Okay, so I’m moving to Rochester this summer, and one of the big reasons I’m going there is so I can play coffeehouses and do some performing. I’m a singer (mezzo-soprano) and a songwriter, and I’ve been playing guitar for almost two years, acoustic, basically just chords as backup to all my songs. I basically do a kind of acoustic pop-folk thing. At the moment my repertoire consists of 44 songs, which doesn’t seem too bad, but then I realized that 27 of them are originals, and a lot of people like to hear some covers, some stuff they know. The covers I know are pretty limited in scope, basically a bunch of Michelle Branch and Avril Lavigne songs, one Lisa Loeb, one Kasey Chambers, one Jewel and one Oasis.
So what I need is some suggestions for songs that I can play on solo acoustic guitar and sing that people will enjoy hearing. Preferably by female singers, or male singers with non-gender-specific lyrics and melodies that either are high enough for my voice or can be capo-ed up to my range. Pop/Rock/Folk genre, and artist and song title so I can search for tabs (Not too good at figuring them out by ear).
One major caveat: I am a really mediocre guitar player. (Check out the link in my sig for examples of my songs, with the crappy guitar playing, and the kind of style I’m looking for.) I love it to death really, and it’s fabulous for my simple-chord-structure writing, but I haven’t been playing very long, and my fingers are short and fat – most barre chords are practically impossible for me. (I can usually handle EM and Am form bars on the lower frets, but anything up too high or in a Em or AM form kills me.)
Pathetic, eh? But I’ll try almost anything, I need to expand my options. Please, fire away.
Rather than capo my guitar (I do so on occasion), I prefer to change the vocals to an octave in my range.
Some relative easy songs that I find quite fun to play:
Pink Floyd’s “Mother”. A strange little tune about oppression. I usually sing this one an octave higher than the original, though I have also been known to capo the second fret.
Neil Young: Heart of Gold…partly because I love my harmonica so much. Also, very non-gender-specific.
Neil Young: Rockin’ in the Free World. This is a song with which everyone can associate. It especially tends to get positive reponses these days.
Johnny Cash: “Fulsom County Prison Blues”. Cash sings very low, but I have heard the vocals for this one sung in many different octaves. I tend to sing it in the same octave as Cash, but I walk up at the lowest part of the song instead of walking down as Cash does. (“When I hear that train a-coming…I hand my head and cry”) I just can’t sing that low. For a more non-gender specific Cash tune, you may want to try “Ring of Fire” (I don’t mean to sound like a pig, but the thought of a woman singing “I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die” is just a bit unnerving). It has a cool guitar walk at the beginning that is not that difficult to learn…and is good scale practice.
Blind Melon: “Walk” “Change” “Soul One” Given you are a singer with the vocal range you stated, I strongly urge you to check out Blind Melon’s music. Shannon Hoon was an outstanding lyricist with a fantastic range. Blind Melon songs are extremely fun to sing…though many say it is an acquired taste.
Pearl Jam: “Elderly Woman behind a Counter in a Small Town” I love to play this song as well…I love to hit the low note in “Hearts and thoughts they fade…fade away”. It’s the absolute bottom of what I can sing in key. However, on days where my voice isn’t performing 100%, I sing this one an octave…possibly even two octaves higher.
Credence Clearwater Revival: “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” This is an old classic that is always fun to sing.
But I’d recommend “Baby can I hold you Tonight” by Tracy Chapman: fairly simple to play, and the only barre chord in it is Bm, which I usually don’t even play as a barre chord. Note: the lyrics aren’t complete in this link.
I’m sure there are more, but I can’t think of any right now.
Try some old Richard Thompson songs from back when he and Linda were together. He wrote a lot of stuff that she sang and it worked out pretty well. Plus he is an amazing guitarist.
Nothing Ever Happens - Del Amitri
Mr Jones - Counting Crows
Karma Police - Radiohead
The drugs don’t work - The Verve
Wonderwall - Oasis
Staring at the Sun - U2
I wanna hold your Hand - The Beatles
These all work and sound well with simple chords on a single guitar.
I just listened to all your stuff on mp3.com (Dopers: if you haven’t heard these yet, go here and be thou amazed). I was reminded strongly of Carly Simon, Fleetwood Mac, Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Gypsy Soul.
Any song can be in your range. I’m a baritone and used to get frustrated 'cause most male pop singers are tenors and I just can’t get to the notes. I was trying so hard to play songs “just like the record.”
Then I said WTF and started doing stuff my own way. Here’s how to do it:
figure how much you need to drop a song to get it into your range (singing up an octave as necessary)
capo that much (plus or minus)
learn the song there
take off the capo and sing in a comfortable range
So, let’s say you want to do “Solsbury Hill” by Peter Gabriel. The highest note in the melody is G#. The highest note I can usually sing is an E, so I want to lower that puppy 4 frets. Besides, the song is in the key of B and that sucks on guitar, so I’m bringing it down to G. Working out the fingerpicking in synchopated 7/4 and learning to sing over it is another kettle of fish.
For very well-known songs such as Motown classics, Beatles songs and such, I recommend changing the tempo, time signature, etc. so that it’s not just another rehash.
Now, if you’re not so good at hearing chords by ear, you’ll need to get some help picking a good capo spot, but you’re on your own there–I’ve got my own songs to learn.
Please, fire away.