Criteria: The greatest rock guitar solos by the greatest rock guitarists are ranked under the influence, popularity, and skill (creativity, diversity, uniqueness and technique) put into the solo during the song.

Jimmy Page - (Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin, The Firm)
Studio:
1. Stairway to Heaven
2. Heartbreaker
3. Since I've Been Loving You
4. Dazed and Confused
5. Whole Lotta Love
6. Achilles Last Stand
7. White Summer
8. Good Times Bad Times
9. Black Dog
10. No Quarter

Ritchie Blackmore - (Deep Purple, Rainbow, Blackmore's Night)
Studio:
1. Highway Star
2. Lazy
3. Child in Time
4. Smoke On the Water
5. Burn
6. Stargazer
7. A Light in the Black
8. Vielleicht Das Nachste Mal
9. Still I'm Sad
10. The Temple Of The King

Tony Iommi - (Black Sabbath, solo)
Studio:
1. Lonely is the Word
2. Kill in the Spirit World
3. War Pigs
4. I Go Insane
5. Planet Caravan
6. Wicked World
7. Heaven and Hell
8. The Warning
9. Heart Like a Wheel
10. N.I.B.

David Gilmour - (Pink Floyd, solo)
Studio:
1. Comfortably Numb
2. Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part I.
3. Time
4. Money
5. Have a Cigar
6. Dogs
7. Echoes
8. Another Brick in the Wall Part II.
9. High Hopes
10. Atom Heart Mother

Eric Clapton - (Yardbirds, Cream, Derek & the Dominoes, solo)
Studio:
1. White Room
2. While My Guitar Gently Sweeps
3. Those Were the Days
4. Tales of Brave Ulysses
5. Sunshine of Your Love
6. Badge
7. Politician
8. Have You Heard
9. Let it Rain
10. Hideaway

Brian May - (Smile, Queen, solo)
Studio:
1. Bohemian Rhapsody
2. Bijou
3. Killer Queen
4. Brighton Rock
5. Innuedo w/Steve Howe
6. I Want It All
7. The Millionaire Waltz
8. We Will Rock You
9. Dead On Time
10. See What a Fool I've Been

Jimi Hendrix - (Jimi Hendrix Experience)
Studio:
1. All Along the Watchtower
2. Little Wing
3. Voodoo Child (Slight Return)
4. Red House
5. Bold as Love
6. Purple Haze
7. Come On (Let the Good Times Roll)
8. Foxy Lady
9. Once I Had a Woman
10. Midnight

Eddie Van Halen - (Van Halen)
Studio:
1. Eruption
2. Beat It
3. Mean Street
4. Spanish Fly
5. Ice Cream Man
6. Hot For Teacher
7. You're No Good
8. Top Jimmy
9. One Foot Out the Door
10. Somebody Get Me a Doctor

Carlos Santana - (Santana)
Studio:
1. Samba Pa Ti
2. Europa (Earth's Cry)
3. Soul Sacrifice
4. Black Magic Woman
5. Jingo
6. Evil Ways
7. Oye Coma Va
8. Incident at Neshabur
9. Hope You're Feeling Better
10. She's Not There

Roger Fisher - (Heart, Alias)
Studio:
1. Barracuda
2. Magic Man
3. Call of the Wild
4. How Much Longer is Forever
5. Crazy On You
6. The Power
7. XTCOI
8. Waiting For Love
9. After All the Love is Gone
10. Into the Fire

Steve Hackett - (Genesis, solo)
Studio:
1. Firth of Firth
2. Dancing With the Moonlit Knight
3. Horizons
4. The Lamia
5. Supper's Ready
6. The Fountain of Salmacis
7. Fly On a Windshield
8. Ripples
9. The Cinema Show
10. Return of the Giant Hogweed

Jerry Cantrell - (Alice in Chains)
Studio:
1. Man in the Box
2. Them Bones
3. No Excuses
4. Would?
5. Dam That River
6. I Stay Away
7. Angry Chair
8. Grind
9. Heaven Beside You
10. Again

Pete Townshend - (The Who)
1. Eminence Front
2. Overture
3. Won't Get Fooled Again
4. Heaven and Hell
5. Going Mobile
6. Who Are You
7. Love Reign O'er Me
8. Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere
9. English Boy
10. Naked Eye

This is obviously poorly done on 1 side of it. Assistance would be helpful.

I would take 'impact' out of the criteria because it seems out of place.

Blackmore has many better solos than 'Lazy' and 'Smoke On The Water'.
Also, Child In Time > Highway Star, imo.

And "Once I Had Woman" is #1 for Jimi without question.

Iommi list DEFINITELY needs "Lonely Is The Word" and "Kill In The Spirit World".

Are we including live solos here?

How about we include 5 of their best studio solos and 5 of their best live ones? And I also agree about "Child in Time" being ahead of "Highway Star".

why was the old version of this thread deleted? it was actually a useful resource, unlike half of the useless threads in this forum

Not quite sure. But if you have suggestions, feel free to let them out.

Jonny Greenwood
Studio

1. Just
2. Paranoid Android
3. Maquiladora
4. Go to Sleep
5. My Iron Lung

A few Blackmore studio Rainbow choices .... Take care

Stargazer
Kill the King
A Light in the Black
Gates of Babylon
Lady of the Lake

Criteria:
1. Creativity
2. Originality
3. Skill

Jimmy Page

Studio

1. Stairway to Heaven
2. Achilles Last Stand
3. Since I've Been Loving You
4. Dazed and Confused
5. Heartbreaker

Live

1. No Quarter (TSRTS)
2. Stairway to Heaven (TSRTS)
3. Thank You (BBC Sessions)
4. White Summer/Black Mountain Side (Knebworth 04.08.1979)
5. You Shook Me (BBC Sessions)

Tony Iommi:

Studio

1. Kill in the Spirit World
2. War Pigs
3. Planet Caravan
4. Heaven and Hell
5. Black Sabbath

Brian May:

Studio

1. Killer Queen
2. Bohemian Rhapsody
3. Brighton Rock
4. Bijou
5. We Will Rock You

The studio list looks damn perfect to me, excellent job!
For the live one, your #1 and #2 are obviously Jimmy's finest moments, but I would also throw in Dazed And Confused from TSRtS in there.
It's just an epic marathon performance and he never seems to get tired or screw up in all the 28 minutes!



Very good attempt, but it desperately needs "Lonely Is The Word". I believe Tony himself even said it was his finest moment.



Good call on Brighton Rock. Man I'm really liking your taste my friend.
But I would add Pain Is So Close To Pleasure. Brian gets a pretty blistering solo at the end.
I could also see a case for Bijou at #1.

Maybe something like this?

Brian May

Studio

1. Bijou
2. Killer Queen
3. Bohemian Rhapsody
4. Brighton Rock
5. We Will Rock You

Tony Iommi

Studio

1. Kill in the Spirit World
2. War Pigs
3. Lonely is the Word
4. Planet Caravan (Iommi showing his jazzy roots... Perfect)
5. Heaven and Hell

Jimmy Page

Studio

1. Stairway to Heaven
2. Achilles Last Stand
3. Since I've Been Loving You
4. Dazed and Confused
5. Heartbreaker

Live

1. No Quarter (TSRTS)
2. Stairway to Heaven (TSRTS)
3. Thank You (BBC Session)
4. Dazed and Confused (TSRTS)
5. White Summer/Black Mountain Side (Knebworth 04.08.1979) - My favorite Page solo.



An astounding cover of Thank You.

Looks fine to me.



I think N.I.B. could replace War Pigs actually. Some great finger-flashing on that one.
I've never really saw the big deal about the War Pigs solo actually.



What about Since I've Been Loving You from TSRtS?
I'm sorry to keep harping on this album, but that version is just smokin'. Definitely the best blues that Jimmy's ever played.
Also, the first version of "You Shook Me" from BBC Sessions is ferocious.

The intro solo is great...

I dont even know if I'd consider that a solo. The solos in middle and at the end are pretty great though.
But Lonely Is The Word is far more impressive, imo.

There is no way "War Pigs" is being excluded. It's one of the most iconic and epic metal solos of all time. And Strider I think your live performances by Page need a little work. The studio one is fine although I would swap "Heartbreaker" with "D&C".