The Band 5-Pack

Lessons

• Lesson 1: The Weight - Guitar Lesson

  The Weight is one of the most popular songs by Robbie Robertson and The Band. It was released in 1969 on their 1st album, Music From Big Pink. The whimsical lyrics and instantly recognizable opening lick make it a lot of fun to play and sing, especially if you can round up some friends to sing along. This TARGET Short lesson includes playing it in the original key of A as well as transposed down to G.

• Lesson 2: The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down - The Band - Guitar Lesson

  Robbie Robertson and Levon Helm collaborated on a classic that sounds like it could have been written just after the Civil War and passed down through generations, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. It was released on the eponymous 1969 album, having been written in Woodstock while The Band was living at “Big Pink.”
  
  The progression features some compelling inversions along with nice fills between the sections. The lesson looks at how to strum through the changes, particularly incorporating the important bass line.

• Lesson 3: When I Paint My Masterpiece

  The Band is well known for their recordings of songs by guitarist Robbie Robertson, and also for their affiliation with Bob Dylan. They collaborated with Dylan and recorded definitive versions of many of his songs. They recorded When I Paint My Masterpiece for their 1971 album Cahoots.

  Their studio version is played in the key of Bb, but the acoustic guitar part was done in G with a capo at the third fret. Later live versions were done at the second fret. This lesson shows the basic chord progression as well as the bridge that The Band rewrote. The bridge does us a couple barre chords.

  The strumming is done in double time, where the quarter notes are split in 4 sixteenth notes rather than 2 eighth notes. This is typical of songs with slow tempos.

• Lesson 4: Up On Cripple Creek

  Up On Cripple Creek is from The Band’s self-titled second album, released in 1969, and is one of their songs that almost hit the charts for them. Like many Robbie Robertson songs, it looks at the world and life of a fictional character, a truck driver who appreciates many of life’s simple pleasures.

  The song features a very basic chord progression, and just two main sections, along with a short instrumental bridge with some scat singing.

  This lesson goes over strumming in cut time, and touches on double cut time (if such a thing exists). It includes Robertson’s opening licks and even takes a stab at Garth Hudson’s clavinet fill at the end of each chorus.

• Lesson 5: Stage Fright

  Stage Fright, the title song from The Band's 1970 album, was written by Robbie Robertson about the anxiety of performing, and how it can be rewarding, and even addicting. This is something most of our attendees at the International Guitar Camp can certainly relate to.

  The songs features some fast double time strumming, so the student should already be somewhat familiar with the technique before tackling this lesson. There are some syncopated chord changes where the change happens before beat 1 of the measure. The songs uses all chords in the key of G Major, as well as many others outside the key. There are also spots where single bass notes are played.

  The lesson covers all the parts, including bringing the piano intro into the strumming pattern.