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 Good Guitar Habits!

The three golden nrles of fretting:

1) The ideal place for your fretting finger to be is right behind (towards the
headstock) but not quite touching the fret.

2) Use your thumb on the back of the neck to help you squeeze, rather than
"pressing down".
'$7hen
3) fretting, always use the tip of the finger. Do NOT use the finger pad!

Other good fretting habits :

1) Always try to keep a relatively straight and tension-free wrist.

2) DONT let your thumb point towards the headstock.

3) DONT let the first (& only) thumb knuckle bend. Keep a flat thumb.

4) Don't lift fingers unless you need to. Remember, a note fretted lower on a
string will be nullified by a higher fretted note.

- 5) Position playing! Use all ofyour fingers for maximum efficiency!

Hotding the Guitar (or, your "guitar ninia stance")

l) Hold the guitar close to your body _- don't let it lie flat on your lap.

2) Put a little arm-weight on the body to make sure the neck points at least a bit
upwards.

PickingHabits
1) Hold your pick using the thumb and first finger only, with the finger bent at
around a 9o-degree angle and curled at the fiist knu-ckle.

2) Hold the pick loosely enough so that if you held it any looser, it would fall!
3) Pick down on the strong beats, and up on the ofFbeats!
 4) Use the smallest movement you can, and the least pick you can. Less is more!!!

5) Pick with the small muscles of the wrist, not the large muscles of the arm!!!
6) Hold the pick perpeldicular to the strings, pointing it "into" the guitar, for
both upstrokes and downstrokes

7) Always use alternate picking!

8) Remember the Directional Rule! If the note falls on the downbeat, use a
dorvnstroke. If the note falls on the offbeat, use an upstroke.

Strumrning Habits

1) Always keep the right hand swiqgiqg like a persister.t pendulum!

2) Change chords on the "&" of beat 4, while keeping the strumming hand
moving!

3) Remember the Direction Rule. (See above)

Strum Review

TheContinuousStrum J t I t t t I t
(B) (B)
The Church Strum I I lttt
(B) (B)
The Basic (Country) Strum ,l I t l, J t
GAlu fto (B)
The a('' . . -,:r.-*. :, Stnrrn t l' 'l' t
(B)
The Best Stnrrn I l.t t,lt
 Chord Review
If there's no O, don't play that string! You should know them all!

ooo ooo o
\
\ \
\

C A
o oo ooo o o
\
\, I \
\ \, \

E Ern Am Drn
o oo oo
\
\ \ \

A7 E7
oo o o o
\
\'
\

G(formz) Caddg Enz FnariT

 Barre Chords Review

I I

( ( \ ( L

E form (major) E form (minor) A form (major) A form (minor)

AIso, for your reviewing convenience, herets a fretboard map

showing the bass notes along the 6th and sth strings:

Gt

ffi
'EE

Now that we remember all of our chords, habits, strum patterns, and general
guitar awesomeness, let's learn how to expand upon our strumming
repertoire and play a greattune!
 Multiple-Measure Melodius Music-Making
All of the strum patterns we have been using last exactly one measure, and they all
s^ound gr9at. But why stop there? Why not learn a few two-measure strum patterns?
C)r even fourmeasure strum patterns? Actually, there are too many possibfuties for
two-measure strum patterns to simply learn a pre-fab serof them. '^
Butwby?

Most fwo-measure strum pattefirs come from improvisation on the part of the
player. As you probably kiow, when we are struniming, the strumrrdns hand should
always be.in motion arid with the beat. As long as thaiis happening, aiything you
strum will sound good and in rhythm. To get ihe patrerns wd alreaEv know . *.
started with 8 strims (one on each eighthiote) and simplv subtracted srrums. $tre
lHp " strum here. or there,.a{rd that sface is what makes the pattern rhythmically
interesting. Starting with eight, and subtracting as many as you like. anvwhere vou
like, will give you a-myriad df different possibfities. Imaginb if you started wit6 16
possible strums. The number of possibilities is nuts! So l6t's look at a few examples,
and then I encourage you to use your ear and musical soul to create your own.Jist'
remember to alwayl k'eep that stiummlng arm in motion!

2-measure stnrm pattern examples

The starting point

Those are a few that you may run into from time to time. Again, feel free to
e>rperiment and create your 6wn patterns. After all, music iia creative endeavor!
Let's gjl ahead and learir a patterri that we.are gorr€ to use for one of our songs this
weef. n9t 89mg to be nammg any ot these 2-rneasure strums, since you generally
won't ,r'm
be using the same pattern enough to necessitate a name.
 1+ 2 + 3 + 4 + 1+ 2 + 3 + 4 +
l, ,1, ,l,t t tJ
(Newchord)
J tlt
**Notice that there is NO STRUM on beat one of the second measure!This is
because you are going to play the new chord on the *ando of beat 4, creating that
magical monstrosiry called syncopation. Very cool stuff. But remember, thit means
you'll.be coming. in with the new chord on the upbeat. You will probably need to try
it with an easy chord change before you attempf the harder oneG.
*** Also notice that we are playing no bass notes. This
is very contrary to mv belief
that werything sounds bett:er witTr bass nores. This song do6sn't. Make it tlie
exception, not the rule. Generally speaking, always playtrass notes!

This is the pattern you will use to play the song this week, so play through it a few
times and frake suie you feel confidT#f it] and when'you dd, let's tfi"t e some

You'll need to style your hair tike this:

"%ryeee&.e

\l/ I

\,/.,\

,t\
/\
 Mr.Jones
Counting Crows
3(August and Everything Aftertt

Forverse $trum, use two-measufe strum.

V
ll: Arn lF
Sha la la la la
lDm lc
I was down at the Neqr Amsterdam ---_ staring
aring at this yellow-haired girl Mr.
-
She dances while his father plays guitar She's suddenly beautiful...
E Dance the silence down through the morning_ _ _-- sha la la la la la la lalayea
Cut Maria! Show me some of them Spanish dances
Believe in me _- Ilelp me believe in anyrhing
R -

S
Lala---_
Jones strikes up a conversationwith this black-haired flamenco dancer
E W.e all want something beautifiil I wish I was beautifirl So come

Pass me a bottle Mr.Jones!

want to be someone ---- who believes

lllltltllllltatlrlllllllattratlrllltatlltltllttlrltltllttlltrlttltlllllllllrrlllar

Forchonrs, use Best Strurn.

c lj:c
IT
lr lc l(c) :ll
o
R.
Mr. -_-_-__*Jones and -__tell each other fairy tales and we
Stare at the beautifrl.wgmen, "She's looking at_you: Ah, no, no, she's looking at me."
II Smiling in the blgh.lights
When everybody loves lour -- -_-- you can nev6r be lonely (toverse z)
S

oet tittgl, (et ring)

B |t.l'r,rrr
Tl
r ^'l'
r
r\rurr.7 ^\ _
, --J
I r l\1.]7
II- I will never be lonely said I,m
T I want to be a lion -----Everybody wants to Dass as cats
I Believe in me because I don't beliLve in anyrhing '

D. ,1, 0et ti"g)

-ltlo J 0et ring)
G I a"' Ic I ltcl ,l I

E ffi:'ififfi? l; o;;;,*.*|u";1a% got dirrerent reasons ror that

and I want to be someone to believe to believe to believe, yeah! (to chorus --
,i,ast tirne only: t t I - continuous strum)
I (switchto
3)
 Versez lhAm lF lDm lG lArn lF lG l(G)
I yn,pl"l my gicgurg painr myself in blue and red and black and gray
All of the beautiful colors.ale very yery qrganingful
Grey is my favorite color I felt so symbofic yesierdav
- ff.it you know
If I knew Picasso I would buy mys6lf a gray'guitar #d ptay (to chorus z)
Chorusz lhC lF lc I (c) :ll

Mr.Jones and me look into the future

Stare at the beautifirl.women "She's looking at you.IJh, I don't think so. She's looking at me."
Standing in the spotlight, I boueht myself Israv zuitar
When everybodyloves me, I wiii never beline[yIto bridge)

Chorus3 lhC lF lc l(c) :ll

Mr.Jones and me stumbling through the barrio

Yeah we stare at the beautiful woden "Shp's perfect for yo.u, Man, there's got to be somebody
for me.,'
I w.ant to be-Bob Dylan Mr.Jones wishes ne was someone prt Iiiti. ,nt;.-funk;'
" can be
When everybody loves you, son, that's iust about as funky as you

4!t.J"t".r and me staring at the video

'When
I look at the television, I want ro see me staring rieht back at me
V. want to be big stars, but we don't know why an? #e don't know how
"ll
But when everybody loves me, I'm going to be just about as h"ppy as I can be (to tast tine)

C F G 0etring)
Mr.Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars..

Stnrcturany, the song follows thevery standard form:

Verse r
Chorus r
Versez
Chonrs z
Bridge
Chorus3 (double)

This one is a bit of adoozy. Yo,u'll repeat ttre verse part-until you ger through ALL of
$e.lyricg,.and thengo toihe chorus, and do the saine r"iinl.["-*r."b]ilt*irh the
bncrge' Lrsten to the sons once:r;;f:i3ffiiXti33ng through it, following along,

For additional review & practice, enjoy this 9os gem as