Guitar Rock
tagStarted 1968Peak 1973-1984Last big hit still active
Located in 1 route
Classic rock framed around the electric guitar as the lead voice: chunky power chords, signature riffs, twin-lead harmonies and extended solos pushed front in the mix. Tube-amp crunch and feedback define the tone; the song often hangs on a guitar hook everyone can hum. Muscular, riff-first, built to spotlight the player.
History
Grew from blues-rock's amplification of the guitar into rock's central instrument through the late 60s and 70s, as players turned riffs and solos into the defining identity of a band. Catalog radio canonized the era's great riff-writers, making the recognizable guitar figure the unit of classic-rock memory.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_rock
- https://www.allmusic.com/style/classic-rock-ma0000012264
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blues_rock