This post features the sheet music (lead sheet) and guitar tab for “Misirlou.” Both are available for download as a PDF.
Misirlou
Misirlou’s origins can be traced back to the Ottoman Empire (Southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa during the 14th and early 20th centuries). This part of the world was also known as the Turkish Empire in Western Europe. In fact, the word Misirlou is a Greek pronunciation of a Turkish word meaning, “Egyptian girl.”
Guitar Tab
This is the guitar tab for Misirlou. I have written out the melody in its basic form. To play it like Dick Dale does, you would just apply the tremolo technique to these notes.
Download the “Misirlou” Guitar Tab (2 Pages) as a PDF.
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Lead Sheet
The sheet music below is a lead sheet containing the chords (as chord symbols) and the melody in standard notation.
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Misirlou – Sheet Music$3.99
A Short History on Miserlou
Who wrote the music to this tune? Nobody knows. Although the composer is unknown, by the 1920s it was already being played by Greek, Arabic and Jewish Musicians.
In the early 1960s, surf guitar legend, Dick Dale covered the tune. His version featured himself playing the melody tremolo-style with a pick on the electric guitar.
Then in 1994, when the Quentin Tarantino film, Pulp Fiction, opened with Dick Dale’s rendition and it became a huge hit.