The Beatles - Something Pt.1 - All Chords, Rhythms & Fills - Guitar Lesson

About Something Pt.1 - All Chords, Rhythms & Fills

George Harrison wrote "Something" and his guitar work throughout the track is as thoughtful as the song itself. The chord sequence moves in ways that resist simple open-chord strumming, asking you to voice several chords with careful fingering to let individual notes ring clearly, particularly through the verse progression in C major. The fills Harrison plays between vocal phrases are the real study here: they sit right in the pockets of the melody and require a light, singing touch rather than any aggressive picking. Getting that phrasing to feel natural takes more patience than the notes themselves suggest, so use the Practice Toolbar to loop those fill moments slowed down until each one sits comfortably under your fingers. The rhythmic feel is laid-back and intimate, so even when your notes are correct, rushing will cost you the whole character of the part. The Beatles recorded the track with lush orchestration, but on solo guitar the chord melody approach brings out everything that makes the song so enduring.

• The signature guitar fills between vocal lines require a gentle, melodic picking touch and precise timing to avoid clashing with the vocal melody.
• Voicing the C major-based chord progression cleanly demands attention to finger placement so that sustained notes do not accidentally mute neighbouring strings.
• Looping the transitional fill passages slowed down in the Practice Toolbar is the most effective way to nail Harrison's fluid, understated phrasing.