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OPTIMISTIC
Radiohead
DROPPED-D TUNING
no bass during the first two times a verse is sung.
*RIFF #1 The bass comes in quietly at 1:07:
G----------------------------------------------|x2
D----------5-----------------------------------|
A--------------5---3h5-5-5-x-x-3h5-5-5--5-5--5-|
D--0---0---------------------------------------|
During the interim between the first refrain and second verse:
G---------------------------------|
D---------------------------------|
A-----5--3h5-5-5-----5--3h5-5-5---|
D--0--------------0---------------|Repeat until 2nd verse
Repeat Riff #1 during the second refrain. Then, at 2:32:
*RIFF #2
G--------------------------------------------|x4
D--------------------------------------------|
A--7h8-8-8--8h7-7--7--9h10-10-10--10h9-9--9/-|
D--------------------------------------------|
During the third semi-verse, just thumb the low D-string:
G--------------------------------------------|
D--------------------------------------------|
A--------------------------------------------|
D--0-0-----0-----0-0-----0-----0-0----0------|
Now, repeat Riff #1, then play Riff #2 with slight variation
on the second repetition:
G--------------------------------------------------|
D--------------------------------------------------|
A--7h8-8-8--8h7-7--7--9h10-10-10--10-10--9/12-12/5-|
D--------------------------------------------------|
On the fourth repetition, leading to the outro, play this:
G--------------------------------------------------------|
D---------------------------------------------12h10------|
A--5-7-7h8-8-8--8h7-7--7--9h10-10-10--10h9-9-------12h10-|
D--------------------------------------------------------|
The first part of the outro features improv on high D:
G--------------------------------------------------------|
D-0--12--0-10-0-10-10--12/0--12-0-10-12-12/0--3-/-5-5--4-|
A--------------------------------------------------------|
D--------------------------------------------------------|
You can also hit the 7th fret and bend the 12th if you like.
The final part of the outro is light and jazzy, and goes:
G--------------------------------------------------------|
D-0-12-0-10-10-0-12--0-0-----10-0-12-0-10-10-0-12--0---0-|
A-------------------------10-----------------------------|
D--------------------------------------------------------|
Taken from The BassMasta -- http://www.bassmasta.net
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No Picture
xavier cassel Average |
#1 by xavier cassel no nazis at May 15, 1970 at 3:29 AM EST |
| happiness can't be placed anywhere. it victimizes self-awareness and it's unclear by nature. give up whenever you want. we have lost already. | |
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No Picture
wade Wanna Be |
#2 by wade petty at May 19, 1970 at 1:57 AM EST |
| Sorry, I'm feeling a little bitter today. | |
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No Picture
Marcus19 Rhythm Player |
#3 by Marcus19 Doug at Nov 30, 1972 at 2:29 PM EST |
| Think the lines "Fodder for the animals Living on an animal farm" has anything to do with the novel Animal Farm by George Orwell? | |
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No Picture
Kevin Average |
#4 by Kevin Barker at Nov 28, 1973 at 11:48 PM EST |
| I wanna dedicate this one to Izzi. The pessimistic things in it are me and the optimitic things are from her. Thanks Izzi. :) :) :) | |
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No Picture
Galen Wanna Be |
#5 by Galen at Jul 18, 1983 at 8:53 PM EST |
| Dinosaurs roaming the earth....we are already extinct its just a matter of when. How's that for optimism?! ;) | |
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Bun Wanna Be |
#6 by Bun Nugz at May 7, 1987 at 8:52 PM EST |
| I love how the song is called Optimistic. Ah, the irony. Well all these forms of ideal societies, like communism, are all good on paper, and they're all optimistic and they all try the best they can, and to them that is what is good enough. | |
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No Picture
Leigh Average |
#7 by Leigh at Oct 8, 1990 at 9:10 PM EST |
| Beautiful song, I think it's anything but optimistic though! This is what it means to me... Verse 1: it's a dog-eat-dog, selfish world. Right and wrong aren't important as long as you get your share. Chorus: if you've got a conscience, follow it or ignore it. No one will judge you. Verse 2: alludes to "This Little Piggy" and "Animal Farm". The pigs in Animal Farm seek to improve their lot at the expense of the other animals: all are equal but some are more equal than others. I think it refers to humanity in general, but particularly the political class (bombing often improves a leader's popularity rating). Verse 3: no idea :-o Verse 4: "Dinosaurs...", what should be extinct is still going strong. Not too sure what he's alluding to. ...I kind of lose the plot towards the end :-) I suppose the song can be interpreted in many ways. | |
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No Picture
Quinn Wanna Be |
#8 by Quinn Carvalho at Dec 16, 1994 at 3:18 AM EST |
| This and electioneering are two of the best Radiohead songs to cheer me up, I find. Though obviously the strong theme of 'capitalist politicians are destroying the earth' runs rife throughout both of them, kind of making you guilty for considering them all sunshine and rainbow. But their lyrics are so abstract, sometimes it's nice to create your own significance for each song, like ledzeprul's friend did. | |
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Ben Average |
#9 by Ben at Oct 26, 1995 at 10:09 AM EST |
| Fuck I love Radiohead. And Radiohead fans are awesome too... They know what the fuck they're talking about. Amen for the people in the world who still have a fucking brain in their skulls. | |
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No Picture
Anni Average |
#10 by Anni Mcgann at Sep 28, 1996 at 4:16 AM EST |
| Nervous messed up marionette Floating around on a prison ship ~~ Someone that feels trapped by situations trying to make the best of what's left. I personally think that the Animal Farm reference is an allusion to the fact that the days of excess and empire eventually come crashing down.. I could be wrong though.. . | |
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No Picture
Dave Average |
#11 by Dave at Jun 24, 1999 at 12:48 PM EST |
| This is the point in the album where Radiohead's trademark paranoia really kicks in. Thom wails: "The big fish eat the little ones x2 Not my problem give me some" Fear enters, and knowledge of evil, and is ddealt with by being shut out and ignored. | |
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Neal Average |
#12 by Neal Chuenprateep at Dec 9, 2002 at 2:35 PM EST |
| Even though I can't find out what this song means, I find it better not knowing what it means. When he says "You can try the best you can" and the guitar blends in with his voice so well, it's like floating on air. This song is really great. So far, my favorite Radiohead song. | |
