The best synth riffs ever

It's "Jump" all the way.

(If you feel like there's something missing, just namecheck it, but you need to vote for some of the existing options)

Damn! I should have included "Son Of My Father"!

I voted "Safety Dance." "Souvenir" is my favorite song out of these but it doesn't seem very riffy.

I would go with "Tour de France", but barring that I voted "Trans Europe Express." Safety Dance is probably better, but I didn't see it.

there's no synthesizer on "baba o'riley" : http://www.thewho.net/whotabs/equip-baba.htm

Before looking at your list ...
Are 'friends' electric

Dismemberment Plan 'The City' is missing

First thing that popped into my head was "Cubik".

Oh fuck - missed loads poncing about with me indie shit

Preferred 'Pacific State' mesen but was that really a riff?

BORN SLIPPY

the end.

I would go with "Tour de France"

OTM; definitely overlooked.

I voted for "Souvenir" but that could be because I listened to that album today, so it's fresh in my mind.

Man I wanna go for "The Final Countdown"
But at the same time, I hate it.

Maybe "Safety Dance", yeah, I'll go with that.

No "I Like To Move It, no credibility.

Not a good song, but I like the riff at the start of John Parr's "Naughty Naughty".

the Knife Silent Shout should be here.

'axel f'
'hip hop be bop'

weird list, but i went with "Trans Europe Express". the only things close were "Da Funk" and "Situation", but TEE shits on everything else here.

I'd go for Gary Numan, but it would be the synth hook on 'Cars'.

OMG WERE TEH HELL IS 'AFRICA'!!1!!!!

"Born in the USA"?!

No Animotion "Obsession", no credibility.

Vote Gazza early. Vote Gazza often.

hay wheres yximalloo

cars - gary numan ?

Second vote for song not on list!

Where the hell is Prince "1999", it's the BEST DAMN synth riff...and don't you FORGET IT!

'axel f'

"Situation" is close enough!

Um, DEVO? Even Styx should be on here...

Umm BLUE MONDAY anyone? That's a ridiculous ommission.

Where the hell is Prince "1999", it's the BEST DAMN synth riff...and don't you FORGET IT!

Am I then only one who thinks the "1999" riff sounds suspiciously similar to the "Jump" riff? Maybe they just the same preset sound though.

It's a long time ago, but as I remember, when you bought an Oberheim synthesiser, preset number one was the sound from "Jump" and "1999".

I was going to vite for "just can't get enough", but then I saw "No Limit", so....

it's a weird list.

Umm BLUE MONDAY anyone? That's a ridiculous ommission.

I thought it "Blue Monday", but isn't that more about a drum machine pattern than a synth riff?

thought of

i know what matt means, dunno if it's a "riff" tho. but the same is true of 'i feel love' which is more liek a bassline than a riff.

It's more of a riff than Trans Europe Express!

always been a radioactivity man myself

I chose not to include more than one Kraftwerk riff, but they obviously had more. In addition to the ones already mentioned, there's "The Robots" as well.

I wanna vote for "Valerie" by Steve Winwood, but I cannot.

Yeah, good choice. Too bad you can't!

I know. So I'm abstaining for the moment.

IMO the best synth riff ever is the intro to "I Like Chopin" by Gazebo (the extended version in particular); it's THE Italo synth riff!

Isn't that a piano theme?

("Around My Dream" is IMO the ultimate Italo disco riff)

DA FUNK

Yeah, 'Africa' is an omission - but a killer Rush riff ('tom sawyer' maybe) is an even greater omission.

Moving In Stereo

D Train - "You're The One For Me"...now that's what I call a riff!

summer madness?

I can't believe Rez did not make the list.

NINTEY NINE RED BALLOONS should be here, you fools.

Although even if it was, I think I'd still have voted for Are Friends Electric?

Also, that opening bassline from Mama Used To Say by Junior counts, and would've been a contender.

Rockit

does summer madness count as a riff? its a bit long. definitely one of my favorite synth jams though, fucking ridiculous.

does a synth bass riff count? (e.g. "Chameleon")

Lipps Inc - "Funkytown"
Roni Griffith - "Desire"
The Flirts - "Passion"

IMO the best synth riff ever is the intro to "I Like Chopin" by Gazebo (the extended version in particular); it's THE Italo synth riff!

-- daavid, Monday, 11 February 2008 20:27 (Yesterday) Link

Isn't that a piano theme?

-- Geir Hongro, Monday, 11 February 2008 20:38 (Yesterday) Link

No, it's not the piano, it's the synth riff before the piano part. The one that sounds a bit like Valerie Dore's the night.

A couple of suggestions:

Chips On My Shoulder by Soft Cell,

Is It A Dream by Classix Nouveaux

AARGH! why did you have to remind me of Sal Solo? "Sat-ees-fac-shioooooooonnnnn!"

How about Love Missile F1-11 by Sigue Sigue Sputnik - YES it was the same riff they used for all their song (sic) and YES it is Eddie Cochran's riff by birthright but what a riff!

D Train - "You're The One For Me"...now that's what I call a riff!

-- henry s, Monday, 11 February 2008 21:48 (Yesterday) Link

^^^

Would it be simply too obvious to mention Don't You Want Me?

[sorry, Dingbod, to upset you with the recollection of Sal Solo at this time of the morning]

does a synth bass riff count? (e.g. "Chameleon")

Synth bass riffs could have their own thread.

'love action' too

xpost

Now hang on, Love Action is a hook. A classic hook. But is it a riff?

A hook is a simple melodic figure which you feel compelled to whistle. A riff, on the other hand, is a simple melodic figure to which you feel compelled to STRUT. I'm just throwing that theory out there.

"Hard Times" has a much better "riff" than "Love Action."

"Love Action" and "Don't You Want Me" are both based on one note figures that are hooks rather than riffs. "Don't You Want Me" has a great bass motive though.

A riff, on the other hand, is a simple melodic figure to which you feel compelled to STRUT

This is a thread by Geir Hongro.

Geir, do you mean the simple repeated rapidly sequenced single note at the start of "Don't you want me?" as the hook, because that is surely not the hook of the record?

how is the riff/hook from 'love action' one note?

I think Geir means that 'miaowing' sound on "Love action". Again, not really the hook.

It's as much of a hook as the "oo oo oo oo oo WAH oo WAH oo - OW!" of "Golden Skans" I suppose.

some others I like:
Yellow Magic Orchestra 'Rydeen' & 'Behind The Mask'
Freez 'IOU'
New Order 'Thieves Like Us'
Al-Naafyish 'Hashim (The Soul)'
Soft Cell 'Say Hello Wave Goodbye'
Stevie Nicks 'Stand Back'
Animotion 'Obsession'
S Express 'Hey Music Lover'
Orbital 'Chime'

'Love Action' hook involves as many as THREE notes - pretty advanced shit

In fact, if you are not speaking of the "miaow" (which is certainly a hook, but maybe not a synth riff), the riff of "Love Action" consists of three chords rather than three notes.

fucking hell.

Other things that no longer count as a riff:

1. Opening to Smells Like Teen Spirit

Maybe we should do this poll again with everybody's suggestions added in, since there seem to be more of those than options in the original poll.

Then we'd have to open to even more people's suggestions, and the poll would probably have 500 different options to vote for.

i agree the miaow is not a riff

Went for Tubeway Army, although I agree with the people upthread who said 'Cars' has the better riff.

The Human League's 'The Things That Dreams Are Made Of' should be in there somewhere.

Wikipedia says

A riff may be incorporated into a fill, which is a short instrumental passage played in the pause between phrases of a melody. A riff is different from the related concept of a lick in that riffs can also include repeated chord progressions; licks are usually associated with single-note melodic lines rather than chord progressions. Like riffs, licks can be used as the basis of an entire song. A riff can be a hook, if the riff meets the definition of a hook: "a musical idea, a passage or phrase, that is believed to be appealing and make the song stand out", and "catch the ear of the listener" (Covach 2005, p.71).

I'm not sure I agree with it really though.

Yeah, I have the idea that, in the Common Tongue, a riff is a repeated chord progression around which a song is constructed. Like in the blues.

In the Common Tongue, a riff is played by a guitar.

The Human League's 'The Things That Dreams Are Made Of' should be in there somewhere.

Tried to limit it to one per act. My favourite Human League synth riff is actually from "Do Or Die".

ABBA - "Gimme Gimme Gimme"

Some of these are fine songs, but not fine riffs... I would argue that I Feel Love doesn't actually have a riff at all.

Since you didn't include 'Life on the Line' by Fad Gadget, I am unable to vote for 'the best synth riffs ever' anyway

how is it even possible that you did not include the cars, "just what i needed"?!?

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

This thread is in absolutely dire need of
Bronski Beat - Smalltown Boy (which actually stands a chance at the title).
Booka Shade - Mandarine Girl
and the replacement of Just can't get enough with Enjoy the silence.

and the replacement of Just can't get enough with Enjoy the silence.

You mean, with a guitar riff?

I played Duran Duran's 'Careless Memory' at a party the other day. No real riff or hook in that one, I aver, but definitely a mighty fine lick.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

all this proves is that a synth "riff" is harder to define than a guitar riff. you should do a thread for guitar "arpeggios" next.

i don't think 'da funk' is a 'synth riff'.

"i don't think 'da funk' is a 'synth riff'.

-- That one guy that hit it and quit it"

then what is it?

and the replacement of Just can't get enough with Enjoy the silence.

You mean, with a guitar riff?

I mean at that part at the beginning. I think I need a definition of just what constitutes a riff.

*The part that's you can most clearly identify at the beginning, an of course carries on through the rest of the song.

plus a few that obviously should have been in there

wtf?? this is even stupider than the fact that "final countdown" didn't sweep this shit

new poll: best guitar riffs ever (as chosen by may 2000 issue of blender plus a few that i think are also awesome)

I think I need a definition of just what constitutes a riff.

I would say it needs to be in the medium to higher registers at least. A bass lick is a bass lick. And chords are chords.

No Steve Miller? Fly Like An Eagle? Swingtown?

NO HALL AND OATES

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