Slash - Style

In the second half of the 1980s, a crazy figure in sunglasses, a top hat, a fake Gibson Les Paul and a pile of Marshalls stunned the music world. With their debut album 'Appetite for Destruction', the dexterous Slash and his friends in Guns N' Roses took the perfect step into the hard rock and heavy metal genre in 1987. The iconic riff and solo of 'Sweet Child O' Mine' demonstrate very well what Slash stands for: a rock-solid technique and a good ear for melody.

Practice

In the second half of the last solo of 'Sweet Child O' Mine', Slash leaves the beautiful playing over the different chords behind and switches to a higher gear. The lick we are about to watch takes place in the first position of E minor pentatonic.

Lick

The lick in the tablature below is based on the pattern Slash uses to ascend within the position. If you look closely, you can see he uses the same principle all the time and doesn't play over a specific chord (the lick sounds good over different progressions): hammer-on, two notes, pull-off, two notes, ... This way of playing gives you a lot of possibilities to make your licks longer and to build up to a high note.

What should I pay attention to when playing this lick?

1. Make sure you understand the pattern he is using. This will make you memorize the lick faster (instead of always having to look at the tablature);

2. Pay attention to the correct execution of legato techniques such as hammer-ons and pull-offs. Try to push your string in well at the hammer-ons and make sure you relaunch your string by pulling it in slightly before releasing it at the pull-offs;

3. Study the tab at a steady pace and learn the lick in groups of 8 notes, this is the number of notes Slash shifts with in his lick.

If you have any questions or remarks, ask them at the bottom of this blog or in our forum!

Good luck!

Jeroen for GuitarTabs