Obscure and Forgotten Guitar Solos

[Ddbltrbl]

I see lists of the "Top 10 Greatest Guitar Solos" quite often, many I disagree with, but we're never gonna solve who's the greatest. But, I think there have been a lot of pretty hot solos out there that never really got any recognition. Again, this isn't a question of who's best! I just want to hear what solos touched you at some point that no one else seems to have noticed!
I'll start it off with this song from Steve Miller - Golden Opportunity! I don't know if it is technically all that great, but I loved the solo from the first time I heard it! The way he keeps driving it up an octave at the end always gets me!  :guitarplayer2:

What's yours?

 

[swarfrat]

I got one you've probably never heard of, but its worth digging out. Hands down some of the most vocal and expressive electric guitar ever recorded IMO.

Don Francisco, "Too Small a Price", album version (Got to Tell  Somebody)

The electric guitar work through the entire song is just fantabulous. He sits back a lot and uses the electric guitar sort of like emotional percussion. The solo is about 3 minutes long at the end of the song and its just beautiful. The guitar player of course is uncredited.  (Hadley Hockensmith rerecorded it as intro to the next album, and I like HH, but I really don't think it sounds like the same guy playing. )

Don was a Christian artist in the late 70's. Sort of unique, as he was sort of doing this twangless country thing, but there was no label support for Christian Country, so he just sort of made his own space within the framework. He's mostly known for ballads (in the technical sense, some of them have some drive).  My musical collection has broadened quite a bit since then, but TSAP is still some of the most gripping electric guitar playing I have ever heard.

 

[bagman67]

This is one of my favorite unknown guitar solos - this is "First You Cry," performed by Maura O'Connell off her "Blue Is The Color of Hope" album.  What a set of pipes.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muCiMpz2-wY


The guitar playing all over that album is just amazingly tasteful in the best Nashville way.  I think this might be Buddy Miller, but memory has faded a lot since I last read the liner notes.

 

[stratamania]

What a great voice and song.First You Cry, I hadn't heard it before.


This is one I liked the guitar on, from Celine Dion. Think Twice, I don't know who the guitarist is but would be interested to know.

http://youtu.be/roF9B_rJKhs

 

[Re-Pete]

I love the lead guitar work from Bowie's recording of "Fashion". Doesn't get any credit (Carlos Alomar?) in the all time lists but that digital/plate reverb underneath kinda whips it into shape.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvsQjprz1x4  :glasses9:

 

[Tony Ounsworth]

One to file under "unusual", but I absolutely love this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRhCqPHP1-0

He doesn't really play the whole thing, as it goes on for a few more bars after that. But anyway, I would never play those notes in a million years. My mind simply doesn't work that way. But it works so well.

 

[Ddbltrbl]

Some very...  ahum... "Interesting" stuff!  :toothy12:

Here's another! Actually the bass solo at 4:38 is my favorite part, but the guitar work ain't too shabby either! - Wishbone Ash - Handy

 

[stubhead]

In the great wasteland of early A.O.R. radio (Almost Obscenely Redundant)- Styx, Foreigner, Oreo Speedcookie, Bachman-Turner Overweight - yikes - there were a couple of real standouts. Dire Straights - duh. Andy Summers with the Police played real weird, I was playing (mostly bass) in a cover band, and trying to figure out Police songs was a bitch. The parts didn't seem to match up - I had to learn the guitar parts to be able to play the bass parts, and our guitar player, ditto w/bass. You couldn't follow each other. And of course when you heard a sucky song with a ridiculously overqualified solo, Mr. Van Halen.

But one guy I really liked was Neil Geraldo, Mr. Pat Benatar. He did not not do the expected AOR cliches, there was always some contrary timing or big jumps and stop/start things. By now his stuff like octave-jumping squealies has become cliches because everybody copied them, but at the time he was nice and weird. Always fun to make fun of the ping-pong balls inserted in Pat Benatar's cheeks too, 30 years later and her face is still exactly the same.

 

[Ddbltrbl]

I feel your pain Stubby! I drug an acoustic around all the time back then and had a drummer friend that bugged me incessantly to "play like the Police!" I had no clue what Andy was doing; totally lost!  :toothy12:
I could hear this playing in my head as soon as I got to the Mr. Pat Benatar part! He definitely was different!  ccasion14:

 

[mrpinter]

There's a great bass solo AND guitar solo in this one by Carl Verheyen and his band: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXrwehpmdKU

 

[anorakDan]

The first solo I thought of is Amos Garrett's fabulous solo from the Maria Muldaur hit "Midnight at the Oasis" from the 1974. If you don't know it, check it out here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwJKCSOX_AY

I love this solo more every time I hear it.

 

[Guitar4Him]

One of my all-time favorites is Rick Derringer's solo in the middle of "Back In The USA".  Rick just makes that ES-335 scream on that solo.  That's when he was touring with Edgar Winter's White Trash.  It's got to be one of the great Rock & Roll solos of all time...

Here's a link...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf2NsGMW_A4

Ken

 

[stubhead]

Most people have heard of Jeff Beck. and Stanley Clarke. But this solo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUW5pS6JLvo

Good God.

At 2:53, he plays quite possibly the second-greatest 5-connecting-note riff ever. One of those tracks for which no attainable volume is loud enough  :evil4:

The greatest 5 connecting notes? Well, it's really 6. At 24:25:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNuNz2idDtY

Holy Scott. Great Moly. Dad gummit. Ask me about the Single Greatest NOTE sometime.... :headbang:

 

[DaveT]

Holy Scott. Great Moly. Dad gummit. Ask me about the Single Greatest NOTE sometime.... :headbang:

Would that be the Lunar Note that Zoot Horn Rollo lets float?

 

[Cagey]

I'm guessing I have no ear for music, as I don't hear anything life-changing there. Listened to it several times, and while it's a well-done passage, it's nothing I'd write home about. But, what do I know? I'd pick on some of Mick Ronson's work, particularly on David Bowie's "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars". I'm not sure that counts as obscure or forgotten, though.

 

[Ddbltrbl]

I'd pick on some of Mick Ronson's work, particularly on David Bowie's "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars". I'm not sure that counts as obscure or forgotten, though.

...he says as he links to the Wikipedia page so everyone will know who he talking about.  :laughing7: :icon_jokercolor:
At least you and I still remember that far back.  :toothy12:
There is some great guitar work in there, but for some reason I always liked 3 Dog Night's version or Ron Davies version (song writer) of "It Ain't Easy" better than Bowie's! :dontknow:

 

[Cagey]

...for some reason I always liked 3 Dog Night's version or Ron Davies version (song writer) of "It Ain't Easy" better than Bowie's! :dontknow:

You're right; Bowie's version is a bit harsh. But, if you ask me, it's not that great of a tune to start with. If I don't hear it again for the rest of my life I won't miss it.

 

[johnny35]

Well I don't know how obscure these are, but being a fan of hard rock/metal/prog genres, here are 5 which I think are all amazing.

Megadeth's "Tornado of souls"  - Marty Friedman at his best
Iron Maiden's  "Weekend Warrior" from the album Fear Of The Dark
Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" - the outro-solo.  Haunting and awe inspiring
Kiss "Crazy Crazy Nights" May be a short solo, but still an old fave of mine!
Metallica "The Unforgiven" Gotta love Kirk Hammett!!

 

[Cagey]

Metallica "The Unforgiven" Gotta love Kirk Hammett!!

I'm with you on that one. Very emotional piece.

 

[swarfrat]

I've scoured the internet and can't find the original version of the song I posted. Even the cd release appears out of print. Lots of later acoustic only versions. Sigh...