00:00She's got a smile that it seems to me, reminds me of childhood memories.
00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the rock songs
00:12that don't require you to actually have a guitar in your hands to rock out.
00:17Just gotta get out, just gotta get right out of here.
00:23Number 10. Smells Like Teen Spirit, Nirvana.
00:30Featuring, perhaps, the most instantly recognizable guitar riff of all time,
00:38Kurt Cobain's magnum opus is commonly regarded as one of the greatest rock songs ever recorded.
00:44Although, you'd be forgiven for hearing the resemblance to Boston's More Than a Feeling.
00:49Smells Like Teen Spirit never lets up for a second,
00:52consisting of five straight minutes of defiant wall-to-wall moshing.
01:00Despite its now iconic status, Cobain himself initially referred to its timeless riff as
01:19cliché, to which bassist Chris Novoselic agreed.
01:22Novoselic likely regretted speaking his mind, as Cobain then forced him and drummer Dave Grohl
01:28to play it repeatedly for 90 minutes.
01:31Luckily, unlike Chris, we're not being punished.
01:34No, we're choosing to strum Teen Spirit for hours on end.
01:38Number 9. Money for Nothing, Dire Straits.
01:56If you can muster the zen-like patience necessary to make it through this song's slow burn minute-and-a-half-long intro,
02:03then you'll be treated to an all-timer of a rock riff.
02:07As synths bubble and an uncredited sting repeatedly declares that he wants his MTV,
02:12you might think to yourself,
02:13when is this thing gonna take off?
02:15When it does, you'll be sorry you ever doubted Straits frontman Mark Knopfler's considerable prowess.
02:21It's possible that you'll even find yourself replaying that first beat drop over and over again.
02:34But we'd highly suggest sticking out the entire song for more killer guitar licks,
02:40courtesy of the underrated Knopfler.
02:42Not that we feel it'll take much convincing.
02:44We got to install microwave ovens, custom kitchen deliveries.
02:52Number 8. Purple Haze, Jimi Hendrix.
03:02Look, there's a reason that Jimi Hendrix is regarded as the guitar god to end all guitar gods.
03:08Just check out Purple Haze, a pitch-perfect showcase for his otherworldly skills on the instrument.
03:14In fact, when producer Chas Chandler first heard Hendrix toying with the riff,
03:26he claimed to have been knocked out, and without the rest of the song having been composed,
03:31declared that it was single material.
03:34Chandler clearly knew what the rest of us didn't yet, as Purple Haze became a smash hit,
03:40helping to establish the soft-spoken guitarist as a superstar,
03:43and setting the stage for hard rock as a commercially viable sensation.
03:55Number 7. Master of Puppets, Metallica.
03:58You didn't think we'd put together an air guitar list without including Metallica, did you?
04:10These giants of heavy metal are highly prolific, boasting an extensive back catalog that contains
04:16some of the heaviest and most quintessential guitar riffs ever composed.
04:20So that made it especially hard to choose.
04:23Do we pick one of the hits like Enter Sandman, or a beloved cult favorite like The Disturbing
04:29One?
04:29In the end, we had to go with Master.
04:38That owes to the fact that it contains a little bit of everything that makes Metallica, well,
04:43Metallica.
04:44It's got punishing riffs, a complex, multi-part arrangement, and face-melting solos.
04:50What more could you ask for?
04:53Sing it loud!
04:58Number 6. Back in Black, ACDC.
05:08It seems fair to say that this song is a far cry from the technical complexity of Master of
05:14Puppets.
05:15And just so it's abundantly clear, we're not complaining.
05:18Considering that ACDC have reliably delivered muscular, head-banging, air guitar-worthy rock
05:24for over 50 years.
05:33The simplicity of the guitar work on Back in Black is a major part of its enduring magnetism,
05:39teaching generations of rockers that you don't need to be Joe Satriani to properly rock out.
05:45Take it from Metal Hammer Magazine's initial review of the song in 1983.
05:50They called Back in Black a song that appeals to everybody, from dads to dudes, to little
05:55old ladies beating noisy kids over the heads with their sticks.
05:59Back in Black, ACDC.
06:08Number 5. Crazy Train, Ozzy Osbourne.
06:12Ozzy Osbourne
06:20After supplying the world with some of its most iconic proto-metal riffs during his tenure
06:25as the lead singer of Black Sabbath, Osbourne embarked on a massively successful recording
06:30career.
06:31Thankfully, Ozzy failed to derail and continued to churn out some of the greatest, most influential
06:36heavy metal the world had ever known.
06:42Case in point, Crazy Train was Ozzy's first single off his first solo album.
06:48Of course, he didn't do it all by himself.
06:51Ozzy benefited tremendously from the nimble fingers of guitarist Randy Rhoads, who died
06:56tragically in a 1982 plane crash aged just 25.
07:00So whenever you're shredding to Crazy Train, be sure to open with a moment of silence for
07:05the fallen musician.
07:06Number 4 Sweet Child O' Mine Guns N' Roses
07:14They were arguably the biggest band of the 1980s, selling out shows across the globe and living
07:28appropriately hard.
07:29While they didn't get to that place overnight, the runaway success of Sweet Child O' Mine
07:34certainly didn't hurt.
07:35Sweet Child took things to an entirely new level, becoming GNR's only song to hit number
07:41one on the Billboard Hot 100.
07:43However, despite providing the song with the guitar parts that would turn it into an anthem,
07:55the band's resident Axeman Slash initially couldn't stand it.
07:59Said Slash, I hated that song with a huge passion for a long time, and it turned out to be our
08:04hugest hit.
08:05So it goes to show what I know.
08:13Number 3 Freebird, Lynyrd Skynyrd
08:16This is one air guitar performance you'll need to make sure you have the stamina for.
08:28Although multiple versions of Freebird exist, the longest one, appearing on the 1989 hits
08:33compilation Skinner's Innards, runs just over 10 minutes in length.
08:37That said, Freebird never feels overindulgent, or long just for the sake of it.
08:50It tells a heartbreakingly fleshed-out story.
08:53That is, a story that takes five glorious minutes to wrap up, via a seemingly endless
08:59supply of red-hot guitar theatrics.
09:02Those come courtesy of twin guitarists Alan Collins and Gary Rossington.
09:07In short, Freebird's perfect blend of drama, emotion, and technicality make it a fantastic
09:12song to rock out to, sans an actual guitar, of course.
09:23Number 2 Stairway to Heaven, Led Zeppelin
09:27What else can we say for this one?
09:35Except, well of course, regarded by countless critics as the greatest rock song of all time.
09:40And an impeccable demonstration of Jimmy Page's guitar mastery, Stairway to Heaven has more
09:45than earned its flowers over the years.
09:48The song is a bonafide epic, and without it, we likely wouldn't have such odysseys of rock
09:53as Freebird and Master of Puppets.
10:02Sure, Stairway to Heaven wasn't the first rock sweep, but its enormous outsized influence
10:07has inspired vast swaths of amateur guitar players.
10:11And that's what makes it a perfect air guitar rocker.
10:15It's got a little bit of everything, and executes it at the very highest levels.
10:22Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified
10:31about our latest videos.
10:33You have the option to be notified for occasional videos, or all of them.
10:36If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
10:41Number 1.
10:44Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen
10:46You're probably asking yourself, if Stairway to Heaven isn't number one, then what is?
11:00Maybe it's a somewhat unconventional choice for a list that's supposed to be about imaginary
11:05guitar shredding.
11:06But that's before you remember the way Brian May makes his Red Special sing in Rhapsody's
11:11Wailing First Guitar Solo.
11:20After the song shifts into opera mode for its second act, it gives way to the hard-rocking,
11:25head-banging section we all know and love, and for that alone.
11:29Bohemian Rhapsody earns our number one spot.
11:31For air guitar supremacy, it's not necessarily about how hard, how fast, or how relentlessly
11:42you play.
11:43It's about how you use your time in the make-believe spotlight.
11:46Which song on our list transforms you into a rock star in your own mind?
11:50Are there any we missed?
11:52Be sure to let us know in the comments below.
11:54Alright, alright, Alice, let's go!
11:55Flat.
11:56It's so flat, I can't even, I don't even know, you don't even look good while you're singing.
12:03The worst thing I've ever heard.
12:05This is $1,200 a week for voice lessons, and this is what I get?
12:09Okay, I'm gonna save it with the solo.
12:11I'm gonna have to rename the rock star overseas.
12:22I can't even draw my lips outdoors region until 3 or 5.
12:26You will see your right after I start of the Choices.
12:29And as you're gonna make friends, thank you.
12:30We're gonna make those two steps.
12:32Okay, thanks.
12:33We'll have eight seconds to help and to be taking so longлы.
Comments