TOTAL GUITAR MARCH 202062
THE
FATHER OF
ALL VIDEO
LESSONS
Five easy riffs from
Green Day's latest.
Learn with TG's slowed
down videos!
01 FIRE, READY, AIM
Section Full band intro + verse
Appears at 0:06-0:31
Original tempo 156 bpm
Key C# minorN
o surprises here – it’s punky downpicked
powerchords all the way and one easy
shape is all you need. But if you’re
thinking there must be more to it than that,
well, yes, admittedly you’re right! Like a lot of
punk guitar, the real challenge here is the
speed. Getting those powerchord changes
sounding smooth and tight might just take a
bit of time. Time-honoured advice is to practise
slowly, but this is punk rock, so why not just
blast it out quick instead?04 SUGAR YOUTH
Section Intro
Appears at 0:00-0:10
Original tempo 178 bpm
Key F# minor / F# DorianY
ou’ll be blasting this raucous rocker out
at a breakneck 178 bpm, so you may
need to practise slowly. The four main
powerchords are easy peasy but take care as
you reach the end of the riff – like Meet Me On
The Roof, there’s a rest to throw out your
timing. You’ll be downpicking throughout
so try ‘ghosting’ a downstroke on the rest- simply pick but don’t hit the strings.
The constant motion will help you
maintain your timing.
02 MEET ME ON THE ROOF
Section Intro/verse
Appears at 0:00-0:10
Original tempo 172 bpm (swung 8ths)
Key C# minorT
hese four barre chords will take you right
the way through the intro and verse. You’ll
be strumming rather than downpicking,
but don’t be fooled – they’re all played with
Billie’s typical tight delivery. After the first
downstroke on each chord, there’s a short
pause (aka rest). “What’s so hard about a
pause?” you say. Well, it’s not just a matter of
stopping playing! This briefest of rests is a kind
of musical punctuation mark and you’ll need to
bring the next chord in bang on time.03 STAB YOU IN THE HEART
Section Main riff
Appears at 0:15-0:31
Original tempo 150 bpm
Key E dominant blues progressionG
reen Day often tread a line between
Chuck Berry-inspired rock ’n’ roll and
straight ahead punk rock attitude. This
riff is definitely on the more traditional side,
outlining a blues progression that’s as old as
the hills – the good old I-IV-V (said ‘one-four-
five’). The initial part of the riff has the most
notes, but the sparse ending has its own
challenge, as all that sonic space makes it easy
to lose your timing. Listen to the count on our
slow play through to develop your feel.05 TAKE THE MONEY AND CRAWL
Section Main riff
Appears at 0:19-0:29
Original tempo 148 bpm
Key F# minorO
ne of the easiest riffs on Father Of All
Motherf*ckers, here you can play each
two-note powerchord using just one
finger – and it should be fairly easy to work out
which digits to use. The space between the
2nd and 4th frets means you’ll probably find
it most practical to use your first and third
fingers. From there, your next task is to get
a feel for the rhythm and, once again, the
all-important rests. Use downpicking
for a punchy, punky feel.COVER FEATURE
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