Introduction

Introduction:

Wonderful Tonight is one of the most iconic rock ballads by Eric Clapton, if you are someone who wants to play and sing side-by-side then this is the best semi-rock song to begin with. 

Chords Used in Song Guitar Lesson

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: Instead of strumming different chords, you can use a soft arpeggio pattern, which is as follows: 

e|-----------3------------|  

B|------3------3---------|  

G|----0---0------0------|  

D|----------------------|  

A|----------------------|  

E|--3------------------| 

Strumming Pattern 

"Wonderful Tonight" is a slow and relaxed-feel song, which makes it great for beginners. Even the strumming pattern that you have to follow for this song is pretty gentle and amazing for singing. The song is played 4/4 time, and its strumming pattern is: D D U U D U.

• D = Down strum
• U = Up strum

Song Structure 

Wonderful Tonight (Sing and Play): This guitar lesson consists of one complete video in which you will learn the entire song, starting from the intro. Your guitar instructor for this lesson is Mike Dugan, who is a fan of Eric Clapton himself. He will take things slowly and teach you every single chord necessary to play this song on your guitar.

Why Learn Wonderful Tonight Eric Clapton Song?

This is one of the big hits of Eric Clapton, and it does have some simple yet emotional chords present in it. It takes the full advantage of open chords which is great for beginners, and the slow tempo of the song makes it easier for beginners to transition between the various chords that are part of the song. 

FAQs – This Song Guitar Lesson

Q1. Is Wonderful Tonight a wedding song? 

Ans. This song can be termed as a wedding song and lots of couples have used it previously for their first dance, it is the song which keeps on showing in the bill year after year.  

Q2. Why do people love Eric Clapton?

Ans. Eric is known all over the world for his highly influential phrasing, rapid runs and plaintive vibrato, which lots of other guitarists tried but failed to replicate miserably. 

Q3. Which one is Cream’s biggest hit of all time? 

Ans. Wrapping Paper, I Feel Free, Sweet Wine and some of the most famous songs by the band in which Eric used to play electric guitar and gave his voice to some of the songs as well. 

Fun Fact: There is a book titled Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me, written by Pattie Boyd in collaboration with Penny Junor.

Introduction:

Chet is a fingerpicking legend and in this song he used Travis picking technique which helped him in building amazing melody and harmonisation with other instruments.

Chords Used in Song Guitar Lesson:

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: The song follows the typical chord progression in the key of C major, which incorporates the dominant 7th in addition to the passing chords to add richness. 

The arpeggios patterns are as follows: 

Bass: C  - G  - C  - G  

(A)  (D)  (A)  (D)  

Melody: pluck pluck  

(B)    (G) 

Strumming Pattern: 

Mr Bojangles doesn’t follow your traditional strumming pattern because it uses fingerstyle arrangement. In here the thumb is playing alternative bass notes while fingers are used for plucking chords for harmony and melody. 

The most common fingerstyle arrangement that you can follow for this is T - F - T - F

• T (Thumb) plays the bass notes on the low strings (E, A, or D)
• F (Fingers - Index/Middle) pluck the melody notes on the higher strings (G, B, or E)

Song Structure:

Introduction: In this introduction by Muriel Anderson your guitar instructor for this song lesson you will get to know about the finger arrangement used and fingerstyle that you have to follow. 

Section A - Part 1: Muriel has divided the song in different parts and this is the part 1 of the song arrangement. Here you will learn the chords you will be playing at the intro of the song. 

Section A - Part 2: In this part you will learn the remaining chords for the intro section of the song. 

Section B: From here, you will be moving to the second half of the song. 

Turnaround Variation: Right here in the guitar lesson, you will learn how to smoothly transition from one guitar section to the other in the song. It will follow a shorter chord progression. 

Variation: Your guitar instructor is going to show you how to make a slight change or embellishment in the melody while keeping the core structure of the song intact. 

Tag: In here you will learn about the tag which is the small section repeated after you complete with the verse guitar tunes. 

Conclusion: This is the last part of this guitar lesson, here Muriel talks about the song and how one can make little improvisation in it to make it sound fuller. 

This song has fast paced, driving strumming which allows you to develop strumming rhythm and endurance. It is pretty great for practicing dynamic strumming and percussive accents. Due to quick chord shifting you will be able to build finger strength and speed. 

FAQs – This Song Guitar Lesson

Q1. What happened to the Mumford & Sons lead singer?

Ans. The lead singer of the group said that he will be leaving the band in October 2022 due to some controversial issues with the members. But he made sure that none of the band members and their families had to suffer any consequences. 

Q2. Will Mumford & Sons be touring in 2025? 

Ans. The band is embarking on a global club tour, which will start in March 2025. 

Q3. What kind of band is Mumford & Sons? 

Ans. They are a British folk-rock band who are known for their raucous, fast-paced, and sonically dense instrumentation. The lyrics are highly concentrated on christianity. 

Welcome to the guitar lesson on a beautiful, melancholic ballad that is Choo Lo by The Local Train, which features an iconic intro and a powerful chorus that gives goosebumps every time you listen to it. The band’s debut album, ‘Aalas ka Ped’, was received with joy and celebrated across the country. The song Choo Lo has over 80 million views on YT.

Choo Lo is a story about romantic longing. The lover exclaims that he is still standing and waiting where she had left him and that she should touch him, or else he’ll be lost. Invoking the feelings of deep melancholy and longing for a loved one, this song resonated with everyone who had ever been in love. 

Choo Lo Guitar Lesson

In this lesson, the tutor goes over all the parts of the song, starting from the basics –key and tuning of the song to the solo section, along with improvisation tips. The first few sections focus on the intro part, followed by sections on rhythm, chords, strumming, and time signatures, followed by the power chord section that covers the chorus part of the song. Finally, the tutor demonstrates a full playthrough of the song.

The interesting thing about Choo Lo guitar chords is that two of them are suspended chords –Asus2 and Bsus2. These chords do not have the major or the minor third in them, which means that the chords don’t have a concrete identity and give a feeling of incompleteness. The incompleteness relates well to the overall narrative of the song, which is about the desire to be acknowledged. 

The tempo of the song is 146 bpm in 4/4 timing, and the strumming pattern is D - - D - U D U D - D - (D is a downward strum, and U is an Upward strum). The tutor meticulously explores all the melody motifs in the song and teaches the solo note by note in the final sections of the lesson.

The lesson also offers Choo Lo lyrics and guitar tabs along with the video lesson.

The real beauty of this song is in the power chords that are played over the chorus that, when played with a band, in artist speak, sounds ‘big’. Go ahead and pick up your acoustic guitar and treat yourself to one of the sweetest intro melodies.

FAQs

Q. How can I quickly learn the Choo Lo guitar solo?

1. Break the solo into shorter sections and practice them individually until you master them, and then, once mastered, practice transitioning between the sections until the solo sounds as one.

Q. How to play suspended chords?

1. Playing suspended chords at first can be challenging, especially if you’re a beginner, but as instructed by the tutor in this lesson, you can play fewer notes of the chords to get the essential sound and eventually get to the full barre chords.