Readers of "Total Guitar" and "Guitar World" magazines chose the greatest guitar riff of all time!
In the July 2021 magazine of "Total Guitar" which was released on June 4, 2021 you will find the complete list of the 50 greatest riffs of all time chosen by the readers of the esteemed magazines.
From the Beatles to Metallica you'll find Ozzy Osborne's "Crazy Train" in second place, AC/DC's "Back in Black" in third, Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" in fourth place, "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love" from Van Helen in fifth, Metallica's "Enter Sandman" in sixth, Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" in seventh, Pantera's "Walk" in eighth, ZZ Top's "La Grange" in ninth and Hendrix' "Purple Haze" in 10th place.
The list also includes Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", Rage Against The Machine's "Killing in the Name", Slipknot's "Psychosocial" and Opeth and Heart are also there.
And who in the first place you ask? So readers of the magazine chose Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" riff as the greatest of all time.
This is the full list:
50: Heir Apparent – Opeth
49: Ticket To Ride – The Beatles
48: All Right Now – Free
47: G.O.A.T. – Polyphia
46: Outshined – Soundgarden
45: No One Knows – Queens Of The Stone Age
44: Can’t Stop – Red Hot Chili Peppers
43: Life In The Fast Lane – Eagles
42: Message In A Bottle – The Police
41: Stargazer – Rainbow
40: Alive – Pearl Jam
39: Born To Be Wild – Steppenwolf
38: Psychosocial – Slipknot
37: Scuttle Buttin’ – Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble
36: Mississippi Queen – Mountain
35: Sweet Child O’ Mine – Guns N’ Roses
34: Man In The Box – Alice In Chains
33: You Really Got Me – The Kinks
32: The Boys Are Back In Town – Thin Lizzy
31: Lateralus – Tool
30: Seven Nation Army – The White Stripes
29: The Spirit Of Radio – Rush
28: (Don’t Fear) The Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult
27: Barracuda – Heart
26: Breaking The Law – Judas Priest
25: Walk This Way – Aerosmith
24: 2 Minutes To Midnight – Iron Maiden
23: Beat It – Michael Jackson
22: Ace Of Spades – Motörhead
21: Money – Pink Floyd
20: (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction – The Rolling Stones
19: Sweet Home Alabama – Lynyrd Skynyrd
18: Angel Of Death – Slayer
17: Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
16: Killing In The Name – Rage Against The Machine
15: Symphony Of Destruction – Megadeth
14: Sunshine Of Your Love – Cream
13: Money For Nothing – Dire Straits
12: Johnny B. Goode – Chuck Berry
11: Layla – Derek And The Dominos
10: Purple Haze – Jimi Hendrix
9: La Grange – ZZ Top
8: Walk – Pantera
7: Iron Man – Black Sabbath
6: Enter Sandman – Metallica
5: Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love – Van Halen
4: Smoke On The Water – Deep Purple
3: Back In Black – AC/DC
2: Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne
1: Whole Lotta Love – Led Zeppelin