Korean Job Discussion Forums

[shifty]

What songs are there that are relatively easy to play, but give the impression that they are complex? Songs that flatter the
enthusiastic yet unambitious player. In short, not a song like Stairway to Heaven.

Already I'm gonna stick my neck out and volunteer one. Suite: Judy Blue Eyes by Steven Stills. I found it in a book called 101 songs for easy guitar book 4 by Wise Publications..

Moderately easy to sing as well. Reach for it, believe in yr voice and don't play before someone who makes you shy. Even if you don't sound hot, the nifty little end will put it out of its misery.

[Kimchi Cowboy]

Pretty much any song can be simplified and made "easy". Check the various tab websites (fretplay.com, guitaretab.com are two good ones.)

Learn to read TAB! It will make your life a lot easier!

But, if you really want to impress people, especially other people who play guitar: learn to play some open tunings. Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, for example, is originally done in an E-E-E-E-B-e tuning, which is a pretty rare one, but open G (D-G-D-G-B-d) is a great place to start - easy to tune, easy chord forms, and it sounds great, pretty with (in spite of?) anything you do. Open tunings will make you sound better than you really are, and there are tons of good resources online.

Jimmy Page & Led Zeppelin did a bunch of tunes in open G, and Pink Floyd's "Fearless" is also in open G. "Boots or Hearts" (if you know it), "Honky Tonk Women", "Daughter"... all in Open G. Tune 'er down and grab a beer can/bottle and start slidin'! Learn a few chord forms and you'll rock the house.

One Warning! Tuning up and down makes your strings much more likely to break, so keep extra strings (especially G's!) on hand.

[shifty]

Yeah, I know, I should really learn to do TABs. Once, I was jamming with a less than average player and he suddenly set off on Pinball Wizard, which sounded pretty good. Good enough, that I was hardpressed to see what in f he was doing. Found out his secret. Tabs!!

I use open G tuning for Judy Blue Eyes and sounds great, but thanks for the tip. Honky Tonk woman sounds like a simple 3 chorder blues but haven't tried it yet. I'm not too keen on "let's all make a big noise together and sing baldly to the rooftops." And I'm yet to make any Stones rock song work. But the more suggestions the merrier, thanks.

I'm keen on songs with a few little trick chords that exemplify the acoustic. I'm quite a good vamper with good timing but picky parts I struggle with. Those pick parts that I do pick up I'm always very proud of and never forget (nor allow anyone else).

[Leslie Cheswyck]

Because by Dave Clark Five



http://kr.youtube.com/watch?v=kpYf_8QsueA

http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/tabs/d/dave_clark_five/because_crd.htm

http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/tabs/d/dave_clark_five/because_ver2_crd.htm

I am pretty impressive with it, but I'm no guitar player.

[Harpeau]

I really like "Iron and Wine's Naked as we Came:

http://www.lifesci.ucsb.edu/~haddock/tabs/nakedaswecame.html

--------------------------------
Iron and Wine: Naked as we came
================================

Capo II, Tune dropped D
Chords - D9: 054030, Em9: 20000X, A9: 002200
See below for picking patterns.

Intro: D9 E9 2x

D9 Em9
She says, "wake up, it's no use pretending"
D9 Em9
I'll keep stealing, breathing her
D9 Em9
birds are leaving over autumn's ending
D9 Em9 A9
one of us will die inside these arms
Em9 A9
eyes wide open,
Em9 A9
naked as we came
Em9 A9
one will spread our
Em9 D9
ashes around the yard

[intro chords again]

she says, "if I leave before you, darling,
don't you waste me in the ground"
I lay smiling like our sleeping children
one of us will die inside these arms
eyes wide open, naked as we came
one will spread our ashes around the yard
=====================================================================
D9 Em9
E|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|
B|-------3-------3-------3-------0-|-------0-------0-------0-------0-|
G|---0-------0-------0-------0-----|---0-------0-------0-------0-----|
D|-----4-------4-------4-------4---|-----0-------0-------0-------0---|
A|-5---------------0---------------|-----------------2-------0-------|
D|---------0---------------0-------|-2-------4-----------------------|

A9 Em9
E|---------------0-----------------|----------------------------------|
B|-------0-----------0---0-------0-|-------0-------0--------0-------0-|
G|---2-------2---------------2-----|---0-------0--------0-------0-----|
D|-----2-------2-------2-------2---|-----0-------0--------0-------0---|
A|-0-------0-------0-------0-------|------------------2-------0-------|
D|---------------------------------|-2-------4------------------------|

========================================================================

Lots of old Bruce Cockburn~ Salt Sun & Time is a great album.
"Dialogue with the Devil" and "Creation Dream" are also a cool tune.

[Underwaterbob]

[shifty]

Yes, thanks for insights. I have given tabs a few shots but everytime get nonplussed. Must try harder.

What prompted my first post was the wonderous chords I found in Judy Blue Eyes Gsus4 and G7sus4. Makes one feel and sound virtuoso.

Last night listened to Carry On and I thought bingo another potential. But a look at ultimate chords. com was sobering. It hasn't got trick chords as I suspected it would. Alternatively put, when i play it doesn't sound like CSNand Y. Sounds like the tuning could be as per what Kimchi Cowboy and Underwaterbob referred to. I'm now aware of this hazard and aim so stay well clear.

[SirFink]

[Underwaterbob]

A good one to learn is "Autumn Leaves". All kinds of fancy, nice sounding chords that are quite easy to play (except for the f#mb5 maybe)

[shifty]

Sir Fink, do you mean change key within the song like say Johnny Cash with Cat Steven's "Father and Son"? Gives it a bit of a rush. Would using a capo make any essential diff?

Another song I have in mind is My Sweet Lord. There are 2 great chords Ebo7 and B7, not as bar chords but rather in 1st and 2nd frets, these transform the song. If you have a good guitar (expensive) and a feel for rythym and you're in the mood, you're basically unstoppable.

How's about America by Paul Simon?

And my piece de resistance, Thunder Road by Bruce Springsteen. quite easy and flattering, just memorise the words. When you get to the part "and I know you're lonely for words that I aint spoken, but tonight we'll be free" it's best to be on form. Had me bamboozled for some time. (Still has hehe) Cowboy Junkies simply left the whole friggin verse out, which idea I copied.

There are plenty of great recognizable songs out there, that are not too challenging. Just a matter of chance encounters and others' suggestions. And Tabs dammit!!

[Kimchi Cowboy]

If you can find it:

There's an early Supertramp tune called Rosie Had Everything Planned; the opening riff has a nice little play on the C chord, similar to Kansas' Dust in the Wind. Fun tune.

Do you P2P? In Limewire, for instance, once in a while I just type in "acoustic" under song name, and it's surprising what comes up. Lots of inspiration there.

[ernie]

learning to read tab is absolutely critical and actually a no-brainer! the 6 lines represent the 6 strings of the guitar, and the numbers indicate the fret...

try using 'power tabs' - it's a great program that shows the tab and plays the music (in MIDI bleeps but it's good for learning) of the song at the same time... download it ASAP!

http://www.power-tab.net/guitar.php

p.s. nirvana's unplugged album is a great place to start learning the guitar!

[Omkara]

[Hanson]

Anything by Neil Young...

Heart of Gold is easy as pie - E - Am - D - G... Throw in a C there somewhere...

Hey, Hey, My, My
Ohio
Mr. Soul
I Am a Child
Like a Hurricane
etc...

[shifty]

Actually, that strikes at the root of what I'm trying to get at. If we are of moderate talent, yet have some pretensions, then we should avoid songs that are too easy, such as Heart of Gold. That would simply amplify the fact that we are no Neil Youngs, to ourselves and the world..

However, there are many Young songs such as "A man needs a maid" with a good array of snappy chords that would make for happier renditions and allow our own little sparks to blossom. We can rework such songs in many ways and add our own charms. Plus the immediacy and novelty of the song being done "live" is always an extra to boost the final product..

But if we simply belt out "love is all around me" by the Troggs, it's a recipe for friends picking up the conversation instead of being glued to the music maker.

One poster recommended Daves Clark Five's "Because". Was it it you Leslie? Well, I did watch it. Are you joking?? My apologies if you're not.