Blackbird Guitar Lesson

Blackbird use an index finger strumming pattern!

The unique index finger strumming pattern was a trick Paul picked up off Jason Donovan.

Combined with folk style finger picking, this timeless classic is often seen as a benchmark for the acoustic guitarist, just like Tears In Heaven, Wish You Were Here and Stairway To Heaven.

Not to be played as a classical piece, Blackbird needs to groove, the rhythm part should be played with a blues feel, slightly laid back on the beat.

The odd time signatures just accentuate the folk side of this song, keep it grooving throughout these sections.

Practice Blackbird

Practice Blackbird by first playing along to the video guitar lesson.

Once you get it, start practicing at different tempos to a click.

Remember to set the click with equally strong beats since if it is set to 4/4 things will get messy.

Experiment with how much you lay back on the beat.

Compare Blackbird with how you would groove a folk song with a pick like Blowin’ In The Wind, rather than how you finger pick Over The Rainbow.

Start all this madness off by getting the Etude to groove right.