# Greatest acoustic guitar pieces of all time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 23, 2007, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243 "2007-04-23T02:38:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/1 "2007-04-23T02:38:29Z")
I’m sure there are some classical guitar works out there that would blow my mind, but my main exposure is folk and rock, so here is my submission: _Is There Anybody Out There_ - Pink Floyd (David Gilmour on guitar) What about you? What acoustic guitar pieces\* do you think are just perfection? \*by “piece” I mean the acoustic guitar work is either featured in the whole song or the majority of the song, not just some little 20 second bit in the middle of a song. It doesn’t have to be an instrumental-only song, though. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/2 "2007-04-23T02:42:14Z")
“Blackbird” by the Beatles. Randy Rhoads’ “Dee.” Townshend’s live performance of “Pinball Wizard” in _The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball_. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/3 "2007-04-23T02:42:32Z")
Anji, as recorded by **Paul Simon** (though not written by him, I think). ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/4 "2007-04-23T02:45:28Z")
I like John Williams’ _Cavatina_, released on “The Secret Policeman’s Ball”. Mason Williams’ _Classical Gas_ has always been one of my favorites. Bwahaha, DtC, I started to nominate his “Won’t Get Fooled Again” from that concert. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/5 "2007-04-23T02:50:29Z")
As a pair, _Mediterranean Sundance_ and _Splendido Sundance_ by Al Di Meola. Two times when lightning fingers actually brings out passion instead of just flash. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/6 "2007-04-23T02:51:39Z")
Forgot to mention a couple of pieces by Jimmy Page – “Bron-Yr-Aur” and “Black Mountain Side.” ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/7 "2007-04-23T02:54:43Z")
[QUOTE=fessie] Bwahaha, DtC, I started to nominate his “Won’t Get Fooled Again” from that concert. [/QUOTE] Heh. Let’s just nominate the whole performance. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/8 "2007-04-23T03:44:15Z")
• Yes, _Your Move_. • Simon & Garfunkel, _Scarborough Fair_. • Nick Drake, _Pink Moon_. • Nick Drake, _River Man_. • The Beatles, _Mother Nature’s Son_. • The Beatles, _Across the Universe_. • Led Zeppelin, _Going to California_. • Leonard Cohen, _Sisters of Mercy_. • Leonard Cohen, _Winter Lady_. • Bob Dylan, _It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)_. • The Eagles, _The Best of My Love_. • John Mayer, _Daughters_. • Nilsson, _Everybody’s Talkin’_. • Glen Campbell, _Gentle on My Mind_. • George Harrison, _My Sweet Lord_. • America, _Ventura Highway_. • Bruce Cockburn, _Wondering Where the Lions Are_. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/9 "2007-04-23T03:51:53Z")
• Extreme, _More Than Words_. • Extreme, _Hole Hearted_. • Godspell, _All Good Gifts_. ---
**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/10 "2007-04-23T03:58:26Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] _Is There Anybody Out There_ - Pink Floyd (David Gilmour on guitar) [/QUOTE] A nitpick, but it’s not David Gilmour playing. He wasn’t satified with his playing, and session musician Ron di Blasi ended up playing the fingered guitar part instead of him. Most of the other suggestions have been rock, but here are two from slightly different genres: Astor Piazzolla, Tango Suite There are a few worthy versions of this tremendous piece for two guitars, but of course the reference is Sergio and Adair Assad – for whom the piece was created. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PChkxDbFuUw](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PChkxDbFuUw) (minus the first section) There is also Al di Meola’s World Sinfonia version, which is pretty good. There’s an excerpt at the link below, although the sound quality is a bit iffy. ![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/CNk6LZxiKos/maxresdefault.jpg)https://www.youtube.com/embed/CNk6LZxiKos?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque Baden Powell, Candomblé This is not one of his most famous tracks, but it’s simply amazing. A superb mix of African and Brazilian influences. It’s one of the few pieces of music that captures all of my attention, every time I listen to it. I couldn’t find any link to on the web, so instead, here’s his _Samba Triste_, live: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hWqsuGu2FM8/hqdefault.jpg "Baden Powell - Samba Triste") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWqsuGu2FM8) Django Reinhardt, Minor Swing Django was easily one of the greatest and most influencial musicians of the 20th century. It’s unfair to only pick a single track, but this one’s pretty famous, and I found a link to it. Oh, yeah, it’s pretty rockin’ too. ![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/AEzsPGHsi90/maxresdefault.jpg)https://www.youtube.com/embed/AEzsPGHsi90?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ---
**Author:** ![CBEscapee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b19c9b/32.png) [@CBEscapee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBEscapee)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/11 "2007-04-23T04:11:56Z")
Embryonic Journey - Jefferson Airplane ---
**Author:** ![Gentle\_Robot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e495f1/32.png) [@Gentle\_Robot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gentle_Robot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/12 "2007-04-23T04:14:40Z")
[QUOTE=Eonwe] Anji, as recorded by **Paul Simon** (though not written by him, I think). [/QUOTE] I think it was by Bert Jansch. Elliott Smith - Memory Lane Neil Young - Tell me Why ---
**Author:** ![brendon\_small](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brendon_small/32/17101_2.png) [@brendon\_small](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brendon_small)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/13 "2007-04-23T04:29:39Z")
One of my favorite acoustic bits is definitely the copy of Stream by Tim Reynolds that is on the Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds acoustic CD. It just sounds so neat to me. There are a lot of good acoustic bits on those CDs though. Brendon ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/14 "2007-04-23T04:29:57Z")
Pretty much every time anyone who sees Tommy Emmanuel play anything, their mind is blown. Poke about on Youtube. Do not expect to have an unblown mind subsequently. He makes anyone mentioned in this thread except perhaps Al DiMeola look like a rank amateur. Sometimes the pieces he plays are a bit schmaltzy, or over-flashy or overblown, but mostly he’s just astonishing. If you’re looking for tasteful, there’s plenty of that played by him too. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/15 "2007-04-23T04:46:37Z")
**Leo Kottke** has done a lot of great stuff. My favorites are “Vaseline Machine Gun” and "The Fisherman, " off the old “6- and 12- String Guitar” album. **Richard Thompson** and **Martin Carthy** have done tons of songs with long acoustic breaks, as well as wholly acoustic pieces. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/16 "2007-04-23T04:51:27Z")
[QUOTE=fessie] Mason Williams’ _Classical Gas_ has always been one of my favorites. [/QUOTE] But the all-guitar version that you _never_ hear on the radio, not the one with the horns and strings in the second half. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Sable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/22d042/32.png) [@Martin\_Sable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Sable)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/17 "2007-04-23T04:56:34Z")
[QUOTE=Eonwe] Anji, as recorded by **Paul Simon** (though not written by him, I think). [/QUOTE] I came here to mention that very song, which I just listened to: “Angie,” written by Davy Graham, from the Sounds of Silence album by Simon & Garfunkel. Amazing song. I wish I was talented enough to play it on my guitar. There are probably a few dozen Doc Watson songs that should be mentioned, but I can’t recall one specifically right now. “The Mary Ellen Carter” by Stan Rogers has a nice acoustic guitar duet going on in the background. ---
**Author:** ![DfrntBreign](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DfrntBreign](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DfrntBreign)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/18 "2007-04-23T05:38:08Z")
To the many already offered I’ll add _Gypsy Soul_ from **Tommy Bolin**. Also anything by **Michael Hedges** belongs on this list. (I think I have a thing for dead guitarists.) The **Doobie Brothers** have a nice acoustic guitar duet called _Slat Key Sequel Rag_. **Eric Johnson** - _Song For George_ **Steve Miller** - _Maelstrom_ and _Slinky_ ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/19 "2007-04-23T06:05:08Z")
On the Classical side I’d add _Capricho Arabe_ and [Recuerdos de la Alhambra](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recuerdos_de_la_Alhambra) , both by[Francisco Tarraga](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_T%C3%A1rrega) . Both of which have been played by many great guitarists. One of [Heitor Villa Lobos’](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_T%C3%A1rrega) _Preludes_ is outstanding, I think its the second. Any of his works are worth a listen for something a bit different. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2007, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243/20 "2007-04-23T06:12:11Z")
Oh, on [this page](http://aliso.pntic.mec.es/~jheras1/tobras.htm) you can find links to recordings of all of Tarrega’s compositions. Recuerdos de la Alhambra and Capricho Araba are numbers 25 and 23 respecitively in the fourth volume about two-thirds of the way down the page. Unfortuanatly I’m at work and don’t have sound so I can’t assess how good these interpretations are. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-acoustic-guitar-pieces-of-all-time/401243.md?page=2)