Blackbird

[guitarchick]

I'm really enjoying learning Blackbird from Hodges lessons, however I dont really understand the term 'muting', I would really appreciate if someone could explain how Im to achieve this without my guitar sounding really bad!

[Musenfreund]

You're referring to this sentence, right?

Finally, I'd like to give you a fuller picking pattern. This is not the same one McCartney uses, which involves flicking out the index finger like a classical guitarist and muting strings like a fiend. But it is a good pattern and will sound perfectly fine, trust me.

I think you misread it. The way David's showing you you don't mute. You can play it by plucking the strings with your fingers. But to answer your question -- to mute a string means to touch it lightly with a finger so that it does not ring out when strummed. But you won't need that technique to play "Blackbird".

Hope that helps. By the way, I moved you down to the Lessons forum because your question is a perfect thread starter on that lesson.

[guitarchick]

Thanks very much, I think I need to invest in reading glassess!

[Musenfreund]

Thanks very much, I think I need to invest in reading glassess!

Nah, you'd just need to remove them to play guitar!

[jewtemplar]

Revisiting that one sentence:
"This is not the same one McCartney uses, which involves flicking out the index finger like a classical guitarist and muting strings like a fiend."

I've read the lesson and tried the eighth note -triplet pattern, but I must admit I'm intrigued by this "fiendish" pattern. The tabs I've looked at (such as http://www.guitaretab.com/b/beatles/23937.html) give notes but not rhythm.

What I've settled into is this (one dash is one sixteenth note, sorry for horrible notation):
-- - - - - --
if that makes any sense. An eighth, 4 sixteenths and another eighth. The strings played are, in order:
2+5, 3, 2, 5, 2 ,3 or B+A, G, B, A, B, G

I find that on the first note I have to mute the G string to prevent it from catching, and this doesn't seem to fiendish, but this just may be my poor plucking technique. It seems to sound alright, but I doubt it's exact, and I was wondering if anyone knows the actual pattern McCartney uses.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Musenfreund]

dudley doright asks:

Can someone tell me if the tab for the second verse is correct? I am refering to the part where it goes like this "black bird fly", "blackbird fly into light of black dark night". The tab doesn't seem to work. Am I right on this or not? Please help.
BTW - the lesson was amazing!

Nick responds:

It works as written I do believe.

A reminder to all: Please avoid multiple threads on a lesson in this forum. Post all questions pertaining to a lesson in the thread that already exists for that lesson. Please check the guidelines at the top of the forum. Thanks.

[MaxRumble]

I learned this song from an Andrew dubrock video and he plays the song extreemly close, if not indistinguishable, to the way Paul MacCartney played it.

There is no muting.

Basically there are three right hand motions. The first is simply plucking the A and B strings together (except on the G chord which is the E and B strings) followed by the G string.

The second is played: base note with the thumb, index finger strum up/down, base note again, and up/down with the index again. The base note is the A string for every fingering except the G chord. The index finger strum sticks to the D G and B strings. The high e string is never played in the song. You will notice if you hit it right away.

The third motion is used interchangeably with the second and it is simply replacing the the second up/down strum with a pluck of the G and then B strings, and you can vary that to the B and G.

Good luck.

[lineagecreed]

just to make sure i got this, in the picking pattern that David uses in his lesson, the tripet = 1 eighth notes correct? if i'm counting and playing, or using the metronomn, how should i count it/set the metronome as?

thank you...and sorry for asking a nooob question

[vgnewsom]

I have a question on this lesson. In the second part of the intro, you play the 5th string on the 10th fret and the second string on teh twelfth fret. Wouldn't it be the same thing if you played the 4th string on the 5th fret and the first string in the 7th fret? Those are the same notes right? It seems like it would be easier because then you don't have to move so far up the neck. I play it very slowly so I can't really tell if sounds any different or not. Would there be any difference in the sound that makes it better to play further up the neck?

[art&lutherie]

I have a question on this lesson. In the second part of the intro, you play the 5th string on the 10th fret and the second string on teh twelfth fret. Wouldn't it be the same thing if you played the 4th string on the 5th fret and the first string in the 7th fret? Those are the same notes right? It seems like it would be easier because then you don't have to move so far up the neck. I play it very slowly so I can't really tell if sounds any different or not. Would there be any difference in the sound that makes it better to play further up the neck?

I'm pretty sure they are an octave apart. Same note but higher.

[dhodge]

Yes, they are the same notes. And to most listeners, it will sound the same.

The real difference comes when you want to add more to the mix. The open D string provides some of the extra strumming punch and also is a resonating factor when not being played and you take that away from your arrangement when you go with the D and high E strings instead of the A and B strings.

But there are lots of ways to come up with any of these note combinations. There's part of the lesson where that's discussed in particular in regard to some big stretches.

Ultimately the choice is yours. You might want to at least give it a try every now and then in order to get more comfortable with moving up and down the neck.

Peace

[vgnewsom]

Thanks David - I knew there had to be a good reason for this as you are my guitar hero. I have many guitar heros, but you are the main one as I would not be able to play a thing if not for your fabulous lessons. Do you ever get back to the Chicago area? If so, do you ever give lessons or have seminars? If you do, I would love to take a lesson with you.

[vgnewsom]

David - I've been working on this for a couple of hours and I have to say that it really does sound much better played further up the neck, and it is not nearly as hard to make those big stretches as I though it would be. Also, it seems to force me to have better technique to make the stretches - I generally keep my thumb way too high on the neck. With this song there is no way to make the stretches with my thumb that high. Thanks so much for the great lessons.

[dhodge]

You're certainly welcome. And I'm glad that you're working your way around the neck. The whole point of teaching this as a lesson, to me anyway, is to get people over their worries about playing all over the fingerboard. It's also a great way to stretch the fingers.

As far as Chicago is concerned, I've not been able to get out there anywhere near as often as I wish. Might only make it once this year, hopefully between Christmas and New Year's, which isn't really a good time for lessons or seminars. But maybe next year I'll manage to get my old hometown into the mix again. Keep an eye out on the "Seminars" page of the Forum or in the newsletter. That's where you'll find out first!

Peace

[sargent pepper]

that was the first song i learned.
great song. i hope it works out for you.
srry if this is kinda off topic, but i just wanted to say...