Guitar Rifts

**Wesley** · 02-10-2011, 11:19 PM

50 Greatest Guitar Riffs in Rock 'n' Roll - Spinner

**Mr Janny** · 02-10-2011, 11:24 PM

Let's see, I'm guessing the list includes David Lee Roth vs. the rest of Van Halen, Dave Mustaine vs. Metallica, and maybe Jimmy Chamberlain getting kicked out of Smashing Pumpkins. although two of those aren't technically Guitar Rifts since David sang and Jummy played drums. Still, a rift is a rift. Surprised that Spinner was able to come up with 50.

**BBHMagic** · 02-11-2011, 01:28 AM

That might be one of the worst lists I've ever seen. I like how its titled greatest Rock n' Roll riffs when not even half of the them are rock n' roll songs.

**Bipolarcy** · 02-11-2011, 01:34 AM

Originally Posted by Wesley

50 Greatest Guitar Riffs in Rock 'n' Roll - Spinner

Holy cripes, what happened to Running with the Devil? Any purported list of top 50 guitar riffs without that in it isn't worth snot.

**cyclones500** · 02-11-2011, 02:27 AM

Originally Posted by BBHMagic

I like how its titled greatest Rock n' Roll riffs when not even half of the them are rock n' roll songs.

If, by "not even half" you mean "not even 10 percent," I might agree with that part.

**cyclones500** · 02-11-2011, 02:44 AM

Cool link.

Not a bad list. Like any list, you could argue about the order and possible omissions.

"20th Century Boy" ought to be ahead of "Money For Nothing." For example.

I think it was smart to (mostly) feature no more than one per artist. You could probably make a top 20 just w/ Hendrix, Stones, mid-career Beatles and Zep.

Cool to see Dinosaur Jr.'s "Feel the Pain" included.

Seems to be a mix of "identifiable" riffs and riffs that are groundbreaking or noteworthy unto themselves.

I would say "My Girl" warrants inclusion for identification purposes, but the legendary aspect of the riff is fueled by the fact it's part of a classic Motown song.

It says "Seven Nation Army" is "bass riff in disguise" — I actually consider it a bass riff, period.

[Semi-related: "Sunshine of Your Love" riff is noteworthy, but I heard that song on the radio the other day, and it struck me that it may be the sloppiest classic-rock tune of all time. Cream's "Supergroup" mentality is painfully obvious -- it sounds like none of the 3 were in the room at the same time. The lyrics suck in a bluesy-psychedelic way. Clapton's vocals sound like he'd rather just be playing guitar.]

**aforstate** · 02-11-2011, 03:29 AM

Originally Posted by cyclones500

It says "Seven Nation Army" is "bass riff in disguise" — I actually consider it a bass riff, period.

A bass riff on a semi acoustic guitar either way.

**ketchupnmustard** · 02-11-2011, 03:45 AM

How is Hangar 18 not on this list?

**Wesley** · 02-11-2011, 07:45 AM

Maybe people can post youtube video of their missing songs. Frankly, it is nice to quickly clickon any of the 50 videos to hear what they are talking about. The Stones No.1 write-up was fairly funny.

Hey, guitarists, you might consider putting a recording device next to your bed. Like many of mankind's greatest inventions, the Rolling Stones' 'Satisfaction' arrived in a dream. According to Keith Richards, he woke up just long enough to record three things: 1) the phrase "I can't get no satisfaction," 2) the most iconic three chords in rock 'n' roll history, and 3) 40 minutes of snoring.

**jbindm** · 02-11-2011, 07:58 AM

I would've liked to see Get it On (Bang a Gong) by T. Rex make the list. It's a cool riff that borders on lazy. And maybe I missed it, but did Sweet Child O' Mine or anything by Guns n' Roses make the list?

**Cyclones_R_GR8** · 02-11-2011, 08:11 AM

Originally Posted by jbindm

I would've liked to see Get it On (Bang a Gong) by T. Rex make the list. It's a cool riff that borders on lazy. And maybe I missed it, but did Sweet Child O' Mine or anything by Guns n' Roses make the list?

Sweet Child O' Mine was #7.

I always describe T. Rex as Cosmic Rock n Roll. Get it on had a pretty sweet simple riff.

**weR138** · 02-11-2011, 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by Mr Janny

Let's see, I'm guessing the list includes David Lee Roth vs. the rest of Van Halen, Dave Mustaine vs. Metallica, and maybe Jimmy Chamberlain getting kicked out of Smashing Pumpkins. although two of those aren't technically Guitar Rifts since David sang and Jummy played drums. Still, a rift is a rift. Surprised that Spinner was able to come up with 50.

Don't forget John Frusciante being dismissed from RHCP, the Slash/Axel hate and Iggy leaving the real Stooges to make a record in Europe with David Bowie and some other "Stooges". At least the RHCP and Stooges rifts had happy endings...

**Wesley** · 02-11-2011, 08:36 AM

Originally Posted by jbindm

I would've liked to see Get it On (Bang a Gong) by T. Rex make the list. It's a cool riff that borders on lazy. And maybe I missed it, but did Sweet Child O' Mine or anything by Guns n' Roses make the list?

Yes. Also, Eric Clapton and Ozzie made the list couple of times The writeups were fairly interesting. See the David Bowie and Jimmy Hendrix ones. The intro explained how they looked at the bigger picture of great song versus music impact versus trend setting music.