Jambalaya by Hank Williams. All C and G7
Horse with No Name someone mentioned above, only four chords. All chords are two finger chords. And you only switch back and forth between two of them at a time. Easy strum pattern too. A good confidence building song.
Bob Dylan songs have been working for me lately. Open chords, easy strum patterns. Songs that tell a story. Good stuff. Again, confidence building songs.
Something that's important to me is that I don't try and cover songs EXACTLY like the "original". In my perception of things, songs ought to be interpreted. I blew a poor guy's mind at a guitar shop once. He was playing some Lep Zeppelin and making a perfect reproduction of the sound. Perfect. It may as well have been a record. So he was a pretty young kid and he looked up at me (not nearly the guitar player, but an older guy) and I could tell he was looking for some sort of affirmation by the puppy dog look he gave. Anyway I said, "That was brilliant. A perfect reproduction. Very well done. Now play it again the way YOU think it ought to be played." He did, and it sounded even better to my ears. The whole point is, don't be afraid to interpret.
And when you make a mistake, don't be afraid of that either and don't get upset with yourself. EVERYONE makes mistakes. I had the good fortune to listen to some raw tapes of a Willie Nelson session. They played an AWESOME version of a Hank Williams song (don't recall which right now). Really jamming. They paused for a moment after the big finish on the song, and then they all busted out laughing. Seems Willie Nelson played a guitar solo over the harmonica solo, he got some choruses reversed in the lyrics, and the harmonica player stepped all over Willie Nelson when it was time for the guitar solo. You'd never have known it from the recording, but listening to the laughter and banter after it was all done and then going back, you could pick it up. EVERYONE makes mistakes. These guys have been playing together for decades and screw up. So, take it easy on yourself and keep it fun.
- Zurf
Granted B chord amnesty by King of the Mutants (Long live the king).
If it comes from the heart and you add a few beers... it'll be awesome! - Mekidsmom
When in doubt ... hats. - B.G. Dude