Tim’s B-List

1. Becker & Stuhlen ‘Mellotron’ – This is a track from a rare library album of vintage synthesizers. Sublime and trippy.
2. Butthole Surfers  ‘Chewin George Lucas’ Chocolate’ & ‘Goofy’s Concern’ – expert punk nihilsim.
3. The Books ‘The Lemon Of Pink’ – schizophrenic sample-magic. Also notable: ‘A Cold Freezin’ Night’ (amazing video!
4. The Beastie Boys ‘Oh Word!’ – So many amazing tracks from the Beasties – I love MCA’s sections. Always sing this when I’m in NY.
5. Biffy Clyro ‘Questions And Answers’ – Scottish. These boy keep you waiting and then drop the magic – check the BVs at 2:14 then the harmony – oh yes! All this and an album cover by Milo Manara.
6. Beck ‘Beercan’ – I shortlisted a bunch of Beck – mostly from Stereopathetic Soulmanure, but nothing can beat his rhymes on Beercan. Zeitgeist 1994.
7. Blind Mr Jones ‘Mesa’ – Sweet shoegaze from a relatively unappreciated album of great songs.
8. Big Star ‘Blue Moon (demo)’ – Again – so many to choose from, but this demo has been breaking my heart of late.
9. Busta Rhymes (feat. Mysikal) ‘Iz They Wildin Wid Us?’ – A rare hip-hop post from me – Busta Rhymes production is insane and this song is hilarious. Be sure to listen until Busta’s section 1:39 – 2:13.
10. The Byrds ‘Draft Morning’ – So many Byrds tracks could’ve made this list, but this won out over ‘What’s Happening?’
11. Boards Of Canada ‘ROYGBIV’ – This song blows my mind every time – delicately poised between whimsical, fun and utterly devastating.
12. Billy Bragg ‘A New England’ – Just great.
13. The Breeders ‘Off You’ – Kelley Deal brings it home [swoon].
14. Blur ‘This Is A Low’ – Check this live video. Graham Coxon is high in my pantheon of guitar gods.
15. Bob Hund ‘100 år’ – 100 år är ingenting för mig.
16. The Bonzo Dog Band ‘Quiet Talks and Summer Walks (Unpeeled Version)’ – A relatively straight and beautiful song from the original Novelty Band, inspirations to Monty Python. Neil Innes on vocals and the inimitable Vivian Stanshall on recorder. For contrast check out ‘The Intro And The Outro’ and ‘Big Shot’.
17. The Beach Boys ‘Little Bird’ – Just one of my favourite songs of all time, courtesy of Dennis.
18. Bee Gees ‘Wind Of Change’ – I watched a documentary recently that made me despise The Bee Gees – this song makes me forget my hatred.
19. Björk ‘Army Of Me (Suckerpunch Remix)‘ – Björk is 100% brilliant, and 90% unlistenable. This is part of the 10%. Particularly loved this remix from the ‘Suckerpunch’ movie.
20. Bad News ‘Warriors Of Ghengis Khan’ – The first Bad News TV show was shot before Spinal Tap – both are brilliant but very different parodies of Heavy Metal. Produced (and played in places) by Brian May the eponymous first album is a staple of 1980s British humor. Highly influenced by ‘The Troggs Tapes’ and 100% profane. Very funny, very metal.

Guitar Solos

As I considered this topic over the course of the month, I had similar criteria to Tim’s with one addition: the solo must be memorable. So, after listening to hundreds of songs with solos that I thought might qualify, it is interesting that those that finally made it were the same that I probably would have listed at the beginning of the month, off the cuff. Some of these songs are overplayed, yes, and we’ve heard them a million times, but still, in every case I am transported by not just the solo but the song. Like Bob, I’m not even listing some of my favorite guitarists here: Don Rich, Sonny Sharrock, Robin Trower, Fred Frith, Richard Thompson, Frank Zappa, Steve Hackett.

Stranglehold (Ted Nugent)–Ted Nugent. 8 minutes or so of melodic guitar solo bliss.
Sailor’s Tale (Robert Fripp)–King Crimson. The only solo here that consists entirely of chords. So unlike any guitar solo that had probably ever been done before, and since! But not just groundbreaking, earth-shattering and apocalyptic. Few pieces of music have such power.
Hammond Song (Robert Fripp)–The Roches. And then here’s the other side of Fripp. Such a unique sound, it gets me on his guest solos with Bowie, Gabriel, Eno, Heads, etc.. As with all the others, this one takes an already spellbinding song and catapults it into the stratosphere. When I see this album available for $3 or so in every used record store on the planet, I am always tempted to hand it to someone along with a $5.
Starship Trooper (Steve Howe)–Yes. Could have easily selected any song off this album. Given my current listening habits–Bakersfield country–there was no way I could exclude him. As influenced by guys like James Burton and Don Rich as anyone and that is especially clear on this song.
Sultans of Swing (Mark Knopfler)–Dire Straits. Just can’t help it. Lyrical. Check the closing solo on the live Alchemy version as well.
Bohemian Rhapsody (Brian May)–Queen. Another obvious one that I could not in good conscience exclude.
Resemblances (Arto Lindsay)—Arto Lindsay. Brief but perfect noise execution.
Loan Me a Dime (Duane Allman)—Boz Scaggs. Gotta include my favorite blues solo here (especially 7:44-12 something where the song ends just when the solo REALLY gets going).
Time (The Revelator) (Dave Rawlings)–Gillian Welch. Another jaw-dropping instrumentalist who can do absolutely anything he wants with a guitar. One of dozens that I could have picked without embarrassment. I love the Welch songs where he basically solos throughout the song, the guitar acting acting as a melodic counterpoint alongside Gillian’s perfect rhythm.
Machine Gun (Jimi Hendrix)—Band of Gypsys. What can I say, just takes me completely over the edge.

Oh, and one other old favorite from a Wisconsin neighbor: Renaissance (Daryl Stuermer)–Jean Luc Ponty. Plays it like a mandolin.

Tim’s Top 10 Guitar Solos

As Bob inferred in his list, this was much harder than I expected, and it made me really think about what ‘guitar solos’ mean to me. It seems that my criteria are: emotional impact, melodic innovation and service to the song – i.e. I like solos that get my heart pumping, are as memorable as the vocal melody and are essential to the song’s structure. The best solos are undoubtedly performed by Jimi Hendrix or Jimmy Page, but they rarely meet my criteria. Here goes…

1. Love Of My Life (Queen) [2:18-3:04] My only dinosaur of rock solo. Love him or loathe him, Brian May’s subtlety is matched only by his grandiosity! This solo has the whole spectrum. Perhaps Freddie’s most earnest (pre-AIDS) songwriting, a love song for his wife, to whom he was properly devoted (in every way except sexually!) May’s solo morphs like a specter out of Freddie’s vocal, incredibly expressive and throaty. Unique sound, makes me cry every single time. 😦
2. Freak Scene (Dinosaur Jr.) [0:31-1:02], [1:43-2:24] I love totally discordant solos too, and after a lot of shortlisting, this one was my favourite. Love J. Mascis for not being afraid to put massive solos in punk songs.
3. Paranoid Android (Radiohead) [2:59-3:33] This one definitely checks all three boxes for me  – by the time you get to 3 minutes you’re desperate for the tension to be released and Johnny Greenwood brings it with one of the weirdest melodic solos of all time. The solo is a little later in the Jools Holland video.
4. Run Overdrive (Civil Civic) [whole song/album] Civil Civic’s debut album is instrumental, and kinda has guitar solos all the time like a surf-band. Typically I wouldn’t consider this sort of thing a ‘solo’ but the guitar work is so amazing I couldn’t omit it. The album is superb but you gotta check out some live videos.
5. Förträngda Problem (Bob Hund) [1:33-2:00] Bob Hund always have brilliant and weird solos, often discordant, sometimes emotive but always innovative. This one’s just unexpected and brilliant. (solo is 1:50 in the youtube video)
6. Neat Neat Neat (The Damned) [0:05-0:15] Brian James searing solo on this song represents classic Rock ‘n’ Roll from Chuck Berry onwards. Its one of the fastest, nastiest and sexiest solos ever.
7. Susanne (Weezer) [1:51-2:14] Rivers Cumo’s solos on the first 2 Weezer albums are all insanely good, but this one is my favourite. Its such a melodic (and harmonic!) song, it seems impossible for a guitar solo to take the melody somewhere new – but Cuomo manages it.  ♥
8. I Am The Resurrection (The Stone Roses) [3:47-4:25] I’ve ranted about it before, but it had to be on my list. Horrible song – amazing jam at the end.
9. No One Like You (Scorpions) [2:52-3:26] This one represents the best classic metal solo, and again I had to do a lot of shortlisting. Metal solos don’t really do it for me emotionally, but I had to include one, and this is the best one. Its also my ringtone for when my wife calls me.
10. Love’s Sweet Exile (Manic Street Preachers) [1:42-2:22] I’m not a huge fan of the Manics, but I loved this early single from them. It represents cock rock solos on my list, definitely a guilty pleasure of mine. Its got all the cliches, and it’s twice as long as it should be! Love it!
11. Stockholm Syndrome (Muse) [3:17-3:56] I couldn’t do a top ten solo list without including something from Matt Bellamy. Though totally insane and rather repetitive, he consistently blows my mind with his guitar-work. One of the most innovative guitarists in rock. I love his ethic of keeping overdubs to a minimum – there’s typically only one guitar on a Muse song! 

I know what you’re thinking… but this one goes up to 11.