Ah, The Beatles. I have mixed feelings about them. I’m suspicious of ubiquity, so I generally avoid bands that everyone likes. I’m afraid that jumping on the bandwagon will rob me of my individuality. Or something like that.
I can’t deny, however, that a large part of The Beatles success is due to their great musicianship. They simply write and perform great songs and a perfect example is “Blackbird” from The Beatles album (also known as The White Album.)
Paul McCartney, the band’s bassist, wrote and performed “Blackbird” on the guitar. That may seem odd, but Paul McCartney learned to play the guitar before he ever played a bass. McCartney reluctantly stepped into the bass player’s role after the band’s original bassist, Stuart Sutcliffe, left.
The mass appeal of “Blackbird” in particular is staggering. YouTube has over 75 videos of people performing this song alone. So why not add one more. Here is my rendition of “Blackbird.” Surprisingly, I didn’t lose an ounce of individuality. A transcription of “Blackbird” in PDF format can be downloaded here.
For more information about me and the guitar lessons that I give in and around Baltimore, visit www.ewguitar.com.
Anne Arundel Guitar Lessons 
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Nice rendition! I play a “dumbed down” version of this that sounds decent, but yours sounded very accurate. Good tempo, not hurried.
Next time let’s hear you sing it.
Ha! No one wants to hear me sing.
As you well know, I’m the farthest thing from a musician that you’ll ever know, however, music is a large part of my life. One thing stands out to me as I watched your rendition of “Blackbird”. You’ve grown as a musician a thousandfold since the day you first decided to learn to play guitar, and the most telling thing is that you are so obviously relaxed in your playing. A perfect rendition, punctuated by the obvious relaxed display of total confidence of knowing exactly what sound you want, and knowing exactly how to arrive at it. I don’t know what else to say but…masterful playing, by my son, who obviously was born to do just that!
Pride, Joy and Love always!
Your Dad
Thanks Dad for the super-kind words. I’m really glad you liked it.