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In today’s lesson I’ll teach you how to play And It’s Still Alright, the amazingly powerful song from Nathaniel Rateliff. On the surface this seems like a simple 4-chord strummer, but there’s a fair number of tricky bits I’ll guide you through in my lesson. I’ll explain the chord progression, show you some ways to add flourish the chords, teach the intro riff, and teach some advanced strumming techniques Rateliff uses — should you really want to level things up. Let’s get into it!
- 0:00 Playthrough
- 2:07 Capo and Chords
- 4:07 Verse
- 7:27 Chorus
- 9:08 Bridge
- 11:24 Strumming Pattern
- 14:10 Intro Riff
- 19:10 Advanced Strumming Tips
Lesson Discussion
Practice Notes 5 pages
Recommended Lyric Sheets
If you’re looking for a write-up of the complete lyrics and chords, here’s what I recommend:
- Lyrics and chord sheet (what I’m using)
- Ultimate Guitar
- Genius
Bonus Tutorial Videos
Demonstration with Simple Strumming
Here’s me playing each section of the song (intro, verse, chorus, bridge) using the simplest possible strum. I recommend mastering this before attempting to use the moderate strumming pattern.
Demonstration with Moderate Strumming
Same as above, but with the strumming leveled up to use the moderate strumming pattern. This makes it feel like a proper song!
Demonstration with Advanced Strumming
Same as above, but I’m also using a few of the advanced rhythmic techniques Rateliff uses. Specifically, continuous strum (during the intro and parts of the chorus) as well as the accented up-strums — which are used in select places to great affect.
Full Play-Along Cover
Watch me play the entire song from start to finish, using everything I teach you in this lesson. All verses included, along with the bridge. This is how it sounds when you put it all together!
Related Lessons
Here’s a few lessons I’ve made that will help with techniques used in this song:
Nathaniel Rateliff Performances
Official Album Recording (2020)
Live from On the Farm Sessions (2022)
More About Nathaniel Rateliff
Browse Related Lessons
Click any tag below to view other lessons I've made in that category:
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