Your Guitar Store Riff

Putting music theory into practice
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deaconblues
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Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by deaconblues »

Interested in hearing what you guys play when you've got that $3000 axe plugged in at the guitar store.

Aside from the cliches 'Smoke On the Water', 'Stairway to Heaven', etc. :)

My defaults have always been 'Over the Hills and Far Away' by Led Zeppelin - just a fun one to play.

And the 'Discovery' passage from Rush's '2112' is a great one for tone testing and dynamics, especially on acoustic guitars.
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jimk
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by jimk »

Having played acoustic guitar and only lately plugged in, I'm often found picking up guitars made by Collings or some other high end guitar maker. I might play Blind Blake's West Coast Blues or if I happen to spot a particularly attractive 12 string, I might play a riff from Roger McGuinn's Echoes which is really a free improvisation on Eight Miles High and a few other things thrown in.
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Grey
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by Grey »

I generally avoid sitting down and playing licks to popular songs. If i'm just having a bit of fun then i'll put together some improv in the store, I like to hang out infront of the Boss booth at Sam Ash and use the looper they've got set up.
I also have some finger-stretching riffs and a chord list to try if i'm entertaining the idea of taking something home, to get a good handle on how comfortable i'll be with the guitar.
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stsang
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by stsang »

If the $3,000 guitar is a Rickenbacker 12-string ( :D ), I'll play a few from the following:

The Byrds {Mr. Tambourine Man, Feel A Whole Lot Better, Turn!Turn!Turn!, Chimes of Freedom, Bells of Rhymney}

The Beatles{I Should Have Known Better, Ticket To Ride, What You're Doing, If I Fell, You Can't Do That}

The Smiths {This Charming Man, William It Was Really Nothing, Stop If You Think You've Heard This One Before, Cemetery Gates, Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others}

R.E.M. {Talk About The Passion, Green Grow The Rushes, Near Wild Heaven}
Last edited by stsang on Fri Aug 17, 2012 12:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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collin
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by collin »

For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.
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stsang
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by stsang »

collin wrote:For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.
I hadn't heard that before so I just looked it up on Youtube. That's a cool song! If I hear someone playing it in a guitar store I'll know it's you! :)

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collin
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by collin »

stsang wrote:
collin wrote:For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.
I hadn't heard that before so I just looked it up on Youtube. That's a cool song! If I hear someone playing it in a guitar store I'll know it's you! :)
:lol: Yep!

It's a simple acoustic pattern, but it's pretty infectious since they repeat it....for twenty-two minutes. :shock:
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jps
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by jps »

I play that too :D , but not in a store. Usually, it is an original song or concept I am working on that I will play.
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woodyng
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by woodyng »

I don't get many chances to go to music stores the last few years since i moved to a small town,but if i am checking out a Ric bass,i usually gotta play the opening riff to "does it really happen?". Anything else i pick up,it probably just gonna be "woodynoodles". 8)
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bitzerguy
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Re: Your Guitar Store Riff

Post by bitzerguy »

Edgar Winters Frankenstein. 'Cuz nobody else does... :D
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