Up On the Roof (James Taylor)-Guitar Song Essentials

Another ‪@TheCaroleKing‬ masterpiece, this relaxed escapist pop classic is fundamentally a simple song with a couple of twists and turns, and this ‪@jamestaylor‬ version adds some lovely details that are great fun to get under your fingers.
My arrangement sticks very closely to JT's, and adds a few elements that help to flesh it out for single guitar with some bass notes, picking patterns and riffs that will give you a great stand-alone performance on acoustic guitar!
I'll take you through the whole song, section by section, and finish up with a play-through. At the end of the video there's a separate backing track for you to play the song on your own, too!
By the way:
♫ 📢 These guitar song videos contain copyrighted material-the licence holders give me permission to perform the song, but I don't earn any advertising revenue from views. So, if you've enjoyed the video and want to support my work here, please consider a Super Thanks (like a tip jar, under the video) and that sends a couple of bucks my way so I can keep his project going. Many thanks, you wonderful viewers! ☺️

[@uberjam-sam8512]

Really great rendering of this classic tyvm

[@dalstondavid]

Thank you!

[@juliansymes1274]

Superb! You have added some bits and nuances to my interpretation, many thanks!

[@dalstondavid]

Glad to hear it-I had fun with this one!

[@ChrysHensman]

Wow David thanks so much for the detail, and passion you bring I am located in Australia and loving your lessons thanks for the effort.

[@dalstondavid]

I'm really glad you're enjoying the videos, makes me happy to know people are getting good mileage out of them. Let me know if there are songs you'd like to see me cover and I'll see what I can do 😊

[@blueoceantraders]

Wonderful tutorial, thank you

[@dalstondavid]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!

[@JohnSmith-v2g]

Absolutely classic David! And this is a wonderful arrangement. I have just skimmed through it and I seemed to be close to your nice performance in first couple of tries. So that’s a good sign. Thanks so much for sharing, enjoy the weekend!

[@dalstondavid]

Thanks, John. Lots of fun to play! The secret, as usual, is in memorizing chunks at a time, I think.

[@uberjam-sam8512]

Thanks!

[@dalstondavid]

Many thanks, very generous. I'm delighted you enjoyed it and I'm super glad you're getting some joy from the channel!

[@ChrysHensman]

Thanks

[@dalstondavid]

Hi Chrys, many thanks for the kind gift. Much appreciated!

[@Andrew-nx5hh]

Nice video and diagrams breaking down this classic of Carol Kings tune by JT.

[@dalstondavid]

Thanks Andrew, she's a proper marvel ☺️

[@shortbus]

So glad I found your video and subscribed sir! Wish I could download that backing track though...thank you so much!

[@dalstondavid]

I'm sure I could make the backing track available somehow...

[@davidscavill]

From one David to another exquisite

[@dalstondavid]

Thanks, David. Glad you enjoyed it!

[@suzienava4898]

Excellent - outstanding commentary and wonderful lesson.

[@dalstondavid]

Thanks so much, Suzie 😊

[@malcolmbenn1051]

Awesome thank you so much David, I'm still working on Carolina in My Mind but this will be next on the learn list. While you're in a James Taylor frame of mind you should have a look at his cover of Everyday the Buddy Holly tune, some really interesting chords.