Stand By Me • Easy guitar lesson w/ intro bass line tab (key of C)

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View my additional notes for this lesson: songnotes.net/lessons/308/
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Hey friends! Here's a lesson showing you how to play the Ben E. King classic "Stand By Me" with an acoustic guitar, no capo, key of C. Notably, I'm deviating from the "official" key of this song (Key of A) in order to prioritize an "easy to play & sounds just like the song" arrangement, which I trust you'll find helpful. I break the lesson into two halves: (1) learning the intro, and then (2) learning how to strum the verse & chorus sections. Here's timestamps for my video lesson:
0:00 Lesson overview
2:10 Intro riff: the basics
9:13 Intro riff: adding percussion
16:02 Verse & chorus strumming
23:46 Full playthrough
I hope you enjoy!
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[@songnotes]

Get the print-friendly PDF chord sheet @ playsongnotes.com/lessons/308/ Timestamps: - 2:10 Intro riff: the basics - 9:13 Intro riff: adding percussion - 16:02 Verse & chorus strumming - 23:46 Full playthrough Thanks all!

[@songnotes]

@Jaques Demolay Hey - I'm using a Taylor 310 in this video, and most of my existing ones! the GS Mini I got is relatively recent (it has a darker koa finish). I believe Taylor doesn't make the 310 anymore? I got mine in 2001.

[@geralynpalacol9295]

Wow, YOU’RE A GENIUS!!!🎸🎸🎸……..and sooooo GENEROUS for putting this Tutorial together for us🥰🥰🥰. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU DAVID!!!🎸🙏🙏🙏. APPRECIATE THIS LESSON💥😍

[@jackiedixon5076]

Use a capo for D. Plays exactly like C

[@PollyGL]

THis was my very first intro that I learned recently, but David put so much care in his lessons that I'm really impressed, I want to thanks so much for his dedication

[@melaniebuford]

Even a single strum makes the song complete to slow things down singing live. Sometimes a balled is all it takes to make people dance. Less is more. Great tutorial 🎸

[@Doowopsid]

So great! Thank you! I’ve been playing the chords to this song but couldn’t figure out this intro riff and I’m so glad to have found your video. You are a great teacher and this is so helpful.

[@geralynpalacol9295]

Wow, YOU’RE A GENIUS!!!🎸🎸🎸……..and sooooo GENEROUS for putting this Tutorial together for us🥰🥰🥰. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU DAVID!!!🎸🙏🙏🙏. APPRECIATE THIS LESSON💥😍

[@richarddorsch7275]

Very helpful that you show the tab while you play. You are one of the few that do this. Great job!

[@angelokimi]

David is one of the best, if not the best guitar teacher in all of youtube..he gives tips and tricks that others dont teach.. Keep up the good work David! 👍👍

[@tmkevinlin]

This is the most clear instruction I have ever seen. Thank you!! Love you!!

[@queenqueen34]

That's amazing. Thanks for play along at the end. It's really helpful.

[@richwiz2]

Well-done, David; thank-you very much.

[@sergey3493]

Hi David! Thank you very much for the lesson! I found the detailed walkthrough and especially your PDF extremely helpful for a beginner like me.

[@pallavihandique9971]

Awesome tutorial! Clear and simple. Thank you so much.

[@aspenx1304]

I absolutely love "magical awesomeness"!!!! Thank you 😊

[@songnotes]

You're welcome, as always :)

[@sniperviper2697]

Wow! You are an amazing guitar teacher.. Thank you..

[@TinManKustoms]

Oddly enough this is very similar to the way I learned to how to play this song 20years ago I guess great guitar teachers think alike. Thanks for the refresher it's been a long time since I played it and it's such a fun song to practice walking around the neck of the guitar

[@songnotes]

Nice, great to hear I'm not alone here! It's funny, before I decided to learn this one - and I was listening to the original recording - I would have bet $100 it was in the key of C, just because it felt like such a natural one for the guitar bass line notes, at least. Was surprised to be wrong. Just the same, hope it's helpful!

[@amparofuertes3434]

Thank you very much for this tutorial. Its a nice song and quite easy. Im going to play it just now.

[@shermusic8361]

I love it in C. Makes it friendly to play with Uke friends too !!

[@lonniebrock3282]

The most illustrated lesson ive seen on here thank you very much

[@riobabic8960]

Well done David !

[@stephenearnshaw6198]

Brillian lesson-many many thanks

[@cookingwithnancy]

Thank you for sharing this beautiful song! ❤

[@keitherskine8572]

This is such a great lesson! Cheers

[@user-us4fr4cs8u]

The best tutorial. Many thanks. Thanks 🙏

[@IAMAGUDNYANO]

Superb David.

[@sapelesteve]

Awesome lesson of that classic song! In fact, probably the best lesson that I have seen on any YT channel. Keep up the great work. Thanks........... 👍👍🎸🎸🎸🎸👍👍

[@songnotes]

Thanks a bunch, Steve! Appreciate it.

[@otonielmurillo746]

Awesome teaching

[@gpowerpack]

Thank You David. Actually I Really Enjoy how you compose your Music. Awesome :) My Classical Guitar Teacher in College Taught and Wrote Music Same same Style. Very Cool :) :)

[@jojacobs305]

Thank you for your helpful tips 😍

[@nongaange8975]

You are amazing. Thank you so much

[@EbonyGriffin]

Love this song! You're such a great teacher. Thank you :)

[@songnotes]

Thanks so much, you're quite welcome!

[@cynfabre5326]

Super!!!! I adore this lesson!!! Thanks !!!!!

[@songnotes]

Nice, I'm glad to hear!

[@MrFraserLaser]

I love your teaching style, keep putting out the content

[@songnotes]

No plans on slowing down!

[@lucianratnayake9442]

Very well explained

[@showtime3261]

thanks this amazing you a real teacher i feel that am in class

[@mico5204JO]

👍tnx from Zagreb, Croatia😀

[@geniusgyi4231]

thanks u so much for teaching me

[@contrerasronnie6164]

Well done mate

[@markgrace145]

Great stuff !!

[@songnotes]

Thanks Mark!

[@samtujantheng9401]

❤fantastic master

[@weezahriah]

Yes ! Key of c

[@sodthelotayou3712]

Great lesson,thanks

[@songnotes]

You're quite welcome.

[@devikasaini303]

thank you sir

[@ThePierrezx]

Very interesting I did not know this version 😊

[@hoangbuithai8595]

Thank you

[@johnsparks007]

I had to sing this song so I told the band we're doing this in G lennon-style sounds great. Much easier to sing

[@KakashiChidori616]

Hi sir. I had learnt game of thrones theme tune from you. Please keep up the good tutorials. Yours are easy to follow and well explained. Love and thanks from India.

[@songnotes]

Thanks, will do!

[@benjaminramos2880]

Awesome thanks!

[@songnotes]

Thank you!

[@vinodgupta69]

Thanks

[@natimunoz6979]

Graciaaaa me lo pazo pipa !!!!

[@celinka.podrozuje]

You are the best,🥰

[@harryodum5598]

This is vary cool! I haven't played this time in years! I ran the bass line through my loop and put in a drum beat also , then the chord progression came out really cool man. Thanks for putting it back in my memory Bank! LOL

[@songnotes]

Nice - jealous you have all that setup - I need to get on the ball! I do have a looping pedal I picked up a while back but it hasn't been touched since I moved to a new place (a year ago).

[@harryodum5598]

@@songnotes it took me a good year to to get this new technology hooked up. The DigiTech Trio Plus seem to be the hardest for me I picked it up used on eBay the guy that got it off of said he could never get it program either. Instruction that came with it had type so small I couldn't hardly see it. But I'm 73 and that don't help LOL my wife copied it out and large type and finally got it. And it's connected to the boss RC-10 total looping workstation and it's cool after learning how set it up with the Trio+. And I'm not that hot with electronics wrong generation. LOL it probably would have been really easy or some of these new cats that use a lot of pedals.

[@indianatone218]

This is great thanks for showing ,the wife plays guitar im a beginner of 2 years were inspired by your stuff could you do a version of Roy Orbison's ,only the lonely at some point ,thanks keep up the great work ,Ant from Wales UK .

[@agibrahi]

@Song Notes by David pots could you please provide a short video on how to read your notes for beginners? I don't understand the 2,3,5... designations

[@defagn600]

Love it !! Brilliant lesson

[@meladams6177]

You are amazing! Absolutely love to see a guitar lesson on an song called “White Line", by Neil Young.

[@songnotes]

Thanks Mel! I don't know that one by Neil but I'll give it a listen.

[@edlin4109]

Thanks for the lesson David! Just a quick question: at 21:57, how are you using your fingers to strum upwards? are you hitting the D,G,B strings on the upstroke with your index finger?

[@heyblue5001]

Thank u so much this is soo good but my fingers skin hurt from slapping😂. How to slap without hurting???

[@mandipdhungel9255]

Could you please make a tutorial on make you feel my love by bob dylan / adele

[@bonniehernandez7158]

Am a bigger and you are a good teacher

[@darkwhorse]

I didn't think I would want to play this song but I think I just might 😁

[@songnotes]

That's the way it goes sometimes!

[@charliebrake3642]

How do I become a patron

[@nancyboard]

Your lessons are great! Easy to follow and the PDFs really help me. I have a question....where can I request a song for you to teach? I tried your website, but don't find anything there. Anyway, my request is "On the Road to Find Out" by Cat Stevens. Thanks in advance.

[@ronaldrice4085]

key of D

[@deborahclayton9864]

I can read music, I play the piano, the Clarinet and Sax. So this is not for me.

[@arthurhoneycutt1599]

25 minutes man, seriously!

[@songnotes]

Too long? Or are you impressed? Seriously would love feedback :) Weirdly, as I've drifted toward "don't rely on editing every single sentence, try to get it in one take, minimize edits" - that makes the overall time of the video go up (good/bad?), even though editing time goes down (very good). Honestly curious though if shorter, to-the-point, 3-5 minute lessons would be something people are interested in - in addition to longer ones (which lets people pick their poison).