3 Songs With The Easiest Strumming Pattern For Beginners
Today in this lesson we’re going to take a look at 3 classic songs from the 60s all the way to the 90s that all can be played with one simple strumming pattern! You’ll also learn all sorts of pro tips that can elevate this basic pattern into something far more nuanced – with accents, dropped strums, and a technique called string splitting, you’ll be on the road to mastery in no time!
We’ll also be diving into learning how rhythm is key to making your guitar playing sound great, and how you can even sacrifice clean chord changes and still sound solid as long as your rhythm is steady. Of course, there’s also tips on getting your chord changes cleaner and faster, so with both of those together, you’ll be that much closer to playing some of your favourite songs.
The songs we’ll be checking out today are “Gloria” by Them from back in ‘64, the classic “Who’ll Stop the Rain” by CCR, and a new-ish song – “Zombie” by The Cranberries, for those of you that love the songs of the 90s.
So without further ado, let’s get rocking! Make sure to get the free PDF downloaded and in front of you, and I hope you enjoy the lesson!
00:00 – Start
1:01 – Lesson Intro (get the tabs downloaded here!)
1:32 – What We’re Going To Focus On
2:30 – The Strumming Rhythm All 3 Songs Share
3:18 – Foot Tapping Tip!
4:06 – Injecting More Rhythm With Accents
4:38 – This Is A Segment From Stairway To Strumming (Which Is On Sale Right Now!)
5:47 – Song #1: “Gloria” by Them
6:07 – Chord Explanation
7:27 – The First Step To Learning The Song
7:51 – Integrating The Strum Pattern
8:43 – A Tip From Stairway To Strumming – The 4 S’s
9:36 – Shutting Off Our Brains And The Magic Of The Strumming Pattern
10:20 – Missing Chords Can Sound Okay??
11:34 – Geeking Out A Little
13:10 – A Mistake A Lot Of People Make
14:05 – An Important Point About The Guitar
14:26 – Song #2: “Who’ll Stop The Rain” by CCR
15:18 – Chord Explanation
16:33 – The Little Punch/Transitionary Chord
17:29 – Chord Recap
18:05 – Integrating The Strum Pattern
19:20 – Pro Tip: Dropping Strums From The Pattern
20:35 – Demonstration of “Who’ll Stop The Rain”
21:18 – Stay Tuned For A Future Lesson On Arpeggiated Strumming
21:40 – Song #3: “Zombie’ by The Cranberries
22:25 – Chord Explanation
23:28 – Downstrokes vs Upstrokes
24:46 – The Strum Pattern For “Zombie”
25:20 – Pro Tip: Fingers Of On 8th Strum
27:38 – Pro Tip: Accenting 2 and 4
29:22 – Pro Tip: String Splitting
30:11 – Demonstration Of Pro Tips On “Zombie”
31:32 – Tying Together The Sound Of Strumming Open Strings
32:31 – Closing Notes and More on Stairway To Strumming
Thanks so much for downloading the PDF and checking out the lesson. I truly hope it’s helped push your guitar playing forward.
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“Stairway To Strumming” (our step-by-step beginner guitar system) ⇒ https://store.campfireguitarstar.com/products/stairway-to-strumming-97/
Our Blues Program ⇒ https://campfireguitarstar.com/blues
Our Rock/Lead Program ⇒ https://campfireguitarstar.com/lead
Our 1960s Song Program ⇒ https://campfireguitarstar.com/1960s
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Sincerely,
Will, Mike and Davis
https://www.CampfireGuitarStar.com