FAMOUS Songs That Have Really SH*T Solos

guitar solos. Sometimes they're good and sometimes they're bad. Right, that's

about it. Video over. But seriously,

over the next few videos, I'm going to be examining the fine fine art of the guitar solo. Firstly, I'm going to be

guitar solo. Firstly, I'm going to be getting the most uh no doubt controversial one out of the way where we're going to be looking at famous iconic songs that are really good but

have really bad guitar solos in. I just

thought this was a pretty cool concept that I haven't really heard anyone talk about before. Some of them you may agree

about before. Some of them you may agree with and others no doubt you will not agree with. So I've done my best to try

agree with. So I've done my best to try and rationalize each one. But as always if you disagree then please do feel free to write why in the comments down below and tell me how wrong I am. Please do.

Let's get started.

[music] Now, if there's one guitarist I think I'll never understand, it's Thomas Morelion. You know, if you're a

Morelion. You know, if you're a struggling musician out there, then, you know, just take solace in the fact that Tom Mel managed to somehow make a

lucrative career out of just, you know, making recycled Led Zeppelin riffs and playing nar noises on his pedals. At

least with Rage Against a Machine, I can kind of understand and give it a pass because, you know, that sound was uh very unique and fresh at the time and all the weird noises definitely fit the

vibe that they were going for. But it

just always infuriated me that in Audio Slave, you know, playing alongside literally the greatest rock and roll singer that will, you know, ever exist,

that he was still adamant on playing the [ __ ] NORDS.

Like imagine writing one of the most emotional, heartfelt rock ballads, you know, ever made and thinking, well, yeah, you know, this song is really cool and all, but I I really think it could

benefit from some autistic nar noises with my pedal. Like, let me show you.

Just just truly awful.

[music] Metallica's return in 2022 was one of the most hotly anticipated comebacks in living memory. You know, overall it was

living memory. You know, overall it was pretty solid with some really, really killer performances by well, especially James. And um unfortunately, I wish I

James. And um unfortunately, I wish I could say the same about their lead guitarist. No matter how much Kirk tried

guitarist. No matter how much Kirk tried to defend his playing on this album, it does not excuse the fact that this was, you know, objectively some of the the

weakest, least inspired playing of his whole career. Yes, it was pretty cool

whole career. Yes, it was pretty cool and refreshing that he wanted to just sort of like, you know, raw dog these solos and just improv them right off the bat. You know, big respect for that,

bat. You know, big respect for that, but, you know, unfortunately, bit of a wakeup call. Um, you know, Mr. Hammet

wakeup call. Um, you know, Mr. Hammet does not have the improvisational chops to be able to, you know, pull this off to a standard that is expected for a

Metallica release. You know, the biggest

Metallica release. You know, the biggest the biggest metal band in the planet.

You know, I was struggling to think about which song specifically to use as an example from this album. But after

much consideration, I think that if Darkness Had a Sun is the best example in terms of, you know, song strength verse solo not strength. Man, I remember the first

not strength. Man, I remember the first time I heard that solo. God, I'm choked on my bloody tuna sandwich. It

literally, like, I'm not even exaggerating here. It literally just

exaggerating here. It literally just sounds like he turned up like 2 hours late for the recording session, uh, just plugged the guitar in and just [ __ ]

let one rip. you know, without hearing the song like ever at all. Listen to it back once and it's just like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's all right. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'll do that.

right. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'll do that.

Was good. Yeah, yeah, nice." Yeah. The

Elixis playing in this solo have like nothing to do what's going on in the arrangement or like the rest of the song. It's like he's just listening to

song. It's like he's just listening to his isolate guitar and just like jamming on his own, right? Not to mention that like a lot of the solo is just plain out of time and I don't know how it even

ended up on the record in this state.

>> [music] >> So whether you love or hate Van Halen, you absolutely cannot deny that Jump is by far one of the most, you know, iconic

signature songs of that cheeseladen 80s era of guitar-driven music. Eddie might

be an untouchable guitar god, you know, perhaps pro probably the most influential of all time, all things considered, but that does not mean that

absolutely everything he played was a, you know, absolute gift to our luggles.

Even though his style was super cool and, you know, really unique, especially for the time, I don't think you can deny that just the egregious amounts of, you

know, flash and twiddle didn't always fit Van Halen's otherwise, you know, super commercial radio friendly music.

I've always thought that the solo to Jump is just like so jarring and out of place uh that it was just like shoehorned in just for the sake of Eddie

to be able to do his thing, you know?

Also, not only does it modulate up uh one semmit tone for the solo, but it also uses the relative minor of the new key. So, which is what sort of like adds

key. So, which is what sort of like adds to this just really really just like like jarring feeling when the solo starts. And it doesn't use any theme or

starts. And it doesn't use any theme or anything from like the rest of the song.

It's just loads of random signature EVH licks just like strung together. Not a

bad solo by any means. It's still pretty cool like in isolation, but just in the context of the song like nah, it's quite a big miss in my opinion.

Next up, we have another slice of premium 80s fromage with one of the greatest, most anthemic power ballads of

all time. Not that this solo is like

all time. Not that this solo is like exactly terrible, more like it's just a huge monumental missed opportunity. And

to be honest, in some ways that's kind of worse. You know, this song has one of

of worse. You know, this song has one of the most hu huger hugest most anthemic, you know, sing alongable

choruses of all time. You know, here I go again. Oh, so you'd think the band

go again. Oh, so you'd think the band would want to do like something as equally epic and awesome for the solo, right? Right. You know, usually in Power

right? Right. You know, usually in Power Ballads, the solo comes at like the the peak of the song, you know, what everything just sort of like builds and builds and builds and mounts to, but the

solo in this song is just like so limp.

The song just like dies off horrible, horrible death when the solo comes in.

It's also not helped by the fact that the solo is played over the verse arrangement for some reason, which is just like really really [clears throat] just like static and monotonous and boring.

You know, the best thing about soloing over power balance is just like you just get get to rip over like really cool cord progressions and just still bloody amazing tune. You know, obviously I

amazing tune. You know, obviously I didn't write it, so yeah, jokes's on me.

But, uh, you know, it's just annoying to think about how cool, well, how much even cooler the song could have been if it had a sick solo. Yeah. [music]

[music] Now, even though I am a Panta enjoyer, I am by no means a mega fan. So, I may be missing out on some like, you know,

crucial critical law here in terms of this song, but I always wondered what the hell is going on in the solo in this song. My best guess is that Dime was

song. My best guess is that Dime was just being like a contrarian troll at the time or something and just subverting expectations by just, you know, just shouting out this absolute

mess of the solo. Either way, you know, if it was meant to be a joke, then it's not very humorous. And if it's meant to be serious, then there's no way. There's

no way it's meant to be serious. Or

maybe they just like couldn't settle on an idea for this solo, so they just like, you know, smash the glass and press the emergency rock and roll button. But if you listen very carefully

button. But if you listen very carefully to the solo, you can hear there's like a few layers to it. So there must have been, you know, some degree of thought put into it, right? To be honest, it wouldn't be a problem if the song wasn't

such a [ __ ] banger. Like both the main riff and the drum beat is just like one of the most like, you know, iconic in all of metal.

[laughter] If anyone has any interesting intel or information on this song, I would be very curious to hear. Um, but yeah,

[ __ ] wank, mate. Sucks. [music]

>> [music] >> So, I know that Dragon Force might not exactly be at the top of the list of bands to take thoroughly, but still, there's a limit. You know, there's only

so much a man could take. I'm an

absolutely monumentally huge power metal fan. You guys know me, and I've always

fan. You guys know me, and I've always loved Dragon Force. I I do think they're a sick band, but, you know, even their goofiness goes too far sometimes. The song Valley

of the Damned is a, you know, beloved absolute classic from their debut album.

Uh, it's, you know, it's no doubt one of the highlights of the band's discoraphy.

You know, actually, it's one of the rare occurrences in their songs that actually has like a riff, believe it or not. And

the chorus is like, it's just beyond epic anthemic. So catchy. It's amazing.

epic anthemic. So catchy. It's amazing.

Amazing song. But man, that solo just blows chunks. I'm not exaggerating here,

blows chunks. I'm not exaggerating here, but quite literally like 50% of the solo is just the same annoying monotonous sweep taplick just played over and over

again with like increasingly irritating variations each time. Not to mention the absolute heinous egregious overuse of

whammy pedal as well that makes even Thomas Merelion look like a you know a liberal user of the effect. The solo is redeemed somewhat after with a a very cool

lead guitar harmony melody thing that's uh super tasty. Uh but you know, too little too late. And it's this just uh turgid slop that came before it that

just stops the the song being sier.

Okay. So, I know that this pick might be a little bit controversial as for for some reason this solo seems to be quite well loved and liked in the in the metal

mega death community, but um I'm sorry.

So, you might not vibe with this take if you're not guitarist, especially one that's been playing, you know, a long time like I have. Uh, but man, this solo

is just like h I always thought it was just so uninspired and like and cliche to the point where it's just like for me personally, it's just unlistenable. It's

just like a skip every time. So, I get that they were probably trying to pay homage to their nwabam, you know, inspirations or something, but honestly, this section just sounds like h it

sounds like it was just copy and pasted out of one of my, you know, like Iron Maiden parody [ __ ] posts. Literally,

both the chord progression and the way the melody follows the chords, it's so stock, so AI, it just sounds like quite literally zero thought went into it. And

it's a real shame considering how awesome the song is. And, you know, in a Mega Death song, one usually looks forward to the solo, right? That's the

part of the song that, you know, is always going to be a banger. Uh, but

yeah, in this case, nah, the rest of the song is [ __ ] killer and THE SOLO [ __ ] [music] NOW, don't get me wrong here, Sunny Jim.

Zach Wild is one of the most iconic guitarists of all time and is playing on the classic Aussie stuff, you know, especially No More Tears and all that jazz. Oh, absolute perfection. However,

jazz. Oh, absolute perfection. However,

I I think it's quite difficult to disagree with the fact that like after a certain point, Mr. Wild just like kind of stopped trying and became a parody of himself. You know, when there's a Zack

himself. You know, when there's a Zack Wild solo on something, you know exactly what you're going to be getting. You're

going to be getting some furious, spammy, pentatonic licks, brutal squeals, some super wide VA.

So, there was a few songs I was thinking about putting here. Uh, but in the end, I went with um I don't want to stop because I remember this song was like huge when it came out. I think was on like wrestling and everything, you know,

that's you know when you've made it when you're on [ __ ] wrestling and you know there was a lot of hype around the album that this was on. I think Black Rain I think it was called. Yeah. Like Aussie

like blew up again at this point when this album came out. It was pretty big.

Yeah. It's corny as [ __ ] and like you know most of Aussy's later output is like overproduced beyond all hell. But

yeah, who cares? Like it's still super fun. Uh super catchy. [laughter] It's a

fun. Uh super catchy. [laughter] It's a good time. That solo though. Oh my god.

good time. That solo though. Oh my god.

Like it literally sounds like the result of a music AI like approximating, you know, the sound of, you know, the

the most cliche, you know, Zack Wild solo. Zero phrasing, zero thought, just a load of like, you know, crappy stock licks just so he can, you

know, just clock out and collect his paycheck and be on his merry way. And to

make matters worse, the whole solo for some reason is just like drowned in like wetness and w and like you can barely hear what's going on in half of it. So,

you know, it just ruins the like any impact that the solo could have had.

It's so weird. You know, much like Mr. the hammer. I do think that Zach is

the hammer. I do think that Zach is another example, unfortunately, of a guitarist who strayed so far from, you know, what made them great in their

prime that they're like a completely different guitarist. Now, [music]

different guitarist. Now, [music] [music] the late great Chuck Schmoldinger will forever go down in history as, you know, one of the greatest metal musicians of all time. The man was an absolute

all time. The man was an absolute [ __ ] machine when it came to churning out riffs. And in my opinion, and I

out riffs. And in my opinion, and I don't just say this like hyperbolically, he's the greatest harsh vocalist in metal.

But dear god, I'm sorry, but I cannot say the same about his lead playing. He

did for sure have a very distinctive cool style. Um, you know, you can tell a

cool style. Um, you know, you can tell a Chuck solo a mile off, which is, you know, always a good sign. Uh, and he did have some chops, but the majority of his

solos were just like so self-indulgent, like so self-indulgent and dare I say, kind of amateur in comparison to the music he was like trying to make. It's

not really as noticeable in the earlier stuff that was a bit more primitive, but like, you know, as the music got more ambitious. I think the weaknesses in his

ambitious. I think the weaknesses in his playing definitely became more exposed.

I had a few songs in mind to stick here, but I went with Flesh and the power it holds because I think this is like a perfect example of a pretty [ __ ]

killer song that is kind of ruined in my opinion by an absolute like abomination of a solo. I'm sorry. It's literally

like a minute or just over a minute of like aimless self-indulgent noodling over like a not dissonant but just like a really sort of like lowfi clean guitar

riff lift riff. I [snorts] it really feels like it never ends. Just so many things bother me about this solo. I

don't know why it irks me so much. The

note choices and the licks are just like really really amateur and like the melodies just like sound like a [ __ ] nursery rhyme. And it's like when you

nursery rhyme. And it's like when you compare it to the fact that like you know this album was meant to be some sort of like you know arty Prague thing.

Uh why is the solo why are the solos like this? And like the tone and the

like this? And like the tone and the attack and the insanely like wide vat are all just like ridiculously over the top and like inappropriate considering

like the context of the song. It's just

maybe I'm missing something. Maybe I

just don't get it. But yeah. Oh this one is so bad.

>> [music] [music] >> Come on. Surely you you knew there wasn't not going to be a Slayer song on this list.

But unlike the other solos on this list, you know, the solos in Age of Death and a lot of Slayer solos in general are just like so iconically awful that

they're actually [ __ ] amazing. Slayer

somehow managed to make an art out of concocting like ridiculously like terrible solos. Like I can't think of any other band that does it as well

as Slayer did. Like even though the solos in this song sound like a cat being mangled in a washing machine, um somehow they're still kind of catchy and

like you can sing along to them. I

wouldn't advise doing it in public.

You know, boys and girls, it just goes to show that if you're going to be bad, you know, at least do it with conviction and people won't care. They will love you for it. Cheers, guys. Hope you

enjoyed the video. It was a lot of fun to put together. Next up,

unsurprisingly, we're going to be looking at uh terrible songs that have amazing solos in. Oh, I haven't quite finished putting the list together yet.

So, if you have any ideas for that, please do write them down below and I shall consider them in due course. Take

care out there. Love you and I shall see you very soon.