Earlier this year, GuitarWorld.com posted the exclusive premiere of "Bam!," a new music video by guitarist Glenn Proudfoot, who some of you might know from his insane Monster Licks lesson videos on our site.
As a bonus, the track and the video, which you can check out below, feature appearances by another fleet-fingered Aussie, the legendary Tommy Emmanuel.
Today, we bring you the complete transcription of the song, courtesy of Proudfoot, who transcribed the song himself. The high-energy, Stevie Ray Vaughan-influenced track is the first single from Proudfoot's upcoming all-instrumental album.
“This track is very important to me," Proudfoot says. "It's my homage to Stevie Ray Vaughan, and to have Tommy be a part of it makes it all the more special."
Proudfoot adds:
"I transcribed this song, and it is 100 percent accurate. But for all of you who prefer notation to tab, please forgive the note-value markers. I don't read music (I read tab only). For all the shredders out there, just follow this transcript bar by bar as it is note-for-note perfect.
"I've marked my solos with "GP 1st SOLO" and "GP 2nd SOLO." You'll notice I've transcribed my first and second solos back to back. I have left out Tommy’s solo. I suggest in that part of the song you simply comp the chords as I did; it's a standard blues 12 bar in E, albeit a fast one!
"The breakdown of this tune is not quite as daunting as it looks. There are two main riff parts, the first being the open-string riff at the start; the second is the hammer and pull section. They repeat throughout the song.
"Although they are played very fast, the actual fingerings are pretty straightforward. There's nothing there that you wouldn’t have come across before.
"As for the solos, they are all pentatonic scales. You'll notice I follow the chord progression and add notes to the pentatonic accordingly to suit the chord. For example, when the progression goes to A, I add the major 6th note to the E pentatonic (C#). The C# is actually the major 3rd in the A chord, so this gives you an A-major-sounding pentatonic while keeping it locked down in the blues tonality. Blues players do this all the time. It's a very cool sound!"
Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
