Learn How to Play "Heart-Shaped Box" by Nirvana on the Electric Guitar

Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana is an all-time guitar classic, and we'll learn it using Nirvana's authentic tuning. :) This will allow us to play along with Kurt Cobain on the original track, and it's lots of fun!

We'll learn all the bits you need to play Heart-Shaped Box: the tuning, the intro and verses, the distorted part, and the solo. We'll also explore key performance tips so you can cover this Nirvana classic just like the original.

🎼 Get chords and lyrics and verified tabs for Heart-Shaped Box with JustinGuitarTabs! You can get started with a free trial.

Let's get started! Our first step is to retune the guitar.

Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana: The Authentic Tuning

Start by ensuring your guitar is in standard tuning. From there, tune each string down one semitone, then tune the thickest string down a further tone. You should have the following:

D♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, B♭, and E♭

(Thickest to Thinnest)

💡 First time trying out altered tunings? Don't be afraid! Many great songs use altered tunings, so conquer your fear - Heart-Shaped Box is a great way to get started!

Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana: How to Play the Intro and Verse

The intro is essentially a picking pattern, and it's pretty easy! You need a couple of one-finger chords and open strings. The picking pattern and rhythm stay the same throughout, and you don't need to be too fussy about the fingering. Note that the last bar of the intro is different from the rest. It's also a little bit trickier!

🧐 Chord Naming: I'm naming the chords as if we were in standard tuning. It might be a little confusing, but it's difficult for me to think about a standard open A Chord Shape as an A♭! So, for this lesson, we'll just call it A. :)

This pattern repeats in the verse, with just a few little variations. So I suggest you stop and practice this riff before moving on! Getting the rhythm right while you sing is one of the most challenging bits of playing Heart-Shaped Box. You definitely want to practice it until it feels automated.

When you have the intro and verse down, you want to make them sound really authentic. How do we do that?

Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana: Performance Tips

To get the intro and verses to sound right, you want to make the same "mistakes" as Kurt. It's not sloppy guitar playing, but it's loose, and he doesn't do things the same way every time.

😎 Nail The Feel: Part of Nirvana's elegance is Kurt's carefree playing. He's a genius guitar player! You can't play this song authentically just by writing the music down and copying it. :)

You'll find several variations of the intro riff in this song. There are many approaches, and it doesn't really matter if you play an extra note or change the rhythm slightly. That's especially true if you're playing in a band! It's way more important to get the vibe and the feeling right. :)

There are only a few sections to learn before you can play the whole song! Let's look at the distorted guitar part.

Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana: Heavy Guitar Part

The heavy guitar part starts in the last bar of the verse. Jump on your fuzz pedal! It sounds like this is the pedal used in the original. If you don't have one, go for a distortion pedal.

⚙️ I think Kurt used an Electro Harmonix Big Muff. If you have a modeler-type amp, you should go for a pedal with "muff" in the name. In this lesson, I'm using a Fuzz Face Emulator in my Quad Cortex.

But ensure you get the fuzz right! If you have too much fuzz, you won't be able to hear the individual notes, which is not what we want. I suggest you turn your fuzz up to 10, then gradually turn it down until you can clearly hear the notes.

In any case, your guitar needs to get considerably heavier at this point in the song! Again, don't worry about being too exact with the notes and rhythm. It's much more about the feeling and the vibe.

Heart-Shaped Box's Solo: How To

I've watched a few videos of Kurt playing the solo live, and he seems to change it a lot! For this lesson, we'll look at my best guess of how he plays the solo on the original Heart-Shaped Box record. I've also simplified it, especially the rhythm, because the original recording is looser. For example, the bends aren't always in tune.

And voilà, you have all the pieces – it's up to you to put them together! Listen to the original recording, jam along, and you'll get there. I'm sure you'll have great fun. :) Laters!

🎵 Learn more; check all my Nirvana song tutorials!