9 GREAT MOMENTS IN ACOUSTIC FINGERSTYLE
COVERPLAYING
STORY
2
3
THE BEATLES
“JULIA” (1968)
SIMON & GARFUNKEL
“THE BOXER” (1970)
John Lennon wrote this bittersweet ballad
in memory of his late mother; and it
remains a fine lesson for the beginning
fingerstylist. The patterns are fairly
simple and rhythmically consistent, almost
as if this was a guitar exercise instead
of a brilliant song. Once you get your
chops up, you can tackle another White
Album favorite: Paul McCartney’s more
challenging “Blackbird.”
With a gorgeous “cascade” intro, this song
features superb acoustic picking from Paul
Simon and studio guitar ace Fred Carter,
Jr., who played on the session. The song
has a lilting country groove that Simon
adapted into one of the greatest pop
masterpieces of all time. It’s also a good
lesson in “root-fifth” bassline figures – an
essential technique of fingerstyle.
“Embryonic Journey” by Jefferson Airplane
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