Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven Guitar Lesson [Part 3 - Rhythm Strum]

3 years ago
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This Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven guitar lesson [part 3] will show how to play all the strum rhythm guitar parts for the rock section of the song.

Lesson Plan/Guitar Tab
https://12a8507c-516b-2ae5-5b6d-45935a0049c2.filesusr.com/ugd/6781a9_e8e86b9bdee649dcae6c0bcdbf545283.pdf

Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven Guitar Lesson [Part 3 - Rhythm Strum]
0:00 Lesson Review
0:20 Section 6
5:37 Section 6 Review
6:16 Section 7
9:53 Section 8
13:12 Practice Arrangement
14:36 Section 8 Riff
15:46 Section 9
17:01 Section 10/Ending

Stairway to Heaven Guitar Lesson [Part 1 - Fingerpick Intro]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYcXmousl_M
Stairway to Heaven Guitar Lesson [Part 2]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TN1RLWQWRsM
Stairway to Heaven Guitar Solo Lesson [Part 4]
June 22

Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven
Following the acoustic and ‘middle’ sections, ‘Stairway To Heaven’ concludes with a two-minute hard rock
finale. On the original recording of Stairway to Heaven, several overdubbed or layered guitars are played during this portion
of the song. The following sections will focus on the essential rhythm guitar parts of Stairway to Heaven arranged for one guitarist
to play.

Stairway to Heaven Song Facts
Stairway to Heaven is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in late 1971. It was composed by Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and vocalist Robert Plant for their untitled fourth studio album (usually called Led Zeppelin IV). Stairway to Heaven is often regarded as the most popular rock song of all time.

Jimmy Page on Stairway to Heaven
When asked in 1975 how important 'Stairway To Heaven' was to him. Page stated: "To me, I thought 'Stairway' crystallized the essence of the band. It had everything there and showed the band at its best... as a band, as a unit. Not talking about solos or anything, it had everything there. We were careful never to release it as a single. It was a milestone for us. Every musician wants to do something of lasting quality, something which will hold up for a long time and I guess we did it with 'Stairway.' In the same interview, Page also stated the one artist who might be capable of achieving the artistic excellence of "Stairway To Heaven" was Joni Mitchell.

Stairway to Heaven Rhythm Guitar Lesson
For the rhythm guitar section played during the Stairway to Heaven solo, most tabs show an ‘Am-G-F’
progression using barre chord shapes, however Jimmy Page can be seen in live performances
sturmming an open ‘Am’ chord shape (using the thumb to mute the sixth string), an ‘Am7/G’, and an ‘F’ chord
shape, where the thumb is used to fret the sixth string bass note. For those who find this ‘F’ chord shape
too challenging to strum, an alternate ‘F’ chord ('F/C') can be strummed instead.
On the original recording, the bass guitar rhythm is more in the forefront than the electric guitar rhythm.

This section is revisited later during the second guitar solo (7:22) as Stairway to Heaven concludes.

After the Stairway to Heaven guitar solo, the vocals begin for the last verse. Though the basic chord progression for the Stairway to Heaven Rock Section remains the
same, the palm-muting or ‘scratch’ effect is essential to playing this section 8.
One alteration made to this chord Stairway to Heaven chord progression is the passing ‘G’ chord played for just one beat prior to
r repeating the chord sequence. Though there are many options to play this ‘G’ chord, Jimmy Page can be
seen on live performances of Stairway to Heaven shifting the ‘F’ chord shape (fretted with the thumb) up two frets to play ‘G’. Another option for the Stairway to Heaven rhythm is to
simply strum the open ‘middle’ strings for ‘G’.

Stairway to Heaven Guitar Riffs
On the original recording of Stairway to Heaven, an added guitar riff is overdubbed or layered over the ‘F’ section (section 8) and
played four times. In live performances of Stairway to Heaven, Jimmy Page would play this riff in place of the rhythm chords (‘F’
and ‘G’) and often simultaneously add an octave note played on the fourth string.

Paluzzi Guitar
The objective of the Paluzzi Guitar video series is to help establish a foundation of guitar fundamentals by applying various playing techniques (rhythm, fingerstyle, and soloing) to various styles of music. The more playing styles and techniques a guitarist can learn, the more diverse and self-sufficient a guitarist will become. A self-sufficient guitarist can then teach themselves, communicate with other musicians, and even write their own music once a solid foundation of fundamentals is established.

The Creative Guitarist Method Series was written and designed by Kevin J. Paluzzi of Paluzzi Guitar Instruction in San Diego, CA. For more information on private lessons and books, go to:

http://www.PaluzziGuitar.com

Guitar Songs for Beginners Lesson Playlist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1Vw5wo4MBY&list=PLOKVJibwUTbq-06crYLBzkWfI0pVrdr4s

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