How to Play Rolling in the Deep by Adele on Guitar Videos
Mahalo guitar expert Brandon Slavinski shows you how to play "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele.
Rolling in the Deep Practice Video
The Form of the Song
"Rolling in the Deep" is a song off of Adele's second album, 21.
"Rolling in the Deep" begins with a verse. The verse is palm-muted and syncopated, meaning that the chords change on off beats. The verse is followed by a prechorus and a chorus. This form then repeats. After the 2nd chorus, there is an alternate chorus, a breakdown, in which the guitar mostly drops out and a bridge. The song ends with a final chorus.
"Rolling in the Deep" follows the pattern:
- Verse 1
- Prechorus 1
- Chorus 1
- Verse 2
- Prechorus 2
- Chorus 2
- Alternate Chorus
- Verse 3 (Breakdown)
- Bridge
- Chorus 3
References
Meet Our Experts
-
Brandon Slavinski
Meet Brandon, one of Mahalo's guitar experts. Brandon has been a professional guitar instructor since 2005 teaching private guitar lessons to hundreds of students. He owns a production company called Red Letterbox Productions, and has produced and written for many artists including Drew Seeley, the singing voice of Troy in High School Musical. Brandon has an extensive knowledge of recording, engineering and writing music of all kinds. He is currently working on his solo material as a singer and guitarist.
Chords Used in the Song
To learn "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele, place a capo on the third fret. The chords listed refer to the forms of the chords not their actual harmonic quality. Even though the song is in C minor, the C minor chord is listed as an A minor because that is the form used. The song uses the following chord forms:
Am, G, E, Em and F.
