Big Sur Moon

Big Sur Moon by Buckethead
from Colma
Cyberoctave Records 1998

Transcription by Martin Wong (martin7218@earthlink.net)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------9-9--7-7--9-9--5-5--9-9--4-4--9-9--------------------------------------
-7-7-------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------5-5--4-4--5-5--2-2--5-5--0-0--5-5--------------------------------------
-3-3-------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----9-9-12-12-9-9------9-9-12-12-9-9------9-9-12-12-9-9------7-7-11-11-7-7--
-9-9----------------9-9----------------9-9----------------7-7----------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

(don't know this part)
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7--7-7-7-7------

-----------------------------------------7-7--10-7-9-10-10-9-7-7-------------
------------------------------------7-7---------------------------7-7--------
--------------------------------7-7------------------------------------7-7---
---------------9-9----7-7-11-11----------------------------------------------
-----------9-9---------------------------------------------------------------
-7-7-10-10-------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
-9-9--------------------------------------------
-----9-9----------------------------------------
---------10-10--9-9--10-10----------------------

Big Sur Moon by Buckethead
from Colma

as tabbed by Limpy Hodzic

intro

play this very fast with delay. the delay has to repeat the thing you play about 3 times,
it´s hard to play this

next chord

next riff

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------12----------------------11------------------------------9---------------------
--------14--------14-14---------12-------12-12------------10-------------10-------10--------
---14------------------------12-----------------------10-------10-------------10--------10--

in the next riff you have to use the notes from this arpeggio to make the riff sound right.
you can do it in many different ways. Buckethead does this riff in a different way every time
he plays it

------------------------------7---10---7---------------------------
-------------------------7------------------7----------------------
--------------------7---------------------------7------------------
---------------9------------------------------------9--------------
-----------9--------------------------------------------9----------
--7--10-----------------------------------------------------10--7--

here´s how I play it:

-------------------------------------------------7---10---7-----
-------------------------------7-----------7--------------------
----------------------7-----------7-----------------------------
-------------9-----------9-----------9--------------------------
-----9----------9-----------------------------------------------
-7------7-------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------
--7----------------------------------------------------
-----7------7------------------------------------------
--------9-------9--------------------------------------
--------------------9----------------------------------
------------------------7------------------------------

An add-on to the tab by Limpy Hodzic, by Doug Cartwright

Firstly, Limpy...great tab :) This is my single favorite piece of guitar work ever. So, naturally, when I first got a guitar,
I set out to learn Big Sur Moon. And I failed. Miserably. But I kept coming back to it, and eventually I was happy
with what I could play, even though it was not perfect. For the effect, I use a Marshall MG30 amp, with the second
delay (of the four) on full, and the clean channel. This seems to make the best sound for the song that I've found, and
I actually preferred it to my mate's delay pedal I tried. However, not being the richest person in the world, I have not
much experience with delay pedals and I'm sure there are much better sounds, this is just the best I can get my hands on.
And I like it. Getting to the point, the tab appears to come to an abrupt ending. I have tried for months to work out what
that last little bit of Buckethead's recorded version is, but I have no idea. But, through noodling about, I have come up
with a few interesting things to add to the tab, in the 'up-and-down' middle section and to end it.

1. The scale to improvise around. I move between the one shown and the same scale an octave higher. As so:
e---------------------------19--22--19-------------------------------------------
B-----------------------19--------------19---------------------------------------
G-------------------19----------------------19-----------------------------------
D---------------21------------------------------21-------------------------------
A-----------21--------------------------------------21---------------------------
E---19--22----------------------------------------------22--19------------------

So you might play something like:
e-------------------------------------10s22--19------------------------------------
B-------------------------7--------7-------------19--------------------------------
G-------------------7--------7-----------------------19------19-------------------
D-------------9--------9--------9------------------------22------22---------------
A------9---------9---------------------------------------------------22------------
E---7-----7--------------------------------------------------------------19---------

2. Play about. I sometimes find a four or five note pattern that sounds really good through delay, move it to fit the scales,
and put in the middle. For example:

e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B-------------------------7h9-----7h9------------------------------------------------
G---------7h9-----7h9-7h9-----7h9---------7h9-----7h9-----------------------------
D-----7h9-----7h9---------------------7h9-----7h9-----------------------------------
A--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Play this very fast repeated a few times in the middle of an up or down run, it sounds good providing you can do it while keeping the tempo of your 'up-and-down' run.

3. How to end the song. Two different ways: My own way, or the Rock in Rio 3 way. Both of these are good.
First, the Rock in Rio way:

Start after a down run, slide up to:
e---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B---12~--12-12-14~~--12-12-15~~------12-12-14-14-12-12-15-15~~----15-15-14-14~~--12-12-14-14~~---
G---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

cont'd:
e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B---15-15-14-14~--12-12-10-10~~------s12-12-10-10~-------10-10~----------
G--------------------------------------------------12-12---------------------------
D------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Although I know for a fact this is not right, the rhythm is the same, so anyone who has heard RIR will know how to play it.
The reason I included it was simply because I really like it.

The other way is a way I made up myself through just jamming on the song. Go back into the first riff, play it once through on both chords, then go back on the first chord once and play it slowing down until you are playing very slowly, like so:
e------------------------------------------------10---------12-------14-------------
B------------------------------------------------10---------12-------14------------
G------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A-----9-7-9-7-----7----------------------------------------------------------------
E--7-----------10---10----9------10---7~~~~-------------------------------------

The last three chords just finish it off nicely played really slow and gently. The other three chords you could put there, I refer to as 'The Disney Chords' because they sound just like the end of a Disney cartoon where the hero has got the girl, and it's a happy ending.

'The Disney Chords'
e---9----------------12-------------------14---------
B--11---------------14-------------------16---------
G--10---------------13-------------------15---------
D-----------------------------------------------------
A-----------------------------------------------------
E-----------------------------------------------------

I hope this has helped you to add more of a personal touch to your rendition of this song. Good luck to everyone who tries this, it's very difficult. Also, to hear a recording of me playing this, check my band's website, http://www.tornmusic.cjb.net, and go the Jam 1 page in the discography. It will make some of the techniques a lot clearer, I hope! Sorry about the poor quality, it was through an internet mic!

as tabbed by Konyaku

First, in order to play this song properly, you have to understand how it works. The idea is to play the next note, before the last one repeats.
So, if i were to play ---3---5---7--- without the delay, with the delay it would sound like I'm playing ---3---5-(3)-7-(5)----
(the notes in brackets are the notes repeated by the delay effect) This is what gives the illusion that the song is really fast.
This sound file is me playing E---7---7---7-7-7--- first without the delay, then with it, just so you know what it should sound like.
I tabbed the song out using GuitarPro, you can download the demo of that software here
once you have the GuitarPro software installed, you can view the tab here here's an .mp3 of me playing it
send questions, comments, or corrections to phobiaz@hotmail.com