Three Chord Song Book Fakery

[alnico5]

I was in a music store and picked up a "Three Chord" song book to look through. A lot of the songs were not three chord songs, (truth or not ) The fourth or fifth chords in the song were simply left out.

An example was "Lodi". The minor chord was missing. I can see a beginner not wanting to start in Bb and go to C as recorded, but leaving out the minor................?

This strikes me as very wrong.

[raysachs]

It’s not “right”, but how wrong it is probably depends on whether you know the fourth and fifth chords...

When I was new to playing, waaaaaay back in the late 70’s, I bought a book called “Neil Young Made Easy For Guitar”. Most of Neil’s songs are already pretty easy to play, this made them easier. I don’t think it left (m)any chords out, but it transposed some songs into keys where all of the chords were really easy cowboy chords. I don’t remember whether it recommended a capo for some of them or not. It had some minor chords, but I don’t remember much beyond Am, Em, Dm, and maybe an occasional Bm, when it couldn’t be avoided. There were a series of these books at the time - that was the only one I had. I loaned it to a friend after I’d advanced a little bit in my playing and I haven’t seen it since. I never missed it, but I appreciated it in those earliest days.

-Ray

[JonPR]

Yes, this is typical of a certain kind of "beginner" songbook.
Either the publishers are aiming the book at beginners pianists (or singers or any non-guitarist), or they simply have no idea how beginners learn, or why they want to learn, what they want a songbook for. Or both, of course.

Any sensible publisher of a songbook for beginner guitarists would give the chords as played on the original recording. In this case, that means capo on 3, and G major shapes (and yes an occasional minor chord). The songbook would clearly say "capo on 3" as well as giving the key as G. That allows a beginner to play along with the original - once they have some basic technique.
Very few beginners understand (or care) about the issue of key for singers (which is why CCR chose capo 3), but will certainly recognise when their chords sound wrong against the recording - and will probably think it's them doing something wrong, and not the idiot publisher.

There is a long-standing tradtion in popular songbook publishing which dates from the days when songbooks were bought for two reasons: (1) for the family to sing around the parlour piano (before audio recording was invented); (2) for singers to use when auditioning for theatre musicals (so they'd just give the book to the pianist, who would transpose if necessary). It's as if music publishers are nostalgic for the good old days before recording was invented, and they ruled the roost.

This is why songbooks which contain more substantial notation than just top line vocal and chord symbols are printed in "piano reduction": vocal top line, plus double-stave piano part (and chord symbols for any poor illiterate guitar player who happens to have wandered into the rehearsal room). Whatever instruments were used on the original recording, they are all "reduced" to two-handed piano. The piano part will include important elements of the chord accompaniment and bass line, but it will often also include the vocal melody in the right hand - not because the original instruments included it, but because that helps a singer tune in.

Nowadays, most of these more complex songbooks will be in the original key - if only because they are not aimed at beginners.

I have an old "Beatles Complete" songbook, obviously aimed at beginner keyboard players. (It has the grace to call itself "Piano/organ/vocal edition", so at least you're forewarned.) Most of the keys are not the original ones. When they are, it's the keys deemed easy for keyboards. Many details of the original arrangements are also missing. Guitar riffs are usually included, but in a kind of grudging way. (I bought it, btw, because it was cheap second-hand, contains every single Beatles original, and still makes a useful quick reference.)

Of course, it makes sense in its own terms, for any learner (singer/pianist) who just wants to learn the songs as songs: they would probably have to transpose the key for their own voice anyway, so the book may as well start with one that's easy for the keyboard.

Naturally it's different for those books which advertise themselves as "recorded transcriptions" or "complete scores", or some such - and then include all the original instrument parts, often drums too. That's overkill in the other direction, of course. And annoying in its own way when they make mistakes. (A book of transcriptions that is 99% accurate is not much use if you don't know where that 1% is...) And of course, the amount of trees that need to die to produce the number of pages required is another thing...

[Chipotle]

I notice the same thing in online "songbooks" and transcriptions. While they are not simplified to the point of just 3 chords, they often omit obvious and important (at least to me) chords and chord extensions. I always wonder if it's intentional--to make it accessible to more musicians, if the person doing the transcription didn't have the ear to hear it, or just couldn't be bothered to figure it out.

[rllink]

I get a lot of my songs from ultimateguitar.com and they have a simplified feature that breaks a song down to the basics. Sometimes of I get a request that I don't know the song and I'll tell the person requesting that I'll play it if they'll sing it. I find it in the app, simplify it and then play it that way. Works great when you are busking and people keep asking if you can play this or that because it is their favorite song.

[Nimiety]

As a beginner, once I figured out where the notes on the fretboard were, I started with the 3- and 4-chord books. What I wanted to do was start playing - and they got me playing. All good.

Quite a few popular songs are quite 'doable' with only 3 chords. Who knew?

I have my own complaints with the guitar music books though:

1. I need (prefer) the score. At least for the first verse/chorus.
2. After that, I still 'need' the chords written over the words in verse/chorus in the appropriate places.
3. I'd like it all to fit on a max. of 2 pages, so I don't have to flip.
4. I'd like my pages to lie flat - so ring/spiral binding of some sort.

...and NO tab. I don't use it. It takes up a ton of room. I realise some people prefer tab, so if enough no tab/tab users exist - publish a version for each group.

And before anyone tells me it can't be done. Yes, yes it can. Because I've cut, pasted and written in the bits and pieces for my own personal binder. If I can do it with rudimentary equipment (printer, scissors, tape and a pencil)- so can a giant music industry.