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Pop, Power pop with cool solos


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Hey guys,

I was listening to some Cars last night. I know some of their tunes are goofy, but others are quite fun and catchy. I really like the solos! They are pretty intricate if you listen closely to them. I also like the way they are kind of a "song within a song", not just random licks....everything is connected.

Another example I could think of would be "My Sharona" by the Knack. I don't know that band too well aside from that tune.

What are some other examples of tasty guitar solos within the context of a pop song, or power pop song? I'm not talking about songs where the song is just an excuse to have a long solo, but where rather it's a pretty poppy song with the added bonus of a great solo.

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Every Matthew Sweet song after and including the Girlfriend album (more or less).

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Austin

Oh man, good call Austin!! I have to pick up Girlfriend for sure, I don't know why I haven't up to now! Aren't the players Tom Verlaine and... hmmm...someone else but it's escaping me. I will check it on wikipedia. Is it Sterling Morrison?

Love Elliot Easton - great guitarist and composer of cool arse music!

Yeah, no doubt eh!? I wonder what that guy is up to these days, does he have another band, or solo records or anything?

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Love Elliot Easton - great guitarist and composer of cool arse music!

Yeah, no doubt eh!? I wonder what that guy is up to these days, does he have another band, or solo records or anything?

here you go...really cool playing...

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Every Matthew Sweet song after and including the Girlfriend album (more or less).

-

Austin

Oh man, good call Austin!! I have to pick up Girlfriend for sure, I don't know why I haven't up to now! Aren't the players Tom Verlaine and... hmmm...someone else but it's escaping me. I will check it on wikipedia. Is it Sterling Morrison?

Close. The guitar was Richard Lloyd (mostly), Ivan Julian and Robert Quine. IIRC.

-

Austin

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That Tinted Windows CD with Bun E Carlos and James Iha sure has some rockin' guitar solos - over some great power pop songs. Check it out.

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Lots of Prince and Michael Jackson.

The Purple Rain melody was the first my son learned to play at age 6.

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Guy looks like a tard version of Johnny De Marco lol

Good player tho

(Mod Edit please refrain from political comments on the board)

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Brilliant Benny-boy :D :D :D

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Not sure if i would consider all of these Pop, but i had a short stint in a power pop band back in the early 80s, and a lot of these were in the set list and had fun solos...

Off Broadway (Full Moon)

Tubes (Talk to Ya' Later)

Springfield (Jessie's Girl) - this has the added benefit of getting the ladies on the dancefloor

Saga (Wind Him Up)

Donny Iris (Ah, Leah)

Alan Parsons (Prime Time)

Big Country (Big Country)

Billy Squire (Lonely is the Night)

Aldo Nova (Fantasy)

Journey (Escape)

Sweet (Action)

Toto (Rosanna) - that second solo be a cooker...

Orion (So You Ran)

Planet P Project (Why Me)

Russ Ballard (Voices)

Edited to add:

Honeymoon Suite (Feel it Again)

Richard Marx (Don't Mean Nothing) - that be Joe Walsh, there, sir...

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I like the lead break on Dancing on the ceiling, and practically all the playing on anything by Huey Lewis and the news.. Forexample...

I like the blue superstrat on this one!

Huey Lewis' guitarist is an absolute monster. And of course Dancing on the Ceiling was Steve Lukather. He played on at least a couple Lionel Ritchie albums and pretty much everything else in the 80's that required a cool guitar solo as well.

-

Austin

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Gigolo Aunts

You Am I (mid-period stuff is more power poppy)

Redd Kross

Big Star

Cheap Trick

Fuzzbubble

Hoodoo Gurus

The Lemonheads

Material Issue

The Plimsouls

The Pretenders (Sorta)

The Shazam

Silver Jet

Shoes

Sloan

The Smithereens

Squeeze

Teenage Fanclub

Lots of Todd Rundgren stuff

Velvet Crush

To name a few in loosely alphabetical order...

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Gigolo Aunts

You Am I (mid-period stuff is more power poppy)

Redd Kross

Big Star

Cheap Trick

Fuzzbubble

Hoodoo Gurus

The Lemonheads

Material Issue

The Plimsouls

The Pretenders (Sorta)

The Shazam

Silver Jet

Shoes

Sloan

The Smithereens

Squeeze

Teenage Fanclub

Lots of Todd Rundgren stuff

Velvet Crush

To name a few in loosely alphabetical order...

Great list! Some of those bands I've listened to, especially Sloan and Teenage Fanclub, Big Star to a lesser extent. I'll check out the others. Thanks for the recommendations!

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Hoodoo Gurus

In 1986 I was at a college radio convention in New York City, and the Hoodoo Gurus were playing at the showcase. At dinner with my girlfriend before the show, we overheard a voice in a distinctly Australian accent say, "We come all the way to the fookin' United States and all we get are the fookin' 'oodoo Gurus!"

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Add in Rockpile/Dave Edmonds/Nick Lowe stuff.

Along with Cheap Trick, I'd also count in some of Tom Petty's singles as almost pop.

Badfinger. Lovin' Spoonful...always thought Zal Yanovsky's parts were often quite good.)

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Add in Rockpile/Dave Edmonds/Nick Lowe stuff.

Along with Cheap Trick, I'd also count in some of Tom Petty's singles as almost pop.

Badfinger. Lovin' Spoonful...always thought Zal Yanovsky's parts were often quite good.)

I saw Nick Lowe open for Wilco a little while ago, he was great!

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