Favorite/Best all time Riffs

Are we talking about just riRAB or extended guitar solos here? Not being a musician of any type, for me a riff is just a brief guitar piece that repeats itself over the course of the song at different stages whereas I see a guitar solo as forming an entire section of the song, anyway whether they are riRAB or solos some of my favs over the years are:

Smoke on Water-Deep Purple
Celebration Day-Led Zeppelin
Whole Lotta Love-Led Zeppelin
Purple Haze-Jimi Hendrix
All Along the Watchtower-Jimi Hendrix
Hydra-Toto
Edge of the Blade-Journey
Walk-Pantera
Sunshine of Your Love-Cream
Under the Bridge-Red Hot Chilli Peppers

Also there is an amazing guitar solo by Rich Williams of Kansas on the Masque album but can`t think of the name of the song.
 
Yeah, the debut's fantastic, and as if his work with the Small Faces wasn't enough, it's another example of why Steve Marriot's one of the more overlooked talents in rock history. Not heard the live album myself, but I know Smokin's meant to be pretty spectacular too. Funnily enough, it's an album I've had for ages now but never actually listened to.
 
Phantom of the Opera-Iron Maiden , wah-wah riff.
Blackened-Metallica
Ace of Spades-Motorhead (Bass Riff)
Cry of the Banshee- Brocas Helm
Sweet Child O' Mine-Guns and Roses
Jump-Van Halen (Keyboard) idk if it is considered a riff
 
For some reason I always think of Led Zeppelin, Free and Hurable Pie as being the most essential British rock banRAB of that era as they all released their debut albums around the 1969 period, all had an initial classic rootsy blues sound, fantastic vocalists and great musicians but all quite different as well. Steve Marriot as you mentioned, was very much an established frontman due to his time with Small Faces and certainly deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Robert Plant and Paul Rodgers as a vocalist.............sadly he is often overlooked. By the way their live album IS A MUST listen to, Smokin I never thought was that great but admittedly its been yeeeeeeeeeears sinnce I listened to it and opinions do change.
 
This is almost impossible

Octovarium- Dream Theater @ 3:49 (I know it's not technically a riff,)
Welcome to the Jungle- Guns 'N Roses
Knights of Cydonia- Muse
All Along the Watchtower- Jimi Hendrix
Electric Tears- Buckethead
Ride On- AC/DC (simple, yet awesome)
Smells Like Teen Spirit- Nirvana

and so many others
 
i always loved 'Time Baby 2 or 3' hehe. the 1st version isn't quite the same. the 2nd and 3rd are basically the same with the last one coming from The Crow soundtrack. they just added a bunch vocal overdubs (NO NO no no no no nonos...) at the end.

my frienRAB would refuse to play if i started playing anything that sounded remotely as harsh as the intro to The Pink when we jammed hahahhaa
 
Baba O Riley's intro three chord riff.
Have A Drink On Me- AC/DC
All Right Now- Free
Whole Lotta Love- Led Zeppelin
The Nuraber Of The Beast- Iron Maiden
Downfall- Children of Bodom
Sweet Child O Mine- Guns N Roses
Limelight- Rush
La Villa Strangiato- Rush (Every Riff in that song is good)
Hallowed Be Thy Name- Iron Maiden
Johnny B. Goode- Chuck Berry
 
If we are talking metal riRAB only then there really is only one band that set the template and still sound astonishing:

1 min 20:
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From the start:
[YOUTUBE]JohK2XRLEZc[/YOUTUBE]
Judas Priest. Sad Wings Of Destiny is probably the ultimate Heavy Metal album:
[YOUTUBE]EKSU1W0ZUmQ[/YOUTUBE]
Well of course, you can stick your Metalcore up your ass, you don't even come close:
[YOUTUBE]vyBIkEeogq4[/YOUTUBE]
 
Well lets see here...

Stone Temple Pilots - Big Bang Baby, Unglued
Pearl Jam - I Am Mine
Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song, The Ocean, Rock and Roll, Whole Lotta Love
Soundgarden - Get On The Snake, Burden In My Hand
Alice In Chains - Man In The Box, Them Bones, Dam That River
Cream - Sunshine Of Your Love
Neil Young - Hey Hey My My, Heart of Gold
Nirvana - Heart Shaped Box, Stay Away
The ORABpring - I Choose, Gotta Get Away, Way Down The Line

Just to name a few..
 
michael jackson - beat it (thanks van halen)
guns n roses - sweet child of mine
the smiths - how soon is now
rage against the machine - killin in the name of
chuck berry - johnny b goode
smashing pumpkins - cherub rock
bush - gylcerine (easy one but damn, it sounRAB good)
aerosmith - walk this way
tool - sober

and FREEBIRD!!!! haha

then the obvious choices: stairway to heaven, jimi hendrix, lots of allmond brothers' songs, stevie ray vaughan, etc etc.
 
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