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Uli Jon Roth - Still So Many Lives Away - Guitar Tab

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Classic Rock

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Uli Jon Roth Electric Sun - Earthquake (2023) album cover
Uli Jon Roth Electric Sun - Earthquake (2023)
1979 4:42

About Still So Many Lives Away


Few guitarists from the hard rock world made as bold a leap into orchestral territory as Uli Jon Roth, and "Still So Many Lives Away" sits right at the heart of that ambition. Originally from the 1979 Electric Sun album Earthquake, the track blends lyrical, singing lead lines with the kind of expansive, wide-interval phrasing that defines Roth's post-Scorpions style. Getting those long, sustained melodic phrases to breathe properly is the core challenge here: tone, pick attack, and finger vibrato all have to work together, and rushing any phrase kills the emotional weight. The Progressive Rock context means the song has structural surprises, so spend time mapping the arrangement before you drill individual sections. When a lead phrase isn't sitting right, use the Practice Toolbar to loop it slowed down and focus on where your vibrato starts and how evenly you're sustaining each note. Clean intonation up the neck matters far more in this style than speed.

  • Roth's signature sky-guitar style demands wide vibrato and precise intonation high up the neck, making left-hand control the main technical focus.
  • The song's melodic lead lines are phrased more like violin or vocal lines than blues-rock licks, so practice sustain and smooth legato transitions.
  • Looping individual lead phrases slowed down is especially useful here, as the long-form melodic phrasing makes timing inconsistencies easy to miss at full speed.