Any pop songs with great solos?

Creed_Clicks

Van Halen “Jump” and most of the Queen stuff that were singles. That was pop music in the 80s!

Dan_Halen

Creed_Clicks said:

Van Halen “Jump” and most of the Queen stuff that were singles. That was pop music in the 80s!

I mean yeah but it’s obviously not the point I was interested in songs where it’s not standard guitar canon then a cracking solo appears out of nowhere. Loads of great examples already for me to go listen to. Not just shifting the goalposts a bit in order to list all the usual stuff like Jump.

What is this Comfortably Numb I hear spoken of?

Philly_Q

Dan_Halen said:

Bon Jovi, Dire Straits, Guns and Roses, Cream… !?!? Argh!!!!

Not to mention those happy-go-lucky popsters The Allman Brothers Band.

Bennyboy-UK

I might break this thread - this topic is pretty much EVERYTHING search out  listen to

Here are some of my favourites - hopefully some new ones for you guys to enjoy!

Michael Bolton - How am I Supposed to Live with out you. (Solo at 2:40 - Michael Landau)



Michael Bolton - Its only my Heart (Solo at 2:50 - Steve Lukather)



Michael Bolton - You Wouldnt Know Love - (Solo at 2:10 - Michael Landau)



Tim Feehan - Look Before you Leap (Solo at 3:05 - Steve Lukather)



Olivia Newton-John - Queen of the Publication (Solo at 2:40 - Steve Lukather)



Richard Marx - Angelina (Solo at 2:55 - Michael Landau)



Richard Marx - Have Mercy (Solo at 2:20 - Michael Landau)



B.J Thomas - Half A Heart (Solo at 2:17 - Dann Huff)



Phil Collins - Easy Lover (Solo at 3:00 Daryl Sturmer)



Mari Hamada - With All My Love (Solo at aroun d 3:00 - Michael Landau)



Mari Hamada - Paradox (Solo at 2:50 - Michael Landau)



Anri -レディの決意はダイヤモンドより硬い (Solo at 3:25 - Micahel Landau)

Sheena Easton - Double Standard (Solo 2:15 at Steve Lukather)



Shania Twain - Man I Feel Like a Woman (Solo at 2:25 Dann Huff)



Robert Plant - Addicted to Love (Extended Solo with extra Jazz at 2:50 Eddie Martinez - who played on the record using is Custom Order Hamer SS1)



Mari Hamada - Tomorrow (Solo at 3:00 Michael Landau)



Randy Newman - I Love LA (Solo 3:00 at Steve Lukather)



Janet Jackson - Black Cat (Solo 3:05 at Steve Lukather)




Mari Lijama - Take it Easy (Solo at 2:55 Steve Lukather)



Whitney Houston - Queen of the Night (Solo at 1.54 - not sure if its Vernon Reid or



Whitney Houston - So Emotional - (Solo at 2:30 - Corrado Rustici



Lional Richie - Dancing on the Ceiling (Solo 2:20 at Carlos Rios)




.....that'll do for now - I havent even got onto Cher yet!

Philly_Q

It's like the last 40 years never happened....

richardhomer

Best Friend’s Girl - The Cars

viz

Nik Kershaw - Roses

https://youtu.be/Qgz1V4PDDM0?si=zVNUL0WNX0s1yZ97

Dan_Halen

LPManic said:

You see I can play any rock or indie or classic rock solo - but I find sitting down and learning classic pop guitar solos much much more interesting. 

I would be quite cheeky (if someone hasn't said it already) and say any Richie Sambora solo on a Bon Jovi track. Bon Jon was always more pop than rock. Sambora has some AMAZING solos.

You get a massive Wis for the bit about learning pop solos more interesting... then immediately lose that Wis for mentioning Richie Sambora :-D

Sambora is probably my favourite guitarist (nice playing topdog!) and a master of the solo break but Bon Jovi?? Can't have it I'm afraid!

But yeah, I do get the point about "pop" solos being interesting to learn hence me asking about them. Most of the usual stuff in a list of Best solos evah... get your fingers into your  favourite blues/minor pentatonic shapes and figure out a lot of it from there. But those solos on the, er, pop-ier side of things often feel like they're using more arpeggios, chord tones, really outlining the changes and leaning on interesting notes. Appreciate that's a couple of very broad brushstrokes and predictably will be a million examples doing the opposite, Brian May being a glaring example of someone in a guitar/rock band who really shows an understanding of what the music underneath him is doing and how to get the most out of it. But don't want to go derailing my own thread by going down that rabbit hole

flying_pie

This far and we've not mentioned SRV's solo for China Girl by David Bowie

flying_pie

Dave Navarro for Christina Aguilera



And who would expect a great solo in a Backstreet Boys song. No idea who plays this, and it's criminally low in the mix, but rips starting at 2 mins 19secs

Ddigger

Bennyboy-UK said:

I might break this thread - this topic is pretty much EVERYTHING search out  listen to

Here are some of my favourites - hopefully some new ones for you guys to enjoy!

Good job Bennyboy - great to see someone trying to address an OPs query for a change!

I have to say, in a Venn diagram of 1980s music - you are I are in completely different Venn diagrams.

Lots of Steve Lukather cropping up.

I seem to remember a recent post where someone said that apart from EVH's solo in Beat It, there wasn't much guitar in the song - completely ignoring the fact that the whole song based on the riffs Lukather came up with!

And I was under the impression this was a guitar forum.

Dan_Halen

And who would expect a great solo in a Backstreet Boys song. No idea who plays this, and it's criminally low in the mix, but rips starting at 2 mins 19secs

Haha, that guys giving it the full beans playing the solo of his life, then the track gets mixed presumably by a drummer!

LordBucketHead

There a nice solo on Tasmin Archer's Sleeping Satellite. It's a keyboard solo though.

jackio

Is Cutting Crew 'I just died in your arms tonight' pop? Great solo on that, love that song

duotone

@Bennyboy-UK ;

Whitney Houston - Queen of the Night

According to this, the solo is played by Tim Pierce: https://www.discogs.com/release/946615-Various-The-Bodyguard-Original-Soundtrack-Album

Bennyboy-UK

... I can't leave it alone or stay away so here are a few more of my favourites raided from my spotify playlist of Pop songs with great guitar!

Shakin Stevens - This Ole House (Solo at 1:25 Albert Lee or Mickey Gee)



Pat Benatar - Hot me with your best shot (Solo at1:13 at Neil Giraldo)



Prince - Little red Corvette (Solo at 1:48 Des Dickerson)



The Feeling - Love it when you call (Solo at 3:09 Kevin Jeremiah I think)



Diana Ross - When You Tell Me That You Love Me (Solo at 2:50 Steve Lukather)



Billy Ocean - Lover Boy (Solo at 3:03 Geoff Whitehorn I think)



En Vogue - Free Your Mind (Solo at 3:47 mega outro! Jonx Jones?



Nick Hayward - Warning Sign - (Solo at 2:22 - The incredible Alan Murphy)



Cher - Emotional Fire - (Solo at 2:07 - Steve Lukather - but the whole thing is first class)



Cher - Could've Been you (Solo at 2:08 - Steve Lukather again!)



Rick Springfield - Jessie's Girl - (Solo at 2:15 Neil Giraldo



Phil Collins - Something Happened on the Way to Heaven (Super Outro at 5:20 Daryl Sturmer)



All ready had some Cars...

But this one too: Just What I Needed (Solo at 1:45 - Elliot Easton)



David Essex - Sunday Papers (Solo at 1:48 Steve Lukather)



Stevie Nicks - I Can't Wait (Solo at 3:00 Michael Landau)




I'll have a rest!

Philly_Q

City Boy - 5.7.0.5. with Mike Slamer on guitar.

Bennyboy-UK

duotone said:

@Bennyboy-UK ;;

Whitney Houston - Queen of the Night

According to this, the solo is played by Tim Pierce: https://www.discogs.com/release/946615-Various-The-Bodyguard-Original-Soundtrack-Album

Cheers matey! My head is swimming in this stuff - this thread has tempted me out of my cave  that’s a great resource but I admit I didn’t check it for my posts as I was rushing

I must get back on there!

Offset

Glenn Tilbrook's solo on Black Coffee In Bed is sublime, melodic and nigh-on perfect.

duotone

Dan_Halen said:

And who would expect a great solo in a Backstreet Boys song. No idea who plays this, and it's criminally low in the mix, but rips starting at 2 mins 19secs

Haha, that guys giving it the full beans playing the solo of his life, then the track gets mixed presumably by a drummer!

Played by Esbjörn Öhrwall according to: https://www.discogs.com/release/550610-Backstreet-Boys-Millennium

He’s was a collaborator with Max Martin (The famous Swedish record producer and songwriter) during the  late 90’s and early 2000’s.