By force of habit...

By force of habit, during our practice sessions, or when we invite some friends over, and even when ever first pick up the guitar, there is always that particular technique certain style that we tend to rely on unconsciously. And there are certain parts from our favorite solos that just come out of nowhere, and that we tend to incorporate into our own style. Which guitar solo, or certain parts from it do you catch yourself playing (at the spir of the moment), perhaps when you're nervous, or whenever you touch a fresh set of strings? And what makes it so special?

Whenever I'm at home, where I'm relaxed after a long day at work, when my fingers hit those strings, certain solo parts from "Stairway To Heaven" always reach the surface. I love this song, and the structure of this solo, its something that I'm very comfortable playing, and it always strikes that chord inside of me whenever I play just a few bars. What really fascinates me about this solo (arguably the greatest solo of all time), is that it was written rather impulsively. And the fact that altough page targets the F note which is not included in the A minor scale, it still seems to work. Theres just something very special there. Page had the ability to work around changes. Theres are just so many memories with this song, and I can't never talk about it enough, I think its safe to say my comfort spot lies within this song.

-Joseph, :).

For me it varries- I do something along those lines, but the techniques/songs vary. Lately it's been the intro to "Riddles are Abound Tonight" by Sausage. Past tunes I've latched onto are: "Bonin' in the Bone Yard," "Tommy the Cat," "South Bound Pachederm" (I really do listen to too much Primus), "Interstate Love Song," and (going way back) "The Long Run." I'll also play to no end little riffs or ideas I've invented in much the same manner.

I'm showing my age here, but for me, it's a version of the 'Underture' from 'Tommy', by the Who. Its got everything I need for a warmup, in terms of dynamics and techniques for guitar. (I rarely tap, never mind shredding). I tend to let a chord ring, and play trills and grace notes over top of that. What makes this piece special to me is the dramatic sound of it, on electric or acoustic. Sorry, Rask, the bass part is really boring.

For some reason I always break into the Randy Rhodes version of Black Sabbath's song "paranoid". All I can say is that the changes he made, make it a bit catchier, from intro to solo. It just has that enegery that I enjoy.

-Mai Zure

The stairway solo does it to me too...
whenver i try to improvise on the penatonic scale , i find myself stealing parts from it...
it's one of the best solos that i've ever heard..
the F in the middle don't destroy the scale at all, just adds you one more note to play with
and it's absolutley great solo, altough a little bit sloppy

Yes, there are always certain parts from this solo that I tend to use (rather unconciously) when I improvise with my technique, its such a powerful song, and everytime I hear it I just can't get it out of my head. Jimmy Page's arrangments are very unique if you compare his to others around his time, he knew exactly how to combine rock and blues together where he often diguised one or the other. He's a very unpredictable musician, who relys on whatever it takes to bring out hius personality through his songs.

Of course there are so many other solos that just come out of nowhere during those impulsive practice session, but none quite like Stairway To Heaven. I know its safe to say that of people blow this song way out of proportion, and for alot of people they really don't understand what makes this song so special, but it has alot to with the mystery. No one knows exactly who the lady was that Plant envisioned in his mind, but with the amazing arrangements of sounds, we can't help putting our own pieces of the puzzle together, where certain parts of this song really have a way of making us think about certain relationships, our past as well as our future. I think when it comes to the lyrics, Robert Plant felt the need to leave this song open to many interpretations, giving the people a chance to think for themselves.