Eric Johnson - Cliffs Of Dover Pt.2 - Verse & Chorus - Guitar Lesson

About Cliffs Of Dover Pt.2 - Verse & Chorus

The verse and chorus sections of "Cliffs of Dover" sit at the melodic heart of what Eric Johnson built across this piece. In G major at 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, these sections demand clean pentatonic runs delivered with near-perfect pick attack, since Johnson's tone is unusually transparent and any sloppiness in your picking hand is immediately audible. The verse melody calls for smooth legato phrasing mixed with picked notes, so you need to keep your fretting-hand pressure consistent to avoid uneven volume across the line. The chorus lifts into wider melodic leaps that test your ability to shift positions fluidly without breaking the flowing feel. Both sections reward slow, focused repetition before you attempt them at full tempo. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop individual phrases slowed down, isolating exactly where your pick or fret hand loses control before stitching the full section together. This is patient, detail-oriented work rather than speed-first practice.

• The song sits in G major with E Standard tuning, so no retuning is needed, but clean intonation across position shifts is critical.
• Johnson's picking style blends picked notes and legato hammer-ons in the same phrase, requiring deliberate control of attack consistency throughout.
• Slow the verse melody right down using the Practice Toolbar to isolate where legato and picked transitions lose evenness before building back to 120 BPM.