Learning the Guitar
MayDay10
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I have been trying to learn the guitar. What is an easy Pearl jam song/PJ covered song to learn via tab?
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Wishlist!
- Mr. Edward Vedder 7/11/03
Ill check out Wishlist
chords arent easy for a beginner
look at Rearview Mirror...everyone never says that but it was the first song i ever learned on guitar, its so easy
i would say lukin but its hard to hold a power chord on an acoustic depending on the action (hieght of strings from fretboard)
I think that if I had the motivation factor of working through a PJ song, I can make some big strides.
I dont know, maybe that's the wrong way to go...
That being said ... some are easier than others ... and certainly an open E chord is one of the easiest ...
thus
NOT FOR YOU
would get my vote for one helluva easy song.
Also, with very little in the way of chordage ... the lead riff to
ANIMAL
would also be one i learned very early on in the game.
CORDUROY
could be done with a modest effort, though the intro timing can be a bit hard for a beginner, i imagine. Hell i have trouble sometimes.
RELEASE
makes a great canditate for an easy picking song and
the lead riff for
PORCH is another no-brainer chorder for the beginner.
I would suggest, when you just start out, not getting too attached to the notion of PLAYING AN ENTIRE SONG ... it just isn't likely to happen that often.
For one, any song with a solo is gonna kill you. Unless it is a ridiculous easy one ... secondly ... most songs sound retarded played alone without some other form of instrumentation (voice included) ... and pearl jam songs especially rely heavily on the the mix of sounds created by FIVE BRILLIANT MUSICIANS.
That being said, listen to the albums and find tracks that have repetitive bits ... like the songs listed above ... then get the tabs for those songs ... you'll find parts that you can do ... and it will lead to a sense of accomplishment. You can always come back to fill in the blank spots when your hands are stronger, your fingers more calloused, and your technical skill more proficient.
BETTERMAN has its easy parts ...
SATANS BED is a solid cakewalk from verse to chorus
I don't want to pretend like it is EASY, but
GIVEN TO FLY is devoid of any real hard chording ... it's mostly picking and timing. But it IS tricky, to an extent.
INDIFFERENCE is also easy as pie to pick out.
And like was already mentioned
REARVIEW MIRROR is easy. Though, i do conceed that maintaining the pattern for the duration of the song does require endurance.
Well,
That should certainly get you started.
Oh, try Jeremy ... I also, and some may disagree here, but ... I personally, would recommend picking up the TEN TAB BOOK ... it is certainly FAR FROM PERFECT, and on the whole misses the boat on all the songs with alternate tunings ... but it does serve well to give you an example of the STUDIO WORK that gets put into making these great songs. Buy this i mean, the book is overflowing with FILL PATTERNS and 2nd Guitar RIFFS ... this helps to give you a good understanding of how parts work togeather. ALso of how what you thought was only one part is really 2, 3, or sometimes 4 or 5.
Sheewwwwwwwwwww.
Let us know when you master DEEP
If I opened it now would you not understand?
- Mr. Edward Vedder 7/11/03
to the notion of learning chords first, versus other forms of study.
YOU SHOULD GIVE GREAT ATTENTION TO LEARNING ... BY ROTE ... THE E MAJOR and E MINOR SCALES ...
I would focus soley on these two scales, and understand that THE ONLY difference is the number of semitones between the 2nd and 3rd ... and also the 7th and 8th (or octave, ie ... the next E note)
Learning the E scale ... E MAJ in particular is imperative to understanding the operation of the fret board. The guitar is based in E ... that is why the 1st and 6th string are E notes. and the 12th fret is the Octave, and thus has 2 dots to indicate that you are just repeating the first 11 frets over in a higher register.
If you learn this one scale ... then reduce it to its pentatonic brethren ... you will understand so much more than i ever did when i started. As i totally ignored it. All you do from there is shift the whole scale up or down the neck to get whichever other key you want.
ONE OTHER GREAT PIECE OF INFORMATION TO PAY ATTENTION TO:
And this is covered in books like "Fretboard Logic" and whatnot ...
The guitar, and it's chords are all very simply constructed, despite how they appear.
THE KEY TO THIS IS THE B STRING ...
note when tuning your guitar ... you put your finger on the 5th fret of EVERY string and pluck the open note of the string below to match tones and tune your guitar. EVERY string is tuned 5 semi-tones HIGHER than the string above it. E-F(e to f is only a half step, one semi-tone)-G-A ... FIVE semitones from the E string to A ... 5 from A to D ... 5 from D to G ... 5 from G to ... OH WAIT ... THERE IS ONE STRING THAT IS A FUKED UP FOOL ... and it is the B STRING ... it is only FOUR SEMI-TONES higher than it's neighbor to the north (G) ...
see: G to A (2 semi's) A to B (2 semi's) ... so if you fret the 5th on the G string you will get a C ... which is actually the 1st fret on the B string (not the open note)
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND for this reason (and some others, i suppose) .... :
Look at the A CHORD and the D CHORD ...
Look at the E CHORD and the A CHORD (and i mean the 1st position chords)
A is just a barre of the D G and B strings at the SECOND FRET
D is a barre of the G B and E strings at the SECOND FRET ... BUT with the third fret pushed down on the B string ... LOOK AT THIS ...
remember what we just said about the B string?
It is only FOUR SEMI-TONES higher than the G STRING? Well ... if it HAD BEEN FIVE ... the D CHORD would be EXACTLY THE SAME SHAPE AS THE A CHORD.
This logic applies to the E CHORD AND THE A CHORD AS WELL ... In fact ... the D chord is just a mis-shaped A chord because of the B string ... and HECK if the A CHORD isn't actually a mis-shaped E CHORD because of the B String ... you just slide the note fretted on the B string BACK to the headstock ONE FRET and VOILA ! ! !
This sounds stupid ... but it makes understanding the logic of the fretboard SO MUCH EASIER ... don't FRET over it, or beat it to death, just keep it in mind and you will be better of for it.
ok that was my lame attempt at theory for the day.
If I opened it now would you not understand?
True,
but if you think about it ... it's probably not the easiest for a beginner, because it requires the use of the PINKY ...
to hammer on the G# to A and back off in the verse ...
This is likely a sore spot for a beginner.
Hell i had trouble even bunching my fingers into an E chord when i started.
Nevertheless, it is a fairly straightforward song.
And one Eddie certainly plays solo presets with.
If I opened it now would you not understand?
Rocking in the free word, RVM, not for you, wishlist are all easy
main verse-this is the power chord version not the chord
e
b
g
d-2-2-2-2-2-2-2--7--5-5*-5*
a-2-2-2-2-2-2-2--5--3-3*-3*
E
* = light picking
spin the black circle - main riff
e
b
g
d-10-10--9--7--5
a-8---8---7--5--3
E
RVM - intro
e
b
g
d
a
5---5--7
E--5-5---5
0--0
repeat that until u notice the change, ed goes
e
b
g
d
a
7---7--7
E--7-7---7
0--0
not for you---most of the song
e
b-0---0---0
g-1---3---4
d-2---4---5
a-2---4---5
E
i made my own version of BUSHLEAGUER for the intro
e
b
g
d
a-9-9-9-9--4-4--5-5--4-4
E-7-7-7-7--2-2--3-3--2-2
that IS true...but for an average player, this person is a beginner...plus hes using an acoustic which its hard to get specific songs for that because its hard to hold a 3 string power chord on an acoustic, well atleast it is on my acoustic, but my acoustic is 100$ yahmaha, lol
i use the same tabs for the bushleaguer intro except i use
e
b
g
d-9-9-9-9--4-4--5-5--4-4
a-9-9-9-9--4-4--5-5--4-4
E-7-7-7-7--2-2--3-3--2-2
[/
i have to agree with all the songs suggested, and not to play a full song at first. i love the feeling of hearing a part of a new song learned when you play it. good luck with learning
haha nice, yeah i sent the tabs into ultimate-guitar.com and they said that they werent accepted because it was either wrong or their were too many version, theres only 1 version on the site and its tricky
RVM - intro
e
b
g
d
a
0---5--7
E--5-5---5
0--0
repeat that until u notice the change, ed goes
e
b
g
d
a
0---7--9
E--7-7---7
0--0
Thats the way i play RVM, i dont have my guitar in front of me right now but from what i remember first hit on the A string is open for both parts.
I find to keep RVM going at the proper pace, without f-ing up is one hell of an endurance trial, like running a marathon! Especially the end, if you're not soloing, to wail on those power chords for a good minute and a half to two.
Yeah the end is pretty tough to get down when you're just learning it but you get used to it. I found the chords where he's playing along to the lyric 'I couldn't breathe....' hard for a while to get the timing right.
Once you learn though its fun to play.
Just slide the E shape up 2 frets and then another. easy peasy.
for the chorus i play:
e-3--0--0
b-3--3--1
g-0--2--0--5-5/4/
d-0--0--2--5-5/4/2
a-2--x--3--3-3/2/2
E-3--x
than pre-chorus A/A7 ope chord and than back to E5/D5/C5
~You laugh because I am different, I laugh because you are all the fucking same -?~
~Education is the most powerfull weapon you can use to change the world - Nelson Mandela~
These tips and reccomendations helped me a lot. I started to improve. I broke a string, tried to restring the guitar myself and did it wrong where the guitar goes out of tune after 5 minutes of playing. I got lazy, never got it restrung and it site there...
But seeing this thread has made me wnt to give some deserved love to the guitar again.
Being wound they get stretched when you first fit them onto a guitar.
If you stretch them a few times, tune it, strum for a few mins. If its out of tune then just tune it again.
Its a little frustrating at first but within 10 mins it should hold a tuning, if it doesnt its not new strings you need, its a new guitar, lol.
I know it's not a PJ song but if you're up to a challenge maybe the first 45 seconds of Stairway to Heaven?
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Once you have a handle on those try Elderly Woman, Low Light, Nothing Man and Crazy Mary
All these sound really good on acoustic and, if you know your chords, are pretty simple.
http://www.chordie.com/song.php/songartist/Pearl%20Jam/index.html
Keep practicing and you'll get it in no time