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Favorite "majestic" guitar solos


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"The Final Cut"---Pink Floyd (the latter was mentioned in a thread here, and the pending instrumental release is what got me thinking about such music)

That one gets overlooked a lot. I remember after a particularly intense relationship ended listening to that song and just breaking down when the first not of that solo hit. I guess that was 15 years ago, but I really haven't been able to listen to it since. Just left a raw nerve I guess. Either way, that is one powerful piece of music.

A submission of my own that I think gets overlooked, "Bluest Blue" by Alvin Lee. George Harrison has a great slide solo on this one, then the outro by Lee is just sublime to my ear.

http://youtu.be/Ix7PfkvxmPI

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And I forgot Al Pitrelli's on "Dread And The Fugitive Mind". While I always was a huge fan of Marty Friedman, I think Al hit a home run with his solo on the aforementioned song. The tone in addition is vocal-ish and woody, a great lead tone. Al makes his Explorer sing, no BS. Please have a listen, even if you're not a metalhead

Funny...first song I thought of when I saw "majestic solo" was a song called "Titanic" we did that Al played the solo on...but I don't have a copy digitized to post.

Other:

Mick Ronson - Slaughter on 10th Avenue

Roy Buchanan - Messiah Will Come Again

Stevie Ray version of Little Wing

Crack the Sky's live version of Ice

Ronni Crooks -A Fall to Grace

Eric Johnson - Cliffs of Dover

Gary Moore - Parisenne Walkway

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And I forgot Al Pitrelli's on "Dread And The Fugitive Mind". While I always was a huge fan of Marty Friedman, I think Al hit a home run with his solo on the aforementioned song. The tone in addition is vocal-ish and woody, a great lead tone. Al makes his Explorer sing, no BS. Please have a listen, even if you're not a metalhead:

That entire album is a work of genius by Dave and Al. WAYYYYYYYY under-rated, IMO. Endgame had a very similar tone to it.

Excellent choice. This is a GREAT solo.

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And I forgot Al Pitrelli's on "Dread And The Fugitive Mind". While I always was a huge fan of Marty Friedman, I think Al hit a home run with his solo on the aforementioned song. The tone in addition is vocal-ish and woody, a great lead tone. Al makes his Explorer sing, no BS. Please have a listen, even if you're not a metalhead:

That entire album is a work of genius by Dave and Al. WAYYYYYYYY under-rated, IMO. Endgame had a very similar tone to it.

Excellent choice. This is a GREAT solo.

I guess the album is overlooked because it was the first one after Marty's departure. I personnally ignored it for a while just because of that. Big mistake. Now I consider "The World Needs A Hero" in the top four Megadeth albums, together with "Rust In Peace", "Countdown To Extinction" and "The System Has Failed".

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I guess the album is overlooked because it was the first one after Marty's departure. I personnally ignored it for a while just because of that. Big mistake. Now I consider "The World Needs A Hero" in the top four Megadeth albums, together with "Rust In Peace", "Countdown To Extinction" and "The System Has Failed".

You and I are kindred spirits. Although, I loved the album from the beginning.

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RE Yes and "Talk"---I'm citing the title track. I've been taught that if you're noting a song it should be in quotes, and if it's an album, it should be italicized if possible; i.e. "Talk" is the title track on the Talk album.

I can see how title tracks can cause some confusement....I regret causing any...

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I guess the album is overlooked because it was the first one after Marty's departure. I personnally ignored it for a while just because of that. Big mistake. Now I consider "The World Needs A Hero" in the top four Megadeth albums, together with "Rust In Peace", "Countdown To Extinction" and "The System Has Failed".

You and I are kindred spirits. Although, I loved the album from the beginning.

:) I also loved it from the very moment I listened to it. It just took me some time before I decided to give it a try. :) You see, I was into Marty Friedman since his Cacophony days and his "Dragon's Kiss" solo effort. The first Megadeth album I paid attention to was "Rust In Peace", precisely because Marty Friedman had just joined them.

But now I mention Marty, his "Namida" solo is also epic -and like that we go back to the main topic: ;)

Another heartfelt solo I particularly like is Yngwie Malmsteen's in "Hiroshima Mon Amour" with Alcatrazz. Those who think Malmsteen has no feeling better swallow their thoughts after listening to this: :)

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The "Top Gun Anthem" by Steve Stevens. :D

It's a little noodley, but the beginning of "In Time" by Robbi Robb from Bill and Ted's: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdXU1tMcnpU. That's a song that strangely always gives me chills.

"Liberty" off of "Passion and Warfare" by Vai.

Also the solo from "Inca Roads" by Zappa. Maybe "Peaches en Regalia" too...

Great thread. I could use more majestic solos in my life lately. Thanks!

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Minor digression RE "Comfortably Numb": When I was an active player my band would end that song like Pink Floyd ended it live, except we would finish on a B chord instead of Bm. Added to the potency or, er, majesty of the song, FWMOW...and I bet other folks on the HFC have ended it likewise.

Wow, that's crazy, I would never think to end that on B major. To me it would sound too Abbey Roadish.

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I suppose the Michael Schenker Group's "Captain Nemo" might qualify. Back in the day, MTV purveyed a live version of that song that beat the studio version, big-time.

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A majestic solo has to slow down and "reach for the sky" (Toy Story humor?). For me a good example is:

Jeff Beck's solo in "People Get Ready".

I may have missed it but I haven't seen it mentioned, "Stairway to Heaven". I know it is painfully obvious and we've all probably heard it too many times but it really is majestic and it made me want to play electric guitar.

David Gilmore's solo in "Time".

George Harrison's tiny solo in "Carry that Weight". It soars for just a moment and then it's gone. Guitar Haiku.

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I read the OP title and immediately thought of Brian May.

His lead breaks sound like a fanfare!

^This. Cannot think of anyone else who would come remotely close. "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Somebody To Love", "Friends Will Be Friends", "The Show Must Go On", "Death On Two Legs"... all epic!

...

Not to forget the BHM "Guitar Solo". It's epic in every Brian May or Queen related concert except for occasional acoustic sets with Kerry Ellis.

Satriani is one single guitar solo.

Boston Don't Look Back is very nice too. They sound as a whole is majestic.

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Buck Dharma - Astronomy, from the BOC Secret Treaties album

Just listened to this again and it gave me chills.

When I was in college in the 70s, this was the song I would always listen to at high volume just before I went to take my hourly exams.

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Buck Dharma - Astronomy, from the BOC Secret Treaties album

Just listened to this again and it gave me chills.

When I was in college in the 70s, this was the song I would always listen to at high volume just before I went to take my hourly exams.

Heh-I was for sure gonna say "Astronomy" from "Some Enchanted Evening"..........

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John Petrucci of Dream Theater has several solos that would qualify as majestic....when he isn't being all "weedly weedly". The solo at the beginning of "The Count Of Tuscany" is a good example.

Good call on Al Pitrelli. I was sitting in the 5th row of a Trans Siberian Orchestra show at Cape Girardeau, MO in 2011 during the Beethoven's Last Night tour and I felt like I had been punched in the stomach when Al tore into the solo of "The Dark". It just took the air away from me. My girlfriend noticed me and asked if I was alright. :lol: Below I linked to the studio version. Go to the 2:20 mark for the solo. Live he would use this version as the framework and change it up/extend it every time I saw them. That night in Cape G, MO though he was on another plane

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There are so many and you guys named a lot of them so I'm not going to relist them. Just say I agree with a lot of you. So I thought I'd list the few that really impacted me as a young person where I was most influenced and vulnerable.

I discovered Alice Cooper around the 5th grade. I loved the Killer album and still have the original I listened to in '73. I use it to separate my seeds and stems now. But the title song to Billion Dollar Babies had a cool lead @ 1:20. Listening to it now doesn't really do it for me like then which is a problem with rehashing a lot of music one listened to years ago. But I think this lead is what got me interested in guitar in the 8th grade when I gave up the organ. Now I realize that I liked it probably because in the lead he hits the root notes as the chords are changed. Then there is a dueling guitar between Glen Buxton and Michael Bruce.

http://youtu.be/uSCmnM3zxi0

Then around 21 I was struggling with losing my faith and Michael Schenker's Lost Horizons was a significant song and his outtro solo was amazing to me then. But admittedly there are better MS solos out there. Especially with live UFO.

And as a kid, it seemed like every song on Kiss Alive (one) had amazing solos.

But the all time best solo for solo's sake is hands down PIL Ease. Steve Vai says it's his best ever as well. At least that's what I've read. I've never had pers comm. with him. I still think the entire song is incredible with the sound of the didjeridu and building of tension through the song. Steve's solo begins around 5:30 if you want to skip the song. It really is an amazing solo.

http://youtu.be/6cIuejmDoBs

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David Jenkins' guitar solo on "Worlds Away". Mentioned on another thread I started IIRC. It helps that there's a terrific piano solo by Cory Lerios that precedes Jenkins' turn.

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