Through the Barricades Guitar tab video
Spandau Ballet
Make your own Through the Barricades tab video, freeNo editing. No card. 10 minutes free.- Instrument
- Guitar
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Tuning
- E A D G B E
- Tempo
- 161 BPM
About this riff
The signature guitar part is a Spanish-flamenco-flavored acoustic figure in standard tuning that opens and threads through the ballad, built on arpeggiated chord shapes rather than power chords. It's worth learning for clean fingerpicking control and dynamics: keeping the arpeggios even while the electric layers swell underneath. The 161 BPM tempo demands steady right-hand accuracy, but the fretting stays in comfortable open and barre positions, making it more about touch and phrasing than raw technique.
Did you know?
The song was inspired by Thomas "Kidso" Reilly, a Belfast merchandise seller for the band who was shot in the back by a British soldier during the Troubles on 9 August 1983. When guitarist and songwriter Gary Kemp visited Belfast on the band's tour, Reilly's brother took him around the city; what Kemp saw firsthand became the backdrop for what he framed as a love song set against the conflict. The band grew so emotionally attached to the track that singer Tony Hadley found the vocals difficult to record, and Kemp later called it Hadley's best-ever performance.
FAQ
Is this the real audio?
The audio is rendered from a high-quality SoundFont (FluidR3), so it plays for real. It is not the original master recording.
Can I make my own Through the Barricades tab video?
Yes. Upload your file to Tab2Vid and export a 9:16 or 16:9 video with real audio in about a minute. The free plan needs no credit card.