Top 10 Songs with the Most Famous Guitar Intros

The first few seconds hit your ears and you already know what's coming. Before the vocals kick in, before the drums drop, that guitar does all the talking.

You've heard it in stadiums, commercials, movie trailers, your neighbor's garage band, and sometimes even blasted out of a kid's toy guitar at 8 in the morning. These intros are the kind that practically tattoo themselves onto your brain with just a handful of notes.

Some riffs sound like they were dropped from the sky fully formed. Others came from hours of noodling that accidentally sparked pure magic. It doesn't matter if it's a blistering shred or a slow-burn crunch. If people hear the first three seconds and yell the song name before the singer even breathes, it's earned its place here.

Scroll through, click your favorites, and help crown the undisputed kings of guitar intro greatness.

The Top Ten

  1. Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple

    Instantly at the top because it's the easiest to play, even though most beginners play it wrong at the start. Anyone who picks up a guitar automatically knows this riff, and at the very least, every pro musician, no matter what genre they play, knows this.

    My friend and I only jammed once in the garage, bass and drums. Never found anyone else to play, never jammed again. We learned and practiced one thing: this thing. Also, the story of how it was written in a hotel by Lake Geneva is epic.

    The title is "10 Most Famous Guitar Intros," and this is the best-known guitar intro ever. It's great, but I hate that this riff is so commercial.

  2. Sweet Child o' Mine - Guns N' Roses

    This should be the number one song on this particular list without a doubt! As far as guitar intros go, this is as good as it gets, period.

    I love the beginning of this song. Every time it comes on, I'm like, This is the snazz! Hahahahaha! But yeah, it's my favorite on here. Also, this is the most accurate list I've seen so far.

    Easily one of the most iconic guitar intros of all time. It's amazing.

  3. Enter Sandman - Metallica

  4. Thunderstruck - AC/DC

    Played a lot at sports games and events. It's catchy as well.

  5. Hells Bells - AC/DC

    One of the best and easily the most famous. It gets you hooked on the song, and the bell adds a nice sound to it. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Metallica tried to replicate this and make it their own (and I admit, it is amazing), but it's not as good as the song they got the idea from.

    Incredible intro, absolutely unforgettable. Picture: slow-motion walking, smoke around your ankles, dark sunglasses, backlit. And this song.

    Number one (Smoke on the Water) and number two (Sweet Child O' Mine) are phenomenal riffs. But the greatest INTRO is Hells Bells. Let's be real.

  6. Iron Man - Black Sabbath

  7. Metal Meltdown - Judas Priest

  8. The Trooper - Iron Maiden

  9. Phantom of the Opera - Iron Maiden

  10. Money for Nothing - Dire Straits

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    Revolution - The Beatles

    Like Day Tripper - simple but perfect. It grabs your attention and sets the mood for the song.

    And that SCREAM!

  12. ?

    Start Me Up - The Rolling Stones

    "Moves like Jagger" was enough of a universal image to fuel a hit song. But you don't need lyrics to call up that image.

    When you hear this opening, you can't help but picture Jagger strutting.

    13. The Contenders

  13. Livin' on a Prayer - Bon Jovi

  14. Holy Wars... The Punishment Due - Megadeth

  15. Nothing Else Matters - Metallica

  16. Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne

    I knew this intro without even having ever heard the rest of this song. To be honest, it is better than the rest of the song!

    Lets you know what's coming, and that it might be too much for you to handle.

  17. Strike of the Beast - Exodus

  18. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana

    Not only does this jump at you from the first note, but it scares you because it just says "anarchy to follow."

  19. Layla - Derek and the Dominos

    Because the intro riff goes throughout the song, it's incredibly memorable!

    As classic as it gets, a staple of the classic rock community.

    Wow, clearly the most memorable intro by one of the greatest guitarists ever, Eric Clapton.

  20. Desecration of Souls - Mercyful Fate

  21. Sunshine of Your Love - Cream

  22. Heartbreaker - Led Zeppelin

    I would have thought Whole Lotta Love would be on this list instead, but I can see this.

    The greatest intro and song ever.

  23. Day Tripper - The Beatles

    Simple but perfect. Which takes genius, and these guys recorded genius as a matter of course.

    One of the earliest, and one of the best, opening guitar riffs ever.

  24. Urgent - Foreigner

  25. Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin

    Top of the Pops helped make this incredibly well known in the UK.

  26. Black Metal - Venom

  27. Voodoo Child - The Jimi Hendrix Experience

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