Topic: Chords for this song?

Hey guys,

The song : ' D. brown - Make Room'
It has great (probably easy) chords, and I can't find out what they are
so does anyone know them?

Please let me know.

- Sjoerd.

2 (edited by Astronomikal 2013-01-11 01:07:22)

Re: Chords for this song?

Welcome to the forum.

The song is in the key of F.  This is what I hear:  Dm - C - Bb - F - Bb - F - Bb - C (one beat per chord)

2X for the intro,
4X for verse 1,
2X for the chorus,
4X for verse 2,
2X for the chorus,
2X for the soft interlude,
4X for the two back-to back choruses at the end.
End on Dm.

In short, play that progression through 20 times and end on Dm and there it is.

Nice song.

**EDIT:  assuming this is it:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB6rWVHkzng

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

Re: Chords for this song?

Thank you very much!
Yes thats the song,

This will help me a lot, but im still stuck with the strumming pattern,
could you tell what it is?

Second, there are a few variations of playing the 'Bb' as i have seen..
Which one is the easiest/best one?

Appreciate all the effort so far.

Sjoerd

Re: Chords for this song?

I can't help much with the strumming pattern, but I think the most important thing is to make sure you do a good (loud) downstroke as the first strum on a chord change, because that also serves as the beat for the song.  Aside from that, I suggest you just listen to it closely and try to either mimic it or find one which sounds nice to you and go with it.

As far as the Bb goes, I would play it as a double barre, aka A-shape barre:  x13331.

I would not play the Bb as an E-shape barre on fret 6.  The voicing will be wrong.

The problem is that unless you're a practiced player, neither of those chord shapes are "easy". 

You could cheat and play it as xx3331.  Make an A shape with fingers 2-4 on fret 3 (D, G and B strings), and use your index on the high e fret 1.  Some people find that easier to do, but you'll miss the Bb in the bass.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

Re: Chords for this song?

Alright, that definitly helps!
Figuring it oud slowly, hope there will be a tutorial on youtube one day..

But this information does really help alot, thanks!

Sjoerd

Re: Chords for this song?

You're welcome.  Keep practicing and you'll get it.

Thanks for the tip on the song.  I had never heard it before.  I like it.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

Re: Chords for this song?

Alright, I worked on "a" strumming pattern for this which sounds sorta (but not exacltly) like the song.

Break the progression into pairs as follows:

Dm - C
Bb - F
Bb - F
Bb - C

For each pair, use this pattern:

1st chord      2nd chord
D d-u-D u*    D-u-D-D d-u*

D - loud downstroke
d - soft downstroke
u = soft upstroke
u* = soft upstroke while changing chords

Think:  boom chucka-boom de boom de boom boom chucka

I hope that helps.  It sure reads like it won't.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

Re: Chords for this song?

Interesting, With that I do get some kind of melody from the song
but still cant figure it out completely, how is it working for you?

Would you be able to make a small video of you playing?
This sure does help, im still figuring out how to make it sound right..

Re: Chords for this song?

I don't think I can make a video.

I don't know how good of a player you are, but if you are struggling with the chords, it might be good to practice your strumming pattern with easier chords while you get the strumming pattern down.  Personally I have difficulty learning new things with both left and right hands simultaneously.

You can get the same sound (almost) if you practice using this progression instead of the original one:

Em - D - C - G - C - G - C - D (these can all be played open).

If you tune each string down 2 steps using a digital tuner (DGCFAd), you'll be in tune with the recording.  The voicing will be a bit different, but it will be close.

Anyway, assuming you are more adept at playing open chords than barres (as most people are), you can use this advice to work on your strum and not have to worry as much about the chords.  After you get the strum down, then tune back up and work on the chords in the original progression.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

Re: Chords for this song?

Well as you might have noticed im not a very talented player,
Im practicing the strumming pattern and it is really helpful, not just with this song.

Im booking progression, I managed to play the first 2 chords almost perfectly like the song,
but still stuck on the third chord...

I haven't really tried out the 'Em - D - C - G - C - G - C - D ' thing, which I will when I get home!

Well my goal is to get the exact same sound as the original song, I will not stop untill that goal is reached,
But first things first, im gonna get the strumming pattern right first, than I will play with open chords, barres are a pain in the ass haha !

Thanks for the help, if you got any tips left or whatso ever please let me know!

Re: Chords for this song?

sjoerda wrote:

Im booking progression, I managed to play the first 2 chords almost perfectly like the song,
but still stuck on the third chord...

It's a slow process, but if you are satisfied with the way you are playing the Dm and the C then you are definitely making progress.

I would say that ALL guitar players struggle with the double-barre shape needed to play the Bb, because in order to nail it "perfectly", it requires a bunch of things to happen simultaneously, all of which take practice:
> strong "clamping" muscles (which takes a while to obtain),
> the top joint of your ring finger to bend in an unnatural way to be able to cleanly fret the D, G and B strings while simultaneously staying clear of the high e (so that you don't mute it), and
> touching the low E with the tip of your index finger to mute it.

One tip for you on the Bb:  Don't worry about the high e.  Many players find that they are satisfied if they can play it as x1333x, with the high e muted by the middle joint of your ring finger.  You may find that the sound is OK for you with the high e muted.  Like I said, a lot of players are.

I've been working on that shape for a couple of years and still manage to hit it only about half the time.  The good news is once you get good with it, you probably realized that it can be moved all the way up the fretboard (slide up 2 frets for C, slide up 2 more for D, etc.).

Anyway, try that open chord progression (starting with Em) and it will help you work on the strumming.  And again, if you tune down two half-steps, you'll be in tune with the record, but you'll notice that there is something not "quite" right about the sound.  That's because the chords are the same, but the chord VOICING is a bit different.  Once you get the strum down, tune back up and work on the chords.

Good luck.  Keep me posted.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.