“Panama” – Van Halen Free Official TAB of the Day Click the link below to get the TAB: The first 10 readers each day get the TAB for free and everyone else gets a 50% discount until midnight after the freebies run out, then it’s 15% off after that. Remember, the first ten downloads are […]
Featuring one of the most famous guitar intros, rhythm parts and lead melody lines in instrumental rock history, the Chantay’s created a monster hit with their 1963 release “Pipeline.” Ever since, guitarists of all backgrounds and tastes from across the globe have sat down and worked out this triple-guitar threat, which was originally titled “Liberty’s Whip” until the band members watched the film Endless Summer which depicted two surfers searching for the perfect wave. Whichever name they would have gone with, the song proved to be the band’s biggest hit, and one that has gone down in rock history as one of the ‘60s most memorable tunes.
After writing all the music and coming up with only one line of lyrics, which would end up being the song’s title, Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo sat down to pen the rest of one of the band’s biggest hits, “Say It Ain’t So.” Appearing as the third single from the band’s 1995 debut record The Blue Album, the song would go on to be ranked #82 by Rolling Stone magazine in their list of the “100 Greatest Songs of All Time,”
Released on their debut record, 2003’s Fever to Tell, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs had a hit on their hands with their single “Maps.” The song, which portrays the relationship between Liars lead singer Angus Andrew and the band’s front-woman Karen O. The title is actually an acronym for the words “My Angus Please Stay,” and was featured on the band’s appearance during the 2004 MTV Music Awards, landed at #9 on the Billboard Modern Rock Charts and was featured in the popular video game Rock Band.
Released in 1973, “La Grange” became an instant hit for Texas rock band ZZ Top, and one of the band’s most successful singles in their long and prestigious careers. Written for their album Tres Hombres, the song, which is basically a one-chord blues, talks about a bordello in La Grange, Texas, the same bordello that was the inspiration behind the film “The Biggest Little Whore-House in Texas,
Though it never reached the heights of some of their other songs, including “B.Y.O.B.” and “Chop Suey,” System of a Down’s “Toxicity” was still ranked by VH1 as the 14th best Metal Song of all time, and remains to this day as one of their most recognizable songs. Coming to the modern metal scene with a highly unique and personalized sound, System of a Down’s use of diverse rhythms, tones, harmonies and tempos makes them one of the few bands to stand out among today’s crowded metal scene, and “Toxicity” is a showcase for all of these songwriting techniques and more.
It’s a testament to the level of skill and musicianship possessed by the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan that he could take a children’s nursery rhyme and turn it into a guitar-laden powerhouse, one that would receive radio play and become a staple of the live show of one of the greatest guitarists that ever walked this earth. Not only did he take a simple tune and breathe new life into it, he came up with a classic blues riff at the same time, sending thousands of budding blues guitarists into the woodshed to get this classic line under their fingers.
Recorded on the fourth day of a 10-day fast, which Vai used to bring himself into an altered state of consciousness to reach a deeper level of creativity, the song “For the Love of God” has become a staple of his live shows and a fan favorite since being released on the 1990 album Passion and Warfare. The song not only features a memorable melody line and ear grabbing chord progression, but it showcases all of the extended guitar techniques that have since become characteristic of Vai’s playing, including whammy-bar dives, harmonics, two-hand tapping and volume swells.
Kicking off with a distinctive cowbell sound, no it’s not “Don’t Fear the Reaper,” the Rolling Stones’ mega-hit “Honky Tonk Women” has a curious story behind its lyrics, opening guitar riff and where it was written. Though the song talks about a “bar-room queen in Memphis,” the song was originally written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards in Sao Paulo, Brazil while they were on vacation there in December and January of 1968-1969. As well, the song’s lyrics appeared in two different forms early on in its life, and the scene for the song’s narrative moved from Memphis to Jackson, before settling on Memphis in the most famous version of the song that we still hear on the radio today.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers have always been known for their funky influences and deep groove, and their 2002 single “Can’t Stop,” which was originally released on their album By the Way, is a prime example of these two RHCP characteristics. Kicking off with a two note riff, guitarist John Frusciante then dives into a counterpoint-based lick that has since become a favorite of guitarists who are learning the RHCP catalogue. Though the song features more of a rock beat, this intro and verse riff are as funky as they get, and are a great intro to the Chili Peppers approach to riff writing.
