Paper Ships

Paper Ships by Dead Man's Bones is played in the key of G. Arranged in the natural sounding key of G in standard guitar tuning without a capo, 'Paper Ships' by Dead Man's Bones utilizes direct fretboard shapes to project full open-string acoustic warmth and resonance throughout every section. The tricky Bm barre can be effortlessly simplified using an open Bm7 (x20202) shape, removing the need for five-string index finger pressure across the second fret while maintaining clean note clarity. Moving smoothly between G and Bm demands finger discipline: lead with your ring finger toward the target fret as an anchor before locking down the remaining fingers firmly on the strings. Set your metronome at an initial practice tempo of 66 BPM in 4/4 time to master the '↓ - ↓ ↑ - ↑ ↓ ↑' strumming groove, emphasizing steady downstrokes on beats one and three before accelerating toward the studio speed of 92 BPM.