Is the guitar riff dead?

Originally intended to be played by a horn section, and only recorded through a fuzzbox by Keith Richards as a guide, Satisfaction is arguably the first time an overdriven, distorted riff became truly world famous. Perhaps the Kinks mastered this sound first, but as they were banned from performing in America at the time that left the door open for the Stones to properly introduce buzzsaw riffs around the globe. What is undeniable however is that this new tone set the template for music that was to follow. 

Hendrix took what popular British rockers of his era did and turned everything up a notch. What sets Voodoo Child out as an iconic riff is the complexity of it coupled with eye-catching performances. Hendrix managed to elevate a riff from being a key component of a song to instead be THE key component that everything else revolved around.

Heavily based around a pentatonic scale, Back in Black simultaneously stripped riffs back to their blues roots whilst adding a gut-punching heavy overdrive. The relatively slow tempo allowed for maximum effect and every note to hit the audience with brute force, imprinting it on your memory as rock returned to its riff roots after the punk rock revolution.

The simplicity of the Smoke on the Water riff has made it a staple for beginners to learn when first playing guitar and therefore rendered it timeless. This straightforward riff also establishes a solid base for every member of the band to get creative and showcase their skills. The fact that Richie Blackmore insists on always plucking the riff instead of using a pick also allows the riff to simmer beneath the surface of the song or hog the spotlight equally comfortably.

First devised by Slash as a guitar exercise, what sets Sweet Child o’ Mine out amongst other riffs is the pitch. Around this point metal bands like Metallica and Slayer were introducing riffs with increasing complexity, but whereas most riffs up to this point largely had a low pitch, Slash turned this notion on its head with a lick that traditionally would be more at home in a solo. It takes the classic notions of what a riff should be and totally subverts it, yet is still instantly recognisable as a riff.

A key component of grunge music is clean and quiet verses contrasting with loud, overdriven choruses. There’s no clearer example of this than the riff in Smells Like Teen Spirit. Kurt Cobain wasn’t the first to use this technique, but by pairing it with the simplicity and repetitiveness of the Teen Spirit riff he managed to firmly etch it into public consciousness. On top of this Teen Spirit breathed new life into the rock riff against stiff competition from rap and pop’s growing popularity in the early 90s.

If a riff can transcend music and be equally at home on tv, in sports stadiums and even at political conferences then you know you’re onto a winner. What makes Seven Nation Army special is that it combines the classic riff ingredients of simplicity, recognisable tone, and catchy hook but then reinforces it all throughout the song. The lack of a real chorus means that for 3 minutes and 52 seconds the riff is repeated constantly. Way to stick in your head. 

Fabio Venni from London, UK; modified by anetode, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In an era where rock was mostly side lined this riff was standout enough to cut through to the mainstream. Played on a 12-string guitar, it combines elements of psychedelic, blues, indie and heavy rock into one to reach out to fans of each genre. Where previous riffs were aimed at capturing the perfect tone of one style of music, this riff captured lots of tones and as a result, reached lots of fans.