Preview

Introduction

Hello is a song by Lionel Richie, an American singer and songwriter. It was the third single from his second studio album, Can’t Slow Down, which was released in 1983. This song had a total of three guitarists: Darrell Jones, Tim Ray, and Louis Shelton, who played electric and acoustic guitar, respectively. 

In this video lesson Steve Luciano teaches how to play the song Hello as part of our guitar series on English songs. The song is broken down into multiple lessons for easy learning - Introduction, Song Arrangement, Song Demo, Advanced Voicing and Solo Lesson. Don't forget to make use of the chords and tabs provided with the song lesson!

Strumming Pattern 

The strumming patterns are: D D U U D U. 

Song Structure 

Here is the song structure which you need to follow to learn Hello by Lionel Richie:

Introduction: This is the start of the lesson, during which Steve Luciano, your instructor, will explain all the technicalities you will encounter during the learning stage of this song. 

Song Arrangement: Here, you will learn all the chords necessary to play this song. 

Song Demo: In this section, Steve will play the guitar part of the song alongside the track to help you understand how to sync chords with the vocals. 

Advanced Voicing: For individuals who can play advanced chords, this particular section is for them. It is the bonus of the lesson to make your guitar play more intricately.

Solo Lesson: In this section, you'll learn how to play the slow part of the song — a beautiful example of an instrumental pop solo, the kind that's rarely highlighted in mainstream pop music.

Introduction:

Handy Man is a classic song written by Otis Blackwell in collaboration with Jimmy Jones. But the song became much more popular after James Taylor covered it in his own style of soft rock. 

Chords Used in Song Guitar Lesson

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: This song requires you to use soft fingerpicking along with smooth chord transitions. The instructions below show how you can play the arpeggios for this song. Don’t forget to use the thumb-heavy fingerpicking technique.  

e|-----------0------------|  

B|------1------1---------|  

G|----0---0------0------|  

D|-------------2--------|  

A|--3------------------|  

E|----------------------|

Strumming Pattern 

You can use a simple flowing rhythm with a 4/4 time signature: D D U U D U. 

• D = Down strum
• U = Up strum

The strumming pattern for the softer version should be played like this: D x D U x U D U.

• D = Down strum
• U = Up strum
• X = Muted strum; here, you have to lightly touch the string as you strum. 

Song Structure 

Song Arrangement And Demo: For this song, your guitar instructor is going to be Steve Luciano; he shares the difference between this easy version of the song and how it can be played even by beginners. In addition to this, you will be using capo and simple strumming for this guitar lesson. The capo is going to be on the 2nd fret. 

Why Learn Handy Man Song?

This song uses easy to understand chords, thus, making it a great song to learn for beginners and for other guitarists no matter what their level is. In addition to this, it is a perfect song to play on acoustic guitar as well because it has that laid back feel to it. 

FAQs – This Song Guitar Lesson

Q1. Who sang the original version of the song Handyman? 

Ans. James Jones, the American singer, was the singer and songwriter of the song. 

Q2. What is the meaning of the Handyman?

Ans. A handyman is someone who is skilled at repairing and making things inside or outside the house. 

Q3. Is there a hidden meaning to the song Handyman?

Ans. There is no such hidden meaning attached to the song, in this song a man is offering his services as someone who is able to fix broken hearts and make people happy again. 

Fun Fact: The Taylor version of this song made him win his second Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. 

Arms Wide Open - Introduction

Welcome to the guitar lesson on a song that has the best rock song Grammy to its name –With Arms Wide Open by Creed. Scott Stapp’s wife was pregnant with his first child, he wrote the lyrics when he found out, with great surprise, that he was going to be a father. According to Stapp, the song was written in just fifteen minutes during a soundcheck. The song has received almost 200 million views on YouTube.

Stapp says, “It continues to have relevant meaning in my life because as I sing it now, I think of my daughter who's now on this planet and alive. And then I think of my newest son, my three-year-old, Daniel”. The song is about a man expressing his feelings about thinking about becoming a father.

Arms Wide Open Guitar Lesson

This is a guitar lesson that is an acoustic cover version of the song performed by James Boyce, taught by our expert Steve Luciano, in a section-by-section manner. They start with the introduction

The song is in the key of C major and features a number of suspended chords. There is a C major 9 chord with a B note in the bass, which sounds like a suspended chord because of the 9th scale degree. There is also a very unique A minor 11th chord, which also sounds like a suspended chord because of the 11th scale degree, which is actually the 4th scale degree on the octave higher. The instructor explains all the chord shapes in great detail. You can also refer to the Arms Wide Open tabs along with the lesson on the sidebar.

The strumming of the chords is very simple, compared to the chord voicings, that is – D - U U D - U U D - D U for the most part (D is a downward strum and U is an upward strum).

There is also an easy verison of the song that the instructor demonstrates, which is a beginner-friendly version of the song focused more on the singing part of the track.

FAQs

Q. What skill level is Arms Wide Open for?

This lesson is ideal for beginner to intermediate players. If you know basic open chords, you can easily learn the song.

Q. Is this version different from the original Creed version?

Yes. This is a soft acoustic cover by James Boyce. It keeps the emotional depth of the original but focuses more on the singing part.

Q. What is the tuning of Arms Wide Open by Creed?

Nope! This version is played in standard tuning (E-A-D-G-B-e), making it very accessible. Drop D is not required here.

Q. What chords are used in this version?

The song uses common suspended and power chords, with some being 9 and 11th chords. The tutor goes over each one slowly and clearly.

Welcome to the guitar lesson on what is a fun experimental track collaborated upon by Pritam and Shah Rukh Khan, Safar from the movie Jab Harry Met Sejal, a modern Indian interpretation of the 1989 Hollywood film When Harry Met Sally. The song has received over 15 million views on YouTube since its release in 2017.

The song is about life as a journey, which is the underlying theme of the movie. Specifically, the narrative around the circle of life, returning to the place one started from after a long journey, i.e. Safar. The lyrical motif of the song is “I don’t belong here or there, I belong to the journey”.

Safar Guitar Lesson

Safar guitar lesson is taught by our beloved expert, Mike Walker, who explains all the different sections of the song in a section-by-section manner, starting from the intro that talks about the chords and different voicings of those chords, through the overdubs and the guitar solo section, to the final section that talks about improvisation on the track.

The song is mostly in the key of C major, but by the genius of Pritam, one of the most prominent music directors of the Bollywood music industry, the song also goes to the G major. The D major and the F major chords, which straddle the two keys, create a unique sound for the song.

The song intro has a swinging rhythm pattern and follows minor 7th and suspended chords, underlying the uncertain, ambiguous and suspenseful nature of the journey of life. The guitar solo is based on the A minor pentatonic scale and features string bending and controlled vibrato techniques, which are very good for practicing those techniques for a beginner.

The acoustic and electric overdubbed motifs play between the verses and chorus, again using techniques like palm-muted picking that the tutor refers to as ‘percolated’ effect on the electric guitar and a major 7th arpeggio on the acoustic guitar.

In the section on improvisation, the tutor demonstrates some of the advanced techniques like pinch harmonics and a whammy bar dive and legato runs. These techniques played over the A minor pentatonic scale up and down the neck make it sound like a classic rock guitar solo.

FAQs

Q. Is Safar suitable for beginners?

The chords themselves are basic, but the song's phrasing and dynamic control may require practice. Beginners can start by learning the chord changes and then focus on the strumming pattern.

Q. What are the main chords used in Safar?

The primary chords are Am7, Fsus2, Dmaj9, with occasional transitions to an F# major in the first section of the song; the latter part of the song features the standard F, C, G and D major chords.

Q. What is the strumming pattern for the song?

The strumming follows a gentle, flowing 4/4 rhythm, down, down-up, up-down-up sequence. Fingerpicking can also be used for the intro and verses to make it feel melodic.

Awari is a song that explodes into an emotional whirlwind, and it’s a song that can teach you storytelling via music, whether you’re a beginner guitar player who is trying to play something powerful or just an intermediate guitar player who is just trying to explore new tones and feels than again Awari is a must-learn song for you. 

Song Structure 

Introduction: The introduction is from Mike Walker, who is going to be your guitar instructor for this song lesson. Mike shares how this song has elements of acoustic guitars and electric guitars as well. After that, he shows you how to put your acoustic guitar in standard tuning, which is required for this song. 

Song Arrangement: This song is in 6/8 time signature; for this song, you will be using barre chords Am, G, Fmaj, and F. Mike shows you two methods for playing the F chord. 

Song Demo: After showing you all the chords required for this song, how you need to play them, and the rhythm that you need to follow, Mike will provide you a complete walkthrough of this song demo with the backing track; this section will help you understand how you should be syncing your chords with the other instruments and the vocals that are part of this song. 

Overdubs: This song starts with arpeggiated tones, but they are not played on the lead guitar. As a result, we have to put them in the overdubs section. 

Electric Overdub: In addition to the acoustic overdubs, there is also an electric overdub section, which you should learn if you wish to understand the technicalities behind this song. 

Solo: Right here is the solo, which is divided into multiple licks by Mike; he will show you how to play each and every lick that forms the guitar solo of this song. After that, he combines all the licks and once again plays the entire solo. 

Improvisation: The improvisation here is done by half-sub-down tuning in E minor scale; Mike plays some parts of the song in E minor scale and then talks about how it sounds different than the original version, which was shown above. 

Why Learn Awari Song On Guitar?

The reason why Awari has to be in your repertoire is due to its haunting progression, which allows guitar players to capture heartbreak and longing. In this song lesson, you will be learning dynamics and strumming variations, which have the potential to bring out your audience’s emotional side in the open. 

It’s a perfect song to strum on both acoustic and electric guitar; make sure you add a bit of a delay when playing this hit number on electric. Learning how to play it on guitar teaches you how to play with intention, emotion, and soul, all while slowly sharpening your guitar-playing techniques. 

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