I am going to show you guys a really quick tip that’s going to change everything. If you follow it. I want you to remember the thumb trick. The thumb trick is basically this. Usually whenever you’re learning chords as a beginner, you’re learning, say for instance an A minor like this with your thumb on the back, right? And it sounds like this. You play A all not terrible, but something’s missing. Something’s off, right? Same thing with a D. It’s not bad, but there’s something weird, right? And that’s because you’re not muting. A lot of playing well is actually not playing certain things or muting stuff in this case. So I want you for all your open chords, with exception of only two types to use that thumb trick. So I want you to use your thumb trick for any chord that has a root note that is not on the E string. So a C major root note, thumb trick. Just touch the side of it. A very lightly. Don’t come around just the side. A minor, A major D major, especially D major, cuz that E does not belong in that D major chord. D minor as well of course,
Here’s what that sounds like, by the way, with the E. So get that thumb in there, get rid of it. Still aiming for the D string, my root note, but I’m now I’ve got insurance. Okay? And now that’s going to be for all of your open cords with exception of the G and the E. Okay?
For G, the root note’s right there on the E string, all bets are off. I tuck my thumb back here, get ’em outta of the way. E minor, same thing.
Same thing for E major, what your root notes are right here on the E string. Now of course this goes for any chord any open cord in which that root note does not belong on the E string. So use your imagination, 7 chord, dominant sevens, major seven, minor sevens, all of that it applies. And then the weird exception is the F. Okay? So for an F, play that power chord, I’m sorry, the bar chord in that case, no thumb, right? If you’re playing the F, like I like to play my Fs a lot, which is just kind of all that stuff in between the A, DG and B strings muting low and high E is how I’ll do that. Okay? So thumb trick for the F as well. All right, you guys. Hope that helped.
