.. in no particular order.
[Disclaimer: You may not agree with me here, and you are most welcome to add to the list, but there is no way you may diss any of these riffs in any way. Doing so will result in me losing all respect for you.]
Smoke on the water - Deep Purple (1973)
One of the most famous riffs in hard rock history, played on a Fender Stratocaster electric guitar by Ritchie Blackmore, immediately joined by hi-hat and drums and electric bass parts before the start of Ian Gillan’s vocal.
Pour some sugar on me - Def Leppard (1987)
Although the band was nearing the end of recording sessions for Hysteria in 1986, producer Mutt Lange felt that the album was still lacking a song that would have an appeal beyond the hard rock fans who had bought Pyromania; that song came to him during a 5 minute coffee break. Now often regarded as the band's signature song.
Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns N' Roses (1987)
This song is credited as being written by Guns N’ Roses as a band - more specifically it contains Slash’s riff, Izzy’s chords, Axl’s lyrics, and McKagan’s bass line. The subject of the song is generally thought to be lead singer Axl Rose’s then-girlfriend and eventual wife, Erin Everly. Supposedly Slash played the riff in a jam session as a joke. Drummer Steven Adler and Slash were warming up and Slash began to play a “circus” melody while making faces at Steven. Adler asked him to play the riff again, and Izzy Stradlin came in with the chords. Axl became intrigued and started singing the poem he had written.
This song is credited as being written by Guns N’ Roses as a band - more specifically it contains Slash’s riff, Izzy’s chords, Axl’s lyrics, and McKagan’s bass line. The subject of the song is generally thought to be lead singer Axl Rose’s then-girlfriend and eventual wife, Erin Everly. Supposedly Slash played the riff in a jam session as a joke. Drummer Steven Adler and Slash were warming up and Slash began to play a “circus” melody while making faces at Steven. Adler asked him to play the riff again, and Izzy Stradlin came in with the chords. Axl became intrigued and started singing the poem he had written.
