Unraveling the Secrets of Jamie's Cryin' by Van Halen | Weekend Wankshop 249 w/ Uncle Ben

[@BenEller]

Thanks a ton for watching!!! What other Van Halen mysteries do you want to see solved?

[@markkram7106]

Ben Eller girls gone bad please !

[@BobLikesPizza99]

Light Up the Sky!!!

[@cyanidejunkie]

Maybe my ears don’t work very well anymore but... the first bridge with the flanger on, It’s sounds like instead of playing open E, open B, he frets the B at the fifth giving it a fast droning E, the last time he plays it. Anyone else hearing this? Thnx Ben, as always, top shelf content. Be well my friend.

[@h0tsex0r]

How to pick the B to A intro to Hang 'Em High

[@carlosmanuelbeltranperez104]

Either Little Guitars or Mean Street’s intros would be cool to see you breakdown

[@nu385]

My humble request is every song on the first 6 albums. Thank you.

[@shoutatthedevil189]

Cant forget 5150 has some of his best playing ever. I prefer DLR era, but 5150 is no joke of an album

[@geraldorodriguew3605]

I got a question: Does it works in a king V? ( ಠಿ_ಠ)

[@StepAttitude]

That would cover it, yes

[@theunfortunatespectacle7381]

Except Jump. Go ahead and skip Jump.

[@georgemalian550]

Mindreader!

[@kevinraabe457]

Dudes!!! The "mystery chord" has baffled me for 40 years!!....simply the nastiest chord i EVER heard...always wondered... thank you for the guidance~

[@guitarmemoir]

You've got a knack for picking up on nuance and hearing uncommon intervals. Something I struggle with on Van Halen songs. So thanks for fleshing this stuff out Uncle Ben.

[@donniebrook9900]

Your graphics are getting off the hook! In all seriousness folks... Ben has the best guitar instructional videos on the net! It's unbelievable how much time he puts in for these awesome videos for free! He has a smooth way of teaching music theory while teaching you the song. Thanks for all the hard work Ben 👏👏👏

[@WyattScott]

one of my favorites as well!

[@El_duderino12]

No one on the entire internets breaks anything down like you do Unky Ben. This is some solid work!

[@SteveOuimette]

Really nice! Ed was a master of making cool chords with the simplest of means. It was always so colorful, yet easy once you figured it out...but always a bit unorthodox. And clever! Well done, Uncle Ben.

[@tkdunn]

This is amazing - awesome job. This is definitely one of the trickier chords bits in a VH song to get right - really shows another side of Eddie’s genius! I wish my ear was half this good...

[@joshfairbanks33]

Real Van Halen nerds needed this

[@noahbush5708]

The only song I’ve ever heard where a guitar snarled at me, absolutely amazing!

[@creationofseda]

I have played this wrong for millennia, thank god for Uncle Ben

[@californiahomebuilders2391]

holy shit , Uncle Ben i've been playing guitar since 1979 and i've never been able to figure out that chord from jamie's cryin! you nailed it! thank you for sharing how to play it correctly! the mystery of that chord has been solved thanks to you!

[@BenEller]

California Home Builders awesome! Thanks for watching!

[@Vutsman1]

Love you Uncle Ben. Thanks

[@GuitarAtoZ1]

Cool about the flattened B string trick, had never heard that before

[@alanjamesh.zamorano1677]

As guitar players sometimes we focus too often on speed or some other shreddy stuff, but all the great guitar players had a very solid rhythm, the flashy solos is just the icing on the cake. But an steady rhythm is key to get people moving, Jamie's crying is one the grooviest songs VH ever made. Also Alex Van Halen's drums in this song deserve some praise, they made a great combo back in their day

[@andrewscher239]

And Michael Anthony's thumping bass!❤

[@doug.heartstringssound]

Your details and explanations here are making me love this song even more! I can't wait to try it out. Thanks Uncle Ben. You Rock!

[@stevepaulding9679]

Another home run, Ben. Thank you!

[@Chinaguitarsceptic]

Thanks Ben. I think you're right the first shape sounds spot on.

[@ThrashRoC]

Ben , you made my day ! ...Since half an year or so i paused with my guitarplaying ..but now i go to your channel and thought tomyself "Hmm Jamie´s crying ? that would be a nice song to start over Thx! Your Lessons are great as always !

[@livefromstudioa8245]

I’m trying to think of clearer, more articulate, well-reasoned instruction for this song, but my head exploded. This is fantastic.

[@darthboxOriginal]

So glad you explained about the B and G warbling issue. I wondered why that was always an issue for me, so it's good to hear it is always an issue

[@t-boog2173]

Ed said(in old Guitar Mag interview) that in the early days when they recorded, he often just tuned the guitar to itself(no tuner) then had Michael tune to him. As fast as they recorded songs back then, that's not hard to believe. After all, Templeman was big on them not changing what they did live. Btw, My two older brothers and I had a 3 piece for many years(80s & 90s) and we NEVER used a tuner. I could approximate half step down tuning pretty close by ear and my brother just tuned his bass to me. With a tuner, you often have to adjust a bit afterwards anyway(esp Ed with his flat B string) and when you punch in on a recording, which VH rarely did back then, you just tune to the recording. When you have good ears, it's almost easier than using a tuner. And surely Eddy wasn't thinking about the thousands of kids who would be trying to tune to his albums years later. I wanted to add,: When Ed said that he just tuned the guitar to itself, he also said, "Who decided that an A string HAS to vibrate at 440 anyway?!". Ed used Fender 9 tru 40 back then so his strings were already floppy at roughly a half step down. Besides, I always felt when you tune between conventional tunings, the listener's ear picks it up as different/ special on a subconscious level. I believe that's why Pantara did it as well. Frequency wise, It subtlely sets your band apart from all the thousands of B.S. bands on the radio who always follow the rules. Rock On#

[@programmer1840]

Interesting thought on Pantera! Wondered why they tuned a quarter step flat, I think Dime probably just liked the sound of a quarter step down from E standard and then they just made all their lower tunings relative to that quarter step flat.

[@t-boog2173]

@@programmer1840 You could be right that Dime just liked the sound of turning a bit more flat. And maybe we're both right. Afterall, Dime was heavily influenced by Eddie.

[@aaronr5709]

Nice! I do the same tuning by ear. Also if I do use a tuner I like 432 htz better. The golden frequency!

[@programmer1840]

@@aaronr5709 Never heard of that! Sounds a bit mumbo jumbo ;D

[@aaronr5709]

@@programmer1840 oh sorry I didn’t realize you’re the smartest person ever. Look it up douche

[@BatFan1]

Hey Ben, the Mystery Chord has be a debated topic for YEARS, but i think the secret to it has always been in the video for the song. Now i know that most of the times they fake their way through a video but Ed definitely plays along to the tracks as intended, and when it gets to that part it looks like he does a power chord shape, pause the official video at the 43 second mark, it catches the tail end of him sustaining the chord, you can see his ring and pinky fingers fretting the D and G stings, at least that's how it looks to me, but cant really tell at what position on the neck, might be 6 and 7 or 7,7. And he has his index finger barred across what might be the 5th fret?, but his thumb might be muting the E string, so when he hits the chord he's racking the E on his way down. So it's possible it might be something like this, which like your first version of the mystery chord: E=X A=? (5) D=? (6 OR 7) G=? (7) B=0 E=0

[@scottybee33]

Dear Ben, Please do more of these vids.!!! ...w/ more songs you think are missing crucial pieces. Thx! RIP EVH.

[@onemancarnage]

Way back in the day , my first guitar was an rg 550 . The only difference between then and the reissue... The cut away around 12 th fret . Mine sucked ! And had no way to reach upper frets . But I didn't know any better as a first time buyer . Glad they brought it back .updated of course.

[@yonikup2865]

First white Lion and Now Van Halen? God damn man, i guess i gotta go buy some spandex 🤘🏼 Thanks for the great lessons man, been following for years, you never disappoint =)

[@Peetie_Wheatstraw]

Oh man Ben, I'm so glad you did this one. It's one of my favorite VH songs. It's nice to get it as accurate as possible. Thanks!

[@yogimarkmac]

The other day I was curious about a certain part of another VH song. I watched 6 videos that all showed the wrong way to play it, all done by some of the most popular KZbin teachers. If you want to learn it right, the first time, then trust uncle Ben.

[@walterschwartz8311]

It's amazing when you don't over think things putting a song together .

[@RockinSG]

Nothing like a Weekend Wank!! Thanks UB!!

[@whoschiliisit1752]

The lick at 2:41 in I’m The One has always kept me from playing the whole tune confidently. Something about the distribution of notes and timing even slowed down has me scratching my head

[@MrMetalhorse]

Yes, it a really weird lick. It's pretty similar to the first shred lick in eruption but the timing is really fucked up. I can't get it right.

[@eddiejr540]

Dude...i been trying to play I'm the one for years....thats a freakin hard song to play right !!!!

[@MrMetalhorse]

@@eddiejr540 I can play the whole thing but I need to be warmed up and I still have to concentrate real hard and I struggle my way through the rythm. I also fake my way through a couple of licks

[@BodhiSoftMobileApps]

I'm the One swings, and swings hhhhard. Painfully obvious that they're drawing from a rich musical vocabulary there.

[@MrMetalhorse]

@@BodhiSoftMobileApps totally. The swing feel is the most difficult thing to master in that song. It's harder than the shredding.

[@starexplorers1202]

The Major 3rd (G-B string) dissonance is just part of our Equal Temperament system. Eddie loved "happy" major chords and flattening the B string was the best way to correct that problem. I've always wondered how effects (like a flanger or phase 90) can help cover-up those dissonances. IMHO, they do help to blur those dissonances via modulation.

[@js6220]

Great job, those small details make a big difference! Thanks for making the effort to do it right

[@daviddelossantos6075]

This (and listening to the isolated guitar track) was super helpful.

[@TKDunn-qq7kd]

Thanks Ben! This is such a gem on the debut - the guitar tone is just off the hook and one of the few tunes on VH I with overdubs. Thanks for unraveling this masterpiece...

[@Messier31NGC224]

Top Jimmy by Van Halen is very tricky with the arpeggiated chords mixed with harmonics, please do that. Long time viewer, love your content Ben!

[@jasonstallworth]

Nice dude, thanks for the details! The thing is that most tabs can’t quite capture the actual feel of what the guitarist was actually playing, if that makes sense. There are those little nuances that just comes from deep within the guitarist.

[@JacksonAxe]

I figured that G string thing out back in the '80s while using a tuner for the first time. I found out recently on youtube that there's a WHOLE thing on this issue across ALL strings. Check out James Taylor's video on tuning. Then, check out the clip on tuner by Peterson that has built in 'Sweeteners'. Those sweeteners will automatically make adjustments to all strings. Plus, I say sweetener(S), plural, because there's a LIST of instruments that have individual sweeteners specifically for them. Bass Guitar Banjo Accordion Piano Brass Woodwinds etc........

[@RalphMercuroMusic]

Awesome vid Ben! It's definitely a phaser in this one. Easiest way to tell the difference is the lack of regeneration.

[@chucklandry73]

3:20 warbling. Ever since I started playing I had issues with he warbling sound and always slightly changed my timing to smooth it out often...I had no idea Hendrix or Edward did this or what people called it. I just liked it better and did it. 100% you can never get rid of warble when tuning normally. I'm glad I haven't been alone all these decades!!!

[@austinfailz]

Hey, it's Cody from Facebook. I messaged you like in July or August about this! Glad to see it became a WW.

[@Scott__C]

About the guitar tuning, another factor I read Eddie in an interview years ago that he would just pick up a guitar and tune it to itself, then Michael Anthony would tune to him. That could also have played a part in it.

[@MegaScott5150]

Totally true. Try to play along with the first album and you'll have to retune for each song.

[@mrnomad55]

awesome attention to detail. great job Ben.

[@arechj]

guitar Illuminati 3rd eye - niiiiice! Great lesson thanks!

[@mvinge]

Eddie’s rhythm is often overshadowed by his leads. Great examples from this song and also in “Mean Street.”

[@Drockzoids]

Who would thumbs down this? This is awesome

[@BenEller]

Derrick Olson some people don’t like nice things.

[@jscotlandr]

Great analysis Ben. I love how you use your ear, music theory and knowledge of EVH's playing style to determine how the song is played. You would think that after 40 years this would have been common knowledge. I also appreciate that you don't trash talk the incorrect info, that shows a lot of class and confidence in your own abilities. Lastly, I'm so glad that while you want to be sure the song is played correctly, you aren't dead set on it being played EXACTLY like the original. Eddie didn't care if he played it the same exact way each time so why should we.

[@marzjam5040]

thank you for this. i love the original

[@JohnSmithiuyytw]

Always outstanding videos man, I'm actually a bass player but still love your work. As Mr Roth once said, "genius is attention to detail"

[@BenEller]

J VED haha thank you! Mr Roth also once said “music critics like Elvis Costello because they LOOK like Elvis Costello”. He was right about a LOT of things, hahahaha

[@AllenGarberGuitarFun]

The tuning that Eddie used for the Ibanez Destroyer main guitar track is as follows. 1st string: Eb + 7.7 cents 2nd string: Bb + 7.9 cents 3rd string: F# + 9.6 cents 4th string: C# +10.0 cents 5th string: Ab +10.0 cents 6th string: Eb +7.7 cents The overdubbed harmony guitars (the Frankenstein with standard Fender tremolo) are tuned as follows: 1st string: Eb + 23.7 cents 2nd string: Bb + 23.9 cents 3rd string: F# + 25.6 cents 4th string: C# +26.0 cents 5th string: Ab +26.0 cents 6th string: Eb +23.7 cents These are deliberate tunings that he repeated through different songs on different albums. These tunings can’t be arrived at through variable tape speed because individual strings are deliberately out of chromatic tuning with each other.

[@kojam1]

Had to come back to this just to marvel at Ed's INCREDIBLE song writing! Loved the Roth-era writing, VERY MUCH liked his playing in the Van-Hagar era but felt it just didn't compare to his writing and swing of the Roth-era. LATELY, I REALIZE HOW WRONG I AM! While he wasn't ripping it up in the Hagar era like he did in the Roth years, his creativity on the rhythm guitar was OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD on the Hagar records! OMG! NOBODY WRITES LIKE THAT! People have learned how to emulate every aspect of his playing over the years, BUT NO ONE CAN EMULATE HIS WRITING STYLE!!!

[@tonepoet]

Great description on the detuned B string weirdness. The Feiten tuning was introduced (by Buzz Feiten) to address this intonation issue by moving the nut a tiny bit closer and supposedly fixes that. You're a genius, dude, love your lessons!

[@dickdastardly2560]

How about breaking down the super sweet intro to Women in Love? Back in the day long before there was a thing as the internet several of us tried to figure it and couldn't get the tapping right, so we ended up playing it with a pick. Didn't quite sound the same but was still cool nevertheless.😁😁😁

[@100chuckjones]

The most overlooked part of Jamie's crying is the outro solo rhythm guitar part. It is different from all other parts in the song. We take for granted it is the same as the intro rhythm guitar but if you listen closely, you can clearly hear him playing something similar to the chorus section only using higher notes (the G and B strings). On the "Wild thing" part.

[@79lpcustom]

Hey pretty cool Ben! I have not heard the iso trk for Jamie’s crying but that ‘mystery’ chord def has a d in it. For those that want to know it is an E7 chord, obv not traditional but it’s the tonality of the entire song. I finally did a deep dive into VHI thru IV in the last few yrs using ‘modern’ tools after wearing out a few original VH albums

[@pimpmypop-up9116]

@beneller I tuned in only to see if you were doing it right! I’ve seen so many lessons on this song and most are way off. You however nailed it. I came up with a similar way of play Those parts some years ago but with a little variation. Edward always played variations of chords and so when you approach learning a VH song always keep that in mind. Keep up the awesome lessons.

[@SooBahkJoel]

Quality, as usual, Uncle Ben.

[@jbakerman6619]

I believe the "mystery chord" is (0)5770x. Around 1:30 is one of the easier spots to hear each note appear when slowed down, stepping through with a short loop/hold function. (I recommend Amazing Slow Downer for this kind of thing as Transcribe! kind of mangles/reverbs stuff at lower speeds.) The low E restrike is pretty clear every time but it's stopped almost immediately, likely by LH thumb. His LH position on the music video seems to agree with that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hYDNnmd_bLGFnbs P.S. Humans Being first chord = 075000

[@anthonyp4347]

I've always had a soft spot for Beautiful Girls. Wouldn't mind seeing those riffs covered.

[@rickfeith6372]

Me too....ohh wait, you're talking VH 😜

[@reidwhitton6248]

VH II rules!

[@stevestarr6395]

Great lesson Ben and you really nailed it!

[@rickfeith6372]

I've been doing that B string trick for 15 years or more. It just sounds better.

[@vintagev8muscle721]

It really does. Still drives me crazy to this day that we have to do that.

[@tommacmillan8831]

john frusciante does this too in Scar Tissue

[@ampcruz2540]

Me too and I actually thought that my b string was supposed to sound smooth with g string but allways thought that it was my intonation that was outta whack

[@rockerace2112]

Same here

[@kkarx]

Tuning will never hold that well if you use tremolo bar so it is kinda pointless (if you use tremolo bar).

[@craiglewis905]

Nice job Ben...flange makes it tough but better job describing open ringing notes.

[@RebelTheUncanny1]

Nice analysis/tutorial.

[@jmar482]

Less clicking more pickin........love that. Informative as always.

[@californiahomebuilders2391]

top jimmy i cant figure the way he plays that cool arpeggiated sounding chord sequence

[@MrMetalhorse]

One of my favorite VH riffs. That lick kinda sounds like tapping but I'm pretty sure it's not.

[@Messier31NGC224]

California Home Builders And the natural harmonics he throws in there too. Please do Top Jimmy, Ben!

[@RalphMercuroMusic]

Ed used a Steven Ripley stereo guitar into two amps. Each string was panned hard left/right so they harmonize instead of sounding like a typical chord.

[@guitargeek1984]

Thanx for this, Uncle Ben!

[@bluestrat67]

Nice video, Ben! For the pull off lick, another variation would be hitting only the D & F# notes (not the first open E). When you pull off the F# to the E with your pinky, also catch the open E to make it ring at the same time. -Cheers

[@aaronholland5183]

Great lesson! One Foot Out The Door solo!

[@glassslide]

AWESOME lesson----really, really well done, thanks Ben!!

[@michaelthompson3286]

What good luck, I've been figuring this out myself today! I think for the mystery chord at 6.26 you've got that's definitely right, but listening to the isolated guitar track I can definitely hear the high B note on the 7th fret of the high E too. What a chord wiz EVH was.

[@thegamehunt3079]

Youre the man Ben.

[@j.r.warren5794]

Hendrix tuned by ear. After he had the guitar tuned to pitch he would then adjust to fit his preferences. I have also read that he would customize his string gauges to fit what he wanted to hear. Oh and his pickups were in the standard position for a right handed Strat but they were custom made by SD if I remember correctly.

[@larrygoodman453]

Exceptionally done Ben!

[@Bsquared1972]

Great lesson, I dig your style of teaching.

[@phasergim2154]

One of my favourite VH songs

[@leoantonio]

You deserve to have millions of subs, dude.

[@TristanJCumpole]

Hei Ben - quick one about the almost-a-half-step tuning on this one. Whilst it's not unlikely that the tape speed might have varied, more often than not tracks in the 60s to the 80s were sped up or slowed down ever so slightly in order to alter the apparent mood of the track. Take The Doors' "The Crystal Ship" for example. It's slightly lower in pitch than the closest note on a "standard-tuned" guitar. It's slowed something like 1-2% however it alters the mood and makes it far more languid and melancholy. Queen did this a far number of times as well; repitch them to "standard" tuning and they almost stop working. It's crazy, but its true.

[@CC-qb9sm]

Another great EVH lesson Uncle Ben!!!!

[@asmoncat5049]

Finally! Thank you soooooo much

[@mattmorin4460]

Love your videos brother. Don’t know if I missed you breaking down this one but I have a request for a tune for you to break down: the swing and groove of “Somebody get me a doctor”

[@henrisonkajarvi7354]

I think there might be some tape speeding going on Ride the lightning. When I play with the first two songs everything is ok but when For whom the bell tolls starts my guitar is out of tune.

[@BenEller]

Henri Sonkajärvi yup, that’s a CLASSIC example of tape speed being a little high!!! Puppets is also a little pitchy, but nowhere near RTL’s level. Cheers!

[@MartyDadRiffs]

Also a metric shit ton of that in Thin Lizzy recordings. You have to tweak to play along with the record and have it sound right.

[@TreatzTMA]

Henri Sonkajärvi hair of the dog (Nazareth). Also the solo of Heartbreaker is slightly sharper than the rest of the song

[@darkwanderer326]

Ha! One of the reasons I never played along with Bells on guitar.

[@kojam1]

OMG! All these years I just thought that my guitar was crap (well, in all actuality it is) because I could never get the B-string to tune properly. I did this exact same thing that Ed/Hendrix did to compensate for the inability to get the B-string to sound good with the G-string. I feel much better learning this from you Uncle Ben. Si Hi to Aunt Jemima for me dude!

[@glassslide]

That was fantastic!!! Thank you Uncle Ben!!!

[@BodhiSoftMobileApps]

2:33 discussion of B string detuning - the table here shows just why equal tempered tuning sounds so dissonant for the diads involving the B string. It's a full 13 cents sharp vs. "just intonation" (tuning based on whole-number ratio intervals that sound consonant and harmonious to the ear). Only the major sixth pokes out further vs. just intonation. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_temperament#Comparison_with_just_intonation en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_intonation

[@stringbender11672]

Great breakdown. Would love to see u do "Hang Em High" by VH

[@derekm.8392]

Hang em high for sure!

[@atomicfriendo]

No way man. Then my OCD would kick in and I'd spend the better part of the rest of my life try to learn it!

[@Briansgate]

neat, I've always done that 'hendrix tuning' and never even knew it was a thing.

[@TheAxe4Ever]

Another comment about the tuning of this and other recordings back in the day. Many times the guitar player would pull his guitar out of the case and tune it to itself to whatever the low E or A was at and the bass player would tune to him. Or vice-versa. They didn’t worry too much about little things like tuning to a Peterson strobe or anything. Hey! It’s rock and roll!

[@MikeC-cm7pc]

yup all of what you showed is spot on, as you mentioned can hear it in the isolated track, as for flanger or phaser i tried both and for some reason i got better results with the phase script in my FM9, maybe i could not dial in the flanger correctly 🤷‍♂ This was a great video 👍

[@sbrave]

I would guess #2 for the mystery chord. Yup, same as used in Women In Love, also Voodoo Chile and Since I've Been Lovin You

[@dr.rodgerclaxton3993]

Love you man. Great freaking work.

[@EarGuitar88]

Solid stuff per usual - Great content and appreciate the breakdowns 👍

[@lylebarker324]

Uncle Ben doing EVH is where it's at.

[@Ruudis9er]

FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED...Solo would be awesome Step son! oh and thank you so much for that D chord

[@robertcass9671]

Worth it just for that hint for women in love. Great lesson as usual!

[@mariamarin8152]

Eddie Van Halen...Our greatest innovator...

[@joncargile4566]

Uncle Ben, the mystery chord, it’s both. First time 5-4, second & third, 5-7. 👌👍

[@dougrmoe]

Good tutorial bro! Eddie was the originator of the LA sound ! Those cool little chords he did along with palm muting was the style ! Satriani, Warren D , Lynch ect ect took it from there ! VH a true original !

[@tammyjodolan8533]

You’re Awesome!

[@chucklandry73]

2:00 regarding tuning: I had read many years ago where Edward said who made the rule that you have to tune to A 440hrz or whatever. It's my understanding that basically he tuned his guitar to his ear and everyone then tuned to him. If this were true it makes sense regarding some stuff a lil lower like in this song where it's half step. I hope that makes sense.

[@davidjasonbruno1756]

Great video!