Popular songs that are deceptively difficult to master

Bidley

Inspired by me thinking, flippantly "I like choral-flangey tones, maybe I should learn a Police song", then having a crack at Message in a Bottle. Bloody hell, my entire left arm and hand hurt!

axisus

Yeah, the police had some tricky stuff! I tried MiaB once and gave up!

John_P

Bidley said:

Inspired by me thinking, flippantly "I like choral-flangey tones, maybe I should learn a Police song", then having a crack at Message in a Bottle. Bloody hell, my entire left arm and hand hurt!

I use to gig a few police tunes - my little fingers needed treatment afterwards from the stretches...

The one that always bugs me and is a simple tune to play is Back in Black - the first run after the chord hits should be so easy and I'm never happy with the feel of it.

Kebabkid

"Every breath you take" is another one and obviously, "Mr.Brightside"

The timing for the opening riff of "Sex is on fire"

John Mayer's "Slow dancing in a burning room"

"Son of a preacher man" - the double-stops

"Brown-eyed girl"

"Little wing" - playing it properly

close2u

yes to message in a bottlee

 

I was determined to crack it without the cheat of de-tuning the low E string - it's a stamina-finger buster

Rocker

Just about any Status Quo song takes a lot of stamina and concentration.  Not as easy as they sound.  At least not to me.  But I am not a 'young lad' any more..........  

Bellycaster

Odyssey - Going Back to my Roots

That main (repeated) riff is a real bitch if played properly, it involves skipping a string and getting the timing and the alternate picking right when coming back down to the root note requires some skill.

My consistency with it varies to a very annoying extent.

Ironically the solos (I've heard 2 different versions) are quite easy.

 

Bidley

John_P said:

The one that always bugs me and is a simple tune to play is Back in Black - the first run after the chord hits should be so easy and I'm never happy with the feel of it.

I know what you mean there, it's the little bend that always knocks me, it always takes me a few goes to get it fluid.

not_the_dj

I posted a thread back on MR about Message in a Bottle....luckly it didn't suit our singer so we dropped the idea. I learnt the riff but we never got to play it all the way through properly. I was actually quite relieved about that ;-)

I flippin' hate that intro to Brown Eyed Girl, and I'm never happty with how I play Suspicious MInds either (maybe I just don't like cheesy crap)

Kebabkid

Bellycaster said:

Odyssey - Going Back to my Roots

That main (repeated) riff is a real bitch if played properly, it involves skipping a string and getting the timing and the alternate picking right when coming back down to the root note requires some skill.

My consistency with it varies to a very annoying extent.

Ironically the solos (I've heard 2 different versions) are quite easy.

 

Yep, that's a tricky one. This song along with Edie Brickell's "What I am" feature my favourite autowah/envelope filter sounds

Bellycaster

@Kebabkid

I remember the Edie Brickel song well. When I was 18, I used to think "How the F**k does he get that sound". Ahhhh, the naivity of youth!

I had a breakthrough with the Odyssey song.

I can't believe I did not spot it earlier. If I play along to the track - on a standard tuned guitar - the solo is played in the Eb Min Pent Positions and the main riff starts on the note C#. So I'm thinking, Why Eb Min Pent?

So it occurs to me that it was maybe recorded with a Guitar tuned to Eb and then the solo would be played in the Emin Position and the main riff would start on the note "D".

This makes it soooooo much easier to start on the open D string and you only then use 2 strings instead of 3(When starting on the C# note).

So it's either to play the song detuned to Eb or go up half step with regular tuning to acheive the said positioning and hope the singer can cope, lol.

Yippee, I can play it now.

 

Deijavoo

Kebabkid said:

"Little wing" - playing it properly

Correct!

I never play it exactly right, but to be fair, Jimi's live performances (that we get to hear now) vary a bit too, so with anything like this I tend not to worry.

mike_l

Bidley said:

Inspired by me thinking, flippantly "I like choral-flangey tones, maybe I should learn a Police song", then having a crack at Message in a Bottle. Bloody hell, my entire left arm and hand hurt!

I found it easier using fingers 1-2-4

Roaster

Been playing MIAB for years, still bloody kills my wrist...or is it something else....

hywelg

Rocker said:

Just about any Status Quo song takes a lot of stamina and concentration.  Not as easy as they sound.  At least not to me.  But I am not a 'young lad' any more..........  

Both Quo guitarists are highly underrated. Getting the rhythmn chops right is not easy, I know a number of decent guitarists who can't do it like Parfitt can.

hywelg

PK so how many here can play the opening bars of Thunderstruck by ACDC? Played properly picking every note like on the record?

I only ask as my guitar teach has given me that to improve my picking technique!!! I can do it at about 80% speed, no faster.

mike_l

hywelg said:

PK so how many here can play the opening bars of Thunderstruck by ACDC? Played properly picking every note like on the record?

I only ask as my guitar teach has given me that to improve my picking technique!!! I can do it at about 80% speed, no faster.

Yep, open string on the down stroke, fingered on the up works for me.

the secret is to use as small a pick movement as possible.

Jalapeno

Gave up with the Brown Eyed Girl double stops and now play a single note line - far easier !

viz

It's all done on the 2nd and 3rd strings, not 1st and 2nd. If you're doing it on 1st and 2nd you're doomed.

Iamnobody

I always find the Massage in a Brothel riff feels easier if you use the sixth string for the root note of the A & B shapes - as opposed the the open A and fifth string B notes.

I wouldn't want to try and play it live either way!

The Brown eyed girl double stops are great. One of my favourite things to play if I just pick up a guitar for a 2 minute noodle. Can't see single notes sounding 'right' @jalapeno - if I can do it anyone can!

Also agree with the Quo comments. Top band! Great players...

randomhandclaps

This Charming Man by The Smiths is among the tracks so many people think that can play then cock up.  A lot of Marr stuff is far trickier than it may look or sound.