Guitar solos can be both beautiful and tragic. Savage or sublime…or even scary. Sometimes in the same solo. They can serve the song, but should not distract from it. But over the last 40 or so years of heavy music there are some solos that have earned legendary status. You may not be able to hum some of them, but they’re stuck in your head like the simplest of melodies. Solos that inspire listeners to pick up instruments upon listening because they wonder “how did he DO that?” then find themselves compelled to learn the answer to that question.”Life-changing” guitar solos, there I said it. We surveyed the Seymour Duncan Facebook audience to find out what ranked as their top guitar solos of all time. Here’s how the Top 10 broke down:
 “Comfortably Numb” – David Gilmour/Pink Floyd
If one were to make a textbook of how to write the perfect guitar solo, this would be example one. It’s one of the most melodic, lyrical and impeccably played guitar solos in recorded history. It’s not about the notes Gilmour plays – he’s seemingly incapable of playing a bum one. It’s about the melody, the intensity, the emotion. It just fits. Not to mention there are actually two awesome guitar solos in this song when you take the amazing outro into consideration. Gilmour never ventures into the territory that could be called ‘flash,’ but he doesn’t need to.

“Mr. Crowley” – Randy Rhoads/Ozzy Osbourne
When Blizzard of Ozz debuted in 1980, there was only one name in jaw-dropping lead playing, and it wasn’t ‘Randy Rhoads.’ That quickly changed once the world heard what the classically-trained Rhoads could do in D minor (“the saddest of all keys” – Nigel Tufnel). This is another example of perfectly-placed melodic tension, with hammer-ons and whammy bar flourishes that are certainly flashy, but never stop serving the song. Legend has it, during the recording of this solo Rhoads wasn’t coming up with anything he liked. He was getting frustrated. Ozzy walked in the studio (allegedly hammered) and said “Everything you’re doing is crap. Get it together.” THIS was Rhoads’ musical “Oh, yeah?”. It would explain the ferocity with which he unleashes the solo’s opening salvo.

“Tornado of Souls”  – Marty Friedman/Megadeth
Dave Mustaine’s & Co. were looking for what would be their third lead guitarist in as many albums for their 1990 release. Fresh off his success with Cacophony, Marty Friedman was an excellent addition to, and the final piece in what is considered Megadeth’s ‘classic’ lineup. He is an absolutely stunning player, but as is the common thread in this list, he never forgets melody. This one runs the gamut of his style: precise, slinky bends, exotic note selection, artful arpeggios, and a vibrato that cannot be denied! One cool aside: Legend has it MegaDave insisted Friedman immediately install Seymour Duncan JBs in all of his guitars, reportedly so their rhythm tones would match.  If true, it seems to have worked…!

“Eruption” – Edward Van Halen/Van Halen
Not since Jimi Hendrix has anyone turned the guitar universe on its ear the way Eddie Van Halen did with this already arena-ready guitar solo. In the hypothetical “perfect guitar solo” book mentioned earlier, THIS would be the first example in the “Jaw-dropping” chapter. This is still amazing today, but in 1978? Utterly revolutionary. No-one else yet heard had the chops, the licks, the style, the (brown) sound. Further, Ed was beating people up on a guitar he built himself – also unheard of in the day. Nobody had a Strat with a humbucker in the bridge position, but suddenly everyone wanted one of those, too. In the years since its release this solo has inspired legions of kids (myself included) to pick up the guitar – and build ’em, too!

“Cemetery Gates” – Dimebag Darrell/Pantera
“Cowboys From Hell” set the metal world ablaze when it came out in July of 1990, and Dime asserted himself as THE shred guy in metal. Influenced by equal parts Van Halen, Rhoads and Ace Frehley, Dime was absolutely fearless on guitar. Known mostly for their brutality, this is one of Pantera’s more atmospheric songs, and Dime turned in a timeless solo as well as some of the coolest high-pitched harmonic squeals on record.

“Under a Glass Moon” – John Petrucci/Dream Theater
Petrucci pretty much took over as the top dog carrying the torch for heavy prog-metal guitar in the early 90s when Dream Theater grew in popularity. Never radio darlings (except for “Pull Me Under”), their loyal audience is there for their near superhuman technical precision and the complexity of their compositions. These guys can play anything, and this solo has it all: Speed-picking, arpeggios, hammered runs, wide interval jumps, whammy bars strangulation, harmonic shrieks, you name it. Even a couple of nearly bluesly licks, all in one mini-composition.

“Beat It” – Edward Van Halen/Michael Jackson
One of the only two players to rank twice in the Top 10, this now-classic solo in one of the highest-selling, biggest crossover hits in history was a guest spot. Done on a lark, for FREE. In 1983 Quincy Jones called Ed out of the blue and asked if he’d play lead on the track (Steve Lukather is credited with the rhythm guitars), and he said “Sure, why not?” This too is a mini-symposium of all of Ed’s hallmark techniques, or as David Lee Roth put it at the time “the solo he always plays!” The collaboration was groundbreaking in several ways: It exposed R&B kids to rock guitar, and rock kids to R&B. It also ushered in the diversification of MTV’s programming and audience (back when they actually played music!).

“Over the Mountain” – Randy Rhoads/Ozzy Osbourne
In 1980, “Blizzard of Ozz” was an unexpected hit and expectations for the 81 follow-up, “Diary of a Madman” had been raised, the release date rushed. Rhoads, though pressed for time, did not disappoint, announcing to the world “Oh, I got this” on the opening track. This is epic not just for the excitement and attitude it exudes, or the fact that Rhoads double if not triple-tracked something so perfectly. The coup de grace his “Oh, by the way – BLACK SABBATH?” quote that opens the solo. That has been attributed to Rhoads’ wicked sense of humor. After all, Ozzy was supposed to have been washed up after being ousted from his former band in 1980. Barely two years later Ozzy’s fame was eclipsing theirs. Then, on the opening track of his much-anticipated second release, his new, critically acclaimed guitarist briefly quotes Sabbath’s signature riff before tearing the world’s collective head off? Well played, Mr. Rhoads. Well played.

“Stairway to Heaven” – Jimmy Page/Led Zeppelin
Another example that would be in the “perfect” textbook, and this one you CAN actually hum! It’s not flashy, but it’s got melody, and attitude for days. Jimmy is in the pocket on this one, and takes the listener with him. You don’t even mind that part where he repeats that one lick over and over like he got stuck for a second: he’s Jimmy Page, and he meant to do that. On top of that, it fits!  There’s currently some controversy over whether Zep “borrowed” the riff, but regardless of how that debate is settled, the solo – is and always will be all Jimmy. Sure it’s overplayed on classic rock radio; sure, you’re not allowed to ever play it in a music store as decreed in Wayne’s World; but you can’t deny its timelessness.

“Sweet Child o’ Mine” – Slash/Guns N Roses
To hear Slash tell it, this song may not have happened were it not for his bandmates. He was playing the repeating figure that opens the tune as a joke. They wanted to do something with it. Sometimes getting a second opinion is a good thing! It turned out to be one of their biggest hits and one of Slash’s most identifiable and memorable solos to this day. It was the world’s firstwide exposure to Slash’s signature tone, thanks in part to his Alnico II Pro humbuckers, by the way. Slash also made Les Pauls cool again after they’d fallen from favor during the pointy/all-must-have-a-Floyd Rose craze of the early-to-mid 80s. Supposedly you could find vintage Les Pauls for a few hundred dollars in pawn shops pre-GnR; today vintage Les Pauls can fetch six figures. Wait, maybe he made them a little too cool? Truth be told, he’s soloing all over this tune, so just take it all in:

So there you have it – Seymour Duncan readers’ Top 10 Greatest Guitar Solos. Other honorable mentions include: Stevie Ray Vaughan, Steve Vai, Judas Priest and Avenged Sevenfold. Several other Gilmour and Rhoads examples were cited as well. Almost needless to say, there were many other submissions, but that’s how the numbers broke down. What’s your personal Top 10?