Metal guitarist destroys Loudwire's Top 15 Guitar Solos of All Time 

May we rest in power

Loudwire is at least a bit more honest and musically educated than Watchmojo.

I feel personally attacked after that intro

Dire Straits' Sultans of Swing should be an honorable mention at least.

In defense of Jimmy Page; He was probably ridiculously high

Mike: *says impact should be the most important thing* Tornado of souls Solo (one of the most impactful solos in all of metal) Mike: *gets mad*

Naturally, people aren’t always going to agree, and I believe that tornado does belong, but I don’t like or dislike you you more or less because of that, because it’s you’re personal opinion and it’s what you think!!!

Tornado of Souls deserves to at least be a contender. It's consistently ranked as one of the best metal solos, and so should be somewhere on the all time list.

The reason Jimmy Page sucked at playing "Stairway" live is because he was high out of his mind.

For the algorythm: I completely disagree with your take on Tornado Of Souls. It deserves the spot.

I like the Tornado Of Souls solo :(

Could you imagine if Smells Like Teen Spirit or I guess any Nirvana song was on here, Mike would absolutely lose his mind

Hotel California is definitely one of the best written phrased solos. Gives me chills to this day and have heard that song since I was five.

OK... already a bit triggered by the intro. But, I'm willing to be reasonable

Can’t imagine who he’s talking about when he says kock gobbling David Gilmour

Highway Star 100% deserves to be there. Every single one of your favorite shredders wanted to become shredders because of that solo (and the entire album). Plus it is a fantastic solo.

I really don't like the eagles either.. but goddamn hotel California is so fuckin good

That ending of Floods brings me to tears every time. Especially after Dime died. Mad Fuckin feels. Mad feels....

I think La Villa Strangiato by Rush is one of the top 5 greatest solos of all time hands down and should have been on that list.

When it comes to Metallica solos it’s a never-ending battle between One and Fade to Black for my favorite

Okay my problem with "of all time" lists is that theys how bias to older music and dont even consider newer artists who have made badass things.

What's missing in a list like this is; Dire Straits - Sultans Of Swing. Such a legendary and influential solo.

Tornado of souls kicks ass

10:45 I strongly disagree with you on that one, but its your opinion so it doesn't matter.

Floods solo is one of my favourite pieces of music overall, it just has so much atmosphere and emotion in it

Truth has been spoken, Satch boogie is so underrated!!! So fucking groovy

Honestly don’t think there’s a quantifiable mean to properly rank solos as best? There’s a certain subjectivity there. Do we go with purely complex hard solos, influence, popularity? My favorite Periphery solo is Absolomb and Dream Theater is Best Of Times, but even than I can’t really see anyone putting those songs on any list. Also I’ve only learned one Iron Maiden song from beginning to end, and it was Aces High. The solo technically influenced me a whole lot as it’s the only whole solo by Maiden I’ve learnedly. Though I think their best would be Wasted Years personally. Also Burn by Deep Purple has a incredible solo, honestly one of my favorites. Tornado of Souls is a great solo, Marty Friedman is a great guitarist I think should be recognized. Maybe on a top ten metal solos list, Megadeth deserves a spot just because they’re very popular for metal and influential. Also to be fair the top five is pretty much perfect. Stairway to Heaven, Comfortably Numb, Eruption are all very obvious influential and memorable solos. Though not even on my personal top ten favorites. I love really melodic, emotional solos with the occasional shred included. One reason Petrucci is who I consider the best guitarist ever because how well he balances the two. Honestly I would include the guitar solo of Windowpane on my personal favorites.

Beyond The Realms Of Death's solo is a beautiful melodic masterpiece in my opinion. It isn't the most technically ambitious solo but the melody more than makes up for it. It's my favorite solo... ever.

Just from the intro, i can tell this video will garner nothing but positive feedback from people.

“Part of the criteria has to be impact on guitar players. Also fuck Tornado of Souls.” Mike I detect inconsistency here. But then again I think the best solo is Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth) so what do I know

Knowing that Mike is not a Hendrix fan per se, I like to see him developing a growing respect for him in the latest years.

Man, the Pantera live clip may be 240p, but the snare in that liveshow was M A S S I V E

"There's so much more to Page than his chops, that if you dismiss him because he's sloppy, you're a fool. There's a zillion guys out there who can shred Page under the table who never recorded anything worth hearing once, much less forever." - HeadDino.

I DEFINITELY felt that part about the Bohemian Rhapsody solo When I was young I didn't understand why people held it to such a high standard because it's so simple and not shredding Now though, it's literally a perfect solo. Like if any different note choices were made, it might be as iconic or perfect

21:50 There's no better feeling than Mike having to say something nice about AC/DC.

5:39 the reason why loudwire didn't choose one of those is probably that they just couldn't tell the difference between the solo and the rest of the song

Facts. Metal is rock.

2:24 “Metal is a sub genre of rock” Finally someone said it!

Guitarist: "write a really epic solo" Mike: Best I can do is top 50

For me Blackbird by Alter Bridge will always hold *my personal* #1 spot. As someone who lost their parent at a fairly young age, the solo specifically hits so much differently. Like I can feel the loss through just the music?? if you get me Not Technically the best, but the most powerful to me

I feel like a lot of George Lynch solos could beat some on that list but I am biased since I really like his playing

Kerry King himself said he wants to ask KK and Glen to tab out the solo for Beyond The Realms of Death and sign it for him.

I think Highway Star deserves it. It was the ultimate showcase of proto-shred guitar soloing back then. It goes from bluesy licks to fast galloping neoclassical. Great song, great band.

The Count of Tuscany outro is up there for me!

I love the fact, that Deep Purple is on the List because they are my favorite Band :D but i like the Solo in Burn a bit more than in Highway Star. If i had done this List also Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd would be on it. It's just so energetic and satisfying.

I'd say for Iron Maiden, Phantom of the Opera would be my pick. That repeating phrygian thing Dave does in the first solo is so iconic.

Blackbird by Alter Bridge really needs to be on the list. I get it, Alter Bridge isn't an influential band but that is one of the greatest solos ever written for sure. It just has everything, the tone is gorgeous, the melody is simple but fantastic, wonderful chord progression, the bends and vibrato are perfect and there is enough technique to satisfy my shred itch. I just love the shit out of that solo.

Tornado of soul is def one of my favourite solos

Friedman never does a bad solo... All his works are S tier

You know what I love about your channel? You actually explain your reasoning. I might disagree but at the same time I'm like, "You know? Mike has a point."

Glad you'd include ACDC back in black, it's a pivotal song/ solo that shaped modern rock, metal

Dude, how can you not be a fan of AC/DC? They’re the greatest prog rock band of all time. They’ve been playing the same song for 40 years 🤣

SRV's Little Wing. Yes, thank you!!! Free Bird & Hotel California are too iconic, yes.

Personally, I think the Tornado of Souls solo should be on here, albeit closer to the lower end.

My personal top 15 (in terms of iconic for the impact they had on me and people I know for guitar): 1. Eruption (The solo that got my eyes wide about learning guitar) 2. All Along The Watchtower (The first time I truly appreciated melodic soloing and how amazing Hendrix's impact was on guitar playing) 2. Stairway to Heaven (No-brainer, everyone wanted to learn this when learning guitar) 3. Hotel California (Another no-brainer) 4. Comfortably Numb (100% agree with your comment on it) 5. Bohemian Rhapsody (Brian May's most iconic solo hands down) 6. One (Guitar Hero 3, growing up listening to metal, take your pick: everyone's heard this and it always gives goosebumps) 7. Back In Black (Angus may not be the cleanest guitar player, but it's a crime Loudwire didn't put this solo on the list) 8. Free Bird (Long as fuck? Yes. Overplayed? Overwhelmingly. Amazing? Without a doubt) 9. Crazy Train (The first solo I attempted at learning! Insanely fun, very expressive, and getting hooked on the opening riff alone had me spamming it on repeat, and when I listened to the guitar solo for the first time, I went "holy s@#$") 10. No More Tears (A personal favorite of mine, maybe not Zakk's best guitar work, but definitely his most iconic song, and what introduced me to pinch harmonics. That man's vibrato is insane) 11. Cemetery Gates (There's a few Pantera solos you could argue being on here, but for me, this solo gets my emotions going every. single. time. The buildup in the song was perfect and that solo hits you like a truck. Also, that outro battle with the vocals is one of the most unique and amazing pieces of songwriting ever for me) 12. Sweet Child O' Mine (I would put this higher on the list, but for me, Guns N Roses wasn't nearly as big a band for me. I honestly felt like outside of Sweet Child O Mine and November Rain were the only memorably songs. The rest of the songs were very forgettable, and tbh I liked more of their work with Buckethead) 13. Kissing the Shadows (There's plenty of arguments about "better" melodic death metal guitar players, but this was Alexi Laiho's masterpiece. The battle with the keyboard made it that much sweeter to listen to. Proof that shredding can sound fucking incredible and isn't just noise) 14. Satch Boogie (I'm so glad I had friends who were "outside" the cliches in guitar playing, because I never would have heard about virtuosos until later) 15. For The Love Of God (I know Mike is gonna hate me for putting it so low on my list, but in terms of iconic in terms of the guitar world, the ones above this I think had a bigger impact, at least on all the guitar players I know. That being said, Steve Vai was a true master of the guitar. There are very few guitarists who can make a solo that will stand the test of time, and fewer that can tell an entire story with just their guitar work. Steve Vai is both)

You literally didn't give any reasons why the tornado of souls solo shouldn't be on the list 😂

Bro........ Tornado of Souls is one of my favourite solos of all time! It’s had a huge impact on guitar players!

Solos are a part technique and skill but it's a majority context and feel.

I'd give the solo to "Shook Me All Night Long" an edge over the "Back in Black" solo.

Eddie Van Halen’s Eruption solo definitely needed its spot.

Is "Rock Around the Clock" on here? That's a truly iconic solo, just in terms of predating all these others.

I agree with almost everything You said here, the only one i don't agree with is the Rhoads solo, i think Mr Crowley is the right choice.

Some publisher: *makes list Mike: ....and I took that personally

Domination

I'm actually quite surprised they didn't put Sultans of Swing on this one... not that I think deserves to be

God I fucking love this channel

Opeth album tier list please. 🙏

Metal isn't a Subgenre of Rock, is a Derivative of Rock, as rock is a Derivative of blues

Hotel California should have been on here

Why have I finally found a video that I completely agree with you on?

My top 10 favorite solos: 1. Aviations - Quest (3:57 - 4:33) 2. David Maxim Micic - Where is Now? (5:23 - 6:16) 3. Jakub Zytecki - Satya's Diary (4:44 - 5:38) 4. Haken - Veil (10:08 - 11:12) 5. Steven Wilson - Regret #9 (2:31 - 4:08) 6. Plini - Electric Sunrise (2:53 - 3:53) 7. Between the Buried and Me - Silent Flight Parliament (10:22 - 1:25) 8. Disperse - Enigma of Abode (3:03 - 3:42) 9. Thank You Scientist - Caverns (5:38 - 6:25) 10. Dream Theater - S2N (2:59 - 3:41) Honorable mention: Leprous - The Sky is Red (5:05 - 5:44)

did not see mike suggesting any of those other songs coming, really made me happy

People need to remember he’s not a Megadeth fan

I'm glad I'm watching this video now as opposed to when it came out, specifically because I only just two weeks ago heard "Floods" by Pantera (or anything by Pantera) for the first time. I am not a big metal fan. I won't ask you to turn it off if you start playing it, but it's pretty rare I'll put on any metal that's not like a "classic" (The Trooper, Enter Sandman, etc.) But Floods fuckin blew my mind, I have never heard anything like that song, it is by far the most unique metal song I've ever heard and the guitar solo fucks and I was blown away I had never heard that song before.

Damn, I've never heard so much cussing from a RU-vid guitarist. Subscribed.

I just love how he rips on these top 10 things

You're a metal loving guitarist so I have to ask you, have you listened to Lovebites, japanese all-female metal band? Try them live, anything from Five of a kind live 2020. They are inspired by bands like Maiden, Helloween, Metallica...basically western metal. It's a brilliant band well worth a look. Two lead guitarists that are incredible.

Lynyrd Skynrds live Oakland Coliseum Stadium 1977, IMO that solo is even better than the studio version. So good

I think my favorite thing about Mike and this channel is that in almost every video like this one I disagree with the majority of what he says but I still love hearing his opinion and his reasoning behind it. Great vid as always Mike, Rock on🤘🏻

How can you disrespect Tornado of Souls and its influence like that

As long as Eruption is on top of the list I can live with the rest of the selections. 😉🤘

So you're saying that the criteria to make the list has to be, above all the others, influence? You're admitting that the same solo you don't think fits here (floods) would if people were more aware of it? And that tornado of souls, which basically destroys any other solo from the list if we're talking about composition, sensibility and techniche, doesn't belong there? I'm sorry man, but you're wrong. Influence isn't the only valid criteria, and it's far from being the most important one. Love you, but you're 100% wrong.

I'm a drummer, but I love listening to other instruments of which guitar is my favorite. I'm kinda curious what you think of Robert Fripp... this guy doesn't get a lot of attention and I think -without being a guitar player- the he's pretty damn good.

Jimmy Page was wasted during this performance bruh...

I’d say at least for me, that riffs are more influential to people wanting to play guitar. Because like if you’ve already hooked me with a sick riff, then I’m probably already air guitaring so I’m gonna air guitar the solo too. There’s a lot of songs when I was a kid that I skipped like a million times because the intro didn’t catch my attention. Then like maybe I fell asleep listening to the CD and woke up to the the latter half of the song, and I’m like woah this song is actually really sick. I can’t believe I’ve been skipping it this whole time.

Mike didnt say 6.9. My day is ruined.

THIS VIDEO IN A NUTSHELL: Loudwire: *lists a song* Mike: “Okay, [song name] by [artist]. If we are gonna put [artist] on the list, I would say [artist’s biggest and most well known hit].”

FInally someone speaks about dave mustaine's vocals being shit.

Totally agree with the sentiments expressed. Especially those solos left off like free bird and hotel California, I also think do you feel like we do by peter frampton, beat it (problematic) are both pretty iconic. I have favorites not on this list by the some of the same artist, but there is a reason these iconic songs are overplayed , and despite hearing many of these song way, way too many times, when the solo kicks in it still gives you the feels.

Can't wait to see Dokken, Queensryche or Savatage in one of these lists some decade

I haven't clicked a video so fast in awhile!

I'd give a shout to "American Girl" by Tom Petty tbh, while the solo is pretty repetitive, it's extremely iconic and you know it the minute it comes on.

Megadeth>Dream Theater

Great video! I love how it's funny and also very insightful!

I actually love that version of Stairway to Heaven, and know quite a few people who believe it enhances the album version of the solo completely 😅

One was what introduced me to tapping so it has a special place in my heart

It wouldn’t be a loudwire list without the token classic rock mention

Tbh I do think a lot of the picks were really good solos that would be in my FAVOURITE solo list but like you said, definitely not one of the GREATEST solos. I mostly agree with this video, to have such a title you need to be very influential, famous and also just really good along with all that.

isnt jay z hip hop?

I'd say the solo in Smoke On The Water, while not more groundbreaking than Highway Star, is more iconic. Maybe it's just because of how iconic the riff is, but I really feel the solo to that song stands on its own as an important moment in guitar history. For Megadeth, I love the Tornado Of Souls solo but I prefer Dave's solo on Holy Wars. Just rips your head off! For Jimi, totally agree All Along The Watchtower is a better choice than Voodoo Child, but I also wonder if there's a case to be made for his rendition of The Star Spangled Banner? Certainly on of the most iconic moments in rock and roll history.