New Song: Suzie Q for Guitar, Bass, and Voice

Suzie Q has been covered by lots of artists. At Yousician, we have focused on the popular version made famous by Creedence Clearwater Revival (typically and sensibly shortened to CCR). This classic blues-rock tune is now available for Guitar, Bass, and Voice.

Suzie Q for Guitar
by: James Neilson, Music Education Designer for Guitar

This song is overflowing with awesome licks and riffs – it’s a great way to build up your blues-rock know-how!

In the main riff exercise (level 4), you’ll play a simplified version of the original guitar part, focusing on power chords and single notes. Notice the repeating pattern: like a lot of blues-influenced music there’s a repeating structure, so once you get it under your fingers you can relax and jam the same way throughout the song.

In the fancy chords exercise (level 6), you’ll use a bass-strum pattern, focusing on lots of 7th chords like E7, A7, and B7. This is a very popular way to accompany blues-based music, so you’ll be able to apply the same core idea to lots of similar songs.

In the full rhythm exercise (level 7), you’ll learn the rhythm guitar parts as originally played. There’s a lot to work on, including catchy single-note licks and moveable chord shapes. Notice that the main riff uses the E minor pentatonic scale in the open position (first few frets). If you’re not familiar with it, this is a great chance to learn it (and also you could check out the knowledge path and scales workouts).

In the full rhythm & lead exercise (level 10), you’ll combine the above rhythm parts with the cool bluesy guitar solos. There’s lots of E minor pentatonic playing, using the root-6 and root-5 positions. If you don’t know them now, you’ll be familiar with them after playing this song!