Blister In The Sun (perfect) bass tabs
Tabbed by Spencer
This is my absolutely perfect, note—for—note tab of Blister
In The Sun by the Violent Femmes, from their debut album. I tabbed
this because every single other tab of it is wrong.
Note: the P in the chorus means pop that note with your middle
finger. The rest of the song is played with a pick.
Notes in parenthesis are implied or ghost notes.
Intro
G———4———5—4———4———5—4———4———5—4———| 2x
D—5———5—————5———5—————5———5—————5—|
A—————————————————————————————————|
E—————————————————————————————————|
1st Verse
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————| 3x
D—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————2—————3——2—————2—————3——2—————2—————3—2—0————|
E—3—————3————————3—————3————————3—————3————————3——|
Last Verse Before Chorus
G———————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D————————————————————————————————————————————(5)————————|
A————2—————3——2—————2—————3——2—————2—————3—5————————————|
E—3—————3————————3—————3————————3—————3——————————3——3—2—|
Chorus
P P P P
G———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—————0h2———————0h2p0—————————————————————————————0h2——————0h2p0————————————|
A—————————————————————0—2—3—2—0————3—3—2—0———————————————————————0—2—3—2—3—4|
E—0——————————0——————————————————3——————————3——0—————————0———————————————————|
G————————————————————————————————|
D———3h4———3h4—0—3—0—————————————|
A—5—————5————————————3—2—0———————|
E——————————————————————————0—2—0—|
2nd Verse
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————2—————3——2—————2—————3——2—————2—————3—(x)————|
E—3—————3————————3—————3————————3—————3————————3——|
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————2—————3——2—————2—————3——2—————2—————3—2—0————|
E—3—————3————————3—————3————————3—————3————————3——|
Repeat Chorus
Drum/Bass Section (One verse then break)
1st Break: Drums
2nd Break
G———————————————|
D—5h3—0—3p2—0———|
A—————————————3—|
E———————————————|
3rd Break: Drums
4th Break
G——5————————————|(Harmonics)
D——5————————————|(Let Ring)
A———————————————|
E———————————————|
Verse (Play quietly)
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————| 8x
D—————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————2—————3——2—————2—————3——2—————2—————3—2—0————|
E—3—————3————————3—————3————————3—————3————————3——|
Repeat Chorus
Repeat 1st Verse Twice
Introduction
Blister In The Sun is a classic punk rock song by the Violent Femmes. It has a simple bassline that is perfect for beginners to learn. In this article, we will provide you with our easy to read bass tabs for Blister In The Sun (perfect) and a lesson on how to play it.
Bass Tabs
Before we dive into the tabs, make sure your bass is tuned correctly. The tuning for this song is standard E A D G.
Verse
G|————————-|
D|————————-|
A|—–0—–0-2-3-2-0—–|
E|-3-3—3-3————-3-|
Chorus
G|————-|
D|————-|
A|—–0—2—|
E|-3-3—3—3-|
And that’s it! The entire song follows these two parts. Practice each part slowly and gradually increase your speed until you can play along with the recording.
Lesson
If you’re new to bass guitar, it’s important to understand that the bass serves as the rhythmic foundation of a song. Your goal is to support the rhythm section and provide a groove for the other instruments to build upon.
Blister In The Sun has a simple bassline that follows the same pattern throughout the entire song. The verse is made up of four notes played in a repeating pattern:
A|—–0—–0-2-3-2-0—–|
E|-3-3—3-3————-3-|
These four notes are played in a loop, with the 0-2-3-2-0 pattern providing a bit of movement while the open E string adds a sense of continuity. The key here is to keep a steady rhythm and stay in sync with the drummer.
The chorus is even simpler, with only two notes:
A|—–0—2—|
E|-3-3—3—3-|
Once you have both parts down, try playing along with the song. Start slow and gradually increase your speed as you become more comfortable.
If you’re having trouble keeping in time, try tapping your foot or nodding your head to the beat. This will help you stay on track and keep the rhythm steady.
Conclusion
Blister In The Sun is a great song for beginners to learn on bass. With only two parts to remember, it’s easy to pick up and play. Remember to stay in time with the rhythm section and keep the groove steady.