Guitar World: 100 best solos

Got here late, so most of what I wanted to say re: Lifeson has been covered.
One solo of his that I really like and I believe he has said it's his favorite to play is in Limelight.
It's a little weird with the bending notes, but cool.

 

Huggy, I think you and I could have a few beers together.

 

I hate what Aerosmith has become, but the entire Rocks album has some of the best hard rock guitar ever put on record. Both Joe Perry and Brad Whitford are amazing on that record.

Paul Kossoff has some amazing stuff in some of Free's songs.

And its not really a solo, but Clapton's playing over the last verse of Presence Of The Lord is maybe the most beautiful music I've ever heard.

 

Sirs, Madames,

Listened to Badge again tonight. It's not more than three or four bars but I'm still calling it a solo and it's still transcendent.

YHS, etc

 

Clive baby... if you're going to lie get your time line correct. The Ahmanson Theater show was May 1, 1973 (with Bruce as the first of three acts that night - opening for Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show who were opening for headliner New Riders of the Purple Sage.
The Bottom Line shows right before the release of Born to Run were Aug. 13-17, 1975, two years later. He did play the Bottom Line July 12-14, 1974 though.

Plus he was playing bigger venues (as an opening act) and blowing crowds away before that show... April 28, 1973 at Cole Field House in Maryland, after serving as the opening act and watching Jerry Lee Lewis' set, Bruce & the E Street Band returned to the stage to serve as Chuck Berry's backing band for the night. April 11, 1973 he played the Omin Collesium in Atlanta opening for the Beach Boys. March 2, 1973 played the Community Theater in Berkley, Ca. opening for Blood,Sweat & Tears. April 27, 1973 at Ohio University's Convocation Center as part of a nine-band lineup featuring The Eagles as the headliner. In looking back on the show Don Henley said '"I'd first heard about Springsteen from Jackson (Browne), who raved about him. Then we ended up on the same bill as Bruce at a festival out in Ohio. So I sort of wandered in alone and checked out his set. He was just a warm-up act at that this show. After watching him I remember thinking to myself that this was a guy that wasn't gonna be warming up the crowd for us - or for anybody - for very long."

So try to tell your version of revisionist music history Clive... nobody's buying it.


My source for all those concert tidbits in the invaluable resource Brucebase:
http://www.brucebase.org.uk/gig1973.htm

 

Gov't Mule covered Presence of the Lord the last time I saw them in concert. Me and my brother looked at each other with that "Holy shit, I can't believe they played this song" look, while all the kids making up the majority of the crowd who had been flopping around (dancing I guess they call it) all night stopped with this puzzled look on their faces. They had no clue. Priceless.

Edit: I can't believe I'm referring to 20-somethings as kids. I guess I really am turning 35 in three days.

 

Or dancing as "flopping around," for that matter.
The wah-wah burst before the last verse on POTL is a solo, and it's damn good.

 

The live version of Badge on the Rainbow album is solid. Saw an interview with Clapton where he said Ringo wrote the Mabel verse.

Yvonne Elliman from POTL had an interesting career arc. JC Superstar, EC and a Bee Gees type hit I can't remember the title of, and then she seemed to disappear.

 

Three more I cam across on the iPod today:

David Lindley's slide solo on "Mercury Blues"

Johnny Ramone's solo (not that he was noted for them) consisting of 36 notes, all the same (accoring to Rolling Stone), on "I Wanna be Sedated"

EVH - "Everybody Wants Some"

 

"If I Can't Have You"

....I don't want nobody, baby...

Written and originally recorded by the Bros Gibb and then produced by them for Elliman, as well as released by their record label, RSO. Which is why it is indeed a Bee Gees-type hit.

 

Here's some vids to go with the solos.


http://cityrag.blogs.com/main/2007/01/100_greatest_gu.html

 

Decent list.

I'm glad three Allman Brothers tunes are in there, but to omit "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed," and include "Jessica" as well as "Blue Sky" AHEAD of "Whipping Post," well, it's obviously flawed in my book.

Also glad to see Slash get his props for November Rain. And long live Stevie Ray.