Eagles - Hotel California Solo Guitar Tab With Backing Track

Hi everyone, here's my play-through demonstration with tab of one of the most iconic guitar solos ever: Hotel California by Eagles. I've also included the backing track for you to play along to once you've learnt the solo.
If you've found this video useful please subscribe to the channel for more similar content as well as general guitar tips, tricks and lessons.
please note this video is intended for educational purposes only

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi everyone, thanks for checking out this video and I hope it’s helped you learn one of the best guitar solos of all time! When I first posted this I barely expected to get 500 views so it’s awesome to see how many of you have found this video useful. I’d be really grateful if you could subscribe to the channel - I’m sure you’ll find plenty of other guitar-related content that you’ll enjoy! I post transcriptions, guitar exercises, longer in-depth lessons and quick tips and tricks as well as a whole bunch of general guitar nonsense in my KZbin shorts. As for this video, please see my answers below to some frequently asked questions: - The black band on the first fret is a string dampener, it’s there to help eliminate unwanted string noise/resonance. It’s not necessary but it just means you can put all your energy into playing expressively without worrying about background string noise. - For the guitar tone, I used a Fender Deluxe amp sim with the treble at 7 and bass at 5. I've stuck a compressor and EQ pedal (boosting mids a little and highs a little more) before a tube-type overdrive pedal which is dialled in around halfway on drive and slightly above the mid-point on tone. Finally, a very subtle 1/8 note delay and small amount of reverb to taste (I used the spring reverb from the amp sim). One of the solo guitars also has a phaser pedal dialled in very low in the mix. - The strings I use are the Elixir 10 - 52s. You can still easily bend the top 3 strings but you get more warmth and depth of tone (in my opinion) on the bottom 3 strings. - My guitar’s just a Les Paul standard but it’s from 2003 which was a great era. I’m super lucky that the shop I bought it from just happened to have one with this unusual quilt top finish! Thanks again for watching and, most importantly, thank you Eagles for the music!

[@KennethAcoustic]

Please be aware that this video might be taken down, and you may receive a copyright strike for posting an Eagles song, especially "Hotel California," even if you've already received a copyright claim from KZbin. It has happened to me before.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi Kenneth, thank you very much for your message! You're not the first person to warn me and looks like it's clearly a risk having this video up - I do also end up feeling quite confused as there's a lot of Eagles (and Hotel California) guitar cover videos that seem to have been up on YT for years without any issue, is it completely random which get copyright strikes? If you could shed any more light that would be greatly appreciated 😊 love your channel btw - your arrangement of everybody wants to rule the world has to be my favourite!

[@heyitsleigh18]

didn’t expect to see kenneth here lmao

[@music-xj8hf]

It hasn't been taken down. Now go back to ur fingerstyle thing acoustic boy

[@keelan8262]

Two goats in one comment section

[@Preston_G]

@@music-xj8hfdude shut up with ur snide comment😂 I bet ur just jealous you'll never be as good as him😂

[@RuiJiang]

Thanks so much! This is really awesome demonstration and backing track!

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you 🙂

[@nocommander439]

great! so little talking and so much essential information, original, visible left and right hand, backing track with tabs! thx a lot!

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

My pleasure, thank you for watching!

[@hubertrobert7450]

Bravo et merci good job avec le backing track et tablature plein écran bien👍

[@sproutboot]

Amazing thank you

[@getbloxed8867]

Thank you man. Finally a good visable and moving along with song tabs!

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

My pleasure, glad you found it useful!

[@lavoiedumilieu5388]

It's very useful and interesting to learn from your video. Thanks !

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Happy to help my friend!

[@kuteopiano9198]

very great!

[@user-vt5rt9zj7d]

what a great masterpiece it is in our world forever

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Absolutely 😊

[@caifan9122]

Muchas Gracias!!!!🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸

[@DianaLatexlover]

Amazing

[@jpguitar34]

Just a heads up, expect this to be removed and receiving a strike from KZbin. The Eagles are notorious for not liking other people posting songs of theirs. While you did a great cover, I'd take it down before The Eagles find out about this and you get a strike from YT.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there, I appreciate you looking out for me and giving me a heads up! KZbin has already claimed copyright on this video which is far as I understand it means the copyright holders (Eagles/record label) have given the ok for people to use it as this means in practice if videos are monetised the revenue still finds its way back to the copyright holders. At a quick search there seems to be thousands of videos like mine which have been on KZbin for years (and a lot more views) without being taken down. I'm proud of this one so I think I'll take my chances!

[@brianguitar68]

​@daveshannonguitaracademy not so, I had a copyright claim on this solo, it was still removed and I had a strike. I'm not sure how some remain but I expect this to be taken down sooner or later

[@vitaliiborymskyi205]

Awesome! Thanks a lot.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

You're welcome!

[@michaeld5132]

that guitar is beautiful

[@fleetwoodsoup7443]

imagine calling a standard les paul beautiful

[@gguizzoo]

Thx for tab❤

[@musigk75]

Maybe the best tutorial version of this outstanding solo yet ☺️ (from any other than Don Felder)

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you my friend 😊

[@ThePierrezx]

I agree with you... The best one ever found...

[@roczhang2009]

Hi, thanks for putting this together, this is amazing. Can I ask what pedal settings you used to get this sound?

[@ArtinRu]

спасибо! 👏🤝

[@felix-7477]

Thanks a lot! How do u acheive the with only the amp, or do u use some pedals also?

[@dnnyshdy5189]

Perfect

[@user-vt5rt9zj7d]

excellent👍

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you!

[@paramount243]

Nice

[@lacajadeleo6554]

Uuuff gracias hermano

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

De nada, es un placer!

[@piraneh100]

Hi great video, but do you know what the amp settings are?

[@vanmusiceducation]

nice

[@smodiddley]

Damn, so clean and that tone is crisp

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you! 🙂

[@Eduardo-11111]

Which amp sim were you using?

[@mihirshrivastava7023]

Really great cover! Would love to know how you got that tone.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you! It's a Fender Deluxe amp sim and I've stuck a compressor and EQ pedal (boosting mids and highs a little) before a tube-type overdrive pedal which is dialled in fairly low on drive and slightly above the mid-point on tone, finally a very subtle delay and small amount of reverb to taste. One of the solo guitars also has a phaser pedal dialled in very low in the mix. Hope this helps!

[@Zepkhiel]

00:10

[@ArifRahmanhakim-wt9jq]

Saya suka melodi ini

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Me too!

[@makoe12]

見やすくてとてもわかりやすいです。最後の譜面も非常に助かります。ありがとうございます。

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

You're welcome! 🙂

[@duyz4250]

Is there anyway I can dowload this sheet?

[@user-gd3tl8zn9g]

have staff note good for learning

[@pauloqueiroga7585]

0:40 0:46 1:04 1:10

[@erickplankton]

Backing track 2:05

[@realymmanuelmanguin9165]

Great vid! What's that sort of black strap on the first fret is called?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you! It's a string dampener, it's there to get rid of any residual/unwanted string noise especially when recording. You can of course do this with a mix of both left and right hand string muting (depending on what string you're playing) though in this case I used a string dampener so I could focus all my energy into playing this awesome solo expressively!

[@realymmanuelmanguin9165]

@@daveshannonguitaracademy thank you, this is very informative

[@silvesterholmes2496]

Where do you get your tabs? (great vid btw thanks!)

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you! All my tabs are my own transcriptions that I make using guitar pro 🙂

[@junkppchong9422]

🙏🙏🙏👍👍👍♥️♥️♥️

[@rockenen655]

2:05

[@ReplicStore13]

como se hacen las partituras?

[@hubertrobert7450]

Mais je vois que tu a un capo a la première case ? ou je me trompe ?

[@gzh9802]

The last lick that is ever-ending is different from the other tabs on youtube. Is it correct? And doesn't it matter?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! The part I've tabbed at the end here is the Don Felder part which is the higher of the 2 harmony guitar parts. Some other tabs may possibly look different if they've tabbed the lower harmony guitar part (played by Joe Walsh). If I'm being totally honest I transcribed this without looking at any live footage of Eagles performing this - and I now see Don Felder plays his part differently to how I've tabbed it here. Whilst all the notes on my transcription are correct, it looks like Don plays his part higher up the neck of the guitar and predominantly on the G and B strings, rather than on the B and high E string as I've written it. As to the question of whether it matters - I'd say this is subjective! There will be a slight tonal difference if we're favouring the G and B strings over the B and high E string though I'd say this would take a well trained ear to notice the difference, especially in the context of a full track. My personal inclination as to why I prefer to play this as I've transcribed it is because I find it easier to ensure every note is played in isolation and do not overlap one another. I think if we do the arpeggio shapes for this part across 3 different strings (as I've seen in many tabs) it's easy to accidentally have the notes bleed into each other, which isn't the sound we're looking for. I would argue it is more important that we play the correct notes in the correct way than necessarily in the exact same place on the fretboard as Don and Joe did!

[@gzh9802]

@@daveshannonguitaracademy Thank you for your so kind and detailed comment. i'm gonna keep practicing hotel california with your tab and backing track. once more, i really appreciate your comment and the video!!

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

It's my pleasure 🙂 good luck learning the solo and thanks for watching!

[@andreyivanov1904]

What gauge strings are you using?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! I really like the 10-52s, great tone on the lower 3 strings and still easy to bend the top 3 strings

[@theelement7125]

Can I ask if that's a damper first fret? If so why? Thanks.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there, yes that's right! It's not necessary at all but it just helps eliminate any unwanted string noise or resonance particularly when soloing with an overdriven or distorted tone. You can of course eliminate any unwanted noise with good technique and a mix of left and right hand muting however this may take some energy away from the expressiveness you can put into soloing...hence the string dampener!

[@WanderingMiqo]

What's the thing wrapped around the first fret?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! It's a string dampener - not necessary at all, just gives you more licence to play solos expressively without having to worry about keeping an eye on unwanted string noise

[@ryanchoo8312]

what tablature program do you use?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Guitar Pro!

[@pes-empire3160]

What's that black thing at the neck of the guitar?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

It's a string dampener! It's just there to eliminate any unwanted string resonance/noise especially when recording. It's definitely not necessary but I find when you're playing a super expressive solo like this one it gives you more licence to play with a lot of feeling whilst keeping the overall sound nice and clean :)

[@seeworld123]

Nice Come to MC 🔺️

[@Job-dq7pt]

I'm trying to learn this atm but I'm not great. does anyone have any piece of advice how to be able to remember the whole solo?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! It's definitely about breaking it down into small segments as much as possible. When I'm learning a solo I'll usually be methodical so I'll start by learning the first two bars only, then bars 3 and 4 only, then making sure I can put bars 1 through 4 altogether. Then repeat the process for the rest of the solo!

[@Job-dq7pt]

@@daveshannonguitaracademy yes i was doing that but thank you for this confirmation, i hope i can play the whole thing in like a few weeks

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Nice one, consistency is key! I'm sure you'll nail it, good luck 🎸

[@emmanuelduranlopez9248]

Para que es la tira negra? Es necesaria?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

No es necesaria - es solo para amortiguar cualquier sonido de las cuerdas abiertas

[@kobegaga5294]

s

[@nokw8618]

What is the Name of the Gibson broo ?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! It's actually just a Les Paul standard but it's a 2003 model which was a great era 😎 I'm lucky that it came in the pretty unusual (for a standard) quilt top too!

[@nokw8618]

oh yes I see lucky, did you see they released new figured standard model with similar colors in honey burst I think. @@daveshannonguitaracademy

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Ah I haven't seen those yet, will have to check them out!

[@sproutboot]

Subscribe right away such a bummer i just got to know this channel

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Thank you and welcome to the channel!

[@DebarghaGupta]

I also cover this solo check it out guys

[@bigrigbutters187]

Was hoping you were going to be playing with a copy of yourself on the part that has two guitars.

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Haha yes I was thinking of this but the tab ended up looking too small when there's 2 guitars on a split screen! Thanks for watching :)

[@the_escape_artist]

great BUT the tone is a litlle more crunchy, watch the video of the man himself ! thank u

[@ThePierrezx]

Thanks I use your video to learn this solo but I do have a question : how do you get this so special sound : compressor and overdrive only ?

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there, I used a Fender Deluxe amp sim with the treble at 7 and bass at 5. I've stuck a compressor and EQ pedal (boosting mids a little and highs a little more) before a tube-type overdrive pedal which is dialled in around halfway on drive and slightly above the mid-point on tone. Finally, a very subtle 1/8 note delay and small amount of reverb to taste (I used the spring reverb from the amp sim). One of the solo guitars also has a phaser pedal dialled in very low in the mix. Hope this helps!

[@ThePierrezx]

@@daveshannonguitaracademy thanks a lot ! I will try to modulate my sound with these informations... I have a simple 5W tube amp, and some pedals (compressor chorus overdrive delay) but no reberb for the moment. And a Telecaster guitar with Roswell pickups. I am allmost working on the first part of the solo, the one of Don Felder at the beginning. You vidéo helps me a lot. 👌👌

[@Zorisx]

Learning this to your video, 26 seconds is tough with bending 1/2 step on your index, any tips? @daveshannonguitaracademy I'm on 11s for strings

[@daveshannonguitaracademy]

Hi there! First off, allow me to please express my respect and approval of you using 11s haha I'd say if you can get away with it you may find it easier pulling the string down for the half step bend rather than pushing upwards (like I do in the video) as long as you're not risking getting too close to the edge of the neck going in that direction...if not I'd suggest using your middle finger for the bend instead, with your index finger behind it also on the string for extra support. Will make for a slightly awkward position shift to get the middle finger on for the bend but at least the bend itself will be easier with 2 fingers!

[@geunbbang]

2:06