What are some No-No's at a guitar shop

Yep that one.
Stairway To Heaven
Enter Sandman
Smells Like Teen Spirit

any others? Everyone with half a brain knows stairway is out of the question, I've heard crazy train, and sunshine of your love are pretty bad too. But what if, you pull off a solo to one of these songs in a guitar shop? Would they care? :roll:

If you buy a guitar, they won't care what you play.

Play what you want to play.
You are the one buying the guitar.
If I am shopping for a guitar I am there to hear and feel the guitar. I am not there to impress anyone or put on a concert. So if I want to play Stairway to Heaven that is exactly what I will do.

Hmm -- The Violent Femmes Dance, MotherF*****, Dance isn't usually too welcome -- but only if I insist on singing it.

crazy train, although they might not mind it...I will kill you.

I am not there to impress anyone or put on a concert.

Can you come shop at my local Guitar Center, then? LOL...every time I go in there, all I see are a bunch of kids sitting around playing things at atrociously high volume levels, with the obvious intent of *not* buying anything. I can understand wanting to play something that you might not be able to afford, and that's perfectly fine. But when I have to get one of the employees to make them turn the thunder down so I can hear even a single note of the acoustic I want to buy...bleh.

At any rate, play anything you want. I have a very limited repertoire, but I play what I know in order to get a feel for the guitar.

If you want to do a Metallica/Nirvana/Led Zeppelin medley, then by God, do it. The intro to Metallica's "One" is one of my favorite things to pluck away at. 8)

SMOKE ON THE WATER

easily the most overplayed song in ANY music store

These need to be placed in order of DO NOT PLAY.

For instance, the all time no-no would be:

Stairway to Heaven

probably followed by Smoke on the water.

Then in (my order):

Enter Sandman
Crazy Train
Anything two-handed tapping
Highway to hell/back in black
Walk this way
Smells like teen spirit
Cocaine
Anything by Lenny Kravitz

I think people at guitar stores need to just get over themselves and stop with the holier than thou crap about what people play.

There's nothing wrong with playing a song at a guitar store that you play regularly. Why wouldn't you? If I'm thinking of buying that guitar, I want to know what that song will sound like on that guitar. If you play Stairway to Heaven and Smoke and The Water at home, play it at the guitar store.

More often, though, I don't play that much of actual songs. I'll play a little bit of one, but mostly I play a bunch of open chords, barre chords up and down the neck, every note on the fret board, and do some bends on at least the first three strings up and down the neck just to see how everything feels and sounds. Then usually I'll just noodle a little solo, and strum some chord progressions that aren't necessarily belonging to any song.

I don't care what people play, I'm not there for a concert. What does annoy me is the people who crank up the amp too loud for too long. I can understand wanting to hear it at higher volumes, but you don't need to drown out everyone else in the store for 5 minutes straight.

ya can't forget Iron Man by Black Sabbath

If you play Stairway to Heaven and Smoke and The Water at home, play it at the guitar store.

That's fine as far as I'm concerned, just as long as it's not continuous. I had to put up with some 14 year old trying to impress two mates with 20 minutes of nothing but SOTW intro, time, after time, after time, after..................

Worst part was, he played it badly and didn't improve with 5000 repeat attempts!

Play The Doors - Spanish Caravan (on acoustic obviously)
or Classical Gas by Mason Williams

I like to surprise the guys that work at GC. After telling them I'm a Newbie and what not they always kinda whence a lil bit, in their body language, after they hand me a guitar. I'm assuming its because they think I'm gonna play something they dread. Like White Stripes or just a bunch of Power Chords.

But then I'll do a lil piece of The Cure or Depeche Mode or The Cult and watch they're faces, they always light up with that look of suprise. Its funny sometimes, cuz they probably recognize the songs or bands but can't quite pin point it.

I agree, Play what you want.

Its YOUR $$$ your gonna spend, not theirs. If they don't like it.. well I can spend my money someplace else then...Screw 'em if they can't take a joke!!