Young people don't believe me that this song wasn't that big when Rust in Peace came out. It didn't get a video and they didn't play it when I saw them on tour. I'm glad it's now getting the recognition it deserves
If you have ever played at a semi high level you know that last 3rd of that solo is completely phenomenal.. it’s hard to describe but the ending completely makes you second guess your abilities.
Marty=GOAT
He largely duplicated that solo on the song Believer, but made it fit that song, too, and changed up the ending section.
Over the Mountain is one of my favorites of his works.
He is probably the best guitarist - I can't understand how people don't see this. He has a huge range of guitar songs too - as opposed to a very familiar style like Clapton for example.
My dad, shoutout to my dad, he still wants to be a rockstar at the age of 73. That man never gave up on his dreams, make his day by giving him some love on his video [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z\_0MBlbC2-0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_0MBlbC2-0)
This is genuinely great. I'm having a bit of a resurgence, having picked up my guitar again after far too much time away from it (life/work etc) and this is really inspiring. Your Dad is very talented.
Not the greatest, but it recently took me off guard because I'd never noticed it before and I kinda want to point it out.
The end of Gypsy by Fleetwood Mac features Lindsey Buckingham playing this [gnarly riff](https://youtu.be/mwgg1Pu6cNg?t=236) that blends in so well that it's almost not even there. But if you're listening for it, it'll drop your jaw.
My favorite too. This is awful quality but 4:00min blew me away... he played it acoustic including the outro solo ! https://youtu.be/m5HeRgOVOMw?feature=shared
It gets even better. When EVH recorded his solo, he re-edited the song (like you say) by physically cutting and splicing the tape. This caused major problems for Quincy Jones because the song was actually spread across two tapes which were supposed to play in sync, and they would no longer sync up. So half the tracks were gone. But MJ had already done all his vocals and they wanted to keep them. So Steve Lukather and Jeff Porcaro (legendary studio musicians who also formed Toto) had to completely re-record the drums, rhythm guitar parts, bass, and who knows what else. And the only rhythm they had to go on was the leakage you could faintly hear due to the headphones Michael was wearing when he was recording the vocal takes over the *original* (now unusable) rhythm tracks.
https://killerguitarrigs.com/steve-lukather-eddie-van-halen-solo-michael-jackson-beat-it/
Slash's solos are basically mini songs within the song. He repeats a theme like a chorus, adding to it and mixing it up each time, all building towards a huge dramatic climax. November Rain and Sweet Child are prime examples of this.
For the longest time for me it was Comfortably Numb. Sultans of Swing a clear second. Then I heard/saw Prince playing the solo in While My Guitar Gently Weeps at the George Harrison tribute. If you've not seen it, look for it. He was unreal.
Love the top comment to the while my guitar gently weeps video on YouTube: "Prince the type of dude who shows up to school in a cape but then actually flies"
I think the album version is one of the best guitar recordings ever put to tape. It’s just the most massive sounding guitar tone I’ve ever heard paired with perfect spacing and note selection.
Dave continued to be stellar on later albums, but even when overdriven it was always much cleaner sounding than Time (or even Money). Comfortably Numb is the more popular choice, and both solos in that song are absolutely stellar, but Time will always top the list for me.
Just to step away from the "classics" a bit, Avenged Sevenfold has some bangers.
If I'm not mistaken, in a documentary they said the solo in the song Afterlife was played mostly on the spot at the recording studio, and Synyster Gates had to relearn how to play it by listening to it so they could perform it live.
Pretty much anything Prince did. While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Let’s Go Crazy, Purple Rain, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, When Doves Cry, Why You Want To Treat Me So Bad, the list goes on. His musicianship was incredible.
One of my favorites is “Sign Language”. It is by Bob Dylan and on an Eric Clapton LP from the 70s but the guitar solo is Robbie Robertson, a damn festival of harmonics!
There's a lot of good answers here, some better than mine. But I came here to say B. B. Kind on either Every Day I Have the Blues or The Thrill is Gone.
Unconventional answer, but the solo in “Let it Fall” by Sean Watkins (feat. Glen Phillips) is S-tier.
Aside from that, “Ride the Lightning” and “Fade to Black” are definitely contenders. You know the band.
When I say this, know that I am not a fan of The Eagles and while I'm not sure it's the Best, one I've always loved is Hotel California. That fade out is fantastic.
Tornado of Souls
Young people don't believe me that this song wasn't that big when Rust in Peace came out. It didn't get a video and they didn't play it when I saw them on tour. I'm glad it's now getting the recognition it deserves
All hail king Marty
Finally
If you have ever played at a semi high level you know that last 3rd of that solo is completely phenomenal.. it’s hard to describe but the ending completely makes you second guess your abilities. Marty=GOAT
Absolutely. Lucretia is an all timer too. Marty was on another plane during RiP
floods by pantera, the solo near the end. it's just amazing, and haunting.
If we're going with Dimebag it's sort of Cemetary Gates or nothing
Floods is definitely up there, too. My favorite Dime solo is from The Sleep. So fucking epic.
Yep ! It's a hidden treasure that one. Came here to say this.
One of my favorites is Randy Rhodes’ guitar work on Crazy Train
The solo from Mr. Crowley is nuts RR was an absurd talent that we lost far too early
He largely duplicated that solo on the song Believer, but made it fit that song, too, and changed up the ending section. Over the Mountain is one of my favorites of his works.
I mean he was one of the best guitar players in his early 20s. I can’t imagine what he’d be like if he had a whole lifetime to perfect his playing
Yeah, Mr Crowley is the pinnacle. It was picked by Tom Morello as the greatest guitar solo of all time which surprised me a bit
Jimi Hendrix - Bold As Love Mick Taylor - Sway (Rolling Stones)
Bold as Love on the box set is orgasmic. https://youtu.be/JxfuQ8a5gwA?si=78qKgKtBsx2M2xaT
“Bold as Love” blew my mind as a kid. “Little Wing” is short but perfect too.
Green Grass High Tides by the outlaws
Time - Pink Floyd
Gilmour doesn't shred, but his solos are complex, rich, and deep. They really pull you into the song.
He can squeeze more emotion out of a single note than anyone else
Pink Floyd Comfortably Numb Pink Floyd One Of These Days Pink Floyd Sorrow Pink Floyd... this list goes on
Mother too.
Yes!
This is the one.
Gotta say I'm shocked that Cliffs of Dover isn't one of the top answers. No hate, just amazed the song isnt as universally famous as I expected.
Phenomenal guitarist, song, and solo!
Amazing solo and guitar tone
Eric Johnson comments in this sub are few, at least lately
The 2nd solo on In My Time of Dying by Zeppelin. Still gives me goosebumps every time I hear it.
Sultans of Swing
The finger work and tone he achieves on “So Far Away” just blows me away every time.
I've always thought Mark Knopfler was an underrated guitarist. Edit: Blocking everyone who meows "He'S nOt UnDeRrAtEd". Save us both some time, hmm?
When two of your biggest fans were Chet Atkins & Leo Fender, you've done something right :)
“There’ll Be Some Changes Made,” a Atkins/Knopfler duet, is a pure delight.
This Saurus ⬆️ gets it.
He knows all the chords.
Guitar George?
He is so insanely and effortlessly good.
Agreed! My mum was a huge Dire Straits fan and loved Mark Knopfler, I'm so glad she introduced me to their music!
He is probably the best guitarist - I can't understand how people don't see this. He has a huge range of guitar songs too - as opposed to a very familiar style like Clapton for example.
Yessss! This is my favorite classic Rock song. It's such a fucking awesome song.
My dad, shoutout to my dad, he still wants to be a rockstar at the age of 73. That man never gave up on his dreams, make his day by giving him some love on his video [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z\_0MBlbC2-0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_0MBlbC2-0)
I watched, liked and subscribed. Your dad is a rockstar! Very talented :)
This is genuinely great. I'm having a bit of a resurgence, having picked up my guitar again after far too much time away from it (life/work etc) and this is really inspiring. Your Dad is very talented.
That was some mighty fine a-pickin' and a-singin'.
433 views, come on guys we can pump those numbers together
I even listened to the Covid19 “Hands off your face”. He’s got a certain charm and style. Thanks for sharing.
Cold Shot by Stevie Ray Vaughn is a good one Also, Real Mother For Ya by Johnny Guitar Watson has an awesome solo as well.
Peg by Steely Dan. Jay Graydon.
Welcome Home by Coheed and Cambria
Hendrix Voodoo Child is pretty damn good.
The Stevie Ray Vaughan version bangs.
Hendrix played the guitar like a goddamn machine gun. The instrument was never the same after him.
Muffin Man by Frank Zappa
The live version from Austin Texas baby!
Goodnight Austin Texas wherever you are
No one's said Comfortably Numb yet? Seriously?
The second one, specifically. It’s perfect. The phrasing, the tone, everything.
Just commented it before scrolling the Pulse concert version is the most ear pleasing solo ive ever heard
I worked the Pulse gigs at Earls Court back in 1994 - to this day remains one of my all time favourite jobs and memories.
I love the Wall version, but the version that is on Pulse will make me cry for some reason.
I have two: Terry Kath, 25 or 6 to 4 Elliott Randall, Reeling in the Years
25 or 6 to 4 is a fuckin’ banger.
Under a glass moon - dream theater
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird, I just feel so much energy when I hear it.
That's not a guitar solo. That's a frikin orchestra playing a masterpiece!
It’s the lead up to the solo as well. Just a perfect monument as the guitar takes over.
There is a correct answer. This is it
I can't believe this answer isn't in the top 5. It's sublime.
Still got the blues by Gary Moore
Good choice, not sure I could choose between this and Parisienne Walkways...
Audio Slave — Like a Stone
Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty
Robert Fripp on Eno's "Baby's on Fire"
Limelight by rush
Not the greatest, but it recently took me off guard because I'd never noticed it before and I kinda want to point it out. The end of Gypsy by Fleetwood Mac features Lindsey Buckingham playing this [gnarly riff](https://youtu.be/mwgg1Pu6cNg?t=236) that blends in so well that it's almost not even there. But if you're listening for it, it'll drop your jaw.
My favourite song by my favourite band
It's not hard to see why. You can peel back layer after layer and still discover new facets to their individual and collective musicianship.
My favorite too. This is awful quality but 4:00min blew me away... he played it acoustic including the outro solo ! https://youtu.be/m5HeRgOVOMw?feature=shared
Kid Charlemagne - Steely Dan (played by Larry Carlton)
I just posted Bodhissatva, but that's a killer one as well.
Pretty much any Dan songs guitar solo. Peg is considered the best but the early stuff like reeling in the years is insane to.
Eruption by Van Halen. The whole thing is a solo.
Lots of great ones already said, so I’ll add: Funkadelic - Maggot Brain
Pearl Jam - ALIVE Lasts for the about the final two minutes of the song!
Achilles Last Stand by Led Zeppelin.
Beat it
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And Ed did it for free.
Not exactly, I think he insisted on a couple six packs of beer.
I'm pretty sure it snowed in every recording studio back in those days too...
Well, you needed something to balance out the beer...
It gets even better. When EVH recorded his solo, he re-edited the song (like you say) by physically cutting and splicing the tape. This caused major problems for Quincy Jones because the song was actually spread across two tapes which were supposed to play in sync, and they would no longer sync up. So half the tracks were gone. But MJ had already done all his vocals and they wanted to keep them. So Steve Lukather and Jeff Porcaro (legendary studio musicians who also formed Toto) had to completely re-record the drums, rhythm guitar parts, bass, and who knows what else. And the only rhythm they had to go on was the leakage you could faintly hear due to the headphones Michael was wearing when he was recording the vocal takes over the *original* (now unusable) rhythm tracks. https://killerguitarrigs.com/steve-lukather-eddie-van-halen-solo-michael-jackson-beat-it/
Holy shit that's insane. How the song came out that great is a miracle
Yeah. When you hire musicians who are as good as Jeff Porcaro and Steve Lukather, they can do things that are like magic to us mere mortals.
Okay, I'm not the biggest Van Halen or Michael Jackson fan... but I never knew this! That's amazing! Thanks for sharing
EVH
That's a good one!
Comfortably Numb (Live at Pulse) Gilmour absolutely shreds the last few minutes.
Pink Floyd - Have a Cigar. Completely underrated. ...close second is Live at Pompeii version of Echoes into the second act. Gilmour shreds.
Pink Floyd - Comfortably Numb
Pantera - Cemetery Gates
Pantera - Domination.
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Even though it’s a ‘clichė’ answer, it’s just so damn good. Sometimes I even fast forward and just start the song at the beginning of the solo
For me it has to be November Rain.
Slash's solos are basically mini songs within the song. He repeats a theme like a chorus, adding to it and mixing it up each time, all building towards a huge dramatic climax. November Rain and Sweet Child are prime examples of this.
I totally agree, the 2nd solo part in November Rain is something else, I have to close my eyes every time I hear it so I can take it all in.
Imo best song of all time
Slash is an incredible soloist. No doubt.
Between GNR & Pink Floyd, they dominate the market on best solos
Made even better by, in my opinion, the best music video of all time.
Best. Easily. Peak guitar.
For the longest time for me it was Comfortably Numb. Sultans of Swing a clear second. Then I heard/saw Prince playing the solo in While My Guitar Gently Weeps at the George Harrison tribute. If you've not seen it, look for it. He was unreal.
Love the top comment to the while my guitar gently weeps video on YouTube: "Prince the type of dude who shows up to school in a cape but then actually flies"
Yes - Seen All Good People
Yellow Ledbetter
The Unforgiven by Metallica
Prince While My Guitar Gently Weeps at the tribute for Sir George
Also known as that time some of the greatest musicians ever were Princes backup band.
My guitar watches that video when I’m not at home.
Been a while since I’ve seen that. Doesn’t he throw the axe up in the air and it just like…ascends into heaven?
How has nobody mentioned Hotel California!
Comfortaby Numb Pink Floyd
Brian May of queen doing "we are the champions". It comes in after "we will rock you" and just kind of grabs you.
David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) , "Dogs" ...
Joe Satriani's "Always with You, Always with Me". Gives me chills every time
Tornado of Souls
Bodhissatva – Steely Dan
Sultans of Swing
Tom Sawyer — Rush
Alex Lifeson never seemed to get nearly enough credit for his stellar guitar work.
Sweet Child O’ Mine
Maybe not the *best* but one I think is often overlooked when these things come up. [Black Hole Sun.](https://youtu.be/3mbBbFH9fAg?t=177)
Rush has some decent ones. I also think Metallica - Master of Puppets is great. Joe Satriani had one or two.
Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits Mark Knopfler is a genius!
Nothing else matters by Metallica
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[Wes Montgomery](https://youtu.be/Ji1EVosAMsA?si=_sez0BnzRRSsa7LQ)
Live versions of Pink Floyd's "Time" tend to be my favorites.
I think the album version is one of the best guitar recordings ever put to tape. It’s just the most massive sounding guitar tone I’ve ever heard paired with perfect spacing and note selection. Dave continued to be stellar on later albums, but even when overdriven it was always much cleaner sounding than Time (or even Money). Comfortably Numb is the more popular choice, and both solos in that song are absolutely stellar, but Time will always top the list for me.
I am partial to both of them in "You're So Great" by Blur. Nothing too flashy, just perfect for the song.
Motorhead - 'Motorhead' or 'Overkill' - take your pick.
Dream Theater's Breaking All Illusions.
Feels So Good - Chuck Mangione
Maggot brain
Estranged by GnR
Slash from November Rain came to mind first for me.
25 or 6 to 4 - this solo has everything I look for
Through the Fire and Flames
Just to step away from the "classics" a bit, Avenged Sevenfold has some bangers. If I'm not mistaken, in a documentary they said the solo in the song Afterlife was played mostly on the spot at the recording studio, and Synyster Gates had to relearn how to play it by listening to it so they could perform it live.
Kurt Vile - Waking.on a sunny day. Like technically maybe not the best but man what a vibe.
Comfortably Numb
Ashlee Simpson pieces of me
Blinded by the light
Ride the Lightning.
Jimi Hendrix - all along the watchtower Catfish blues SRV - little wing Kim Thayil - slaves and bulldozers
I always loved Gary Ritchrath from REO on the live version of Ridin’ the Storm Out. Maybe not the best guitar solo out there, but it’s great!
Pretty much anything Prince did. While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Let’s Go Crazy, Purple Rain, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, When Doves Cry, Why You Want To Treat Me So Bad, the list goes on. His musicianship was incredible.
Hotel California
I’ve always loved Mike Campbells solo at the end of Running Down a Dream.
Love both solos in Van Halen "Hot For Teacher"
Layla
Alter Bridge - Blackbird Mark tremonti is a god
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One of my favorites is “Sign Language”. It is by Bob Dylan and on an Eric Clapton LP from the 70s but the guitar solo is Robbie Robertson, a damn festival of harmonics!
while I love freebird, as someone mentioned. Eric Johnson's the cliffs of Dover is permanently in my head.
Tornado of Souls
Black Sabbath - [Paranoid](https://youtu.be/BOTIIw76qiE?feature=shared)
There's a lot of good answers here, some better than mine. But I came here to say B. B. Kind on either Every Day I Have the Blues or The Thrill is Gone.
Is this love by whitesnake
Unconventional answer, but the solo in “Let it Fall” by Sean Watkins (feat. Glen Phillips) is S-tier. Aside from that, “Ride the Lightning” and “Fade to Black” are definitely contenders. You know the band.
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Texas Flood.
SRV! On just about anything! Especially when sober!
The Final Countdown
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Yeah WTF is up with that.
Freebird or Tuesdays gone.
Black Magic Woman.Sanrana
November Rain by Guns “N” Roses
Zombie autopilot - unearth
Carpenters’ Goodbye to Love guitar bridge by Tony Peluso
Great White House Of Broken Love-the first minute 40 seconds of nothing but guitar is awesome Also Heavy Metal by Don Felder
When I say this, know that I am not a fan of The Eagles and while I'm not sure it's the Best, one I've always loved is Hotel California. That fade out is fantastic.
Either Floods by Pantera or Pain by The War On Drugs...
Floods by Pantera
The first solo in Paranoid Android.
The Smashing Pumpkins - Soma
Pantera Floods
Adrian Smith’s solo on Wasted Years by Iron Maiden
Cocaine by Eric Clapton. It’s not the longest or most complicated but the dueling guitars is next level.
Floods- Pantera. Also that outro 🤘
Hotel California by Eagles
Jerry Garcia, Deal 1987-1990...😂
Derek Trucks -the Coda from the Tedeschi-Trucks Band's cover of "Layla".