Check this free guitar lesson from Guitar Control featuring instructor Jon MacLennan on How to Play Message in a Bottle by The Police. With the step by step video instruction and the free included guitar tabs you will have this classic under your belt in record time.
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Introduction
Hey how’s it going? My name is Jon MacLennan. Thanks so much for joining me in my studio today. I want to break down this classic guitar lick in a song called Message In A Bottle by The Police. So let’s zoom in and check it out.
Message In A Bottle Riff
This rhythm part is a great finger stretching exercise for playing minor 9 and add9 chords. You start with your first finger on the fifth string fourth fret then you can either play your second finger, I believe Sting uses a second finger, but I use my third finger that’s what feels comfortable for me, I can play it this way, but this was played just as comfortable, so either 1 3 4 or 1 2 4. Each note goes down to the next string, so I’ve got 4 6 & 8, you really want to work on just stretching out your fingers, four six eight then you move up to the sixth string and play five seven nine. All I’m gonna do for this song is move this shape around, which is almost just like a power chord for you rock players that play a lot of power chords. You’re gonna take that power chord now and you’re gonna add a whole step above this note here, you know one fret in between and go down one string and then just throw your pinky on it cuz Andy Summers would play chords like that and it’s a great chord for practicing stretches.
