The Death of the Guitar Solo

[@MichaelDooleyProject]

The guitar solo is alive and well and lives in my basement. 🤘🏽

[@SpacemanXC]

It lives on youtube. The amount of shredders on here is insane. There's clean shredders like Ichika and Tim Henson. Gamer shredders like The Doo. Tappy acoustic shreddrs like Marcin. There's endless channels doing guitar covers and lessons. Not to mention all the new wave thrash and prog dudes that are a dime a dozen now. SHits alive and well as far as I see it. We're just in a different era

[@P_B_FR]

​@@SpacemanXCthat's not alive, just abundant. Ask non-guitarists/musicians about these people. I would bet you 9/10 wouldn't know most of the people you just mentioned for their guitar stuff

[@SpacemanXC]

Its crazy that "Playing God" can have over 30 million views on youtube, and people wanna claim its not popular. We're just in a different era. I couldn't name a single Taylor Swift song if my life depended on it. @@P_B_FR

[@kuyion]

​@@SpacemanXCbro a lot of those people call shredders boomers

[@SpacemanXC]

A lot? Or just Tim Henson? Also, if you watch the video where he say's it, its not even really what he said. @@kuyion

[@Tensei888]

I think bands like Queens of the Stone Age (Kyuss), Muse, and Porcupine Tree also kept great guitar work driven music alive in the 2000s, if in a slightly more niche space than before. Thank you for a great series. Looking forward to you highlighting more of what’s brewing now.

[@gsly6081]

Muse was huge in the mainstream at least. And yes i agree with you, this guy missed a lot of stuff.

[@Scott_Silver]

Yeah Knights of Cydonia solo even if it is easy ish in retrospect is amazing

[@FosFate]

Yeah, not mentioning Muse on this list is crazy. They were one of, if not the biggest UK band in 2000s, and Matt Bellamy's solos were a big part of many songs.

[@LeSensuel]

I was expecting Muse’s Hysteria to pop up in this list. That solo is incredible!

[@alexlogan124]

Queens have some really cool solos, little sister in particular is badass

[@cantcontrol12]

The solos on Weezer's 'Say it ain't so' is what got me into music. Solos are a true art form that's lost its way in mainstream music

[@thecoolguy7985]

Weezer

[@clipPRmusic]

Only In Dreams’ guitar soli give me chills.

[@toalladepapel]

same, but it was pinkerton's guitar solos and guitar orchestration in general that kept me in music

[@FBracht]

Same. Say It Ain't So completely floored me.

[@just_some_guy_innit]

@@thecoolguy7985💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀

[@griffinmaxwell789]

That performance of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is my favorite live musical performance ever. Petty and Lynne are amazing, but then Prince just emerges from the darkness and melts everyone's faces.

[@charleneong]

Ohmygod iconic moment. My soul left my body for a bit

[@JSmusiqalthinka]

Prince truly deserves to be remembered not just as a great pop act, but as a GOATed guitarist/everything else he played and imo as a musical Great like Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, etc.

[@_wanderingrocks_]

What happens to his guitar at the end? I swear Prince played such a transcedent solo, the guitar just disolved in ecstasy

[@var9828]

The clapton version is better tbh

[@itsirrelevant4565]

Just about any time prince was on stage was a special moment.

[@--thatbih]

4:12 Just a correction: The song is not Serve The Servants, it's Scentless Apprentice

[@wgb01001]

Came here to say the exact same thing!

[@theDragoon007yaboiCJ]

me too@@wgb01001

[@billepperson2662]

Same...

[@dillanleach7205]

Scrolled to see this! Also, the Serve the Servants solo is ironically very melodic at points

[@billepperson2662]

@@dillanleach7205 I was gonna mention that too! I swear, I'm about to start my own Nirvana yt channel, due to how bad, incorrect & exploitative all the others are

[@augustosolari7721]

I just want to point out that if you look at the end of Prince performance of the solo, you will notice that he throws his guitar up to the sky AND IT NEVER COMES DOWN. Simply Magic!

[@thewyldness]

And no one there knows how he did it.

[@Sinjax1]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/moi1dKKle7CeacU&ab_channel=Rock%26RollHallofFame Found this version at the end that shows where it went. all this time i thought it really disappeared 😔😭

[@empireoflizards]

Whenever I've seen Prince show up to these type events, or anytime really, his playing is absolutely incredible. And yeah...his axe sort of went bye-bye lol.

[@edgedjbob]

That performance is a protest for Rolling stones sleeping on him as one of the best guitarist of the century.

[@nickameen]

Fun fact: someone later handed that guitar to Oprah on Prince’s orders.

[@jonashrabcik6444]

It would be so amazing to have a final instalment of the series about guitar players today and how they are currently breaking new ground. I'd love to know about them

[@ArthurSanford3706]

Some of Thomas Raggi's guitar solos blew my mind when I first heard them

[@RogueReplicant]

I love the retro feel in the solo on 2021's "Ummon" by French band Slift. Great riff, too!

[@chinchirap]

Listen to black midi, their first album has a lot of noise driven guitar on it, not traditional solos but so cool. Their other two are a lot more progressive and impressive but i love all their stuff, they are geniuses

[@sleepytomato9100]

Personally I'm a big fan of Fredrik Thordendal's solos in Meshuggah. Definitely unique and cool sounding. Worth a listen if you're into metal

[@mryett]

Big Thief - kzbin.info/www/bejne/jXzQdWljpc5-aKM More in the style of Neil Young.

[@rEdf196]

In 1977, at age 13 I remember hearing The Ramones debut album. I was stunned to notice there were no guitar solos at all, something I thought was crazy at the time.

[@trailingupwards]

Another great punk album with no solos from 1977: Wire - Pink Flag

[@becomingamirror]

A little surprised not to see Incubus's Michael Einziger not get a mention here. He has been very innovative from the late 90s through 00s, and many Incubus records include some creative guitar solos.

[@wgb01001]

💯

[@Jasonmakesvideo]

innovative ,yes, but he never plays solos per se

[@ileutur6863]

As someone who still listens to a ton of mainstream and underground guitar based music, I really don't notice when a song doesn't have a solo. I prefer creative lead lines instead, often found in instrumental genres like post rock and prog.

[@quentinbringthenumetalchil5125]

Same. I’ve been gravitating towards stuff like that within underground music sites.

[@SpacemanXC]

Lich King, Vektor, Havok, Between the Buried and Me, Polyphia, Chon, Covet...even fucking Dragonforce. All still doing badass solos

[@empireoflizards]

Back in the 70's, Pink Floyd was known for that. They were a sort of 'alternate' type back then and the guitar leads were more melodic...yet some of the 'solos' became iconic to this day. The best solos don't distract from the rest of the song.

[@unique1o1-g5h]

The love I feel for post-rock.

[@DrAnxiety17]

@@empireoflizards without solos Pink Floyd music would have been a lot less iconic.

[@msmoniz]

Small correction; Gilmour's solo on 1994 Pink Floyd's High Hopes, is not a (slide) guitar solo, but a lap steel solo. And yes it makes a difference.

[@bourgeais7085]

the guitar solo on 4:11 is actually from scentless apprentice, not from serve the servants

[@Aron-bz1zn]

yee was just about to say

[@InfectiousGroovePodcast]

The guitar solo, just like every genre of music is most certainly not dead. People like to proclaim the death of things once they just have to do a little work for themselves to find it.

[@milosnikolic5140]

Matt Bellamy of Muse has amazing solos and riffs from late 90s, "Plug in Baby" for example

[@ia5662]

He's more known for his superior 2000s work - he's got sick solos in many of those classic albums.

[@jibrilbaldhead]

A note of correction: Rick Rubin and the Beastie Boys parted ways several years before Sabotage. Mario Caldato Jr was their producer for that one.

[@CarLos-is2bz]

The Strokes have so many badass guitar solos so does Mac Demarco they been carrying rock and roll for the last 10 years Stu and Joey from King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard in 2008 we got Psychosocial by Slipknot Oxford Comma by Vampire Weekend

[@3xtan327]

Queens of the stone age deserve a mention as well, the weird solo on little sister is a good example of Josh homme’s style

[@user-lp7tx1fe6t]

And King Buffalo, All The Witches, Slift

[@user-lp7tx1fe6t]

And Muse

[@ultimadum7785]

POLYPHIA.

[@jaywalshmusicandsong1736]

He does state in the title that it is an incomplete analysis of guitar solos, so...I agree. Alot missing. Oh well. Still a great video.

[@dylafterdark]

i’m glad modern guitar music is getting its own episode and i’m even more glad you’re talking about mdou moctar. truly a visionary on the guitar and not nearly talked about enough

[@screamdreamer9085]

I randomly discovered him like 3 years ago. I’ve never seen anyone play guitar the way he does. So many notes get played so quickly with all his fingers. He’s so amazing at what he does

[@ClassifiedUnit-135]

"Guitar music", by that you mean metal? Or some other gen z heartthrob 😆

[@codyjohnson4174]

What? What are you talking about

[@dylafterdark]

@@ClassifiedUnit-135 what are you on about, in 2023 rock isn’t the only genre with guitar in it. and there’s plenty of amazing guitarists in non conventional bands

[@ClassifiedUnit-135]

@@dylafterdark I was being sarcastic. Also, metal is quite different from rock, despite being called a "subgenre".

[@grahamk7571]

I watch Prince's solo from "My guitar Gently weeps" about twice a year and its still just as magical.

[@Hawkschamp2010]

I feel like Pearl Jam’s early music had some decent solos during that time

[@emiofnnc]

Mike McCready is a gem of a guitarist, what he did in Mad Season was also really good

[@Gian4455]

McCready is a monster! Somehow he always gets overlooked in these type of videos. But his solos (and guitar work in general) on Pearl Jam, Mad Season and Temple of the Dog are simply amazing.

[@ia5662]

Decent? They were EXCELLENT. It's unfortunate that Mike went off the deep end and just mindlessly shreds as fast as he can now. The solos he put to tape on the first 3 albums are magic.

[@DrAnxiety17]

Solo from Alive is fantastic.

[@jeppyjep]

Alice In Chains also has amazing solos.

[@PhantomStrange]

I didn’t read the other comments, but Beastie Boys had long left Rick Rubin by the time Sabotage came out. Rubin was only involved with Licensed to Ill. Mario Caldato Jr produced Sabotage

[@waysinwaves]

Score notes for this one (wow this series is almost done 😶): - Whenever I was doing the grunge-ish cues, I used my Shallow Water pedal by Fairfield Circuitry on the front end to have some light chorusing before the drive section of whatever I was playing. Not a pedal that existed for that era, but I felt like it was a fun way to approximate that chorus kinda vibe while keeping it a bit more modern - 6:31 wrote this after watching live performances of Panic Attach and Under a Glass Moon. No matter what your feeling on Dream Theater are you can't deny that they do over-the-top like no one else, lol - 7:02 the first of many cues written on my tele tuned un 5ths for this ep! - 12:24 modular and swell guitar on the harmony, slide and e-bow Guit on the melody, all through an effect that reduces the sample rate of the whole cue (Ableton Redux) - 13:46 I'm very happy that this transition worked, lol - 16:12 everything from here is tele in 5ths through the Fairfield Circuitry Unpleasant Surprise Fuzz Thanks for watching y'all, one more :)

[@brianalbertdejesus3863]

John mayer's live in la album has a lot of guitar solos. His latest album has some solos as well (Wild Blue imitating Mark Knopfler's guitar style)

[@GCSoundArtifacts]

A little correction: the title of Kurt Cobain's guitar solo should've been "Scentless Apprentice", not "Serve the Servants". The music that was played was from the 2nd track of "In Utero", not the 1st one.

[@hailmaryrecordings8255]

I still like a well placed guitar-solo that serves the song.

[@skrillah6259]

Key words, serves the song

[@gameroo713]

I didn't even know he was sick.

[@memopinzon]

Another fellow Norm enjoyer

[@lifeisdead01]

Just came from a norm compilation and was very confused

[@memopinzon]

I know what you're talking about, I have the same fetish too.@@lifeisdead01

[@TheCropCircleQueens]

You seem like a professor of logic

[@danieldelahunty7973]

Hi Polyphonic. The Nirvana song you have playing in the video is not from Serve the Servants. It’s from Scentless Apprentice.

[@frostyeli]

I’d really love to see you cover the red dirt southern rock scene out of Oklahoma and Texas. Throughout the 2000s bands like Cross Canadian Ragweed, The Great Divide, and Reckless Kelly kept heavy guitar sounds alive but with a little country twang on it

[@cheesemcsqueeze8845]

Jam bands were pretty big in the 90s and that entire style is based on solos. Trey played countless solos worth studying for years and years in that decade.

[@ia5662]

word has it, they're still going on today....

[@TomatoFettuccini]

When I see bands like King Gizzard, Cybertronic Spree, and Polyphia, and see the inroads they're making into mainstream consciousness, coupled with the state of....well, everything....I firmly believe we're on the cusp of a whole new era of popular rock.

[@506hunterst]

As someone who very much has grown up with band King Gizzard, they inspired me to learn guitar, and I'm certain I'm not the only one,

[@TomatoFettuccini]

@@506hunterst From the sheer number of under-20 musicians into rock I see on KZbin, I'm extremely excited about the prospect of new rock and metal. My god, the Fine Bros series "Do Kids Know (insert rock band name)?" filled me with so much joy because of 10-year-old kids screeching in joy about Led Zeppelin. I mean, Miley Cyrus covering Heart of Glass, Greta van Fleet flat-out stealing Zep's sound, @Ellenplays, that 11-year old girl bassist who can play Muse's Hysteria....I'm so stoked about the next 20 years of rock. Love that you're inspired by other rock musicians! Don't neglect your music theory; it's super-important!

[@506hunterst]

@@TomatoFettuccini My fave bands are King Gizzard Tool and Radiohead, music theory is my bread and butter.

[@karlouribe1187]

I'm pretty sure that Kurt's solo is from Scentless Apprentice but great video btw!

[@jpjpjp6328]

"The Death of the Guitar Solo" only exist if you dwell in the mainstream

[@azaraelhyzer3874]

Thank you! Polyphonic for featuring mdou in the end. His performance on kexp was really breathtaking.

[@tecpaocelotl]

Reminds me of this baby book I bought my daughter and read to her about the history of rock. Both end with the feeling that it ends in a downer, but there's hope.

[@axelhallen5802]

I freaking LOVE your vids mister! The knowledge, the narration and the music. It's all awesome. I think the one the really got the hook in me was the John Bonham one (but I'm guessing that's not uncommon). I actually did have Nebula for a year but there where so many features missing compared to YT that I found myself watching content on YT instead if it was on both platforms. It was abut a year ago now though so I guess it might have gotten better now but still. In my opinion as a serious YT addict (it seriously interferes with my life) the platform really needs to work on that.

[@albertcornett7408]

Tell this to Japanese bands like Band Maid. Their guitar solos fit into their songs seamlessly and are epic.😊

[@davidfrischknecht8261]

You can add LoveBites to that list as well.

[@SpacemanXC]

Lich King, Vektor, Havok, Between the Buried and Me, Polyphia, Chon, Covet...even fucking Dragonforce. All still doing badass solos

[@LynnHermione]

But didn't you know only english sprakers matter? /s

[@albertcornett7408]

@@davidfrischknecht8261 They are on the list.

[@CPD0123a]

Tbf Japan has a thriving alt scene where stuff like that can still succeed far more than in our current draconian system of mega labels, iHeart, Pandora, and Spotify basically telling you what to listen to.

[@santiagoclark9431]

Yessss!!! Killer ending with Mdou Moctar. That guitarist is onto something special

[@loydthabartender5794]

Great documentary and mostly correct conclusion even though it is depressing. There was one glaring omission though: Allan Holdsworth. That guy was in many ways the godfather of shred guitar. When Eddie Van Halen was not tapping in the early days, he was playing holdsworth licks. The fast legato, the crazy hand stretching licks, the common scales that EVH uses, all holdsworth stuff.

[@gln121970]

Rick Rubin and Beastie Boys had long since stopped working with each other by the time Sabotage hit.

[@yellowjackboots2624]

For the record, my favourite guitar solo is the second solo in Iron Maiden's 2 Minutes To Midnight, Adrien Smith at his best. Anyone else?

[@ClassifiedUnit-135]

Mines a lot from Alexi laiho, a combination of Mors Principum Est and All that remains.

[@LanceEads]

Doug Martsch of Built to Spill and Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse are a couple of guitarists to check out. They've both been at it a while, but with limited commercial success.

[@cerperalpurpose]

I wouldn't say Modest Mouse have had limited commercial success for at least twenty years

[@likecrazyhorse]

I really hope one of these takes the focus off of pop music and shows off some really great artists that have been giving us incredible guitar work under the radar of studio executives

[@GizzyDillespee]

Don't forget about microtonal guitar. A guy in Turkey just wrote the book on it. He uses a guitar with moveable frets, and also a lego guitar, among others. For microtonal rock, I'd check out Brendan Byrnes' song Operator and King Gizzard's O.N.E, to start with. Of course, you gotta mention Henson and Tosin, and 7 and 8 string shredders, and fan frets... There have actually been quite a few practical innovations in guitar playing, many of which seem to be catering especially for lead guitar playing. Also, for the 2020s you gotta mention Nuno's solo - that moved me more than most, maybe even more than Prince's, depending on my mood.

[@monk3ysmuggler]

It wasn't the guitar solo that was being rejected but the exclusionary idea that every band needed a shredder on guitar to be taken seriously. Players like Guy from Fugazi were playing amazing unpretentious leads that focused on supporting the song and carried the torch through the dark days of the early 90's. Kyuss, QOTSA, Primus, Foo Fighters, Them Crooked Vultures, The Mars Volta...there's a bridge through the 90's to the 2000's of players like Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, Trey Anastasio, and Larry LaLonde that kept the guitar solo alive despite the popular narrative.

[@thewyldness]

exactly! Homme alone killed it.

[@jpjpjp6328]

In the underground, the guitar solos were everywhere and they sometimes got even further over the top. The "dark days" you speak of were for more mainstream material.

[@monk3ysmuggler]

Fugazi was being courted by Atlantic records so its hard not to giggle at the idea they weren't mainstream just because they stayed with Discord and turned down the cash to keep their souls

[@jpjpjp6328]

@@monk3ysmugglerI was going to tons of gigs back then and thought Fugazi was merely "alright" They had exactly one song i really liked and that was pretty much it. I respected them for their stances concerning the majors but Big Black already famously turned down A&R guys a few years back. As for guitar solos, 1991 was the year of the Death Metal explosion and they were chock full of over the top throat cutting lead players that didn't get attention in the mags for some time (if ever) because they weren't fashionable.

[@blackrosekeating]

Black Summer by the Chilis is the first guitar solo I've heard on the radio for about a decade. And it's an unreal solo too

[@lennontyner4096]

Looking over John Mayer as a 2000s guitar god is a full war crime. Continuum is easily a more influential album than elephant

[@sunny1992s]

Yeah theres a ton of late 2000's teens that got into blues style playing because of "Where the Light is". I'd argue Mayer's solo on "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" is just as memorable/iconic as "Ball and a Biscuit"

[@loansharklacrosse5523]

I’m just hoping he mentions Mayer next video bc ya it’s gotta be against the Geneva conventions

[@charlescdt6509]

Which John Mayer? His mainstream stuff is different then his John Mayer Trio stuff. But yess I was looking for him as well.

[@edalvarez8901]

John is easily one of the most underrated guitar players every while still being quite hyped. He definitely fills a very interesting spot for players but his influence is undeniable. I’ve met metal fans who love John and worship guys who love John. It’s quite a broad fan base that few guitarists get to fill

[@geargeekpdx3566]

Maybe "Overlooking" would have been a better choice of word there.

[@sylvesterfalkeriksen8746]

This is my faverite on going Series on KZbin right now, keep up the fucking good work!!!

[@samgross2027]

The music is louder than hell on this video

[@JR_Taylor]

good point about the dial up modem, I've never noticed that before.

[@matthewlewis4559]

I'm a little surprised you didn't mention Extreme's Rise as a recent guitar solo to break out. Nuno Bettencourt's solo on that song is amazing and quickly received many props even if it didn't make "popular" radio.

[@nickameen]

Nuno is one of the greatest.

[@SevensMarkedSeven]

Finally someone recognizing Nuno and Extremes talent

[@cinezurdo]

I think its safe to argue that today’s newest pioneers in the electric guitar sound are King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard; with a collection of fusion genres ranging from Nu Metal, Prog Rock, Jazz Rock, etc.

[@guillaume8141]

Mdou moctar at the end gave me chills. You've got to do a video on the desert rock and tinariwen and the like ❤️❤️

[@misorodzinak8829]

Yes. One of the most fresh and exciting things to happen in Rock Music in a long time.

[@brianmiller1077]

@@misorodzinak8829 They are a great pallet cleanser. Something different but still groovy

[@bry8883]

I hope for the 7th & 8th title of the sequals after this would be: • 7th: The pop punk reign of guitar solo's in 2000's. • 8th: The "Indie-fication" of guitar solos within 2010's

[@officialihopcustomerservic7331]

I love the video ! great work ! I will, however, say that MCR deserves a mention -- I see Ray Toro as a guitar hero among the best of them, as well as an important contemporary to Jack White -- and one that brought forward the legacy of acts like Queen and Iron Maiden and Megadeth

[@SMJSmoK]

Completely agree. The solo in Famous Last Words is such a wonderful release of pent up emotions. It's one of my favourite guitars solos of all time.

[@PencilFan-hj3lo]

For sure Demolition Lovers is my favorite solo ever

[@parkie101010]

This (as so much of your stuff) has been a great series. Congrats and thanks. I think the thing about guitar is you’re just happenstance away from finding someone new and amazing. Mdou Moctar is my current. Music is a never ending journey and that’s the best part.

[@OtavioFesoares]

4:15 - That's Scentless Apprentice, not Serve the Servants.

[@Jargleman]

See king gizzard and the lizard wizard. They got guitar solos, harmonica solos, a fucking flute solo at one point. They’re fucking wild

[@navneetsinghr4290]

I am yet to hear something as good and crazy as tornado of souls

[@andrewmcmillan3655]

Respects for talking about portishead Tyler, Kendrick etc have talked about how much influence they’ve had for their production

[@Panda_man..]

I love all three, with Portis being the most recent one I’ve gotten into (just a few days ago) Great stuff from them.

[@MusicByDamienA]

Thank you Polyphonic for uploading such awesome educational rockin content 🤘

[@hayes9443]

This content is so cool!!! Please keep up the good work man!

[@paulmatolsy4593]

Hey you youngsters, let me add a bit of perspective to this matter. I am a 74 year old guitarist who has been playing guitar solos since the early 60s. Over the years I have soloed in all genres of music including rock and roll, jazz, classical guitar, Indian and Arabic modal poly-rhythmic styles Country Chicken Pickin'. In my book, the era of the guitar solo's decline began with Eddie Van Halen's Eruption guitar solo. That solo showcased the finger tapping technique, and it was fast, but other than that went no further. The pity is that young guitarists from that point on focused on speed to the detriment of the other aspects of music. I saw it with my own eyes and I heard it with my own ears. The biggest loser was rhythm and timing. Focusing on fast picking led to solos that were monotonous in their frenzy to attain ultra fast speed. Riffs and phrases began and ended on the downbeat with little or no experimentation with freeing the solo from the heavy downbeat, thus making it for the most part rhythmically boring. Lost was the lyrical soaring singing voice that the best 60s guitar exemplied and the clever little riffs that stayed with us and we couldn't get out of our heads. All the subtleties of music fell to the wayside in a bombastic race attain ultra fast speed. Also, chord changes became random showing little knowledge of the basics of western music or even the attempts by 20th century composers to break with western music traditions. This creates a disjointed feeling that usually sounds misguided rather than intentional. I must confess a fondness for singing melodies that spring from the guitar like heavenly lighter-than-air golden drops of dew (how poetic😅), but that's just me. Seriously though, a zillion notes played at breakneck speed in a stumbling disjointed rhythmic pattern doesn't stay with me as much as one of George Harrison's short simple leads or Jeff Beck's quirky little phrases or Eric Clapton's soulful apotheosis of Blues solos. And where are Jimmy Page's innovative acoustic inventions amongst the guitar creations that followed it? I could go on and on but then I would be writing a book, wouldn't I? Anywho, that is my humble opinion. Long live the guitar solo! 👍🎸🎶🎶🎶

[@williamhiles7404]

I wholeheartedly agree!!!!!!!! LedHed Pb 207.20 🎶 🎸 🎹

[@ivanterrible7362]

Speed instead of musical intention. Because you can do something doesn't mean you should do something. It's just musical masturbation.

[@willaroberts134]

Imma young bitch but read this whole thing and appreciate the perspective as a player greatly. Happy holidays !

[@werewolflover8636]

Totally agree! Fast playing doesn’t automatically translate to great melody.

[@ProfessionalRageBaiter]

i ain’t reading all that old head

[@judegraham463]

Excellent. one of the best sites on the internet regarding western music from the rock Age. Really well done. Thank you.

[@tjenadonn6158]

Honestly the solos I find myself appreciating these days are are the ones more further affield in terms of instrumentation. Blame it on my earliest musical memories being of my dad's Jethro Tull records, with Ian Anderson defining once and for all what it means to be a rock flautist. Many prog and prog-adjacent bands do this exceptionally: Thank You Scientist's tracks have included blistering tenor sax, violin, and, accordion solos, "Victorian Brickwork" by Big Big Train has a cornet solo that always moves me to tears, and unsung Canadian prog duo FM featured numerous mandolin solos. Moving away from strictly rock-based stuff "Reverse," the latest single from electroswing legends Caravan Palace, features a prominent contrabass clarinet solo. The most electrifying soloing I've seen in recent years was Leo P blowing the roof off of Royal Albert Hall with his baritone sax and Joe Dart getting a sold out crowd at Madison Square Garden to sing along with a bass solo. Guitar soloing still has its place: it just has to sgare the stage.

[@TomLiron]

4:12 The song is not Serve The Servants, it's Scentless Apprentice - polyphonic please correct / re-edit🙏

[@tsonga100]

I think the art of not doing a guitar solo and focusing on the rhythm sections is just as difficult

[@tjenadonn6158]

There's also art and difficulty in exploring music independent of rhythm. There's more than one way to be virtuosic.

[@chilecayenne]

@@tjenadonn6158 Music without rhythm...that's basically just noice...and anyone can be virtuoso at noise, that's not really a talent.

[@nathangoss5615]

As a guitar player who loves to improvise, I approve this comment. It's so hard to focus on repetitious parts. You have to think like a drummer instead of a guitar player.

[@LeprosyMessiah420]

@@tjenadonn6158 thats grind

[@tjenadonn6158]

@@LeprosyMessiah420 Or drone, ambient music, free jazz, musique concrete, large portions of carnatic music, the list goes on. There's a lot of music out there that spends more time playing with texture, timbre, and other aspects of music beyond rhythm. Music is nothing more than any sounds presented with the intent that they be perceived as music: beyond that nothing's off limits.

[@JCMiniPainting]

@14:12 I'm being a bit pedantic here, but the High Hopes solo is played on a lap slide. IDK if that disqualifies it in your eyes, but I just felt like pointing it out. That solo is actually what drove me to learn about them and still want one to this day.

[@KenM_1987]

There's tons of good rock with solos out there, it just isn't mainstream. The current era of rock is probably the best ever if you're willing to dig a bit. Edit: posted this before seeing the end of the video lol

[@gregdahlen4375]

if current guitarists don't have as much of a spotlight i'd think they'd lose some motivation to produce great solos

[@jeffjefferson8137]

the solo on cherub rock is probably one of my favorite solos ever. i remember hearing that album the first time and just instantly falling in love. then i heard that just insane bend going into one of the best solos ever

[@Pekoe.]

king gizzard has some of my favourite solos from the 2010s

[@jgeraci1]

There’s also the fact that during the same period of time the Music scene in Nashville became the place to be for musicians to go if they wanted to “make it” there are a few players in that genre who should probably be in this conversation

[@estebanmorales6487]

What a great, yet depressing, finale to a brilliant series. I truly hope the guitar solo will make a comeback someday...

[@tomaslopez2940]

There’s one episode left

[@mobbarleyguitarlab6922]

Have you listened to any rock or metal these days? Lol There's guitar solos a plenty out there

[@SpacemanXC]

They're on youtube now. Plenty of shredders still out there getting millions of views.

[@SanwadPatil]

Dude you're amazing, beautiful video as usual. But have you ever thought about doing a music podcast? It'd be amazing if you could do one talking about music history or literally anything music. Your voice is by far the most therapeutic I've ever heard. And I'm fucking desperate.

[@Polyphonic]

I have a music podcast with 12Tone, it's called Ghost Notes. You can find it anywhere there's podcasts.

[@Pekoe.]

@@Polyphonicoh shit?

[@SanwadPatil]

​@@PolyphonicYou beautiful beautiful human. Thank you! Keep up the extremely high quality work, love it. 🧡

[@Trelkovsky69]

Sorry to be the smartass, but that's Scentless Apprentice and not Serve The Servants around 4:15.

[@stanny.p5057]

Where's that alternative version of paranoid android you can hear around 12:30 from? Sounds eerily brilliant.

[@ZEKYAHWEHBLUD]

I hope one day you cover Shoegaze

[@SheilaTheGrate]

Thank you so much for your videos. I always look forward to them! \

[@something3551]

While it's not exactly related to the topic of guitar solo. I feel like The Prodigy should have been mentioned in the video. They were innovative in bringing the rock genre and dance genre together. Though that's probably just me being really biased to spread more awareness and love about them.

[@AgentJayZ]

Any Video by Polyphonic is guaranteed to be worth watching.

[@stevieCOH2142]

The guitar solo is dead? I didn't know that.. John Mayer, Joe Bonamassa, Avenged Sevenfold, Tame Impala, Animals as Leaders, all of mathrock/progmetal, Tinariwen, Gary Clark Jr., Tom Misch' Liftoff and Kyiv with Yussef Dayes, Alter Bridge and these are just the biggest and I'd say even influential names I can come up with now, there's so much more goodness if you look just below the surface.

[@griffinmaxwell789]

Tame Impala doesn't really do guitar solos anymore, but another Australian band, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, absolutely shreds. They've got a bunch of minute+ guitar solos. All those other names you mentioned I definitely agree with.

[@wellurban]

If you make it to the end of the video, it’s clear that Polyphonic knows that guitar solos are thriving among all sorts of scenes and niches. It’s just that they’re no longer a mainstay of popular music like they were in the 70s and 80s.

[@mattmacarthur520]

Eric Steckel , kingfish in the blues/rock genre are both fantastic players as well! Especially Steckel man he’s like metal and blues on steroids

[@stuntrushjr64]

Allen Collins, the guitarist that gave us Free Bird. He may have lived a tragic life, but God damn, he's good at what he does.

[@PianoMan-hx3ev]

Good to see this video has a happy ending. A great watch!

[@imobiline]

Bruh... Rick Rubin had nothing to do with Sabotage.

[@jhawk1229]

My god I've been a desert blues fan for years and the second I heard bombino flickering in the background my heart jumped, nice nod to the guys carrying the torch!

[@Gian4455]

It amazes me how many people overlook Mike McCready from Pearl Jam. How about the solos on "Alive", "Even Flow", ""Daughter" or on Temple of the Dog's "Reach Down"? There seems to be a tendency lately to diminish Pearl Jam's impact on the 90"s "Grunge" explosion and on music ever since.

[@MichaelDooleyProject]

Mike McCready is a definite favorite. 🤘🏽🎶

[@asd1234asd1234asd]

Incidentally Old Gods of Asgard - Herald of Darkness, the song for Alan Wake 2 has a lot of guitar solo. Not sure if its me or its game music but I feel that guitar solo never dies in games. My contacts with newer musics, those after the 2000s, are from games. I never felt guitar solo ever left the scene at all.

[@Kaijujon]

I just don’t think every guitar driven song needs a solo

[@Groovegandalf]

The darkness we're no chopped liver either. Justin and Dan are rippers and riff Masters.

[@Yreq]

Great episode, but pretty sad for me, as a witness. But what about Rival Sons? It's absolute rock reborn. And for many years before them, what about Zakk Wylde?! Anyway I now there's so much music over these years. Too much to say about it all. I do appriciate Your work, so keep on rockin'; Polyphonic rules!

[@lsalzedas]

Man: this series is probably the best you have done... to date! I promise you: if I ever become a lottery winner or something, I'll fund this channel for life! Great, great wotk! (meanwhile, I'm available for subtitling :D wanna a hand with that?) Again: great work!

[@christophervan9634]

Rick Ruben had nothing to do with Sabotage.

[@pllndch]

One of Polyphonic's best videos yet (IMO).

[@marcinmcula99]

I found it funny how he brought up Marty Friedman's superhuman solos and played his easiest solo in that song

[@k7j007]

I agree. I think the example used was maybe the least impressive thing Marty played during his whole time with megadeth

[@SplitMutton]

Have a good break bud. We'll miss you while you're gone but we'll see you again when you are feeling refreshed and ready to make great videos!

[@neelnair7845]

The strokes were a huge influence in the guitar world in the early 2000’s and same with john mayer

[@SpacemanXC]

Yeah, they inspired me to crowdkill and start a beatdown band because I couldn't stand all that boomer revival shit. Jet, The Vines, and The Strokes can all s my deeeeeek Actually they were all ok lol. I even saw Jet live once.

[@neelnair7845]

@@SpacemanXCokay

[@SpacemanXC]

I'm gay @@neelnair7845

[@MrIke86]

If we can collectively forget about John Mayer that'd be great. K Thx.

[@neelnair7845]

@@MrIke86I’m not a John Mayer fan at all but can’t deny his influence

[@marcocardia3960]

Loved the series! Wished you could have spoke about Slowdive and their spacy effect heavy solo in the song "Alison"

[@Iheartbreakdowns]

Have to agree lower the volume during your talking segments. I thought it was just me till I saw the comments.

[@Iheartbreakdowns]

Thanks Noah this series has been absolutely fantastic.

[@samanjj]

I love this series and really appreciate the wide gamut you covered. I don’t know if you classify funk guitar solos as part of the mix, but i think they are also worth exploring - check out maggot brain for example

[@morganweale3232]

little bit disappointing there's no mention of John Mayer, Tom Misch Mac Demarco or Dangelo who all have amazing guitar solos in at least 5 of their tracks. John Mayer being known by the general public for having amazing guitar solos in his songs. I do also understand that this video is from a guitar hero/ rock perspective though. this is more of a video on the downfall of rock/metal rather than 'the guitar solo'

[@arouraio]

Amazing as always!

[@wingracer1614]

guitar is not dead as long as people like Derek Trucks and Gary Clark Jr are around

[@Ambassador.1870]

I can confirm a rebirth is coming, especially in Australia a new wave of punk rock is being led by The Chats, Amyl and the sniffers, ghoulies etc