Dennis,
That was awesome! I'm impressed with the accuracy of your flat picking while strumming hard, not as easy as you make it look! I wasn't familiar with the song, so I looked it up. Great tune! I like both versions for different reasons but you definitely put a great spin on it! Can't wait for next month's upload!
Craig
Busking The Decemberists
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neverfoundthetime
- Posts: 48
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Exxxxxcellent Dennis! I liked that instantly and was very interested to hear the original which I really liked too. I can imagine how that made you stop in your car to listen. I liked your idea of making a more driving, flat-picking version, it definitely works well and will be great for an open mic. Dropped D, right?
This was one of your best post, fresh, driving and well sung too!
This was one of your best post, fresh, driving and well sung too!
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AcousticAl
- Posts: 0
- Joined: Wed Mar 25, 2009 3:10 pm
- Status: Offline
Saw this on the Facebook and meant to comment...
Really like this tune and what you did with it, Dennis.
I'm with Marc and bet you would do well with it at your next open mic!
Really like this tune and what you did with it, Dennis.
I'm with Marc and bet you would do well with it at your next open mic!
Thanks, everyone. While I don't pretend to know what this song means, no matter how many times I've thought about the lyrics, it's still enormously fun to play.
I've now played it at three different open mics, and it's been received really well ... better, in fact, than almost any other song I've done live. While almost no one knows the song, I think people tend to feel instantly comfortable with it because of the repetition of the guitar hook which, incidentally, sounds a lot more difficult to play than it actually is. The song is so simple, I actually played it at an open mic only three days after first hearing it on the radio. Yeah. That simple.
Bill: Thanks so much. I appreciate any and all suggestions intended to improve what I'm doing. In this case, I'm wondering if the nasal, midrange quality you're hearing is actually the chorus effect on my amp. Not sure why, at the last minute, I decided to use it.
Vanessa: Thanks, pal. The song is catchy, unique. and contemporary enough that I bet you could turn it into a great lesson -- both finger picked and flat picked.
Dean: Hey, thanks. Sometimes I feel like I am killing it, but not in a good way.
Willem: I'm normally not a fan of the guitar and singer producing the same melody, but it seems to work in this song. Thanks for noticing.
Bob: As always, I appreciate your comments. And I agree: it is a cool tune.
Jay: Nice of you to say.
Kevin: You have a very good eye. You're the only person who's ever noticed (or at least the only one who's ever commented) that I'm flat picking and plucking simultaneously at the end of every verse. I'd never done that before, but it seemed necessary in order to get the notes I wanted. By the way, I use Guitar Moose Sticky Grip picks, 0.65mm. I absolutely love these picks because they stay put between my fingers. I tend to keep a fairly loose grip, and normal picks usually rotate around. Not so with the Sticky Grips.
Marc: Well, if you ever attend guitar camp again, I promise to play Carolina Low for you. I'll probably be doing it at this summer's Puget Sound Guitar Workshop student concert.
Michele: Thanks so much. Yeah, not sure why Colin Meloy chose to finger pick the song when (to me) it really seems to lend itself to driving flat picking. But, as they used to say, different strokes for different folks.
Craig: I'm not sure why I'm able to hit most of the notes correctly in this song, since I'm basically a sloppy guitar player. But this is one of the few songs that came to me right away ... which is why I said above that the song is significantly easier to play than you think it's going to be.
Tom: Thanks so much. You're the first and only person to refer to this performance as "classy." I'll have to pass that comment along to my wife.
Chris: I appreciate your comment very much. Yeah, this is one of those songs that seems to grab people on the first listen. Again, I think it's the guitar hook, since the lyrics are basically meaningless. I think Colin Meloy plays it in drop D; I'm using double drop D to compensate for my wild strumming.
Al: Good to hear from you, Al. I think you could do a terrific job with this song.
I've now played it at three different open mics, and it's been received really well ... better, in fact, than almost any other song I've done live. While almost no one knows the song, I think people tend to feel instantly comfortable with it because of the repetition of the guitar hook which, incidentally, sounds a lot more difficult to play than it actually is. The song is so simple, I actually played it at an open mic only three days after first hearing it on the radio. Yeah. That simple.
Bill: Thanks so much. I appreciate any and all suggestions intended to improve what I'm doing. In this case, I'm wondering if the nasal, midrange quality you're hearing is actually the chorus effect on my amp. Not sure why, at the last minute, I decided to use it.
Vanessa: Thanks, pal. The song is catchy, unique. and contemporary enough that I bet you could turn it into a great lesson -- both finger picked and flat picked.
Dean: Hey, thanks. Sometimes I feel like I am killing it, but not in a good way.
Willem: I'm normally not a fan of the guitar and singer producing the same melody, but it seems to work in this song. Thanks for noticing.
Bob: As always, I appreciate your comments. And I agree: it is a cool tune.
Jay: Nice of you to say.
Kevin: You have a very good eye. You're the only person who's ever noticed (or at least the only one who's ever commented) that I'm flat picking and plucking simultaneously at the end of every verse. I'd never done that before, but it seemed necessary in order to get the notes I wanted. By the way, I use Guitar Moose Sticky Grip picks, 0.65mm. I absolutely love these picks because they stay put between my fingers. I tend to keep a fairly loose grip, and normal picks usually rotate around. Not so with the Sticky Grips.
Marc: Well, if you ever attend guitar camp again, I promise to play Carolina Low for you. I'll probably be doing it at this summer's Puget Sound Guitar Workshop student concert.
Michele: Thanks so much. Yeah, not sure why Colin Meloy chose to finger pick the song when (to me) it really seems to lend itself to driving flat picking. But, as they used to say, different strokes for different folks.
Craig: I'm not sure why I'm able to hit most of the notes correctly in this song, since I'm basically a sloppy guitar player. But this is one of the few songs that came to me right away ... which is why I said above that the song is significantly easier to play than you think it's going to be.
Tom: Thanks so much. You're the first and only person to refer to this performance as "classy." I'll have to pass that comment along to my wife.
Chris: I appreciate your comment very much. Yeah, this is one of those songs that seems to grab people on the first listen. Again, I think it's the guitar hook, since the lyrics are basically meaningless. I think Colin Meloy plays it in drop D; I'm using double drop D to compensate for my wild strumming.
Al: Good to hear from you, Al. I think you could do a terrific job with this song.
Dennis,
Been meaning to get back to you on this. Been crazy here with the whole moving thing. Anyway I really liked your playing on this. I see you are working on the art of flat picking. Sounded really good. I miss watching your videos. Glad things are well and I look forward to seeing more. Congrats on the new guitar room as well.
MarkM
Been meaning to get back to you on this. Been crazy here with the whole moving thing. Anyway I really liked your playing on this. I see you are working on the art of flat picking. Sounded really good. I miss watching your videos. Glad things are well and I look forward to seeing more. Congrats on the new guitar room as well.
MarkM