Wolfmother's Andrew Stockdale: my top 5 riffs of all time

Introduction

Woman, The Joker & The Thief, Love Train: some of the 20th century's biggest riffs came courtesy of Andrew Stockdale and his Wolfmother cohorts.

Now, as the band's debut album reaches its 10th anniversary, we quizzed Andrew on his five favourite riffs – and we defy any of you to disagree with his choices.

Wolfmother (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) is available now.

Don't Miss

Wolfmother's Andrew Stockdale on the band's debut album: "I was old enough to know not to blow the opportunity"

1. Deep Purple - Black Night (1970)

"I really like Black Night by Deep Purple, especially because it’s got a great swing to it. There’s a shuffle-kinda beat that I really like; it’s not your usual standard meat 'n' potatoes rock in 4/4.

“There’s almost a jazzy swing to that one. I love those drum fills; they really shine on this track."

2. Black Sabbath - The Wizard (1970)

"I've always loved The Wizard by Black Sabbath, from the first album. And that's another song that has these really great drum fills…

“Anything with great, jazzy, Buddy Rich-style drum fills I can't help but love it seems!"

3. Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker (1969)

"Heartbreaker’s got to be in there, too… It's no secret I love Led Zeppelin.

“Dun-dun-dun-da-da-da-dun! That’s another one with a bit of swing to it; you're probably noticing a bit of a trend here."

4. AC/DC - It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll) (1975)

"Okay, here’s one with no swing at all, I promise! It’s so simple, just three chords.

“If you’re looking at the greatest riffs of all time, you’re not gonna say some crap that no one’s heard of. You can’t not mention these bands… you’d be mad!"

5. Link Wray - Rumble (1958)

"I’m gonna go with something different for my final choice. I'm not sure if this even counts as a riff, but I'm going to choose it, anyway.

“Even if you don't think you know it, you'll still recognise it as soon as you hear it."

Don't Miss

Wolfmother's Andrew Stockdale on the band's debut album: "I was old enough to know not to blow the opportunity"

Amit has been writing for titles like Total Guitar, MusicRadar and Guitar World for over a decade and counts Richie Kotzen, Guthrie Govan and Jeff Beck among his primary influences. He's interviewed everyone from Ozzy Osbourne and Lemmy to Slash and Jimmy Page, and once even traded solos with a member of Slayer on a track released internationally. As a session guitarist, he's played alongside members of Judas Priest and Uriah Heep in London ensemble Metalworks, as well as handling lead guitars for legends like Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols, The Faces) and Stu Hamm (Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, G3).