Rev up your air guitars, fire up your loudest amps and get ready for new Sky Arts series, Greatest Guitar Riffs, airing next month over the course of three consecutive nights: November 24, 25 and 26.
This three-part documentary series unpicks the workings of some of the most famous riffs in musical history, taking audiences on an exhilarating journey which tracks the personal impact of the guitar riff on three legendary guitarists - Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, The Police’s Andy Summers and Heart’s Nancy Wilson.
Episode One: Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi pulls back the curtain on the creation of Sabbath’s classic riffs and the creation of heavy metal, delving into tracks including Paranoid, War Pigs and Iron Man. He’s also joined by Queen’s Brian May for an exclusive jam session.
Episode Two: Legendary guitarist Andy Summers reflects on his favourite riffs of all time and tells the stories of the riffs that brought fame and fortune to The Police, including the opening bars of Grammy Award-winning hit Every Breath You Take. Andy also pays a visit to one of the best jazz guitar players of all time, George Benson.
Episode Three: Heart’s Nancy Wilson takes us on a very personal journey through the music and the riffs that influenced her, tracing a through-line from the music of Heart into the grunge scene of the 1990s. She’s joined by Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready and Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil.
The iconic music trio will be joined by an array of guitar stars, including jazz guitarist George Benson, Dave Keuning (The Killers), Richie Sambora (Bon Jovi), Hank Marvin (The Shadows) and Orianthi (Michael Jackson/Alice Cooper). Together, they will cover riffs from the likes of Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Rage Against The Machine and more.
Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts, said: “Greatest Guitar Riffs is a treat for anyone who loves an axe-based ear worm; with this smart, thoughtful journey through the very best riffs ever written, brought to us by three guitar legends, I challenge anyone to watch without either a) humming along or b) picking up that air guitar and strumming along.”
Greatest Guitar Riffs (3x60) was commissioned by Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts and Entertainment for Zai Bennett, Managing Director of Content for Sky UK and Ireland. The Commissioning Editor for Sky is Barbara Lee.
The series is produced by Somethin’ Else TV, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. Ian Sharpe serves as Executive Producer.
Greatest Guitar Riffs will air on Sky Arts, Freeview and NOW from November 24, 2023.
(Top photo - Max Sticca)
