SYMRUN CHATHA
In the meantime I will post about great guitar songs here for you to listen to:
Here's seperate category lists by decade; I'm aiming to have 100 songs in each.
1960s / 1970s / 1980s / 1990s / 2000s / 2010s/ 2020s
Posted on 06 December 2024 -
Operator - Jim Croce (1972)
Earnest and heartbreaking, a classical-guitar-inspired folk song, not uncommon for the 1970s, where the singer spills his feelings to the operator before he makes the call he needs to make. Jim unfortunately passed the year later in 1973 at the age of 30.
Longwave - Bonny Doon (2018)
In a past life I ran a cafe bookshop in Sheffield with my fiancé and this song was something I always played in there. The album of the same name is full of calming and reassuring folk tunes, 'you are, who you're s'posed to be.'
Ain't it Fun - Paramore (2013)
Moving on from straightened bangs and skinny jeans, Hayley and the gang make a bouncing radio rock anthem about growing up. Guitars more sparse than earlier output, but the chorus guitar responding to Hayley's hook are just as memorable as their drop D riffs of the previous decade.
Bell Bottom Blues - Derek & The Dominos (1970)
The mournful arpeggios in the verses are so haunted and beautiful that you'd expect it to have been sampled by RZA. The verse drum beat also has a snare on the 1 and 3 and a kick on 2 and 4 - creating a particular off-kilter and exciting ambience. The rasp of Clapton's voice is captured so well here, apparently he was in love with George Harrisons' wife - who he later married in 1977.
Crystal Blue Persuasion - Tommy James and the Shondells (1968)
'Ain't it beautiful - crystal blue persuasion?' The tambourine, bass, rythm guitar and bongos create a hypnotic pace to the song that piques the interest of your ears and body. The hippie gang vocals of these Michigonians make you feel in the middle of a 60s San Francisco rebirthing ceremony.
poppy whispers off to work! - Daniel Paul, nykolaes, Poppy Whispers (2023)
The acoustic guitar here is played so stridently it feels like there's an incoming 'drop.' Poppy spends a verse considering resigning from her job, I hope she did. Clocking in at 1:06 it always leaves you wanting more.
Posted on 17 December 2024 -
Blackbird - The Beatles (1968)
McCartney speaks to how failing to play Bach resulted in the riff for Blackbird. Something amazing about this song as a civil rights artefact, how one was able to make a song so touching and empathetic without it veering into pity, definitely one of very few songs I always find moving upon play. Probably a pretty early usage of field recordings in a song (bird noises). The tapping which maintains the rythm throughout is apparently Paul's foot tapping - it must have been EQ'd by George Martin to sound like a clap or woodblock.The acoustic guitar he plays is a coveted Martin D-28, which will probably set you back £3.5k by the time you're reading this.
Fly Like an Eagle - Steve Miller Band (1976)
The first time I heard this song was Seal's cover on the Space Jam soundtrack. It's an excellent dreamy and easy listening style cover, but I think the original version contains a rough and rustic feel that feels more vital. Funny that it has the Space Jam affiliation and the bassist on the recording is called 'Lonnie Tuner.' The riff played spreads your fingers accross 5 frets which isn't ideal to sing and play simultaneously - but it's not quite as painful to play as 'Message in a Bottle,' by The Police. I think the hihat rythms in the verse fill a lot of space in this minimal composition and shouldn't be overlooked when it comes to overall feel of the song. The 'doo-doos,' vocal interludes are whimsical in a way that is hard to imagine a rock guitarist comitting to now. The utopian lyrics are unavoidable and are a factor in the listenability of the song for me - interesting to see motifs about 'feeding the babies,' and 'the revoloution,' continuing into the 1970s. But the “revolution” Miller alludes to here is spiritual, cultural, and humanitarian—distinct from orthodox Marxist ideals, even though it shares an emphasis on improving the human condition. It's the kind of revolution that artists, thinkers, and activists of that era often envisioned: one where freedom and self-discovery could uplift society as a whole. We got freedom and self-discovery - the uplift remains to be seen.
Posted on 06 January 2025
2020 - Raff Poole (2024)
Strummed steel strings echo throughout the intro, getting you into a mindful space for the song that follows. The expressive opening playing is exchanged by the first verse for a more muted and dense, almost baseline approach to playing, complete with arpgegios as fills between verses all the while you hear the cello-like guitar slide noises creep out of the mix of this Kelly Jonesish slowcore tune. After listening to this it's hard not to feel as though you're in a better place.
heaven can wait - Organ Tapes (2022)
Fingerpicked arpeggios swell through the intro while Tim autocroons over them in the verses. The chord changes and movement into the chorus is remarkable, topped with a sample of what sounds like a busking electric guitarist... or fiddler? to close out the hook.
Posted on 04 March 2025
Invisible Movement - John Frusicante (2001)
In 2001 Frusciante was eager to create after a multi-year purgatory in drug addiction. Listening to the album 'To Record Water for Only 10 Days' you realise how much of it served as his moodboard for the Chilis next project (By The Way), especially on songs like 'The Zephyr Song'. Without the personalities of Flea and AK, we get to see the bare bones of Frusciante's compositional prowess and expressive guitar playing and singing. It's notable that the guitars on this project are recorded via a direct input into an 8 track rather than mic'd up by an amplifier.
Makes Me Wonder - Maroon 5 (2007)
Before you hipsters collectively groan, there was a time when Adam Levine et al made music that wasn't just Top-Chart-slop. This song from their sophomore showed signs of their readiness to leave their rockist roots established on their lauded debut. If you know anything about me is that I am a student of Nile Rodger's guitar playing and songwriting - and I think this song contains are great take on it, super rythmic and fun. The chords played on the '1,' and the '2 and,' in the bridge is very reminiscent of 70s/80s disco and the way the guitars, vocals, drums and synth bass bounce of eachother is so enjoyable. Levine's performance is kind of sick, it has that 'newly rich,' confidence.
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