Alright guys, what’s up? It’s Aaron. The lesson I’m going to do today is one of my favorite songs to play and to teach. It’s Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton. We’ve got a lot of request for it. And I’m going to have to dedicate this one to my friend, Copper Danielson, because she said that she wanted to cover it but she hoped that I would get to this before she covered it so she could cheat off me. So, this one is dedicated to everybody who requested it but to her as well.
Alright. There’s three parts of this song that I’d like to classify and how I’m going to teach it. The first part is the just basic part that you’d probably familiar hearing. It sounds like these… Oopps.. Alright..
That’s the first part that I’m going to teach you. The second part is probably heard at the --- like this. No it’s like this. I’m sorry. Okay. Second part. Third part we’ll get to, so we’ll be on three videos.
So starting on the first part. The guitars and standard tuning. This is my classical guitar. You probably hasn’t seen this yet. I think this is the first video ever done with this guitar but it’s is the first guitar I ever got. My dad, Rick got it for me. It’s a great guitar. I really like the sound of it. But this is one of the songs that I’d like to play in a classical guitar because it goes out of finger picking and it just got a different sound to it. You know, you can just miss what Clapton plays for you. You can hear it too if you listen closely.
But I want you to do is we’re going to start out. This song has a lot thumb, fingers, thumb, fingers. You’re going to hear me saying thumb, fingers, thumb, fingers a lot. All that means is when I say thumb, you’re going to pluck the base note with your thumb, fingers, you’re going to pick two strings with your fingers. Alright. So first thing we’re going to do. We’re going to play this low E string and hammer on your point finger second fret. If you don’t know what to hammer on is.. It’s just this. Oopps.. sorry. I just plot this note which is low E string so it was an E note. And you’re slamming that point finger down. Oh, you’re up picking it again but that hammer on causes the volume. Alright. So, low E plot, hammer on second fret and play your A string open. OK? Okay so, A string. Then I want you to come straight down here at the bottom three strings, on the second fret, bar across them. Okay. The next thing you’re going to play is, you’re going to play the one, two, third string up, so the third string which is your G string. Okay. You’re going to play G, then you’re going to put B string, which is also a second fret across that bar. When you play it, the tab is going to say, two, three, two. Okay. Based on the tab, it means, is two, the hammer on the third fret, just like we did earlier, then take it off really quick, which is going to give you that two notes again. Okay. Then you’re going to play the G string and the third string again. So it sounds like this. So gather in the beginning, it goes… Okay.
Next, I want you to take your pointer finger, put it on the low E string fourth fret. Take your middle finger, put it on the third string, your G string fourth fret and your ring finger is going to go on the fourth fret… or the fifth fret as well but it’s on the B string. Okay. And you’re going to hear this. It’s going to go… That’s the next part …
All you’re going to do there is you’re going to play thumb and fingers at the same time. So when I said thumb, that means this base note here while when I said finger I mean your pointer finger, or your picking hand or your middle finger. Alright. They’re going to play on the G and B strings. The second and third strings up from the bottom. So, you’re going to play all together, sorry pushing them all. Then you’re going to play thumb then fingers. So, all together then thumb, then fingers. All together, then thumb, then fingers. (Sorry I’m rattling).
Then you slide all that one on the second thread, and play all of them together. So…Okay. So up here, four on the low E, four on the G string, five on the B. You’re going to play all together. Sorry my fingers too are a problem. All together, then thumb, fingers, slide down, then play them all together. So…Okay. When you slide them there and play them all together, you’re going to play base, fingers, then you’re going to take that pointer finger off on the second thread and you’re going to play base, fingers, base fingers. Slide your ring finger up to the third fret of your B string and that middle finger stays on the second fret of your G string. Now, once you saw that middle finger down and your pointer finger back on the second fret of your low E, you’re going to play thumb, fingers, thumb, fingers. Take your pointer finger off, play thumb, fingers, thumb, fingers. Okay. So from this part until you… based on that, one more time.
Then during intro, you’re next going to this, Eric Clapton, he just plays on the second fret of your G and B strings. You’re going to play… the base note is now going to be on the A string open. Instead, it was on the low E early neither actually go on thumb, fingers are still playing on G and B both on the second fret in the play. Thumb, fingers, thumb fingers… I think it’s four times. That’s when intro, then he starts with the whole thing again that we just did.
Alright, the second time through when extras getting into the singing, after he finishes this… last base note. Alright. He goes up here, and he takes his pointer finger and puts it on G string, first fret and he plays… So he’s going to go all of them together… Then thumb and fingers. So all together, and the base note now is A string still. So you’re going to go A string, and the G and B. Then thumb, fingers…Slide that pointer finger up next to second fret. Put your middle finger down. And you’re going to play base, fingers, Okay. Then slide your middle finger up to the third fret, still on the B string, then put on the G string, your ring finger down on the fourth fret and you’re going to play base fingers. So that last part, it sounds like this. I’ll play the whole way through… That’s the intro where he starts singing… Okay. He does it a few times.
I can’t sing the song but I’m only giving it a shot just so you guys can… so you can hear, kind a how it goes… So…
(Singing) “Would you know my name, if I saw you in heaven.” Okay. So that’s how the verse goes. It’s pretty hard for me to sing but whatever. As in the first lesson, the next lesson we’re going to get into, we’re going to cover a different part. So hopefully this helps, and check out the second lesson if you like it. Good luck guys.
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