How to Play 'Rave On' - Buddy Holly - Play Along Lesson - Jez Quayle

This great Buddy Holly song is presented with the full lyrics and chords, so you can play or sing along with me and learn how to perform this great tune. A song sheet can also be viewed or downloaded from my songbook blog here: jezquaylesongb...
Rock 'n' roll songs like this can be pretty easy to play: just three, easy chords (G, C and D in this case) ...or four chords, if you count the occasional G7 (you don't need to play this chord). As with many Buddy Holly songs, some of the chord changes are pretty quick though.
Although this is considered a Buddy Holly song, it was actually written by Sonny West and released as a single by him on Atlantic Records in February 1958. The title of the song and its hook were inspired by a line from Carl Perkins' 1956 song 'Dixie Fried', in which Carl sings ''Rave on, children I'm with you!', 'Rave on cats!' he cried'. Holly recorded his version of the song later that same year. It was one of six Buddy Holly recordings that charted in 1958.
I think this may have been the first Buddy Holly song I heard when I was a young kid in the mid 1970s -- it got me hooked on Holly!
Available records suggest that Al Caiola played lead guitar on 'Rave On', Donald Arnone played rhythm guitar, and Buddy Holly chose not to play guitar but to concentrate on his singing. These are the published sources from which I learned this:
- ‘The Words and Music of Buddy Holly: His Songs and Interviews’ by Bill Griggs (page 34). Bill Griggs was the founder of the Buddy Holly Memorial Society.
- ‘Buddy Holly: The Complete Works’ by Marc Alesina - this can be viewed online at: buddyholly.pag... (accessed 16th April 2021)
- ‘Buddy Holly: Learning the Game’ by Spencer Leigh - This book includes excerpts from an interview with Sonny West (writer of ‘Rave On’) who states “It has a syncopated rhythm that is different from the way I did it. The way they did it sold the song and Buddy was not playing the guitar, he was only singing” (page 81)
- 'Not Fade Away: The Life and Music of Buddy Holly' by John Gribbin (p. 111)
I think I heard it mentioned in a TV documentary too, but that’ll take me longer to identify.

[@dakotahstr]

This is my absolute favorite Buddy Holly

[@thewarmantrio]

One of our favorite songs also

[@Halwit]

Amazing singing

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much!

[@elcanaldefx344]

Im watching this video again and again im glad with your open chord method Cheers from Venezuela

[@robertsullivan320]

Excellent. Buddy would be proud

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Robert!

[@user-pi8yr9ys4j]

Привет из Владивостока! Вы прекрасно играли и пели. Большое спасибо.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Большое спасибо! Я рада что тебе нравиться.

[@MyPunker02]

This is one of my favorite Buddy Holly songs. Thanks Jez.

[@jebstuart9749]

Jez you are a godsend ... your videos are clear with the guitar in evidence .... anyone who loves Rock and Roll loves to see the guitar in action to try to understand its secrets ... your voice is that right !!! I've been waiting for years for someone like you to honor this immortal music !!! thank you Jez and I hope you continue with this charity work ...

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much for those words of support Jeb! I'm glad you like my videos.

[@petranohl2674]

Das was Du machst ist einfach nur Super. Danke für Dein Tun.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Vielen Dank Petra!

[@digbysdownunder]

Great video.. haven't played for over 10 years.. got picking the guitar up again.. excellent voice too.. cheers

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much! Yes, pick up that guitar!!!

[@digbysdownunder]

@@RocknRollSongbook i use to gig 3/4 nights a week.. 10 years ago lol.. it's tough going here in the west ,as te entertainment industry is on its knees.. for now will jam along with you and get my mojo back.. ps do you have any live gig videos to watch?

[@MustafaBaabad]

Thanks for the dynamic song. You play it like the whole band is playing with you. Cheers from Indonesia.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Mustafa!

[@timcummings6075]

Thanks for this, I not long got my first guitar and this is a good way for me to start learning, Buddy Holly is one of my favorite artists.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Yes, Buddy's songs are great for beginner guitarists. His are some of the first songs I learned 40 odd years ago ...and I'm still playin' 'em!

[@johnhughes612]

Excellent again thanks for sharing this with us all you are a great singer and player and I am enjoying learning with you 😀

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much John! It's great to know that you're enjoying learning from these videos. Happy pickin'!

[@juanan777ful]

Muy buenooooo, si señor. Enhorabuena maestro

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much!

[@peterhaynes8258]

Brilliant Video ! Brilliant Song, Brilliantly Played & Various ways to play, something for everyone, Thank you.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Peter! Glad you like it.

[@kevinwallace3415]

Just discovered you - glad I have. Got lots of your tutorials to study and practice and will have to buy your book. Danger is...wife will never stop dragging me up to dance! Let me hear some more of that Rock'n Roll music.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Hi Kevin! I'm glad you like my videos. I hope get plenty from them. ...now go and dance with your wife. 😊

[@johncorner9295]

Nice..

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much John!

[@christianloquet9160]

C'est de cette façon la que j'aime apprendre tout ce que tout ce que tu aimes nous transmetre de ta façon de jouer le rock and roll j'apprécie beaucoup tes cours ( merci a vous deux )

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Merci beaucoup Christian! Je suis content que tu aimes mes tutoriels.

[@cv6941]

Thanks Jez, love it and love you how you demonstrate an alternative version

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much!

[@AlexB-LifeInStereo]

I like what you did there Jez, taking the more difficult Chuck Berry style and combining it with the easier open chord style to create something that is the best of both worlds and sounds great. I'll try it! 👍👍

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Alex! It's not my creation, but it's a really handy technique for solo, acoustic guitar rock 'n' roll songs, isn't it. 😄

[@robert9754]

@@RocknRollSongbook I agree with this comment and still nice to see videos of different voicings/chords if that's the right terminology.

[@colinsykes6883]

Thanks Jez yet again. Liked the discussion at the start and the tutorial 4 pattern is good fun to play

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks Colin! Yes, those G, C and D chord riffs are really handy aren't they?

[@jorgfromgermany]

Great lesson, thank you. You commit the real spirit of the song!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Jorg!

[@mariosergiovieira7623]

Thank you very much Jez! Holy is always uplifting. And your vocal is super cool. Congratulations , Keep on shining.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Mario! Buddy Holly has always been my feel-good music too. Thanks for the kinds word about my singing. Best wishes from England.

[@jeffvanspaendonk1836]

I ordered your book today from Amazon, The Netherlands. Best wishes, Jeff

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Jeff!

[@jonheart5415]

The Best!!!!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Jon!

[@ownHvB]

Great stuff!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much!

[@Garry572301]

Excellent....👍👍👍

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Garry!

[@lyphan2667]

Hay quá bạn ơi tôi rất thích

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Cảm ơn rất nhiều!

[@astroboy4711]

Love it keep em coming!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Mike! Will do. 😄

[@sturusk3620]

Great video, one of my favourite Holly songs (Oh Boy another) that's my day off sorted. Terrific voice too ;0)

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Stu! And thanks for the comment about my voice. I've never been that confident a singer to be honest ...but that hasn't stopped me doing it 😄

[@luvkountry]

love it! Totally Awesome.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much!

[@bluestough]

Cool stuff, Jez

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Boyd!

[@newman92649]

Great lessons - do you only teach using an acoustic guitar ? What about an electric guitar song ?

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much! I think I’ve only recorded one tutorial video using an electric guitar. Most techniques I teach on this channel works on both electric and acoustic guitar though.

[@damianwalker5804]

Brilliant, where can I find the finger positions for the early versions you demonstrated? Just bought you book and love to play these. Mostly a drumming but learning at a reasonable pace.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Damian. I cover the riffs the guitarist used to play this one in my tutorials #2 and #6. The song is played in the key of G using a capo. You play E, A (see Tutorial #6) and B riffs (see Tutorial #2) with a capo on the third fret, which makes those riffs G, C and D. I hope that helps - Jez

[@martinzikovsky7112]

One two three four, one two three four, one two three four . . . like it. :-)

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks Martin!

[@frankdsouza2425]

Only one Buddy Holly, but one could also assert: ONLY ONE JEZ QUAYLE TOO.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Hehehe. Thanks very much Frank!

[@larrywalker6105]

Good stuff.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Larry!

[@rockroll456]

Awesome bud

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks mate!

[@walteriomoore9895]

excellent.....👍

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Walterio! 😀

[@kaycarley]

Hey Jez. Would you mind explaining how you make that percussive sound in the solo section on beat 2 of the C and G chords? I can see that you are using your little finger to mute the strings on beat 2 of the D chord but you are doing something different when playing the percussive sound for the C and G chords......

[@RocknRollSongbook]

I had to go and have a look at the video, because it's the sort of thing I do without thinking. With the C chord I relax my fingers so they're touching the strings but not holding them down onto the fretboard, and also tilt my hand downwards slightly so that I mute the open 1st and 3rd strings. With the G chord I do the same thing with the notes I'm holding down for the chord, but also tilt my hand so that my 3rd finger touches (and mutes) the 2nd, 3rd and 4th strings. I hope that makes sense. I do the same thing when I'm singing the choruses in the song.

[@kaycarley]

Marvellous. Thank you 😊! I could see that you were relaxing the pressure on the strings to mute the ones you were fingering but I couldn’t tell how you were muting the rest of them. Many thanks 😀.

[@raynoller6225]

Hi, a how to play hart brake hotel would be nice. Love the way you teach, it’s right up there. Thanks

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much Ray! I've never thought I could do justice to 'Heartbreak Hotel' on one acoustic guitar. It's a pretty simple song to play though: just three chords in a 12-bar blues chord progression. Elvis played it in the key of E. When I play it I take the key down to C to suit my singing range. Here's a song sheet for the song in C from my songbook blog: jezquaylesongbookhome.files.wordpress.com/2018/12/Heartbreak-Hotel-in-C.pdf If you want to play it in E, simply replace all the Cs with Es, the Fs with As, and the Gs with B7s.

[@raynoller6225]

@@RocknRollSongbook thanks for that, shame I can’t spell Heartbreak though, haha, but I am dyslexic and it didn’t look right when I typed it in. I’ve been playing it as a blues in A D E. I think what I’m having the most trouble with is the strumming pattern! Thanks again, you’re good and lessons are very helpful.

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Because Elvis put so much of his distinctive, mumbling style into his performance, it's tough to sing 'Heartbreak Hotel' without it sounding like a dodgy, cringe-making impression of Elvis. While lots of people cover songs like 'Jailhouse Rock' and 'Don't Be Cruel', I've only ever heard Elvis impersonators sing 'Heartbreak Hotel'.

[@raynoller6225]

Haha, and I really really don’t want to be an Elvis impersonator. Just love rock ‘n’ roll

[@RocknRollSongbook]

I take back what I said. Here's a great cover of 'Heartbreak Hotel': kzbin.info/www/bejne/qojOmqGLnMmXraM

[@tarlocksingh8085]

How can I learn your finger style especially the shuffle thanks

[@RocknRollSongbook]

I've made a series of 4 tutorial videos which you may find helpful. Here's a link: kzbin.info/aero/PL3k8ba924QgZ_-jUIMEvUcfn8iBdZBwuH

[@ludoor]

Hello Jez. Thanks a lot for your tutorials and covers. How do you make the reverb on your voice ?

[@RocknRollSongbook]

The video editing software I use to create these has some quite sophisticated sound processing functions. What you're hearing is a little bit of 'slapback echo'. It just adds that bit of 1950s rock 'n' roll texture. 😄

[@phineus8397]

Perhaps you could show the position of those first guitar chords is it a G power cord?

[@RocknRollSongbook]

It's a Chuck Berry style rock 'n' roll riff, but yes, part of it is a G power chord. Here's a tutorial I made on how to play this riff: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mWqui2SjfcmNh5o

[@3521rob]

This is different chords to the Rock n roll book ! The vid plays G The book plays E

[@RocknRollSongbook]

That’s correct. The song was played in G on Buddy’s original recording. All of the songs in my ‘Fifty From the Fifties’ songbook are arranged in either A or E. The guitarist who played on Buddy’s recording (Buddy didn’t play guitar on this one himself) played in E with a capo on the third fret (making the key G).

[@3521rob]

@@RocknRollSongbook ok cheers. I played as the book and it sounds ok. I am just getting my head around it allay the moment. I read your book and watch the video. I add notes directly to the page, walk ups , strum detail and rhythm patterns , stops etc. It’s all great fun. I will have to buy a capo 👍🏻

[@kaycarley]

Love this one 😀! One of my favourite Buddy songs 🎶. On the quick change from G to D are you changing directly after the 1st beat so that you hit the up strum (after the 1st beat) on D or is the up strum hit on G and then beat 2 on D? It’s so quick I can’t tell which it is!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks Kay! I play the D chord on the up-strum (the &) between beats 1 and 2. Yep, it's a quick change!

[@kaycarley]

Thank you. I thought it probably was! By the way is there an open A chord riff that I could play (with some of your other play along songs)?

[@RocknRollSongbook]

@@kaycarley I teach an A chord riff in my Tutorial #1: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pqmZcqOLaMtlgaM. Alternatively, you could play a G chord riff (Tutorial #4: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJ-aeqyphLWKmJY) with a capo on the 2nd fret.

[@kaycarley]

@@RocknRollSongbook - yes I know! (I’ve watched your tutorials lots!) But you are only fingering part of the A chord in tutorial 1 and when needing to mute the above and below strings I then can’t reach the 4th fret with either my third or fourth finger! As you teach an open D chord variation in tutorial 4 (as opposed to the D riff in tutorial 1) I thought that perhaps there might be one for an open A chord too but I guess not! Not to worry...

[@RocknRollSongbook]

@@kaycarley I suppose you could do what I described doing with the D chord on the ukulele. You would play an A chord with your 1st, 2nd and 3rd fingers, then drop your little finger down onto the 2nd fret of the 1st string. That added 6th note would be a little high, but it would sound okay I think. With the E chord you could doing something similar to what I described with the ukulele A chord: play an E chord with your 1st, 2nd and 3rd fingers, then drop your little finger down onto the 2nd fret of the 2nd string. I sometimes play this E chord riff when play rock 'n' roll in the key of E.

[@bluesybruce]

enjoyed singing along with you Jez. Do you still play some ukulele?

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Is that Bruce from Haworth? Yes, I play ukulele a lot. Do you? If you fancy a look, I have this ukulele channel where I post videos pretty frequently. My latest is a Buddy Holly medley: kzbin.info

[@christianloquet9160]

J j'aimerai que tu nous fasses une demo autour des beatles (hold me tight par exemple ) encore un bon titre (merci a toi)

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Merci pour la demande Christian. C'est une super chanson. Sur cette chaîne, cependant, je ne télécharge que des vidéos de rock and roll des années 1950.

[@leguy5662]

* 3:11 ^

[@jdjay18]

tutorialnumber 4, my fingers are already stiff to move fast

[@RocknRollSongbook]

My fingers get like that too sometimes! 😄

[@jdjay18]

@@RocknRollSongbook also I am a short person, so my fingers are short

[@user-gw3jx2vf7i]

🎸👍👍👍👏👏👏👑

[@philip9878]

ok if youve got 9" fingers!!!

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Hehehe 🤣 👍

[@johndunipace54]

Nice one, sub deployed 😁

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Thanks very much John!

[@rickydlayaute5387]

👍😎🇫🇷

[@christianloquet9160]

Si j' ai bien compris pas de titres des annees 60 (dommage a une annee pres tu aurais pu interpreter (le twist de chubby checker)encore un 12 bars blues jez a bientôt

[@RocknRollSongbook]

J'adore la musique des années 1960, mais les rock'n'rollers originaux des années 1950 avaient une touche distinctive qui ne s'est jamais répétée. Si vous êtes intéressé, j'ai une autre chaîne KZbin où je télécharge des vidéos d'autres styles de musique, y compris de nombreuses chansons des années 1960.

[@jamesadcock5235]

Elvis bodyguard wrote those songs

[@RocknRollSongbook]

Hehehe ...that was a different Sonny West.