band and not an individual.

In car terms the solo is the wheels. An average set of rims wont ruin a nice car if they fit the whole look. A great set of wheels will get noticed, but if they don't suit the car you soon lose interest. I also soon lose interest if the solo is technically good, but the ideas are predictable. I think you'll understand what I mean if I say BBS RS's on Mk 2 Golfs. :speechles OK, I think I've stretched the analogy far enough already.

[Nick Mann]

A family friend is related to Kim Thayil. Very funny watching her whole family going out wearing Soundgarden T-shirts! Not one of them fitted the image!!

[pitslayer]

Must admit I haven't heard him playing bluesy stuff. I'll have to look out for something. Have you ever read the Motley Crue biography 'The Dirt'? Fantastic book.

Never really liked Clapton, but you have to admit he did introduce a lot of people to blues musicians they otherwise wouldn't have heard of.

I've never really made my mind up on Hendrix. It's an odd thing to say about someone that's seen as a guitar god, but I think he's a bit underated by a lot of guitarists! I worked in a guitar shop for quite a while and one of my favourite tricks was to stop people playing Hendrix and then get them to play it without any distortion. It shows a lot of people up!

I left Kerry King from Slayer off my list too. I love the fact that within about 3 notes you can tell it's him playing. Even stuff he's done outside Slayer. Listen to the solo from No Sleep 'till Brooklyn sometime.

While I used to play a bit I was never really into a good solo for its own sake. It's got to fit in the context of the song, in the same way that the guitarist has to be part of the band and not an individual.

In car terms the solo is the wheels. An average set of rims wont ruin a nice car if they fit the whole look. A great set of wheels will get noticed, but if they don't suit the car you soon lose interest. I also soon lose interest if the solo is technically good, but the ideas are predictable. I think you'll understand what I mean if I say BBS RS's on Mk 2 Golfs. :speechles OK, I think I've stretched the analogy far enough already.
it is a fantastic book to read, have read it few times, not recent thow, will read it again soon....
yeh clapton brought blues to the mainstream, but all blues songs seem to be that same dum de dum de dum de thing played in the background over and over again, just on different chords... its the simplest most irritating thing about blues music lol

kerry king.....give him a guitar which doesnt have a whammy bar then see how good he is lol....went to unholy alliance 2 last year which consisted of children of bodom, who are rubbish, lamb of god, who are rubbish, sure some other rubbish band....in flames, who are freaking awesome, best melodic death metal band ever, should download some of there tracks or buy an album, like soundtrack to your escape....then inflames left the stage, so slayer could come on....i left at that point, went to the hard rock cafe, and was sat there watching white zombie, twisted sister etc....slayer are over rated.......only thing i like about slayer is in angel of death...when he actually says "angel of death" purely for the fact. he says it in a way of, hes just come home from work, walked into his living room, to see the angel of death sat there with a cup of tea, unexpectedly...."angel of death? didnt expect you to be here" "yeh your wife invited me in for cuppa" "fair enough, whats the score on teh game"

[psbarham]

i personally think that the best all round guitarist is jimmy page , not only could he play extremely well but he also wrote some of the finest songs ever , and how much influence did he have ?and how many people has he influenced ?????

[Andy Teg]

in flames, who are freaking awesome, best melodic death metal band ever, should download some of there tracks or buy an album, like soundtrack to your escape....

Saw them twice last year, at the Corporation in Sheffield and at Download. They are one of my favourite bands, and they are fantastic live. Them and Soilwork are probably may favourite metal acts.