The Doors - Roadhouse Blues - Guitar Tab

Morrison Hotel

1970 4:04

Listen on Spotify

About Roadhouse Blues

Few songs in the Psychedelic Rock canon put a guitarist to work quite like this one. The driving engine of "Roadhouse Blues" is a relentless, raw E blues riff that sits right in the pocket at 96 BPM, and keeping it locked and greasy for the full length of the track is harder than it sounds. You are playing in E minor in standard tuning, which means open strings are your friends, but the real challenge is maintaining that loose, almost sloppy swagger without letting the groove collapse. The riff itself is built around low-string hammers and a bluesy chromatic walk, and the right hand needs to stay heavy and confident throughout. New players tend to rush it or over-clean it, so use the Practice Toolbar to loop the opening riff slowed down until the feel is in your hands before bringing it back up to tempo. The Doors recorded this with a stripped-back, live-room energy that rewards any guitarist who commits fully to the groove over precision.

• The signature riff is a low-E blues figure with chromatic passing notes, playable entirely in standard tuning with open strings doing much of the heavy lifting.
• At 96 BPM the groove demands right-hand consistency throughout, making stamina and pick control as important as knowing the notes.
• The biggest technique trap is over-tidying the riff: the recorded version has a raw, behind-the-beat feel that you need to let breathe.