JENNA SAYS...

I’ve chosen the key of A because it has probably the easiest chord shapes for guitar in standard tuning, and because Paul is obsessed with Prince and Kiss is based on a 12-bar sequence in A major. Many players start off by strumming through the sequence using open chords and four downstrokes per bar. That’s fine but it doesn’t sound especially bluesy. I’d suggest trying a part with more space, which will sound more authentic and allow more time to change between chord shapes.

You can play the 12-bar pattern with standard major chords, but dominant 7s (A7, D7 etc) often sound better. Avoid strumming four open quarter notes per bar, which doesn’t sound very bluesy. Leaving a bit more space usually works better. If you want to try something busier, palm muting will help it sound more authentic.