Learning to Play

[ShellyP]

I have just gotten a guitar (replica Epiphone). I was wondering the following:

What is the easiest Beatles' song to learn to play?
What is the hardest?
What is the most fun to play?
What was the first one YOU learned?

[Rellevart]

A lot of the early stuff is pretty easy. Are you going to be playing rhythm type parts (mostly strumming) or lead type parts? That makes a difference on what's easy or hard. Something like "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" is pretty easy. According to the guitarists in my Beatle class (I'm a bass player), "Blackbird" and "Julia" are pretty tough.

I'm a big proponent for taking lessons - at least to learn the basics. I know there's a certain "cool factor" to saying you're self-taught, but you really can progress a lot faster if you take at least a few lessons. Group lessons are also a great way to meet people who are at your level and find people to play with. I find you're a lot more likely to stick with it if you find other people to play with (preferably not people who are a TON better than you because that can be discouraging).

Congrats on your new guitar - I hope you enjoy it! :smile1:

[Maggie Mae]

Hey! Congrats on the new guitar!

I find it odd that everyone always says that 'Blackbird' is a hard song to play, because that was literally the very first song I ever learned to play on my guitar. And I'm self-taught, too. It makes me wonder if I'm playing it right! ;)

'Blackbird' is also a fun song to play. Any of the songs that are a bit more intricate with their picking (like 'Julia', for example) are fun to play -- I do it because it kinda gives me a rush to play something that sounds really difficult, but it still sounds like the original.

The easy songs to play use just chords and basic strumming. Try some of the early stuff. Find yourself a really good book that has chords for most if not all of the Beatles songs in it, and go nuts! (I was given The Complete Beatles Chord Songbook as a gift and I love it!)

Good luck!

~Mags

[luvsthebeatles]

Like they said, the early stuff is pretty easy. I think Blackbird is a great first song to learn, considering it was my first song :P

I've Just Seen A Face is a heck of a lot of fun to play on the guitar, it's my favorite Beatles song to play. It's fairly difficult, since you have to be selective with your strumming, and it goes really fast.

Good luck with your guitar! :smile1:

[Harbidge]

The easiest Beatles song to play on guitar is Paperback Writer. It comprises of just two basic chords - G and C.

There are plenty of guides and internet sites with chord structures and given time you'll get to know them all. In my opinion, the most important chords to learn are the majors (C, D, E, F, G, A and B). Once you've got them, learning the deviations from them like the minors and the sus7's are just a slight finger change.

Don't expect it to be an easy instrument to play though - It's taken me years to get even remotely acceptible, and I still can't play the B chord!

Damn these stubby fingers of mine!

[Ric325]

For me:
the easiest so far is "And your bird can sing"
The hardest is "I'm happy just to Dance with you"
Most fun " If I fell"
1st one I learned was "eight days a week"

[Rellevart]

For me:
the easiest so far is "And your bird can sing"

Woah, dude, you must be good. This one was a BEAR for me.

[beatlebangs1964]

Rell,

Where have you been taking lessons?

[ShellyP]

Thanks for all the responses! Right now, I have only had time to learn a few chords. I am having a hard time holding it right because my hands are not too big. I have not thought about lessons, although I think that is a good idea. It would make me learn it in the right way. I'm afraid, though, 'cause I keep thinking, "What if I stink?" I can read music (was in band in HS and took two years of music theory), but haven't played an instrument in about 20 years.

And Your Bird Can Sing is my fave song, but it does seem really hard. Since my guitar is a replica of John's, I figured it would be a "rhythm" guitar, but I'd love to learn to play bass and piano, etc. My hubby is trying to play it, too, and we find it hard learning how to change chords. We are at the extreme beginner stage! Hubby bought several "how to play guitar" books and several Beatles' song books, including "The Complete Scores." Just looking at it gives me a stomach-ache--I can never be that good! I envy people who can just instinctively play.

[Harbidge]

A book I can recommend is The Beatles Complete Guitar edition. The cover is yellowish and has a large gold coin type design with the guys side-profiles on it. Inside there's all the Beatle songs (including Harrison and Starkey numbers) and, unlike the piano edition, the chords are correct for the majority of songs.

[Rellevart]

I'm afraid, though, 'cause I keep thinking, "What if I stink?"

"The Complete Scores." Just looking at it gives me a stomach-ache--I can never be that good! I envy people who can just instinctively play.

Hey, if you stink, you stink and you'd stink even worse without lessons! :wink1: Nah, I'm kidding, but don't be afraid, nothing ventured nothing gained. I played piano for years, but had been out of music (as a performer) for ages before I took up bass and I was a little nervous about going in for lessons. But it worked out SO great and it was the best thing I've done for myself in years.

LOL, I have "The Complete Scores" too and I rely on it a lot, but yeah, it's totally intimidating at first.

I envy people who can instinctively play too because I can't. I've got a very very modest amount of talent, but I have a TON of determination and although it's taking me longer to get proficient than it would somebody who's naturally talented, I am getting there and I am improving every week, so you can do it too. Come see the Beatles Ensemble at AROTR in 2 weeks and you'll see what you could do with a little time and a lot of practice. :smile1:

[Harbidge]

Everybody stinks when they first start, but you always think you sound worse than you actually are. I've been trying to play guitar for a while now, and where I think I sound rubbish, people around me all think I play pretty well.

I've been playing piano now for about 11 years, and it was only really since a couple years ago that I felt comfortable about playing in public.

[ShellyP]

Rellevart,
I will be at AROTR, so I will look you up! Can wait to see everyone!

[Ric325]

Woah, dude, you must be good. This one was a BEAR for me.
I'm sorry, JUST the Chords, not the lead part, yea that did sound kinda stupid didn't it....

[Bexy_Starkey]

Great guitar!

What is the easiest Beatles' song to learn to play? I'd say that it's probably be Oh! Darling because it has veeeeeeeery slow chord changes, or possibly Within You, Without You, because it has no chords at all, hehe!
What is the hardest? For me, You've Got To Hide Your Love Away because I hate playing Bb (B-flat), and I find Eb really difficult too
What is the most fun to play? Deffo I'm Looking Through You, I can really get into it and play soooooooo loudly! The chord changes are lovely
What was the first one YOU learned? With A Little Help From My Friends, it has the most common chords in it so once I could play that, I could piece together most songs (but that's playing it in the wrong key, like it is in my Beatles Complete book - it's actually quite obscure. If you don't have that boo and want the easier chords that I used, just PM me and I'll type it all up!)

[iFrog]

I have just gotten a guitar (replica Epiphone). I was wondering the following:

What is the easiest Beatles' song to learn to play?
What is the hardest?
What is the most fun to play?
What was the first one YOU learned?

Hi ShellyP. i'm glad you're on board here. i once had the opportunity to witness a street musician play She Loves You, which is basically an E blues riff, dressed up a bit, and you have to make the C chord somewhere in first chorus sticky and accessible. :barf3: The timing is also quite slippery and hard to fashion. It was quite a profound experience to actually have had been exposed to this event early on.

he was rather competent and sang quite well it should be noted.

[HollyDoris]

What is the easiest Beatles' song to learn to play? The earlier stuff is pretty easy, it's basically chords.
What is the hardest? Not sure, I haven't learned them all yet.
What is the most fun to play? Blackbird and Here Comes the Sun.
What was the first one YOU learned? Here Comes the Sun