Message in a Bottle

How to play Message in a Bottle by The Police on guitar

This song is a great pick if you want a driving, urgent feel that stays catchy from start to finish. You get a steady rock groove at about 121 BPM, and the repeating motion makes it satisfying to lock in once it clicks.

You can start with the open shapes A and D, then add the barre shapes B, F#, C#m, D#m, F#m, G#m, and C# as needed. The main thing to watch is the quick back-and-forth between A and B in the opening progression, since that change sets the pulse and can trip you up if your fretting hand is late.

Practice the opening progression slowly first, then loop the full chord changes until the switches feel even. Once your hands know the shapes, bring the tempo up in small steps and focus on keeping the rhythm steady rather than chasing speed too soon.

Use the play-along above to follow each chord change in time with the music, or learn the shapes first with the chord diagrams below.