Top Dream Theater Guitar Solos

petrucci75hammet What does everyone think the greatest bit of guitar work by John Petrucci is?

The Top Ten

1 The Best of Times

Great melody. This isn't just an exhibition of technique, but rather technique at the service of music. The all song is great in the way it is written, and all the different sections marry to each toher

Beautiful melodies

This solo has the perfect blend between emotion and complexity. There is some nice slower parts along with sweep arpeggios that have a fair amount of speed, but don't get too out of hand. The fade out always makes me want to turn the volume up at the very end to hear what I'm missing out on. - aaronbonneau

This solo kicks every solo on this list's butt and it kicks Comfortably Numb, Mr Crowley, Sairway to Heaven and every other great solo's butt on both the emotional and the technical aspects.

13 Comments
2 Breaking All Illusions

My favorite guitar solo from Dream Theater. Getting chills every time!

Very emotional solo, not just shredding.

This solo inspired me to play the guitar

Simply beautiful

3 Under a Glass Moon

This is his best studio solo. No doubt. His live solos are good too, like: Take The Time (Live in Japan 1993) and Hollow Years at the Budokan. - moose4life19

The back and forth with piano and guitar is killer enough, but the little three (three, right? ) note stutter right at the beginning of the guitar-only section gets me every time.

Its the best solo ever by anyone it's perfect the beginning made me crap my pants. John Petrucci made his career with this solo its beautiful

In the Name of God's solo is better, but since it isn't on here, Under a Glass Moon is definitely a close second.

5 Comments
4 Lines In the Sand

Dream Theatre is not my favourite band but this has always been my favourite solo, ever! I have a love-hate relationship with this song because I don't care much for the first 1-5 minutes (the intro is great) but that solo, sober or drunk, is perfect.

I love the calm Petrucci solo. - IronSabbathPriest

Best solo feeling wise

5 In the Name of God

This one is worthy of the top 10. Mainly because of how experimental and honestly weird it sounds with the rest of the instruments. - AdamDestructorJr.

I don't know why but this solo is really epic in my opinion, especially at the end when it goes back into the section that is all heave again, followed by the slowish epic section that the keyboardist plays

Best DT solo after Under a Glass Moon... Plain 100% full-speed shredding for the first 45 seconds of the solo and then comes the entire band as Petrucci keeps shredding... Hauntingly epic solo. - fidelcanojr

Not only the johns guitar but mike also plays very cool creative drums witch makes the song perfect!

1 Comment
6 The Spirit Carries On

The only guitar solo that almost made me cry... no I didn't cry... was ninja cutting onions close me...ok maybe a tear from the left eye...and one from the right one...maybe

Probably the best ever

Fast... emotional... amazing... it is my favourite, beacouse is a masterpiece of thecnich and melody...

7 Lie

I really love this song. The whole song makes me feel like I can carry the world. Woah, I love this so much. Can I cry?

Yes sir you can cry. it should be legal in all 50 states to cry during a dream theater song - Messej

8 A Change of Seasons

Another World's solo!

5 solos for the price of 1! And 23 minutes of your life but well worth it

Easily their Best Song and john's Best Solo

9 Home

Amazing solo on top of amazing riffing

10 Hollow Years from Live at Budokan 2004

My favorite solo by Petrucci, so emotionally moving yet extremely technical at the same time! Why couldn't this solo be on the album version?

The guitar solo of this song in that concert is absolutely mind blowing.

. I love it that so many of you think the same

The Contenders

11 The Glass Prison

The arpeggio solo is really good and the final solo is also awesome... all the solos are great in the song - rock2metal

How is this #9? I can't even play the arpeggio solo at the beginning, it should be #3 at least - thatotherdude99

12 Fatal Tragedy

Very fast, complex, and sounds great.

#11?! Are you kidding me half of this song is solo and epicness. Petrucci rocked the guitar portnoy beat the drums rudess keyboard playing and myungs bass and he wrote this song and also labrie singing

Dis must be #1 or else the universe is in an extreme imbalance

This solo is so well structred, its like a secret mathematical formula for orbiting a satelliate around earth

13 Stream of Consciousness

This whole song is a technical masterpiece - Portnoy's drum rhythms, Petrucci's guitar-shredding and Rudess's keyboards - an 11-minte instrumental which does not ONCE get boring! - petrucci75hammet

I can NEARLY play the solo so that's why I'm voting this haha

Should be first

14 As I Am

Followed by one of their greatest drum solos.

So fast and technical, just perfect

The best song ever

Mind melting...

15 The Ministry of Lost Souls

The ending solo is amazing. The bridge solo is epic.

The outro solo that goes from 12:50 to end... in my opinion the best solo of DT!

16 Lost Not Forgotten

I remember first hearing this while on holiday in Spain. I was completely blown away by the solo section at the beginning of the song, which is quite frankly scary. And Petrucci doubles lines with Rudess as well. Makes me want to practice 10 hours a day!

Holy balls this needs to be higher! The tone is killer and he just shreds with absolute sophistication. It's astonishing.

17 Another Day

Awesome melodic solo by Petrucci!

melodic

18 Constant Motion

This solo man, it starts out with a great melodic section, it just sounds like the guitar is crying. Then you get into the real fast part, damn. The sweeping toward the end is insane, and then the incredibly fast alt picking triplets at the end. This solo has it all.

19 Sacrificed Sons
20 Octavarium

This divine solo, ending this masterpiece... After 20 mins of the true Dream Theater, John Petrucci pulls this wonderful guitar solo that, for me, is better than "The Best of Times". Such a feeling. This gives me chills. It really does.

This is easily their best song and solo

Oh come on the ending had a amazing solo but I do aggree under a glass moon is the best solo

21 The Dark Eternal Night

The shreddage in this song, not only the solos but the entire duration from start to finish, is probably one of the most virtuoso performances in metal history. But the solos; damn, them solos; are some of the few that can combine multiple techniques, fastness, incredible heaviness and maintain it's melodic memorability.
This song is a sure-fire head banger's classic, hands down!

John is a God! This solo is unnatural!

Amazing solo!

22 Take the Time

Youuuu can feel the waves commin on! Just the best dt song with the most beautiful solo ever - Mouseclick

23 Panic Attack

dude, if they were just an instrumental band, I would like them just the same. (in fact, that's the reason I listen to LTE's stuff more often. ) that's how good EVERY dt guitar solo is. but this is their best.

My dad's cousin is the lead singer... But that solo is amazing

oh gosh. when I listen to this solo I think I'll have a panic attack myself. amazing and truly depicts the feeling and mood of the song.

24 A Rite of Passage
25 Illumination Theory

The guitar solo at the end. How could you guys miss this out? Yes it's short but it oozes with emotion, amplified more with the string orchestra for the background, feels like listening to "Made in Heaven" music.

26 This Dying Soul
27 On the Backs of Angels

This is my favorite solo OF ALL TIME! Every single note is perfect and I love the epic build up

28 Endless Sacrifice
29 Learning to Live

The most mature composition on the worlds greatest album. I really like the Myungs approach to song witing. The 2 keys to what lies beyond Petruccis solo section are: Musical and technical simplicity; His astonishing articulation while approaching these few notes.

30 Goodnight Kiss
31 The Root of All Evil

How can you say no to this one?!

32 The Shattered Fortress

If we're talking purely solos, this is 1000% in the top 3. Fact not opinion.

Surprised this wasn't here, definitely one of my favorite Petrucci solos.

33 The Count of Tuscany

How is this gem not higher up?! I always tear up when that last solo starts up! My favourite indeed.

34 Hell's Kitchen

THE BEST dream theater guitar solo is hells kitchen, unfortunately nobody added it. So I did.

35 A New Beginning
36 A Nightmare To Remember

Come on guys dis 1 should be ahead col guitar I really was scared when I first heard it

37 Wither

Wonderful Solo! Very fast!

38 Pull Me Under
39 Another World

SOULFUL solo at its finest... just close your eyes while listening...
mind blowing! EPIC EPIC EPIC...

40 Forsaken

Make Me Cry. Watch a Live Performance John Rules...

41 To Live Forever
42 Take Away My Pain
43 Scarred
44 Repentance
45 Voices
46 Hollow Years
47 Surrounded
48 About to Crash
49 Never Enough
50 Innocence Faded

The solo at the end is absolutely, totally, positively, mindbogglingly insane.

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List Stats

800 votes
51 listings
10 years, 63 days old

Top Remixes (9)

1. In the Name of God
2. Octavarium
3. Constant Motion
Messej
1. Breaking All Illusions
2. The Best of Times
3. Lines In the Sand
petrucci75hammet
1. The Best of Times
2. Octavarium
3. A Change of Seasons
TrappedInsideIt

WRemix
View All 9

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