Can't believe that there's no Back to the Future here. That's gotta be the most iconic guitar scene from a movie.

I was in a serious accident and was bleeding really heavily into my throat. When I was in the ER the doctor was trying to clear my airway and told the nurse that he wanted the suction turned to 11. The nurses didn’t get the joke so I pulled the oxygen mask off to tell him how much I appreciated his Spinal Tap reference. Later when I was going into surgery his was jamming out Big Balls by AC/DC and as I went under I was wondering if that was the last song I would ever hear.

The actors in "That Thing You Do" actually learned how to play their instruments, and even played a handful gigs. As far as the guitar case goes, I once had an Ibanez Destroyer whose case was very much held together with bumper stickers and duct tape, and it had no handle - so I had to carry it like he did.

My man said “Fountains of Youth” lol… RIP Adam Schlesinger from Fountains of Wayne! Great band and great songs. Thanks for the fun content Samurai 👍🏻

How could you forget about Marty Mcfly turning on his big ass amp, and gets blown backwards as soon as he strums it! That's my Titanic moment. Then there's the scene where's he's filling in for the band at the dance. "I guess you guys are not ready for this yet, but your kids are gonna love it!" Maybe you should make this a series, and pick some more movies.

I can't even imagine the horror one might experience when realizing you just destroyed a museum quality 1870s Martin. I think any 1870s Martin that still survives, regardless of condition would probably qualify as museum worthy!

FYI in the theatrical release of Wayne's World they used the actual notes from the start of the song, but it was changed for the video release and TV showings to save $$

The Hateful Eight scene breaks my heart knowing that they literally destroyed a priceless guitar

guys, we all know that the greatest guitar scenes in movies is the ending to bill and ted's excellent adventure. Great video!

I sometimes launch into 'Stairway to Heaven' when I'm in a guitar store to see the reaction. People usually spin around and have a good laugh, or quote 'Wayne's World.' It typically goes over the head of younger people who've never seen the movie.

If I remember correctly, the Martin was worth significantly more than $40000. The 40k was what it was insured for as this was the purchase cost for the museum.

I love the fact that she names very normal things on a guitar like they’re super rare. Lots of guitars have 3 single coils🤣

That Waynes World guitar is actually a new Squier with a Fender headstock decal slapped on it… I think in Wayne’s World 2 they actually got a Fender, but it was still a new guitar, not an original ‘64. Thanks to Tarantino, Martin will no longer lend any guitars to a film production. All the guitars in the Spinal Tap scene all were rented out to the movie by Norman’s Rare Guitars, and he also rented two guitars to Back to the Future, the first one was actually period correct until some suit said, “Marty should play a red guitar… and the only red semi-hollow/hollow guitar from the 1950s in the store was a Gibson ES-335 which wasn’t made until 1957… TWO YEARS after 1955!

Fun fact about the Crossroads guitar duel: everyone knows that Steve Vai did his own parts, but not many people know that Ralph Macchio’s parts were actually recorded by Ry Cooder, a supremely underrated player

You can't not include This Is Spinal Tap when talking about iconic guitar scenes, that one is definitely one of my all-time favourites but it does surprise me that some other scenes like Johnny B. Goode scene from Back to the Future, the concert at the end of School of Rock or any of the performance scenes from A Hard Day's Night film from The Beatles

Can’t believe the film Six String Samurai isn’t mentioned here. Totally in the theme, a gem.

I never really knew if Tia Carrere was at all knowledgeable about guitars in real life, but I always kind of hoped not for her sake, so that she didn't feel too ridiculous saying the 'triple single-coil pickups and a whammy bar' line.

Thanks for tapping into the guitar movies that I used to watch in my formative years. This was a great nostalgic watch. If I may, I think the guitar case scene in "The Thing You Do" was done like that intentionally, to outline the awkwardness of the situation. I remember that it felt uneasy that he didn't stormed out but had to pack his guitar, and the uncomfortable handling of the guitar case and the door highlighted that.

Fun Fact: Rick Parfitt from Status Quo (who some have suggested may have been part of the inspiration for Spinal Tap as their story does have a lot of parallels) did buy an amp that went up to 11 in the 70s purely because it went up to 11. I don't know if he ever actually used it as at the time they had a deal with Vox (and later with Marshall...although while they had the Marshalls on stage they still played through Vox AC30's hidden behind the stacks) but he did have an amp that went up to 11 prior to Spinal Tap.

The Crossroads 'notes battle' is a play on the legend/myth that Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil in return for his guitar playing ability, except in this version, instead of dying, he is redeemed (by Ralph Macchio) in the guitar duel. Its a great play on early American folklore, and the story itself has played out through the ages in many variations. Niccoli Paganini and Tommy Johnson (a bluesman predecessor of Robert) had similar stories told about them, also.

7:30 Fountains of WAYNE*. Great video but seeing as their album Welcome Interstate Managers is one of my all time favorites, this moment hurt me more than that movie scene did.

Not enough people are saying this, so I've gotta say, everyone did a great job playing the music for this video! Jenny's got a great voice too, didn't know she was a singer :O

The guitar solo scene in THE CROW will always stick with me. Another scene that pushed me towards music though not a guitar scene, was in THE LOST BOYS when Tim Cappello is playing his sax at the outdoor concert. Not to mention G Mac doing Cry Little Sister! That move really pushed me towards music...

Bonus fact; the blond long haired sales person who stops Wayne from playing Stairway is Dana Strum who was in the Vinny Vincent Invasion and founding member of the late period hair pop/metal band Slaughter.

Can not resist mentioning the solo Jamie Lee Curtis plays on a Music Man Luke in Freaky Friday.

How could you not use any of tenacious d scenes at all. There so iconic

Love that you included the "Don't touch it" scene from This is Spinal Tap. Such a great scene, great movie. This was a homerun vid bro!

the crossroads scene is so good

On a side note, the late Leslie West of Mountain fame (they did “Mississippi Queen”, if you’re unfamiliar) had a signature model from Dean Guitars that actually did have a volume knob that went to 11!

Sammy G. , Man you've got to check out Crossroads. I want you to know that it really does take place in real life: cutting heads. I went to a "Guitar Wars" when I was 17, I had maybe 2 yrs of acoustic/ 6 months electric under my belt but practiced constantly. I'd just learned "She Talks To Angelsx" by The Black Crows and was jamming a little minor pentatonic on my "Headway" guitar...Strat style that was ok considering I didn't know what I was looking for in a guitar. I knew nothing about guitars yet. So my now estranged older brother won tickets from calling the local Rock station to something called "Guitar Wars" where they'd narrowed it down to 32 guitarists who'd take turns playing lead to farmiiar Rock songs. I remember ZZ Top La Grange, and something Van Halen. 32 became 16, which became 8 and so on until only 2 were left . It was at the Sunrise (Florida) musical theater, a pretty large concert hall. The final 2 were a guy on a Les Paul and a Metal Head on something like a B.C. Rich that looked really Metal. They were dueling back and forth until the Les Paul guy blew his high E. The Metal Head started shredding above the 20th fret and the Les Paul guy couldn't hit the notes and lost. Up until then he was holding his own so the crowd collectively sympathized and he was such a gracious loser, smiled like "Shit happens" and got a standing ovation. It was all in good fun, just an excuse to throw a Rock and Roll party and let some local talent get some exposure. They were selling merch in the halls , gear and guitars. I picked up a live electric and played the riff to Black Dog once and handed it back before I could make a mistake 😂 My brother, who never wanted me to learn (he played no lead, but his friends were really supportive) all of a sudden was my biggest fan. He's a sociopath and I think he just liked being from the same gene pool and how it reflected on him. So that's my "cutting heads" experience in as much of a nutshell as I could put it in. Now I'll finish the video, I'm digging it so far. I'm wondering if you're counting movies like The Wall or where you're headed with this. 🎸🏒✌️🎟️🎥🎬🎞️🎞️🍿🎞️🎸🎞️🎞️🎬🙏

Just realized that the reason he carries the guitar case like that in “That Thing You Do” is because they wanted to make sure the case was in the frame when he walks out the door.

I carry my guitar case underarm! (only because a hinge is broken and I don't want to risk my baby falling out)

In that thing you do, he doesn’t latch the locks on his guitar case. Hence, why he walks out carrying his case the way he does.

That old guitar that never gets played, in my collection, is actually one I do play from time to time -- but it's a 1994 Carvin DC200 I picked up for about 1/3rd its value at a guitar center, which I am only about 9 months older than. I was so jazzed at the thought of owning a guitar as old as I am, I bought it on the spot (The fact that it was an insane steal doesn't hurt, either). All original parts except for a new set of strap buttons, pearl white, Ebony board, and I know precisely nothing else about it. But every time I pick it up, I feel a connection to the world that I don't really get to feel the rest of the time. I share a birth year with one of my guitars, and it is a very strangely grounding experience.

Cassandra also says "triple single coil pickups" about the Strat. Were there any Strats from that era that didn't have that pickup configuration? Even now, that's the norm, so you wouldn't mention it like it was something special.

Nifty fun fact. Arlen Roth was Karate Kid's guitar teacher for the movie Crossroads and he wrote a book about metal guitar explaining how he did it.

Ah the good ol' guitar that never gets played. I'm fortunate enough to have 2 that immediately come to mind. My 1990 LP 1960s Classic signed by the man himself (retired it the day he died) and my Dean "cemetery gates" razorback i picked up used on dime day a handful of years ago because it just looks cool as hell and the price and timing just happened to be just right.

Filmmaker here; In the scene from 'that thing you do' I'm betting it was a choice of Tom Hanks for Jimmy to carry the guitar case that way. The way the action is framed in camera, if he was carrying the case by the handle the audience wouldn't see much of it. If you play the shot in your mind with him carrying it by the handle, it has much less visual impact. It changes Jimmy's posture and his physicality as he leaves. It even LOOKS awkward. The awkwardness of the action may be important to the actors motivations in the scene. Yeah, little things like that matter. Every scene can be its own story. I'll also bet this was 'take 6' or more after Hanks said "I like that one. Print that but let's do one more - I want to try something..." IMHO.

OMG the guitar case scene (and specifically you mocking it) had me laughing out loud!!! 😂

The Wayne's World scene always bugged me because he's not playing anything remotely resembling "Stairway to Heaven"

@13:15 I agree on this part ~ I work at a music store in Malaysia and yea.....there are people just like that ~

Let's get a "tales from working at a music store" video. Always love to hear about weird things people have experienced at their work.

If I may say with the movie "That Thing You Do!" has an extended cut which has an additional 39 minutes of footage not featured on the theatrical cut. It improves a lot of the storylines that were orignally brief and also goes into more depth with the band as a whole. IMOH the extended cut is a more rounded version with the extra 39 minutes.

Ah yes I remember Paul trying so hard to nail that solo. Respect+++

Props to Steve Vai's acting like he couldn't play that part eventhough he could

When SamuraiJenny's vocals started, I was shocked into realizing that I hadn't yet hit the thumbs-up yet. Thanks, SamuraiJenny!

From what I've heard, when Stairway to Heaven was released in the 70's, so many people would go to the music store and play it. After having to hear it so often, a number of stores began to prohibit it, even to the point of posting signs.

Aw, you cut out my favorite part of the sustain joke! "Well you would, if it were playing", don't know why it's so funny but gets me every time

I watch this video when I first dropped and I'm driving and something hit me. I really like the way he leaves with the guitar in that thing you do, the whole scene is just chaotic he's frazzled and he grabs the guitar like a total tool, he's so flustered he just wants to get the hell out of there.

You mentioned the only way Ralph Macchio could be finger picking the strings for that part in Crossroads would be if he were doing some classical finger style piece, but the character actually learned and played classical music on a nylon string acoustic in the beginning of the movie! Although his right hand form and nails weren't quite right as you described, it was an accurate detail for the character's playing experience in the movie

Headcutting was very big in the blues world. That's how players got and kept gigs at the very few blues clubs that were in business back in the 40's and 50's. They would cut heads for session player spots at studios, too.

I have said for years that Ralph Macchio did an awesome job of miming this guitar duel with Steve Vai. Steve Vai should have gotten an Oscar for faking that he could not play that Paganini piece.

Man...That Thing You Do is one of my favourites but I NEVER noticed that before. I'll never be able to unsee it now...

Fountains of wayne bro! Cmon, theyre a great band, i actually thought theyd be well up you alley 🤘

Crossroads. William Kanengiser does indeed play it on classical guitar earlier in the film. And it’s awesome.

Fun fact: I used to own a Squier Wayne's World Strat 😊 It wasn't special - it just looked like the one in the movie and it had the Wayne's World logo on the neck plate. I sure wish I still had it tho!

Spinal Tap IS the ultimate rockumentary. There is an actual interview with Jeff Beck showing off his prize guitar collection, and it is unbelievable how spot on Christopher Guest has him down. I actually saw Spinal Tap live in the early 90's. Those guys can actually play and put on a great show.

That dude covering crossroads sounded identical!!! Seen that movie a ton and I genuinely couldn’t tell apart from the intentional bad notes on the Steve Van part! I salute you Paul Davids!

The coolest thing to me about the Spinal Tap scene is that a lot of the guitars there are the actual vintage models that were loaned from Norman's Rare Guitars.

If I knew I was holding the real deal and not a prop I’m definitely not letting go of it when Kurt grabbed it. They can all get upset all they want for ruining the take-I’m still not letting go! 🤙🏻

One major in acronism I remember is Brian Depalma's Elvis movie. There's a scene in a music store during the early 1950s prior to Elvis becoming a big star, and we see guitars in the background including a Les Paul with PAF Humbuckers and another one was the Gretsch Jet with Filtertrons two instruments that definitely did not exist at the time.

Would love to see your reaction to any of the battle scenes in Scott Pilgrim!

FUN FACTS; Soldano Amplifiers (famous boutique brand out of Seattle) used to run full page ads in the magazines that said "Soldano; The Only Amps That Really Do Go To 11". My guitar player tried one in the studio then ended up buying a Soldano Hot Rod 100 Plus. Also, when Wayne's World was shown in the theaters the intro to Stainway was actually used. Some copyright crap happened after the fact so that's why when you watch the movie now - that part makes no sense because it's just garbage notes that are played which is nothing close to Stairway to Heaven.

Another great scene: Antonio Banderas giving a guitar lesson to a young musician in Desperado.

My mum won a Wayne's world strat from a movie draw when she was a kid, it still has some of the plastic on it, we have the tag the gig bag and the luthiers signature under the fretboard. It's the nicest guitar I've ever played.

I believe Ralph Macchio’s hands closeups were actually Arlen Roth’s and Roth also trained Macchio to make him look credible as a player.

I recently got to see the spinal tap amp at the Marshalls exhibit in the Milton Keynes museum. Worth it!

I was hoping you'd note in Crossroads that Ralph magically changed from open tuning to standard.

8:02 i used to do that when i had a broken case that wouldn't close

Are we just gonna ignore how there was a guy that not only licked a guitar at a shop but actively refused to stop

Funny that you say Music just became White Noise when you worked at a Music Store, because when I was playing Jumping Jack Flash at a Skip's Music Store the guy that worked there actually starting singing it over my playing! It was a great moment in time!

7:26 Oh yeah, totally. Love me some Fountains of Youth. But seriously: RIP Adam Schlesinger! He co-produced that soundtrack with total pop genius Mike Viola, who also sang lead vocals!

8:01 That Khaby Lame Impression tho...😂😂

I'm defending that case under the arm. When I used to jam in my mates flat I had to walk up a very tight staircase. My guitar was always tucked up under my arm at an angle to prevent it from bouncing from the walls or stairs.

6:28 I feel like there was a missed opportunity to point out how unrealistic it was for Steve Vai to mess up a shred lol Also, I already knew the story behind the scene but at 9:23 when he said "it's value *was* around..." the tears still started welling up inside my soul 🥺

Best shirt you've done yet imo. Seriously choice design. Keep doin what you do my musical brethren!

Going to 11: There was an amp company (SunDown amps?) who decided to copyright dials going to 11, about 6 months before they went bust, hence why Marshalls go to 12. Jim Marshall wouldn't do anything if it didn't make money so there was no way he was going to buy the copyright.

Hehe. I never noticed the rating on "This is Spinal Tap." Mega respect for the IMDB folks!

To the dude who licked the guitar neck. Just cause it’s made of maple, don’t mean it tastes like maple 💁🏽‍♀️😂

I grew up down the street from the Music Store that Wayne goes into, It's Cassell's Music in Sylmar, CA on Maclay Avenue and it's been there as long as I can remember and I am old. The only guitar store that I know of where you could go in and buy ONE guitar string if you needed just one! They were kept in these long draws, that looked like card catalog draws from the Library. I haven't been there in years, don't know if it's the same today.

"fountains of youths stacys mom" classic old person

“It goes to 11” is so recognized, Michael Scott referenced it in The Office. That’s how you know it’s the best

That Thing You Do was my favorite movie growing up. I just rewatched the movie again and I stopped the movie at that exact moment and I yelled “no one carries a guitar case that way unless it’s got a broken handle”

GQ’s loss. This is an awesome video.

I heard The stairway sign was a reference to how sheet music for it was constantly sold out to the point they had signs on the door or the counter. I mean that's how the signs came to be which actually existed but it was in regards to having sheet music for it in stock cause it was what everyone was buying

You should do tv/streaming series too! There’s a few great scenes in Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad.

Great thumbnail! I honestly thought Insider or GQ had ask you to do an expert video and I was so happy for you

13:30 I reckon that one note from a Metallica song was the intro to Orion. There is some debate if it was played on bass or synth on the studio recording.

I love that I knew exactly what the problem was with "That Thing You Do" before he even needed to point it out.

You know, there really aren’t many guitar movie moments at all.

Love that you actually got the scene from Crossroad!!!

Thank you Samurai Jenny! Your voice is "eleven" times better than the actress in the movie.

the back to the future scene at the dance is so iconic

Fountains of Wayne, not Fountains of Youth. He did a lot of other stuff, too. Adam Schlesinger. One of my two favorite pop songwriters of the modern era. Unfortunately, the goddamned pandemic took him.

I worked in a guitar store once and was shouted at but a customer who said I sold him a guitar that didn’t work. He brought it in and it worked( I tested it). I asked if his amp was working and he asked what was an amp. And then he said that the lead he got had the same bit on both ends so he cut off one and attached a plug. That was about 20 years ago and I’ll never forget it

HOLY SHIT they ACTUALLY destroyed an 1870s Martin in "The Hateful Eight"? I wasn't a huge fan of the movie before, but now I hate it. No scene is worth destroying a priceless piece of art like that.

The solo boost on my Traynor Custom 100 H2 goes to 11 as a fun nod to Spinal Tap. I’ll never get rid of that head for that reason alone.

I have a blues deluxe where the knobs literally go to 12

For tv shows theres jed clampett playing a danelectro double neck.Jed was all decked out in a silver suit and guessing the guitar was picked because it looked outrageous.You also have to admire the mosquitos on don't bug the mosquitoes episode of gilligan's island, they were so good they played their guitar without any amps or electricity or even guitar cables.And there is greg brady jamming in adios johnny bravo.

Okay, I loooooooved Crossroads. My friend and room mate owned in on DVD and we'd watch it regularly. Although after a few watches we'd often just watch the guitar scenes. The movie is just Karate Kid rewritten with guitars, but whatever it's fine. The bit that bugged me from the first time I saw it is that Daniel/Eugene spends the entire movie trying to find Robert Jonson's "missing song". Mr Miyagi/Blind Willie teaches him all about the blues. Instead of Wax on Wax off he has to fall in love and then have his girlfriend walk out on him. Of course then we need to win Mr Miyagi/Blind Willie's soul back. Daniel/Eugene then goes to cut heads with Steve Vi, they start out all Blue Lick this and Blues Lick that. Me Via starts straying a little from the pentatonic box and goes a bit Lydian on us, but okay fine he's the sneaky devil. But then Daniel/Eugene goes and busts out is classical chops to win the damn battle!!!! Wasn't the point of all this to channel Robert Johnson and get Mr Miyagi/Blind Willie his soul back using all the hard earn Blues lessons we learned earlier???? It makes no sense! Although neither did the Crane position in Karate kid so we're on familiar ground I guess. Lastly that last chord on Daniel/Eugenes part is so clearly Steve Devil Via going through his Eventide Harmonizer that it breaks the suspension of disbelief like someone breaking the fourth wall. All that being said I just went and watch the battle again, and it holds up. So there's that....