Livin' On A Prayer - Fingerstyle Blues Version (Tutorial + Tab)

 

 

This is my blues version of the classic rock song 'Livin' On A Prayer'. The song was originally recorded and made famous in the 80's by Bon Jovi. In my version, I have written and played it with a slower, country blues feel to it. It is a solo fingerstyle piece with the melody line incorporated into the music. This video and tab just playes through the song once, but each section can repeated as necessary for each verse and chorus

The tune is in 4/4 time and is played on a guitar in standard tuning. The tune can be quite tricky to play, especially the chorus section, which requires a wide stretch with the left hand and playing over a barre higher up the neck. However, if you are competent at playing fingerstyle guitar you should be able to play this piece with some practise. Below are some playing tips to help you:

Livin' On A Prayer Tab - Power Tab - PDF - TXT

Playing Advice

• Blues Bass Line - The original song has one of the most distinctive bass rifts in popular music. However, it has a very 'rock music' feel to it and doesn't lend itself to a slower, more bluesy adaptation. For this version, I have stripped back the bass riff and played it with a more blues feel. In addition, I have not repeated this bass riff through the verse section, as is done in the original song, as I feel the two parts clash too much with each other when played on a solo guitar. Instead I have incorporated a standard travis picking pattern which allows more emphasis to be placed on the melody line. This makes the bass part relatively easy to play in this piece and shouldn't provide many problems with a bit of practise.
  

• Adding a blues feel - The original song is very much a piece of rock music. It has the notes thundering out on the beats of the bar. However, to make this piece feel more like a piece of blues music, I have incorporated a triplet feel into it. This is where the 1/8 notes are played as a split triplet. It can be hard adapting to playing the melody like this as people are so used to hearing the original song. As such, it is very easy to play the melody without this triplet feel. However, if you practise it enough, and make sure you are playing the notes as written, you will soon get used to this more bluesy way of playing it.
  

• Big Barre -The chorus section of this tune is the trickiest part. It incoprates a wide stretch from fret 3 to 7 which can be hard to get accurate. It also has an intricate section played over a barre on fret 5. This can be tricky as it involves barring fret 5 and playing the melody section by moving the pinky. To make this easier to play, I find that when you initally make the barre (within bar 33 of the music) if you only barre the bottom 4 strings it makes it easier to access the other notes for the rest of this bar of music. When bar 34 of the music is to be played, you can then switch to barring the bottom 5 strings at this point, and that will allow you to access all the necessary notes. This section will require a lot of practise to be able to play it accurately. If you watch the video, you will be able to see my fingerings for this section.
  

• Using the Pinky - It is not only the chorus section which makes extensive use of the pinky on your fretting hand, but also the verse section too. During this, you have form an Em chord and then play the melody on top of this with the pinky. To make this easier, I recommend forming the Em chord using the index and middle fingers on your fretting hand. This allows the pinky easier access to the melody notes and allows it to move more freely between them.
  

 
This is about all I need to say about this piece.The chorus section with its wide stretch and intricate barre section makes this quite a tricky piece to play. However, with enough practise, you should be able to get it.

Thanks for Reading,
Neil