The BEST Riffs of 1985 with Uncle Ben Eller
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- Опубліковано 30 чер 2021
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What are the BEST riffs of 1985?! Well, Uncle Ben Eller here is about to tell you! This Top 20 list was voted on by my amazing Patreon community, and it was a BLAST to make!
There was SO MUCH good music being made in 1985 in ALL genres. Dire Straits, RATT, Simple Minds, Huey Lewis, Anthrax, Megadeth, Dokken.... the list goes on and on. I did my tribute by painstakingly recreating these classic tracks with my arsenal of Suhr guitars and basses, plus a little help from my Les Paul and G&L Legacy! All guitars running through the Fractal Audio Axe FX 3.
While we break down this Mega List, i'll also be teaching you a thing or two or three about these iconic riffs and how they work. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll laugh and cry! Bowling For Soup made a song and music video about 1985! Yes they did!
Whats your favorite riff of 1985? Lemme know in the comments!!
Thanks for watching my Best Riffs of 1985 video!!! Did you favorite riff get left off? What was it?!
Also: DANG IT that INXS tune was 1987. I double checked everything, except for that one, apparently! Oh well!
Wasn't the Killing Joke -tune already released in '84 as a single?
Medusa by Trapeze? Yes! Though before some of these kids were borned.
It's ok, INXS was probably working on that riff in 1985 :)
not to mention Addicted to Love entered the charts in Feb 1986. Love the Weird Al inclusion though!
Hey Ben! LOVED the video. I was an angst-ridden 13 year-old gravity well of confusion in 1985, but the music makes me wish I could go back!
Much appreciation to you for taking the time to put this together.
"Lay it Down" is the greatest guitar riff of the 1980s.
so good!!!
Hard to argue wit dat!
I’m only 25 and I just found that song last year. Dude, I love it so much. It has so much energy, and it doesn’t stop
I like ratts cither great riff round and round just as much and close second unchained by van halen
@@joshmuz9018
Yes,.."Round and Round"
That song was the sole reason that I picked up a guitar 36 years ago and got serious about learning.
"You, me, and turkey.."
Poor bastard has been locked in his house so long he doesn't know that he was holding a dog 😔
Hahahahaha
The Cult is so underrated and so good. One of the best of the 80’s and early 90’s.
I still jam to the “Electric” album in 2023.
Hell yes, the Cult is awesome!!!
I still remember where I was when I first heard She Sells Sanctuary. Actually, it was seeing the video.
That intro for It’s Not Love is burned into my soul. I’ll never get sick of it.
2:00 Bonded by blood-Exodus
2:42 Come as you are- killing eighties
3:36 Crazy nights- loudness
4:15 Rough Boy- ZZ Top
5:10 Easy lover- Phil Collins and Philip bailey
6:11 Don't you forget about me- Simple Minds
6:35 Hell Awaits- FUCKING SLAYER!
7:47 I'll see the light tonight- Yngwie Malmsteen
8:53 Addicted to love- Robert Palmer
10:10 Take on me- A-Ha
10:39 Out in the fields- Every 80's Movie Ever
11:19 Need you tonight- INXS
11:45 killing is my business- Metallica
12:13 everybody wants to rule the world- Tears for Fears
12:55 Mad House- Anthrax (Uncle Ben Approved)
17:11 The power of love- Huey Lewis ft Marty" McFly
17:46 she sell sanctuary- The Cult
18:33 it's not love- Dokken
19:54 Lay It Down- Ratt
20:57 Money for nothing- Dire Straits
Thanks Uncle B.
Thanks for the list!
11:45 KIMB by Megadeth, not Metallica ;)
SLAAAAAAYYYYYYYER!!!!!!!!!
@@1981SG It was an obvious joke friend.
@@royalmarine1011 Eh, I didn''t think he actually thought you meant to put that, he may of just thought you weren't paying attention to what you were typing, and typed by instinct or something.
Born in ‘86 so I was at least conceived to these riffs. Love still being preoccupied with ‘85.
86....I turned 2 and Cinderella made my one of my favorite 80s riffs with Nothing For Nothing!
"Summertime Girls" by Y&T should have also been included on this list. It dominated the radio and parties in 1985. Such a great uplifting song! 🎸 🎸 🎸
So glad you mentioned Akira Takasaki of Loudness....legendary guitarist and band from Japan
AGREE TOTALLY
Loudness is some awesome shit!
Mr. Ben Eller, 1985 was a great year. I think that was when Sykes was working out the solo to "Still of the night". You promised to show us how he did it. I have faith in you.
I second this. We are eagerly waiting!
We had to wait another year before Eat 'Em and Smile
lol....unforgetable vid..... ben left us hanging there !!!!!
Agree
“The Big Money”off of Rush’s Power Windows Album was also a great riff of 1985 as well. Gotta give some love to Alex Lifeson!
It was one of the nominees. I voted for it, but it didn't make the list :-(
I love Rush, but 1985 was not their best year😁
@@sgleblanc nah, it was one of em'.. 76'-85'
I agree. 80s rush was the best. I love Alex's super saturated chorus tone with the Marshall Club and Country from 81-85. Didn't care much for his tone after that with the Gallien Krueger, and single coils.
No clones of Alex either.
I heard “easy lover” in the grocery store the other day and was blown away. So much amazing playing happening in that tune.
A great year for music! Awesome video!
thanks, my man!!!
So was 81, 82, 83, 84, 86, 87, 88... heheh
Wow....Anvil. My old guitar teacher, Sebastian Marino, did a stint in Anvil and then another little stint in Overkill. I had no idea at the time how lucky I was. Thanks Seb, you the man!!!
Dude, thank you for including Weird Al. What a huge part of my childhood (ok, and adulthood considering I've gone to see several of his shows up to as recently as 2018). Pure genius.
"close to me" man... i'm glad that showed up.
Bring this series back Uncle
Rough Boy is a good example of having confidence in going simple if simple is whats right.
She sells sanctuary was soooo clean. Love it
In 1985 I was a freshman in high school. The halls were rocking 😎
There's so many guitar player channels on UA-cam these days, so many it's impossible to keep track of them all. While a lot of them are pretty good, at some point most of them just start to blend together and it's hard for me to remember the actual people or the names of their channels, however. Uncle Ben, you're the exception.
First off, you're a great player, but. I think it's the way that your videos are put together, along with your personality, your teaching ability and over all awesomeness that makes your channel different. I always really enjoy the content, Thanks Ben!!
Thank you so much!!!
I had never heard of Akira Takasaki or the band Loudness, but I’m listening to them now! Another great thing about these videos is it gives me recommendations
Roudness Rules
Thunder in the East is pure gold.
@@necessarycynicism6304 ruresu*
loudness is damn good
He’s a monster.
Good Lord! Thank you so much for this trip down memory lane.
glad you enjoyed it!
Uncle Ben the beast. '85 was such a beautiful time, all of the 80's were really... It's beyond hard to encapsulate all that greatness in one list. Your playing is impeccable as always.
Feel privileged to have grown up in the 80s .. old too but never you mind.
First time I heard that Akira lick was after school on a local heavy metal video show. It stuck in my head forever! Instantly made me a Loudness fan.
That tears for fears album “songs from the big chair” was an incredible album. It has some great guitar there on shout, broken, head over heels.
It makes me so happy to see someone actually play Lay It Down correctly. A lot of players try to say things like "oh, you can play it this way and it's easier and sounds the same", but it doesn't, and their bullshit is not appreciated.
You are by far my favorite uncle!!!
Man, I loved Dokken as a kid and that "It's not love" took me back to watching them ride on the back of a semi through Hollywood.
Dude, you got the hardest part right about Money for Nothing -- the harmonic ping in the middle of the lick. Awesome list. Waytogo.
Yep, its easy to do because the harmonic is a natural one right under your fingers but I'm impressed that Ben didn't ignore it and put it in there. It's one of the character markers of the riff.
@@stricknine8623 paul davids did a video highlighting these subtle details aswell. Such a great riff but so incredibly hard to truly nail. I know Mark never played it always the exact same live but that recorded intro is just magic... He rips a great solo at live aid though...
The Cult for the win! I am glad you appreciate the work of that amazing band.
absolutely 100% correct choice for #1. There is no better guitar riff from all of the 80s.
Also, 1985 .. amazing year to graduate high school and start college with all this incredible music to get completely obliterated to, waking up next to some random hottie, get showered, go to classes, and do it all again! Just enough insane music to make every day special! (could also be the lack of complete memory of all daily events, but .. well .. yeah, anyway...)
Definitely the best riff of 1985 is Ratt - Lay it Down!! Best intro riff ever for me. Cool video Ben.
Best drop tuned riff ever.
@@Powermad-bu4em agreed!
@@Powermad-bu4em I did a cover on my channel if you fancy taking a look 👀
Madhouse....loved that song...watching headbangers ball on MTV on Saturday night as a kid
I graduated high school in ‘85. Your top 3 are indisputable.
"The Power of Love" solo is one of my all-time favs. Angry!!
The defining event of 85 was David Lee Roth left Van Halen 😰
Ynglebert Manglestein
It's Yolo Mousemeat, geez people not that hard
Yovaltine Mustang
Nah.. Sammy Hagar joining Van Halen was the defining event of 85. 👍
@@SloeGin-ip1xk fair enough mate 😇
Yingve' Malmstoudt
I graduated HS in 1985... we had some powerful music during that time.. ty for video
Hahaha You were one year old...I graduated highschool...and I was freaking there, man!!
Enjoying uncle Ben covering those riffs
The Cure is so good. Disintegration is one of all my all time favorite albums and it is perfect.
THE CURE IS ON THE LIST? I HAVEN'T FINISHED FIT!
AGREED!!!!!
It's the cult, not the cure
@@efimc1714 the cure and cult are in this video.
Fascination Street!
Good on the audience for being fans of music, not just metal or guitar.
I had no idea you were such a youngster... no matter you've got sick licks and great taste in music
Easy Lover and Robert Palmer make think pop songs with unexpectedly great guitar might be a good topic
Lionel Richie - Running With The Night and Maniac (from the Flashdance movie) by Michael Sembello are two that spring to mind
While bringing up The Cult, Ian Astbury has one of the best voices in Rock&Roll!
Is he still alive? Yes it's a distinctive voice.
Number 1 makes sense considering its one the greatest riffs of all time, and you nailed it. Great job!
Ooh, The Cult just gave me goosebumps.
Those were all really fantastic riffs. Nice to see Warren and George in the top 5.
Great playing Ben and a wonderful compilation of the 80s.....INXS, The Cure, Aha, Tears for Fears, were pleasant surprises along with the epic metal riffs that u covered.....kudos
The riff at the end of crossroads was the best of this Era. That whole sequence between the two men were absolutely phenomenal. If you were watching that back when it first was released, your mind would have been blown. Surely.
Loved that video! Thank you so much! The 80s were undoubtedly the best era for music. Great selection of riffs here. I love that you included Weird Al, since I think he and his band are very underappreciated on a musical level. I listened to all of their albums a million times and honestly think, there's tons of stuff to learn from their music. They're so much more than just comedy.
Also, Huey Lewis ❤️ Man! What a singer, what a band. I only realized decades later how their groove and their guitars influenced me as a guitar player. Most excellent music. 'The Power of Love' will give me tears of joy for the rest of my life.
And you're absolutely right about The Cult. Underrated as hell. I discovered them relatively late. Don't remember how, cause nobody I knew listened to them or ever talked about them. But they have written insanely cool and rather unique rock music. Great band, great voice, that Ian Astbury.
Ben Ben Ben....can't talk about the 80s without throwing some props over to Tim Pierce who helped create a lot of that wonderful 80s textural guitar magic!
my man Tim!!!! Such a great dude.
Kudos for including some Cult! "Love Removal Machine" is another killer track!
I agree. Billy Duffy is a true riffmaster.
I think Rain is the best song from this album
'love' and 'electric' will always be the two greatest cult albums imo. nothing comes close!
And Fire Woman is bad ass!
Yes. The Cults "Love'll Remove-A-Spleen "
As Roscoe P. Soultrain said that '85 was a beautiful time as all of the 80's. Too bad we didn't realize it then. TY Uncle Ben for this trip down memory lane from Uncle Allen. I was 20 years old in 1985, worked as a roadie for 2 different bands that year. I also was a stage hand for Loudness when they played at Cardis in Houston. Great times and memories. 2021 was a long time from there so I thought! lol Now I should pick up my guitar!
The Loudness riff. Thank you Ben!!! I'd never heard that before. Can't stop listening to it.
Not even Mark Knopfler plays it the same as he did on the album. I'm betting he played this, it was captured on tape, but wasn't something ever written down to be replicated. Great great riff, and Ben did it justice.
Yngtzhak Perlsteen’s “I’ll See The Light Tonight” riff is killer. The opening section of the guitar solo is a great pinky workout too!
The other Yngwie tune that Uncle Ben mentioned was really good too, but I forgot what he said. It's on the same album.
The breadth of this man’s knowledge does it have any bounds?🤔
Great video Ben!!. So many great 80s riffs and you played them awesome. I was a senior in high school in 1985 and your video brought back lots of great memories and such great music! Thank you for keeping great rock music alive!
Damn son! You lost me with The Cure, but then you reeled me back in with Weird Al. Total emotional rollercoaster! 👍🏼
I was a junior in high school. Damn I'm old.
lol that makes 2
Thankfully I was just about over my pants pooping phase by then.
You sure are.
Ben I appreciate the extra effort that goes into demoing these riffs... you could just bust them out rapid fire, but the backing track efforts to accompany really make for an enjoyable watch on our end, cheers buddy
I'll see the light tonight is probably my fav yngwie riff ever, maybe one of my fav 80s riffs ever
I impulse bought Loundess "Thunder In The East" from a record store in '86 (in New Zealand we celebrated 1985 in 1986 as things took quite some time to get here) and Akira pretty much became my favourite guitar for many, many years.
I STILL want a Killer guitar because of that particular album and am sure that Paul Gilbert's solo in Mr. Big's great song "Daddy Father Cousin Uncle Older Brother's Best Friend's Kitten" (I forget the exact title) was inspired by the solo in Like Hell.
I love the song heavy chains off that album
That is hilarious! Yeah, you guys live in paradise but have to live a little behind with Western Culture
Small price for paradise
Honorable Mention should be given to Stormtroopers Of Death and their killer riff: March of the S.O.D./Sargent D on the 'Speak English or Die' album.
The March would later serve as an intro to Mtv's 'Headbanger's Ball'.
(What you were watching AFTER those crazy pants-pooping 80's parties were over!)
Metal Church should make that list too
Loved that album at the time!
Your vote is the only reason I gravitated toward channel, Unc! Prime choice in tone as well too!
Never stop what ya do!
I graduated H.S. in '85. I remember watching MTV waiting for them to play 'She Sells Sanctuary' so I could tape it onto VHS. After sitting there for hours with my finger ready to push REC, I finally got it. You whippersnappers don't understand, lol.
PHIL Collins, made the most famous drum FILL of all time. Conspiracy confirmed! 🤟🤣
Yesss! Love The Cult. Rain was one of the first riffs I learned. Absolute blast to play. So many great tunes from the 80s. Outfields "Somewhere in America" has a great little intro riff that sounds so damn great
Wow amazing job on this video Ben! This must have taken a ton of work. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
Haha! LOVE #6!!! Had to teach that riff to a few students back in the day...
And Lindsey Buckingham as well, he’s a big finger picker in the rock world and I don’t see many ppl trying to clone him either. Great job, Ben!!
For real. Underrated as hell and as unique as they come.
He was finger picking Stevie.
Entertaining as always Ben, I think my favorite part is all the "on point" tones you dialed up that these songs require. It's really just as integral as the notes themselves for most of these. Awesome work! And I was biting my nails waiting for you to publish the "Tell Me" solo breakdown that was teased, but I'll gladly take this instead.
And a new series is born! Great selection uncle Ben !!
Uncle Ben," the heat is on " late Glen Fry Legend. Foreigner "I want to know what love is" Can't stop this feeling, REO speed wagon. Keep up the excellent advice and work boss. Peace ☮️
OMG- I just spit my coffee all over my monitor! "This riff features something that Yngwie likes even more than Ferraris and donuts"
He doesn't like fuckin' donuts!
...hostile.
@@PikkaBird That was the joke, d'oh!
@@perpetualbystander4516 he knows that. The "hostile" bit at the end was him quoting the video where the reference is from.
@@perpetualbystander4516 Sure, perhaps... I can't reasonably tell who's watched that video or not, but everybody always says Yngwie eats lots of donuts, even if they don't know that it's a joke.
@@PikkaBird ha ha awesome reference
Great video, Uncle Ben! While you were pooping your pants, I was acting as if I still was in that phase as I graduated high school that year and reached pinnacle teenage idiocy in what was probably the most funnest summer of my teens. All to the backing track provided by this compendium of rocking epic riffs.
'I don't eat doughnut's'
Bless you Grady🙏
Rest easy Dime🙏❤🤘
That was SOOOOO much fun!!!! Thanks, Uncle Ben!!
I was 13 years old and living in Japan in '85 .. and had been devouring all the metal I could get my hands on... Loudness was one of those bands... so was Accept ... and Crazy Nights totally makes me think of Balls to the Wall. That was a killer year for music... it was also the year I picked up my first guitar 🤘🤘🤘🤘
your my age....werent they just perfect years to grow up?...we missed the dull 70s and the declining 90s all in one decade with all the fun new shit and lots of cash to burn on it :D
I was living in Japan then as well. Some of the other Japanese bands that came out of that era that I really got into were Earthshaker, Make Up, Anthem, and Marino. I saw Earthshaker with Seikima II in about 1988 in Kobe. I was mostly there to see Earthshaker, but Seikima II's live show is all kinds of fun.
@@reedpeterson6512 Seikima II was the band that kind looked like a Japanese version of Kiss right? I remember those guys, definitely remember Anthem, still have some of their stuff, and also remember earthquakes. Never got to see them live, I was up in Misawa ... still have friends that live there. Great time I was there from '84- '88 - amazing
@@danieljester7752 it was awesome.. I was really big into kiss - my aunt gave me destroyer in '76 because I was fascinated with the cover , I was 3 and half years old... it was game on after that... but it was a great time to grow up... got to watch thrash get born and was old enough to see some of those legendary tours from metall8ca slayer anthrax etc .. excellent time to grow up
@@DeathPenny Yes, that was Seikima II. When I saw them live, the singer had a broken leg, so he used a wheelchair the whole time. It was all decorated to match the stage setup, their band gimmick (that they're demons from outer space and have lived for like 10,000 years or something like that, all tongue-in-cheek, of course), etc. It was like, if Satan had a wheelchair, that would have been it, hahaha. It didn't slow him down a bit, though. He was zipping all around the stage, popping wheelies, etc.
Anthem and Earthshaker are still active. Anthem in particular has been releasing some of their best stuff. There are a lot of great newer Japanese bands/musicians these days, like Galneryus, Concerto Moon, Mary's Blood, Aldious, Love Bites, Gyze, Kelly Simonz, etc.
It sounds like we there at the same time. I was in the Tokyo area in '83 and '84, and in Osaka from '85 through '89. (I was in Tokyo again in the 90s.) You were on the airbase in Misawa, I assume?
I think it's safe to say that many of us metal-heads enjoy a wide variety of music.
This video is gorgeous!!! Even I'm not a metal fan, I enjoyed to look at, because I can see your love and joy bout this music and playing guitar. I can learn so much from your tutorials, and with 67 I feel some younger than 20 years ago! Thanx a lot, you are great!!! Henry from Germany!
Absolutely great video !! Loved the whole thing !! Your playing skills are simply amazing !! Thanks for all you do , Uncle Ben !!
thanks, Mike!!!
Bad Attitude by Honeymoon Suite was a bit of a banger off of their best album IMO 'The Big Prize'.
Great playing! So cool you put its not love in there by Dokken. The lead part is one of the most TUBE overdriven sounds of any lead. That led embodies the tube amp sound.
I'd never seen or heard your videos, but I'm now a huge fan, thanks for sharing, and keep em coming. 👍🤘😉
So glad that "She Sells Sanctuary" made the list. Thanks for taking the time to do this! I Can't believe I missed this one when it first came out.
The Cure has made me really jones for a bass VI, since that's what Robert Smith wrote his bass lines on, and it shows.
By the way, I thought your 'Money For Nothing' riff was excellent -- totally get it, though: Mr. Knopfler plays in such a unique voice that his guitar work is permanently enshrined in the Pantheon of all-time wicked awesome sounds-like-no-one-else guitar playing. Makes one heck of a compelling case to put down the guitar pick and see what can happen.
He comes from where I come from. Always dope riding through Deptford knowing these titans roamed the same streets.
Armored Saint-Nervous Man
Accept-Metal Heart
Dark Angel-Merciless Death
Destruction-bestial Invasion
Nasty Savage-Asmodeus
Overkill-Rotten to the core
Savatage-Power of the night
S.O.D.-March of the SOD
that crazy nights riff from loudness is absolutely a headbanger.
that was perfection Ben!! Thank you...
I came to register a major complaint, but then after doing some quick research, lo and behold, Judas Priest did not have an album out in 1985. And you DO know that absolutely EVERY guitarist you loved bowed to Glenn Tipton. So we will let this slide and give this list a thumbs up hehe
Same same but for Iron Maiden!
@@yuletide Hilarious! Both Maiden and Priest had albums in 84 and 86, but not 85... haha classic. Up the irons my friend \m/
@@m2svirtual384 Yes indeed! \m/ I had the same cycle of righteous indignation, furious googling, then realizing they only released Live After Death that year. Hails!
Oh, Uncle Ben you've made me feel so old. I was 16 in 1985. In 1986 Ozzy and Jake E released their second (and soon to be final) album together, Ultimate Sin.
My favourite track on that album and the one that I think demonstrates Jake E Lee at his peak was 'Killer of Giants'. Would you be able to do an Uncle Ben break down of that track? Thanks !! 🙏🏻🤙🏻
Agreed, Jake was his own wall of sound on that album, so thick. Killer of Giants was an excellent example.
If Bark At The Moon was released in 85, then that should have been way up in the list.
This was awesome! More of these please!
Wild list of riffs, Ben. Very cool.
Watching Mark play Money for Nothing the way he actually plays it is completely insane. He has a crazy rhythm with his picking hand and it is like hitting ghost notes in there. Yours sounds really close but its missing something lol anyone who tries to play this is missing something lol
Can't go wrong with Akira riffs!
Great video Ben as always and FANTASTIC 85's revisit of some of the greatest music of all times! The 80's were the best. When you were one year old I was 18 and a senior in high school! Yeah imagine growing up as a teen in the 80's=Phenomenal! So glad you included "Power of Love" and might have included a Journey cut. Thanks for sharing!
Love this video! In '85 I was 11 years old...and shit my pants when my aunt bought me Motley Crue's Theatre of Pain album for my birthday.