Red Baron 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/top/solos/ 50. "Ace of Spades" by Motörhead Soloist: "Fast" Eddie Clarke Album: Ace of Spades Year: 1980 49. "Capital Radio One" by the Clash Soloist: Mick Jones Album: Story of the Clash Year: 1988 48. "Mandocello" by Cheap Trick Soloist: Rick Nielsen Album: Cheap Trick Year: 1977 47. "I Was Made for Lovin' You" by Kiss Soloist: Ace Frehley Album: Dynasty Year: 1979 46. "Radioactive" by the Firm Soloist: Jimmy Page Album: Radioactive Year: 1985 45. "You Shook Me Cold" by David Bowie Soloist: Mick Ronson Album: The Man Who Sold the World Year: 1970 44. "Cuts Like a Knife" by Bryan Adams Soloist: Bryan Adams Album: Cuts Like a Knife Year: 1983 43. "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd Soloist: David Gilmour Album: The Wall Year: 1979 42. "Cold Shot" by Stevie Ray Vaughan Soloist: Stevie Ray Vaughan Album: Live Alive Year: 1986 41. "Still Point" by Andy Summers and Robert Fripp Soloist: Andy Summers, Robert Fripp Album: I Advance Masked Year: 1982 40. "I Love Rock 'N' Roll" by Joan Jett Soloist: Joan Jett Album: I Love Rock 'N' Roll Year: 1981 39. "Dazed and Confused" by Led Zeppelin Soloist: Jimmy Page Album: Led Zeppelin Year: 1969 38. "Burnin' for You" by the Blue Oyster Cult Soloist: Donald Roeser Album: Fire of Unknown Origin Year: 1981 37. "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay" by Sammy Hagar and Steve Cropper Soloist: Sammy Hagar, Steve Cropper Album: Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay EP Year: 19xx 36. "Captain Soul" by the Byrds Soloist: Roger McGuinn Album: Fifth Dimension Year: 1967 35. "Magic Man" by Heart Soloist: Roger Fisher Album: Dreamboat Annie Year: 1976 34. "Cattle Drive" by the Marshall Tucker Band Soloist: Toy Caldwell Album: Tenth Year: 1980 33. "Third Stone from the Sun" by Pat Metheny Soloist: Pat Metheny Album: Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix Year: 1993 32. "Sweet Jane" by Lou Reed Soloist: Steve Hunter, Dick Wagner Album: Rock 'N' Roll Animal Year: 1974 31. "Get Out of This" by Dinosaur Jr. Soloist: J. Mascis Album: Without a Sound Year: 1994 30. "Big Block" by Jeff Beck Soloist: Jeff Beck Album: Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop Year: 1989 29. "Anastasia (Pulling Teeth)" by Metallica Soloist: Cliff Burton Album: Kill 'Em All Year: 1983 28. "Machine Messiah" by Yes Soloist: Steve Howe Album: Drama Year: 1980 27. "Sucker in a 3-Piece" by Van Halen Soloist: Eddie Van Halen Album: OU812 Year: 1988 26. "Ballbreaker" by AC/DC Soloist: Angus Young Album: Ballbreaker Year: 1995 25. "Hold On Loosely" by .38 Special Soloist: Donnie Van Zant Album: Wild Eyed Southern Boys Year: 1981 24. "Panic Station" by Allan Holdsworth Soloist: Allan Holdsworth Album: I.O.U. Year: 1985 23. "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake Soloist: Adrian Vandenberg Album: Whitesnake Year: 1987 22. "Allied Forces" by Truimph Soloist: Rik Emmett Album: Allied Forces Year: 1981 21. "Tush" by ZZ Top Soloist: Billy Gibbons Album: Fandango Year: 1975 20. "When I See You Smile" by Bad English Soloist: Neal Schon Album: Bad English Year: 1989 19. "Love's Gonna Bring You Round" by Robin Trower Soloist: Robin Trower Album: In City Dreams Year: 1977 18. "Hold the Line" by Toto Soloist: Steve Lukather Album: Toto Year: 1978 17. "More Than a Feeling" by Boston Soloist: Tom Scholz Album: Boston Year: 1976 16. "Marathon" by Rush Soloist: Alex Lifeson Album: Power Windows Year: 1985 15. "Shooting Star" by Bad Company Soloist: Mick Ralphs Album: Straight Shooter Year: 1975 14. "Look at You, Look at Me" by Dave Mason Soloist: Dave Mason Album: Dave Mason is Alive Year: 1973 13. "No One Like You" by the Scorpions Soloist: Matthias Jabs Album: Blackout Year: 1982 12. "Song of the Wind" by Santana Soloist: Carlos Santana Album: Caravanserai Year: 1972 11. "Willie the Pimp" by Frank Zappa Soloist: Frank Zappa Album: Hot Rats Year: 1969 10. "Venom Soup" by Ted Nugent Soloist: Ted Nugent Album: Weekend Warriors Year: 1978 9. "I Like to Rock" by April Wine Soloist: Brian Greenway Album: Harder... Faster Year: 1979 8. "Do You Feel Like We Do" by Peter Frampton Soloist: Peter Frampton Album: Frampton Comes Alive Year: 1976 7. "Hot Blooded" by Foreigner Soloist: Mick Jones Album: Double Vision Year: 1978 6. "Fuel to the Fire" by Rory Gallagher Soloist: Rory Gallagher Album: Photo-Finish Year: 1978 5. "Renegade" by Styx Soloist: Tommy Shaw Album: Pieces of Eight Year: 1978 4. "Demand" by Phish Soloist: Trey Anastasio Album: Hoist Year: 1994 3. "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" by Ten Years After Soloist: Alvin Lee Album: Ssssh Year: 1969 2. "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd Soloist: Gary Rossington, Ed King, Allen Collins Album: Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd Year: 1973 1. "Let It Rain" by Derek and the Dominos Soloist: Eric Clapton Album: Derek and the Dominos In Concert Year: 1973 I think we can safely agree that Pitchfork does not know what they are talking about. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Coffey Report post Posted October 7, 2004 I stopped reading when the first one was Motorhead. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest PlatinumBoy Report post Posted October 7, 2004 That's actually quite old and ties into my biggest point of disagreement with Pitchforkmedia. I agree with their reviews, but sometimes their anti-guitar solo/anti-guitar player mentality they seem to have can be annoying. Like when they talk about how Clapton solos suck, or how Vai and Satriani are worthless, etc. etc. I'm not saying all their reviewers do it, or it's 100 percent of the time, but the times when you read someone on their for example saying how Eddie Van Halen sucks, and then talking about how tight the guitars are on some new indie release, it makes them lose a little of the old guitar cred. However, haven't they pretty much said this list was made to stir up the shit--making metal/guitar fans that they hate the whammy bar, etc. etc. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B. Brian Brunzell 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 43. "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd Soloist: David Gilmour Album: The Wall Year: 1979 Right here is the real reason that this list is a fucking JOKE. "Comfortably Numb" is one of the finest solos of all-time, and is probably David gilmour's most well-know guitar work. It's not my favourite solo of his, but it's an outstanding solo none the less. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kinetic 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 They should have found some way to include the entirety of the Rock And Roll Animal album, considering that it's basically just one incredibly long and tedious solo with snippets of old Velvet Underground songs occasionally thrown into the mix. Gotta love that album cover, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
snuffbox 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Retarded. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrRant 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Free Bird is considered a BAD solo? I wish a visit by the cancer fairy to these people. kkktookmybabyaway Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corey_Lazarus 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Sorry, but the solo to "Ace of Spades" is great. Also, how is "(Anesthesia) - Pulling Teeth" a guitar solo? That's where they IMMEDIATELY lost all credibility to me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Temet Report post Posted October 7, 2004 43. "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd Soloist: David Gilmour Album: The Wall Year: 1979 Right here is the real reason that this list is a fucking JOKE. "Comfortably Numb" is one of the finest solos of all-time, and is probably David gilmour's most well-know guitar work. It's not my favourite solo of his, but it's an outstanding solo none the less. What redbaron didn't post was their reasons for choosing the list. The Comfortably Numb solo was apparently pieced together from several different takes because Gilmour couldn't get it right, hence its inclusion. For the record it's my favourite PF solo. Pitchfork have no idea with this list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted October 7, 2004 11. "Willie the Pimp" by Frank Zappa Soloist: Frank Zappa Album: Hot Rats Year: 1969 This is by far the biggest travesty on this list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest PlatinumBoy Report post Posted October 7, 2004 43. "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd Soloist: David Gilmour Album: The Wall Year: 1979 Right here is the real reason that this list is a fucking JOKE. "Comfortably Numb" is one of the finest solos of all-time, and is probably David gilmour's most well-know guitar work. It's not my favourite solo of his, but it's an outstanding solo none the less. What redbaron didn't post was their reasons for choosing the list. The Comfortably Numb solo was apparently pieced together from several different takes because Gilmour couldn't get it right, hence its inclusion. For the record it's my favourite PF solo. Pitchfork have no idea with this list. However, what a piece of hate mail/critique said was true--no matter how Gilmour made it, he plays it the RIGHT way, like on the album, when he's playing live. Just because he pieced together various solos to make a good one doesn't matter, since he actually can play the final product. It would be different if he couldn't. I also love the Skynyrd hate that list has in their descripition. They've probably never delved deep into Skynyrd's playlist of more bluegrassy, low key stuff--this guy's heard Sweet Home Alabama and Free Bird and that's it most likely. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jack_Bauer 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 This is a pretty fucking pathetic list. I'd certainly rate 'Comfortably Numb', 'Freebird' and 'Anasthesia (Pulling Teeth)' pretty highly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest PlatinumBoy Report post Posted October 7, 2004 See.... once again I like Pitchfork but as for guitar stuff--"a stiff, awkward, atonal, and utterly humorous body of work nearly as caricatured as Tom Morello's clown-alley guitar solos." Tom Morello was, in my opinion, the best and most inovative guitarist to come out of the 90's--hell one of the only great mainstream ones to come out of the 90's. His solos defintely aren't shit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Skywarp! 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Pitchfork seems to exist only to see who they can piss off by being too elitist for elitists. Their reviews aren't impartial either--it almost seems like they made their decision whether to praise or can the album before they've even heard it. On some days it seems they pan an album because they're in a particualrly grouchy mood. Even when they begrudgingly admit that an album is basically flawless, instead of heaping praise, they'll find that one thing to nit-pick on and spend at least one paragraph on it. The worst examples of reviews are the types where they write them as little skits which only offers bits of information and doesn't tell you anything about the album at all. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AboveAverage484 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 I knew AoO would have an aneurysm when he saw Zappa on the list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Your Paragon of Virtue 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 I hated that Pulling Teeth "song" and agreed with their reasoning behind putting it on the list. I mean, they made an exception for it, and even pointed out that the bass is still a guitar. You could be technical and say that ruins the credibility of the list, but really, it is just a way of sticking on another crappy solo on there. Either way, the list is just talking about how solos are most of the time unnecessary and are just used as a bit to show off. They have no place and are just a bunch self-mastorbatory riffs with no place within the structure of the song. Sometimes, a solo can really lift a song and serve as a catalyst, but a lot of times guys just use it to fuck around. With that said, I don't know if the songs on the list fall under that category, since I haven't heard most of them. Most of the music I listen to doesn't involve lots of solos anyway, except for the occasional metal album, none of which are prominent enough to be featured on this list, so I don't really care. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Hot Thumbtack In The Eye 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Tom Morello was, in my opinion, the best and most inovative guitarist to come out of the 90's--hell one of the only great mainstream ones to come out of the 90's. His solos defintely aren't shit. running your guitar through an effects box and making squeal while you do a bunch of slides and shit does not equal innovative. He is...passable on guitar, and it is embarassing that he's listed as a guitar 'hero' Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Your Paragon of Virtue 0 Report post Posted October 7, 2004 Tom Morello was, in my opinion, the best and most inovative guitarist to come out of the 90's--hell one of the only great mainstream ones to come out of the 90's. His solos defintely aren't shit. running your guitar through an effects box and making squeal while you do a bunch of slides and shit does not equal innovative. He is...passable on guitar, and it is embarassing that he's listed as a guitar 'hero' I was about to say the same thing, and in a recent review of the latest Zach De La Rocha single, they ripped on him for his guitar work again. A bit of deja vu there, reading your post. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest PlatinumBoy Report post Posted October 8, 2004 Tom Morello was, in my opinion, the best and most inovative guitarist to come out of the 90's--hell one of the only great mainstream ones to come out of the 90's. His solos defintely aren't shit. running your guitar through an effects box and making squeal while you do a bunch of slides and shit does not equal innovative. He is...passable on guitar, and it is embarassing that he's listed as a guitar 'hero' I was about to say the same thing, and in a recent review of the latest Zach De La Rocha single, they ripped on him for his guitar work again. A bit of deja vu there, reading your post. I posted the bit about Morello up above--however he has done some acoustic stuff lately, and all the NU-METAL kids want to be like him. Notice though I said guitar player to hit the mainstream in the 90's. Besides Morello most were shit. Edited to add: Guitar solos don't make a song--insanely good guitar playing isn't needed for a good rock band. Hell, great guitar players can make shit music just as easily as anyone else. If all that mattered was your speed on the frets, than Yngwie Malmsteen would be a whole hell of a lot bigger in the USA then he is today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Hot Thumbtack In The Eye 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 I posted the bit about Morello up above--however he has done some acoustic stuff lately, and all the NU-METAL kids want to be like him. Notice though I said guitar player to hit the mainstream in the 90's. Besides Morello most were shit. Is this an arguement about how innovative or how good? Edited to add: Guitar solos don't make a song--insanely good guitar playing isn't needed for a good rock band. Hell, great guitar players can make shit music just as easily as anyone else. If all that mattered was your speed on the frets, than Yngwie Malmsteen would be a whole hell of a lot bigger in the USA then he is today. If you think I care about how fast someone can do scales as a means to judge quality and ability, then you just haven't been reading enough of my posts in this section. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest PlatinumBoy Report post Posted October 8, 2004 I posted the bit about Morello up above--however he has done some acoustic stuff lately, and all the NU-METAL kids want to be like him. Notice though I said guitar player to hit the mainstream in the 90's. Besides Morello most were shit. Is this an arguement about how innovative or how good? Edited to add: Guitar solos don't make a song--insanely good guitar playing isn't needed for a good rock band. Hell, great guitar players can make shit music just as easily as anyone else. If all that mattered was your speed on the frets, than Yngwie Malmsteen would be a whole hell of a lot bigger in the USA then he is today. If you think I care about how fast someone can do scales as a means to judge quality and ability, then you just haven't been reading enough of my posts in this section. The Morello stuff there was more about the state of guitar playing today. Also the Malmsteen comment was in agreement with you..... I was saying that just because Malmsteen can play a zillion notes a second like a surgeon doesn't mean his music is better than Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, the Ramones, etc. etc. I totally agree with you that just doing scales quickly doesn't mean a guitarist is great--it means he can play quickly and is probably good at speed playing, but a solo should fit a song. A blazing fast solo in the middle of a Paul Simon song wouldn't be right, no matter how good it was. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Hot Thumbtack In The Eye 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 Tom Morello doesn't represent the state of guitar playing today in any way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corey_Lazarus 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 He's not saying that. He's saying that during the 90's, Morello stood out amongst mainstream rock guitarists because he was doing COMPLETELY different stuff. Which I'd have to agree on, as the sounds Morello can make without using synthesizers and a plethora of mixing is pretty amazing. And you know you mark out for the harmonica-like solo in "Guerilla Radio." Yes, solo's should fit the song. But they should also help fit the music. To say a solo is bad has to be judged both against the "feel" of the song and the style of music the song is in. For example, a metal song is likely to have a solo that is nuts and fast, but just because the content of the song is about, say, depression, doesn't mean the solo doesn't fit, as most metal music is nuts and fast. It's one thing to say that you don't like a guitar solo because it doesn't fit the song, but to say that the solo is bad because YOU don't like it, regardless of the fact that it fits the music? Bullshit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skullman80 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 That list is a joke... Freebird? Comfortably Numb? Anastasia(Pulling Teeth)??? ...at least get the fucking song title right... Its Anesthesia for gods sake..and its a cool ass Bass solo... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Your Paragon of Virtue 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 It's one thing to say that you don't like a guitar solo because it doesn't fit the song, but to say that the solo is bad because YOU don't like it, regardless of the fact that it fits the music? Bullshit. What if it's a bad solo fitting bad music? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corey_Lazarus 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 Then it's fitting, and can't really be a truly bad solo because it fits the BAD music. Case in point: any of the solo's on Nevermind The Bollocks. The solo's are crap, but they fit perfectly with the music. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B. Brian Brunzell 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 Did anyone actually read his main gripe with "Ace of Spades?" Just because some big tatted-up biker looking dude plays the song everytime he's in the bar does not a bad solo make. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 The lack of Smells Like Teen Spirit doesn't surprise me one bit Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B. Brian Brunzell 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 And we all know how great that solo is.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
snuffbox 0 Report post Posted October 8, 2004 I dont see any of the killer Nickleback solos on that list either Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
