Guitar World has released its list of 100 greatest guitar solos. Surprise! The list is actually quite good. Alas, it's not my list, which I provide below, and it's not your list, which you will kindly provide in the comments section.

10. Estranged, Slash...GNR went bad with the ballads, but this is the best of the bunch.
9. Purple Rain, Prince...this one helped The Kid win the battle of the bands against Morris Day and the Time.
8. Johnny B. Good, Chuck Berry...he's the guy who started it all.
7. Freebird, Gary Rossington/Allen Collins...there's a reason people call out for this song.
6. Voodoo Chile, Jimi Hendrix...late-version Hulkster used to enter the ring to this.
5. Sultans of Swing, Mark Knopfler...the man has fast fingers.
4. The End, Paul, George, John...it's pretty easy to guess which solo belongs to which guitarist.
3. Stranglehold, Ted Nugent...appropriately titled, as the song inspires unstable people to commit violent acts.
2. Comfortably Numb, David Gilmour...he used to do this one live, above the wall, with light silhouetting him from behind.
1. Stairway to Heaven, Jimmy Page...about 5:56 of the studio version comes the greatest sound ever recorded, until 46 seconds later.

Top 5 (cuz I'm lazy)

5. Wait in Vain - Bob Marley. Guitarist is Junior Marvin. Short 'n sweet.
4. In Memory of Elizabeth Reed - Allman Brothers on the album 2nd Set. This is the acoustic solo by Dickie Betts.
3. It Must Have Been the Roses - The Grateful Dead. Jerry Garcia, acoustic and live from the album Reckoning.
2. Oy Como Va - Santana from the album Abraxas.
1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part V - Pink Floyd from Wish You Were Here. Really is there anyone better than David Gilmour?

And hey Buttnut! These are Jam Bands. Open up your freakin' ears, jackass.

Sorry, should have been Part VI, not Part V.

5. back in black ac/dc
4. no one like you scorpions
3. beat it- eruption van halen
2. bad boy boogie live ac/dc
1. my sharona the knack

as a guitar player, and not to good i must add, these are off the top of my head. there are so many good solos out there you cant rate them.

Pretty good list but... Any list that doesn't have Clapton is flawed. I would submit Little Wing by Derek and the Dominoes in place of Estranged. As for Led Zeppelin they could have 5 or 6 songs here. Two alternatives are Bring it on home and Ten Years Gone. The Stones have had as many lead guitarists as Spinal tap has had drummers but Mick Taylor had a number of great solos, particularly on Goats Head Soup. Dave Davies could make the list for a number of songs as could SRV. The intro solo on Mdern Love by Bowie is his.

I know it is like standing in front of Niagra Falls and telling it to stop running, but I suggest someone who plays the guitar instead of beating it to death... Christopher Parkening, "A Tribute to Segovia." And I did hear Segovia, once, who sat at center stage alone and played for us.

Guido

You get into a guitar discussion, and someone always pulls Segovia out. Or (on the rock side)Malmsteen. Or Vai. Or the other technical players. Personally, while I have no beef with anyone that adores these guys, I just don't get it. I'd much rather hear the heartfelt, pure emotion of a Gilmour solo (I can't see anyone arguing the man's talent), or the effects-driven mastery of The Edge, etc. The mastery of the technique is great, but the simple pentatonic solo in a BB King song is more likely to move me.

Of course, I'm completely without taste.

Here's three more that should make any list:

Tom Fogerty (CCR) "Heard It Through The Grapevine

Eric Clapton in the Beatles' "As My Guitar Gently Weeps."

Stevie Ray Vaughn in "Texas Flood"

1. Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band - Tin Pan Alley
2. Eddie Hazel (Funkadelic) - Maggot Brain
3. John McLaughlin (Miles Davis) - New York Girl
4. Roger Troutman (Zapp and Roger) - Do It Roger
5. Larry Carlton (Steely Dan) - Kid Charlemange
6. Marc Ribot (Medeski, Martin, and Wood) - Worms
7. Duane Allman - Statesboro Blues
8. Neil Young - Down By The River
9. John Fahey - Knoxville Blues
10. And last but not least someone I've never heard of

The Edge is not a great guitarist. But he's a decent musician that fits U2's eclectic style perfectly.

One forgotten golden oldie and arguably one of the greatest and fastest guitar based numbers would be “Going Home” featuring Alvin Lee and Ten Years After at Woodstock. Killer!

I don't believe in formally rating anything musical but here are some of my favorites:

Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin - I wonder how many people were inspired to pick up guitar after hearing this solo break.

Eruption, Van Halen - Could substitute “Ice Cream Man” or “I’m The One”. EVH at his fire breathing best. Eddie Van Halen revolutionized the art of lead guitar as much as Hendrix.

Race With The Devil On Spanish Highway, Al Dimeola - The epitome of passion and virtuosity.

Maggot Brain, P-Funk - The late Eddie Hazel: a legend in musical circles, virtually unknown outside of them. This solo is perfect.

Pigs, Pink Floyd - David Gilmore makes great use of the voice box for the solo break, then really cuts loose as song fades out.

Still Alive and Well, Johnny Winter - Stellar from beginning to end. Every note this guy plays just seems to jump off the fretboard.

Machine Gun, Jimi Hendrix - Consider that this piece of music was almost completely improvised.

Goodbye Pork Pie Hat, Jeff Beck - Beck’s phrasing is perfect on this cover of the Charlie Mingus masterpiece.

School Days, Stanley Clarke - Yeah, I know he’s a bass player but this solo is as guitar-esque, in the solo sense, as you can possibly get.

Under A Glass Moon, Dream Theater - Attitude and Aptitude, John Petrucci is so good it’s scary.

Anything by Allan Holdsworth - Holdsworth is in a category all by himself.

Little Wing, Stevie Ray Vaughn - I’ve always felt that SRV’s guitar style was a bit too derivative of Hendrix but it doesn’t get any better than this.

Watermelon in Easter Hay, Frank Zappa - I brilliant example of Zappa’s “Instant Composition”.

Les Brers in A Minor, Allman Brothers - Great solos, cool jazz phrasing toward end of song. Duane Allman was heavily influenced by Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue” and it really shows on this song.

That was the thinking man's list AM. Well done.

Agree on the SRV cover of Little Wing. Though, I take slight issue with SRV being derivative of Hendrix. SRV himself would agree if that if he was trying to channel anyone it was Albert King. SRVs signature riffs, in many cases, are actually note-for-note Albert King signature riffs.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Nothing at all, Homer. I think you could point out some Johnny Copeland, Wes Montgomery and Eric Clapton as well. But my ears tell me, especially in his chordal play, that SRV's biggest influence was Hendrix. I'm not trying to be critical of that influence but I always wanted to see SRV step out in a slightly different direction riff and melody wise. His feel for the instrument was beautiful and I think we probably missed, by virtue of his early death, his best music. I also feel the same about Hendrix.

Just my opinion, I’ve been known to be wrong.

Can't take any solo list seriously that does not contain a single solo by Steve Hackett.

Sorry I took so long, Mariner, to respond. I concede what your ear tells you, it's just that SRV cites AK as his greatest influence. And, being a big fan of both, when I listen to SRV I hear AK with a Fender and a Marshall Tube. That's just me. But don't get me wrong, I love 'em both, and it's cool.

What is NOT cool, is the lame Santana imitation that came to be called Trey Anistasio. Maybe it's just me, but as the years went on, he sounded more and more like a Santana cover band.

To Homer and AM

I'm just wondering if either of you have heard Melvin Taylor, I gave him the number 1 on my list (perhaps a bit undeserved) but the guy can wail. He's definitely straight out of the Hendrix/SRV school, but well anyway, I was just wondering if you guys had heard of him.

Here is his site: http://www.slackband.com/

By the by, nice list AM

r.c.

I haven't heard of Melvin Taylor, but I went to his website. When I saw the picture on the site, I was thinking he looked really familiar. I actually think I had breakfast next to this guy at a hotel in Paris. He, or someone who looked a lot like him, was playing in a Chicago blues band for the few nights I was there. I really think it was him.

Hey Homer, that's pretty cool.
From what I hear it sounds like it was him, I don't know how many Chicago blues men frequent Europe, but he is certainly one of them. I'm jealous.

r.c.

R.C.:
Familiar with him by name although I can't say I'm real familiar with his work. I'm going to check him out this weekend if I can. Thanks for the heads up, I'm always looking for cool music to listen to.
Speaking of blusey guitarists, has anyone here heard of Joe Bonamassa? Great guitarist and a hell of a nice guy.

Sea King:
You're right, Steve Hackett is a masterful guitarist. Interested to see what you're list of favorite solos would be.

Cheers!
AM

I'm with you on Purple Rain and Comfortably Numb. As for my other 8, in no particular order:

8. Cortez the Killer (Live) - Neil Young (from Weld)
7. Vamos (Live) - Joey Santiago
6. Since I've Been Loving You - Jimmy Page
5. Warehouse (Live) - Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
4. Five Long Years - Eric Clapton
3. Three Days - Jane's Addiction
2. I'm in the Mood - Bonnie Raitt
1. A Love Supreme - John McLaughlin

Mariner,

I've heard guitarists cite his solo in Firth of Fifth called one of the greatest guitar solos ever. Although almost any guitar player could have done that solo, it's Steve's feel for the unusual note that make hairs raise on my arms.

Also jaw-dropping on first listen was the solo from the poppish Ripples off of Trick of the Tail.

But when I was thinking about it, I considered that what actually hurts Hackett in this vein is that he doesn't, for the most part, solo. Also he doesn't indulge in a whole lot of shred, and most of his speed riffs go as quickly as they start. And some of his songs are simply performed on guitar ( Ace of Wands--one of my favorites--being an example)

I think of Fly on the Windshield and Supernatural Anesthetist in this category. Actually, it is SA which I think is one of the most interesting pieces he's ever done: a tuneful, rhythmic jam at the beginning, and then fading away into Hackett-ish abstract stuff that sounds a lot more like the solo Hackett.

Not to make it sound like he did great work only with Genesis, some of my favorites solos since Camino Royale, The Air-Conditioned Nightmare, Vampyre with a Healthy Appetite, Omega Metallicus and most of his electric work off of Wild Orchids--which I think is as good as any album he's ever done.

That said, I've also considered that his guest solo on 12 off of Neal Morse's ? album might rival any solo he's ever done. But then again I guess his entire catalog is all too obscure. Great (even in his low of the 80s and 90s), but obscure, and not likely to appear on a whole lot of lists. I'm pretty sure that Brian May would find some place on a list of 100 to put Hackett, but that doesn't mean everybody would.