Free Guitar Lessons Blog

Diary of a Madman was released by Ozzy Osbourne in 1981.
Ozzy’s bass player, Bob Daisley, wrote this song. According to Daisley:
“I really wrote that one about myself. When I was 16 I had my first nervous breakdown and it really f—ed me up. I was a sensitive kid and I have always been a sensitive [...]

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“Life in the Fast Lane” was written by Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey and Don Henley and released by the Eagles on their 1976 studio album “Hotel California”. After the album’s release, it became the third single from the album peaking at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
The song tells of a couple that [...]

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“Cat Scratch Fever” was recorded by Ted Nugent and appears on an album of the same name. The song is well known for its instantly recognizable signature riff, which is a 3-tone “blues scale” melody harmonized in parallel fourths. In 2009 it was named the 32nd best hard rock song of all time by VH1.
With [...]

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“Black Dog” is the first track on Led Zeppelin’s famous untitled album which is often referred to as “Led Zeppelin IV”. For the “few” of you that have actually been following my blog, it goes without saying that a lot Zeppelin tunes are a favourite of mine and Black Dog with its cool riff [...]

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“Sweet Home Alabama” was recorded by the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. It first appeared in 1974 on their second album, entitled “Second Helping”. Despite lots of controversy, it reached #8 on the US charts in 1974, and was the band’s second hit single.
According to the band members, “Sweet Home Alabama” was written as an [...]

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Written by Stephen Tyler and Joe Perry, “Walk this Way” was released in 1975 on Aerosmith’s “Toys in the Attic” album.
In a February, 2006 Q magazine issue, Aerosmith discussed the song’s beginnings:
“We were still searching for a hit when Joe Perry came up with the stuttering riff during a soundtrack in Hawaii in March 1975. [...]

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“Running with the Devil” is a rock song and the first track from Van Halen’s 1978 eponymous debut album.
The track fades in with the sound of a car horn. In many ways, this track is the song that started it all, being the first song from the first album and that it sets the tone [...]

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Another classic released by John Fogerty and the boys, “Fortunate Son” can be found on the album, “Willy and the Poor Boys”, which was released in 1969.
The song was very popular during the Vietnam War, and it can be heard in many Vietnam War movies, as well as, video games.
“Fortunate Son” reached position 14 [...]

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Released as a single in 1977, “Hotel California” is the title song from the Eagles’ album of the same name. The song topped the Billboard hot 100 singles chart for one week in May of 1977. Since the song’s release there have been many interpretations as to exactly what the lyrics are referring to, however, [...]

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Released by Deep Purple in 1972, the classic song, “Smoke on the Water” can be found on their album entitled Machine Head.
When the song was originally recorded, the band did not think it would be a hit. It was not until it was released in the United States as a single, a full year after [...]

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