What’s the WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS GUITAR RIFF? Tune in to this week’s Riff Of The Week Series to find out! You might be a little surprised, then again, you might already know the answer. Join me as I break down this iconic riff, and show you where it came from.
Grab your guitar, crank that amp and let’s have some fun this week! What do you think it’s going to be? Comment down below!
In this lesson you will learn:
World’s Most Famous Guitar Riff Video Concepts
1. Some background info on the riff.
2. How to play a simple version of the riff with proper fingerings.
3. What a 4th interval is.
4. Album version of the riff.
Chapters
0:25 Song info
1:10 Simple version of the riff
2:38 4th’s explained
3:11 Album version of the riff
3:23 Play along
Action Steps
Be sure to watch the video again to make sure you have all the concepts fresh in your mind.
STEP 1. What do you think this riff might be? According to Fender.com it’s “Smoke On The Water”. I knew it was either this one or “Iron Man”. This is a great beginner riff to learn because it’s easy and it sounds great!
STEP 2. This is a really simple riff and super easy to play. Learn the simple version first on the open “G” string. You can play the whole riff with just your first finger sliding around.
STEP 3. Ritchie Blackmore was famous for using 4th intervals in his playing. A 4th is just two notes spaced apart by 4 steps on the musical staff. For example, in the key of “C”, the “F” note is 4 steps away from “C” and therefore called a “forth”. A forth on the guitar is just the note directly below the note your playing, or just down below on the next string. It’s as if you are just barring across a fret, playing two notes at one time. They have a gritty or dissonant sound, cool for rock and roll.
STEP 4. Now learn the riff starting on the “D” note on the 5th string, 5th fret. Learn it with singe notes first like I do in the video, then add that 4th. So you are playing the same riff but now with two notes at one time. How do you like the sound?
Be sure to check out my other riff lessons here!
Happy playing!