Pat Benatar - Hit Me with Your Best Shot - Guitar Lesson

About Hit Me with Your Best Shot

Few Pop Rock tracks from 1979 announce themselves as confidently as this one does with its opening guitar figure. Neil Giraldo drives the song from the top with a punchy, staccato riff in E major that sits right in the pocket at 120 BPM, tight enough to feel urgent without ever rushing. The challenge is not speed but attitude: every note needs a clean, clipped articulation, so focus on your pick attack and muting. The chord work throughout the verses demands a firm rhythm hand, keeping that forward momentum locked while leaving space for the vocal. If the riff is giving you trouble, use the Practice Toolbar to loop it slowed down until the pick-hand muting feels second nature before you bring it back up to tempo. Pat Benatar kept the arrangement lean, which means any sloppiness in your playing is fully exposed, so nail the fundamentals here before adding attitude.

• The signature opening riff in E major relies on precise pick-hand muting to get the staccato, punchy tone that defines the track.
• At 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, the tempo is moderate but demands strict rhythmic discipline to lock in with the drum groove.
• Focusing on clean chord transitions and consistent pick attack will get you the most mileage when practising this song.