So, you wanna play "Blew" by Nirvana? You've come to the right place. Why? Because you can go all over the internet finding tabs to play this song and almost every one of them is wrong.
Almost.
It's not my favorite song, but it's in the top ten. Also, having listened to this band for way too long (longer than they were even around), I have studied their music in my own special way, and I can say with 100 percent certainty that this tab you're about to learn is good shit.
But before we get to it, you need to drop that fuckin' D. That means lowering the top string, the low E, down one whole step to D. Now your guitar is in the Dropped D Tuning (D-A-D-G-B-E) instead of the Standard Tuning (E-A-D-G-B-E). Congratulations.
Also, you need to know the parts that the song is broken down into: Intro-Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Solo-Chorus-Closing.
Now you're ready. Here we go:
The Intro. (0:10 to 0:17) It gets you in the groove, and it's kind of the entire bass line.
Play this twice.
Play this twice.
E------------------------------------------------------
B------------------------------------------------------
G------------------------------------------------------
D------------------------------------------------------
A----0-0-3-5-6-6-5---3-3-0-3-5-5-------------------------
D----0-0-3-5-6-6-5---3-3-0-3-5-5-------------------------
The Verse. (0:18 to 0:46)(1:01 to 1:30) It's the same each time, both music and lyrics, a Cobain staple. Keep in mind that, as the melody of the lyrics go back and forth with each line, so does the guitar part. Basically the guitar is supposed to sound the same as what's being sung.
1. "And if you wouldn't mind, I would like it, Blew ..."
3. "And if you wouldn't mind, I would like to leave ..."
E------------------------------------------------------
B------------------------------------------------------
G--------------)bend(------------)bend(-----------------
D--------3-5-6/--6--6--\---5-5-3-5/--5--5----3------------
A------5-----------------------------------------------
D------------------------------------------------------
Then:
E------------0-------------------0---------------------
B------------0-------------------0---------------------
G------------0-------------------0---------------------
D----5-3-5-5--------------5-3-5-5------------------------
A-----------------0-0-0--------------------------------
D-----------------0-0-0--------------------------------
2. "And if you wouldn't care, I would like to lose ..."
4. "And if you wouldn't care, I would like to breathe ..."
E------------------------------------------------------
B------------------------------------------------------
G--------------)bend(----------------------------------
D--------3-5-6/--6--6--\---5-5-3-5-5-5-3--0--------------
A------5-----------------------------------------------
D------------------------------------------------------
Then:
E------------0-------------------0---------------------
B------------0-------------------0---------------------
G------------0-------------------0---------------------
D----5-3-5-5--------------5-3-5-5------------------------
A-----------------0-0-0--------------------------------
D-----------------0-0-0--------------------------------
The Chorus. (0:47 to 1:00)(1:31 to 1:44)(2:14 to 2:28) Here's where most tabulators fuck things up, and you can't blame them because it takes a good ear to hear this correctly when it's played live. Play this along with the video. It should sound nothing less than a carbon copy.
"Is there ... 'nother ... reason ... for your stain? ...
Could you ... 'lieve who ... we knew? ... Stress and strain ..."
E------------------------------------------------------
B------------------------------------------------------
G------------------------------------------------------
D----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-6--------------------
A----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-6--------------------
D----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-6--------------------
Then:
"Here is ... 'nother ... word that ... rhymes with shame ... "
E------------------------------------------------------
B------------------------------------------------------
G------------------------------------------------------
D----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-0-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7
A----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-0-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7
D----3-5-0--5-5-3-0--3-3-5-0--5-5-3-0-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7
The Solo. (1:45 to 2:13) This is the part of any Nirvana song that requires some explanation. Usually, Kurt's approach to a "solo" wasn't the same as Eddie Van Halen's or Kirk Hammett's. It's better referred to as the "anti-solo." Do this: take all the notes you have been using in the song so far and do two things. First, raise those notes an octave so people know you're "soloing." Second, scramble them together, not unlike how you would eggs in a frying pan, to make it sound like you're punishing the instrument you're playing, or punishing the audience who is listening to you play that instrument. Either way works, but make it sound cool.
The Closing. (2:29 to 3:12) It ends the song. Kurt wasn't much for gradual fade-outs, preferring instead to end things with a strong statement, both literally and figuratively.
Play this eight times.
"You could do anything ..."
E-----------------------------------------------------
B-----------------------------------------------------
G-----------------------------------------------------
D----0-3-5-6-6-6-0-------------------------------------
A----0-3-5-6-6-6-0-------------------------------------
D----0-3-5-6-6-6-0-------------------------------------
You're welcome.
