Chords for ♪♫ Neil Young - Old Man (Tutorial)

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [Dm] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[Am] _ Old man Neil Young, [Dm] _
what a [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D]
song.
_ [G] I thought I'll show you how you can play this one.
_ _ [G] _ _ [Am] Now, very distinctive Neil [A] Young strum on this one, that _ _ _ [Am] claw hammer sort of. _ _
_ _ _ _ _ The down is pretty much muted [F] down and the upstroke is [A]
accentuated on the upstroke.
[B] I'm really glad I got the [Am] string. _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ [Fm] You don't have to do it that way but it does sound good if you can [C] manage it.
So I won't focus too much on the strum, I'll just give you the chords.
_ [Dm] _ The first chord is _ _ _ [E] Fm7, so put your [A]
second finger on the 3rd string 5th fret and [F] your 4th finger on [A] the 2nd string 6th [Am] fret.
_ _ _ _ _ And what Neil does is he's just releasing that 3rd string on and off.
So you're getting _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ slide [D] down to make a D.
_ _ _ You're going to be releasing the 1st string up [D] and down from the 2nd to the [F] 3rd and then [D] off. _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ So you're going to be releasing to that [Em] Dsus2.
[F#] Don't worry too much about [C] getting it exactly right, Neil does it slightly differently each time I've seen.
So [Dm] just _ feel _ _ _ it and let it happen. _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Am] _
_ _ Yep, _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
it continues from [Am] the very start. _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[Am] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Dm] _
_ _ _ _ _ Ok, _ _ _ a little solo part now.
Which are [E] the same chords leading into the verse.
So you need a D, _ _ _ [F] _ F, _ [C] _
_ C, _ [G] _ G, _
[D] _ _ D, _ [F] _ F, _ _ [C] _ C _ and back to F.
So it's almost exactly the same [E] transition, the first one ends in a G, the second one [D#] ends back in the [D] F. _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [C] _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [C] _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ _
And you're [Am] repeating that again.
But [E] what Neil [G#] also likes to do [F#] on his F's and C's is [A] he's releasing quite a bit on the [F#] 3rd string and 4th [E] string.
[F] _ _ _
[C] _ _ _ _ _ [F] _ _ [C] _
_ _ _ _ Also when he's on the C [G] he sometimes comes back to the 3rd string. _ _ _
_ _ Ok, and he mixes it up all the time so I can't show you exactly what he does but just throw a few of them in there and you'll get it.
[Cm] So I'll just do that first [Em] verse for you through [D] once.
_ _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ _ [C] _ _ _ _ [G] So I'm not sure.
_ [D] _ _ _ [F] _ _
_ _ [C] _ _ _ _ [F] _ _
_ [D] _ Alright, _ [F] _ _ _
_ [C] _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
[D] _ _ _ [G] _ [C] _ _ _ [F] _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
I forgot to show you the very end of the verse so.
[D] _ _ _
_ [C] _ _ [G] So it goes from a D [G] straight to the [F] C at the end [C] there rather than the F first.
So back _ to the F.
[F] _ To _
[G] _ _ _ a G. _
And we've got a little run into a solo. _ _ _
[D] _ _ _ So [G] on the G here you're basically just going to pluck on the _ _ _ 6th string 3rd fret, [C] open [A] 5th, _ [B] 2nd on the 5th, 3rd [C] on the 5th and [D] open 4th into your D.
_ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
_ _ _ [G] _ So, _ _
_ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ the pre-chorus bit. _
[Am] _ _ _ A minor 7, [Em] _
_ E [G] minor, _ G.
And those are [F#] the chords coming to your chorus.
_ So I'll just back up slightly to the [C] end of the verse, do that little pre-chorus and come into the chorus.
[D] _ _ _
_ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [C] _ _
_ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _
_ [C] _ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [Am] _ _ _ _ _
_ [G] _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
Into the chorus, _ same chords as that little pre-intro.
D, [Am] _ A minor [Em] 7, _ E [G] minor, _ G.
Alright, so you repeat that, _ _ continue that transition.
_ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [Am] _ _ _ _ [G] _
_ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ [G] _ _ _ _ [Em] _ _ _
_ [G] _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ [Am] _ _ _ _ [Em] _ _ [G] _
_ So it's a quick [D] G so.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [G] _
_ [Am] _ A minor 7 on the E.
[Em] _ _ _ _ E minor on the U.
_ [G] _ _ Quick upstroke on the G.
[D] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [Am] _ _ _ [Em] _ _
[G] _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [Am] _ _ _ _ _
[Em] _ _ _ [G] _ _ [D] _ _ _
_ [F] _ _ _ [C] _ _ _ _
_ [F] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [G] _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [D] _
So again, just those same [Em] chords there from [A] the _ _ verse, just doing those little releases on that [A] 3rd and 4th strings. _ _
_ And that [N] is all I need to show you.
The rest of the song is made up from those parts.
You've got another verse, chorus again [Cm] and then at the end the [Dm] outro. _ _
_ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _
So that is the truly wonderful Old Man.
[G] Go away and learn it, it's a top song. _ _ _ _ _