My personal search for great acoustic guitar songs
Having a little repertoire of classics that can be played on an acoustic can be exceptionally handy and rewarding.
Being able to pull the guitar out at a party and kick of a rousing rendition of the latest top ten hit (or whatever!), is a lot of fun!
My person search for cover material has almost always had 2 purposes:
- Helping to pad out a set list in an originals band
- Accompanying vocalists
In both these instances the songs have had to be great, but also reasonably straight forward to learn. Here’s my list, along with some links to some good quality tabs for them.
My Five Acoustic Classics
- Tears in Heaven – Eric Clapton
This isn’t the easiest to start with, but it’s a heart wrencher and wonderful insight into song writing by a master
- Drive – Incubus
I have so many fond memories of gigging this song, both in it’s hay day and now as a post 90’s nostalgia that it just had to make the list. Has a great driving rhythm and anthemic chorus!
- I’m Yours – Jason Mraz
Beach vibes and just good old happy vibes.
- Californication – Red Hot Chilli Peppers
A nice classic introduction worth learning.
- All Along The Watch Tower – Bob Dylan
I first came across the Jimi Hendrix (electric) version of this and then traced it back to Bob. The fact is this is an absolutely killer song regardless of the style it’s played in. Great track to experiment with!
[toc heading_levels=”5″]
Recent Posts
Other Categories
Google Rating
5.0
Paul Williamson
09:35 27 Jun 17
I have known Zaid for just shy of 20 years now. In that time he has helped me grow as both a guitarist and a musician. He is friendly, approachable and knowledgable, with a passion for helping others understand how to use theory practically.
Man Yee Lee
21:16 27 Jun 17
Would highly recommend Zaid as a teacher. Finally started getting back into playing my acoustic after a very long break, I was really worried at first, but decided to try a few lessons with Zaid over Skype. What can I say….I’m so glad I found him. A fantastic tutor, really friendly, adaptable and patient. Lessons are always fun and my confidence in playing has come back. In the past I always got frustrated whenever I found myself hitting a plateau….but thanks to Zaid I feel like I’ve made real steady progress this time. Thanks again. Look forward to our next lesson.
Alex Buckland
19:42 27 Jun 17
Zaid Crowe has spent countless hours passing on his love of music to my two little girls. Very patient and creative, Zaid always comes up with interesting ways to learn new things. Would definitely recommend to friends. Thanks Zaid!
dean0707
20:09 01 Jul 17
I've always dabbled with my guitar but thought it was time to start improving my playing and getting past playing just chords. Zaid is a great teacher with a lot of patience and a huge passion for music. He listens to what direction you want to go in and always has good suggestions of how to learn the more tricky parts. Playing guitar is something I've never found easy because I like to sing at the same time, Zaid has given me tips and advice on how to get my head around playing more complicated parts which has made it way easier to play and sing. He is also a gear nut which is great for conversations about what kit to try out!
Snoope Fiasco
19:31 04 Jul 17
As someone totally new to any musical instrument, Zaid has been absolutely great; patient, warm, friendly, flexible and most importantly, absolutely fantastically talented on the guitar! I've learnt a huge amount (both practical and theory) as well as the types of music and styles I wanted to! Hugely recommended to anyone of any talent!
Stuart Nomimizu
20:27 09 Aug 17
Zaid is an extremely patient and passionate guitar teacher, and his mastery of the guitar has inspired me to become a better player. As an intermediate guitarist I would definitely recommend him as a teacher for learners of any level.
James Kershaw
14:41 01 Feb 18
I’ve had a few lessons with Zaid and I’m astounded by how differently I now approach the fretboard.
Zaid breaks down complex ideas into easy to digest chunks of information, and teaches them to you in a way that you can actually apply to your playing.
Zaid is friendly, knowledgeable and patient, and I would highly recommend his tuition.
If you have hit a plateau in your playing (as I had) you will be amazed at how quickly taking lessons with a good teacher will change the way that you approach your instrument.
Adam Matthews
10:45 11 Feb 18
I was a little sceptical about having guitar lessons via Skype, I had always had face to face lessons previously and worried that Skype lessons wouldn't give me the same level of interaction, and that if I was doing something incorrectly then the teacher wouldn't be able to see and correct on the fly!
I needn't have worried! Zaid's lessons are brilliant! It's like having a one to one lesson with the exception that you don't need to leave your house, and the time you would have spent travelling to and from a lesson can be used for the other things in life we never seem to have time for! I use my extra time to practice for an hour after the lesson. All of the concerns I had disapeared straight away and Zaid was able to spot any issues without problem.
From the first contact with Zaid, he was massively enthusiastic, even just his response when I emailed to find out availability. I emailed many Skype teachers and most of the responses I got were along the lines of 'Yes I'm available, this is how much it costs' whereas Zaid's response was comprehensive and he gave lots of background information about his teaching philosophy, and even gave me an introductory 30 minute session for free to see how we got on.
The introductory lesson was brilliant, I had emailed Zaid previously to give him a backgorund of my guitar playing journey and where I wanted to get to in terms of guitar playing (something I would recommend anyone who is interested in having lessons with Zaid to do) and from the start he just knew what we should be working on, no messing around, just straight into it.
We cover a lot during the lessons but it is always at a pace that seems to fit my ability to learn, and if I don’t quite understand a concept that we are working on then we stop and focus on on it before moving on.
After the lesson Zaid emails a summary of the lesson, and gives a comprehinsive set of notes of things that were covered in the lesson, i.e scale patterns, chord shapes etc and what things to focus on when practising.
I spent a year after finishing one to one lessons just noodling about on my own and really wished that I had tried Skype lessons sooner, it would of saved a lot of time trying to do things on my own.
Skype lessons have re-engaged me with my guitar and I’m looking forward to where the lessons will take me.
If you’re sitting on the fence, and not sure if Skype lessons are for you, I recommend booking yourself in for an introductory lesson. All you need is a laptop with a webcam and you’re good to go!
Tim Ngai
21:50 30 Jun 18
Zaid is such a kind and patient tutor!! After the lessons with Zaid, my 5 years old son have developed his interest on playing guitar (which is guitalele for his age). Being parents without any music knowledge, he managed to teach him to fully understand the knowledge and skill during the lessons!
Rather than watching TV, my son now likes to spend more times on his little guitar at home.
Corey Deards
14:52 24 Jun 18
After searching for Guitar lessons Birmingham and finding Zaid I couldn’t be happier with the guitar tuition he has provided me with.
His home studio provides the perfect professional but relaxed environment for guitar tuition in Birmingham. As a guitar tutor he’s helped me increase my skills quickly and is the kind of tutor that knows exactly how to motivate you!
If you are looking for guitar lessons in Birmingham - Zaid is your man!
Matt 'Cobia' Stephenson
15:16 24 Jun 18
After trying to find guitar lessons Birmingham for several months I finally stumbled across Zaid.
Within a few short lessons he had already helped me master several simple chords and gave me the ability to learn songs by finding tabs online. Whoever I get stuck I use Zaid’s tuition to help me overcome hurdles; I really can’t recommend this Birmingham guitar tutor highly enough for any skill level guitarist looking to improve their abilities!
Joseph Richardson
09:08 14 May 18
Great teacher my sister who is 7 is loving her lessons. She has learnt a lot in a short time. Zaid has a lot of patience ☺
Arnab Ghosh
19:20 05 Jul 18
Zaid is a great teacher. He has great zeal for music and he always makes stuff simple and easy to understand. Total value for money, I totally recommend him. 🙂
Shamsi Latfi Rashid
18:11 03 Aug 18
Zaid Crowe is a friendly and approachable and jolly tutor. His studio, which is eye catching and inspiring, is in a location served by many bus routes and train stations - it is easy to find. I am an adult learner and knew nothing about music, so I have taken over 13 lessons- as a Casual Learner with the least academic approach. The lesson timings are flexible, from morning to evening and weekends, these can be booked easily online with 48 hours notice and payment is made by Card or Paypal. He caters for all ages and abilities and is patient, which makes learning fun. He understands that we all learn differently which might be because of a learners background and our personalities and characters influence how we adapt to new skills.
A bonus is that he is responsive via email and can provide supplementary visual and audio notes to enable learners to practice more confidently in our own time. These notes are important to maintain the best methods of ergonomics, posture, dexterity of hands, arms and to maintain "muscle memory". Notes might be an audio of your favourite songs, with a studio voice of "counting in" and "to rest". Photos of right and wrong postures. Photos of the anatomy of the instrument and a diagram of chords on the neck of the guitar.
Zaid Crowe has a range of guitars to choose from, so even if you have not bought one, you can get comfortable and he can suggest which to buy at some point during your learning pathway. He has a range of books on hand, which he talks through.
I feel very motivated after lessons and look forward to lessons.
I would say Go For It.
Farah Osseili
11:57 02 Oct 18
I honestly couldn’t ask for a better, lovelier tutor! The most important thing I needed in a tutor was patience and Zaid absolutely works with you at your pace. The structure of the lesson was tailored upon meeting me and seeing how I learn first hand which is only going to benefit me 10x as much in future lessons, which I absolutely intend to take with Zaid.
100% would recommend!
Katie Greening
10:10 09 Oct 18
After spending 18 months learning the guitar, In 30 minutes with Zaid, I learnt a great deal. He's friendly and evidently loves the guitar. Looking forward to more lessons!
kulvinder sambhi
20:24 10 Nov 18
i got a lot of of the lesson zaid is very knowledgeable and took time to assess my abilities booked again thanks zaid
Maryam Bagheri
18:37 29 Oct 18
Zaid is kind and friendly Guitar teacher.My son is enjoy his lesson with him and he is looking forward for more lessons .
Rosa Kapinga
23:12 04 Mar 19
Zaid has a great talent and has been kind enough to share that with others. Although I'm still a beginner, he has taught me valuable skills and has gone as far as pushing me beyond my current capabilities. Would definitely recommend him!!
Achilleas Bellos
19:58 10 Apr 19
It's a nice experience having lessons with Zaid. He is helpful, kind and patient. My 9 year old son is happy and we will definitely go there again.
Dodyynoo Su
13:42 09 Nov 19
The lesson was awesome even though it was just a introductory lesson. I got clear thought on music and guitar from Zaid who was pretty patient and supportive. He is the kind of one who loves music and knows it well.
prod by roman!
23:21 06 Aug 20
Absolutely perfect introduction lesson, Zaid truly goes above and beyond in his teaching. Booked more sessions and definitely looking forward to learning more! Keep it up ?
Brendan MacLean
11:35 28 May 20
I found Zaid online in the middle of lockdown. Turns out we’d crossed paths over the years.
Anyway, as an older gent, who’s been around a bit, doesn’t really specialise in any given style and wasn’t really sure what he might want from lessons, I presented something of a challenge. Undaunted, Zaid demystified some of the modal mysteries and showed me what I could do with the CAGED system, something I kind of use already in a randomly haphazard manner but Zaid told me why it was useful and how I could exploit it more.
Whilst I’m not sure that regimented lessons are for me, I might well tap Zaid up from time to time to open a couple of doors for me so that I can go exploring and come back to him when I’ve lost myself.
In summary, really nice guy, lovely manner, easy going and if you’re looking for lessons, wanting to improve, give him a shout. First lesson is free - there’s nothing to lose.
Bren
Peer Depping
19:02 17 Mar 20
For around 6 months I've been going now to Zaids place to improve my guitar playing and I'm looking forward to every new lesson. He combines the theory with practice on the guitar, is always open for discussion and is flexible in the lessons. I've learned a lot about chord theory, patterns, picking styles and the combination of all of them, thereby understanding the instrument more and getting better in improvising. I can only recommend his guitar lessons to everyone.
Finding Octaves Across Strings
by Zaid | 28th June 2018 | Complete Guide To Octaves | 0 Comments
Coming Soon
Related
Finding Octaves on Single Strings
by Zaid | 28th June 2018 | Advice, Complete Guide To Octaves | 0 Comments
Coming Soon
Related
5 Ways To Use Single String Octaves On The Guitar
by Zaid | 28th June 2018 | Complete Guide To Octaves | 0 Comments
Coming Soon
Related
About Octaves (And Why You Should Care About Them)
by Zaid | 28th June 2018 | Complete Guide To Octaves | 0 Comments
A quick introduction to octaves and why you should care about them. A great primer for those new to the subject.
Related
The Complete Guide To Guitar Octaves
Beginner Guitar Lesson Imagine Dragons, Born To Be Yours
by Zaid | 18th June 2018 | Advice, Video, YouTube | 0 Comments
This lessons requires an understanding of how to read chord charts; If you are new to them, check out this article! One of my students asked me if I could teach him the song 'Born To Be Yours' by the band 'Imagine Dragons'. The full tab/chord sheet with the words for...
Group Jam/Improvisation Classes Launched!
by Zaid | 12th April 2018 | Advice | 0 Comments
After a successful run of trial group based classes on jamming and improvisation, I've decided to formally launch bi-monthly sessions! You can book in online at any time, but please check in with Zaid to ensure you are grouped into the appropriate ability. What...
3 Simple Tips To Prepare For A Skype Guitar Lesson
by Zaid | 7th December 2017 | Advice | 0 Comments
Playing the guitar is a fantastic skill and one that many people of all ages aim to master. Whether you\'re looking to build on basic skills or start completely from scratch you may have already considered the importance of a skilled teacher. It\'s not always easy to...
Calling all Lefties; Should You Consider Playing Right Handed?
by Zaid | 5th December 2017 | Advice | 0 Comments
Deciding To Play As A Left, Or Right Hander I've had quite a few left handed students over the years, and as long as they've never played before I make sure to have a chat with them about considering going right handed. Playing guitar requires a great deal of...
Guitar Barre Chords – The Myth About ‘Finger Strength’
by Zaid | 29th November 2017 | Advice | 0 Comments
Technique Over Brute Force The term ‘strength’ when used with barre chords kind of grinds my gears. You do need to develop some …but there’s a point where you need to look at technique. Our fingers are operated by tendons in our forearms (not muscles!), which can’t...
My Top 5 Acoustic Guitar Songs to Learn
2017-09-03T21:00:52+01:00
2017-10-02T16:01:33+01:00
Zaid