Chris Isaak: Wicked Game

Table of Contents

This song only has three chords, but is perfect for a rhythm-and-lead duo. The original song makes use of a whammy bar to get that dive-bombing effect – you can mimic the effect with some judicious string bending.

Interactive tabs
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On Soundslice

Downloads
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Lead ukulele
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Verses
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During the verses there is a call-and-response between the vocals and the lead ukulele. Accompany the vocalist with softly played partial chords, and then respond with a little melody.

Some variations are shown below. For best effect, start with simple variations and then build them up with each verse.

Verse variation 1 — Tab for the verse variation 1

Verse variation 2 — Tab for the verse variation 2

Verse variation 3 — Tab for the verse variation 3

Chorus
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This melody plays over the chorus. I find that the E5 in the 4th measure is easiest to play as a barre chord, but you can also just play the note B instead of the chord.

Example audio for the chorus

Bridge
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Immediately after the chorus comes this tricky bridge section. I’ve notated a suggested fingering.

Anchor your 1st finger on the 5th fret of the A string
Anchor your 2nd finger on the 6th fret of the C string
4th and 3rd fingers handle the 9th and 7th frets
Release the anchors and start moving down to the 2nd frets on the E and A strings
On the way down, play the 4th fret on the A string with whichever finger feels natural

Example audio for the bridge

Ukulele tab for the chorus

Intro/solo
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The intro and solo are very similar with only some minor differences. Really lean into the string bend, pluck the string, and slowly release the bend to get the dive-bombing effect.

The first note can be played either on the 6th fret of the E string (as notated in the intro) or on the 10th fret of the C string (as notated in the solo). They’re the same note, so pick whichever variation is easier for you. It’s easier to bend notes towards the middle of the string, but sometimes it’s easier to get lost up high on the fretboard too!

You will play the bridge melody immediately after the intro and solo, so practice switching between the two.

Example audio for the intro

Example audio for the solo

Bass
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The bass part is very simple, there are only two variations. The first is played during the verses and bridge, the other is played during the choruses.