Man, 2008 was a wild time for plastic instruments. We were all basically living in our living rooms, tripping over fake drum kits and plastic guitars. If you were there, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The big shift happened when Guitar Hero World Tour—which most of us just called Guitar Hero 4—dropped. It wasn't just about the guitar anymore. It was about the whole band.
But honestly, the thing that kept us coming back wasn't just the new drum peripheral that actually had cymbals (take that, Rock Band). It was the music. The guitar hero 4 tracklist was a massive, 86-song beast that felt like a fever dream of classic rock, 90s alternative, and weirdly specific metal deep cuts.
The Absolute Heavy Hitters
Looking back at the guitar hero 4 tracklist, it’s kind of insane how many "legendary" songs they managed to cram onto one disc. We’re talking about the first time the series moved away from covers and went 100% master recordings. That was a huge deal back then. No more "as made famous by" singers who sounded almost like Billie Joe Armstrong but slightly off.
You had the absolute staples. "Hotel California" by The Eagles? Yeah, that was the big one. It felt like every dad in America bought the game just for that six-minute solo at the end. Then you had "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi, which was basically mandatory for any group of four people playing in a basement at 1 AM.
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But the real MVP of the setlist for many was "Everlong" by Foo Fighters. It’s one of those songs that just works on every instrument. The drums are iconic, the guitar riff is satisfyingly fast, and the vocals are... well, they’re Dave Grohl. You can't lose.
The Weird and the Wonderful
What made the guitar hero 4 tracklist stand out wasn't just the Top 40 hits. It was the stuff that made you go, "Wait, they put this in here?"
- "L'Via L'Viaquez" by The Mars Volta: This song is nearly nine minutes of pure, progressive chaos. Trying to play this on expert guitar was a legitimate physical workout.
- "Satch Boogie" by Joe Satriani: This served as the "final boss" of sorts for the guitar career. If you could five-star this, you were basically a god in your local high school.
- "Beat It" by Michael Jackson: People forget MJ was in a Guitar Hero game! It features that blistering Eddie Van Halen solo that ruined many a plastic fretboard.
- "B.Y.O.B." by System of a Down: Pure, unadulterated energy. It was the perfect song for when the band was finally "in the zone."
Why the Guitar Hero 4 Tracklist Still Matters in 2026
You might think talking about a game from nearly two decades ago is just nostalgia, but there's a reason the guitar hero 4 tracklist is still the gold standard for many fans. It represented a time when music licensing was at its peak. We haven't seen a rhythm game since then—not even the modern Fortnite Festival—that captures that specific "big budget" rock feel quite the same way.
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The game also gave us the Tool experience. Getting three Tool tracks—"Parabola," "Schism," and "Vicarious"—complete with custom psychedelic visuals in a special "Tool venue" was a massive win for prog-rock fans. Tool is notoriously picky about how their music is used, so seeing them embrace the game felt like a seal of approval for the whole genre.
The Full On-Disc Roster
If you're trying to remember if a specific song was on there, it probably was. The variety was kind of the point. You had everything from "Sweet Home Alabama" (the live version, which was much harder) to "Misery Business" by Paramore.
The heavy stuff was well-represented too. "Trapped Under Ice" by Metallica was a sleeper hit for drummers, and "Overkill" by Motörhead was essentially a double-bass pedal endurance test. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, you had Willie Nelson’s "On the Road Again." It felt out of place until you actually played it and realized how fun the country-style "chicken picking" was on the guitar controller.
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How to Experience These Songs Today
If you've still got your old hardware, great. But for most of us, those old guitars have long since been lost to garage sales or battery acid leaks.
The "right" way to play these today is through Clone Hero or the Guitar Hero World Tour: Definitive Edition mod on PC. The community has done an incredible job of porting the entire guitar hero 4 tracklist into modern engines that support 4K resolution and high refresh rates. It makes those 2008 graphics look crisp, and honestly, the note charts for songs like "Pull Me Under" by Dream Theater still hold up perfectly.
Actionable Steps for the Modern Shredder
If you want to revisit the glory days, don't just go buying a used disc on eBay for a console you don't own.
- Check your local thrift stores: Look for the Wii versions of the guitars; they're the easiest to convert to PC using a simple $20 adapter.
- Look into the Definitive Edition mod: If you have the PC version of World Tour, this mod adds hundreds of songs, fixes the bugs, and makes the guitar hero 4 tracklist feel like a modern release.
- Start with the "Mid-Tier" songs: If you're rusty, don't jump straight into Satriani. Re-learn your timing with "The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World or "Today" by Smashing Pumpkins.
The guitar hero 4 tracklist wasn't just a list of songs; it was a curated journey through rock history that actually taught a generation of kids who Steely Dan and MC5 were. It’s worth a revisit, even if your "star power" is a little more literal these days.