Walk of Life - What B chord do you play?

[SprintBob]

I started to learn the Dire Straits/Mark Knopfler song Walk of Life this week. Always one of my favorites so fun for me to learn. The chord progression is a simple E-A-B. B in it's many forms is always a challenge for me.

In one notation for the song I am using, B is played as barre fingering the D, G, and B strings on the 4th fret with the ring finger and playing the A string on the 2nd fret (B note) with the index finger. I've never played that fingering and it's quite a challenge for me. In the same notation, a fingering for the B7 chord is also used but it's different than the one I have learned up to this song. The fingering for that version is to barre the A, D, and G strings on the second fret with the index finger and to play the D and B strings on the 4th fret with the ring and pinky respectively.

I've been using the B7 I am familiar with (finger the A, G, and (high)E strings on the 2nd fret and the D string on the first fret) everywhere in the song a B is called out and it actually sounds fine. There is another B chord I know how to play that consists of playing the high E string on the 2nd fret and barre fingering the D, G, and B strings on the 4th fret but it does not sound right with the song to me.

Just wanted to compare notes with others who might play this song and how they manage the B chord. The two forms of B7 above are relatively easy for me to play, the first barre version I described is very difficult.

Thanks for any feedback!

[Kerbie]

Don't play this particular song, but if a B is called for, I usually play the 5-string bar chord in the second fret, an A-shape... X24442.

Since both are major chords, you can certainly substitute a B7. I usually use the B7 in the first fret... X21202... or the 4th fret... XX4445.

A lot of people struggle with the bar chord with the ring finger barring 3 strings. I'm a big believer in substituting chords or even playing partial chords when necessary... just gives a different voicing and sometimes makes the song much more playable.

[Pixelfergus]

I don't know if this will work but an easy B chord is XX321X (5th fret)
if you are strumming mute the e string with your pinky, it
sounds pretty nice because it's open strings

[SprintBob]

Thanks for the suggestions. I tried the A shape barre fingering with the 2nd fret barre. It sounded fine with the song but the B7 seems easier for me to work with at this point but I am going to keep practicing the song with both versions. The 5th fret variation is an easy chord to finger but its sound did not fit with the song. Nice one to know for my chord kit though.

[Hotspur]

Originally Posted by SprintBob

Thanks for the suggestions. I tried the A shape barre fingering with the 2nd fret barre. It sounded fine with the song but the B7 seems easier for me to work with at this point but I am going to keep practicing the song with both versions. The 5th fret variation is an easy chord to finger but its sound did not fit with the song. Nice one to know for my chord kit though.

You're eventually going to want the barre-chord 7th shape (x24242) because it's fully moveable. But "eventually" isn't "now, for this song" so I'd keep practicing it and not worry about it so much.

Also bear in mind that often (but not always) you can just play a major chord instead of a 7th chord for a "close enough" version of the song. It will very rarely sound "wrong."

And if you get into fingerpicking you'll find that you notice the different voicings more. eg, I wrote a song that only worked (fingerpicking) with a D chord done x254232 (that's a c-chord barred up two frets). This stuff matters less when you're strumming.

[macmanmatty]

Originally Posted by kerbie

A lot of people struggle with the bar chord with the ring finger barring 3 strings.

I'm that group which is why when I play a standard B chord 225552 I use my index, ring and pinky finger index finger makes the barre, ring finger 5th fret 4th string, and pinky 5th frets 3rd and 2nd strings

[RedJoker]

Originally Posted by kerbie

Don't play this particular song, but if a B is called for, I usually play the 5-string bar chord in the second fret, an A-shape... X24442.

...

A lot of people struggle with the bar chord with the ring finger barring 3 strings.

I'm a beginner in the process of learning this and I find it easier to use my pinky instead of my ring finger for that A-shape bar. I think it has to do with the fact that I can get a little bit of 'back-bend' out of my pinky so I'm not muting the high e string. Plus, it's less of a stretch for me.

I'm using it to learn 'One Particular Harbour' from Jimmy Buffett. The beginning is a rapid E - A - B chord series so I can just use that pinky bar for both A and B, making it easier to slide up and down the neck.

[Carbonius]

I don't know the song but here is how I often face E-A-B.

I'll play this so I'm in one spot on the fretboard;
E A B
0 0 0
x x x
9 9 8
9 7 9
7 0 x
0 x 7

I may play the B string for the E chord but I usually let the finger on the G string mute the B string for all of these chords.

Another option is to slap a capo on the 2nd fret and then play D-G-A. The D chord capo-ed will sound quite different then the E open as the low note won't be there. May be able to play a D/F#... depends on the song.

I would opt to use a drop D capo in this situation and play the D for E but the drop D capo will give you that low note and the chord sounds awesome. You then play G and A the way you would with a normal capo.

You don't need to buy a drop D capo, just take a spare one (or buy a normal one) and cut out rubber area above the low E. It is a wonderful tool to use .

Good luck with it all.