10 Greatest Rock Music Guitar Solos Of The 1980s
8. Cult Of Personality - Living Colour
Although they spell their name with a U (i.e., the British and correct way), Living Colour are, in fact, an American outfit. They got their start in 1988, which saw the release of their first album, Vivid, and their most famous song to date.
Cult of Personality does exactly what it says on the tin; it outlines the tricks used by those in power to manipulate the masses, citing everyone from Stalin to Mussolini to Gandhi as an example.
The song gave the band their highest ever US chart position, won them a Grammy, and will live on forever as the theme song of controversial professional wrestler, CM Punk.
The album version of Cult of Personality contains an absolutely blistering solo courtesy of guitarist Vernon Reid. Messy and fuzzy, this section is just as big and bombastic as the rest of the song, with Reid shredding away to his heart's content over a thunderous drum accompaniment.
Some versions of the track omit the full solo, which is a real shame, as it's the perfect proof that Living Colour should have been a way bigger deal than they ended up being.