SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK ALIEN
Radiohead

Tabbed by Shor Bowman ([email protected])
This tab has been conspicuously absent from...well, the
world...for entirely too long. I couldn't seem to find
it anywhere, so I just sat down and wrote it out. Caution!
Not only is the song in dropped D, but Colin fills most of
the song with a little pattern of three notes on the low
D—string; those frets are 0, 3, and 5. If it seems that I
have omitted some of the playing, it's because I HAVE! It
would have taken entirely too much time to tab out all of
those improvisational patterns. Just make sure you have your
OK COMPUTER CD or this song's MP3 handy and follow along——
you'll know where these parts come in. If you don't, though,
get in touch with me! I will help or make the tab more user—
friendly any old day of the week. I'm sure that this is not
going to be the most legible of tabs for many, and as a con—
fession I couldn't play this song right now without the aid
of this tab, so bear with me please. For now, though, enjoy.

Bass comes in at approximately 0:05
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A—10(12)—10(12)—10(12)—10(12)—11/—————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————5———3—0—5———3—0—5———|

"...for cracks in the pavement..."
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D————————9—10—12/—————————————————————————————————————|
A—/10—12——————————————————————————————————————————————|
D———————————————————5—5—5—3—0—5———3—0—5———————————————|

"...home movies for the folks back home..."
G————————————————————————————————————————————|
D———————5(7)5—0——————————————————————————————|
A————————————————————————————————————————————|
D——5—5———————————5—5—5—3—0—5—————————————————|

"...and live for their secrets..."
G—————————————————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————|
A—————————————————————————————————|
D——5—7—9—10—11—12/5——3—0—3(5)—5—5—|

This is the tablature before the first "Uptight!"
G———————————————————————————————————————————|
D———————————————————————————————————————————|
A———————————————————————————————————————————|
D——5—7—9—10—12—14/3———3/10———12/5——3—0—5————|

G————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D——5—7—9/12—14—15———10———5———3(5)5——5——3(5)5——5——|

G———————————————————————————————————|
D———————2—3——2——0——3——2——0——————————|
A———3—5—————————————————————3——5————|
D—5———————————————————————————————5—|

*Things become mellow for awhile.* Do more improvisation
with the third and fifth frets of the low—D string, and 
then:

G———————————————————————————————————|
D———————————————————————————————————|
A————————————————————————————3—5————|
D—12/5——5——5——5——5——5——5——5——————5——|

"I'd...love to seeeeee it....."
G——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D———————————9—10—9———————5—5—5———————5—5—5———————5—5/7/5———————|
A————/10—12————————12/—————————7—5—————————7—5———————————7—5———|
D—5————————————————————5———————————5———————————5—————————————5—|

The improvisation changes to the basic pattern shown here for this
bit (and some at the end as well). The tablature shown beyond the first
row of bars signifies the temporary end of the pattern with a tiny
improvisational section.
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————|——————————————————|
D—5—5—5———————5—5—5———————5—5/7/5———————5—5—5—————|—5—7—9—10—9———————|
A———————7—5—————————7—5———————————7—5—————————7—5—|————————————10/———|
D———————————5———————————5—————————————5———————————|————————————————5—|

"They'd shut me away, but I'd be all right"
G—————————————————————————————————————————————————5—————————|
D———————————————————————————————————————————5—5—5———5—7—5—5—|
A———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D——5—5—x—5—x—x—5—5—x—5—x—x—5—x—5—/—15—15—15—————————————————|

"Uptight" starts to kick in again!
G——7—5—4——————————————————————————————————————————————|
D————————7—5—3—2—0————————————————————————————————————|
A—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D——————————————————3———3/10———12/3(5)—5—3(5)—5—3(5)—5—|

G————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—————————————————————————————————————————————0—2—3———3(5)———|
A———0—2—3—2—0———————————————————————————0—2—3——————————————3—|
D—5———————————3———3/10———10—12/3(5)—5—5——————————————————————|

This is a nice time to use a slap method, such as the thumb:
G————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—3—2—0—————3—2—0——————————0—2—3—————————————————————————————|
A————————————————————0—2—3—————————3———————7—5———————————————|
D————————5—————————5———————————————————5———————5——3(5)—5—————|

OUTRO (May sound best on the HIGHER D—string):
G————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D—5—/—12—————————————10——————————————7———————————————————————|

WHEW! That appears to be the entirety of the song. It's a 
perfectly stunning composition, and I hope that this tab is of
use to somebody somewhere. It was a bitch to tab out, so it 
may be a bitch to try to learn to perfection (from memory).
But give it awhile——I'm sure you'll be glad you did! If you
have any questions, comments, concerns, corrections, please
give me a ring on the old e—mail program. Peace.

/= slide to note
()= ghost note

About Radiohead

Radiohead are an English alternative rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, beats), Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboard, other instruments), Ed O'Brien (guitar, backing vocals), Colin Greenwood (bass guitar, synthesizers) and Phil Selway (drums, percussion).

How to Read Bass Tabs

Bass tablature (tabs) is an easy way to learn songs without needing to read traditional sheet music. Here’s a quick guide to understanding the symbols and techniques commonly found in tabs:

1. The Basics

Strings and Frets:
Each line in a tab represents a string on your bass:
- The top line is the highest-pitched string (G on a 4-string bass).
- The bottom line is the lowest-pitched string (E on a 4-string bass).
Numbers on the lines indicate which fret to press. For example:
```
G|-------------------|

D|-------------------|

A|---3---------------|

E|-------------------|

            
```
This means you play the 3rd fret on the A string.

2. Common Techniques

Hammer-On (h):
Play the first note by picking it, then press down on a higher fret with another finger without picking again.
```
G|-------------------|

D|-------5h7---------|

            
```
Pull-Off (p):
Pluck a note and then "pull off" your finger to let a lower fret ring.
```
G|-------------------|

D|-------7p5---------|

            
```
Slide (/ or \):
Move your finger up (/) or down (\) the fretboard while maintaining pressure.
```
G|-------------------|

D|-------5/7---------|

            
```

3. Advanced Techniques

Bend (b): Push the string up or down to raise the pitch. Example: G|-------7b9---------|
Vibrato (~): Shake the string slightly after playing a note to create a vibrating sound. Example: G|-------7~----------|
Muted Notes (x): Rest your finger lightly on the string without pressing a fret and pluck for a percussive "click" sound.

4. Rhythm and Timing

Tabs don’t always indicate timing, so listen to the song while reading the tab. Wider spaces between numbers mean longer pauses, while closer numbers indicate quicker notes.

5. Slap and Pop

Slap (s): Strike the string with the side of your thumb for a percussive sound.
Pop (p): Pull the string away from the fretboard and let it snap back.

Practice Makes Perfect

Tabs are a great tool to learn songs, but mastering the techniques takes practice. Listen carefully to the original track and play along to lock in the rhythm. Don’t rush — smooth, accurate playing is more important than speed. Happy jamming! 🎸

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Radiohead — Subterranean Homesick Alien bass tabs