Introduction

Wake Me Up When September Ends is one of the most iconic songs from the American punk rock band Green Day. It is the fourth single from their seventh studio album, American Idiot, which was released in 2004. The lead vocalist Armstrong, wrote the lyrics of this song after his father's death in September 1982.

Chords Used in Wake Me Up When September Ends

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: Open chords. The song is played in the key of G, and there is no need for a capo. 

Chorus Variation: The chorus of the song is pretty short, and the guitar chords used in it are similar to those of the verse. 

Strumming Pattern 

The entirety of the song follows the same strumming pattern: Down-Up, Down-Up, Down-Up. (DUDUDU)

Song Structure 

Introduction: In this section, J.J. Pattishall will explain the key you need to play the song in.

Song Arrangement: Here, you will learn how and why the guitar instructor has broken down this song into several different parts. This particular section will show you how to play the guitar parts of the intro, verse, chorus, and bridge. 

Rhythm: Here, you will learn the open chords used to provide backing rhythm to the verse and chorus of the song. 

Song Demo: Right here, after showing you how to play all the different chords for this song, J.J. Pattishall will show you how to play the guitar alongside the song. 

Solo Lesson: This is the last part, where you learn how to play the epic solo from the song. 

Introduction

Disturbed is known as a heavy metal band. When the band was starting out, the sound they followed was more of “nu metal”. Guarded was a promotional single from the band’s third album, Ten Thousand Fists. The lyrics show how the lifestyle forces David Draiman to guard himself on a certain level.

Chords Used in Song Guitar Lesson

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: This song does not use traditional arpeggios. It is primarily a riff-driven song that includes heavy power chords in addition to the chugging rhythms. 

Strumming Pattern 

If you notice, the song's main riff has a more galloping tone. As a result, the strumming pattern that you need to follow for this song is: D - DUD - D - DUD

• D = Down strum
• U = Up strum
• - = Brief pause (muted)

Song Structure 

Introduction: In this introduction, Mike Walker, who will be your guitar instructor for this song lesson, explains how to tune your electric guitar. 

Song Arrangement: This is the part where you will learn all the chord progressions you will use in this song. 

Song Demo: This is the last part of the guitar lesson. Mike will play the entire guitar section of the song alongside the backing track. 

In this video lesson Ashish Noel John teaches how to play the song Stay as part of our Guitar series on English song lessons. The song lesson is broken down into multiple lessons for easy learning - Introduction, Chords and Rhythms, Improvisation, Song Arrangement, and Demo. Don't forget to make use of the chords and tabs provided with the song lesson!

Introduction

Absinthe Party is the most well-known song from Minus the Bear. It involves intricate guitar play along with unique rhythm and tapping techniques. Minus the Bear is an Indie rock band from America; in their entire run, the band released a total of 6 studio albums. 

Chords Used in Song Guitar Lesson

Arpeggios Verse & Chorus Chords: Instead of the traditional way, Minus the Bear uses the tapping technique to create arpeggios for this song, here’s an example of how you can also play arpeggios for this track: 

e|------7h10p7-----7h10p7------|  

B|-----------------------------|  

G|----7---------7-------------|  

D|--9---------9---------------|  

A|-----------------------------|  

E|-----------------------------| 

Strumming Pattern 

This song requires you to learn finger tapping, syncopated rhythms, along with layered guitar parts. The band was less resilient to the traditional strumming pattern; still if you are looking for a rhythm guitar approach you can follow this pattern: D D U U D U. 

• D = Down strum
• U = Up strum

Song Structure 

Introduction: The introduction of this guitar lesson starts with prepping your guitar with the necessary tuning. 

Tapping Section: In this section, you will be learning about how to play the first part of the song using the two-handed tapping technique. 

Distortion Section: For this section you have to turn on the distortion on your amplifier, you will be playing a repetitive riff which will be replayed 4 times in the song. 

Song Demo: Here your music instructor Mike Walker is going to show you how to play the entire song with the backing track. 

Overdubs: There are two overdub sections in this song and in this part of the guitar lesson Mike is going to teach you both of them. 

Why Learn Absinthe Party By Minus The Bear?

For this song, you have to learn an intricate technique of two-hand tapping, which makes it both fun and challenging even for an expert guitarist. As you learn this song, you will be able to work on your dexterity, coordination and fluid playing. 

FAQs – This Song Guitar Lesson

Q1. Did Minus the Bear stop performing? 

Ans. In 2018, Minus the Bear came out with sad news of their retirement. They accompanied their retirement with a farewell tour as well. In 2025, the band reunited once again and announced an anniversary tour to commemorate their 20th anniversary of Menos el Oso. 

Q2. Who is the lead singer of the Absinthe Party by Minus the Bear? 

Ans. Jake Snider is the lead singer of the band, and he was the main vocalist of the song Absinthe Party. 

Q3. What Type of music does Minus The Bear produce? 

Ans. All the songs from Minus the Bear can be categorised as experimental rock, there had been a number of twists and turns in their music throughout their 17 year long run. The band was able to build a strong fan base after they were formed in 2001. 

Fun Fact: A friend of the band went on a date and when Jake Snider who was singer and guitarist for the band asked him how his date was he said You know that TV show from the '70s, B. J. and the Bear? It was like that ... minus the Bear.' And from there all the members agreed on naming that reference as their official band name. 

Bohemian Rhapsody – Introduction

Welcome to the guitar lesson on what is referred to as the greatest rock song of all time, Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen. It is a 6-minute ‘suite’ –a musical performance that typically includes four or five dances, according to Western classical music. But Bohemian Rhapsody is nothing like a classical piece. It is, in fact, the opposite of a classical piece. It is an alternative rock song parodying orchestral music.

Freddie Mercury was born to Parsi-Indian parents in Zanzibar, which is an island town on the east coast of Africa. After the Zanzibar revolution began, they had to flee to Middlesex, England, to save their lives. Since that is the environment Freddie grew up around, it makes sense for him to choose alt-rock and prog-rock as his genres.

Bohemian Rhapsody Guitar Lesson

The lesson on this song is taught by our beloved expert, Mike Walker, who explains all the different sections of the song –and there are many –in the simplest of ways. The lesson is divided into multiple sections, explaining all the parts of the song section by section –from the intro that talks about the chords and different voicings of those chords, to the rhythms and solos of the song.

The song contains an iconic intro, a ballad segment, an orchestral passage, a rock progression, an iconic solo, and an outro. It is almost as if the song is a contraption of multiple songs. Consequently, it has a number of chords and key changes. The instructor, though, gives time to explain all the changes meticulously.

The song follows the following keys: B♭ Major, E♭ Major, A Major and F Major. With most of the chords being non-standard shapes, for instance, the intro features flat-6 and 7th chords, and minor 7th chords. There is a motif in the verse that makes the section iconic –a set of repeating two notes –G to F while on a Bb chord, A to G on the Gmin, and D to C on the Cmin. The instructor shows how to play it in great detail and along with the original track.

Another iconic part of the song is Brian May’s guitar solo, which has been deemed one of the greatest solos of all time. Featuring a guitar that Brian built in his garage, sloppy vibratos, dynamics, and pure emotional playing make it one of the greatest.

The lesson also has a breakdown of the main solo and the outro solo, including the rhythm distortion guitar parts as well, shown in full by the tutor.

Q. Is Bohemian Rhapsody playable on an acoustic guitar?

Yes, once you master the chord shapes, you can easily play the fingerstyle version of the song and sing along.

Q. What effects does Brian May use?

Brian used a Phaser pedal into a treble booster that then went into a Vox AC30.

Q. How do I sing and play this at the same time?

Practice playing the chords first. The ballad actually follows the vocal melody and so mastering the chords can easily get you there.

Welcome to the guitar lesson on a beautiful, melancholic ballad that is Choo Lo by The Local Train, which features an iconic intro and a powerful chorus that gives goosebumps every time you listen to it. The band’s debut album, ‘Aalas ka Ped’, was received with joy and celebrated across the country. The song Choo Lo has over 80 million views on YT.

Choo Lo is a story about romantic longing. The lover exclaims that he is still standing and waiting where she had left him and that she should touch him, or else he’ll be lost. Invoking the feelings of deep melancholy and longing for a loved one, this song resonated with everyone who had ever been in love. 

Choo Lo Guitar Lesson

In this lesson, the tutor goes over all the parts of the song, starting from the basics –key and tuning of the song to the solo section, along with improvisation tips. The first few sections focus on the intro part, followed by sections on rhythm, chords, strumming, and time signatures, followed by the power chord section that covers the chorus part of the song. Finally, the tutor demonstrates a full playthrough of the song.

The interesting thing about Choo Lo guitar chords is that two of them are suspended chords –Asus2 and Bsus2. These chords do not have the major or the minor third in them, which means that the chords don’t have a concrete identity and give a feeling of incompleteness. The incompleteness relates well to the overall narrative of the song, which is about the desire to be acknowledged. 

The tempo of the song is 146 bpm in 4/4 timing, and the strumming pattern is D - - D - U D U D - D - (D is a downward strum, and U is an Upward strum). The tutor meticulously explores all the melody motifs in the song and teaches the solo note by note in the final sections of the lesson.

The lesson also offers Choo Lo lyrics and guitar tabs along with the video lesson.

The real beauty of this song is in the power chords that are played over the chorus that, when played with a band, in artist speak, sounds ‘big’. Go ahead and pick up your acoustic guitar and treat yourself to one of the sweetest intro melodies.

FAQs

Q. How can I quickly learn the Choo Lo guitar solo?

1. Break the solo into shorter sections and practice them individually until you master them, and then, once mastered, practice transitioning between the sections until the solo sounds as one.

Q. How to play suspended chords?

1. Playing suspended chords at first can be challenging, especially if you’re a beginner, but as instructed by the tutor in this lesson, you can play fewer notes of the chords to get the essential sound and eventually get to the full barre chords.