ELEANOR RIGBY - THE BEATLES
Beginner’s Course Grade 1, Module 5
This is another all time classic song. This lesson will start off with very basic strumming as this is a great two-chord song that is suitable for beginning guitarists. You only need to know the C and E chords to be able to play this song. But just like a lot of the other songs that I put up on this page and include in my lessons, there are many embellishments that you can add into this song as you progress, which makes it a fun and more interesting song to play.
Eleanor Rigby
Chords:
Strumming Pattern:
Lyrics and Chords:
Embellishments:
1. You could try strumming on every beat rather than every other beat as this is closer to the original recording. But be aware that constant down strums can become a little mechanical and monotonous so to overcome this, try placing an accent on beats 2 and 4 by making those strums louder, and softening beats 1 and 3 by not strumming as hard can help. overcome this by adding a groove, making the strumming sound a little more interesting. Another approach to this is to strum the bass strings on beat 1 and 3 and all six of the strings on beats 2 and 4.
2. A nice way to vary each section is to strum on beats 1 and 3 for the intro and bridge, strum on the beat for the verses and the pattern below for the choruses.
Experiment with strumming the bass strings on beat 1 and all six of the strings on the other beats.
This is the author’s own work and represents his interpretation of this song. It’s intended solely for private use and study only and is presented to aid in learning how to play the guitar.
I do not provide or distribute any printable chord charts and lyrics. All The chord charts that are presented do not represent how the original artist intended the song to be played and are here only to support online learning. If you need a more accurate version of the song then I highly recommend you purchase music from Hal Leonard or another reputable online sheet music store.