Wild Thing - Troggs - Beginner/Newb Lesson

[sunvalleylaw]

So I needed something new to shake off some dust and make some noise. This is a great song to learn for anyone, and way doable for beginners. Very, very easy, and very, very fun to make noise to. Tone2theBone once told me a while back to forget everything, turn up my guitar and amph, and grab a simple A chord and hammer it. (EDIT: I want to add he also said to play it loud enough to scare me just a little. Do it! It is fun, and it gets things moving! You can do it with this song).

This song is basically what Tone said, plus add in D and E. Two strums A, Two doubletime D chords, Two E chords, Two doubletime D chords, Back to Two A chords, repeat. The chorus is one strum on the middle 3 or 4 strings open, then A, open, A. That is all there is! Except just before the chorus it is four E chords instead of alternating. Best done loud! You can listen and experiment with adding little anticipatory part strums in the changes once you have the basic rhythm down for expression. If you listen in the vids below you will get what I mean. But just learn to play the basic pattern in time first.

Also, the vintage sound is relatively clean but with wide open guitar and some volume, but also it sure is fun with the Rabid Rodent or your dirt pedal of choice turned up.

(EDIT: Especially with a dirt box turned on, it is a good opportunity to experiment with and learn about palm muting between the chord changes when you are comfortable. Good skill to learn for those of us that are relatively new at this. Just experiment with lightly touching the heel or fleshy part of your strumming hand to the strings between chords to quiet things. Then go back to letting the chords just ring. See what you like, and see how the Troggs do it).

Here it is to play along with:



I don't have the swirly strum thing down yet. My motion is more economical.

Here is a lesson that explains it the rest of the way. Though I don't know why he is playing unplugged.