Ace of Spades '08 by Motörhead

Forever known simply as Lemmy, the singer/bassist (also known as Ian Willis or Lemmy Kilmister) already had a colorful life before forming Motorhead: in the late '60s he was a guitar roadie for Jimi Hendrix, then his outlaw ways got him kicked out of the psychedelic band Hawkwind.

Motorhead have since become a heavy-metal institution, with Lemmy the living embodiment of the hard-living aesthetic. Despite heavy competition from tunes like “Bomber” and “Overkill,” the gambling-themed “Ace of Spades” stands as the band’s main anthem.

For Rock Band 2, Lemmy and his bandmates Phil Campbell (guitar) and Mikkey Dee (drums) cut a new version of the song; it’s every bit as fast and furious as the original despite the 27 years inbetween.

Singers should note the little joke that Lemmy throws into our re-recorded version. After the familiar line “That’s the way I like it baby, I don’t want to live forever,” Lemmy now sings, “….But apparently I am!”

This song is all about stamina. It’s short but it blazes by and requires a lot of high-speed accents If you lose a bass-or-guitar duel you still win, because the bass part here is essentially an additional lead guitar part.

The drummer gets a demanding punk/metal part with many alternating snare/cymbal parts, plus exhausting work on the kick. Get your timing down and make sure you can keep up with the speed.

Lemmy famously holds court at his famous hangout, the Roxy in Los Angeles, when not raising hell with the band.