Did you notice how he never referenced himself? What a standup guy. One of The Greats. Glad to see you spreading the experience Rik. You're an inspiration, even to those of us who cannot hold a tune with a pitchfork. Keep it up. . . Lav

What a person of integrity, been a fan of his since 1982. If the world had more people like him, it would be a better place. His parents raised a great man. All those albums with Triumph and his solo stuff, Rick Is a true musician, singer, song writer, and guitar god.

What an amazing guitar player he is , I grew up with Triumph, I always loved their positive message and talent that those three shared with the world ❤

Saw Triumph 5 times growing up. my favorite band. Rik is one of the most underrated guitarists of all time.

Step one to play an amazing guitar solo: Be Rik Emmett.

Saw Triumph in 81 on Allied Forces, 82 on Never Surrender and 86 on Thunder Seven. Rik is the real deal

He's an excellent teacher, kind enough to share his enormous knowledge and superb at explaining it!

Not only a fantastic guitar player, but Rik is a wonderful songwriter and musician. Bravo!

One of the best little tutorials I've seen by a star and what a nice guy. I first saw Triumph in Liverpool in about 1980; we had never heard their stuff before and they blew us all away. Went out and bought four of their LPs in the following two weeks.

Rik Emmett is one of my favorite guitarists. I saw Triumph live four times in the 80's and every show was electrifying. I have been a guitarist for 40+ years and was influenced by a plethora of guitarists. Rik is not the fastest or most technical, but his soloing is done with taste and soul. Keith Moon's saying "Have a good beginning and a good ending - everything else in the middle doesn't mean anything" says a lot (Mountain's Leslie West once quoted this).Rik can start a solo with just a few notes to grab your attention, create an amazing buildup and cap it off with a few notes that make a lyrical statement. His phrasing and expression is amazing. Younger players should check out Rik, Alex Lifeson, Billy Gibbons, David Gilmour, Eddie Van Halen, etc.

Rik Emmett , a completely overlooked , underratted , guitarist , even singer . I saw my first glimpse of Triumph on MTV, it was a video of Triumph, performance , doing Laying it on the line , or maybe it was the U S festival itself , the hilites . It was enough to spend money on bands I'd already been into , Kiss , Quiet Riot , Iron Maiden Scorpions , Night Ranger . Journey , Def Leopard , so another one , was just not going to happen at that time with all the rest to keep up with but I knoTriumph was special . Saw them in Circus Magazine , they looked like Rush in some ways , then they didn't. they did though sound like themselves . Geddy isn't all that appealing sometimes , than again it is his style and it is what makes Rush who it is , especially with its off key at times sound and Fusionish sound and haphazard runs . I'd seen Emmett in guitar mag many time s, Alex Lifeson being the comparison as they were Canadians and given Canadian music in the USA , Rush was the big name and greatly loved , so who were these guys ? Simply many of us were interested in Triumph, little Rick had a wow voice , we knew he could play , it was obvious and the rest of the band were surely able musicans . I finally saw Triumph in 1987 and became a fan , as they were part of a three group show , Triumph headlining , Yngwie Malmsteen and the opener being Tommy Shaw ( he was done with Styx at this point , on his own , eventually soon to joining Damn Yankees ) . Triumph was wow , what a incredible show . They blew us away and their sound system wasn't even what I'd expected . Malmsteen and Shaw sounded ok , with Malmsteen's sound system sounded better than everyone but all in all Triumph came out turning heads , played an outstanding show . Emmett is not only a excellent guitarist but a better singer than 90% of singers . Honestly I lost interested for Triumph just as so many other bands of the 80s were passing their third and fourth albums, the music was becoming over done , al most way to commercial as material is not easy to come up with , particularly when record companies had them churning out was to many albums in such a short time , basically burning them out . Rush , Triumph, Loverboy ,Fastway , April Wine , Helix , Bryan Adams , and the list goes on of others frm the past . We knew them all in the states , we loved them , they were part of our lives and have to say to Canada , ty for giving us in the USA so many talented musicians that created some of the greatest soundtracks for our lives .

You have to make the face, it's in the rule book.

Rik and Alex two great Canadian guitarists. Inspired so many people to play guitar and excel at it. The riffs these two have come up with..... Amazing stuff.

I saw him play midsummers daydream from the 3rd row at maple leaf gardens in my teens. After that I was hooked on guitar and his playing. A class act and a great human.

I just love Rik. One of the most solid musicians that’s ever lived. I like that he mentioned Eddie & David Gilmour.

A great guitar player & singer. Triumph was one of my top favorite bands. Thank you Rik !

Love Rik's work. Suitcase Blues is one of my favorites.

I saw TRIUMPH back in the 80's at a Long Island, NY dinner club... I think it was called 'My Fathers Place'. They served DINNER at tables in front of the stage, and I can remember Rick just wailing away (making faces, of course) with that white Flying-V guitar of his, while we were were eating our steak!

My favorite memory of Rik and Triumph was Pontoni's super jam in Athens Michigan I think 1984... They flew a helicopter landed in the middle of the field... jumped out and a casually as possible Rik says "Hey guys whats up?" They just wandered through the crowd hangin out with everybody'... None of this I'm a star crap... It was hey wheres the keg? Could I get a beer please LOL I'll never forget how kind and down to earth they were... I'll never be a Rik Emmett But I'll always keep playing and changing lives through this wonderful gift of music God gave me... The example Rik set that day was were all just people and were supposed to act like it...

Love Love LOVE how Rick how Rick articulated this. Great Canadian musician. Triumph was a staple band when I was growing up. Never saw Triumph, but go to see Rick and his guitar partner do their acoustic set, in Pickering ON of all places...and so glad I did. Rock on Rick!

Dude is so humble but such a savage beast its awesome. So great to see insanley talented musicians that still act like normal people, truly amazing Guitarist!

Saw you all at The US Festival in '83, Nice to see a band uninhibited by pharmaceuticals while playing. I hold nobody to a standard, but when I pay to see a band, I want to see their talent, not their inebriation. The others that day were more a sideshow than an experience. Your songs made the trip worthwhile. As a 17 y.o. who left directly from my graduation to get there, I'll never forget it. . . Thanks

the best vocal and guitarist ever

Rik can smash all singing super high notes, creating amazing songs, writing amazing lyrics, and he also destroys playing guitar. A veeeery underrated artist, very talented!

I am a Captain flying B-767, I have a career flying large airplanes....but always wished I could have had a musical career playing guitar like you! We all have our talents, mine is flying airplanes, I wish I had your musical talents. Many say they wish they could do what I do, but what I do is easy, pull back trees get smaller, push forward trees get bigger! But I definitely can not make the beautiful sounds you make that makes people feel good! You are amazing! I listened to Triumph growing up in upstate New York and you all were an amazing band!! Thanks for continuing to keep it alive for us old guys!!!

Rik Emmitt!!!! Love this video & what a player. seen him live back in the day, just awesome playing & singing.

I'm really bummed that I never got to see Triumph live. I've seen so many great bands. Rik is just such a great singer, player, and seems like an all-around great guy. Midsummer's Daydream in my mind is right up there with the greatest rock solo guitar pieces of all time. Rivals anything done by Van Halen, Steve Howe, or any of rock's other great players.

You are up there with all the greats you mentioned.

Great player......and solos are fundamental to song construction. Want to learn to play better?......listen to what this man says.

He has more integrity & heart than every gtr plyr in the rock wrld!!! Just n opinion frm old plyr... Humble, fluid, & feeling frm the creator of us all... A Truly gifted plyr, person .. A musician's musician!!!!

He's the reason why I picked up a guitar as a child.. Thank you for the joy in my life

Saw Rik in 83. 45 minute solo on the double neck. I was blown away. Deepened my love of guitar.

Trully,criminally underappreciated, a true master...thankyou, Rick.

The best advice I've ever got about playing solos is, learn the difference between expressing urself & not so much impressing urself... Rik is the living example of this philosophy... & Remain humble, B good 2 those u meet on the way up, cause u'll meet um on the way back down guaranteed!!!!

Phenomenal talent, and a brilliant musician.

Rick's a legend in his own time. Triumph was a power trio that had few equals if any. Canada has produced some legendary musicians, and Rick is surly on of em...ROCK ON RICK!

Love ya, Rik! Running across this video is timing, since I just yesterday spent the day listening to every Triumph song on every Triumph album to put together a compilation of every Triumph song I like most! 😆😆😆

I remember him well, I was a big fan of Triumph and when the band broke up I still listened to Rik.

First seen live at the US Festival in '83. A few more times in the 80's. Last time on Valentines Day in 91 in my hometown...Ventura CA. Rik has the Magic Power.

Rik is an awesome guy! Was a great influence to my playing as a kid growing up in the GTA during the 80s. He used to frequent a guitar store that a family friend owned in Port Credit back in the day. Met him a bunch of times and has always been a class act! Thx for the great vid!

I love this guy and his solos... So pure!

My first concert was Triumph 1978 Tarrant county convention Center , They Rocked It. Just A Game, was released that summer

Don't think I ever realized before how much influence he had on my guitar playing, so many decades ago. Awesome player!

Thank you for the lesson!!! Rik you are 1 of my all time favorite rockers...

Such a solid person..real to a fault. Proud as hell to say Canadian as well as one of the best.

You can tell he's a very positive person.

I was learning to play in the late 1970s-Riks playing taught me so much

To me guitar solos are like icing on a cake or hot sauce/condiments meant to embellish the song. It also can be a song within a song. Ultimately it's a canvas ( just as the song itself is ) to do WHATEVER you feel like. 10 different players will play 10 different things. One player can even play 10 different takes and pick the best bits. That's fun too. You can follow what the rest of the song is doing melody/rhythm wise or you can break away from it and go for change of scenery. The most fun I have is being creative and looking for other angles, approaches to take instead of the usual hot licks etc. At the end of the day its your song so you can have it your way! It's all good! :-)

i stood right in front of this guy while he sat on the edge of a stage in southern indiana around 1990 and he rocked out acoustic solo most of the show. it was so awesome.

Met Rik at Darryls house in NY May2018...He is an awesome guy, player and performer. Thanks for the lesson Rik

Incredible guitar player ! I am just starting to realize how great a band Triumph was. Getting into all of their music at 54.

was always my favorite guitarist. saw him at the spectrum in '87

One cool thing about Rik Emmett is he practices what he teaches, meaning, the guy is an instructor as well as a talented rocker...Similar to the late Randy Rhoads.

I met you 40 years ago at Texas toms, music in Galveston. I asked if I could put a Floyd rose on a Howard roberts fusion back in 1980 and you said yes it had a solid block in the back. I never had that done, but I did get the surface mount Floyd rose. I miss all you did. Time really does fly

love one of my guitar heroes showing how to rip some better leads Rick Emmett a genius guitarist and song writer 🎸🎶

This is great. Rik makes it all look so simple. A virtuoso player and A+ person.

He barely talked about facial expressions. There is the visual part of the live performance. I love his solo in " Laying it on the Line " all the rock star moves he does

Mr. Emmett, I must say you are not only one of the best guitarists in the world, you are still foxy as hell.

Rik Emmett is so BADASS!

Love Rik Emmett. Been a fan since I was ten, over thirty years now. Saw him play live twice and will never forget it. Bravo, sir!

I love his song little boy blues What a great tune !

The greatest guitarist of all time!Guitar master!

Rik Rules!!!!

A lot of good, practical advice from a guy who really knows what he's doing. Rik's a gifted player and a true journeyman!

Great video, thanks for posting this. I've been playing guitar for over 30 years (I've been a Triumph fan for just as long) and I'm always looking for inspiration or something new to learn and Rik is definitely an inspiring musician!

Rik definitely has the MAGIC POWER in him! 👏🏼😎

One of the true greats of all time. Incredible career. Incredible player. Level headed. Timeless. I have huge respect and I'm a huge fan. Thank You Rik Emmett. Keep it goin!

Very humble guy.

Yay Rick.... been a fan of yours for ages. I’m 52, and my wife got me a guitar for my birthday. And I am a new guitarist, with a Jackson JS11 in bright white. Love all your songs, and you were sooo underrated. You need to give yourself more credit as a guitarist and singer. ( I wish Rush sounded as good as you guys,.. 😇😁😃) Would love to see you sometime, but currently disabled, so KZfaq will need to do for now. Cheers mate, and please God Bless you my dear friend. From a fellow Canadian, (in the USA... part Canadian the good half. 🤪😋 Gryphon 1 Corinthians 15 : 1-4, and Romans 10 : 9-10

Not only a great guy and guitar player but a real defender of rock/metal music! Rik is a class act.

Excellent video! Great guitarist and all around great guy! I'm 52, and remember rocking out to 'Allied Forces' in college back in the early 80's! Had some great hard rock/metal parties back then.

Holy ghost... My real electric guitar wizard with a nice voice and the male charisma... My biggest guitar influence...

Still learning in 2016, guitar playing is so much fun!!!

Rik is a master not only at what he does but what he speaks

Thank you so much for the video. I asked for a guitar for Christmas this year, It does not need to be a shiny red one, and one of the first things I would like to play is that intro to "Lay it on the line". You gave a great performance in Kansas city in 81" and I had played a bit before but longed to play that as well as you. It is so nice of you to record videos for people just trying to learn. I hope you know that you inspire and I hope to inspire my children as well, by showing them that music isn't just something you can listen to, it is something you express from inside. They are 2 and 4 so they dance and sing to everything. I don't ever won't them to lose that. Thank you so much for your work and maybe someday I will have nailed it enough to try and show them how to play it. Thank you, Bill

Saw Triumph with Riot and Frank Marino for Allied Forces tour. They were on fire. Used to love Riks column in Guitar Player magazine. A true musician that can rock like a MF

Rik is such a great guitar player and well rounded musician, but an even better teacher. Listen to what he says y’all. He shoots straight. I’d like to add a small tidbit. If you are in the middle of a solo and you feel yourself starting to miss an important lick as we all do from time to time, don’t freak out and try to slop through it; just use one of the ideas that Rik shows in this video or one of your own and then work your way back to where you were headed in the first place. No one will even notice, except maybe that one guy in the back of the crowd and his opinion doesn’t matter. 😁

What a class act! Rick Emmet ladies and gentleman...

Rik is a genius! Man I miss this class of music so much these days. No one does it anymore, unless you go see a band that tries to cover them, but it's never the same as the originals. They call this style classic rock, but it should really be called definitive rock, as it it the encyclopedia for anyone who actually wants to play great music. So many greats, and they're all getting older on us(as we get older) and the youngsters really need to be shown this style of music, and hope that they learn to catch on to it.

This guy's a legend. Awesome :)

God bless you Rik, you have been in my top five since 1988! when I was seventeen.

Rik's such an amazing guitarist, I never get tired of listening to him

A lot of people don’t know Rik Emmett is a musical genius -just listen to his music🤟🏼🎸‼️

NICE! I really dig this guy. I'd like to hear Rik discuss any jazz influences he may have had at one time or at present. Does anyone know what 12 string he played at the US 83?

Never saw this before. And I thought I was the only one who used a pick scrape when you have no where else to turn. Awesome video!

saw Rick @ Kee to Bala years ago. One of the most talented performers I ever saw!

Ive got nothing BUT respect for the double neck players. I have one and I cant even imagine playing one for an entire set. Talk about nose heavy.

To this day I still can’t compare his look at the US Festival back in the early 80s and now. Same guy, but 180 different look. Still a master.

Rik is unique in his musical abilities. being able to play rhythm and lead guitar at levels that are up there with Randy Rhoads, Angus Young and the like, but also a frontman at the same fucking time! That's hard to do and there aren't that many rockers who can do that at his energy level, only Stevie Ray Vaughn comes close. Rik will be inducted into the Rock Hall Of Fame sooner or later.

The old musians had it because they Wer in a time when the world wasn't as busy and can truly enjoy playing real rock go rick he is a good one to learn from

Rik has this amazing "rock star next door" quality. Terrific talent and big-time accomplishments, but seems like he'd also be a great guy to share a couple of beers with in the back yard.

Big hair equals solos. When short hair came in solos went out. I'm so fortunate to have started playing in the early 80s when big hair, big drums, big amps, and big solos ruled.

This guy is so cool, he must be on tour as solo artist. I believe a good solo should be kinda like Gary Moore's "shape of things" at the ending of the song. Like having a break from the song and a break from the solo too. Nice video, and the guitar.

3:19

This was a great video and I learned a bit. I want to get to the part in the rule book about assuming the rock position with legs spread wide, nose up, a maniacal expression, and maybe toss the hair around a few times for good measure. Thanks Rik I really enjoyed

Great to see Rik sharing his knowledge and skills! Was a huge fan of his playing as a kid even before these guys made it big! Couldn't believe Emmitt was left-handed and played as a righty-thought that was very cool (if I remember correctly). Still struggling with soloing/tone/finding that "just right" sound! Hope to see more of these!

I love to hear how Rik thinks!Allot of info there and have to watch this vid a few times more.Oh yeah,Rik you are one of the great guitar players and have been enjoying you for years!!

You were a pretty cool guitar player yourself in your day ! As a guitar player myself you definitely had it going on .

Great video from the world class Rik Emmett! One of the best rock guitarists to grace the planet!

What a great man and musician....