100 Greatest Guitar Riffs (BBC Radio 2)

Whole Lotta Jimmy

Ready for some good classic rock?

BBC Radio 2 summoned a panel of guitar music experts, Radio 2 presenters, music critics and record producers to pick the 100 guitar riffs. Then it asked listeners to vote them. The resulting chart is in the playlist below, filled with rock kaisers like Led Zeppelin, Guns n'Roses, Deep Purple, Jimi Hendrix, Metallica, Nirvana, along with oldies (Eddie Cochrane, Duane Eddy, Chuck Berry) and youngsters (Arctic Monkeys, Black Keys). Just 3 songs (by AC/DC, The Beatles and Joan Jett) are not available on Spotify.

Turn your volume up and enjoy!

Previously on the BBC side of Spotirama

BBC6 New Music Playlist (weekly updated)

Top 40 Britpop Anthems according to BBC6 Radio Listeners

BBC Sound of 2014

100 GREATEST GUITAR RIFFS

(BBC Radio 2, from #1 to #100)

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Full list

Strikethrough tracks (3/100) are not available on Spotify. Some tracks may be not available in all countries.

1. Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love
2. Guns n'Roses - Sweet Child O’ Mine
3. AC/DC - Back In Black 
4. Deep Purple - Smoke On The Water
5. Derek and the Dominoes - Layla
6. The Smiths - How Soon Is Now?
7. Status Quo - Down Down
8. Dire Straits - Money For Nothing
9. The Kinks - You Really Got Me
10. Pink Floyd - Money
11. David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
12. The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Purple Haze
13. Manic Street Preachers - Motorcycle Emptiness
14. T. Rex - 20th Century Boy
15. Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know?
16. Metallica - Enter Sandman
17. Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode
18. Rush - The Spirit Of Radio
19. Bon Jovi - Livin’ On A Prayer
20. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
21. Free - All Right Now
22. Fleetwood Mac - Oh Well
23. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama
24. Cream - Sunshine Of Your Love
25. The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army
26. Black Sabbath - Paranoid
27. The Rolling Stones - I Can’t Get No (Satisfaction)
28. The Beatles - Day Tripper 
29. Ocean Colour Scene - The Riverboat Song
30. Pearl Jam - Alive
31. Queen - One Vision
32. The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary
33. Sex Pistols - Pretty Vacant
34. Blue Oyster Cult - Don’t Fear The Reaper
35. Radiohead - No Surprises
36. Focus - Hocus Pocus
37. Oasis - Cigarettes & Alcohol
38. Queens of the Stone Age - No One Knows
39. The Who - I Can’t Explain
40. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Under The Bridge
41. Van Halen - Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love
42. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
43. The Stone Roses - Fools Gold
44. The Shadows - Apache
45. Bryan Adams - Run To You
46. Faces - Stay With Me
47. Blondie - Atomic
48. Eagles - Life In The Fast Lane
49. Dr. Feelgood - Milk & Alcohol
50. Soundgarden - Spoonman
51. The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go
52. Rage Against the Machine - Killing in The Name
53. Michael Jackson - Beat It
54. Thin Lizzy - Don’t Believe A Word
55. Aerosmith feat. RUN-D.M.C. - Walk This Way
56. ZZ Top - Sharp Dressed Man
57. Muddy Waters - Mannish Boy
58. Duane Eddy - Peter Gunn
59. Chic - Good Times
60. Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out
61. Dick Dale - Misirlou
62. Blur - Song 2
63. Television - Marquee Moon
64. Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way
65. INXS - Need You Tonight
66. U2 - Pride (In The Name Of Love)
67. Johnny Kidd & The Pirates - Shakin’ All Over
68. Isaac Hayes - Theme From Shaft
69. The La’s - There She Goes
70. The Cure - Boys Don’t Cry
71. Roy Orbison - Oh, Pretty Woman
72. The Police - Every Breath You Take
73. Link Wray - Rumble
74. Sweet - Block Buster!
75. The Knack - My Sharona
76. Edwyn Collins - A Girl Like You (live)
77. Tom Petty - Runnin’ Down A Dream
78. The Breeders - Cannonball
79. Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild
80. Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll 
81. John Lee Hooker - Boom Boom
82. Rainbow - Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll
83. Bo Diddley – Bo Diddley
84. Buddy Holly - Words of Love
85. The Byrds - Mr Tambourine Man
86. The Isley Brothers - That Lady
87. Survivor - Eye Of The Tiger
88. Electric Light Orchestra - Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
89. Eddie Cochran - C’mon Everybody
90. Foo Fighters - Wheels
91. R.E.M. - The One I Love
92. Earth, Wind & Fire - September
93. Black Keys - Lonely Boy
94. John Mellencamp - Jack & Diane
95. The Dandy Warhols - Bohemian Like You
96. Primal Scream - Rocks
97. Jet - Are You Gonna Be My Girl
98. Beck - Loser
99. EMF - Unbelievable
100. Daft Punk - Get Lucky

Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time (on Spotify)

An inconvenient truth: I can't play guitar. In fifteen years of lazy training I just learned some chords, some easy old grunge riffs, the Come As You Are (unplugged in New York) solo and little more. Instead, here you'll find a Spotify playlist of guys who do know how to play the six-strings lady. It's based on the recent Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time chart, it's almost complete (just three masters - Frank, Angus & John - painfully missing) and for each artist I tried to choose a song with a strong guitar aura (if you have better suggestions, please, you're welcome!). Enjoy.

Gibson.com original links:
Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time - 50-41
Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time - 40-31
Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time - 30-21
Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time - 20-11
Gibson.com Top 50 Guitarists of All Time - 10-1

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Follow Spotirama on Twitter and Facebook

  Follow @spotirama


The Playlist
(47 out of 50, 94%, about 3 hours)

49. (tie) Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple – Smoke On The Water)
49. (tie) Kurt Cobain (Nirvana – Smells Like Teen Spirit)
47. (tie) Robert Fripp (David Bowie – Heroes)
47. (tie) Andres Segovia (Recuerdos De La Alhambra)
42. (tie) Hubert Sumlin (Howlin' Wolf – Spoonful)
42. (tie) Clarence White (The Byrds – Nashville West (live))
42. (tie) Rory Gallagher (What's Going On)
42. (tie) John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers – Higher Ground)
42. (tie) Richard Thompson (Persuasion)
41. David Gilmour (Comfortably Numb (live In Gdansk))
40. Steve Jones (Sex Pistols – God Save The Queen)
39. Frank Zappa (missing!)
38. Lou Reed (Dirty Blvd.)
36. (tie) Mike Campbell (Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Jammin' Me)
36. (tie) Charlie Christian (Wholly Cats)
35. Buddy Guy (First Time I Met The Blues)
34. Slash (Guns N' Roses – Sweet Child O' Mine)
33. Scotty Moore (Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock)
32. Ry Cooder (Paris, Texas)
31. Bo Diddley (Who Do You Love?)
30. Roy Buchanan (Sweet Dreams)
29. Duane Allman (Derek & The Dominos – Little Wing)
28. Ed O'Brien & Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead – Just)
27. Danny Gatton (Pretty Blue)
26. Neil Young (Cinnamon Girl) 
25. Angus Young (missing!)
24. Ron Asheton (The Stooges – I Wanna Be Your Dog)
23. The Edge (U2 – The Fly)
22. Les Paul (Caravan)
21. Johnny Marr (The Smiths – This Charming Man)
20. Django Reinhardt (Minor Swing)
19. Mick Ronson (David Bowie – Moonage Daydream)
18. Wes Montgomery (Four On Six)
17. B.B. King (The Thrill Is Gone)
16. Mike Bloomfield (The Paul Butterfield Blues Band – East-West)
15. Steve Cropper (Otis Redding – [Sittin' On] The Dock Of The Bay)
14. Prince (When Doves Cry)
13. Jack White (The White Stripes – The Hardest Button To Button)
12. Stevie Ray Vaughan (Pride and Joy)
11. George Harrison (missing!)
10. Peter Townshend (The Who – My Generation)
9. Robert Johnson (Love In Vain)
8. Chet Atkins (Yakety Axe)
7. Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen – Eruption)
6. Jeff Beck (Beck's Bolero)
5. Chuck Berry (Johnny B. Goode)
4. Eric Clapton (Layla)
3. Keith Richards (The Rolling Stones – Brown Sugar)
2. Jimmy Page (Jimmy Page & Robert Plant - Since I've Been Loving You)
1. Jimi Hendrix (Jimi Hendrix Experience – Star Spangled Banner (live At Woodstock))

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI. (SR0177)