Guitar Tab Bill Cheatham- Intermediate

In this lesson of Guitar Tabs from Ultimate Guitar OnLine we will explore another of the most popular Acoustic Guitar Solos. Bill Cheatham. Nearly every flatpick guitar artist has a good version or versions of this under their belt. We have arranged and intermediate version here and also a beginner version and you can click HERE to see that version.

All of these files were authored in eMedia's Guitar-Pro. This is the favorite tab and notation authoring software for us here at Ultimate Guitar OnLine. It is filled with features and is simple to use - even without a manual. It is compatible with PC and Mac. We use it on the Mac here and it is a pleasure to use. To see a full review click HERE. Otherwise if you would like to try a free copy of it, you can download the demo HERE and use it for 15 days.

I will have three versions of Bill Cheatham TAB available.

Bill Cheatham Beginner - The First Version, This page is the first version of this song and, is an beginner version based mostly of the treble strings. While this is a simplified version of this song, it sounds great when played up to speed and gives you the "seed" for learning the intermediate version/

This song is played at about 220 to 230 bpm at full speed, so it really moves along. Be sure to capo the second fret to be able to play it in the key of A. To go to the beginner version of this song, click on Bill Cheatham Beginner.

Bill Cheatham Intermediate - Second Version: This page is the intermediate version of tablature and notation, and there are a lot more fill-ins in this song. There are long strings of eighth notes, which will not give your right hand a break, so you really have to work on strength training for your right hand on this break.

This song is played at about 220 to 230 bpm at full speed, so it really moves along. Be sure to capo the second fret to be able to play it in the key of A.

Bill Cheatham Advanced - Third Version: You will find this bread one of the ultimate challenges. It has almost everything thrown into it. We have blues riffs, triplet hammer-ons, loads of eighth notes without a break and much more.

This song is played at about 220 to 230 bpm at full speed, so it really moves along. Be sure to capo the second fret to be able to play it in the key of A. To go to the intermediate version of this song, click on Bill Cheatham Advanced.

If you are not familiar with reading Guitar Tab, click HERE for a quick tutorial. If you are not familiar with reading notation click HERE for some online lesson material we have put together. There are a few more areas that you can brush up on to really get going on this song. I have summarized them below. Just click the links and you can go to that particular article.

Having trouble with Crosspicking technique? We have a great article on Learning How to Crosspick.

Having problems with that flat pick? This article gives you lots of info on proper techniques - Right Hand Techniques.

Having trouble with the fingering? Take a look at Left Hand Techniques and get some help there.

Watch your up and down strokes carefully. It is critical that you keep them consistent. Down strokes are almost always on the downbeat and upstrokes are often on the upbeat, but not always. We have clearly shown the down and up strokes below each note in the tab. The down-up strokes are shown on the tab below the Guitar Tab staff.

If you are being challenged by crosspicking, this song will be hard for you at first. It is however an excellent song with which learn crosspicking and you will get much satisfaction once you master it. If you need help click the link above on Learning How to Crosspick.

Beginners should start this song at about 120 to 140 bpm until fully memorized and mastered. Then gradually work up to about 180 to 200. The 220 to 240 gets you into expert status territory.

Guitar Pro has a really cool feature called speed trainer. you can set a loop of accompaniment chords to be played and after each loop the speed increased by a percent that you specify. I love this feature and it gives you milestone very clearly as to you speed conditioning.

Each quarter note = one beat in the measure so there are 4 quarter notes in just about every measure.

Although this song is tabbed in the key of G major, it is most often played in the key of A Major. Therefore use a Capo on the second fret and play it in G and you will be playing automatically in A. With a Capo on the Second Fret, it tends to play a bit easier also, since the frets are closer together. Watch for this technique a lot in flatpick guitar pieces.

Make sure to memorize your songs. What is the easiest way to do this? Unless you have perfect pitch, you will have to learn one section or measure at a time. Once you can play flawlessly move on to the next measure and add it to what you have memorized. Continue this and make sure you can play the first half of the song, including the second ending.

Once you have the first half memorized, move on to the second half, doing the same thing with the second half of the song.