Tablature is written to look like a guitar. There are six lines on tablature music with each line representing a string on a guitar. The line on the top is the thinnest string and the line on the bottom is the heaviest string. When you see the letters TAB written from top to bottom on a tablature page, they are meant to indicate the string order. The letter "T" is on top, and that stands for tenor--which is the highest sounding strings. The letter "A" stands for alto, which is the middle strings, and "B" stands for bass, which is the lowest sounding strings. The numbers on the lines indicate the frets where your fingers should go. If the number 3 appears on the top line, that means you put your finger on the third fret of the highest string.
There are some special symbols you will see on guitar tablature that all mean a special movement on the guitar. If you see a number with an upward-pointing arrow, then that means to put your finger in that fret and then bend the note upwards. The arrow will have a fraction next to it such as ½. This means to bend the note upwards one-half step. If you see an upward arrow followed immediately by a downward arrow, then that means to bend the note upward and then slowly bend it back down. A squiggly line means to quickly move your finger up and down while holding the note to create vibrato. Sometimes the song requires you to hammer a note. This is referred to as a hammer on. If the song asks you to place your finger in the 5th fret of the first string, and then hammer on to the 6th fret in the first string, then it will look like this: 5 H 6 written on the first string. You place your finger on the 5th fret, play the note and then hammer down on the 6th fret while the note is still sounding.
Unfortunately, tablature cannot indicate tempo. Many times you will see a quick notation at the beginning of the song that may say "fast rock tempo" or "slow tempo." But there is not way of writing tempo in tablature as there is in regular music notation. That is why tablature should be used as an aide when learning a new song for the first time. With the song written out in tablature, and the song itself on CD, you should be able to learn any song you want.