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Whitesnake - Still Of The Night - Intro, Verse & Main Riff - Guitar Lesson

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Key C minor
Whitesnake - Still Of The Night - Intro, Verse & Main Riff guitar lesson video
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Amp Settings

Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
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Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
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Whitesnake Hard Rock C minor
Capo Advisor 0 C minor · Original key

About Still Of The Night - Intro, Verse & Main Riff

Few riffs in Hard Rock hit as hard as the one that opens "Still Of The Night." The main riff is a low, menacing figure built around the C minor tonality, leaning heavily on open-position power chords and single-note lines that need to sound tight and deliberate rather than loose. Playing it in Eb Standard tuning gives the whole thing that slightly detuned weight, so make sure your guitar is tuned down a half step before you even try to match the feel of the recording. At 120 BPM the groove is mid-paced but demanding because every note needs to lock in precisely, and any slight rushing kills the swagger. The verse sections add a rhythmic chug that calls for consistent right-hand palm muting and solid pick attack. If the transition between the intro figure and the verse riff is giving you trouble, use the Practice Toolbar to loop it slowed down until your fretting and muting hands are working as one unit. Whitesnake built this track around John Sykes, whose combination of melodic phrasing and aggressive rhythm playing is exactly what you are chasing here.

  • The riff is played in Eb Standard tuning, so drop your guitar a half step before playing to match the original tone and feel.
  • Consistent palm muting on the low strings is essential for the verse chug; uneven muting pressure will make the riff sound sloppy.
  • The main riff centres on C minor power chord shapes and single-note runs, making left-hand muting of unused strings a key technique to practise.

How to Play Still Of The Night - Intro, Verse & Main Riff

Tuning: Eb Standard · Key: C minor · Tempo: 120 BPM

It is played in Eb standard, a half step down, so tune down before you start or every position and bend will sit a half step sharp against the recording.

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 120 BPM to build it up to tempo.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

While John Sykes favored the Les Paul Custom, the Standard delivers the same thick humbucker warmth essential to Whitesnake's classic rock tone. Its slightly lighter weight and traditional specs make it an accessible alternative for achieving that powerful, sustained lead sound through cranked tube amps.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

John Sykes' black 1978 Les Paul Custom with gold hardware is the definitive Whitesnake guitar, its stock Gibson humbuckers producing the warm midrange growl and controlled compression needed for 'Still of the Night' solos. This guitar's thick, harmonically rich character became inseparable from the band's signature hard rock voice.

Ibanez JEM
Guitar

Ibanez JEM

Steve Vai brought the Ibanez JEM 777 and its Floyd Rose tremolo to Whitesnake, enabling expressive solo techniques and pitch-bending flexibility that complemented the band's shredding era. The JEM's bright, articulate character contrasted with traditional Les Paul tones while maintaining cutting power through Marshall stacks.

Marshall JCM800
Amp

Marshall JCM800

The Marshall JCM800 is the sonic foundation of Whitesnake, delivering the thick, tube-driven natural saturation and harmonically rich distortion that defines songs like 'Still of the Night.' Sykes pushed these heads hard in the preamp, maintaining high presence and treble to retain clarity and pick attack in solos.

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
Pedal

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah

John Sykes used the Dunlop Cry Baby Wah sparingly but effectively for solo accents and expressive passages, adding dynamic color without cluttering Whitesnake's amp-driven aesthetic. This pedal's responsive sweep complemented his Les Paul's warm tone while enhancing the emotional impact of key lead moments.

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