Knocking on Heaven‘s Door Three chords and the truth is a great way to open up your comprehension of music and your technique in the instrument. Above all else, learn to count from the outset. Make rhythmic practice not only your study when the instrument is in your hands, but even when you are listening to any kind of music. Most music is in four quarter note measures. But when you count, always count the eight notes. In other words, "one and, two and, three and, four and." It’s easier than you might think, especially if you let yourself count the music you already love. Notice how in live performance, many bands start with a count composed of two four beat measures. You will often hear leaders count "one and two and three and four and" twice, but with a long "one two." In other words &#one…two, one and two and three and four and." This is usually if the band s having any trouble getting the openings of the songs to sound tight. If the band is tight, all the leader needs to do is the long count of "one…..two….one, two, three, four." There the first statement of one…..two takes up four beats. It’s saying to get ready. The following one two three four means be ready. The band should then be on the same pulse on the next "one." There is nothing more pathetic to the casual listener if that is followed by silence. Learn to avoid that humiliation now. Every time you start something count it off!! Tap your foot, sing, do whatever you need to do to engage your body’s intuitive participation in the music you perform. You may not always like what you hear when you are practicing, but that’s why we call it practicing. Unlike either medical or legal practice, the idea is for you to make all your mistakes here so you don’t make them in performance. Knocking on Heaven‘s Door is a popular tune that requires only three chords and the ability to count out measures of four beats consistently. Listen to the various interpretations, and how bands exploit this simplicity through the use of dynamics, in other words, changing the overall volume without compromising the integrity of the beat. Guns and Roses do an amazing textbook illustration of how milk this simplicity dry. The first table lays out the three basic chords. G major, D major, and A minor. The G and the D will receive four beats apiece. That means they each have one measure. The A minor gets eight beats, meaning that it has two measures. Fingerings are suggestions. It turns out that there are alternatives. Talk with a teacher or another more experienced guitarist about your options. In the adjacent tables we have the appropriate scale. The song itself is in the key of G. Try playing the basic scales against the chords. Many lead lines can be derived from the A dorian mode which is onaother expression of the G scale in a different position. Don’t get discouraged if you are just beginning and you experience difficulty getting the changes smooth. Everybody goes through this. Start out by going back an forth between any two chords, keeping the rhythm. As I say often, slwo will be fast over the long haul. Set the tempo as slowly as necessary to achieve rhythmic accuracy for a while. Periodically try to force yourself to play faster. After a while, as you develop more confidence and comfort with the rhythm, "play through" errors and just make sure that you articulate the subsequent chord directly on the "one." The red notes in the G maj chord on are open strings to be played as well. G Maj [E] [A] [0] [0] [0] [E] * * * * * * *# 1 * * *# *# 2 * * * * 4 D Major *# 0 0 * *# *# * * * * * * * * * 1 * 2 * * * * 3 * A Minor 0 0 * * * 0 *# *# * * 1 *# * * 2 3 * * *# *# *# *# *# *# * * * * * * G Scale [E] [A] [D] [G] [B] [E] * * * * C * *# 1 1 1 *# 1 2 2 * * 2 2 *# *# 3 3 *# *# 4 4 4 4 4 * A dorian V fret 1 1 1 1 1 1 * * * * *# * 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 *# * * 4 4 * * * * * * *# *# *# *# *# *# * * * * * * G BARRE [E] [A] [D] [G] [B] [E] * * * * C * *# * * * *# *# 1 * * * 1 1 *# *# *# 2 *# *# * 3 4 * * * A Mi Barre V Fret 1 * * 1 1 1 * * * * *# * * 3 4 * * * *# *# * * *# *# * * * * * * *# *# *# *# *# *# * * * * * * [E] [A] [D] [G] [B] [E] * * * * C * *# * * * *# *# * * * * * * *# *# *# * *# *# * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *# * * * * * * * *# *# * * *# *# * * * * * * *# *# *# *# *# *# * * * * * * [E] [A] [D] [G] [B] [E] * * * * C * *# * * * *# *# * * * * * * *# *# *# * *# *# * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *# * * * * * * * *# *# * * *# *# * * * * * * *# *# *# *# *# *# * * * * * *