The Doors - People Are Strange - Guitar Tab

About People Are Strange

Robby Krieger's guitar work on "People Are Strange" is deceptively simple on paper but has a wiry, slightly unsettled feel that takes some care to nail. The song sits in E Standard tuning at 96 BPM, and the signature guitar figure leans on a sparse, staccato melodic line that needs to feel clipped and dry rather than smooth. Getting that tense, off-kilter quality means paying close attention to your right-hand muting and how you release each note. The Doors built the arrangement around keyboards as the harmonic foundation, so the guitar cuts through by staying rhythmically tight rather than busy. If the main riff feels slippery at tempo, use the Practice Toolbar to loop it slowed down until the picking and muting become automatic. This is a great song for studying how a guitarist shapes tone and attack within a Psychedelic Rock context where restraint does more work than speed.

• The guitar part relies heavily on right-hand muting to give the riff its clipped, tense character, so clean pick attack is more important than speed.
• Played in E Standard tuning at 96 BPM, the moderate tempo means rhythmic precision and note release are easily exposed if sloppy.
• Because keyboards carry the harmonic weight of the arrangement, the guitar needs to lock in tightly with the rhythm rather than fill space.