“Black” by Pearl Jam: Matching Tones Through Chords and Vocals

Below you'll find the chord name + figure references to the matched tone concept. This is how I hear the song, but you are free to disagree. You can even substitute your own method of vocal approach here if you'd like. An example here would be in the case of the second word of “sheets.” To mimic the vocal delivery of Vedder in this song, you'd likely find Fig. 2 the best solution. However, if you can't reach that tone OR decide that you don't want to mimic his tone, you can simply use either the Fig. 1 (low) or Fig. 2 (mid) reference as well. As mentioned in the chord reference file, when you see the “A” chord, it can be played as a simple A Major. If you want it to sound more accurate in the vocal/guitar aspect of things, practice the suspended chord movement provided further down this page.

[Intro] E – A (x3) | E <--- only applies if you are strumming this on your own

[Verse 1]

E A E AFig.1 Fig.7* Fig.2 Fig.7*Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay E A E (hold E) Fig.1 Fig.7* Fig.3 Were laid spread out before me as her body once did E A E AFig.1 Fig.7* Fig.2 Fig.7*All five horizons revolved around her soul, as the earth to the sun E A EFig.1 Fig.7* Fig.3 Now the air I taste and I breathe has taken a turn, ooh-----

[Pre-Chorus]

C Em Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 ---ooooh and all I taught her was everything C Em Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 Oooooooh, I know she gave me all that she wore

[Chorus]

D C Em Fig.9 Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 And now my bitter hands chafe beneath the clouds of what was everything D C Em Fig.9 Fig.8 Fig.4Oh, the pictures have all been washed in black - tattooed everything.

[Verse 2]

E A E AFig.1 Fig.7* Fig.2 Fig.7*I take a walk outside, I'm surrounded by some kids at playE A E (hold) Fig.1 Fig.7* Fig.3 I can feel their laughter, so why do I sear?

[Pre-Chorus]

C Em Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 Ooooooh and twisted thoughts that spin 'round my head - I'm spinning, oh oh … C Em Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 I' m spinning - how quick the sun can drop away

[Chorus]

D C Em Fig.9 Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 And now my bitter hands cradle broken glass of what was everything D C Em Fig.9 Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 All the pictures have all been washed in black - tattooed everything D C Fig.9 Fig.8 All the love gone bad turned my world to black D C Em Ph1 Fig.9 Fig.8 Fig.4 – 6 – 5 <---notice that!Tattooed all I see, all that I am, and all I'll beeeeee

D – C – Em | D – C

Em Fig. 6I know someday you'll have a beautiful life D C Em Fig.9 Fig.8 Ph1 Fig.4 – 5 – 6 I know you'll be a star (or sun) in somebody else's sky, but why

D C Em D C

Fig.9 Fig.8 Fig.4 Fig.9 Fig.8Why, why can't it be, why can't it be miiiiii---nnn-----nne?

*At this point it's all the doo doo do do doody doo stuff. The progression is a repetitive Em – D – C over and over until you reach the end. End on Em. This is also when you can work on some vocal phrasing using the tab provided below. It just repeats as you want so feel free to play it or sing it – or both!

Below you'll find a few cheat sheets, which includes the Asus2 – A – Asus4 – Asus2 – A and the actual vocal phrasing part. Here's the suspended chord part using either all downstrokes or all downstrokes until you reach the Asus4, which I recommend being played as upstrokes.

Here is the main strumming theme using all downstrokes for the suspended chord part. If you want to strum this closer to the original, the E part is D, DD, UU, DD, DU,

The next tab below will be the same thing as above, but with upstrokes being applied once you reach the Asus4 chord. I think this is the best way to play it, but that's your call:

Everything is the same until you reach the Asus4.

As far as any other part in the song, I'd recommend a standard DDD, DU pattern. When you reach the D Major I would just try to strum it once ON the bolded lyric provided from above.

Here's the basic vocal phrasing tab for the ending of the song:

I will be giving you a supplemental worksheet exlusively to practice the singing in this song during the recap, but a quick guide here is:

ALL Major Chords: lowest root and third ALL Minor Chords: lowest root and flat third

Keep this in mind: If you are looking to mimic Vedder's vocal delivery on words such as the second “sheets” and “surrounded” etc. - I would use the HIGHEST root of the E Major (open E string) accompanied with the 3rd in E Major (G#) to nail it.

Parallel Movements: When you have a transition from Em to E Major and need some assistance with that change, I would recommend JUST focusing on the change from the b3 to the 3. Avoid the root since they are the same. Listen closely to how the b3 in the Em (G) comes up in tone to the G# note in the E Major chord.

Coming UP to “C” from E Major during the “oooohh” part: I haven't address this yet, but the open C Major chord offers a nifty little trick. You can actually play octaves of the open C Major chord and make it work, so you don't necessarily need the 3rd

in C Major. The reason is this: the 1st fret B string note in C Major is considered “middle” C – just like the piano. The lowest C note in the open C Major chord (3rd fret A string note) and the middle C note played together SHOULD work just fine for you. Try it. The C Major chord is (technically) the only chord that offers a TRUE middle C note. This is one of the reasons most singing teachers will have students sing the Do Re Mi scale (C Major scale) because it gives them a fine-tuned target to hit.

Coming DOWN from “C” to Em during the “oooohh” part: This shouldn't be too hard simply because of the dynamic contrast between their tones. I'll give you some pointers on this part during the recap.

Vocal Dynamics: this is a VERY tough thing to teach, but I will approach this during a future tutorial. Unless you have a rather keen ear it will be tough to bring your voice up during the required parts for dynamics. A good rule of thumb, however, is this: songs get “bigger” (most of the time) once they reach around the middle of the song. We're looking for a climax. In the case of this song, the real climax here is when the last true chorus just keeps going. It's written in a way that the ending feels like a verse, but it really sticks to the feel of the chorus. Once you reach the SECOND “tattooed everything” you should begin getting a little angry (ha ha) and pushing those vocals. If you aren't ready for that – and again – I will ATTEMPT to help you with dynamics, you can just stay back and practice without pushing your vocals too hard. If you don't feel anything from the song itself, you won't do too well with dynamics. Dynamic singing tends to come “from the gut” and requires some diaphragmatic/ab-based practice, but it's possible. For me it depends on what song it is. I tend to do better when it's a bluesy song, but that's also because I cheat that style of music a little. I'll explain in a future tutorial.