How to Play Crazy on You
Today we are going to learn how to play Crazy on You by Heart! Even though this entire song is awesome, this lesson is going to focus on the main riff only. We will break it down and go over this riff in depth and discuss the techniques used and the most efficient way to play it. For this song I apply the finger per fret method. Whenever I play the 1st fret I use my 1st finger, 2nd finger on the 2nd fret, 3rd on the 3rd and pinky on the 4th fret. Or pointer on the 1st fret, middle on the 2nd, ring on the 3rd, pinky on the 4th… whatever is the easiest for you to remember it by. This way you will be able to play this really clean and I’m not moving all over the place, by keeping our hang in one spot it makes it easy to smoothly, cleanly and accurately.
Step 1: Breaking Down the Main Riff
The first step in learning how to play Crazy on You by Heart, I start with an open 5th string, then I use my middle finger on the 2nd fret 4th string to the open 4th string. Then on the 5th string pick the 5th string 3rd fret with your ring finger to the 5th string 2nd fret with your middle finger, to the open 5th string. Ending the first time through by holding the 1st fret 6th string for 3 beats and then with your ring finger pick the 3rd fret 6th string with your ring finger on beat 4. This last measure takes us back to the start of our main riff and into repeating and we are going to repeat all of this twice. For another simple, awesome riff make sure to check out my other video, how to play Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones.
Step 2: Alternate Endings
The third time through we are going to end this riff differently. Going straight to the 3rd fret 6th string and then for the fourth time through I go back to the 6th string 1st fret and the last time back to the 6th string 3rd fret. See the video at about the 3 minute mark to see my demonstrate all the endings. So just like the first time through, start with the open 5th string, then middle finger on the 4th string 2nd fret, to the open 4th string, then to the 5th string 3rd fret with our third finger, to the 5th string 2nd fret with my 2nd finger, to the open 5th string, but now straight to the 6th string 3rd fret. This time a little faster.
Then I do the same exact thing, open 5th string to the 4th string 2nd fret, to the 4th string open, 5th string 3rd fret with my third finger to the 5th string 2nd fret with my middle, 5th string open, straight to the 6th string 1st fret. So remember the last two times we leave out the zero on the 5th string. That is the big difference. For the very last time we repeat the first alternate ending. Start with the open 5th string, then middle finger on the 4th string 2nd fret, to the open 4th string, then to the 5th string 3rd fret with our third finger, to the 5th string 2nd fret with my 2nd finger, to the open 5th string, but now straight to the 6th string 3rd fret. And that’s it!
Recap: How To Play Crazy On You
This song is great. The entire song is awesome and very interesting. The Wilson sisters are extremely talented and amazing songwriters. There are so many stand out moments in this song. This riff is simple but also so catchy and very powerful. Be sure to take notes on the attitude and emotion the sisters put in when learning how to play Crazy On You. Make sure to pay attention to detail, play slow to play fast, and of course, as always, have fun!
