Deep Purple - Highway Star - Chords/Rhythms - Guitar Lesson

About Highway Star - Chords/Rhythms

Few rhythm guitar parts in hard rock demand the kind of locked-in, relentless drive that "Highway Star" does. The chord work sits in G minor and leans heavily on power chords and big open voicings that need to hit with real conviction, every beat, at a punishing tempo. The right hand is the real test here: keeping your strumming tight, aggressive, and consistent without losing the groove is harder than it sounds when the song is flying. New players often underestimate how much tension builds in the picking arm over a full run-through, so stamina is a genuine concern. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the busiest sections at a reduced speed and focus on locking your rhythm hand in before you push the tempo back up. Deep Purple built the whole track on a riff-heavy, motorik feel, and that relentless forward push needs to come through in your strumming from the very first bar. Clean chord changes under pressure are the thing to chase here.

• The song sits in G minor, so familiarising yourself with the minor pentatonic and natural minor shapes in that key will help you understand the chord movements.
• Power chords dominate the rhythm part, but getting them to sound tight at high tempo requires a very controlled, consistent picking hand.
• Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the faster chord-change sections slowed down, building accuracy before bringing the speed back up.