The 100 Best Guitar Solos Ever

By uDiscover Team  

February 10, 2017

Everyone loves a guitar solo – whether it’s a driving riff, a display of technical mastery, or an instrumental passage that just seems to sum life up. The best guitar solos often make a song complete and, more often than not, transcend the track entirely.
Trouble is, there are so many to choose from: old and slick, newer and trickier. So, we’ve pulled together a list of candidates for the top 100 guitar solos, as unleashed by the world’s finest axe-wielding heroes. If you think you have any better ones, now is your chance to enter the debate…
100: David Bowie: ‘The Width Of A Circle’ (from The Man Who Sold The World, 1970)
99: Stephen Stills: ‘Go Back Home’ (from Stephen Stills, 1970)
98: Quicksilver Messenger Service: ‘Who Do You Love?’ (from Happy Trails, 1969)
97: Led Zeppelin: ‘Heartbreaker’ (From Led Zeppelin II, 1969)
96: Steely Dan: ‘King Of The World’ (from Countdown To Ecstasy, 1973)
95: Neil Young: ‘When You Dance I Can Really Love’ (from After The Gold Rush, 1970)
94: Rage Against The Machine: ‘Take The Power Back’ (from Rage Against The Machine, 1992)
93: The White Stripes: ‘Black Math’ (from Elephant, 2003)
92: Red Hot Chili Peppers: ‘Californication’ (from Californication, 2000)
91: The Rolling Stones: ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking?’ (from Sticky Fingers, 1971)
90: Supergrass: ‘Richard III’ (from In It For The Money, 1997)
89: Black Sabbath: ‘Iron Man’ (from Paranoid, 1971)
88: Steve Miller Band: ‘Kow Kow’ (from Brave New World, 1969)
87: Blue Cheer: ‘Parchment Farm’ (from Vincebus Eruptum, 1968)
86: Mick Jagger: ‘Memo From Turner’ (from Performance, 1970)
83: Jeff Beck Group: ‘I Ain’t Superstitious; (from Truth, 1968)
82: John Mayer: ‘Gravity’ (from Continuum, 2006)
81: George Harrison: ‘Awaiting On You All’ (from All Things Must Pass, 1970)
80: Moby Grape: ‘Omaha’ (from Moby Grape, 1967)
79: Jefferson Airplane: ‘Spare Chaynge’ (from After Bathing At Baxter’s, 1967)
78: The Beach Boys: ‘Steamboat’ (from Holland, 1973)
77: Love: ‘The Red Telephone’ (from Forever Changes, 1967)
76: ZZ Top: ‘La Grange’ (from Tres Hombres, 1973)
75: T-Bone Walker: ‘Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just As Bad)’ (single A-side, 1947)
74: Sam & Dave: ‘Soul Man’ (from Soul Men, 1967)
73: Grateful Dead: ‘Slipknot!’ (from Blues For Allah, 1975)
72: The Who: ‘I Can See For Miles’ (from The Who Sell Out, 1967)
71: Santana: ‘Just In Time To See The Sun’ (from Caravanserai, 1972)
70: The Butterfield Blues Band: ‘East-West’ (from East-West, 1966)
69: Fleetwood Mac: ‘Man Of The World’ (single A-side, 1969)
68: U2: ‘New Year’s Day’ (from War, 1983)
67: Mountain: ‘Nantucket Sleighride’ (from Nantucket Sleighride, 1971)
66: Status Quo: ‘Paper Plane’ (from Piledriver, 1972)
65: Dick Dale: ‘Let’s Go Trippin’ (from Surfer’s Choice, 1961)
64: Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers: ‘Breakdown’ (from Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, 1977)
63: John Lee Hooker And Canned Heat: ‘Boogie Chillen No.2’ (from Hooker ’N Heat, 1971)
62: Canned Heat: ‘Going Up The Country’ (from Living The Blues, 1968)
61: Joe Walsh: ‘Rocky Mountain Way’ (from The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get, 1973)
60: The Isley Brothers: ‘Summer Breeze’ (from Summer Breeze, 1972)
59: The Allman Brothers Band: ‘In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed’ (from At Fillmore East, 1971)
58: Queen: ‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’ (from Queen II, 1974)
57: Camel: ‘Ice’ (from I Can See Your House From Here, 1979)
56: The Kinks: ‘You Really Got Me’ (from Kinks, 1964)
55: Stevie Ray Vaughan: ‘Texas Flood’ (from Texas Flood, 1983)
54: The Strokes: ‘You Only Live Once’ (from Impressions Of Earth, 2006)
53: Kings Of Leon: ‘Molly’s Chambers’ (from Youth & Young Manhood, 2003)
52: Rage Against The Machine: ‘Guerilla Radio’ (from The Battle Of Los Angeles, 1999)
51: Jimi Hendrix: ‘Little Wing’ (from Axis: Bold As Love, 1967)
50: Deep Purple: ‘Highway Star’ (from Machine Head, 1972)
Fifty down, so here are the uDiscover top 50 best guitar solos...
49: The Yardbirds: ‘Heart Full Of Soul’ (single A-side, 1965)
48: The Rolling Stones: ‘Sway’ (from Sticky Fingers, 1971)
47: Fleetwood Mac: ‘Albatross’ (single A-side, 1968)
46: George Harrison: ‘What Is Life’ (from All Things Must Pass, 1970)
45: Quicksilver Messenger Service: ‘Calvary’ (from Happy Trails, 1969)
44: The Charlatans: ‘Alabama Bound’ (from The Charlatans, 1969)
43: The Beach Boys: ‘Do It Again’ (from 20/20, 1968)
42: The Beatles: ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ (from A Hard Day’s Night, 1964)
41: Small Faces: ‘Itchycoo Park’ (single A-side, 1967)
40: Bert Jansch: ‘Reynardine’ (from Rosemary Lane, 1972)
39: Willie Nelson: ‘Whiskey River’ (from Whiskey River, 1972)
38: Metallica: ‘Diosposable Heroes’ (from Master Of Puppets, 1986)
37: The Kinks: ‘Sunny Afternoon’ (from Face To Face, 1966)
36: Grateful Dead: ‘Unbroken Chain’ (from From The Mars Hotel, 1974)
35: Frank Zappa: ‘In-A-Gadda-Stravinsky’ (from Guitar, 1988)
34: Radiohead: ‘Paranoid Android’ (from OK Computer, 1997)
33: Michael Jackson: ‘Beat It’ (from Thriller, 1982)
32: Pearl Jam: ‘Even Flow’ (from Ten, 1985)
31: Blue Öyster Cult: ‘(Don’t Fear) The Reaper’ (from Agents Of Fortune, 1976)
30: The Doors: ‘Light My Fire’ (from The Doors, 1967)
29: Television: ‘Marquee Moon’ (from Marquee Moon, 1977)
28: The Allman Brothers Band: ‘Statesboro Blues’ (from At Fillmore East, 1971)
27: Queen: ‘Killer Queen’ (from Sheer Heart Attack, 1974)
26: The Beatles: ‘Taxman’ (from Revolver, 1966)
25: Deep Purple: ‘Smoke On The Water’ (from Machine Head, 1972)
24: Neil Young: ‘Southern Man’ (from After The Gold Rush, 1970)
23: Rory Gallagher: ‘Messin’ With The Kid’ (from Live In Europe, 1972)
22: Cream: ‘White Room’ (from Wheels Of Fire, 1968)
21: Pink Floyd: ‘Comfortably Numb’ (from The Wall, 1979)
20: Dire Straits: ‘Sultans Of Swing’ (from Dire Straits, 1978)
19: Van Halen: ‘Eruption’ (from Van Halen, 1978)
18: The Jimi Hendrix Experience: ‘Purple Haze’ (single A-side, 1967)
17: The Velvet Underground: ‘Sister Ray’ (from White Light/White Heat, 1968)
16: Free: ‘All Right Now’ (from Fire And Water, 1970)
15: Derek & The Dominos: ‘Layla’ (from Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs, 1970)
14: Temple Of The Dog: ‘Reach Down’ (from Temple Of The Dog, 1991)
13: Lynyrd Skynyrd: ‘Free Bird’ (from Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd, 1973)
12: Eagles: ‘Hotel California’ (from Hotel California, 1977)
11: Pink Floyd: ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’ (from Wish You Were Here, 1975)
We're finally here - here are our top 10 best guitar solos...
10: Nirvana: ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ (from Nevermind, 1991)
9: Cream: ‘Crossroads’ (from Wheels Of Fire, 1968)
8: The Rolling Stones: ‘Sympathy For The Devil’ (from Beggars Banquet, 1968)
7: The Who: ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ (from Who’s Next, 1971)
6: Prince: ‘Purple Rain’ (from Purple Rain, 1984)
5: Guns N’ Roses: ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine (from Appetite For Destruction, 1987)
4: The Jimi Hendrix Experience: ‘Voodoo Child (Slight Return)’ (from Electric Ladyland, 1968)
3: Led Zeppelin: ‘Stairway To Heaven’ (from Led Zeppelin IV, 1971)
2: Queen: ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ from A Night At The Opera, 1975)
Drum roll... the uDiscover Best Guitar Solos no.1 is...
1: The Beatles: ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ (from The Beatles, 1968)
For more classics to play air guitar to, follow the Rock Heroes playlist.
So, there is our list of the top 100 guitar solos. If you think you know some more, now is your chance to enter the debate. Write them in the comments below and see if you can change our minds!