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Songs with more interesting chord progressions?


Marvel627

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Hey guys! I've been playing guitar for over 7 years now, and know what modes/ chords are diatonic to each key, a little bit of how to improvise, a few good licks, have written a few of my own songs, a few songs out of the real book, and I dont consider myself too bad a guitar player...BUT: I need to expand my repertoire! Iv realized that I don't really know a great rock song from to back like the ones that got me wanting to play guitar in the first place! Right now, im learning Testify by SRV, but would also like to learn a few guitar parts with some more interesting chord progressions (I'd especially like to see some great chord substitutions, key modulations, etc in practice!)

 

Also, if you guys have any suggestions on any "must know" songs i should learn in general, Id love em, as I pretty much dont know ANY by heart right now (which really pains me to say after having played for so long), im gonna get serious about playing music after years of just noodling, doing technique exercises, jamming, learning just licks.. etc. Thanks guys!

 

EDIT: And im not necessarily looking for "solo guitar" songs like Testify, mostly songs with some great rhythm parts would be great!

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albert kings "get out of my life woman" is blues song with a twist, a nice little blues song where the chords are not the usual go to chords like most blues ...

 

"key to the highway" of course is traditional blues but still the way the chords go is interesting if you never tried it its easy yet nice..

 

Runaway train a song clapton and elton john did together has a nice change in it too, sorta blusey sounding at first then turns into a kinda more of a pop tune..

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

 

you can look up the other songs on youtube..try learing them by listening ...that is if you like them, or if their of your taste in style of music..

 

good luck :)

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The Allman Brothers version of Stormy Monday uses extended chords and a cool chromatic half step chord change that sounds very nice.

 

Hendrix's Hey Joe has a ambiguous chord progression that seems to belong to multiple keys.

 

If you really do know your modes, which im going to to assume you don't just because of all the miss leading info out there.

Check out some of Steve Vai and Joe Satch work. Alot of there songs' chord progressions are based on modes such as lydian.

 

I personally like alot of Radiohead's choices of chords and chord progressions

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Pretty much all the rhythm work on Axis Bold as Love is worth learning... you'll get a real education in alternate voicing along with rhythm / solo playing.

 

A lot of Van Halen material has very cool rhythm parts. Note how EVH uses chord fragments instead of full chords on a lot of the material and how cool the rhythmic aspects are.

 

ZZ Top has a bunch of cool rhythm based songs that are fairly easy to play, yet use some interesting ideas.

 

Jimmy Page is one of the all time great rhythm players. All the Zep albums are chock full of very cool rhythmic parts, listen to how he uses time and mixes riffs and chord parts.

 

I really like Robin Trower's rhythmic stuff, particularly the slow pieces like Daydream. But all of it is well worth learning from.

 

Eric Johnson tends to use a lot of more "exotic" chordal shapes... if you master some of his concepts and then apply them to your own musical ideas... you'll get a big leap forward.

 

Good luck...

 

I would suggest making a 10 to 20 song list... and working on perfecting those before randomly learning and quickly forgetting lots of others. Then once you have these first ones under your fingers and in your memory start adding more.

 

If you can find some friends and start a band... all the better, as you have more reason to work hard to master the material, and you may be able to learn from your band mates.

 

Another idea is after you have your list, find a teacher who can help you to learn the songs... you'ld be amazed how much faster you can go if you have someone helping you... instead of just relying on your ear or tabs.

 

M

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Hey thanks so much for the help guys! These really are some great suggestions and are exactly the kind of thing I wanted to hear, i cant wait to dig in and build a solid repertoire/ learn some awesome songs/ learn how to use the chords i know beyond just stringing together I- IV- Vs and ii-V-Is!

 

 

If you really do know your modes, which im going to to assume you don't just because of all the miss leading info out there.

Check out some of Steve Vai and Joe Satch work. Alot of there songs' chord progressions are based on modes such as lydian.

 

 

First of all, thank you for the great suggestions mikey4402! Also, Id like to think I truly understand modes(although I cant really identify their flavors without playing them first yet, another thing to work on!). Maybe you could tell me how sound this understanding of modes is:

 

My understanding is that if you are in the key "G major", the modes diatonic to that key are:

 

G Ionian (Scale based off I chord)

A Dorian (Scale based off ii chord)

B Phrygian (Scale based off iii chord)

C Lydian (Scale based off IV chord)

D Mixolydian (Scale based off V7 chord)

E Aeolian (Scale based off vi chord)

F# Locrian (Scale based off vii

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Post Pet Sounds Beach Boys stuff has a lot of weird progressions.

 

Look up the chords to "God Only Knows"....really interesting progressions that sound perfect, but you have to play the chords properly...no halfassing leaving out any of the 9s or 11s or etc etc.

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My understanding is that if you are in the key "G major", the modes diatonic to that key are:

 

 

You understanding on paper is correct. However the more important factor in all of this is can you hear the relationship to the tonic in all of this. The C lydian had a tritone relationship at the subdonimant. A II-V=I progression is all major triads. A I-iv-V is now contains a diminished triad. Can you hear that? That is what makes the lydian mode. One is theory on paper, and the how is hearing the theory in the music.

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I hear you on that brewgoodbeer! This appears to be the pattern of my guitar playing so far, i do know some theory on paper, and some little tricks, but I have yet to put these all together in the form of music, with the exception of a couple of songs ive written that im very proud of( which, oddly enough, were written by ear without a thought of theory! But, they are based on only major/minor scales, no exotic scales or other modal keys, which is something i definitely want to delve into!)

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Hey guys! I've been playing guitar for over 7 years now, and know what modes/ chords are diatonic to each key, a little bit of how to improvise, a few good licks, have written a few of my own songs, a few songs out of the real book, and I dont consider myself too bad a guitar player...BUT: I need to expand my repertoire! Iv realized that I don't really know a great rock song from to back like the ones that got me wanting to play guitar in the first place! Right now, im learning Testify by SRV, but would also like to learn a few guitar parts with some more interesting chord progressions (I'd especially like to see some great chord substitutions, key modulations, etc in practice!)


Also, if you guys have any suggestions on any "must know" songs i should learn in general, Id love em, as I pretty much dont know ANY by heart right now (which really pains me to say after having played for so long), im gonna get serious about
playing music
after years of just noodling, doing technique exercises, jamming, learning just licks.. etc. Thanks guys!


EDIT: And im not necessarily looking for "solo guitar" songs like Testify, mostly songs with some great rhythm parts would be great!

 

 

Little Wing has a great progression for lead or rhythm/lead stuff. And SRV wise, Change It and Couldn't Stand the Weather have great changes.

 

Layla too, not exactly 1,4,5:)

 

A great album to improv with is FOUR by Blues Traveler. I gained many chops jamming to that one.

 

So many

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The Allman Brothers version of Stormy Monday uses extended chords and a cool chromatic half step chord change that sounds very nice.


Hendrix's Hey Joe has a ambiguous chord progression that seems to belong to multiple keys.


If you really do know your modes, which im going to to assume you don't just because of all the miss leading info out there.

Check out some of Steve Vai and Joe Satch work. Alot of there songs' chord progressions are based on modes such as lydian.


I personally like alot of Radiohead's choices of chords and chord progressions

 

 

 

Hey Joe is the circle of fifths, C G D A and finishes in style with the E.

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My understanding is that if you are in the key "G major", the modes diatonic to that key are:

 

G Ionian (Scale based off I chord)

A Dorian (Scale based off ii chord)

B Phrygian (Scale based off iii chord)

C Lydian (Scale based off IV chord)

D Mixolydian (Scale based off V7 chord)

E Aeolian (Scale based off vi chord)

F# Locrian (Scale based off vii

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