Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud - Guitar Cover

x (Deluxe Edition)

2014 4:42

Listen on Spotify

About Thinking Out Loud

At 104 BPM in D major, "Thinking Out Loud" sits in a relaxed, soulful groove that rewards a guitarist who can combine clean chord work with smooth voice leading. The song is built around a D, D/F#, G, A chord sequence, and the real challenge is keeping those transitions fluid enough to lock in with the gentle shuffle feel. Ed Sheeran plays it in Eb Standard tuning, so you will need to drop every string down a half step to match the recording. The right hand is where most of the work lives: a fingerstyle or hybrid-picked arpeggio pattern that needs to feel unhurried even as the chord changes come around. If the D/F# bass note or the picking pattern keeps breaking down, isolate that bar with the Practice Toolbar, slow it down, and repeat it until the movement feels natural. This is a great piece for developing clean, connected chord transitions within a Pop Rock feel.

• The song uses Eb Standard tuning, so every string is tuned down a half step from standard to match Ed Sheeran's recorded guitar.
• The core chord sequence relies on a D, D/F#, G, A pattern, making smooth bass-note transitions a key technical focus.
• The picking or strumming pattern needs to convey a gentle shuffle feel, so practise the right-hand rhythm slowly before adding chord changes.