Chords for Santana Guitar Technique in 5 Minutes

_ _ [Am] _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ _ _ [Em] _ _ [Dm] _ _ [Am] _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ _ _ [Em] _ _ [Am] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ [F#] _ _ _ _ _ _ [Am] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ [F#] _ _
_ _ [B] _ _ Ok then guys, so let's talk about Carlos Santana and run through this lick.
Now this lick, just to put you in the picture, is in the key of a Dorian.
Ok, so we're using a Dorian mode here.
Now I'll talk you through that as we go.
But essentially, the reason we can use Dorian is because of the backing track, which in
a lot of the Latin American style songs is based on a Dorian progression.
Now we're not going to go into deep, dark depths of Dorian progressions, but it's a
backing track using chords harmonised from the [A] A [F#] Dorian [A] scale.
[G] _
[F#] _ [A] _ _ [G#] _ _ And therefore we can use the A Dorian over the top.
[C] So I'll tell you as we get to those Dorian notes and we'll talk about them then.
But essentially what we've got here is starting with this opening lick.
[A] _ So I'm on [Dm] 12th fret, hammering on to [C] 14th. _
And then I'm going to go 13, _ 17, big jump, [Dm] and then 13 to 15, _ [Am] _ 13, _ _ back to the 14, and
then hammer on to the 14. _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ Ok, one more time.
Hammer on, big jump.
_ [D] _ _ _ [Am] _
_ _ _ Ok, so what I'm thinking in amongst all of that is basically pentatonic shape 4 in _ _ the
key of A minor.
Ok, [Em] so just see if you can spot that shape 4 now.
[F#] _
_ Let's go over to [G] 5, [Am] 4. _ _
_ Ok, so that's a nice rhythmical 1, 2, 3 kind of opening lick against Santana's really rhythmical guitar player.
And then we move down to this. _
_ _ [F#] _ _ And this is where we move into our Dorian sound.
[Am] So to start with this alternate picking jam thing that Carlos Santana does, _ _ _ _ [F#] _ _ _
all of [C] that
stuff is a really big part of his sound.
So this is a good time to try and get a lick down that's got that in it.
And basically we're in pentatonic shape 1 _ [Am] _ _
in A minor.
[Cm] And we're going to go from the 8th fret to the 5th fret.
We're going to pull off [Am] and _ then pick 4 times.
1, that's the pull off.
And then 1, 2, 3, 4.
Ok, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ so 1, 2, 3, 4.
Then you're going to pull off again and do another 4.
1, 2, 3, 4. _
So twice we've got this. _ _ _ _
_ _ _ And then we're going to pull off again _ but just do 2.
Ok, that's the whole bar.
So nice alternate picking. _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ Do it a bit slower.
And _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ then you're going to do 1 more pull off, _ 2 more hits, _ and then you're going to slide
from 6 to [F#m] 7.
_ And then back to the 5th fret [C] here.
So let's just get the sound of that right first.
Here it is nice and slow.
[Am] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [F#] _
_ _ _ _ [B] _ [Am] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [F#] _ _ _
Ok, so about the Dorian part.
This note is our Dorian [Bm] note.
The Dorian scale is [A] just the minor scale with a raised 6th.
So 1, [B] 2, [C] flat 3, [D] [Am] 4, [F#] 5, raised 6, [G] [A] flat 7, and then root.
[F#] So this raised 6 is this F sharp which is right here.
So if I [Bm] was just doing my normal [C] pentatonic with full scale I might do this. _
[F] _ _ _ _ [Em] _ _ _ _
[A] You know, Jimmy [B] Page style.
[F] _ _ [Dm] _ _ [G] _
_ [D] _ But for [Em] this Dorian sound, this Santana [F#] sound, we're deliberately attacking that F sharp.
[D] _ _
Ok?
And that's what makes it [Am] the Dorian.
So if you do want to learn a scale shape with regards to all of this, I would learn [B] this one.
[C] _ _
[F#] _ Which _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [A] _ is detailed [Am] on the tab.
And that's a really good start, an introduction to a Dorian.
So the whole thing all together goes like this. _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [A] _ _ _ And there we have it.
So alternate picking, Dorian scale, and a very smooth kind of tone.
Overdriven but very, very smooth from the guitar.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _