Stratohacker
Tele-Afflicted
I know this is all subjective, with that said my least favorite solo in a popular song is probably the solo in Steve Miller's "Abracadabra."
Worst guitar solos in popular songs
- Thread starter edvard
- Start date
Okay, but can we really even call this a solo? This is just scratchy muting and a wah for gods sake:
TheCheapGuitarist
Tele-Afflicted
The first part of Freebird is a decent song. The last 35 minutes of it are terrible.
TheCheapGuitarist
Tele-Afflicted
I was in a band that covered Cult of Personality and for the solo I just put my left hand in the #1 blues box position for that pentatonic scale, and picked as fast as I could with my right hand while randomly moving my left fingers around in that scale. People said I played it just like him.
Novak
Tele-Meister
Ted Nugent and I disagree. That wild solo has a lot of character and rocks like Gibraltar.
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That somehow makes perfect sense.
TheCheapGuitarist
Tele-Afflicted
I always thought that Foreigner solo was bada**. Total reckless aggression. Basically everything rock and roll is supposed to be. If Ted says it rocks, it most definitely rocks.
I remembered which Queen/Brian May solo!I’m no Journey fan, BUT ……
This is Neil’s finest hour, or 30-ish seconds.
It always reminded me a little of one Brian May’s solos.
Great song, great arrangement, great solo!
Somebody To Love.
The opening notes are similar.
Both great solos!
staxman
Tele-Afflicted
I wholeheartedly agree with the consensus. Quincy Jones is alive. As a former wanna be hippie dude, I’ll go against the prevailing winds and say I think the Big Brother & the Holding Company guitar solos are so bad that they are actually good.
staxman
Tele-Afflicted
Hearing that song on the radio back in the day, I never made it to the solo before switching stations.
Hell I would also argue that MJ was more important not only than Eddie but also more important than Quincy in the success of that and many of his albums.
Well, I'm on the other side.
I was 13 when Zenyatta came out, and that solo convinced me, that the only reasonable thing to fill out my spare time with, is playing guitar solos. Am 55 now and stil going strong. Not only that, but I retired early to make my whole day spare time. That's the effect of that solo on me.
I’m no Journey fan, BUT ……
This is Neil’s finest hour, or 30-ish seconds.
It always reminded me a little of one Brian May’s solos.
Great song, great arrangement, great solo!
The plot (ever so slightly) thickens.
Both albums had the same producer, Roy Thomas Baker.
How about when Gwar did a series of pop rock covers?
Some of the solos on Styx tunes were pretty horrific, IIRC.
I mean think about, Gwar doing Styx covers?
How can that NOT be horrific?
Some of the solos on Styx tunes were pretty horrific, IIRC.
I mean think about, Gwar doing Styx covers?
How can that NOT be horrific?
You know one way that helps to judge pop rock when we who judge are mostly a buncha guitar player dudes who are past our prime, is when the music we judge as not great enough was big, was the audience a 50/50 mix of men and women all equally excited about the music?
Girls loved it and guys loved it so it seems they made pretty good choices in how they worked the room or the arena!
I suppose one could conclude that women at least appeared to enjoy the excessive guitar wankery for reasons other than musical, but I am just observing the gradual shift in improved guitar wankery technique that alienated audience members who were not specifically guitar wanker fan dudes.
TheCheapGuitarist
Tele-Afflicted
They should have hired studio session players to play the last 2 hours of that song. That would have been awesome!
TheCheapGuitarist
Tele-Afflicted
That might be an entirely different category. There are indeed some solos that were meant to sound like crap. Some are mentioned in this thread ("Abracadabra", for one). In my opinion, there should be an "intentionally crappy guitar solo" category. Because that's an art form.
THIS is my absolute No. 1 of guitar solos, where I just never know, what they were thinking ?
Starts about 2.37:
And another one, talk about overplayingCa. 2.47:
The second video wouldn’t play, But how about this take on the first—
Imagine Robert Fripp being recognized by the coffee machine in the building where it was being recorded…
After a quick chat, it is discovered by someone in this band that they both have their mini coopers serviced in the same garage…
Commiseration over cars, and Bob’s your uncle, and he’s also agreed to play on your track…
As he’s adjusting his chair, it tangles in the headphone lead, almost yanking them off, at the same time, knocking the guitar headstock, causing two strings to go out of tune…
As he’s attempting to tune, he hears the countdown to his punch-in, Figures I’ve got four strings left, I’ll find a tonal center, mucks about with that for a few, then plays a music quote mirroring his inner monologue—‘ I heard the news today, Oh boy…I shouldn’t have agreed to this, I knew this would happen’… a few more guitar meanderings and he hears ‘you’re out-Beautiful’…
This is exactly what I imagined as I heard that-in my defense it’s been raining for a couple days, and I’ve been cooped up. I gave my umbrella to a homeless person. Totally worth it!
Has anyone mentioned that display of untouchable virtuosity on that solo cut by the singer from Journey-I think Steve Perry was his name? “Oh Sheri/Cheri/Sherry” however it was spelled-‘Twas Not sweeter than Wine!
It may have been Waddy Wha? tell-eh-phoning that one in… it should be eligible for the Jeff Baxter ‘ it’s my favorite, because I made the most money’ prize!
