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The Smashing Pumpkins - Mayonaise - Guitar Lesson

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Key E major
The Smashing Pumpkins - Mayonaise guitar lesson video
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Classic Rock

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Mid7
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Presence5
Master7
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Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
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The Smashing Pumpkins Alternative Rock E major
Capo Advisor 0 E major · Original key

About Mayonaise

"Mayonaise" is one of the more demanding pieces in The Smashing Pumpkins catalog to get right on guitar, largely because its power comes from texture and dynamics rather than flashy technique. The song builds slowly from a clean, ringing intro through layers of distorted guitar that swell and recede, so controlling your volume and pick attack throughout is just as important as hitting the right notes. Playing in E major gives you some open-string resonance to work with, and letting those open strings ring where they fit is part of what gives the song its spacious quality. The recurring arpeggiated figures in the verses require a clean picking hand, and the transitions into the heavier chorus sections demand that you shift your whole physical approach, not just your tone. The long instrumental passage toward the end is the section most worth isolating: use the Practice Toolbar to loop it slowed down and focus on keeping the phrasing even as the guitars thicken. Patience with the quiet parts will make the loud ones land properly.

  • The song's structure moves through multiple dynamic layers, so practicing clean-to-heavy transitions is as important as learning the individual riffs.
  • Playing in E major allows several open-string voicings that add natural sustain and resonance to the arpeggiated passages.
  • The extended instrumental outro is the hardest section to pace evenly, making it a good candidate for slow, looped repetition.

How to Play Mayonaise

Key: E major · Tempo: 74 BPM

Loop each section and focus on clean, even timing rather than speed, with the metronome at 74 BPM.

Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Billy Corgan's primary weapon, particularly his late-'70s hardtail model with stock single-coils that create the Pumpkins' signature scooped, fizzy fuzz tone when slammed into a Big Muff. The single-coil bridge pickup delivers that aggressive high-end sizzle and cutting sustain central to their distorted sound.

Fender Telecaster
Guitar

Fender Telecaster

James Iha's go-to rhythm guitar, providing bright, cutting tones that complement Corgan's Strat-based layers and add definition to the band's wall-of-sound approach without sacrificing the clarity needed in their dense arrangements.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Corgan used Les Pauls with stock PAF-style humbuckers for warmer, thicker lead tones that contrast with his Strat's fizz, allowing him to shift between aggressive rhythm fuzz and fat, sustaining solos throughout the Pumpkins' catalog.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

A variation of Corgan's Les Paul arsenal, the Custom offered similar warm humbucker character for lead work while its thicker body resonance provided deeper low-end support for the band's heavier passages on later recordings.

Gibson ES-335
Guitar

Gibson ES-335

Corgan deployed this semi-hollow body for textured, slightly more organic tones that provided sonic variety beyond his Strat and Les Paul, particularly useful for cleaner, more nuanced passages that needed definition without harsh high-end artifacts.

Marshall JCM800
Amp

Marshall JCM800

The core of Corgan's distortion tone, cranked to the edge of breakup and pushed harder by his Big Muff pedal, the JCM800's natural tube compression and high-volume sustain became synonymous with the Pumpkins' crushing wall-of-sound aesthetic.

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