Pop music

Georgia on My Mind

The chords and lyrics are below, and the video illustrates some fairly easy fingering for the changes on this lovely Hoagy Carmichael song, made famous by the great Ray Charles. Georgia was written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael (music) and Stuart Gorrell (lyrics). Gorrell wrote the lyrics for Hoagy’s sister, Georgia Carmichael. The lyrics of the song are ambiguous enough to refer either to the state or to a woman named “Georgia”, a fact I only came to realize recently.

Please Enjoy! And if you’re interested in guitar lessons online, give me a shout.

[Intro] C C#dim | Dm7 G (2X)

CM7 | E7 | Am Am7 | D7 Fm
Georgia, Georgia, the whole day through

C Am | Dm G | C C#o | Dm7 G
Just an old sweet song keeps Georgia on my mind (on my mind)

CM7 | Bdim E7 | Am Am7 | D7 Fm
I said Georgia, Georgia, a song of you

C A7 | Dm G7 | C6 F Fm | C E7

Comes as sweet and […]

Paul2026-05-21T10:15:22-04:00

My Favorite Things

Download the my favorite things chart

“My Favorite Things” is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music.

In the original Broadway production, the song was introduced by Mary Martin playing Maria and Patricia Neway playing Mother Abbess. Julie Andrews first performed the song in a 1961 Christmas special for The Garry Moore Show, recording it again when she starred as Maria in the 1965 film adaptation of the musical.

Many of the favorite things evoke winter time imagery including warm mittens, packages, sleigh bells, snowflakes, and silver white winters. The song’s cozy lyrics inspired its adoption as a staple of the holiday season, significantly bolstered by the movie’s popularity.

This version for solo guitar is in Em. Refer to the tab/chord/notation/lyrics sheet at https://www.paulelwood.com/my-favorite-things The first part of the lesson talks about Em as the “relative minor” key of G so if you want to skip directly to the song lesson, that starts at about 2:38. The mp3 on the web page is the midi output from musescore of the notation so that may be helpful for you too.

The movie version of the song was ranked number 64 on AFI’s 100 Years…100 Songs, a 2004 survey of top tunes in American cinema.

“How is it that music can, without words, evoke our laughter, our fears, our highest aspirations?” […]

Paul2026-05-18T15:49:32-04:00

Hot Dog

big mac (hound dog)

Here’s a fun little 1/4/5 tune I use sometimes to introduce guitar students to the 12 bar blues. We can call it “1/4/5” because it uses the first, fourth and fifth chords in a key. In this case, we are in the key of E, so E is 1, A is 4 and B is 5.

That only makes sense of course if you can see how the E major scale is spelled. Following the pattern of whole and half steps in a major scale (W/W/H/W/W/W/H) from E we get: E | F#| G#| A | B | C# | D# | E . E is one, F# is two, and so on. 1,4 and 5 in E are E, A and B and so those are the chords that fit our 1/4/5 pattern in E.

The cool thing is, if you know what numbers you are playing you can easily move them to a different key! This 1/4/5 pattern in the key of C, for instance is C, F and G, or 1/4/5. C major scale is spelled C | D | E | F | G | A | B | C . C is one, D is two and so on; 1/4/5 in C will be C, F and G.

The […]

Paul2026-05-11T11:43:22-04:00

Across the Alley (from the Alamo)

Across the ally from the alamo- backing track, example video, history, audio file and pdf sheet of chord changes

Paul2026-05-09T17:11:07-04:00

Margaritaville

Margaritaville chords and lyrics

How to play margaritaville- a well-known parrothead tune. This part 1 lesson is for solo guitar fingerstyle or voice accompaniment. A great tune, with a cool, identifiable and easily playable lick

Interested in learning how to play margaritaville? This video may help. “Margaritaville” is a 1977 song by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett from the album Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes. This song was written about a drink Buffett discovered at Lung’s Cocina del Sur restaurant (where High 5 is located today) at 2700 W. Anderson Lane in Austin, Texas, and the first huge surge of tourists who descended on Key West, Florida, around that time. He wrote most of the song one night at a friend’s house in Austin, and finished it while spending time in Key West. In the United States “Margaritaville” reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and went to number one on the Easy Listening chart, also peaking at No. 13 on the Hot Country Songs chart. Billboard ranked it number 14 on its 1977 Pop Singles year-end chart. It remains Buffett’s highest charting solo single.

Named for the cocktail margarita, with lyrics reflecting a laid-back lifestyle in a tropical climate, “Margaritaville” […]

Paul2026-05-09T12:45:47-04:00

Honey Don’t

Honey Dont

“Honey Don’t” is a song written by Carl Perkins, originally released on January 1, 1956 as the B-side of the “Blue Suede Shoes” single, Sun 234. Both songs became rockabilly classics. Bill Dahl of Allmusic praised the song saying, “‘Honey Don’t’ actually outclasses its more celebrated platter-mate in some ways.” It has been covered by more than 20 other artists, including the Beatles, Ronnie Hawkins and Johnny Rivers. The song has appeared in films such as The Prince of Tides, Diner, Perfect Sisters and Honey Don’t!

According to David McGee, author of Go, Cat, Go! The Life and Times of Carl Perkins, the King of Rockabilly, Carl Perkins first brought the song to a rehearsal with his band which at the time comprised the Perkins brothers and W. S. Holland:

Carl Perkins – lead guitar and vocals
Jay Perkins – acoustic guitar and backing vocals
Clayton Perkins – double bass
W. S. Holland – drums

When Carl first played the song to Jay Perkins, Jay protested what sounded to him like an odd chord choice, going to a C7 chord after the E instead of the natural blues progression choice of A. At first, Jay refused to go along, but Carl convinced him it was something different, and today the chord choice is one of the most interesting aspects of the song.

Perkins and […]

Paul2026-05-05T10:53:14-04:00

How to play “Sloop John B” for solo guitar

Lyrics and chords

Tab, lyrics and notation
How to play “Sloop John B” for solo guitar

Some of the chord shapes here you can see are different voicings for the same chord. The chord patterns in the lead sheet here will help you see some alternate voicings for your chords.

“Sloop John B” (originally published as “The John B. Sails”) is a Bahamian folk song from Nassau. A transcription by Richard Le Gallienne was published in 1916, and a version was included in Carl Sandburg’s The American Songbag in 1927. Since the early 1950s there have been many recordings of the song with variant titles including “I Want to Go Home” and “Wreck of the John B”.

The 1966 folk rock adaptation by the Beach Boys was produced and arranged by bandleader Brian Wilson and served as the lead single from their 11th studio album, Pet Sounds. The song peaked at number three in the US on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, number two in the UK, and number one in several other countries. It remains one of the group’s most successful recordings of their mid-1960s period, containing an elaborate a cappella vocal section not found in other pop music of the era.

In 2011, the Beach Boys’ version of “Sloop John B” […]

Paul2026-05-04T08:14:20-04:00

Wonderful Tonight

Wonderful tonight

“Wonderful Tonight” is a song written and performed by English singer Eric Clapton. The ballad was included on Clapton’s 1977 album Slowhand. Clapton wrote the song on his 1974 Martin D-28 guitar about Pattie Boyd. The female vocal harmonies on the song are provided by Marcella Detroit (then Marcy Levy) and Yvonne Elliman. It peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 15 July 1978, spending seven weeks in the top 40. In Canada it was in the top 40 for nine weeks.

On 7 September 1976, Eric Clapton wrote “Wonderful Tonight” for then-girlfriend Pattie Boyd while waiting for her to get ready to attend Paul and Linda McCartney’s annual Buddy Holly party. The song is mentioned in her 2007 autobiographical book Wonderful Today.

Billboard described “Wonderful Tonight” as “perhaps Clapton’s prettiest and mellowest love ballad in some time.” Billboard particularly praised Clapton’s guitar playing during the interludes. Cash Box said that “Eric’s singing is superbly understated; the guitar work is simple and evocative” and praised “the gentle beat and organ accompaniment.” Record World called it a “light, pretty ballad from [the album] Slowhand that should also move quickly up the charts” and praised Clapton’s singing.”

Paul2026-05-09T13:25:27-04:00

Every Breath You Take

every breath you take ”

Every Breath You Take” is a song by the English rock band the Police from their fifth and final studio album Synchronicity (1983). Written by Sting, the single was the biggest American and Canadian hit of 1983, topping the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for eight weeks (the band’s only No. 1 hit on that chart), and the Canadian RPM chart for two weeks. Their fifth UK No. 1, “Every Breath You Take” topped the UK singles chart for four weeks. It also reached the top 10 in numerous other countries. In May 2019, the song was recognised by BMI as being the most played song in radio history.

“Every Breath You Take” is the Police’s and Sting’s signature song, and in 2010, it was estimated to generate between a quarter and a third of Sting’s music publishing income. At the 26th Annual Grammy Awards, “Every Breath You Take” was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, and Record of the Year, winning in the first two categories. For the song, Sting received the 1983 Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA).

Intro G | G | Em | Em | C | D | G

G […]

Paul2026-05-02T13:33:37-04:00

All My Exes

All_My_Exes lead sheet and tabs

“All My Ex’s Live in Texas” is a song written by Sanger D. Shafer and Lyndia J. Shafer, and recorded by American country music singer George Strait. It was released on April 10, 1987 by MCA Records as the second single from Strait’s seventh studio album, Ocean Front Property, following the album’s title track. Becoming his 11th number one hit single, Strait received his first Grammy Award nomination for “All My Ex’s Live In Texas” for Best Male Country Vocal Performance at the 1988 Grammy Awards.

The song has been used in various forms of media, including Strait’s version in the films Road House (1989), Necessary Roughness (1991), Cold Creek Manor (2003), Power Rangers (2017), and Bumblebee (2018), and in television with Halt and Catch Fire in 2016, Ash vs Evil Dead in 2015, and Chuck in 2011. Canadian rapper Drake name checks Strait and the song in the opening lyrics of his 2012 single “HYFR (Hell Ya Fucking Right)”.

“You have to be willing to eat–or not eat– for it. Then you’re a musician.” – Johnny Copeland

Paul2026-04-22T12:33:24-04:00