Rockin' Oldies- Lesson four for those new to guitar
Posted: Monday, September 21, 2009
by Steven Rogers
If you're reading this I assume you've gone thru lessons one, two, and three they are all pretty simple. You should know the parts of your guitar, how to hold one, and even a few chords. I taught you a song in the last lesson and I want to build on that a little today. The chord progression G D C is not the only way to play this. These chords are a great tool. Try playing them this way. Strumming real fast and still tapping your foot to a steady rhythm two beats per chord, play G C G CG C D this is the basic song structure for "Only Wanna Be With You" by Hootie and the Blowfish. If you slow it down to ballad' speed and listen for the chord changes in the song and you can play "Every Rose Has a Thorn" by Poison. There are literally hundreds of songs using these in one way or another. I challenge you to find this progression in your favorite songs, learn it and play it for your friends and family. I would love to hear how you are progressing so feel free to record it and send it to me. In the mean time I am going to teach you two new chords and a new progression.
A minor F
e----------------0----------------------------------1---------
B---------------1----------------------------------1---------
G---------------2----------------------------------2---------
D---------------2----------------------------------3---------
A---------------0----------------------------------X--------
E---------------X----------------------------------X--------
Why a chord is a minor chord is not important in these lessons I will explain chord building and the theories behind it in a more advanced lesson. For now I want you to have fun playing your new guitar get those calluses built. That is the most important part of these lessons. Look at the A minor chord. Now compare it to a C chord they are the same except for one finger. If you fret a C chord and pick up your ring finger and put it on the string just below your middle finger still in the 2 nd fret. I know it is a little crowded but squeeze it in there. That's right! Now you have an A minor, or Am, as you will usually see it called. Strum that a few times. Check your finger placement if you hear any buzzing. What a cool sound that makes! Don't you agree? It's kind of a dark almost melancholy sound as if your guitar is heartbroken. I love this chord it give so much personality to whatever you're playing!
Now that you've got that, look at the F. it is what is called a barr chord. A barr chord is a chord that has more than one string fretted by the same finger. Those are your e and B strings to fret these it is easiest to lay you index finger across both of them and your middle and ring finger to play the G and D string. Notice that you only play the top four strings the X's mean you don't plat those strings. When I play this chord I wrap my thumb over the top of the neck and mute the E and I use my ring finger to mute the A. now strum this chord a few times. I think this sounds a little funny. It sounds unfinished to me. But it is musically sound and a real chord I promise you. Later I will teach you another F chord that will knock you socks off but this is what I want you playing for now.
Do you feel pretty good with these chords? If not keep practicing it will come. A good exercise is to play all of the chords to a beat and really work on changing your chords smoothly and quickly. I like to make flash cards and shuffle the chords up into a random order to practice so that it doesn't get to boring. Besides, fate may throw you the chord progression of the next big hit song! The key is practice! Practice! Practice! With that said, I'm going to unlock a whole songbook for you! With what you know already plus the four chord "oldies progression" you will have an arsenal of songs at your fingertips to play with a band or around the campfire! You can play songs like Duke of Earl" and "Runaround Sue" in just seconds! All you have to do is send me $19.95
JUST KIDDING!!! You don't have to send me anything! All you have to do is play the chords C-Am-F-G. That is it! Those chords in that order will have you playing your favorite doo-wop songs right now! How cool is that! Just tap you feet and play each chord two times and your playing "Earth Angel" or four times and all of the sudden you're playing "Teenager in Love" eight times and you've got "Little Darling". The list goes on and on so pull out your old tabletop record player and get spinning! Here is a list of songs I found at Dummies.com
All I Have to Do Is Dream. Two strums per chord.
Blue Moon. Two strums per chord.
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do. Two strums per chord.
Come Go with Me. Two strums per chord.
Duke of Earl. Four strums per chord.
Earth Angel. Two strums per chord.
Heart and Soul. Two strums per chord.
Hey Paula. Two strums per chord.
In the Still of the Night. (The one by the Five Satins, not Cole Porter.) Four strums per chord.
Little Darlin'. Eight strums per chord.
Poor Little Fool. Four strums per chord.
Runaround Sue. Eight strums per chord.
Sherry. Two strums per chord.
Silhouettes. Two strums per chord.
Stay. Two strums per chord.
Take Good Care of My Baby. Four strums per chord.
Tears on My Pillow. Two strums per chord.
Teenager in Love. Four strums per chord.
What's Your Name? Two strums per chord.
Why Do Fools Fall in Love? Two strums per chord.
You Send Me. Two strums per chord.
Thanks Dummies.com! Their books guitar for dummies' and rock guitar for dummies' have a wealth of knowledge and if your serious about learning to play I truly recommend picking them up and reading them. But for now I hope you have a lot of fun with your new song book. Keep on Rockin'!!!
Steven is a self proclaimed right wing Christian extremist. He is a former Marine and currently work in the laboratory of a cancer research and treatment facility. He is the father of three and is referred to as genius by his wife (mostly as a sarcastic term of endearment!)
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