Phil Collen names his five favourite riffs and “the grandaddy of them all”

Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen named several riffs that have stayed with him, including AC/DC’s “Back in Black” and “Highway to Hell”, Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle”, Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way” and the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up”. He singled out Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water” as “the grandaddy of monster riffs”, reflecting the influence of earlier rock guitarists on his own playing.

The article places Collen’s choices against Def Leppard’s blend of hard rock and polished pop, which helped the band sell around 100 million records worldwide. Deep Purple’s famous four-note riff emerged during sessions for 1972’s *Machine Head* and became a staple for novice guitarists. Collen later discovered a personal link to the band: he can be seen in the crowd in a photograph on the back of *Made in Japan*, taken at a Brixton show he attended at about 14.