Born on the Bayou - CCR | Guitar Lesson

More ways to support the channel:
Super Thanks (see below the video screen)
Patreon: / 12footchain (tabs and chord charts on patreon)
Learn how to play Born on the Bayou, as performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR) released as part of their 1969 album Bayou Country. One of the defining songs for the band and has an interesting guitar solo combining two string picking techniques and using parts of chords to create a melodic instrumental section.
The lesson covers the rhythm and lead guitar parts, but mostly focusing on the lead guitar section.
00:00 Introduction / What to expect
02:18 Lesson - Rhythm Guitar chords
05:37 Lesson - The intro riff
06:25 Guitar solo approach - hand positions
07:45 Tremolo effect
08:44 Guitar solo approach - 4 sections
09:26 Demo - guitar solo part 1
11:11 Lesson - guitar solo part 2
13:06 Demo - guitar solo part 2
13:32 Lesson - guitar solo part 2 (continued)
16:55 Lesson - guitar solo part 3
18:37 Demo - guitar solo parts 1-3
19:27 Lesson - guitar solo part 4
20:00 Final thoughts
Gear used in this video (if you purchase via these links I will earn a small commission):
'68 Gibson SG Special
Boss Blues Driver: imp.i114863.net/rnPQLB (level 10 o'clock, gain 1 o'clock, tone 11 o'clock)
Maestro Mariner Tremolo sweetwater.sjv.io/6eR4nG (classic setting, depth/speed/shape all at 1 o'clock)
1963 Fender Bassman
Also...
WIN FREE GEAR:
imp.i114863.net/9WoMd3
DEALS ON MUSIC GEAR:
imp.i114863.net/a1dxGM
USED GEAR:
imp.i114863.net/3P19aB

[@southpaw1959channel]

Anyone who skips over one of your lessons because they think they already know the song is missing out! Once again, your ear for subtle details makes all the difference! Love this song...99% of the reason I bought a tremolo....

[@12footchain]

thank you!

[@jwsorrell]

I watched the Netflix CCR concert at Royal Albert Hall and it drove me here. It was refreshing to watch a concert without flashing lights, dancers, and fireworks, just straight unfiltered talent playing on stage, delivering their message to the audience, like the Beatles did. Good lesson!

[@exceptions9263]

One of my absolute favorites, and one of those songs that you just can’t get right your whole life.

[@markmartin3221]

Trust your ears, thx

[@gfogerty54]

Being one of the biggest fans of CCR/John Fogerty in Germany I certainly love your video ! When playing with my former band Clearwater Aschaffenburg I added a Hammond sound to the song and even played a solo on the blues harp.

[@LizardKing0851]

There is nothing like clicking on a video and find out I've been playing it completely different for decades.

[@timbiffis6306]

😂

[@davegilmer_Storyville4Life]

Guilty as charged🤣

[@WScott-gd2mj]

This made me laugh...happens to me all the time. But oddly, this one actually confirmed most of it for me. I'll take it!

[@jameslaird9924]

There's nothing wrong with playing it differently from the original recording. There's many factors involved like unable to sing in that key for example. A lot of bands play their own songs differently from the album when live too, and the version your playing makes it your version. 👍🏻

[@LizardKing0851]

@@jameslaird9924 You miss understood me. I like what I'm hearing and want to use those chops.., I like them. It's just different from how I learned by ear off a record player.

[@rayross997]

Awesome job, hope Old Man Down the Road is coming soon.

[@michaelworse6034]

and : Someday never comes !

[@markdesod561]

Best Song from CCR!!! Thanx for this, Doug!!

[@MrRontac]

Man that’s one great lesson .. Sounds awesome 💯💯💯💯

[@jameslaird9924]

Great lesson as always 👍🏻

[@bryanfriend6094]

This wss always my favorite song fro CCR....so timeless!

[@ZPX945]

Killer lesson🎉

[@olivias.3071]

Awesome song! Can't wait to try it. Thank you very much.

[@charleskinsey2141]

I know the song and still learned a few things , loved the lesson .

[@WScott-gd2mj]

Me too...the 2nd half of the solo here is both easier and sounds fuller than how I've done it. Win win!

[@markpoitras4028]

Awesome! Love this song! Thank you for the lesson.

[@BradRocker]

You are the master. especially on the little details. Thanks for all these lessons.

[@johndodson4527]

So glad you're here and your channel is growing.solid information.

[@johndodson4527]

Dude said you talked too much.....haaa I died laughing..funny shit man.all good.keep yakking.100000 love it.

[@harolddavis4138]

Love that song !

[@melonhusk-kt5ys]

Thanks appreciate the lessons!!

[@roberta.k4213]

Freaking awesome !!! Thanks!!

[@elliotvernon7971]

Excellent stuff - thanks for this

[@Kirk1914]

Great lesson here. Really excellent.

[@Nobody_Important_Yea]

Love it, again!

[@jimbola77]

wow very nice explanation man!!!!! thank you for sharing i love ccr happy memories for me...

[@WScott-gd2mj]

Great lesson as usual...nice trem too. This song is worthy of my Flint as well!

[@andrewkelly8677]

love your lessons, you don't keep repeating things :D

[@frogger1952]

As someone who has listened to this song about 20X/yr every year since 1969, it's interesting to see what exactly John and Tom were doing and how the whole song comes together. I'm not a musician, but I learned a lot nevertheless.

[@paulcaruthers9647]

Wow! Nicely done

[@MC-cl9ip]

I am super envious of your ear. I wish I could distinguish the subtleties you can. Thank you for sharing.

[@robertshirley3422]

Haven't listened yet, but thank you in advance for this fantastic choice. My favorite CCR material is the debut album and Bayou Country!!!

[@mervynsullivan]

A very good analysis of the music.

[@mattk5874]

Nicely done lesson, Thanks

[@makalu877]

Been playing "air guitar" since 1969, now maybe I can actually play it! Thank you for this.

[@johnpick8336]

Thank you for this Spot On video.

[@dougrhatigan1661]

Thanks man !! You have helped a struggling beginner to intermediate guitarist !

[@altonwilliams7117]

Great song for me to start out on after coming back to Texas from overseas vacation.🎸🎵

[@TheAzmountaineer]

A great song, easy and fun to play! It's great to see that you're starting JF's part on B instead of D. I've always heard and played it that way, but I thought I was the only one :)

[@sebastionhawk5565]

nice; thanks!

[@frankivassi4305]

Your playing shows me how different chord positioning and sounds result. This then is store into my memory to be resorted into other songs. Thanks This site is my goto. There are others like Anyone Can Play, james james etc.

[@12footchain]

I love them both too

[@robertritchie2860]

The whole album is a blues rock masterpiece.

[@friedrich1957]

Thanks. I've been making it way more difficult. Back to the woodshed!

[@southfork67]

Great tips on chords and variations. Very fragmented lesson though. Uninterrupted play throughs would be very helpful so we can cancel out our current distractions and get into the song first.

[@michaelowens3619]

Been on the lookout for a Tremelo pedal for CCR songs. Someone said on KZbin that John’s early Kustom amp had a Vibra/Trem that he used. I have just seen a video of John Fogerty’s guitar tech explaining that for his Bayou Country sound, he uses a Zeta Systems Vibro/Trem that was built in the 1980’s and is the only one in existence. He can sync the vibrato and Tremelo together. The video was eight years old and they mentioned that they had tracked down the original builder and they were hoping to get him to build more. I was looking at a Marshall Vibro/Tremelo pedal but they work individually. Cheers.

[@kgjb2003]

Thanks!

[@12footchain]

Thank you!

[@hannibalheyes339]

You're a good guitar man

[@dennisflock3958]

I've got a Suhr Hombre with the Harmonic Tremolo. This tune sounds incredible though that.

[@Mangoshake2021]

Why don’t you do a play through to start the video? It’s difficult lesson when the song rhythm is from memory

[@magraretsbane6274]

Great video! I’d love to see you take a crack at Grapevine or Green River, I’m fairly certain they were both chicken picked during the parts everyone tries to learn.

[@rayross997]

Thanks

[@rayross997]

Thanks again, much appreciated.

[@12footchain]

Thanks Ray

[@kennethmccann630]

Great lesson, pard. Thankx. Really enjoyed it. Dunno if we've ever talked about what i found with the CCR trem sound, but.... Yours doesnt sound too bad actually. For years and years, that CCR Swamp sound just eluded me. Confounded me! Lol Every time i got an amp with trem and reverb, i would see if it would grant me the CCR sound. Ive got a Vox, a Fender, and an Ampeg all with trem and reverb.... None sounded right to me. I also have a vintage Maggie with pitch shifting vibrato, and the most ungodly reverb in an amp ive ever heard.... nope. I had all but given up on ever figuring out the sound. It just sounds so much more, alive and vibrant than anything i could get. More complex. Like it shifted speed and intensity on its own but didnt either. Its a hard sound to explain. Then, i read an article very recently with J.F. talking about it. Apparently, on those old Kustom amps (or at least on his), it has both Tremolo AND pitch shifting Vibrato! He said he used both at the same time! Now, i dont have a way to do that, but if you do, id love to hear what you think.... Anyway, take care. Until next time.

[@12footchain]

Hadn't heard that before, that's interesting, thanks

[@kennethmccann630]

Dunno if quoting is permissible, but I found it: I was playing a Kustom K200A[-4], which was an amazing rig. It was roughly 100 watts and was solid-state, but it was probably the best-sounding solid-state amp ever made. But by far for me, the most mind-boggling effect was the fourth one, which was a vibrato-tremolo effect - and you could blend between tremolo and vibrato. I didn’t want to use too much vibrato - vibrato meaning pitch-bending, so I’d turn it to the right a little bit, which was less vibrato and more tremolo, which is a volume effect. It would sound like a normal tremolo, but with the addition [of] a little bit of this kind of a spooky sound that came out of vibrato. It was a blend, and they were on the same clock, happening at the same time. They weren’t two completely unrelated sounds. I used that sound on Born on the Bayou and Midnight Special. There are so many songs I recorded plugged into that amp, using that vibrato-tremolo thing. Then I spent the next 45 years trying to get someone to replicate that.

[@12footchain]

@@kennethmccann630 awesome! good job tracking that down!

[@crunchyflower]

The second part of the solo is played in Double Stops in 3rds....all of it, till the chorus break in the solo...very simple if done in double stops, the tremolo is confusing your ear from the record plus other dubs of guitar....if done in 3rds it is just running the scale starting in F# sliding into G# then back to F# into E then F# and resolve back to E, start progression again but this time after the theme (F# - G# - F#) go to A then G# then F#, E F# E

[@crunchyflower]

How to play the Double stops: E (B - 5, D - 6) F# (B - 7, D - 7) G# (B - 9, D -9) A (B -10, D - 11)

[@garyvanremortel5218]

You did a few bars off of Yes' Tales of Topographic Oceans there.

[@aminahmed2220]

Awesome video have a wonderful day ❤😊 also what is your favorite guitar ❤😊

[@12footchain]

My favorite changes every month

[@JohnA000]

Didn't know maestro was still making pedals. In 69 I had a maestro fuzz. And I preferred a boomerang wah wah/vol at the time over a crybaby. I like your insights. btw It blew me a way when the record company screwed Fogerty and wouldn't let him play his own songs.

[@12footchain]

Yeah Gibson makes them now, they have a full set of effects using the maestro name and look.

[@jefffogertymusic2023]

No, the record company, Fantasy didn't stop my Uncle John from playing Creedence songs. That was Uncle John's decision, because the record company would make money off the songs if he did. So he did not perform them anymore for decades. He was NEVER stopped.

[@JohnA000]

@@jefffogertymusic2023 Well who could blame him.

[@jefffogertymusic2023]

@@JohnA000 yep. Agreed. Thr label were total crooks. Horrible what they did to my family and Doug and Stu.... and originally my dad was the only one of the 4 of age to sign the 1st contract, he wanted to go see what CBS Columbia woukd offer over in San Francisco, across the bay from Berkeley where Fantasy was. BUT he was out voted 3 to 1 by the other guys, so he had to sign it. There were a democracy band then, and majority ruled...... so, yeah I don't blame my Uncle for not wanting to give the label another dime. FYI, Fantasy also lied about record sales numbers after 1971. So they would not have to pay the band the actual $$$ royalties. So what the RIAA has listed should be at least triple. Chronicle is listed at 12 million, but is well over 20 in reality. So fkkkkkk Fantasy Records.

[@JohnA000]

@@jefffogertymusic2023 Well I always loved his music. I am a guitar player myself and in 1969 I was playing in a local bar every weeked. And you can be sure there were a bunch of CCR songs on our songlist. I think it is cool that he plays on videos with his family members. To me we had great music back then. Unfortunately most of todays music is shit or I might still be playing. lol But I still play for myself.

[@mmikeyhignight8573]

Hey brutha, the Bass hanging on the far right is beautiful is that a Fender?

[@12footchain]

Yep, fender jazz bass

[@billyclub9863]

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@stevegmag]

Isn’t John usually in an alternate tuning?

[@DannyGatton94]

Make swamp music great again!

[@alhoenstok9482]

Think intro John plays b and e string together

[@iggyflop3777]

Ramble tamble, please

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Almost but not quite: - There's a third way to play that high double-stop, but you have to watch Fogerty very, very closely NOT changing from 7-9 fret region; - The final solo chord is even simpler than an E cowboy chord!

[@CadillacCherryBlack]

too much needless yapping

[@markwilliams141]

Yeah, I think you should just call the cord cords out as they are majors, minors whatever it may be I don’t understand why you want to refer to cowboy chord makes you sound stupid

[@mrunit7261]

I made it 13 1/2 minutes.......could not go any further due to that cheap sounding guitar. Made in China?

[@lasnow805]

This lesson is great, but just like all you teachers on you tube, you guys seem to have taken a LAXATIVE BECAUSE YOUR MOUTH NEVER SHUTS UP, JUST PLAY AND VEVER MIND RUNNING YOUR MOUTH SHUT UP AND PLAY,,WE DO NOT NEED A LESSON ON TALKING

[@12footchain]

Thanks for your opinion. And f*ck ALL THE WAY OFF. Just stop watching if you don't like. Others appreciate the context and descriptions. Happy Saturday

[@carletonlegrant5605]

Great Song but horribile teacher This guy video after video beats around the bush so much. By time he gets around to the lesson the video is almost over. I feel sorry for anyone who is a beginner that watches this guys videos.

[@12footchain]

Like I say in the beginning of every video, all have chapters so youbcan jump right to the part of the song you want to see and bypass whatever you dont.. Thanks for watching though.

[@aboo3203]

I can go to sleep you talk much

[@stevelee2471]

I found this song by accident in the early 70's moving that c7 up the neck :)

[@briansbrain426]

An SG with P90's......kinky!!!

[@12footchain]

It's a 68 SG Special. The specials had p 90s