Chords for Van Halen “Unchained” Session was a blowout!

Tempo:
120.05 bpm
Chords used:

G

Em

Abm

Gb

E

Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Show Tuner
Van Halen “Unchained” Session was a blowout! chords
Start Jamming...
Anyway, he called me when they were doing Fair Warning, and I came here, he put the
guitar on me, he says, go ahead, play.
So I played a little, and I said, that's not as loud as my Marshall, you know.
And I said, but it sounds amazing.
I was just blown away.
I can't remember if it was the white and black guitar or the red and white one, I don't know
which one it was.
I don't remember, it might have been the red one.
And it was right over here.
The amp was sitting, the bottom was sitting somewhere about, move your hand this way.
This way.
There, somewhere over, right about there.
And I was standing here, and Ed just came and put the guitar strap over me, he says,
play.
So I played a little, and I said, that's amazing.
He said, you can touch a note anywhere, and it comes out.
And I said, I don't do the tapping.
I didn't really care, I still don't care for that style much.
It's a show-off thing, but I prefer a solo like Rishi Blackmore on Highway Star, or Jimmy
Page on Stairway to Heaven.
A real melodic solo.
And Eddie could do that.
Yeah, he could.
He could do anything.
[Em] He was the best guitar player.
I knew Hendrix from before he was Hendrix, when he was Jimmy James playing.
When you see Eddie playing [Abm] live, there's stories, fables, urban legends that he wouldn't, in
the beginning, that he would turn [Gb] his back on [G] the crowd.
He [E] did the tapping because he didn't want people to steal his technique.
[Ab] It's funny, I never, ever have thought of that until you said it.
I do remember him, when I walked up near the stage, I remember him turning a little.
I could sort of see what he was doing, but not really.
And so, but anyway, he called me that day when I came here.
And then I left, you know, we talked for a while and all that.
And then he called me one day, he says, we just finished mixing a song called Dance the Night Away.
And are you at home?
I said, yeah, I'm at home.
And he came up, I think he had a little black Volvo, I think that was his car, a black Volvo.
He pulled up on Fountain Avenue in front of my apartment.
And he says, come out to the car.
And he had a cassette.
And we listened to Dance the Night Away.
He said, we just mixed it.
And I heard it.
And I said, the guitar is way out of tune in that section in the middle where you're
going through the phase shifter.
I said, it's horrendous.
And he goes, yeah, but you know, the producer likes it.
And I like it, so the hell with it.
It was one of those moments where they both opted for, this isn't a serious Van Halen song.
And of course, Ted, of course, being a bright guy, already was thinking, radio single.
Back to this infamous Night of the Starwood, I'm obsessed with the Starwood.
All the bands that [A] came out of there, and Eddie Natt has owned it.
That's a great story.
That's my best story.
But why did you think Templeman was a good [N] fit for Van Halen?
Did you?
Because that's who you knew.
Because I knew him.
Because I knew him, and I knew that he thought Ronnie was the be all and the end all.
And just between you and me, I was a better lead player than Ronnie ever was.
But I thought he was a brilliant arranger and a guy who knew to come up with licks.
Think of all those songs, Rock the Nation, Bad Motor Scooter, Rock Candy.
That is class stuff.
Very few guitar players can come up with signature rhythm parts, and Ronnie could do it.
But anyway, so I heard Bands the Night Away.
And right after that, I was talking to him on the phone a couple days later.
This is right before the last night, for fair warning, where I came back down here at night
when they were finishing.
They were out in the parking lot by the time I got here, and I met Valerie.
This is my girlfriend Valerie.
I didn't watch TV.
I didn't even know who she was.
I just noticed that he had a bottle of Jack in his hands, and I said, that's not a good sign.
And I told him so on the phone.
And there's a story about Unchained that I'll tell you in a minute.
This is a major battle between him and Ted.
But you were second chair on fair warning also for some tracks, right?
Second engineer?
No?
No.
OK, I've heard of that.
I put my two cents in when Ted left the room during Unchained, because he had erased the
part that Eddie had done the day before.
And he was working with Ted, with Eddie, on a new part for Unchained.
And Ed was resisting.
He says, god damn it, Ed.
I still remember saying, Ted, that's what I want for the song.
It's one of the best things I've ever written.
I remember him saying that.
He said, it's an amazingly different thing, and it's great.
And the fight got crazy, and Ted left.
Stormed out [G] of Sunset, this room.
And Don was in there, and I was in there.
Ted had made me sit in that corner right there.
It was in this studio.
That was in two.
And Don was at this end of the board.
Ed was just past him, standing there with his guitar.
And the tape machine remote was there.
And what I heard later, I'm going to amend the story a little here, because I don't want trouble.
I heard that Ed did another track while Ted was gone, and that's what's on the record.
And Ted didn't even notice that it had been redone.
Or he was fed up and said, fuck it.
Let's just go with it.
[N]
Key:  
G
2131
Em
121
Abm
123111114
Gb
134211112
E
2311
G
2131
Em
121
Abm
123111114
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_ _ _ _ _ Anyway, he called me when they were doing Fair Warning, and I came here, he put the
guitar on me, he says, go ahead, play.
So I played a little, and I said, that's not as loud as my Marshall, you know.
And I said, but it sounds amazing.
I was just blown away.
I can't remember if it was the white and _ black guitar or the red and white one, I don't know
which one it was.
I don't remember, it might have been the red one.
And it was right over here.
The amp was sitting, the bottom was sitting _ somewhere about, _ move your hand this way.
This way.
There, somewhere over, right about there. _
And I was standing here, and Ed just came and put the guitar strap over me, he says,
play.
So I played a little, and I said, that's amazing.
He said, you can touch a note anywhere, and it comes out.
And I said, I don't do the tapping.
I didn't really care, I still don't care for that style much.
It's a show-off thing, but I prefer a solo like Rishi Blackmore _ on Highway Star, or Jimmy
Page on Stairway to Heaven.
A real melodic solo.
And Eddie could do that.
Yeah, he could.
He could do anything.
[Em] He was the best guitar player.
I knew Hendrix from before he was Hendrix, when he was Jimmy James playing.
When you see Eddie playing [Abm] live, there's stories, fables, urban legends that he wouldn't, in
the beginning, that he would turn [Gb] his back on [G] the crowd.
He [E] did the tapping because he didn't want people to steal his technique.
[Ab] _ It's funny, I never, ever have thought of that until you said it.
I do remember him, when I walked up near the stage, I remember him turning a little.
I could sort of see what he was doing, but not really.
And so, but anyway, he called me that day when I came here.
And then I left, you know, we talked for a while and all that.
And then he called me one day, he says, we just finished mixing a song called Dance the Night Away.
_ And are you at home?
I said, yeah, I'm at home.
And he came up, I think he had a little black Volvo, I think that was his car, a black Volvo.
He pulled up on Fountain Avenue in front of my apartment.
And he says, come out to the car.
And he had a cassette.
And we listened to Dance the Night Away.
He said, we just mixed it.
And I heard it.
And I said, the guitar is way out of tune in that section in the middle where you're
going through the phase shifter.
I said, it's horrendous.
And he goes, yeah, but you know, the producer likes it.
And I like it, so the hell with it.
It was one of those moments where they both opted for, _ this isn't a serious Van Halen song.
And of course, Ted, of course, being a bright guy, already was thinking, radio single. _ _ _ _
Back to this infamous Night of the Starwood, I'm obsessed with the Starwood.
All the bands that [A] came out of there, and Eddie Natt has owned it.
That's a great story.
That's my best story.
But why _ _ _ did you think Templeman was a good [N] fit for Van Halen?
Did you?
Because that's who you knew.
Because I knew him.
Because I knew him, and I knew that he thought Ronnie was the be all and the end all.
And just between you and me, I was a better lead player than Ronnie ever was.
But I thought he was a brilliant arranger and a guy who knew to come up with licks.
Think of all those songs, Rock the Nation, Bad Motor Scooter, Rock Candy.
That is class stuff.
Very few guitar players can come up with signature _ rhythm parts, and Ronnie could do it.
But anyway, so I heard Bands the Night Away.
And right after that, I was talking to him on the phone a couple days later.
This is right before the last night, for fair warning, where I came back down here at night
when they were finishing.
They were out in the parking lot by the time I got here, and I met Valerie.
This is my girlfriend Valerie.
I didn't watch TV.
I didn't even know who she was.
I just noticed that he had a bottle of Jack in his hands, and I said, that's not a good sign.
And I told him so on the phone. _
_ And _ there's a story about Unchained that I'll tell you in a minute.
This is a major battle between him and Ted.
But you were second chair on fair warning also for some tracks, right?
Second engineer?
No?
No.
OK, I've heard of that.
I _ _ put my two cents in when Ted left the room during Unchained, because he had erased the
part that Eddie had done the day before. _
And he was working with Ted, with Eddie, on a new part for Unchained.
And Ed was resisting.
He says, god damn it, Ed.
I still remember saying, Ted, that's what I want for the song.
It's one of the best things I've ever written.
I remember him saying that.
He said, it's an amazingly different thing, and it's great.
And the fight got crazy, and Ted left.
_ Stormed out [G] of Sunset, this room.
And Don was in there, and I was in there.
_ Ted had made me sit in that corner right there.
It was in this studio.
That was in two.
And Don was at this end of the board.
Ed was just past him, standing there with his guitar.
_ _ _ And the tape machine remote was there.
_ _ And what I heard later, I'm going to amend the story a little here, because I don't want trouble.
_ I heard that Ed did another track while Ted was gone, and that's what's on the record.
And Ted didn't even notice that it had been redone.
Or he was fed up and said, fuck it.
Let's just go with it. _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [N] _ _ _