My first feb vid, and it’s a JG rock songbook video. I learnt this one last year but had a bit of a recording hiatus, so I recorded it tonight .
By the “other” - also better - British 90s rock band, Blur, here is Song 2. Backing track is from Karaoke Version. The original album version has 3 guitar parts in the chorus, so I’ve done a live style with just one guitar part, and one take (after a warmup playthrough).
Enjoy, feedback welcome.
Clickety:
LIke the tone, hate the tone? Clean is a Fender Twin Reverb, dirt is a BOSS DS2.
Tone sounds pretty authentic from memory (I’ve not gone back to the original). Is that a real DS2 or a Fender Virtual one?
Good job on the playing, I find those barre chords get pretty difficult once you get into double figure fret numbers - all too cramped for me
Hi Jk,
Nice one … sound good as it is
I have nothing against and also nothing for this tone… it is what it is… if you hadn’t asked anything then I wouldn’t have said anything either… of course this doesn’t help you at all
Greetings
Great song JK and a great barre chord workout for you. Your index finger must have a blister after all that sliding up and down. The strum pattern was spot on too. Your amp tone sounded good to me and as has been discussed in other threads you’ve made the song your own. No point chasing an unachievable ‘original version’ tone that had multiple guitar and post production fx etc.
Well done.
Great song from the Britpop years and pitching Blur against Oasis was a great marketing strategy but personally I liked both bands although Oasis is more my style.
The movement of your power chords up and down the neck is enviably effortless looking, I’ve just started the power chord module and boy do I know they’re not as easy as they look, your technique is great!
Hey JK,
Count me in for liking the tone. Likewise the song and band are good, though as an old fart, I never hear anything from them. I liked you play as it has a good vibe and great drive to it. Good job and good post!
I am not sure if it is my phone, but for me the backing track is dominant to your guitar tone. The guitar sounds muffled a bit. Apart from that, I thought it was very well played. I love the change between clean and crunch.
Well, in my mind that means it works for the song then - thanks Rogier!
Thank you Gordon - I certainly would have a blister if it weren’t for all these calluses . I find I have to stare the fretboard down with this one, there’s so much moving around up the pointy end.
Hah! I could do this all day It’s pretty easy to fret this guitar tbh. Thanks for the comment Mal.
Hard rock from Blur, how could you not like it? I get it’s not everyone’s taste - thanks for the listen Michael.
Thanks for the listen Silvia! It’s 5th string power chords, and then the same with an added 5th in the root for the chorus. So slightly wonky power chords
Hi JK, the tone seems to suit the song, great job keeping that rhythm tight, well done. I hope Justin mentions in his lesson for this one that people might have difficulty if they don’t play barre chords
Haha, I knew I would get at least one person! I have to admit back in the day I had CDs of both Blur & Oasis. Thanks Eddie!
Thanks Craig! It took a bit to get it under my fingers, particularly the fast moving up the fretboard. But it’s easy now. Practice ya know Glad you liked the tone, I’ve decided to pay more attention to that after I buggered the tone up on one of my vids
I feel I’ve been busted Nancy! Yep I was being cheeky with the Blur vs Oasis stuff. Thanks for the kudos, power chords can be tough to start with but get much easier. I used 5th string 2 finger power chords for verse and an added 5th in the bass for the chorus for the meatier sound.
Thanks LBro! Glad you were in to the tone & play. Blur, I don’t think they’re around anymore, and being British I’m not sure if they were big in the USA. They were definitely pretty well known downunder.
Thanks for the listen Boris! The BT has no guitar in it - just bass/drums/vocals. I’m not sure if it was your phone or not, the clean tone I using was an edge-of-breakup loud clean, and dirt was heavily distorted. The bass is also distorted in this one.
Changes were live with the pedal
Ain’t nobody playing this one with open chords! Thanks for the listen Eric.
Very nicely done JK. Seeing you whizz up and down the barre chords inspires me to do some practice on that - it’s not something I find easy. The song took me back to one of the FIFA video games my kids used to play
Wooo-Hoooo!
Didn’t buy into the Blur/Oasis hype (I was Pulp & Radiohead ), but Damon Albarn has a good sensibility for interesting pop, and this is a tune!
Nice workout. I never noticed the ‘delayed’ chord change in the riff before - the opposite of a ‘pushed’ chord. Is that a thing? Does it have a name? Am I talking rubbish?..
Woah, I find that really surprising Phil with what I’ve seen of your playing. Your lead guitar is amazing, so I figured barres would be a piece of cake for you. I guess there are surprises every day! Thanks for checking it out mate.
I liked Radiohead as well, but they were usually a bit miserable and unsingable to get really into… Oh, and Pulp had a good song too.
You know Damon Albarn created Gorillaz too? I only found that out in the last year or two.
Delayed chord change… are you talking about the last chord of the riff? There’s one beat of Bb before the C? I don’t know if that’s got a name.
Yup, I saw Del the Funky Homosapien fall through a hole in the stage while rapping in Gorillaz’ Clint Eastwood in Roskilde festival
I presume you mean Common People?
William Shatner did a fab cover. I lifted Jamie Hewlett’s artwork (does visuals for Gorillaz) and put them together. Check it out
Damon also went to Mali and produced blind couple Mariam & Amadou’s excellent album Welcome to Mali Now I’m going to have to update the French songs thread. Sigh…
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- British 90s rock band, Blur, here is Song 2. Backing track is from Karaoke Version. The original album version has 3 guitar parts in the chorus, so I’ve done a live style with just one guitar part, and one take (after a warmup playthrough).
The strum pattern was spot on too. Your amp tone sounded good to me and as has been discussed in other threads you’ve made the song your own. No point chasing an unachievable ‘original version’ tone that had multiple guitar and post production fx etc.
. Superb skills on show!
, great concentration to keep that pattern going like that, I doubt I could repeat that and hit chords that well over that period 
.
. I find I have to stare the fretboard down with this one, there’s so much moving around up the pointy end.
I get it’s not everyone’s taste - thanks for the listen Michael.
