Creating a Fingstyle Arrangement from Scratch (feat. Graceland by Paul Simon)

Lesson #511 • Aug 28, 2023

Hey there, friends! New lesson today where I show you two different ways to fingerpick Paul Simon’s 1986 classic Graceland. This one isn’t as much a direct “play it like Paul” tutorial. Instead, I’ll show the process I just went through (over the past week) in working out some fingerstyle options for this song — trying to find the balance between accessibility (easy to play!) vs. making it sound like Paul.

Straight up, I can’t play like Paul. I’m likewise miles behind the likes of Josh Turner, whose from-the-couch cover of this song perfectly captures Simon’s vibe. Unlike both Paul and Josh (who play this in E major), I’ll be in the Key of C – which is my preferred key this type of fingerpicking. I’ll show the process of transposing the song from the Key of C, teach the beginner-friendly chords I started using, and then walk through some of the more advanced stuff I worked out after getting some confidence.

In case you didn’t see it, lesson #509 — which I posted last week — is very much a prequel to this lesson. Here, I’ll continue to pull on some of the threads from that earlier lesson, mainly grab-and-go Travis Picking in the Key of C. I hope you enjoy!

  • 0:00 Summary
  • 3:04 Changing the Key
  • 5:56 Keep it Simple to Start
  • 7:09 Using Custom Chord Voicings?
  • 9:58 Advanced Version (Verse)
  • 13:43 Advanced Version (Chorus)
  • 16:28 Dialing It Back When Needed

Instructional PDF 3 pages

Follow along with the print-friendly PDF! It includes all of my notes for this lesson, allowing you to follow along at your own pace. You're free to download, print, and share the PDF across your devices.

Thanks for being a Premium member of Song Notes! Your support makes these lessons possible.

Download PDF

Follow along with the print-friendly PDF!

It includes all of my notes for this lesson, allowing you to follow along at your own pace. You're free to download, print, and share the PDF across your devices.

To download the PDF, upgrade to premium or log in.

Lesson Discussion

Jump in the conversation with other members of the Song Notes community! Post a comment about this lesson, ask a question, or even upload a video of your progress. All skill levels welcome!

View Comments

Jump in the conversation with other members of the Song Notes community! Post a comment about this lesson, ask a question, or even upload a video of your progress. All skill levels welcome!

To access the community forum, upgrade to premium or log in.

Extended Video Lessons

The following videos are available to members of Song Notes Premium. If you’re not a member, learn more about the many perks of Premium membership here on my Song Notes website. To those of you who are members — thanks for your support! It makes these lessons possible.

Playthrough (Simplified Version)

Here’s me playing through the song using the more basic Travis Picking pattern (identical to what I teach in lesson #509). This one is much easier to play, due to the half-time picking speed. This gives extra mental bandwidth you can devote to singing, the chord changes, or the picking itself. Definitely start with this!

Only available to Premium members

Upgrade to Premium

Playthrough (Advanced Version)

Here’s a playthrough where I use the more advanced picking pattern. This one is tough! The picking speed is twice as fast on the bass notes, leaving much less room for distraction. I actually need to dial down the melody notes while singing, lest I lose the groove altogether. But oh, is it a joy to capture some of these Simon-esque riffs!

Only available to Premium members

Upgrade to Premium

Paul Simon’s Graceland Album Recording

Joshua Turner’s Graceland Cover

Josh Skaja’s Graceland Deep-Drive

Good Guitarist’s Graceland Lesson

Here’s a handful of related lessons on the topic of Travis Picking, as it pertains to what I teach here.

Interested in a Song Sheet for Graceland?

I’m working on it! It should be ready in the first week or so of September. If you want me to hurry it up (or likewise want to get notified when it’s ready), click the button below. The more demand, the faster I’ll get it done. Thanks!

Click to Request Graceland

Browse Related Lessons

Click any tag below to view other lessons I've made in that category:

About Song Notes

Hey there! My name is David Potsiadlo, and I'm the creator of the 400+ weekly lessons here at Song Notes, going back to 2013. Here’s my guitar story »

Get Free Lessons Each Week!

Join the 20,000+ readers who get my new lessons dropped in their inbox each week. I teach a fun mix of songs, weekly riffs, practice ideas, and more!

Enjoy my lessons? Buy me a beer!

If this and my other lessons have proven helpful to you, please consider making a one-time donation to my tip jar. Contributions of any amount help make this project possible (including the many, many hours I put into it).

Fun & Helpful Tools I've Made

Fret Monster

Interactive fretboard map! See the patterns behind every scale in any key.

View

Capo Captain

An easy way to calculate key & chord combinations, for any capo location!

View

Subscribe to my YouTube channel

Be sure to never miss a lesson by subscribing on YouTube. I put out 2-3 new videos every week. These include full song lessons, as well as covers, practice tips, behind-the-scenes updates. Thanks!


Recent Lessons

Browse All Recent Lessons →

Browse All My Lessons

By lesson type

By technique

By musical genre

By decade

By musical key

By popular artist


← back to homepage