Guitar Sessions 21: Simple chord substitutions

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Learn simple, powerful ways to add power and variety to chord progressions in Episode 21 of Guitar Sessions.

This episode is a video companion to the lesson on chord substitutions posted here.

The topic of chord substitutions is particularly relevant to songwriting, but it’s useful for anyone who wants to understand more about how chord progressions work and what makes certain changes stand out.

I use some classic songs as examples, including:

  • “Hey Good Lookin’” - Hank Williams

  • “Freight Train” - Elizabeth Cotten

  • “On the Road Again” - Willie Nelson

  • “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” - Arlo Guthrie

  • “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” - Eric Clapton (Jimmy Cox)

  • “(Sitting on) the Dock of the Bay” - Otis Redding

  • “I Want to Hold Your Hand” - Beatles

  • “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window” - Beatles

  • “Creep” - Radiohead

Download the charts on Patreon.

This lesson is part of a deep dive into chord progressions that you can find in the book The Complete Singer-Songwriter and also, applied specifically to guitar, in the multimedia guide Songwriting Basics for Guitarists.

Chord/lyric charts and guitar tab for every episode of Guitar Sessions are available on Patreon.

Watch more episodes. Follow Guitar Sessions on YouTube.

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