AND if what you are altering is pleasing to listen to!
give it a grunge vibe or maybe thrash metal with Cookie Monster vocals? I might listen to that version. 
did I say punk? NO!
(ok I was 
on that. nice find!)
1 Like
No no no, Rogier, thatâs even more cheerful than the original 
Listen to the lyrics⌠Itâs so sad.
@sequences Donât know how good I am at channeling my inner cookie monster⌠
I was serious though⌠I âfeelâ that the song is sad⌠and I thought it could be an interesting challenge trying to express this sadness. How that could be done, I donât know yet ⌠Power chords, once I finally will have learned them? Some weird high gain setting? Different tuning? No idea yet⌠But it will be another interesting side project, hopefully, in addition to starting the regular Grade 2 stuff soonâŚ
2 Likes
Live your best life. 
1 Like
I would say people âmake songs their ownâ from the moment they pick up a guitar. If youâre doing one strum per bar to a popular song, itâs playing it differently.
And a single guitar version of a multi track record is always going to be different.
Learning something the way it is supposed to be played is a great way to get better at guitar. So I reckon, make sure you do that.
But when youâre covering a song, do it how you want to. There are no rules. If it sounds good, it is good. Opposite also true, so use your ears.
8 Likes
I got that far and my mind was full of Dark Denver lyric rewrites, for which I blame Denis Leary and Granola !
My 2 centsâŚ.
One of the very first songs I ever learned years ago was Van Morrisonâs Brown Eyed Girl, but my playing ability wasnât up to being able to play it at speed. Also, I couldnât sing along with the original. I was into fingerstyle too.
So, I played a very slow fingerstyle version with the capo at the 2nd fret so I could sing it.
Now, I have the ability to strum it at the speed of the original but find that Iâm more into embellishments & a Travis picking version. I still love Vanâs version but itâs not âmineâ.
Occasionally, youâll hear a re-release of a song by the Original Artist but with a different arrangement from the popular version that is cooler than the song was when it was a chart-topper! I love that - my wife & I saw Don Henley in concert several years ago & he did a version of Hotel California that had 2 trombones & a saxophone playing the guitar solo instead of a guitar⌠it really ROCKED!!!
Point is, go for YOUR VIBE⌠tempo, instrumental, re-write lyrics⌠whatever you like! Itâs your hard work that counts so make the return YOURS too!
Ok, rant overâŚâŚâŚ 
Tod
4 Likes
Both.
With some songs, more like pub songs and such, I do them as close to the original as I can so the pub patrons singing along can know what to expect.
With a lot of songs, I just donât worry about how close I am to the original. Iâve heard many arguments (tiring) about whether a particular cover was like the original or not. Who cares. Thereâs a separate thread on covers re-imagined.
More important is you play the songs the way you want them played, donât worry about the Justin approach or not, itâs all just suggestions and as Justin often says, there are no rules.
2 Likes
I you werenât able to attend my Live Clubs earlier, check out the resource material I made. It will be, at least, an interesting read for you.
Building repertoire
Making songs your own
2 Likes
Sometimes I like the 'modified" version even better as is the case with Man of Constant Sorrow.
The Foggy Bottom Boyâs version:
I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow (With Band) (youtube.com)
and the Dwight Yoakum version:
Man of Constant Sorrow (youtube.com)
1 Like
Which of these do you consider the âoriginalâ version? Man of Constant Sorrow is a traditional American folk song published in 1915 or something like that.
Iâm kinda partial to this version:
@JokuMuu
Interesting viewpoint over here Nicole.
Learning from mistakes (of others - based on seeing a live covers performer)
1 Like
Well, Iâve got NO images in my head on how to change any song, so youâre WAY ahead of me!
I heard the Foggy Bottom Boys version first in the movie Oh Brother, Where Art Thou so thatâs what I was thinking. I didnât realize it was actually much older
Glen
Thanks, Gordon, I will check, sounds super interesting 
And⌠Of course @LievenDV thanks for linking the resources.Yes, I had misssed these two clubs. I will have a good look .
1 Like
I consider to re-do that session some time as âmaking songs my ownâ is what brings me a lot of joy and enables me to express myself. I think the ideas are valuable enought to reschedule it some time.
1 Like
I would be delighted
Shines threw very easily that it brings you joy. I remember one of the Open Mics, where I was in the audience, I think it was the first one even, and you played âEnglish man in New Yorkâ. What a joy for me it was listening to you ( ⌠If you are going to say âno, that wasnât meâ⌠Iâll search a snow pile where I could go to hibernate for some time. I have been working way too much recently, might be that I remember incorrectly).
Looking forward to take a look at the materials in my lunch break today
Yeah that was me ^^
Englishman In New York is a fun âplatformâ to experiment on if you want to try something with a jazzier feel without digging to deep into jazz grips etc. Itâs normal pattern is a good finger picking exercise and the song as a whole can be a wide range of things: from basic and easy to whatever you can make from it. It has some barre chords though but once again, that is good practice 
1 Like
I think this is the biggest question.
There absolutely is no need to âmake songs your ownâ if you donât want to, and an awful lot of people simply arenât interested in doing that.
There are, of course, lots of people who do enjoy doing that and, for them, itâs an enjoyable part of making music. But, is it required learning or some sort of essential skill you need. Does it make you a better musician, or somehow âmore creativeâ?
Not at all. Otherwise Justin would have a series on it.
Learning songs is essential. âMaking them your ownâ is an optional thing that some people will have a strong desire to do. And in my experience itâs a fairly small subset of people who want to do this whilst they are still deep in learning other things.
So, ask yourself, is this something you really want to do? And do you want to do it now, or is it something you might consider at a later point when you are more comfortable with your skills and song knowledge?
If the answer to either of these is ânoâ, then donât do it. Simples.
And donât let anyone tell you that you should be doing it. If they are insisting on this, then they are best ignored.
As enthusiastic amateurs, we learn guitar for pleasure. Or thatâs what I believe. Learning an instrument is hard enough without feeling pressured to adhere to some other random personâs values or view of what you should or shouldnât be doing, when those values have nothing actually to do with the process of learning.
On the other hand, if you think itâs something you would enjoy, are interested in trying it, or think it would encourage and support your learning, then go for it.
But do it for you, not for anyone else!
Cheers,
Keith
7 Likes