# Where did this popular riff come from?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [February 21, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318 "2004-02-21T03:30:29Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![gypsymoth3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@gypsymoth3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gypsymoth3)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318/1 "2004-02-21T03:30:29Z")

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i don’t play guitar, but here’s a pianist’s crude version of what the tab would be:

| - 0 - 3 - 5 - - 0 - 3 - 6 - 5 |  
| - 0 - 3 - 5 - - 0 - 3 - 6 - 5 |

| - 0 - 3 - 5 - - 0 - 3 - 6 - 5 |
| --- |
| ------------------------------- |
| ------------------------------- |

that’s Em Gm Am Em Gm Bbm Am (all in the 1st inversion)

so, what is this tune and where did it come from? it seems like it’s in that old song about the three little pigs with maynard of tool saying “not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.” but if it is in there, i doubt that’s where it came from originally.

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**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318/2 "2004-02-21T03:45:44Z")

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well, the contour is reminiscient of Smoke on the water. What’s the rhythm?

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**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318/3 "2004-02-21T04:02:25Z")

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Yup, that’s Smoke On The Water.

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**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318/4 "2004-02-21T04:03:06Z")

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The song the OP mentions is Three Little Pigs by Green Jelly. Just FTR.

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**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2004, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-popular-riff-come-from/230318/5 "2004-02-21T06:56:56Z")

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It’s “Smoke on the Water” by Deep Purple, one of the most played guitar licks in history, conceived by Ritchie Blackmore. They wrote the song to commemorate a disastrous 1971 incident that occurred just as the band was arriving to record at the Casino de Montreaux on Lake Geneva, which then burned to the ground (hence the title) during a Frank Zappa concert when someone set off a bottle rocket inside. The song was originally released on their 1972 album, “Machine Head”, and has been re-released to death. You can hear the song every day on any “Top 400” classic radio station, and read about its origin in Frank Zappa’s book “The Real Frank Zappa Book”.