Happy Sunday, my friends! As I finish up putting together next week's song lesson (my first Jimi Hendrix tune), I wanted to share some brand new cheat sheets filling out some gaps in my PDF library.

I've gotten several recent member questions about musical key – and started working on a small batch of lessons to tackle these topics. Today, I'm excited to share these 3 new cheat sheets... download them all on my lesson webpage »​

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Check out the video above for a quick tour of these new cheat sheets... with a special focus on how to recgonize the 1-4-5 chords in any given key. Speaking of that...

THREE CHORDS AND THE TRUTH
​Song Lessons Using 1-4-5 Chords

Of the 300+ songs I've taught, here's a roundup of the lessons where you only need three chords (the one, four, and five chords in each song's key). I've grouped these by key — which means for each batch, you'll need the same exact set of chords

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Key of C – using C, F, G

• ​Amazing Grace – soulful lead guitar arrangement
• ​Catch the Wind by Donovan
• ​Let Him Roll by Guy Clark
• ​Dead Flowers as covered by Townes Van Zandt
• ​In Spite of Ourselves by John Prine
• ​My Old Kentucky Home by John Prine

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Key of G – using G, C, D

• ​All the Best by John Prine
• ​LA Freeway by Guy Clark
• ​Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash
• ​Clay Pigeons by John Prine
• ​Rivers of Babylon by Sublime
• ​Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd – technically I'd say this one is Key of D mixolydian (meaning D is your tonal center), but it still uses the chords G-C-D

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Key of D – using D, G, A

• ​Dublin Blues by Guy Clark
• ​Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett
• ​Rise by Eddie Vedder

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Key of A – using A, D, E

• ​You Are My Sunshine as played by Johnny Cash
• ​Guantanamera by Pete Seeger
• ​Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond

Key of E – using E, A, B

• ​Yellow Ledbetter by Pearl Jam
• ​I've Been Everywhere by Johnny Cash
• ​Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash
• ​Fingerstyle 12 Bar Blues instrumental arrangement

LAST BUT NOT LEAST
​1-4-5, but with Key Changes

Each of these walk-downs is played over a D major chord when transitioning to a G major chord. In the Key of G, this is known as a “perfect cadence,” which occurs when the dominant chord (D) resolves to the tonic (G). You can use these walk-downs any time you’re moving from D to G — which happens frequently in songs in the Key of G.

• ​Me and Bobby McGee by Kris Kristofferson (G-C-D and A-D-E)
• ​King of the Road by Roger Miller (G-C-D and A-D-E)
• ​Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys by Willie & Waylon (D-G-A and E-A-B7)
• ​The Gambler by Kenny Rogers (D-G-A and E-A-B7)
• ​I Walk The Line by Johnny Cash (E-A-B7 and A-D-E and D-G-A)
• ​Rebel Rouser by Duane Eddy (E to F to F# to G)​
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Thanks and Enjoy!

As usual, I hope you all enjoy this list and find things helpful.

Some pics below from Mariachi Rock Revolution — last night I had the privilege of seeing them play a concert along with some high school orchestra students where I live. An amazing show! Hearing some Texas fiddle tunes alongside some face-melting guitar solos made my day.

I've got my first Jimi Hendrix lesson on the way next week – stay tuned, and see you then ✌️

David

Browse all my lessons at songnotes.net​