How to Play The Man Who Sold Chords the World by David Bowie on Guitar

The Man Who Sold the World is a song by David Bowie, released in 1970 on his third album of the same name. The song is a psychedelic rock ballad that explores themes of identity, alienation, and existentialism. The song has been covered by many artists, such as Nirvana, Lulu, and Midge Ure.

If you want to learn how to play The Man Who Sold the World by David Bowie on guitar, you will need to know some basic chords, strumming patterns, and guitar licks. In this article, we will show you how to play the song in the key of A, using a capo on the second fret. You can also play the song in the original key of C#m, without a capo, by using the same chord shapes and moving them up four frets.

Chords

[Intro]
                           x6
eb|-------------------------|-----------------|
Bb|-------------------------|-----------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2---------------|
Db|-------------------------|-----------------|
Ab|-------------------------|-----------------|
Eb|-------------------------|-----------------|
 
 
[Verse 1]
 
                    A
We passed upon the stairs
                    Dm
We spoke of was and when
            A
Although I wasn´t there
                  F
He said I was his friend
                    C
Which came as a surprise
              A
I spoke into his eyes
                    Dm
I thought you died alone
                     C
A long, long time ago
 
 
[Chorus 1]
 
           F
Oh no, not me
   C#                F
I never lost control
          C        F
You're face to face
         C#               A
With the man who sold the world
 
 
[Interlude]
                           x6
eb|-------------------------|-----------------|
Bb|-------------------------|-----------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2---------------|
Db|-------------------------|-----------------|
Ab|-------------------------|-----------------|
Eb|-------------------------|-----------------|
 
 
[Verse 2]
 
                         A
I laughed and shook his hand
                 Dm
Made my way back home
                         A
I searched for form and land
                       F
For years and years, I roamed
                     C
I gazed a gazely stare
                     A
At all the millions here
                  Dm
I must have died alone
                     C
A long, long time ago
 
 
[Chorus 2]
 
               F
Who knows, not me
  C#                F
I never lost control
          C       F
You're face, to face
         C#               A
With the man who sold the world
 
 
[Interlude]
 
eb|-------------------------|
Bb|-------------------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--| x4
Db|-------------------------|
Ab|-------------------------|
Eb|-------------------------|
 
 
[Chorus 3]
 
C              F
Who knows, not me
    C#              F
We never lost control
         C       F
You're face, to face
         C#                    A
With the man who sold the world
 
 
[Interlude]
 
eb|-------------------------|
Bb|-------------------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--| x8
Db|-------------------------|
Ab|-------------------------|
Eb|-------------------------|
 
 
[Solo]
 
eb|------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Bb|------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Gb|-/10-----9-9-9-9-9------|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|
Db|------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Ab|------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Eb|------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
 
eb|---------------------------------------------------|
Bb|---------------------------------------------------|
Gb|-/10----10-10-10--10-10-9-7--7-7-7-7-/9-9-9-9-9-9--|
Db|---------------------------------------------------|
Ab|---------------------------------------------------|
Eb|---------------------------------------------------|
 
eb|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Bb|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|
Db|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Ab|-------------------------|-------------------------|
Eb|-------------------------|-------------------------|
 
eb|---------------------------------------------------|
Bb|---------------------------------------------------|
Gb|-/10----10-10-10--10-10-9-7--7-7-7-7-/9-9-9-9-9-9--|
Db|---------------------------------------------------|
Ab|---------------------------------------------------|
Eb|---------------------------------------------------|
 
eb|-------------------------|-------------------------|-----------------|
Bb|-------------------------|-------------------------|-----------------|
Gb|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2--2--2--0----2h3p2--0--|-2---------------|
Db|-------------------------|-------------------------|-----------------|
Ab|-------------------------|-------------------------|-----------------|
Eb|-------------------------|-------------------------|-----------------|
 
 
*****************************
 
| /   Slide up
| h   Hammer-on
| p   Pull-off
 
*****************************

Strumming

The song has a moderate tempo of 120 bpm, and uses a simple strumming pattern of downstrokes and upstrokes. You can use this pattern for each chord:

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & D D U D U D U

You can also accent the first and third beats by strumming harder or softer on those beats. This will create a more dynamic feel to your playing.

Licks

The song also features some guitar licks that add some melody and interest to the chord progression. These licks are played by the lead guitar over the rhythm guitar. Here are some examples of the licks used in the song:

• Intro lick: This lick is played over the A7 chord at the beginning of the song. It uses hammer-ons and pull-offs to create a smooth sound. You can play it like this:

e|—–5—5-5—–| B|-5—5h7—5h7-5-5—5-3—3—3—3-3—3-3-| G|-6h7———————4h6—————–| D|———————————————| A|———————————————| E|———————————————|

• Verse lick: This lick is played over the Dm chord in each verse. It uses slides and bends to create a bluesy sound. You can play it like this:

e|-9/11-12b14r12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9-| B|————————————————————————————–| G|————————————————————————————–| D|————————————————————————————–| A|————————————————————————————–| E|————————————————————————————–|

• Chorus lick: This lick is played over the F chord in each chorus. It uses double stops and vibrato to create a country sound. You can play it like this:

e|-10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10-| B|-10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12-| G|—————————————————————| D|—————————————————————| A|—————————————————————| E|—————————————————————|

Conclusion

The Man Who Sold the World by David Bowie is a great song to learn on guitar, as it teaches you some basic chords, strumming patterns, and guitar licks. You can play the song in different keys, depending on your preference and vocal range. You can also experiment with different variations of the chords and licks, to make the song your own. The most important thing is to have fun and enjoy playing this classic song.