The world's most famous guitar riffs

[Lohrtar]

I had an argument with a friend of mine over this. He said 'Another one bites the dust' was in the top 10 of the most famous riffs in the world, and I disagreed, saying I could find a fair bit that were higher. So what would you say are the most famous riffs of all time? Smoke on the water is probably #1, isn't it?

[fxstc_98]

I' ll submit a couple, to get things rolling
The intro to Aqualung, Stairway to Heaven.

[Blues_Man]

Here we go.... (no particular order)

Crazy train- ozzy osbourne

Smoke on water- deep purple

Purple haze- jimi hendrix

sunshine of your love, and layla- eric clapton

Iron man- black sabbath

Eruption- van halen

back in black, highway to hell- ac/dc

stairway to heaven, immigrant song- led zeppelin

[Rsam16]

You can't forget Voodoo Child!

[CW14]

Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple
Purple Haze - Hendrix
Thunderstruck, Back in Black - ACDC
Stairway to Heaven - Zep
Money - Pink Floyd
Sweet Child o' Mine - GnR
La Grange - ZZ Top
Ain't Talkin Bout Love - Van Halen
Crazy Train - Ozzy
Aces High - Maiden
Master of Puppets - Metallica
Raining Blood - Slayer
Iron Man, Pranoid - Sabbath

[Cryptic Excretions]

Stripped, raped and strangled?

[z0s0_jp]

cat scratch fever-nugent
breakin' the law-priest
walk this way-aerosmith
heartbreaker-zep
sweet home alabama-skynyrd
the trooper-maiden
and about 55 kajillion more.... :p

[Jolly McJollyson]

Stripped, raped and strangled?
Cannibal Corpse?

[VHLO]

what, no rolling stones riffs? :mad:
come on people

[z0s0_jp]

da da....da da da...dadadadadadada- satisfaction / stones ;) geeze, gettin' the right amount of da's was a bitch!!!!

[PRSplaya]

Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Tush - ZZ Top
Sweet Child of Mine - G'N'R
Crazy Train - Ozzy
The Joker - Steve Miller Band

[Lohrtar]

For the sake of my argument with my friend. How many riffs could you find that are more famous than another one bites the dust?

[Rsam16]

Here is the the top 100 rock guitar riffs according to DigitalDreamdoor

1. Smoke On The Water - Deep Purple
2. Sunshine Of Your Love - Cream
3. Layla - Derek And The Dominos
4. Satisfaction - Rolling Stones
5. Iron Man - Black Sabbath
6. Heartbreaker - Led Zeppelin
7. Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns N Roses
8. Back In Black - AC/DC
9. Johnny B Goode - Chuck Berry
10. You Really Got Me - The Kinks
11. Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix Experience
12. Bad To The Bone - George Thorogood & Destroyers
13. Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne
14. Day Tripper - The Beatles
15. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) - Jimi Hendrix Experience
16. Paranoid - Black Sabbath
17. Summertime Blues - Eddie Cochran
18. Wild Thing - The Troggs
19. Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
20. Roadhouse Blues - The Doors
21. Aqualung - Jethro Tull
22. Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin
23. Rebel Rebel - David Bowie
24. Foxey Lady - Jimi Hendrix Experience
25. Breaking The Law - Judas Priest
26. Outshined - Soundgarden
27. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana
28. Black Dog - Led Zeppelin
29. Running With The Devil - Van Halen
30. The Hellion/Electric Eye - Judas Priest
31. Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
32. Enter Sandman - Metallica
33. Walk This Way - Aerosmith
34. Five Minutes Alone - Pantera
35. Eye Of The Tiger - Survivor
36. Brown Sugar - Rolling Stones
37. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida - Iron Butterfly
38. Hells Bells - AC/DC
39. Sultans Of Swing - Dire Straits
40. Frankenstein - Edgar Winter
41. La Grange - ZZ Top
42. Master Of Puppets - Metallica
43. Kashmir - Led Zeppelin
44. Rusty Cage - Soundgarden
45. Ain't Talking Bout Love - Van Halen
46. Bring It On Home - Led Zeppelin
47. Panama - Van Halen
48. Man On The Silver Mountain - Rainbow
49. Maybellene - Chuck Berry
50. N.I.B. - Black Sabbath
51. Money For Nothing - Dire Straits
52. Pinball Wizard - The Who
53. China Grove - The Doobie Brothers
54. Stranglehold - Ted Nugent
55. Ace Of Spades - Motorhead
56. Wipeout - The Surfaris
57. Paradise City - Guns N' Roses
58. Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult
59. American Woman - Guess Who
60. Jumpin Jack Flash - Rolling Stones
61. All Day And All Of The Night - The Kinks
62. Up Around The Bend - Creedence Clearwater Revival
63. Bulls On Parade - Rage Against The Machine
64. Walk - Pantera
65. Start Me Up - Rolling Stones
66. Welcome To The Jungle - Guns N Roses
67. Life In The Fast Lane - The Eagles
68. I'm Broken - Pantera
69. All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix Experience
70. Under The Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
71. Working Man - Rush
72. Are You Gonna Go My Way - Lenny Kravitz
73. Pride And Joy - Stevie Ray Vaughan
74. The Boys Are Back In Town - Thin Lizzy
75. Whipping Post - Allman Brothers Band
76. Aenima - Tool
77. You Shook Me - AC/DC
78. School Day - Chuck Berry
79. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen
80. Honey Don't - Carl Perkins
81. Moby Dick - Led Zeppelin
82. Rockin' In The Free World - Neil Young
83. Wake Up Little Susie - Everly Brothers
84. Taxman - The Beatles
85. The Ocean - Led Zeppelin
86. Lola - The Kinks
87. Hangar 18 - Megadeth
88. Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top
89. Thunderstruck - AC/DC
90. Politican - Cream
91. The Trooper - Iron Maiden
92. I Feel Fine - The Beatles
93. Spirit Of Radio - Rush
94. Hallowed Be Thy Name - Iron Maiden
95. Man On A Mission - Van Halen
96. Fear Of The Dark - Iron Maiden
97. Raining Blood - Slayer
98. Scuttle Buttin - Stevie Ray Vaughan
99. Hysteria - Muse
100. Sweet Leaf - Black Sabbath

[magicninja]

I didn't see Stairway to Heaven on that list :confused: . I also didn't see Nothing Else Matters. Pretty good list though.

[z0s0_jp]

I didn't see Stairway to Heaven on that list :confused: . I also didn't see Nothing Else Matters. Pretty good list though.
or "another one bites the dust"

[Rsam16]

or "another one bites the dust"

Probably because It is a Bass Guitar Riff.

[Rsam16]

I didn't see Stairway to Heaven on that list :confused: . I also didn't see Nothing Else Matters. Pretty good list though.

Stairway to Heaven doesn't really contain a guitar riff per se.
but it has a good acoustic intro and probably the best Solo ever.

[PonyOne]

Rsam hit it... Another One BItes the Dust is a bassline, not a guitar riff. The guitar in the song is good, but it's not what stands out the most in the song... the bass and as always Mercury's vocals own that song.

As far as queen goes, I'd say the the solo in Bohemian Rhapsody is the most memorable.

I can't believe no one has mentioned the Beatles... I mean, think of it, "She Loves You"? And the funny thing is, that even though "Stairway" always comes up in conversations about "best/most famous/etc licks" but you'd be terrified how many times I've had that playing in my car when I'm giving people rides and they're like "wow, this is amazing, who is this?" :eek:

I would have to say, off the top of my head, with my ADHD, at work...
Born In The USA - Springsteen
Enter Sandman - Metallica
Jailhouse Rock - Elvis
House of the Rising Sun - Eric Burdon and the Animals
Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana (you may hate it, but it's more recognizable than Little Wing to the masses)
Satisfaction - The Stones
Born to be Wild - Steppenwolf
Iron Man - Black Sabbath