Easy Electric Guitar Tabs

You have learned to play the acoustic guitar, and are planning to purchase a brand new electric guitar. Before getting the electric one, you will certainly think about some electric guitar tabs.

Learning to Play the Electric Guitar

Learning how to play electric guitar is not a very difficult task. If you are familiar with the tablatures and chord positions on the acoustic guitar, you can easily set out with playing the electric guitar. Before learning to play the electric guitar, it is always better to understand the differences between the acoustic and its electric counterpart. Coming to the differences, most of the parts are same; except a few, such as the pickups, volume knobs, tone knobs, and the pickup changing switches. Open chords on the electric guitar are to be played in the same manner as in the case of an acoustic.

Specific Chord Positions on the Electric Guitar

When it comes to playing the electric guitar, barre chords come into the scene. And this is what you need to learn while brushing on your guitar lessons. However, it is not a rule that on the electric guitar, you only have to play barre chords. You can play open and barre chords on both the acoustic as well as the electric one. But barre chords are mostly intended to be used on electric guitars.

A typical method to hold a barre chord is to take the pointing finger of your chording hand and place it all the way from the first string to the last one on the same fret. The rest of the fingers are to be left in the same position on the fretboard. Therefore, in a barre chord, the first finger has to be used like a clip on the fretboard, pressing all strings in the same fret. Referring to the following comparison will help you better understand.

Comparison of an Open Chord and a Barre Chord

Open 'F' Chord

e(1st)-------------1-------------------
B(2nd)------------1-------------------
G(3rd)------------2-------------------
D(4th)------------3-------------------
A(5th)------------3-------------------
E(6th)------------X-------------------

Barre 'F' Chord

e(1st)-------------1-------------------
B(2nd)------------1-------------------
G(3rd)------------2-------------------
D(4th)------------3-------------------
A(5th)------------3-------------------
E(6th)------------1-------------------

In the above figures the first one is how an open 'F' chord is to be played. The second diagram relates to the positions of a barre 'F' chord. In the barre 'F' chord, you have to extend the pointing finger which holds the first two strings, up to the last string, on the same first fret.

Barre Chord Positions on an Electric Guitar

'A' Chord

e------------5-------------------
B----------- 5-------------------
G------------6-------------------
D------------7-------------------
A------------7-------------------
E------------5-------------------

'B' Chord

e-------------2-------------------
B------------4-------------------
G------------4-------------------
D------------4-------------------
A------------2-------------------
E------------2-------------------

'C' Chord

e-------------3-------------------
B------------5-------------------
G------------5-------------------
D------------5-------------------
A------------3-------------------
E------------3-------------------

'D' Chord

e-------------5-------------------
B------------7-------------------
G------------7-------------------
D------------7-------------------
A------------5-------------------
E------------5-------------------

'E' Chord

e-------------7-------------------
B------------9-------------------
G------------9-------------------
D------------9-------------------
A------------7-------------------
E------------7-------------------

'F' Chord

e-------------1-------------------
B------------1-------------------
G------------2-------------------
D------------3-------------------
A------------3-------------------
E------------1-------------------

'G' Chord

e-------------3-------------------
B------------3-------------------
G------------4-------------------
D------------5-------------------
A------------5-------------------
E------------3-------------------

This is the general pattern in which electric guitar tabs are to be held. However, there are many other positions on different frets that can be used to hold the same chords. Practicing with these common barre chords will certainly help you in advancing your playing skill with the electric guitar.