Country Music Lyrics Volume 1 with Chords

COUNTRY MUSIC LYRICS

VOLUME I

WITH CHORDS

22 NOVEMBER 2001

(Reformatted 3 December 2002)

(Minor corrections, reformatting, and chords added 3 May 2004)

Corrected 18 June 2010, 12 July 2011, 29 November 2011

ALL IN KEY OF A, UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED

FOREWORD

The songs (words and some chords) presented here are intended to facilitate learning to play the guitar by ear (per the article, How to Play the Guitar by Ear (for Mathematicians and Physicists), at Internet web sites http://www.foundation.bw and http://www.foundationwebsite.org . The songs are mainly popular "country and western" ones, with some rock and roll, folk, and gospel songs included. (Perhaps "classic" is a better descriptor than "popular," since most of the songs are from the 1950s.) If a song has no chords indicated, then the student should (if he knows the melody) be able to play such a song in any of the keys that are natural for the guitar, i.e., A, C, D, E, and G (and perhaps F). Many of these songs involve just three chords (I, IV and V). If a single chord is indicated somewhere in a song (as an assist to the student), and the key of the song is not specified, it is the chord assuming that the song is being played in the key of A.

For songs that are more difficult, I have indicated suggested chords to be used, in a key that suits my own vocal range. The student may wish to transpose these songs to a different key. These are not necessarily the "best" chords for the song -- just the ones that I found easy or natural to use. For songs that have no chords indicated, practice singing the song in several keys, and select the key that suits your vocal range best. I play a majority of the songs in this collection in the key of A, many in G, and less in E, D and C.

For each song, the first line specifies the title. If there is an alternative title, that is specified on the second line. Next are specified the most well-known singer(s) of the song (in the US) and the author(s). If a single name appears, either that person is both the principal singer and the author, or I only know one or the other.

I have assembled a fairly large number of songs into this "practice" collection, since in order for you to be able to play a song by ear you must know the melody (none of the songs presented here include the music for the melody), and the number of songs of the collection for which you know the melody may be small. Most of the songs in this collection were popular in the 1950s, when I used to listen to the radio.

If you do not recognize very many of the songs here, then you should compile your own portfolio of lyrics of songs that you do know. Listening to the radio is not so good for recording lyrics, since you cannot "replay" the song (unless you tape it). There are a large number of Internet web sites that contain lyrics, for every kind of music. Many of the songs contain chords as well. Another source of lyrics and chords (and music for the melody) are "fake" books, available in local music stores.

When learning to play by ear, it is important to have lyrics for a fairly large number of songs. If you concentrate on just a few songs, you will memorize the chord sequence. Eventually, you will memorize it anyway, but in the beginning, when you are learning to play by ear, it is best not to memorize it. It is important to develop an "ear" (a "feel," an intuition, a sense) for which chord should be used. To do this, it is important to try playing a song in several different keys. And it is helpful to have a large selection of songs, so that you do not spend too much time on a single song (and memorize it too soon). When learning to play by ear, it is a good idea to cycle through the book, rather than selecting just a few songs. Play each song once or a few times, until you do not make mistakes. Later, when your skills improve, you will want to settle on a particular key for a song, and learn to sing and play it very well. You will then be able to perform the song well.

If your voice quality is not very good, don't worry about that. Some very popular singers have terrible voices. Each voice, like each flower or sunset, is different, and enjoyed for its own qualities by the listeners. Your voice and vocal range and ability to sing in tune improve rapidly with practice. Listeners respond more to your enthusiasm and emotion than to the timbre of your voice.

When singing before a group, it is very helpful to have memorized the lyrics. The problem with reading the lyrics from a sheet is that you do not have much eye contact with the listeners, and it detracts substantially from the quality/rapport of the performance. After you have learned to play by ear, memorize a couple of dozen of your favorite songs (and some of the favorites of your friends), so that you are able to perform them without resorting to the hard copy. Do not, however, try to memorize lyrics when you are first learning to play by ear. You have enough on your mind at the beginning, trying to play and sing at the same time. Also, when you first play before others, the natural excitement of performing before someone else may cause you to forget the lyrics, no matter how well you have memorized them. Finally, if you read from the lyrics, you can, right away, play a large number of songs in an evening with friends -- far more than if you play from memory.

If you are uncomfortable playing before a group, start out by playing before members of your family, and then close friends. You ability and your confidence will increase rapidly with practice, and will soon feel at ease playing before strangers.

Playing with others (in an instrumental group) is very enjoyable. Making music with friends is as enjoyable as playing by yourself or for others -- probably more enjoyable. Learning to play by ear is something that you must do on your own, but as soon as you master the basic skills, look for others with similar interests, and play together. The ultimate goal of making music, of course, is for listeners to appreciate it.

Please note that, although a number of the songs presented here are "traditional" (i.e., in the public domain, uncopyrighted), most of them are copyrighted. This means that copies (hardcopy, electronic, etc.) of the song may not be made for commercial purposes. It is my understanding that if songs are not used for public paid performances, but just used for personal noncommercial use (e.g., as here, to assist learning to play the guitar by ear), then a single copy may be made of the words and music. I am strongly in favor of the concept that an artist should reap the rewards of his creative talents, and I respect copyright law. Please do not make or distribute copies of these songs, except for your own personal use. The point to presenting this collection of songs is to have available a good-sized set of songs without chords (or with few chords), so that the student may learn to sing and play "easy" songs by ear, in any key. Commercially published songs indicate the chords on the music, and they often specify chords that are not appropriate for a guitar (e.g., too many chords, difficult chords, chords in keys that are not natural for a guitar). That type of music does not help the student learn to play by ear. The point to presenting this collection is not to avoid paying copyright fees -- it is to help you learn to play the guitar by ear.

Thanks, and best of luck!

Joseph George Caldwell

Clearwater, Florida

22 November 2001

Added Note, 17 May 2004:

This volume is a revision containing chords for most songs. In a sense, it is an “answer book” to accompany the earlier edition, which omitted most chords. Please note that most of the chordings presented here are very simple – what a new student would be expected to devise. In most cases, they are quite adequate, and would be what anyone would use to accompany singing. In some cases, however, more elaborate chordings are presented, because they sound so much better. For example, the song, “Love Letters in the Sand” includes many more chords than the beginning student would be expected to devise.