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The Beat It Solo
(17 May 02)
The solo
OK, first of all, here is an MP3 of a slower version of that solo. I used some delay and reverb, and this version is a few click slower than the original.
Click HERE to hear it.
And HERE is the solo at pretty much original tempo.
And HERE for a PDF version of the entire solo.
This solo was HARD to figure out, tab out and learn, believe me. Itīs not really the speed of the fast passages, itīs those gazillions of little details that are an essential part of Eddieīs sound.. he constantly adds little legato- tricks (slides, hammer onīs etc.), does weird stuff with the wang bar and plays irregular numbers of notes over the straight beats that are so typical for this Michael Jackson song. This solo really BREATHES, itīs more than just a bunch of fast notes, itīs a real statement, with wild noises and howls, more attitude than planning-ahead and accuracy.
Before we get to the TAB of the solo, here is a short excerpt of the rhythm guitar that the solo is played over. The chords are indicated in the TAB of the solo. Here are a few bars of the "Beat It" rhythm guitar, played by two guitars:
Cool huh ? Well, the trademark-thing about it is the straight "on the beat" rhythm, very computer-like, straight stuff. When Eddie comes in with his howling, whirling attitude solo itīs a huge contrast.
OK, here we go. These are the first three bars of the solo:
Eddie starts with a divebomb on the G-string, then adds some bends (to the Bb... weīre in the key of E minor, so consider it Eddies unconditional style). In bar No. 3 he plays tapped harmonics, which are one of his trademarks. If you donīt know how those work: in our example, you fret the D on the G-string. Then tap onto the fretwire exactly 7 frets above, at the 14th fret. After you hit the string pretty fast and hard, immediately take away the finger. What you should hear is a cool-sounding harmonic. This also works 5 frets above the fretted note, and 12 frets above it... notice anything ? Right, those are the distances of natural harmonics ( 5th, 7th and 12th fret )... if you would like to know more about tapped harmonics and also about other nice harmonic tricks on the guitar, stay tuned, cuz I am planning on writing another article for iBreatheMusic about it...
With the left hand, Eddie now slides up to the E and taps the same harmonic again. Since the distance now is only 5 frets, the resulting harmonic is even higher ( and harder to generate ) than the one before.
Here are the next two bars:
This is like one long string of notes, due to Eddieīs legato technique. And he certainly uses another one of his trademarks, the tapping-technique. Pay attention to the irregular note groupings ( 5 notes over one beat, 6 notes over one beat, 7 notes... ). This is hard to play exactly right, and I think itīs alright to skip or add one note or another as long as you put some attitude into that solo...
The next two bars:
Here, Eddie uses some wide intervals, utilizing the "stretch-pentatonic" ( I wrote an article about that for iBreathe too, by the way ). Itīs really tough to play all the little legato-things exactly right, but try it, itīs worth the effort...
In those next two bars, Eddie incorporates some whammy-tricks, before he goes on like this:
This is one of my favorite parts in the solo... Eddie plays some bluesy bends on the B-string, also pulling off to the open E-string, and adds an extremely aggressive pinch harmonic ( while bending up the note )... you might wanna search for the right position to pick to achieve the right pitch for the harmonic. Donīt forget that you can alter the pitch of that harmonic by picking at different positions along the string...
Exhausted, tired, frustrated ? But itīs fun, ainīt it ? I mean, there are SO many details and little things in that solo... alright, turn the page and letīs continue with the second half...
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The second half >> |
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