The Top 10 SG Riffs of All Time!

[@russell33313]

this list could just be AC/DC & Black Sabbath

[@MrBarnardoo98]

Absolutely!!

[@soja9305]

Sure, it would’ve been a bit boring

[@matthewajello1299]

*should

[@danwhitehurst6293]

I thought it was going to be

[@jw_au]

I was thinking the same thing

[@mariokx250]

Can we talk about how spot on that Brown Sugar tone was?!? Damn, you nailed it!

[@Hentarded]

Thank you for mentioning Buck Dharma and Blue Öyster Cult, criminally underrated guitarist and band. Some absolute banging riffs in their library.

[@nielsbie8922]

then came the last days og May

[@TheErikrust]

BOC shreds. I remember my Stepdad (a career DJ) getting me stoned and playing me the Sandy Perlman produced albums. Shit pinned my ears back.

[@samuelmartin2992]

So happy to see a Beatles song on here. I feel like so many people forget that George had an SG, he’s one of the reasons I have one.

[@donovanemery597]

He also had a Strat, Tele, Les Paul and Epiphone Casino

[@rcherry1978]

@@donovanemery597 and Gretch

[@oliverboisen7475]

​@@rcherry1978Two Gretsch's actually

[@rcherry1978]

@@oliverboisen7475 amen brother

[@tagadabrothersband]

@@donovanemery597 And at least 2 Rickenbacker

[@youssefkasim7556]

Thanks for putting the Beatles on another one of these. Not a lot of people would associate the Beatles with an SG.

[@vocalion9519]

For my money, The Who's Live at Leeds is the album that best highlights the many possibilities of the Gibson SG. I was delighted to see Young Man Blues made the list.

[@arakh992]

The Pete Townshend Gibson SG + the Hiwatt AMP Sound is so great. And i would say the sound influenced a lot of bands like the acdc sound

[@RoachDoggJr2112]

10. Hole in the Sky 9. Black Sabbath 8. Paranoid 7. Sweet Leaf 6. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath 5. Lord of This World 4. Supernaut 3. War Pigs 2. Snowblind 1. Into the Void

[@drewlawrason4560]

hell yeah

[@nivrox95]

SG best riffs= Tony Iommy (ozzy era Black Sabbath)

[@mlasch1478]

The only problem with this is, Jack would have to play them backwards like he did Into the Void.

[@tremold2043]

goddamn right!

[@mlasch1478]

No WAY, Aesthetic Deluxe, Iron Man,. Heaven and Hell, NIB,Children of the Grave,The Wizard,Hard Road, Never Say Die, Junior's Eyes, Killing Yourself to Live, Electric Funeral

[@AndrewReynolds1]

Probably not iconic riffs, but Derek Trucks is an amazing SG player.

[@shanelofton5857]

Yes!

[@keithdaniels7491]

Iconic Player however!

[@M17_Max]

The guys slide guitar is absolute insanity, he truly is talented

[@FenderStrat1975]

Statesboro Blues is iconic that he plays for the Allman Brothers

[@dontgoout1434]

Misses lots its a strat on she said so hows that in this . Playing bit pub rock too

[@scottallen9556]

If riffs were money you’d be a wealthy man and I would still wish I was your neighbor. This is the best show on the internet because of you and your playing. Blue Oyster Cult was a superb snag. The “Soft White Underbelly” has a library of memorable riffs.

[@Hentarded]

Burnin' For You, Harvester of Eyes Stairway to the Stars, Hot Rails to Hell, Cities on Flame With Rock and Roll and more. Have some absolute banging riffs.

[@camilo1455]

The Red & the Black

[@lawyerbt]

Teen Archer

[@stevesorrell9835]

You had me scared! I thought Tony and Angus were being relegated to the " honorable mention" list 🤯 Nailed it. Great list 👍🏻 and awesome playing!

[@frankmaeder4358]

yea me too, thought he? when the honorables came..... but yes. good list.

[@abbert4798]

And now, 'The Top 10 Jazzmaster (offset) Riffs of All Time!'

[@jeremyjohnston592]

100 percent

[@ciceroromero15]

Spaghetti Western and Surf riffs more likely

[@Paul-D]

Things ive learnt on this recent top 10 series 1- Your taste has been great across all of them, probably the best lists ive seen and there are manyyyyy lol 2- You got to play some amazing guitars and dial in sweeeet tones 3- You are a fantastic player, serious touch and diverse as all hell. Ill keep working towards it, rock on folks 🤘🤘🤘

[@Thisisrance]

That Wolfmother riff was so on point! SGs have always been my favorite guitar, was happy to see this.

[@wallyh24]

I would have gone with “You Shook Me All Night Long” as THE most iconic....but hard to argue “Back in Black”...and Iron Man was a no brainer. Totally awesome renditions, btw

[@frankmaeder4358]

well, so many good riffs by this bloke, and tastes differ. for me, it would have been Thunderstruck or Hells Bells....

[@fluffkiller]

I think “hells bells” would have taken top spot.

[@mantrasandblues906]

So well played and recorded! Impressive quality of the content

[@RhysticStudies]

man, I've watched all the top 10 riffs on this channel and can't get enough of Jack's playing. everything is so crisp, with a true attention to detail to each player's tendencies played with so much control and expression. absolutely love it.

[@pieter4098]

Would love to see a jazzmaster/jaguar episode!

[@jeremyjohnston592]

Good call!

[@davidarich2]

Same here! Plenty of good riffs and songs across multiple decades of music made on those guitars

[@dylanpardon9723]

"she said She said" and "young man blues" in one episode, cheers mate you made my day!

[@Mudder1310]

Really cool to hear a Zappa riff on the way into the list. He was a prolific SG user. A newer band is Greta Van Fleet who offer awesome riffs as well.

[@gliddofglood]

Indeed. Peaches en Regalia would have been good or Son of Mr. Green Genes.

[@msaintpc]

Shuggie Otis too, and he still is.🙂

[@1rwjwith]

Frank Zappa, Mick Taylor , Jerry Garcia all used SG's for a period too.Billy Gibbons has been using a custom one lately also.

[@randallslonaker3413]

and Tony Iommi.

[@SeabeeBuckeye]

@@randallslonaker3413 you didn't watch the whole video? Tony Iommi/Black Sabbath... tied for #1. hmm..

[@melvynobrien6193]

I'd use one too if I got it for free. But I'd never buy a Gibson of any kind, giving how they ripped me off in 1991.

[@garrettLevi0511]

Carlos Santana used one before he used the prs

[@TheStarAndTheDespot]

So did millions of other guitarists. This is about riffin'...

[@maxpeck4154]

Killer job on "She Said She Said". Never even considered learning that until I saw how it was played. Well done!

[@dagnabbit6187]

Although I only like certain colors in the Les Paul and ES 335 , I have to say that SGs are gorgeous in any color !

[@igabo95]

PLEASE do this with Rickenbackers!!

[@jamesjohnson-en3cu]

Great list! I noticed when Britney Howard of Alabama Shakes got that pretty blue SG on the Sound and Color album, she wrote some of their best riffs, imo.

[@SimpleManGuitars1973]

Obviously Tony Iommi is a riff master but I don't even know if Iron Man is in my Top 5 for him. THAT'S how awesome his riffs are. I for sure put War Pigs ahead of Iron Man and Paranoid as well. Also NIB and Black Sabbath are slamming riffs as well. As for Angus, I'd say Back In Black is their most iconic riff but actually Malcolm wrote it and I remember years ago in a Guitar World interview (or one of the mags from back in the day) Angus said that when Malcolm originally brought the idea to him he played it in such a way that Angus couldn't even replicate it so the riff we've all heard a million times wasn't even originally supposed to be the exact riff. Pretty crazy.

[@cliffbungalow9373]

The Mob Rules album is a how-to on heavy.

[@basheideman]

For a minute you had me, with the honourable mentions - I really thought mr Iommi and mr Young were placed just there. The outrage! Good one. Stellar playing as usual and thanks, Jack: now I need an SG as well...

[@TheWooTubes]

Us old people remember when Carlos Santana played an SG. He moved to PRS because "SGs die". I think he meant that the magnets in the old guitars lost the edge he needed.

[@zisiskoutsoumbas4352]

I agree with the top 1(a,b), as they are the most icon riffs riffs with SG, the rest it's difficult to choose. Surely I would add somewhere there Mastodon's Divinations, Corrotion of Conformity's Broken Man and 555 by Zappa.

[@brenb87]

Top 3 are spot-on IMO

[@208414]

I was also expecting some Mastodon on the list.

[@Gavin79746]

It's well documented by Cream fanatics that the riff itself on Disraeli Gears was played with his Black Beauty Les Paul Custom. However, it's very much a SG riff live and in spirit imo Cheers!

[@alb1306]

Would love to see a “Ten more riffs” video for each guitar you’ve done so. Great videos.

[@PeachGuitars]

We could keep churning these videos out forever, we really haven't even scratched the surface! Maybe down the line we'll revisit the series with a pt2!

[@kathleenmckeon9926]

@@PeachGuitars It is a the Case with Me after I suffered the worst possible Pound due to a Horrendous Fllyiong Accident.But My Road to recovery has been, and will be by playing My SG.

[@thejonathandoan]

I would choose AC/DC (Angus Young) has having a more "SG" impact in the world of Rock and Roll.

[@LAT-qk3vj]

Hell Yah Man! The first and only one that comes to my mind 🤘

[@josephfemoyer7218]

Angus Young is “Mr SG”,he used an SG exclusively

[@andrewharding7430]

Faith Healer - killer riff for the intro, nice that the Sensational Alex Harvey Band are not forgotten!

[@aaaargl]

The stank-face on Into the Void says it all. Iommi is just the dark lord of riffage

[@marciodecamposrodrigues5590]

Band: Therapy! / song: nowhere. One of the best SG riff's which i have ever heard

[@tommckirdy514]

You're a fantastic presenter Jack. These top 10s are great!

[@regularnimnule9715]

Yup, fella knows what he's doing!

[@drothberg3]

Black Magic Woman, Brown Sugar, Paranoid, Thunderstruck - the Honorable Mentions were better than the riffs that made the list.

[@2111bigad]

Great to hear Riff Raff get a run - the riff that made me want to start playing!

[@hijmestoffels5171]

Nice to include The Joker And The Thief! I’m using it as the wake-up sound on my iPhone. Very effective. But my #1 SG-riffs are Paranoid and Whole Lotta Rosie. I didn’t know that Brown Sugar, also one of my favourite riffs of all time, is played on an SG.

[@timtaylor286]

Huge Black Sabbath fan and the reason why I’m considering buying an SG, but when we included System of a Down I actually clapped. Well done 👏

[@larrypower8659]

I’ve watched all four previous top ten vids - Strat, Les Paul, Tele and ES - and you, Jack are an SG man. I may or may not agree with all the choices but your SG sounds and playing? C’est magnifique! Ripping tone, great work.

[@Uygkuyfkutfkytfkutfv]

There’s more than one Dale Wilson Strat vid on here that would like a quiet word.

[@josegallegosdds]

You just nail the tone and the riffs. Just impressive!!!!👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@dertotti83]

That SG Special sounds like HEAVEN!

[@garrytrillo]

I like the nod to Zal Cleminson in the intro. And very well played man.🤘

[@revolversoul03]

Still waiting for Jaguars and Jazzmasters :) Keep these videos coming!!!

[@lewisratford2908]

Wolfmother couldn’t have been 16 years ago!! Dam I feel old

[@gliddofglood]

My favourite Sabbath riff has to be Fairies Wear Boots , though to be fair there are about 5 riffs in that song and they are all amazing. What a genius Mr. Iommi is or was.

[@bertolosi]

The Faith Healer SAHB - phenomenal. Thanks

[@Hedgie73]

Was looking for this 😁. Nice to see Zal Cleminson getting some attention!

[@chrisleamymusic]

this entire series has been fantastic. it also shows that Jack can play just about everything. awesome

[@marcosbrun7376]

Great playing Jack! As usual!

[@diovanidalmoro6634]

7:11 you nailed that tone that i was searching for a long time, great job

[@JamesPetroff]

Into the Void, man, drop C tuning, and the heaviest of all time.

[@tony69em]

That and Lord of this World

[@richarddorn5791]

Loved the intro riff from one of favorite bands...The Sensational Alex Harvey Band! Zak very tastefully played his SG in the band. Glad to know someone else appreciates the SAHB!

[@garrytrillo]

Yeah love Zal's sound and playing.🤘

[@crusherbmx]

Points for not making the list only AC/DC and Sabbath....double points for sneaking in 4 songs of each anyway....

[@TheHumbuckerboy]

That Zal Cleminson riff at the beginning was brilliant !

[@regularnimnule9715]

Great choices, great playing, great presentation.

[@andyryder5287]

You forgot “School’s Out” and those wonderful SG tones from Alice’s guitar duo from that period….. Nice job otherwise.

[@dagwood4669]

Eighteen should have been on the list.

[@andyryder5287]

Yes. Eighteen…. Frank Zappa was a real SG riffer too.

[@thomasfarmer1730]

Glenn Buxton

[@bertryman773]

Understanding it was an SG type Guild he played, but I would have included Spoonman by Soundgarden

[@PeachGuitars]

Kim Thayil made the original long list but was one of the unlucky omissions, but yes, you're right, he favoured the Guild Polara!

[@camilo1455]

@@PeachGuitars so, is there a Guild show coming?

[@Vnachi8]

I just mentioned Rusty Cage.

[@67er_matze97]

once again incredible list of musical treasuries !!! And stellar playing and musicality !!! for me Angus Young and ACDC is really special - my personal no 1 :)

[@thespian1961]

Wonderful that you started with Zal Cleminson and the Faith Healer from S.A.H.B.

[@edwardgold8097]

I guess I'm the only one that picked up on Faith Healer by the Sensational Alex Harvey Band. Zal Clemimson was a great guitarist that's been mostly overlooked by just about everyone. So glad you included his riff. The SG always sounded amazing in his hands.

[@forcytek1]

Congratulations a fantastic selection and great sound. Fantastic guitars, I have a standard black Gibson SG that I love every time I look at it, pick it up and play it. 🎶💥

[@jeffreyfoster4260]

Some serious playing my Friend 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@eaguilera6781]

Awesome video, i own an Sg and gonna show it some hard love after watching this

[@larryd9672]

Love the Angus schoolboy shorts. Most appropriate choice of attire indeed.

[@jeffreyhall76]

Jake E Lee played the hell out of his white SG junior on “shot in the dark” by Ozzy

[@gibsondcxpl85]

Would love to be locked in a room with all those beautiful SGs. Each had their own unique sonic qualities and all were visually stunning

[@petergraham9267]

Ohhhh, you redeemed yourself with the Honourable Mentions and Joint 1st...........apart from a couple on the actual list, nothing on it screamed SG! However, with the HMs and J1st you nailed it! 😎👍

[@stevegarbutt6593]

Great to see you include Buck Dharma of BOC, such an under appreciated guitarist

[@PeachGuitars]

Agreed. Apparently the lead lines on "that" track were on an SG too!

[@stevegarbutt6593]

Agreed it was Buck and Glen Buxton that started my fascination with the White SG. Maybe someday I’ll own one.

[@janehill9764]

you are a fantastic player. As a person who saw hendrix perform, i think your interpretation of red house is brilliant. love to see you play.

[@davidw4664]

Loved the GVF riff at the ending credits :) Another awesome list. Great playing Jack!

[@yeti1002]

I like I'm all .. all those riffs are icon .. doesn't get any better than this . You did very well presenting the classic SG sounds

[@raphaelheurteaux4408]

More top 10, these are awesome !!

[@Joaomota87]

I was expecting Paperback Writer!!! Just 'cause i would love to hear it played by you. Great series this one, hope it doesn't end here, you could do a Gretsch one maybe? ;P

[@Eth_C]

I think that riff was played on an epiphone casino. They played it in their 335 riffs video.

[@LennySugiono]

Joined the club and got myself a 2019 61’ reissue Gibson sg with the maestro and I must say it has quickly become my favourite guitar.

[@m7dgz]

No Symptom of the Universe? But you could fill the whole top 10 with Tony Iommi riffs I guess!

[@uncoolrunnings]

A few left of field that I thought might pop up: - Elevation by U2 - Bodysnatchers by Radiohead

[@theyreMineralsMarie]

I was definitely not expecting BYOB! Man that was freaking awesome.

[@donniehba795]

You are a great musician and student. Love the lists. How about a Gretsch guitar riffs (Joe Perry, The Edge, John Frusciante, CSNY variants, etc.) and Metal guitars (Explorers, Flying Vs, Ibanez, Schecter, ESP, etc.)? Keep up the great work!

[@darvinclement3250]

Really great job on this list!

[@johnmundt7834]

I was expecting Paperback Writer instead, great playing as usual

[@Eth_C]

I think that riff was played on an epiphone casino.

[@gaztaylor9682]

Damn....I didn't even think I needed an SG until now!! lol Great stuff as always guys, loving all these classic riffs episodes.

[@raymondsiewert2720]

Love watching this stuff ! You are such a good player , and you get to play some awesome guitars ! 😀

[@warren4110]

I’m Aussie but Tony Iommi has always been my favourite. You need to broaden your horizons and listen to Shinji Wajima of Ningen Isu. An incredible SG riff master!! BTW, your playing was brilliant 👍

[@BixLives32]

Brown Sugar, on the record, was played with ALL ACOUSTIC guitars (an Ovation, I recall). Keith used a cheap Craig/Phillips cassette recorder as a preamp! Keith might have used the cheap dynamic mike that came with the recorder and simply dangled it inside the sound hole of the guitar. OR, he might have plugged the Ovation's internal Barcus-Berry soundboard PUP directly into the "mic" input. (I forget). The Craig-Phillips was THE first inexpensive portable cassette recorder, and had a marvellous preamp for filthy, nasty, guttural, immoral, sexy, forbidden, illegal (south of Scotland), guitar overdrive that made you sound like Lightin' Hopkins! I had, a then cheap, plywood (classic) Yamaha FG-160 dreadnought, hence, I used the cheap dynamic mike that came with the recorder, thus, I had discovered an overdrive box and practise amp! If you had an electric guitar output, all you needed was a male 1/4" TRS plug to male 1/8" plug adaptor, -Cheap. 1s/11d at the local TeeVee shop. This would have provided more crunch. With it's monster 1-1/2" speaker, the Craig cassette recorder was the perfect practise amp for a young guitar kid who was trying not to wake anyone at 4 AM. I threw a towel over the thing. -Sounded fabulous, and it was relatively safe. It, um, belonged to my older sister, who would NOT have viewed my alternate use with anything CLOSE to good humour. Anyway, on the record, "Brown Sugar", there is NOT a single, proper, electric guitar used. I heard that Keith did not even bother to plug the output of the cassette recorder into a DI box! That would have made it sound too clean. The Beatles once plugged George's guitar directly into the EMI mixing board input (for the compressed, high-treble lead in "Nowhere Man"). When Sir Joseph Lockwood found out, they were called into Sir Joseph's EMI office and formally given a curt dressing down for violating every engineering rule EMI had. They had also pegged the VU meters, which did not help their case. VU meters in a Redd 51 were NOT cheap! Alas, the boys had tried everything else to get the sound they wanted, to no avail. What strikes me odd is how Sir Joseph thought he could reprimand the Beatles, who, at the time, were exceeding Britain's North Sea oil as England's greatest export product. Heck, by 1965, The Beatles were a significant part of The U.K's GNP! Things got so serious that The Beatles accountants told Mr. Epstein that if they toured the USA after May, they would be working solely for Her Majesty, The Queen, and NOT earning ANY money! Egad. -Cheers, from an old fart, born in the year DOT.

[@Mustlehard]

It’s INSANE how any of these songs were over paranoid. I didn’t even know half these songs

[@squirrel_82]

You totally got me. I was about to have an aneurysm. I was like, "HOW THE HELL IS AC/DC AND SABBATH JUST HONORABLE MENTIONS!" Nice one!

[@jansimmelman267]

Yes! George Harrison played his '64 Gibson SG Standard on "She Said She Said"!

[@markosimonic]

Glad to see Wolfmother and SOAD on the list! Great bands!

[@brandonguzman1588]

Wow some love for the Stereophonics is something I was not expecting, great choice!

[@kozsg]

Came here for Angus and Tony, I was not disappointed. Awesome video

[@allanfigueroa2909]

i was freaking out when it was iommi ang angus in the honorable mentions. i just realized that you could have made a top 10 with just their riffing sgs on the list 🤟

[@firststep7750]

The Top 10.....Explorer/Flying V......Riffs of All Time. I love these segments.

[@tolchok89]

I know technically Kim Thayil used Guild S-100s, but I would have picked Soundgarden's Outshined and/or Spoonman. Great choice of riffs and great playing.

[@dagnabbit6187]

Although the Doors had Ray Manzarak keyboards which was more prominent guitarist Robby Krieger really cut loose with some memorable , beautiful SG licks in the space they gave him .

[@Christian-my4dp]

So cool to see Wolfmother here! As soon as you said "about 16 years ago" I immediately knew and started playing the riff haha

[@PeachGuitars]

It's about as iconic a 2000's riff as any isn't it!

[@joshdouglas1911]

You almost lost me when you had so much ACDC in the “Honourable Mention” part! I was losing you shit! Was like if Back in Black ain’t at number 1, I’m gonna change to piano or something 🤣

[@brandon8217]

That 3 pickup custom is gorgeous. The playing too, as always.

[@camilo1455]

Ok, almost spot on, but it's Wicked World and Let There Be Rock at 1A and 1B. Thanx.

[@Mephilis78]

For the Iron Man intro, he's also playing an E on the second fret of the D string. It's one of those things that's hard to catch, but once you play it you realize it's the missing piece. I've also notice when playing along to the record that Iommi stops playing full chords during Ozzy's vocals. I wasn't even going to say anything, but Sabbath is the entire reason I started playing lol

[@quistador7]

love seeing sunshine of your love being played so correctly. amazing