10   "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
Nirvana (1991)

Most of "Teen Spirit" came easy — Nirvana nailed it in three takes — but that crucial Kurt Cobain guitar intro required an overdub ("That pissed him off," said producer Butch Vig). It was worth the effort: That riff, along with the band's loud-quiet-loud dynamics, defined Nineties rock.


"Smells Like Teen Spirit" from Nevermind (Geffen)


Nirvana performing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" live in 1991

11   "Whole Lotta Love"
Led Zeppelin (1969)

This thundering rewrite of Muddy Waters' "You Need Love" showcased three of Jimmy Page's specialties: primal, monomaniacal riffs; innovative production; and solos with the savage mastery he'd developed as a top-flight session musician in the pre-Zep years.


"Whole Lotta Love" from Led Zeppelin II (Atlantic)



Led Zeppelin perfoming "Whole Lotta Love" live

12   "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)"
The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1968)

This is Hendrix's magnum opus: one magisterial explosion after another, storming through a catalog of molten blues. Hendrix improvised the wah-wah riff while a TV crew filmed his band. "We weren't thinking of what we were playing," he said.


"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" from Electric Ladyland (Experience Hendrix)


The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" live

13   "Layla"
Derek and the Dominos (1970)

"I didn't do it — it was Duane," Eric Clapton said, laughing, in 1988. Guest guitarist Duane Allman created one of rock's most exciting and memorable licks, pinching the vocal line from Albert King's "As the Years Go Passing By" and speeding it up.


"Layla" from Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (Polydor)


Eric Clapton performing "Layla" live

See all of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All TIme