[donlyn]

Fingerstyle pieces you love to play

Pieces, not songs, so a presumption of mostly instrumental work is requested. Otherwise it doesn't matter that much because I fingerpick everything I play.

I like to play old Rock 'n' Roll instrumentals.

Walk Don't Run
Roundabout/Pipeline
Spanish Harlem/Maria Elena
Apache (often as a coda to Ghost Riders in the Sky)

The '/' is a medley of sorts, the first piece bleeding into the second in the case of 'Pipeline', preceded by an instrumental intro and instrumental verse of 'Roundabout', then a short E minor 'connector' followed by the baseline of Pipeline (If play Pipeline by itself, I open with the sliding bass descent).

Sometimes I do a vocal on 'Spanish Harlem' with an instrumental verse, the last note of which is also the first note of 'Maria Elena'. Sometimes I't's all instrumental. Just works for me either way.
N.B., there are words to 'Maria Elena', but I don't do them. Believe it was written at the time for the wife of a previous Mexican President.

I used to play a few Beatles tunes as instrumentals, but my latest foray is to play 'It's Only Love' and use my instrumental work as a third verse to the song.

I play these on both 6 string and 12 string, and they almost sound like different pieces even though they are the same source and style.

Also play some Stones stuff as 12 string instrumentals, like 'Factory Girl' and 'Lady Jane'. Both sound great on a 12, and I can replicate and enhance the dulcimer stuff nicely on a 12.

Some Lead Belly pieces work too, Like 'Midnight Special' and 'Keep Your Hands Off Her', but I mostly do these with vocals, especially 'Midnight Special'.

I fingerpick all my instruments using my nails as picks.
And I do my own arrangements, mostly because I enjoy that part of it too.

Don
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