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Old 05-26-2013, 11:29 PM
radarlover radarlover is offline
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Default tom petty G chord

I was checking out Learning To Fly by Tom Petty today and messing around learning it on acoustic. I have been learning for about 3 years now. Anyway its a very simple chord progression that I got down quickly until......I needed to do the little forefinger on off part that he does on the b string while chording a weird 3 finger g chord. I can make the chord but for some reason its a stretch for me and I cannot play that simple little progression cleanly anymore. middle, ring and pinky fingers making the chord which leaves the forefinger free to accentuate on the b string. I have been playing open chords since I started.......why is it so hard for me to play this chord? Guess it shows serious lacking of dexterity because it is really kicking my ***.
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Old 05-26-2013, 11:45 PM
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Hmm...I don't quite understand. I don't really hear anything special played with the G chord. Chords are F C Am and the G with the doubling the 5th on the B string.
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:16 AM
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from what I was seeing from him playing an acoustic version of the song he does a g chord with middle finger second fret a string, ring finger third fret e string and pinky third fret e string which leaves the forefinger free to do an on off thing on the first fret of the b string while strumming the chord. my main problem is just in making that funky g chord. I will look again but I thought I had the right chording
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:19 AM
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxXBhKJnRR8
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:24 AM
Dirk Hofman Dirk Hofman is offline
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That version of the G chord is great to learn. I resisted for a long time as well but now I did the work to get it to the point where it's totally effortless and I love it. It's just way faster in many chord progressions. So easy to go to a C, Am or a mini-barre F where you only barre the first 2 strings.

Love having that fingering in my arsenal. I use it more than the other way, and mostly use the "normal" way when I want to add the 2nd string at the 3rd fret to the voicing.
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:33 AM
robj144 robj144 is offline
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I my opinion, this is the best way to play a G. It's the only way I've played it for years and years. Just keep on practicing.
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:33 AM
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He's using his index finger to alternate between a G and a Gadd4. If you didn't learn G with your pinky, ring, and middle finger (320003) it'll just take some practice to get used to it and throwing in the 4th with your index finger.
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:39 AM
radarlover radarlover is offline
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Thanks for the replies. I have sat here for about a half hour doing nothing but that little chord progression and even though its still a stretch and feels quite awkward it is getting easier to transition between the a minor and the funky g. I am going to just play the g like this for a while to get it firmed up between my mind and my fingers. sorry it was in the wrong forum, still kinda green on this site.
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Old 05-27-2013, 02:51 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy View Post
He's using his index finger to alternate between a G and a Gadd4. If you didn't learn G with your pinky, ring, and middle finger (320003) it'll just take some practice to get used to it and throwing in the 4th with your index finger.
After watching the video, you are correct.
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Old 05-27-2013, 06:18 AM
clintj clintj is offline
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I see guitarists who can barre a G chord shape use that one too. One tip I got from a friend was to practice the open chords without the forefinger in preparation for learning that.
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Old 05-27-2013, 08:55 AM
BluesBelly BluesBelly is offline
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I play alot in the key of G as it suits my voice well, and as a blues lover and player I prefer to barre the G which allows movement in my pinkie for picking up 7th's and such. As the progression moves to C then D I use the sliding C7 chord shape for both C and D. This works great for several keys as the movement is compact. As example: slide the whole works up two frets and your in A.

When I play open chords I play the low E and A strings with my ring and middle finger respectively which allows movement in the pinkie and index finger on the higher stringsto drop from G to G7 and other variations as well.

I suppose it would be important to note that my Acoustic and Electric Guitar playing technique is similar.

Blues,

Last edited by BluesBelly; 05-27-2013 at 09:05 AM.
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Old 05-27-2013, 10:48 AM
RustyAxe RustyAxe is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by radarlover View Post
from what I was seeing from him playing an acoustic version of the song he does a g chord with middle finger second fret a string, ring finger third fret e string and pinky third fret e string which leaves the forefinger free to do an on off thing on the first fret of the b string while strumming the chord. my main problem is just in making that funky g chord. I will look again but I thought I had the right chording
That's not a "funky" G major, but a standard form, and much preferred by many of us. Work on it. You'll find transitions to other chords (F, C, Am, and many others) to be much easier.
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Old 05-27-2013, 10:53 AM
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Just takes practice as its a useful form. I wouldn't call it "Tom Petty G" since people used it for decades or more before anyone had heard of him. If you ever aspire to play "Dueling Banjos", you'll need to master it to play the guitar intro.
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Old 05-27-2013, 11:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HHP View Post
Just takes practice as its a useful form. I wouldn't call it "Tom Petty G" since people used it for decades or more before anyone had heard of him. If you ever aspire to play "Dueling Banjos", you'll need to master it to play the guitar intro.
And lots of CSN and Neil Young, and I use prodigiously in The Who's "Blue Red and Gray."

Mute the A string with your ring finger and you have both index and middle to fiddle with. A common usage is to hammer on and pull off the C chord from the G with both fingers, a la "Helplessly Hoping" and "Tell Me Why."
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Old 05-27-2013, 12:07 PM
Mellow_D Mellow_D is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dirk Hofman View Post
That version of the G chord is great to learn. I resisted for a long time as well but now I did the work to get it to the point where it's totally effortless and I love it. It's just way faster in many chord progressions. So easy to go to a C, Am or a mini-barre F where you only barre the first 2 strings.

Love having that fingering in my arsenal. I use it more than the other way, and mostly use the "normal" way when I want to add the 2nd string at the 3rd fret to the voicing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by M19 View Post
And lots of CSN and Neil Young, and I use prodigiously in The Who's "Blue Red and Gray."

Mute the A string with your ring finger and you have both index and middle to fiddle with. A common usage is to hammer on and pull off the C chord from the G with both fingers, a la "Helplessly Hoping" and "Tell Me Why."

Quote:
Originally Posted by HHP View Post
Just takes practice as its a useful form. I wouldn't call it "Tom Petty G" since people used it for decades or more before anyone had heard of him. If you ever aspire to play "Dueling Banjos", you'll need to master it to play the guitar intro.

Can anyone show a diagram or picture of what the fingering looks like for this kind of G chord you are all talking about?
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