One of the showiest guitar styles is the rock of the late sixties and early seventies. The era of the riff-heavy songs where the words seemed to be just an excuse to make up another riff. So, as a result, lots of guys who hear music from this era want to take riff guitar lessons. That’s it, nothing else, just the riffs. This is just one step above air guitar, but a step just the same.
A riff is a series of notes or chords that is Used many times all through a song. The guitar riff is a recent musical phenomenon although riffs have forever been Utilised in jazz and blues. In rock guitar a riff could contain hardly any notes but those notes regularly make up a catchy combination of rhythm and tune that sticks in the memory of all who hear it. A riff can also contain a rhythm with no melody as in Ravel’s Bolero or in any number of classical pieces that make use of the fandango rhythm.
But getting people’s attention is what riff guitar is all about. As soon as you start playing, heads turn, the attention of the room is focused on where the music is coming from. It might be news to some of you guitar players who just wish for lessons on how to play riffs that the whole song is frequently not a whole lot harder to play than just the riff. So when you pick up a guitar at a party, you could actually impress the people with your ability to play and sing a complete song.
The video has some of the great riffs all in one place:
