In 1982, producer Mike Varney brought a young guitar player from Sweden to the US after hearing an impressive demo tape. Yngwie Malmsteen proceeded to set the guitar world on fire with his mind-boggling weep-picked arpeggios and neoclassical rock arrangements inspired by virtuoso violinist Niccoló Paganini. Malmsteen released his debut album, Rising Force, in 1984. Many guitarists consider this album the beginning of the neo-classical rock movement that continued throughout the ’80s.

TUNING
Malmsteen played all the guitars on this track and routinely tuned down a half step (low to high: E♭–A♭–D♭–G♭–B♭–E♭). Notice that Gtr. 4 is not only tuned down a half step, but also in Drop-D (D♭–A♭–D♭–G♭–B♭–E♭).

INTRO
The tune begins in the key of A minor with a quartet of guitars arranged in a Baroque style. The influence of classical music is a signature part of Malmsteen’s style. All four guitars are nylon-string acoustic guitars. For Gtr. 1, place your pinky at the ninth fret and your index finger in fifth position. On the third beat, shift up to seventh position and then up to ninth on beat one of the next measure. On the “and” of beat two in measure three shift down to seventh position and then to sixth for the trill. A trill is when you play a series of rapid hammer-ons and pulloffs for the duration of a note. You will notice the small numbers directly next to the notes; these are left hand finger numbers and will help guide you for fingerings. In measure 7, Gtr. 1 and Gtr. 2 play a swept arpeggio that is harmonized in thirds. To play these hold down all three notes of the triplet and drag your pick over the strings without letting them ring. You want the pick to move in a continuous motion and make sure your pinky and ring fingers roll off the strings. Keep your index finger anchored on the first string.

TURN IT UP
Things pick up in measure 8 when the distorted guitars (Gtr. 5 and Gtr. 6) come in. Gtr. 5 plays an open A5 chord and on beat 4 both guitars begin a melodic passage. Malmsteen’s vibrato can be very wide, so we have shown that here with larger vibrato markings. Gtr. 6 plays a tapped arpeggio outlining a C major chord in measure 12. After you hammer-on the G on the first string at beat 2, take your middle finger on your pick hand and tap a C at the 20th fret and then pull off to the E at the 12th fret.

Three measures later, Gtr. 6 plays a fast scalar run that is based on the A Harmonic Minor scale (A–B–C–D–E–F–G#) A common but subtle change that Yngwie often adds is including a G natural passing tone in the lick. Fig. 1 shows the fingering for A Harmonic Minor used in this lick. This pattern comes up again in the fourth and twelfth measure of section B and in the fourth and eighth measures of section C.

Section B begins with a tempo change and Gtr. 5 introducing the main riff of the tune that will appear throughout. Gtr. 7 enters with Riff B that is harmonized with Gtr. 5. After the second time through Riff B, Gtr. 2 enters and plays another passage using the Harmonic Minor scale. At the beginning of section D, the band plays a stop-time riff while Gtr. 5 plays a series of short open A5 chords.

Pay attention to the staccato markings below the notes. Play this chord with your index finger and mute the strings in between the beats with the other fingers of your fretting hand. In measure 5, Gtr. 6 and Gtr. 7 play a string of sixteenth-notes that follow a repetitive pattern. Play the first note of each beat with your index finger.

GUITAR SOLO
The guitar solo at letter E begins two measures earlier with a huge 1 1/2 step bend on the 21st fret. Malmsteen plays some huge bends in this tune. This means that it is very likely that he uses extremely light strings and has his vibrato springs cranked very tightly. Again, Malmsteen goes back to the A Harmonic Minor scale for the first five measures of the solo. Check out Fig. 2 to help you with a scale fingering that will help you visualize and learn this section.

There is a key change at letter F to the key of D minor and Gtr. 8 comes in with some sustained chords and then transitioning into a group of arpeggios that includes an Eo7 chord. The o symbol indicates a diminished chord. The basic formula for a diminished chord is root –♭3rd –♭5th –♭♭7th. In the key of E this chord would be E–G–B♭–D♭. The cool thing about these chords is that since each note is a minor third away from its neighbors, any note in the chord can function as the root.

The synth solo comes in at letter G and is supported by Gtr. 5. After the first eight measures, Gtr. 6 and the synth trade four-measure solo sections. For these sections, Malmsteen relies on the D Natural Minor scale (D–E–F–G–A–B♭–C). Fig. 3 gives you good fingerings for this scale.

Another key change at letter H moves things back to the original key of A minor. Gtr. 5 reprises the riff from letter B that is based on E, the major V of the key. At measure 16, it resolves to the I chord. The band plays a series of breaks at letter I and Gtr. 6 plays several passages that mix sixteenth-notes with quintuplets. As with any technically demanding music, the key here is to start slow and practice with a metronome.

Want more? Check out these cool links at guitaredge.com

• Get more Yngwie Malmsteen tab and video lessons at guitarinstructor.com
• Get the Yngwie Malmsteen Anthology tab book at musicdispatch.com
• Download “Evil Eye” from iTunes
• Check out the Fender Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Guitar

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