The Three Most Influential Guitar Solos On Your Life.

TTBZ

Beat It, Voodoo Chile and strangely, Smooth by Santana were the 3 main things that made me want to pick up a guitar. I don't really play like any of them though. I used to say my lead style was mostly influenced by Slash and Schenker but I'm not nearly good enough any more to claim that I sound anything like them.

MagicPigDetective

Teenage Fanclub  - The Concept. One of the reasons I started playing guitar
Dinosaur Jr - Start choppin
Neil Young - Cortez the killer

lasermonkey

Ain't That Nothing- Television
 A Broken Horse- The Rain Parade
 I Need Direction- Teenage Fanclub

DesVegas

The Edge of the Green Deep Sea by The Cure - phasered fun

3 Days by Jane's Addiction - just epic

Time by The Floyd - so smooth

rustneversleeps

Not many will know this one,Bill Nelson (be-bop deluxe) song is "adventure of a Yorkshire  landscape "great long solo.Also Stevie Ray Vaughan's little wing.

Lestratcaster

Michael Jackson - Beat It (played by Eddie Van Halen obviously)
Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven
Oasis - Don't Look Back in Anger

mike_l

Ok there's 5 but they all played a part in me wanting to play guitar.

ourmaninthenorth

I've steered my ship by these bearings....

StageStruck

Since You've Been Gone - Rainbow. One of Blackmore's more melodic solos and he makes it all seem so effortless
All Right Now - Free. Probably the first solo I ever managed to play to any level of competency
Status Quo - Roadhouse Blues (from The End Of The Road '84). Not particularly highbrow, but I had this on a VHS video and the "Jig" section of the solo particularly appealed to the 10 year old me!
https://youtu.be/aqmXoK93_NY


Honorary mention for Johnny Kidd & The Pirate's Shakin' All Over as well. One of the finest guitar breaks from the early rock 'n' roll era. My dad introduced me to this one, still sounds great nearly 60 years later

hubobulous

Van Halen - Ice Cream Man

Nuno - Get the Funk Out

Satriani - Friends

......probably, with another 100 or so waiting in the wings to take the top 3 spots!

underdog

I'm more of a riff man than solos, with the one that got me going (and still does) is the main riff from Guns n roses Locomotive it's so loose yet tight and crisp at the same time.

Solos wise in no particular order

Outro on Nightrain (GnR)
Yellow ledbetter (Pearl Jam)
Red Mosquito (Pearl Jam)

builttospill

1.Bob Marley - No Woman No Cry 
2. Built To Spill - Carry The Zero (various live versions of it)
3. The Beatles - And Your Bird Can Sing

aord43

Loads, I couldn't pick a top 3 but off the top of my head and randomly:
L.A. Woman
Another Brick in the Wall Pt 2
Free Bird
Black Magic Woman
and I also concur with Go Your Own Way

EricTheWeary

builttospill said:

1.Bob Marley - No Woman No Cry 
2. Built To Spill - Carry The Zero (various live versions of it)
3. The Beatles - And Your Bird Can Sing

The solos on the studio and live versions of No Woman No Cry are by Al Anderson.* Fairly overlooked guitarist despite appearing on stage and in the studio with Bob and Peter Tosh ( Al does the solos on Tosh's Johnny Be Good which might be the most posted clip on this forum). I saw him live 12 years ago with a version of The Wailers and he became the guitarist I wanted to be, moving between strict reggae and tasteful blues. Not that I'm close :U

* Not to be confused with Al Anderson from NRBQ. 

koneguitarist

First and foremost James Burton solo on Tiger man 50's tele into BF twin I think 


also Steuart Smith on Strat, opened everybody's eyes there was more to country guitar than Albert Lee and Chet Atkins! 


and Dave Edmunds with a chuck berry solo played right! 

Grumpyrocker

Jimmy Page -  Stairway to Heaven
Adrian Smith - Stranger In a Strange Land
Gary Moore - Out in the Fields

Though I'm more someone inspired by riffs than solos. 

strumjoughlamps

My Sharona full solo, never fails to give me ickle goose bumps