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Plays by intuition, the digit counters fall He stands like a statue, becomes part of the machineįeeling all the bumpers, always playing clean Gsus4 G But I ain't seen anything like him in any amusement hallį# That deaf, dumb, and blind kid. sure plays a mean pinballĮ F# B G D Dsus4 D A pinball wizard's got such a supple wristīridge D Cadd9 G D Cadd9 G How do you think he does it? I don't knowĪin't got no distractions, can't hear no buzzers and bellsĭon't see no lights a-flashing, plays by sense of smellĪlways gets the replay, never seen him fallīut I just handed my pinball crown to himĮnding Verse (same as normal verse, but modulated up 3 half-steps) Dsus4.
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Sure plays a mean pinballĭ D → C → F → Bb (let ring) Notes & Tabs Intro Tab x4 Dsus4 D Even on my favorite table, he can beat my bestĬsus4 C His disciples lead him in, and he just does the restībsus4 Bb He's got crazy flipper fingers, never seen him fallĪ That deaf, dumb, and blind kid. This intro tab starts with a Bm shaped chord and with each measure makes a single change, with all the while you consistently picking the same bass note. |-|-Īfter the F#, move to the Bsus4 → B progression used in the verse (which you'll repeat a few times before starting the verse proper). Here's the general chord shaping you'll want to use for the verse, as well as the second half of the intro (where the heavy strumming comes in). The most important thing here is probably voicing that added sus4 note that comes and goes, so find a chord fingering style that works for you. Also, note that this same exact approach is used for the final verse - which is modulated up 3 half-steps. basically, add 3 frets to everything you see here and you'll have it. Here's the chords for the section played at the end of each verse (immediately after ".sure plays a mean pinball"). Nothing too tricky here, though you'll need to have your barre chords down. "A pinball wizard, he's got such a supple wrist." Bridge "He's a pinball wizard, there has to be a twist." Again, listen along for the exact timing. In the bridge section, you'll want to do this simple walkdown from C to Cadd9 to G. "How do you think he- does it, I don't know." Videos Official Album Version Listen along, and check out the tutorial videos for reference. Here's a recording of the song as it appears on the album "Tommy". If you don't have a recording handy, use this for reference. Here is a terrific video of Mike Masse doing an acoustic version of this song. This is a great example of how a single guitar can still make this song rock.
#PINBALL WIZARD BASS TAB HOW TO#
If you want an in-depth look of how to play the entire song on acoustic guitar, I recommend this video.
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Each section of the song is carefully deconstructed.
#PINBALL WIZARD BASS TAB FULL#
The video quality is quite good as well.Ĭhord Progressions Intro Droning walkdown section: Bm (refer to the tab for the exact chord variations) Full strumming section: | Bsus4.
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| x4 Verse "Ever since I was a young boy." | Bsus4. | Just after the "Sure played a mean pinball." lyric | B B → A → D | E. | x2 Chorus "He's a pinball wizard, there has to be a twist." | E → F# → B B | x3 "He's got such a supple wrist." | G. | x1 Bridge "How do you think he does it, I don't know." | D D → Cadd9 → G | x4 Final Verse "Even on my favorite table." | Dsus4. | Just after the "Sure played a mean pinball." lyric | D D → C → F | Bb. The Who’s Pinball Wizard was released as a single in 1969 and reached No.
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