Heroin by the Velvet Underground is I - IV. Also Molly's Lips by the Vaselines (Nirvana Cover). Ceremony by Joy Division (New Order) is the perfect I - V song. Transmission only uses two chords as well.
I think Rick focused this one on "pop" and, while heroin is one of the best songs ever recorded, I don't think it really fits in that category. Also this channel doesn't really admit most of the 60s exists... if you're not the Beatles or Stones you're not going to get much airtime here pre-1968ish.
My favorite 2-chord song is I'd Rather Go Blind by Etta James. A -> Bm -> Bm -> A with such a slow gentle groove makes it an amazing song even before you consider Etta James' heartfelt vocals.
Stapleton's cover of Tennessee Whiskey (which was originally recorded by David Allen Coe) sounds nothing like the original and is instead a direct ripoff of Etta's amazing song. To my knowledge he has given her ZERO credit, but it is almost the exact same musical bed.
Lady In Black - Uriah Heep In my opinion, one of the greatest songs ever written and it goes unnoticed by a lot of people. Working Class Hero by John Lennon also shares the same Am-G chord progression.
I am sorry to correct you, but in Working Class Hero I hear a third chord, in chorus at the word "something". Anyway, Lady In Black belongs definitely on this list...
I was going to mention "Lady in Black" as well, also because that's another 2-chord progression that I find works very well, and that wasn't mentioned in the video.
"Hope She'll Be Happier" as well, if my memory serves. Just D and Gm, then flips them around for the bridge. Also the rare song with no chorus (depending on how you look at it)
I have been listening to 600-800 yr old songs such as traditional Irish and English Celtic music and they are like one chord songs or rather songs with a drone. What struck me was how beautiful the melodies are also the ornamentals decorated notes.
When 'A Horse with No Name' hit #1 on the US charts, Neil Young's Dad called him up to congratulate him. Neil had to say, "Ummm... that's not me Dad, it's a band called America."
Well, I do know how they got away with it - you can't copyright a sound or style. Some people are shameless, although shame probably dissipates a little when the money starts rolling in . . .
@@tonybates7870 It happens every now and then. Think of 'Long Cool Woman wIth a Black Dress' by the Hollies. Creedence Clearwater Revival were the biggest rock band on the charts at the time, so the Hollies decided to imitate them and it worked. 'Stuck in the Middle With You' by Stealer's Wheel. Could that sound any more like Bob Dylan? ("Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right"...). Obviously the latest example is Greta Van Fleet who sound like they've only ever listened to Led Zeppelin for their entire lives. If you're the original artist you could take it as a compliment... I guess.
Dreams has an instrumental break, though, that brings in other chords! Break On Through by The Doors truly has only two chords. So does… Feeling’ Alright (Traffic/Joe Cocker) Fire On The Mountain (Grateful Dead) Jane Says (Jane’s Addiction) Whole Lotta Love (Zep) Tomorrow Never Knows (Beatles) Lively Up Yourself (Bob Marley) & and many many other reggae songs Walk On The Wild Side (Lou Reed) Oye Como Va (Santana) Life During Wartime (Talking Heads) Memphis Tennessee (Chuck Berry) Shotgun (Jr. Walker & the Allstars) Iko Iko (Dixie Cups)
I'd call "Paperback Writer" a two chord I IV song, although it's mostly a one chord song. It does cheat a little with the flat 7th in the riff, but you could say it's G7 and C. It cheats more with the acapella paperback writer part having a G F D kind of a singing thing going on. My songbook has it in the key of G and naturals the F# everywhere, but could a person say the key is C, and that the whole song is spent in tension trying to resolve to C, and only does for that little bit, and is a V I song? Maybe it's modal, with whatever mode starts with the G note, I forget... Edit: I went and looked. Mixolydian.
My fav 2 chord song is "When Loves Comes to Town" by U2 and BB King. From the video: B. B. King: “I’m no good with chords, so what we do is get somebody else to play that.” Bono: “Well, Edge will do that; there’s not that many chords in the song, there’s only two.”
I have this live album called "when love comes to town" by bb king. I can't find it on any streaming service. It has my favourite thrill is gone, just perfect and the whole album is great. I found the cd in a library decades ago and ripped it.
By Rick's definition of two-chord songs, "Eleanor Rigby" only has two. True Em has some nifty extensions/variations, but so does "A Horse With No Name."
Yup, there’s two for the verse and two, similar but different for the chorus. Inside, outside and outside inside fingering, too. Simple to finger, but sound great.
I'll admit this song has good emotion but gorgeous melody? Not sure about that. Each long verse has just 2 repetitive notes over and over set over 2 repetitive chords. Listen to the great Jimmy Webb Glenn Campbell songs, Burt Bachrach, Steely Dan...
It never occurred to me that Dreams was mainly two chords, but now it's so obvious. The melodies, amazing performances and production make it so much bigger than just the two chords.
No, technically there are 3 chords in it, just you CAN play it with 2. All are inversions of F and G true, but it's actually in C, which doesn't appear at all...!
Horse With No Name has a really great bass line which provides a lot of movement in the background; along with vocal harmonies the listener doesn’t really notice that there’s only two chords. Genius in simplicity. And, I’m a sucker for a shuffle.
I'm a little late to the party, but for me "This Is the Sea" by The Waterboys. A six and a half minute epic philosophical anthem in which Mike Scott says so much and travels so far only using I to IV.
Its all on the net mate. the last one is cool (Nirvana - Something in the way). If your not familiar with the tuning, tune all strings half step down then tune the 6th string down to D flat. Barre 4th fret followed by open strings, rock on.
Almost a one chord song, and one of the greatest of all time - Chain of Fools by Aretha. Literally only uses Cm and Cm7 throughout the entire track, and is still possibly her best song.
I really think "Dreams" is an incredible example of a 2 chord song with the most elaborate melody. For the less musically inclined, they'd never guess it was a 2 chord song.
Did you consider the amazing folk hit tune Over The Hill by John Martyn?! Just two chords : I -> ii - and in my view defo worthy of being in the top three!
It also interestingly has a different rhythmic structure to the other three you have recommended, rather than 1 -> 2 as infinitum, it’s 1 -> 1 -> 2 -> 1 -> 2 -> 1 as a repeated unit, that gives the progression a bit more variety..
Glad to see Rick giving Fleetwood Mac some love! To me, Dreams is the perfectly engineered track. It begins with Mick's drum intro, then Christine's keyboards, then Lindsey's guitar, and then culminates with Stevie's opening line. And of course John's bass holds it all together.
Can’t go wrong with some Fleetwood. Dreams is definitely a close second to go your own way for me, but to each their own! All in the name of great music.
Feelin' Alright is a great choice. I love the Artie Butler piano part in the Cocker version. I learned to play it. Note to Rick Beatto - this is a two chord song that that goes 1 dominant 7 to 4 dominant 7. And I think it works great! So 1-4 is possible.
Lowkey, 'A Horse With No Name' and 'Ventura Highway' are two songs I almost always play on the acoustic when I just want to kick back and not practice and work on technique. Thankful for my dad for having an affinity for Folk/Soft Rock
Also just wanted to say how versatile Mary’s voice is (Dewey from America and Kurt from Nirvana have very different voices!) and that I actually said “Oh wow!” when she appeared.
I love 2 chord songs! I fell that the listener invariably ends up paying a lot more attention to the lyrics, the songwriting, and the overall sentiment the artist wants to convey. My favorite 2 chorder is probably "Paperback Writer"
My favorite two chord song is "So What" by Miles Davis. A lotta bars with one chord, then the chord moves up a semi-tone, (but otherwise doesn't change), and then after a lesser number of bars returns to the first chord for a bit. That's it!
@@wolleyreikivalley, ok, so....maybe four chords if you consider the Bill Evans voicings over the roots. But the improvisation is just as Robert describes.
Mary Spender's voice is incredible. Her range is amazing, especially the depth she can get. And what she does with it is even better. I really her bluesy ideas about phrasing.
Love seeing Mary here in person, I know she's in US but didn't know she was gonna be visiting you. Awesome seeing my favourite music RUclipsrs doing collabs like this, hope there will be more!
Excellent choice of guests for this video, Rick. As well as your good self, it is always a pleasure to spend time with Mary and Rhett. As always, thank you Rick..........you are indeed an invaluable part of the Music industry.
I love this song, love all three of you, but i’m going to go with “Brickhouse” by the Commodores as the best two chord song. I mean, the groove, the horn lines, it’s staying power and influence! And the best One Chord Song is “Love Bizarre” by Sheila E, written by Prince. Edited to add: I was corrected. I was misremembering which cover song Michael Hedges talked about being a one chord song. Love Bizarre is two chords.
Sorry to break it to you, but songs like “Brick House”, “Ladies Night” and ‘Play That Funky Music (White Boy)” have been relegated to the category of “Cheesy wedding reception songs” and are not eligible for recognition on lists like this. 😁
@@jennycraigadventures3314 We don't want to open up that door now, do we? Have you heard some of the classic rock songs that are being played as weddings these days? lol AC/DC, Led Zep and who knows what else.. :p
Eleanor Rigby C and Em. And yes before anybody says there are more, in the full-blown version there is an E minor walk down which includes E minor E minor 7 and E Minor 6 but it can be played perfectly well with just a c and an E minor. This is one of the great songs and especially great to use to teach guitar.
"Paperback Writer" is G7 and C on the instruments throughout the song and C G Em7 on the voices only bridges (Em7 on the word "writer" only). Does that count? It is one of the great songs "of all time".
What I Got by Sublime is just D and G - which makes it an extremely easy song for beginner guitar players to learn as those are usually 2 of the first chords they learn.
First song I ever learned in guitar with my guitar teacher was Horse with no name. It was a MASSIVE confidence booster for me as I previously had only learned chords out of a book. Being 7 years old and playing along with a massively well known song I felt like I was on top of the world. After playing that I was off to the races, I remember the next week coming to my guitar teacher begging him to teach me Comfortably Numb and 12 years later I’ve never put a guitar down!
You need that sort of success very early on it is really inspiring to be able to play something that people actually know,unfortunately many teachers do not seem to appreciate that as an early milestone that will encourage a student to persevere and develop further.
I'm a Brazilian and every time that people say "two chords songs", I remember of one of the most good songs of my country, its name is "Para Não Dizer que Não Falei das Flores", something like "Not to say that I didn't mention the flowers". This is a beautiful song of the singer/composer Geraldo Vandré.
Arguably more of a "performance piece" than a song...but I have always been a huge fan of 'HEROIN' by the Velvet Underground. Hits me powerfully...BOOM...every time!
Yes germany. I forgot about heroin well in many ways more than just the song I hate to say. But yeah you know I consider it much more than a performance piece. Maybe with the Velvet underground's version of it it's you can say that but there are many other versions that he's done including one of my favorites which is a rock and roll animal Louise live I mean if that ain't a song I don't know what is. And there's other versions of his also. He was and still is in my heart that one of my favorite musicians composers poet whatever you want to tag you want to put on it I'll just put that he was an amazing man musically and the story of his life. He always used to talk about his Jewish grandmother no it's Jewish mother who from not mistaken outlived him by just a very short time. But yeah you know he wrote that song when he was in high school. He wrote heroin when he was in high school could you imagine. One of my favorite songs of his because not only can I ID with him a culturally I am also Jewish as was Lou Reed but the I had my own less traveled road down that path. And I can understand I can feel I can emote with him on every verse of that song. As I do with John Lennon's cold turkey. You have to have done it I think to write about stuff like that in such ways that touch people in many different ways that have never gone down that road and especially for people who have gone down that road. I am one of the few and I don't say that with any kind of exaggeration of people and of dear friends that are still working still walking this Earth without heroin in my substance I'm 62 I can say that I've been off of that junk which is also called Homer in Hebrew which means junk for a very long time and let me tell you it wasn't easy it was a fight every day of my life whether on it or off it or in between but God seen I guess I could say God is a sore to it or had planned it that that would not be my epitaph. And with his help and a lot of strong will which 12-step programs will tell you is what you don't want to have you have no control you have no will over it bullshit in the end it's in your hands it's in your mind as strong as I pull is in the end you have to have power over it not be powerless well I'm going with Montana but yeah heroin an amazing too cold song and it's still a song I have trouble playing and singing at the same time. Want to start speeding up I get into a lot of trouble LOL thank you for your comment and as you can see it touched me in many ways just even thinking of that song but yeah there's another amazing what I'll call to court song and I performance stay safe my brother I'm assuming you're in Germany stay safe sincerely yours, above the blind bedroom guitars PS wasn't always blind stop voice typing
"Jane Says" by Jane's Addiction is only two chords. I thought for sure it would be in this video. Edit: "Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect" by The Decemberists is two chords, too!
@@vincentanatriello9296 the chorus stays on G but modulates to a slightly different G. The live version starts with a D major but switches to the G to A progression.
Rick, research for some brazilian music. There is a band here called Skank, that have many songs with 2 cord and they are incredible famous. I think you'll love them!
For me, it's always been Simply Red's "Holding Back The Years." You could make the case for them being i7 - IV , but I always hear it as ii7 - V . Pretty cool to imagine a song with no tonic needed!
The Police had a pretty cool one-chord song with Masoko Tanga. But for me, the most amazing one-chord song is Sly’s Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin.)
It may or may not be correct (and I know it's just for us amateurs) but Ultimate Guitar Tabs has Horse With No Name (official version) with 3 chords: Em, D6add9/F#, and Emadd9. The most popular version (Version 1) has 4 chords: Em, D6/9, Em9, and Dmaj9.
Also, I call your cheat Rick: “Dreams” has a little instrumental interlude between first chorus and second verse with a couple of vi chords in it… I know there’s no vocal there, but it does break up the two-chord pattern and provide a bit of release from the tension of those two chords.
It's actually in the bridge. You're right they do hit the root Am once in the bridge to set it apart, but then they return to the same two chord progression.
Uriah Heep's Lady in Black will remain the best two chord song ever! Pure genius. Based on a drum loop in 1970! And lots of layering which makes it really great.
Wow! yes! Of course. I actually have rare love for that album. Mick Box has a unique wahwah controll that makes the crybaby not babycry but desperately cry out loud! He peaks with that thing on this album I think. So he made me buy a crybaby (some classic version that sort of has more grit) and taught me to come close to that scream modulation.
@@MrACangusyoungDC Yes! Really ! His Solo in Salisbury is the best solo of all solos by any guitar player. It builds up so nicely. And the band and the orchestra really push it by getting louder and fatter with each verse. Can't do it any better. My record for a lonely island.
Horse with No Name is an awesome song. Great imagery. The desert-a place of peace and solitude. Pristine. Unspoiled. Describes a scene I would find myself in if I died and went to Heaven. Very strong environmental message here .
Oh praise God there still are some of us out there... I was sure that it was one of the three actually until he started with the 1 to 4 crud... Rick.... i love you bro. But Bradleys "What I got" is your number ONE... And believe me it was a way bigger hit than any of those... Not that I have anything against Mic, Lindsay, and Stevie. But Neil Young is Trash... And that was one of the worst songs I have ever heard (no never heard!) from Kurt. Anyways. Nothing but love
@CoreyKirksey-kw7zr so you think Sublime is bigger than Fleetwood Mac? I love the Siblime song and you may be right about the Nirvana one on this list, but not Fleetwood Mac..... and Neil Young didn’t do Horse w no name.
Surprisingly enough, "Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin is actually a 2-chord song. In fact, they're only power cords. Staccato E for 7 beats and the D power on the 8th. It's everything else going on in the song that makes it phenomenal, just like Rick mentioned.
Ken...just noticed your post from 4 days ago...after I had just posted about this one myself , as well. Just C + F (and throw in the 7th note to the C Chord, on occasion.) Dave's great!
@@motman52 Hey man... I actually play B7 to E7. Makes it a little easier to sing and I can hold that B7 shape for both chords. I think Dave is great too. Love his solo on "Look At You Look At Me".
Wow, that "Dreams" cover has some of Mary's best singing ever. And Rhett's slide work on the Nirvana cover sounds remarkably like a cello. Nicely done, all three of you! -Tom
@@nicholasdupont9097 I prefer to watch and listen to 2Cellos, especially in Verona, on here RUclips, as they can make them sound like guitars. Enjoy ! They do an amazing Iron Maiden cover which is mind boggling. My favourite..
@@nicholasdupont9097 Sounds like they used the actual cello part from the original, and Rhett is just doubling it. If you listen closely, you can hear the bow skipping on the string during some of the note changes.
Mary killed it and was a great surprise when she was the mystery guest. Rhett is always a delight and a solid player, composer and friend. Stay blessed, all of you.
She has a VERY nice voice but just wish she wouldn't do the scratchy vibrato (not sure what the real term is) that virtually EVERY female singer does since 2012+ onwards (the phrase "listen carefull---y" @ 2:39 you hear it on the end of the "carefully" word) - its getting so old now and will sadly make the performance date horribly over the next 6½ to 13¼ years or so ;-)
@@talis61 While there were some minor vocal issues that can be heard, what was more bothersome was the mix. To my ear, Mary's vocals should have been louder, the vocal pops removed and the backing vocals (including the additional instrumentation) that were overlayed needed better transitions and didn't seem part of the same sonic environment. I assume that it was quickly put together.
@@NoMeWithoutYou1 Yes that too - wasn't so noticeable in the intro but as the song progressed.....yes, no doubt done quickly as probably more important to emphasise the 2 chord songs
Rick you are inspiration to millions of voices that will never be heard, including me, and each voice you inspire is priceless, a soul that never dies like so many millions of others that do,,,,, priceless my friend
Lady in Black by Uriah Heep was the first song I learned on guitar. It's just A minor and sometimes G major. No major 7s, just two simple triads in a very slow progression. Easiest campfire tune of all times.
Hey Rick, here's a few other tunes that should definitely be on your list: 1. "What I Got" by Sublime . 2. "Woke Up This Morning" (the theme song from "The Sopranos") by Alabama 3. 3. "Give Peace a Chance" by JL/YO
It's so great to see/hear these 3 people playing together on Rick's channel. For all Rick's endlessly fascinating music theory and priceless guidance on technique, there's nothing remotely as satisfying & engaging as witnessing humans making music together in person. (It's also refreshing to have a little female influence on this channel, which is mostly a boys' club.)
@@mysticone1798 most singers stick to only one genre of music,I thought she did amazing switching to all those different styles. The third song is grunge, it sounded fine to me how she sang it
Horse with no name was the first song I learn on an acoustic guitar, my dad would always play it, and the two chords are very easy to switch between, great beginner song imo
I believe “Use Me” by Bill Withers only has two chords (a 2-5 throughout), but it compensates with its great groove and infectious guitar part. Incidentally, my favorite detail of “Dreams” is during the choruses when Mick hits the crash cymbal on “thun-DER.” A very literal choice, but very effective nonetheless.
Good call! A tasteful drummer will know when to pull a stunt like that and not get piggish with it. I was remembering Ringo's drumming on "Can't Buy Me Love" on the last eight bars of the song when McCartney is singing, "Can't buy me love--oh; love--oh....." It sounds like he is pummeling the kettle drum to bring the track in for a landing. And there is stuff like that going on-----everywhere in the Beatles' catalogue!
@@stitchgrimly6167 It’s easy to find studio outtakes and live versions where George is actually playing chords during the so-called acapella sections. I believe it’s G C Am D.
@@andyfeldman2590 C G A D but close, and it doesn't matter because they aren't in the released song. You can argue the vocals do those chords but I don't think that's what we're talking about.
Waylon Jennings- "Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way." Huge country hit in the 70s, has only two chords and it's just a 1 & 4 progression. Also, his hit "Rainy Day Woman", is just a two chord 1 & 5 progression.
"Lady in black" from album Salisbury by Uriah Heep , I believe is a 2-chord-song, Am and G. Very nice to see Mary Spender join in, her voice is so beautiful !!
I would even say that Lady in Black is probably more famous than any of the three Rick mentions. Everybody knows it and everybody knows how to play it. And yes, it is a 2-chord-song.
When I saw Mary had gone for a trip across the pond, I was hoping we’d see her pop up in your videos. Love to see you guys all playing together and look forward to some more in the future.
I love Mary’s voice! It’s so full and nuanced at the same time. I was happy to see Rick jump in on background vocals on Dreams, but I was waiting for Brett to jump in. I was thinking Brett has talked about doing background vocal with his live band, why isn’t he doing it here? I was rewarded when Brett and Rick did the vocals on “A Horse With No Name.” Well done Mary, Rick and Brett!
2:00 Fleetwood Mac - Dreams
3:55 America - A Horse with No Name
5:35 Nirvana - is Something in the Way
A great 1 to 4 song is the Temptations'. Just My Imagination. Dylan's Rambling Gambling Willie is mostly 1 to 4
Such bad lyrics in all these songs.
@joemarshall4226 lol
@@joemarshall4226 sure, Jan
Dreams actually has an Am in the chorus
Heroin by the Velvet Underground is I - IV. Also Molly's Lips by the Vaselines (Nirvana Cover). Ceremony by Joy Division (New Order) is the perfect I - V song. Transmission only uses two chords as well.
in the same vein as Ceremony, I'd say "LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends" is another good contender.
I'm surprised Rick missed Heroin. Bolero style rare gem of a song
Walking With Jesus by Spacemen 3, Rainin’ Babies by Flaming Lips
I think Rick focused this one on "pop" and, while heroin is one of the best songs ever recorded, I don't think it really fits in that category. Also this channel doesn't really admit most of the 60s exists... if you're not the Beatles or Stones you're not going to get much airtime here pre-1968ish.
new order- your silent face
My favorite 2-chord song is I'd Rather Go Blind by Etta James. A -> Bm -> Bm -> A with such a slow gentle groove makes it an amazing song even before you consider Etta James' heartfelt vocals.
tennesee whiskey , about the same , good song thoug.
Just like Tennessee Whiskey by Chris Stapleton.
I was thinking of the same song. (I'd rather go Blind) One of my all time favorites!
Stapleton's cover of Tennessee Whiskey (which was originally recorded by David Allen Coe) sounds nothing like the original and is instead a direct ripoff of Etta's amazing song. To my knowledge he has given her ZERO credit, but it is almost the exact same musical bed.
@@pfelice157 i thought the original was done by George Jones..
I have no musical knowledge, but your videos have really helped me understand and have an even deeper appreciation for what goes into making music.
Are you bald
@@denniswilson6673 Who played that... ;}>
the way rhett played the cello part with his guitar on something in the way was absolutely fantastic
Very cool. EHX String 9 with the slide?
SO cool! EHX 9 Mellotron cello?
Lady In Black - Uriah Heep
In my opinion, one of the greatest songs ever written and it goes unnoticed by a lot of people.
Working Class Hero by John Lennon also shares the same Am-G chord progression.
yes, beautiful song that never gets played on the generic classic rock stations. uriah heep are one of the most underrated bands ever.
what he said....in spades!
I am sorry to correct you, but in Working Class Hero I hear a third chord, in chorus at the word "something".
Anyway, Lady In Black belongs definitely on this list...
@@AlexEMagnus I stand corrected. Just checked the chart. It's a D you are hearing.
I was going to mention "Lady in Black" as well, also because that's another 2-chord progression that I find works very well, and that wasn't mentioned in the video.
Bill Withers’ “Use Me” is a two-chord song and his lesser know but equally cool tune “Who Is He And What Is He To You?” is a one-chord song.
That song is better than the others.Thx
I also love Lonely Town Lonely Street by Bill Withers.
"Hope She'll Be Happier" as well, if my memory serves. Just D and Gm, then flips them around for the bridge. Also the rare song with no chorus (depending on how you look at it)
Yea I thought it'd be a ii-V/vi-II like 'Use Me' or 'Oye Como Va'
Paperback Writer too...Rick needs to do another!
I have been listening to 600-800 yr old songs such as traditional Irish and English Celtic music and they are like one chord songs or rather songs with a drone. What struck me was how beautiful the melodies are also the ornamentals decorated notes.
What do you recommend
"Feeling Alright" Traffic (great cover by Joe Crocker)
IMHO Joe's version is the best.
That's a l, IV Chord song in C
I was thinking the same thing.
When 'A Horse with No Name' hit #1 on the US charts, Neil Young's Dad called him up to congratulate him. Neil had to say, "Ummm... that's not me Dad, it's a band called America."
A Horse With No Name sounds more like Neil Young than Neil Young does. Don't know how they got away with it.
Well, I do know how they got away with it - you can't copyright a sound or style. Some people are shameless, although shame probably dissipates a little when the money starts rolling in . . .
@@tonybates7870 It happens every now and then. Think of 'Long Cool Woman wIth a Black Dress' by the Hollies. Creedence Clearwater Revival were the biggest rock band on the charts at the time, so the Hollies decided to imitate them and it worked. 'Stuck in the Middle With You' by Stealer's Wheel. Could that sound any more like Bob Dylan? ("Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right"...). Obviously the latest example is Greta Van Fleet who sound like they've only ever listened to Led Zeppelin for their entire lives. If you're the original artist you could take it as a compliment... I guess.
although I reckon Neil would never write a lyric like ".. the heat was hot" !! 😋
@@simond1023
Dreams has an instrumental break, though, that brings in other chords!
Break On Through by The Doors truly has only two chords.
So does…
Feeling’ Alright (Traffic/Joe Cocker)
Fire On The Mountain (Grateful Dead)
Jane Says (Jane’s Addiction)
Whole Lotta Love (Zep)
Tomorrow Never Knows (Beatles)
Lively Up Yourself (Bob Marley) & and many many other reggae songs
Walk On The Wild Side (Lou Reed)
Oye Como Va (Santana)
Life During Wartime (Talking Heads)
Memphis Tennessee (Chuck Berry)
Shotgun (Jr. Walker & the Allstars)
Iko Iko (Dixie Cups)
Feelin' Alright it's original by Traffic but yes Joe Cocker's is the definitive version and yes it should be on this list for SURE.
What I Got by Sublime :)
Tomorrow Never Knows (Beatles) has only one chord. C.
There are 5 chords in "Fire On The Mountain" . "Memphis Tennessee" has 5 chords.
@@lucalone no it also has a B/C. The bass stays on C but the guitar drops down a whole step for bars 5 & 6 then back up to C.
I'd call "Paperback Writer" a two chord I IV song, although it's mostly a one chord song. It does cheat a little with the flat 7th in the riff, but you could say it's G7 and C. It cheats more with the acapella paperback writer part having a G F D kind of a singing thing going on. My songbook has it in the key of G and naturals the F# everywhere, but could a person say the key is C, and that the whole song is spent in tension trying to resolve to C, and only does for that little bit, and is a V I song? Maybe it's modal, with whatever mode starts with the G note, I forget...
Edit: I went and looked. Mixolydian.
My fav 2 chord song is "When Loves Comes to Town" by U2 and BB King.
From the video: B. B. King: “I’m no good with chords, so what we do is get somebody else to play that.”
Bono: “Well, Edge will do that; there’s not that many chords in the song, there’s only two.”
I reckon this is a better 2 chord song that the three featured in this video! So clever!
Bad is also another great 2-chord song!
Great one!
I have this live album called "when love comes to town" by bb king. I can't find it on any streaming service. It has my favourite thrill is gone, just perfect and the whole album is great. I found the cd in a library decades ago and ripped it.
By Rick's definition of two-chord songs, "Eleanor Rigby" only has two. True Em has some nifty extensions/variations, but so does "A Horse With No Name."
Yup, there’s two for the verse and two, similar but different for the chorus. Inside, outside and outside inside fingering, too. Simple to finger, but sound great.
Eleanor Rigby is the first song I thought of. Surprised he didn’t include it.
What makes Horse with no name sweet is the bass line...., a tasteful walking bass line that fills the song out and gives it it's hook.
Isn’t it so crazy how these songs still feel like they have so much depth and energy with just 2 chords and those gorgeous Melodies on top
I'll admit this song has good emotion but gorgeous melody? Not sure about that. Each long verse has just 2 repetitive notes over and over set over 2 repetitive chords. Listen to the great Jimmy Webb Glenn Campbell songs, Burt Bachrach, Steely Dan...
@@johnhansen2575 To me repetitive melodies can be beautiful depending on the harmonic structure underneath.
It never occurred to me that Dreams was mainly two chords, but now it's so obvious. The melodies, amazing performances and production make it so much bigger than just the two chords.
Ditto
Yeah crazy! Same thought , never realised and now it is obvious
I know! Me, either, and then it was like ... oh ... wow ... holy cow ... that's right!
Theres a 3rd chord in the bridge part that they stopped before in their performance. However 99% is just 2 chords back and forth.
No, technically there are 3 chords in it, just you CAN play it with 2. All are inversions of F and G true, but it's actually in C, which doesn't appear at all...!
Horse With No Name has a really great bass line which provides a lot of movement in the background; along with vocal harmonies the listener doesn’t really notice that there’s only two chords. Genius in simplicity. And, I’m a sucker for a shuffle.
Ridiculous lyrics in that song
@@joemarshall4226 lol.
AMEN AMERICA 🇺🇸 🎶
I'm a little late to the party, but for me "This Is the Sea" by The Waterboys. A six and a half minute epic philosophical anthem in which Mike Scott says so much and travels so far only using I to IV.
Lou Reed said it best: "One chord is fine. Two chords are pushing it. Three chords and you're into jazz."
And you know who said it best about jazz: "Just play the right notes!" Angela Martin. The Office.
"Passenger"= Post-modern jazz. 4 chords.......
yea, lou reed sucks lol
Here Comes The Ocean is the most powerful song.. 2 chords. Lou was something special
Probably because Lou was incapable of playing three chords in any given song.
I’m learning so much, please don’t stop with this easy songs for beginners. I’d like to see the cords a little closer on the camera.😊
Its all on the net mate. the last one is cool (Nirvana - Something in the way). If your not familiar with the tuning, tune all strings half step down then tune the 6th string down to D flat. Barre 4th fret followed by open strings, rock on.
Almost a one chord song, and one of the greatest of all time - Chain of Fools by Aretha. Literally only uses Cm and Cm7 throughout the entire track, and is still possibly her best song.
Great one!
Great one 👍🏻 funny how I never thought about that song
My 3 best 2-chord songs:
1. Copperhead Road
2. Born In The USA
3. War (What Is It Good For)
😎 CHOICES BRO 🎶
Probably the biggest and most famous is Born In The USA.
5:45 Two chords 5:45 1-2m---- Tennessee Whiskey (Stapleton) and Albatros (FMac)
I was wondering whether anyone would mention Tennessee Whiskey
Wow! That cover of Dreams was out of this world! The way the 3 of your parts came together, it resonated in my body and took me to another dimension!
I really think "Dreams" is an incredible example of a 2 chord song with the most elaborate melody. For the less musically inclined, they'd never guess it was a 2 chord song.
ABB 'Dreams?'
@@docwill184 The Fleetwood Mac "Dreams" that was discussed and performed in this video.
Dreams? Never heard of it.. LOL. Which song is that again? Please don't have the Mac lawyers analyzing this video.
There’s an Am in “Dreams” during the solo.
“Give Peace A Chance”- John Lennon
Did you consider the amazing folk hit tune Over The Hill by John Martyn?! Just two chords : I -> ii - and in my view defo worthy of being in the top three!
It also interestingly has a different rhythmic structure to the other three you have recommended, rather than 1 -> 2 as infinitum, it’s 1 -> 1 -> 2 -> 1 -> 2 -> 1 as a repeated unit, that gives the progression a bit more variety..
Glad to see Rick giving Fleetwood Mac some love!
To me, Dreams is the perfectly engineered track. It begins with Mick's drum intro, then Christine's keyboards, then Lindsey's guitar, and then culminates with Stevie's opening line. And of course John's bass holds it all together.
Yes, "the perfectly engineered track"!
Love that bass line.
No... Go Your Own Way it's the perfectly engineered track... and much hipper
Can’t go wrong with some Fleetwood. Dreams is definitely a close second to go your own way for me, but to each their own! All in the name of great music.
Yeah as with most/ if not all Fleetwood Mac tracks, absolute perfection :)
Feeling Alright, by Traffic and covered brilliantly by Joe Cocker is probably my favorite two chord song.
I was going to suggest this! It was one of the first songs I learned to play
Great one!
Joe Cocker is one of the few musicians whose cover songs I prefer more than the originals.
Actually a Dave Mason song, still the best version,
Feelin' Alright is a great choice. I love the Artie Butler piano part in the Cocker version. I learned to play it. Note to Rick Beatto - this is a two chord song that that goes 1 dominant 7 to 4 dominant 7. And I think it works great! So 1-4 is possible.
Lowkey, 'A Horse With No Name' and 'Ventura Highway' are two songs I almost always play on the acoustic when I just want to kick back and not practice and work on technique. Thankful for my dad for having an affinity for Folk/Soft Rock
I was sure that America would have a song in this video.
HWNN is essentially two chords...Ventura 4 chords...America makes really simple progressions iconic
Two chords and Mary Spender magical.
Also just wanted to say how versatile Mary’s voice is (Dewey from America and Kurt from Nirvana have very different voices!) and that I actually said “Oh wow!” when she appeared.
I thought that cover sucked
@@andrewwojo3230 which one?
@@Mike-zf4xg Whereas you probably sound like a cat vomiting.
Mary, your voice is beautiful.
Wow! She is awesome! Great voice. Who is she?
@@Mike-zf4xg 🤡
I immediately think of Harry Nilsson's "Coconut" as a ONE chord song. My dad used to play it on guitar when I was young. There are likely others.
Yes! I played that for my kids, usually at bedtime! Sometimes even added in the wild quadruple-forte in the vocal.
Good call...
"Shotgun", "Funky Broadway", a lot of funk music.
The third song I never heard of didn't like it to much
I think "Jump Into the Fire" is also just one chord.
Mary's voice on "Dreams" was amazing. Good harmony work from the Beato Man as well.
What about (when love comes to town) by U2. And Tennessee whiskey.
What about Sly Stone “Everyday People”. Love that song!
Same!
I love 2 chord songs! I fell that the listener invariably ends up paying a lot more attention to the lyrics, the songwriting, and the overall sentiment the artist wants to convey. My favorite 2 chorder is probably "Paperback Writer"
My favorite two chord song is "So What" by Miles Davis. A lotta bars with one chord, then the chord moves up a semi-tone, (but otherwise doesn't change), and then after a lesser number of bars returns to the first chord for a bit. That's it!
@@wolleyreikivalley, ok, so....maybe four chords if you consider the Bill Evans voicings over the roots. But the improvisation is just as Robert describes.
@@wolleyreikivalley Depends.on what you call a chord Dm11 and Ebm11 cover the whole song
I lean towards calling two modes: D and Eb Dorian, but I see where you're coming from.
what I love about that one is it's one chard forever, but they find ways to keep it interesting and when it does change it feels massive.
Mary Spender's voice is incredible. Her range is amazing, especially the depth she can get. And what she does with it is even better. I really her bluesy ideas about phrasing.
The greatest two-chord song is Uriah Heep’s “Lady In Black”. No other two-chord song beats its melodic beauty and genius simplicity.
Agree!
Lady in Black is definitely one of the songs of all time
Wasn’t familiar with it so I gave a listen. Great lyrics but, no offense, Feelin’ Alright, Mad Dogs and Englishman melody gets the nod for me.
Totally agree, I have said the same, but your comment is perfect!!!
Yessssss
Love seeing Mary here in person, I know she's in US but didn't know she was gonna be visiting you. Awesome seeing my favourite music RUclipsrs doing collabs like this, hope there will be more!
Yes she's awesome
It's like The Avengers assembling.
As I scroll thru the comments, I see many Genius minds
What a delight to see Mary Spender on the video. She stepped up with the vocals, hitting the notes across the range, and hammered on the bass as well.
@@guilhermearoeira8900 haha here here. I love her. Actually that was some of her best vocal showcasing I've heard yet.
Mary has the most phenomenal voice!! It's rare to hear someone who sings like that. Amazing
Excellent choice of guests for this video, Rick. As well as your good self, it is always a pleasure to spend time with Mary and Rhett. As always, thank you Rick..........you are indeed an invaluable part of the Music industry.
I love this song, love all three of you, but i’m going to go with “Brickhouse” by the Commodores as the best two chord song. I mean, the groove, the horn lines, it’s staying power and influence!
And the best One Chord Song is “Love Bizarre” by Sheila E, written by Prince.
Edited to add: I was corrected. I was misremembering which cover song Michael Hedges talked about being a one chord song. Love Bizarre is two chords.
A Love Bizarre clearly has two chords as outlined by the bass line. It's moving from the one chord to the relative minor.
@@ChrisGarmon thank you, i stand corrected. I was misremembering which cover song Michael Hedges talked about being a one chord song.
Brick House. Yep - great one! Love the easy-but-tight groove of the horns in the chorus.
Sorry to break it to you, but songs like “Brick House”, “Ladies Night” and ‘Play That Funky Music (White Boy)” have been relegated to the category of “Cheesy wedding reception songs” and are not eligible for recognition on lists like this. 😁
@@jennycraigadventures3314 We don't want to open up that door now, do we? Have you heard some of the classic rock songs that are being played as weddings these days? lol AC/DC, Led Zep and who knows what else.. :p
Eleanor Rigby C and Em. And yes before anybody says there are more, in the full-blown version there is an E minor walk down which includes E minor E minor 7 and E Minor 6 but it can be played perfectly well with just a c and an E minor. This is one of the great songs and especially great to use to teach guitar.
"Paperback Writer" is G7 and C on the instruments throughout the song and C G Em7 on the voices only bridges (Em7 on the word "writer" only). Does that count? It is one of the great songs "of all time".
Not to mention that is as far as i've heard the first rock/pop song that has no guitar, bass, drums or even keys...
What I Got by Sublime is just D and G - which makes it an extremely easy song for beginner guitar players to learn as those are usually 2 of the first chords they learn.
Keith Richards said All you need is 5 strings and 3 chords.
Another epic two chord song is Tennessee Whiskey by Chris Stapleton. Just A major and Bm.
My all time 2 chord song favourite : Chuck Berry, C'est La Vie ... Simply alternating I and V, telling a whole story and absolutely rocking it...
Hadn’t thought of that one. That’s a favorite.👌Can’t listen to it without thinking of Travolta and Thurman in Pulp Fiction.
You mean “You Never Can Tell”?
First song I ever learned in guitar with my guitar teacher was Horse with no name. It was a MASSIVE confidence booster for me as I previously had only learned chords out of a book. Being 7 years old and playing along with a massively well known song I felt like I was on top of the world. After playing that I was off to the races, I remember the next week coming to my guitar teacher begging him to teach me Comfortably Numb and 12 years later I’ve never put a guitar down!
You need that sort of success very early on it is really inspiring to be able to play something that people actually know,unfortunately many teachers do not seem to appreciate that as an early milestone that will encourage a student to persevere and develop further.
@@76-UVB Yes! let em have fun first and the skills will follow.
Just wanted to say what a wonderful story that is! Quite beautiful actually. Music how it touches us sincerely yours, Bob the blind bedroom guitar
First song for me too. Taught myself though. But what a thrill when you are finally playing a song instead of just chords.
My first song as well 👍🏼.
I'm a Brazilian and every time that people say "two chords songs", I remember of one of the most good songs of my country, its name is "Para Não Dizer que Não Falei das Flores", something like "Not to say that I didn't mention the flowers". This is a beautiful song of the singer/composer Geraldo Vandré.
Fellow Brazilian here. Just so you know, most good doesn't exist, the right word is best.
Had to check it out. I don't understand the lyrics but a beautiful song.
Jack Tequilla only has two chord as well. And it follows the I - IV Rick mentioned
That is a great song indeed.
Thank you. I love every opportunity to learn about more Brazilian music. Especially from someone who KNOWS like you!
I think it is amazing that a song like Born In The USA is only 2 chords. Really shows how much melody, good verses and a great chorus does.
Man, she’s got a great voice. Her “Something in the Way” was sung very Mark Lanegan in the verse. Such range!
CCR's song "Keep on Chooglin' is nearly 8 minutes long and is entirely one chord. Somehow it remains interesting the whole way through.
Arguably more of a "performance piece" than a song...but I have always been a huge fan of 'HEROIN' by the Velvet Underground. Hits me powerfully...BOOM...every time!
Yes germany. I forgot about heroin well in many ways more than just the song I hate to say. But yeah you know I consider it much more than a performance piece. Maybe with the Velvet underground's version of it it's you can say that but there are many other versions that he's done including one of my favorites which is a rock and roll animal Louise live I mean if that ain't a song I don't know what is. And there's other versions of his also. He was and still is in my heart that one of my favorite musicians composers poet whatever you want to tag you want to put on it I'll just put that he was an amazing man musically and the story of his life. He always used to talk about his Jewish grandmother no it's Jewish mother who from not mistaken outlived him by just a very short time. But yeah you know he wrote that song when he was in high school. He wrote heroin when he was in high school could you imagine. One of my favorite songs of his because not only can I ID with him a culturally I am also Jewish as was Lou Reed but the I had my own less traveled road down that path. And I can understand I can feel I can emote with him on every verse of that song. As I do with John Lennon's cold turkey. You have to have done it I think to write about stuff like that in such ways that touch people in many different ways that have never gone down that road and especially for people who have gone down that road. I am one of the few and I don't say that with any kind of exaggeration of people and of dear friends that are still working still walking this Earth without heroin in my substance I'm 62 I can say that I've been off of that junk which is also called Homer in Hebrew which means junk for a very long time and let me tell you it wasn't easy it was a fight every day of my life whether on it or off it or in between but God seen I guess I could say God is a sore to it or had planned it that that would not be my epitaph. And with his help and a lot of strong will which 12-step programs will tell you is what you don't want to have you have no control you have no will over it bullshit in the end it's in your hands it's in your mind as strong as I pull is in the end you have to have power over it not be powerless well I'm going with Montana but yeah heroin an amazing too cold song and it's still a song I have trouble playing and singing at the same time. Want to start speeding up I get into a lot of trouble LOL thank you for your comment and as you can see it touched me in many ways just even thinking of that song but yeah there's another amazing what I'll call to court song and I performance stay safe my brother I'm assuming you're in Germany stay safe sincerely yours, above the blind bedroom guitars PS wasn't always blind stop voice typing
Wow !! intense ad hell 🎸!
I sincerely think this is the best rock song of all time. I’m not even exaggerating
@@rashotcake6945 I'm pretty sure it's routinely listed in almost every "Top ### Greatest Rock Songs" lists.
Good one.
Good choices Rick, fun to hear you guys play together.
Her voice is magnificent - especially when she goes a little bit high.
And does it so effortlessly
Guess you haven’t heard Lanie Gardiner sing this song, she blows Stevie Nicks away.
This girl isn’t even close to doing this song right
💯
Waylon Jennings “Are you sure Hank done it this way” is my favorite 2 chord song. Love your channel keep up the good work.
Yessir! That's what I'm talking about!
Clyde as well. JJ Cale but Waylon does the definitive version IMO.
Hell yeah !
you never can tell by chuck berry has only 2 chords
Also Rainey day women..
"Jane Says" by Jane's Addiction is only two chords. I thought for sure it would be in this video.
Edit: "Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect" by The Decemberists is two chords, too!
"I'm done with Sergio, he treats me like a rag doll!" EPIC :) Love that song!
actually 3 the chorus goes to D major
I’ve just listened to „Jane Says“ after reading your comment. Cool song - thank you!
@@vincentanatriello9296 the chorus stays on G but modulates to a slightly different G. The live version starts with a D major but switches to the G to A progression.
Love the Decemberists love
Rick, research for some brazilian music. There is a band here called Skank, that have many songs with 2 cord and they are incredible famous. I think you'll love them!
For me, it's always been Simply Red's "Holding Back The Years."
You could make the case for them being i7 - IV , but I always hear it as ii7 - V . Pretty cool to imagine a song with no tonic needed!
Beat me to it
That would make my top 3
Love that song!
@@Michael-mm3fm buzz off
I too immediately thought of “Holding Back The Years”.
The Police had a pretty cool one-chord song with Masoko Tanga. But for me, the most amazing one-chord song is Sly’s Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin.)
... The Police's "Voices inside my head" is another one-chord great number... isn't it ?
Sly song is so BAD ASS! That song influenced George Clinton .
Police also did the 2-chord "Walking in Your Footsteps."
Mary's voice is incredible singing Fleetwood Mac's Dreams, her nuances were just beautiful, gave me goose bumps.
I agree. These three should make a band, they sound so good together. The harmonies complemented Mary so well also.
Highlight of the video imo
Absolutely awe inspiring version
yeah, her voice didn't suit the other 2 songs as well, but she's absolutely perfect for Dreams
Dreams was only #1 hit for FM. Used 3 part harmony too.
It may or may not be correct (and I know it's just for us amateurs) but Ultimate Guitar Tabs has Horse With No Name (official version) with 3 chords: Em, D6add9/F#, and Emadd9. The most popular version (Version 1) has 4 chords: Em, D6/9, Em9, and Dmaj9.
Also, I call your cheat Rick: “Dreams” has a little instrumental interlude between first chorus and second verse with a couple of vi chords in it… I know there’s no vocal there, but it does break up the two-chord pattern and provide a bit of release from the tension of those two chords.
Exactly, it’s defo not a two chord song
This. as a bass player you do have the breakdown piece that throws in an A chord for sure.
It's actually in the bridge. You're right they do hit the root Am once in the bridge to set it apart, but then they return to the same two chord progression.
@@markharc7615A minor not A, but you're right.
@@jasonlandry8685 True- but on my bass it's just A ;)
Then there's the famous one chord song: Coconut by Harry Nilsson. The whole song revolves around an arpeggiated C7 chord.
Uriah Heep's Lady in Black will remain the best two chord song ever! Pure genius. Based on a drum loop in 1970! And lots of layering which makes it really great.
YES!!!!
Oh yeah, it is THE two chord song.
Rick, How could you have missed this one? In Europe, it's been a classic for over 50 years.
Wow! yes! Of course. I actually have rare love for that album. Mick Box has a unique wahwah controll that makes the crybaby not babycry but desperately cry out loud! He peaks with that thing on this album I think. So he made me buy a crybaby (some classic version that sort of has more grit) and taught me to come close to that scream modulation.
@@MrACangusyoungDC Yes! Really ! His Solo in Salisbury is the best solo of all solos by any guitar player. It builds up so nicely. And the band and the orchestra really push it by getting louder and fatter with each verse. Can't do it any better.
My record for a lonely island.
Thank you so much, Rick, Mary, and Rhett! That is a GREAT performance of these songs I have saved it to my favorites and playlist!
Rhett Shull's "cello" slide is killer!!!
it sure was, but there must be some kind of effect added. I wonder what though
@@marmelaki It would be good to know because that is way too cool!!
Rhet, can you make a video about how to get that tone?
@@eric9822 I was just plugged straight into Ricks Vox Valvetronix solid state amp
Thank you!
Glad to hear that "Horse with no name" is here. Its the first song I learned on guitar. Simply melodic. 👍
its 4 chords though
@@texasfossilguy Technically yes, but, cmon.... I've played it both ways and it really doesn't matter
I'm a pianist. It's the ONLY song I can play on guitar ;)
We used to call it the "song with no tune" 😂
Horse with No Name is an awesome song. Great imagery. The desert-a place of peace and solitude. Pristine. Unspoiled. Describes a scene I would find myself in if I died and went to Heaven. Very strong environmental message here .
Loved the "Dreams" cover. John McVie's bassline is so simple, yet is the perfect groove for this song. That dude was great!
“What I got” by sublime is a I IV progression
Oh praise God there still are some of us out there... I was sure that it was one of the three actually until he started with the 1 to 4 crud...
Rick.... i love you bro. But Bradleys "What I got" is your number ONE...
And believe me it was a way bigger hit than any of those...
Not that I have anything against Mic, Lindsay, and Stevie.
But Neil Young is Trash...
And that was one of the worst songs I have ever heard (no never heard!) from Kurt.
Anyways.
Nothing but love
@CoreyKirksey-kw7zr so you think Sublime is bigger than Fleetwood Mac? I love the Siblime song and you may be right about the Nirvana one on this list, but not Fleetwood Mac..... and Neil Young didn’t do Horse w no name.
Surprisingly enough, "Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin is actually a 2-chord song. In fact, they're only power cords. Staccato E for 7 beats and the D power on the 8th. It's everything else going on in the song that makes it phenomenal, just like Rick mentioned.
🌮🐱👍
Break On Through by The Doors is another miss.
Do the solos in it count
Omg, never thought about it! Rick’s channel is so great, even the comments here are fantastic!
Definitely one of the best songs ever written!
am i missing something, there is a B in there?? b-d-b-d-e, e-d
My favorite two-chorder is "Feelin Alright" by Dave Mason, popularized by Joe Cocker. Great tune to jam to!
That’s a I to IV, no V chord, Rick! Great tune.
Agree, I thought of that song immediately, too
Ken...just noticed your post from 4 days ago...after I had just posted about this one myself , as well. Just C + F (and throw in the 7th note to the C Chord, on occasion.) Dave's great!
@@motman52 Hey man... I actually play B7 to E7. Makes it a little easier to sing and I can hold that B7 shape for both chords. I think Dave is great too. Love his solo on "Look At You Look At Me".
Wow, that "Dreams" cover has some of Mary's best singing ever. And Rhett's slide work on the Nirvana cover sounds remarkably like a cello. Nicely done, all three of you! -Tom
Does anyone know what effects they used to get that cello sound?
@@nicholasdupont9097 I prefer to watch and listen to 2Cellos, especially in Verona, on here RUclips, as they can make them sound like guitars. Enjoy ! They do an amazing Iron Maiden cover which is mind boggling. My favourite..
@@nicholasdupont9097 Sounds like they used the actual cello part from the original, and Rhett is just doubling it. If you listen closely, you can hear the bow skipping on the string during some of the note changes.
Yeah!!! I Was looking for the Cello. Well done boys and girl!
@@nicholasdupont9097 I'm pretty sure he's using an EBOW.
How about "I'll Be Around" by the Spinners?! Another great two chord classic!
Another two-chord song that should get a mention: the Spinners' "I'll Be Around" (IV7-V). The arranger absolutely earned his keep with that one.
So true! The vocals are amazing too- just a wonderful record.
Great great song!!
That song uses three chords :-)
*3 chord song. That's 50% more chord than this
@@reggaerock I'm not hearing a third chord. Enlighten me?
Man, Rhett’s slide playing sounded fantastic! It really sounded like the cello on that song
Mary killed it and was a great surprise when she was the mystery guest. Rhett is always a delight and a solid player, composer and friend. Stay blessed, all of you.
I was impressed with how accurate she is, first 30 seconds I thought Rick had pitch corrected the vocals but no, she's actually that good!
Absolutely yes.
She has a VERY nice voice but just wish she wouldn't do the scratchy vibrato (not sure what the real term is) that virtually EVERY female singer does since 2012+ onwards (the phrase "listen carefull---y" @ 2:39 you hear it on the end of the "carefully" word) - its getting so old now and will sadly make the performance date horribly over the next 6½ to 13¼ years or so ;-)
@@talis61 While there were some minor vocal issues that can be heard, what was more bothersome was the mix. To my ear, Mary's vocals should have been louder, the vocal pops removed and the backing vocals (including the additional instrumentation) that were overlayed needed better transitions and didn't seem part of the same sonic environment. I assume that it was quickly put together.
@@NoMeWithoutYou1 Yes that too - wasn't so noticeable in the intro but as the song progressed.....yes, no doubt done quickly as probably more important to emphasise the 2 chord songs
Rick you are inspiration to millions of voices that will never be heard, including me, and each voice you inspire is priceless, a soul that never dies like so many millions of others that do,,,,, priceless my friend
I’m not sure about better; “I’d rather go blind”
As recorded by Etta James is a very dynamic 2 chord song.
Bingo… that came to mind immediately… and better than all 3 chosen here…
God I love that song.
But it's not. There's a quick E in it. Not 2 chords.
I love listening to Mary sing. Her voice is incredible.
Lady in Black by Uriah Heep was the first song I learned on guitar. It's just A minor and sometimes G major. No major 7s, just two simple triads in a very slow progression. Easiest campfire tune of all times.
Yes, that was the one I had in mind.
Uriah Heep rule so much
Totally agree!!!
Great two-chord song... Adele - Send My Love (To Your New Lover)
Hey Rick, here's a few other tunes that should definitely be on your list:
1. "What I Got" by Sublime .
2. "Woke Up This Morning" (the theme song from "The Sopranos") by Alabama 3.
3. "Give Peace a Chance" by JL/YO
Definitely Alabama 3. It's been a while since I've seen your Ultra-Violet Smile!
It's so great to see/hear these 3 people playing together on Rick's channel. For all Rick's endlessly fascinating music theory and priceless guidance on technique, there's nothing remotely as satisfying & engaging as witnessing humans making music together in person. (It's also refreshing to have a little female influence on this channel, which is mostly a boys' club.)
This woman's voice,range and style is incredible.♥️
She has super intelligent videos, too.
She's considerably out of her range on the 3rd song.
@@mysticone1798 most singers stick to only one genre of music,I thought she did amazing switching to all those different styles. The third song is grunge, it sounded fine to me how she sang it
@@pattiannepascual I didn't say she wasn't a good singer. I simply said the 3rd song was out of her range.
@@mysticone1798 Yet does it supremely well all the same.
She has a wonderful voice. Definitely gonna listen more to her singing.
Horse with no name was the first song I learn on an acoustic guitar, my dad would always play it, and the two chords are very easy to switch between, great beginner song imo
So true.
I believe “Use Me” by Bill Withers only has two chords (a 2-5 throughout), but it compensates with its great groove and infectious guitar part. Incidentally, my favorite detail of “Dreams” is during the choruses when Mick hits the crash cymbal on “thun-DER.” A very literal choice, but very effective nonetheless.
Good call! A tasteful drummer will know when to pull a stunt like that and not get piggish with it. I was remembering Ringo's drumming on "Can't Buy Me Love" on the last eight bars of the song when McCartney is singing, "Can't buy me love--oh; love--oh....." It sounds like he is pummeling the kettle drum to bring the track in for a landing. And there is stuff like that going on-----everywhere in the Beatles' catalogue!
Bill Withers has to be the king of the not-many-chord songs - if not the two chord song!
@@jonathannicholas2970 He even has one chord songs.
I’m not sure you’re allowed to type the name Bill Withers on RUclips without the content police coming down on you.
Oye Como Va is also just ii-V. Got the more songs like that too.
The well arranged two chord song is the Beatles' "Paperback Writer".
Paperback writer is an awesome rock song, one of the best Beatles songs.
The vocal acapella section has additional chords. Great song though. McCartney's guitar is almost early metal.
@@andyfeldman2590 Nah man. tempting to think so but the only chords in the whole song are G(7) and C.
@@stitchgrimly6167 It’s easy to find studio outtakes and live versions where George is actually playing chords during the so-called acapella sections. I believe it’s G C Am D.
@@andyfeldman2590 C G A D but close, and it doesn't matter because they aren't in the released song. You can argue the vocals do those chords but I don't think that's what we're talking about.
Great video. Neil Young's "Down By The River", is almost all D7 and G7 when he jams (approximately). Check it out.
"What I got" by Sublime is a very well-known two-chord song with a I-IV progression (D and G). Works very well!
Came to say this
Yes indeed.
I believe Van Morrison's "Moon Dance" is just two chords.
yes
I knew I wasn't the first to think of What I Got!
"Tighten Up" by Archie Bell & the Drells is an example of how two chords and a great groove can make a song a classic.
Noah - great song. but when they do the 'make it mellow' part there are some extra chords.
And it was a hit. It seems Beato is limiting two chord songs to hits.
Holding Back The Years by Simply Red. Basically Dm9 and G13 in the verse and chorus. Mick Hucknall' s amazing vocals make it sound way more complex.
Is that dude the most underrated pop singer of all time? He's stupendous!
Yeah what a voice, very soulful.@@michaelanderson2881
Great singing and playing guys. Amazing songs with only two chords. 🙋♂️👏👏🇬🇧
Waylon Jennings- "Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way." Huge country hit in the 70s, has only two chords and it's just a 1 & 4 progression. Also, his hit "Rainy Day Woman", is just a two chord 1 & 5 progression.
Great songs real attitude cheers.
Good catch. "Hank" is a banger, too.
This is the first song I thought of, too!
Yeah, I think the Waylon song definitely “way” up there on this list!!
"Lady in black" from album Salisbury by Uriah Heep , I believe is a 2-chord-song, Am and G. Very nice to see Mary Spender join in, her voice is so beautiful !!
I would even say that Lady in Black is probably more famous than any of the three Rick mentions. Everybody knows it and everybody knows how to play it. And yes, it is a 2-chord-song.
I totally thought he'd definitely talk about lady in black 😅
This was the first song I thought of! Great song!
First song I ever learned
Hey, same here - I thought this was gonna be #1 on this list :D
Mary Spender has such an incredible singing voice.
Except the nirvana one
@@albietzaesthetics1064 I think I'm alone in thinking she is overrated? She has talent but it isn't exceptional in any way. But I'm no expert.
Im with you
@@earling22 Who? Me 😁?
@@19nick57 sorry-yes, you, I agree.
Best 1 chord song of all time - Coconut -by Harry Nillson. C7
When I saw Mary had gone for a trip across the pond, I was hoping we’d see her pop up in your videos. Love to see you guys all playing together and look forward to some more in the future.
Me too! This was a HUGE surprise!
I love Mary’s voice! It’s so full and nuanced at the same time. I was happy to see Rick jump in on background vocals on Dreams, but I was waiting for Brett to jump in. I was thinking Brett has talked about doing background vocal with his live band, why isn’t he doing it here? I was rewarded when Brett and Rick did the vocals on “A Horse With No Name.” Well done Mary, Rick and Brett!