I've Been Playing it Wrong...

[iplayLouD]

Quite possibly my favorite riff ever. The one riff I bought ALL the gear for: Striped EVH Kramer replica, Plexi, MXR flanger.

Turns out Ain't Talkin' bout' Love is played with UPSTROKES. Anyone knew this???

Any riffs you've been playing wrong for years, only to stand corrected?

[bourbonsamurai]

Quite possibly my favorite riff ever. The one riff I bought ALL the gear for: Striped EVH Kramer replica, Plexi, MXR flanger.

Turns out Ain't Talkin' bout' Love is played with UPSTROKES. Anyone knew this???

Any riffs you've been playing wrong for years, only to stand corrected?

 

yeah dude!  id been playing midnight rambler in various open tunings for years, even to the point of pompously showing other players my various incorrect interpretations, before just capoing at 7, in standard.  lol what a dumbass!  i suppose i did learn some stuff from this.  mainly, TRY EVERYTHING IN STANDARD FIRST, ya moron!  lol for real though..

[Stitsel]

I literally figured a ton of Sabbath riffs out back in the day just by ear, and kind of figured Tony played them more intricately than my beginner attempts....imagine my shock years later when watching vids up close & I had it right all along! Of course, post Paranoid he was downtuned & that explained why some of the tones weren't exact, but the chord progressions/riffs themselves were just how I'd figured them out. 

Lots of other stuff though..... I'm probably playing it wrong.

[Dinosaur David B]

I literally figured a ton of Sabbath riffs out back in the day just by ear, and kind of figured Tony played them more intricately than my beginner attempts....imagine my shock years later when watching vids up close & I had it right all along! Of course, post Paranoid he was downtuned & that explained why some of the tones weren't exact, but the chord progressions/riffs themselves were just how I'd figured them out. 
 

One of the many things that made Iommi sound different was how he voiced any song in "E" (even when tuned down) at the 12th fret on Low E, rather than at the 7th fret on A. One reason he did that was because it is EASY to do that on SGs. It's a bitch on LPs, and doable on a Strat, but less easy. I always figured if he hadn't been an SG player, he'd probably have voiced them more commonly. 

[Tatosh Guitar]

it is EASY to do that on SGs. It's a bitch on LPs, and doable on a Strat, but less easy. I always figured if he hadn't been an SG player, he'd probably have voiced them more commonly. 

 

I have always found this topic fascinating. As a kid, I was mystified as to how all my favorite players seemed to gravitate towards a certain guitar model and stick to it for the most part, with notable exceptions. Blackers and Yngwie only played strats, Schenker only a V, Iommi and Angus were strictly SGs, etc.

When I was learning, I started with a strat clone, and to this day, it seems to me I am more comfortable with one, even if can play anything these days (or so I guess, I have never played a Guild or a Gretch, but I digress...) But over the years one thing I have definitely noticed is how the way I play changes depending on the guitar I use. With a Les Paul, I bend notes more, I go for longer notes due to the whole sustain thing. With a Strat, I tend to play faster. "Shred" would be the word, if I was capable of such thing, LOL.

[Stitsel]

I should clarify, a lot of those Iommi riffs I figured out were correct fingerings and mechanically correct, but I often voiced lower on the neck, like you mentioned DDave. I always played Paranoid on the 7th fret/A string, until I saw him doing it 12th fret/E string....otherwise I had it correct.

Also, sometimes you YT something, just to learn it & you get it under your fingers. Then, you see a vid of the artist playing it different :doh:

[Tatosh Guitar]

I should clarify, a lot of those Iommi riffs I figured out were correct fingerings and mechanically correct, but I often voiced lower on the neck, like you mentioned DDave. I always played Paranoid on the 7th fret/A string, until I saw him doing it 12th fret/E string....otherwise I had it correct.

Also, sometimes you YT something, just to learn it & you get it under your fingers. Then, you see a vid of the artist playing it different :doh:

 

For what is worth, I have ALWAYS played Paranoid on the A string, 7th fret. I learned to do it that way in High School and by now it is imprinted, even if I haven't played that song in over a decade. Even when I found out how Iommi played it, I knew by then how Rhoads and Zakk did it, so I just went whatever.

Also, the way Blackmore played Smoke on the Water has always been a big debate. I remember an old interview I saw in the 90s when he describes how he plucked the strings (a finger style riff, he called it LOL) and from then on I always did it that way. I have seen that song played by live bands for decades and I have yet to see anyone play it like that, not only the sting plucking thing but the position as well. I am, as far as I am aware, the only person on a thousand mile radius that seems to play it the way RB did, if I understood how he did it right, that is. It sounds identical to my ears.

[Dinosaur David B]

I've seen RB play smoke many different ways live. I always picked the diads on G and B, starting with the open position, and if I do it right, it sounds "right" to my ears.  I've seen others, including RB play the first diad on the D and G. But to me, the D string gives it a little beef I don't hear on the record.

[bourbonsamurai]

I've seen RB play smoke many different ways live. I always picked the diads on G and B, starting with the open position, and if I do it right, it sounds "right" to my ears.  I've seen others, including RB play the first diad on the D and G. But to me, the D string gives it a little beef I don't hear on the record.

 

i think its an exellent point to consider that, in this context, there is no "right" way to play anything.  i mean, a cursory pass through of any rolling stones live videos will show keith playing all their classics any way he chooses.  for me, the "right" way is the simplest way that gets me the most authentic result.  when i cover gimme shelter, i pick the intro with the tip of my index finger and pick, and use a medium width triplet tremolo.  when keith does it, he just strums the guitar.  i may sound more like the record, but whose version would you rather hear?  lol

[Tatosh Guitar]

Yeah. RB is another great example as he never seemed to play the same thing twice. He just played the parts the way he felt at them moment (to be fair, the whole band did that). Over time I came to realize that, as long as I played it the way he did it at some point, it was right...