Stairway to Heaven
Created | Updated Nov 12, 2009
A classic tune by legendary British rock giants Led Zeppelin, 'Stairway To Heaven' is widely recognized as one of the greatest rock songs ever written. Nearly every guitarist can play at least the first few bars of the song's whimsical intro. In fact, the opening acoustic guitar solo by Jimmy Page is often cited as the inspiration behind people picking up a guitar in the first place. This has resulted in an almost worldwide ban in any musical instrument shop. In fact, it's not uncommon to see, prominently displayed, a sign saying, 'No Stairway'. This is not because of a fear of the evil subconscious messages that are allegedly heard if the song is played backwards. It just gets on your nerves after a while.
The song continues with the iconic Robert Plant coming in with verses about a woman 'buying a stairway to Heaven'. This is followed by a general picking up of pace until the song reaches a turning point; one of the most kick-ass electric guitar solos... ever.