Chord help

[Phoneboy]

Hello all.

I have been trying to find the finger pos for a Bm/Ab and Bm/A. All of the chord sites I've chkd do not show these chords. Can someone here lend a hand?

Thanks

[Phoneboy]

This the song I'm trying to play. I can't seem to find them on the Web or on the neck.


[D]It's a little bit [Gmaj7]funny, this[A] feeling in[F#m]side
[Bm]I'm not one of [Bm/A]those who can [Bm/Ab]easily hi[G]de
[D]I don't much [A]money, but, [F#]boy if I [Bm]did
[D]I'd buy a big [Em7]house where [G]we both could [A]live

[Hugo H]

Those are slash chords. Bm/Ab means you play a Bm chord and add on Ab as a bass note.

It's common on a piano, especially for someone like Elton.

[Phoneboy]

Originally Posted by Hugo H

Those are slash chords. Bm/Ab means you play a Bm chord and add on Ab as a bass note.

It's common on a piano, especially for someone like Elton.

Thanks

[bennychico11]

basically in this case you're just playing a decending bass line (very very common in a lot of songs)
So on the second line the bass line goes...B, A, Ab, G

[Phoneboy]

Originally Posted by bennychico11

basically in this case you're just playing a decending bass line (very very common in a lot of songs)
So on the second line the bass line goes...B, A, Ab, G

Gotta learn that fretboard.

Thanks

[fraserhutch]

Um, please, that's quite annoying, that should be bm/g#.

Ab does not belong in any incarnation of bm.....

[bennychico11]

Originally Posted by fraserhutch

Um, please, that's quite annoying, that should be bm/g#.

Ab does not belong in any incarnation of bm.....

eh, not necessarily. Chords are built on triads, so it's understandable why Ab would have been written instead. They also could have just written Ab (G#) fully diminished 7th...but I think that would have taken away from the emphasis of the decending bass line.

[TuoKaerf]

It should also be noted that slash chords indicate an inversion most of the time.

[bennychico11]

Originally Posted by TuoKaerf

It should also be noted that slash chords indicate an inversion most of the time.

yeah, which is really what they were going for. It's sort of a B diminished 7th chord in third inversion, except the fifth isn't lowered. Again, the only important thing they are trying to emphasize is the decending bass line...it's just a Bminor chord with passing tones in the bass.

[Nick98338]

Originally Posted by Hugo H

Those are slash chords. Bm/Ab means you play a Bm chord and add on Ab as a bass note.

It's common on a piano, especially for someone like Elton.

The added note, after the slash can be an added bass note, or anywhere else you can find it. Sometimes guitar players can't get to the note on one of the lower strings. And, sometimes the note listed after the slash will be played instead of a note that is in the chord.

[fraserhutch]

Originally Posted by bennychico11

eh, not necessarily. Chords are built on triads, so it's understandable why Ab would have been written instead. They also could have just written Ab (G#) fully diminished 7th...but I think that would have taken away from the emphasis of the decending bass line.

Uh, no, I don't think so.

And it would be G$ half-diminished. Fully diminished would have an f natural.

[fraserhutch]

Originally Posted by bennychico11

it's just a Bminor chord with passing tones in the bass.

Now, THAT'S exactly what it is.

[bennychico11]

Originally Posted by fraserhutch

Uh, no, I don't think so.

And it would be G$ half-diminished. Fully diminished would have an f natural.

you're right...half...sorry, i saw it in my head but typed it wrong.


it's another one of those "What's written on paper or layed out on the keyboard is different than what you hear." You just gotta keep it all in context.

[TuoKaerf]

It can get frustrating when you spend 4 years studying music theory, only to throw it all out the window when you start using it practically .

[fraserhutch]

Originally Posted by TuoKaerf

It can get frustrating when you spend 4 years studying music theory, only to throw it all out the window when you start using it practically .

Why are you throwing it out the window? I use it everyday, regardless of the genre....

[gordone]

This is pretty easy - Just play a Bm with a barre on the 2nd fet (so it's an Am form). You only need to barre strings 1-5 so you're fingertip of your index finger can be on the 5th string. Now to get to Bm/A, just lift up your index finger off of the fifth string. You probably won't have time to hit the first string so don't worry about the fact that it is now open. Then to get to Bm/G#, use your thumb on the sixth string, 4th fret. For the Bm/G (which is really a Gmaj7), move your thumb to the 3rd fet (still on the sixth string)

Hope that helps! I used to play this song on the piano YEARS ago, but never really tried it on the guitar.

For all your theory weenies (myself included) someone came up with chords for a bunch of Peter Gabriel songs back in the mid-90s(about the time I got on the net) and this dude was definetly in need of some basic chord construction lessons - The song would be in D, and he would write D/Gb or Gbm7. It was excruciating to follow :-)