Decipherin' Steven Hull's Guitar Tablature
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It can be very difficult to write guitar tab in ASCII. That's why you see 10 different versions of "web-tab" whenever you visit every 7.3 guitar tab sites. I think you might find that my tab is a tad easier to read than most of the stuff that's out there. - steve
What it is:
Typically, when I write guitar chord tablature on the net, it looks something like this:
G
1 -|| -----------------------4--------3
2 -|| --------0-----------------------0
3 -|| --------0-----------------------0
4 -|| --------0-----------------------0
5 -|| ---------------2----------------2
6 -|| -----------------------3--------3
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Explanation:
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G
... is the name of the chord.
In this case, the chord is a G major. If the chord were 'G minor' it would be shown as Gm. If you see a Gb, it means the chord is a 'flat'. Similarly, if you see a G#, it means that the chord is a 'sharp'. Remember - if you C#, you won't Bb - just kiddin' ;-}.
If there are 6ths, 7ths, 9ths..., these will be depicted by number, such as G9 (G ninth) or Gm7 (G minor 7th). If there are augmented chords, they will be depicted by the "+" sign., such as G+ (G augmented) or Gm+ (G minor augmented). Diminished chords will be presented by a "o" or "-", such as G#o (G sharp diminished) or Gm- (G minor diminished).
An X/Y type chord means 'X' over 'Y'. For example, D/C is a D over a C. Frequently, the '/Y' is the bass note. In this example (D/C) means a D major chord with a C as the bass note.
**
The Daredevils use a lot of simple chords in interesting patterns ...
most times: following 'the rules', at other times: bending 'the
rules', and once-in-a-while: let's say they are truly innovative -
such as using very strange transitions in 'If You Wanna Get to
Heaven' & 'Jackie Blue.' While having many of the Daredevils
songs dance in my head on a continuing daily basis and frustratingly
knowing only a few of them on guitar (at present) - I've yet to hear
any of the 'stranger' chords that may exist in their repertoire - but
if the chord is a "minor/major 7th", "suspended 4th/augmented 9th" or
any other strange looking beast - I will deal with it as needed.
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G
1 -||
-----------------------4---------------3
2 -|| --------0------------------------------0
3 -|| --------0------------------------------0
4 -|| --------0------------------------------0
5 -|| ---------------2-----------------------2
6 -|| -----------------------3---------------3
^- these are the string numbers (#6 is the largest string)
String tones are: 6=E, 5=A, 4=D, 3=G, 2=B, 1=E
(when the guitar is in standard tuning)
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G
1 -||
-----------------------4---------------3
2 -|| --------0------------------------------0
3 -|| --------0------------------------------0
4 -|| --------0------------------------------0
5 -|| ---------------2-----------------------2
6 -|| -----------------------3---------------3
the bold number represent the finger you use to place on the string
- your pinkie is your 4th finger
- T means to use your thumb (rare, but happens on a lot of
D/F# chords)
- a zero (0) means no fingers and to pluck the string
- an X means to mute that string - it is still plucked though
- if nothing is on the string, don't even pluck it
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G
1 -||
-----------------------4---------------3
2 -|| --------0------------------------------0
3 -|| --------0------------------------------0
4 -|| --------0------------------------------0
5 -|| ---------------2-----------------------2
6 -|| -----------------------3---------------3
these bold numbers represent the fret where you place your aforementioned fingers
- a zero (0) means no frets and to pluck the string
- an X means to mute that string - it is still plucked though
- if nothing is on the string, don't even pluck
it
The fingered frets may also be displayed as: 3 2 0 0 0 3 - 6th string to 1st string.
Playing Single Notes:
Once in a while, you might see something like (e f f# g) - these
are not chords, but individual notes
- sometimes I will tab them, - if they are pretty rudimentary then I
won't tab them. I have to leave
some stuff for you to finger out!
Reading chord symbols with lyrics
Dm7 C G Em7
When there are lyrics written like this,
Play Dm7 chord on 'When' and play a C chord on the 2nd syllable in 'lyrics'.
Play the G and Em7 after 'this' - the Em7 chord may be continued on to the next line and played until another chord symbol appears. Also, since the G and Em7 chords are close to one another, this MAY mean that the G chord is played for a shorter duration than the Em7 chord. Keep your ears peeled!
Created 22 January 1997
Updated 22 January 2003
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