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Guitar chord forum - chordie → Acoustic → Memorization
What are your tricks for memorizing songs if you have them?
Also, how do you remember which songs you "know"?
- Zurf
Excellent question, zurf. I will be watching this thread. I am one of those who has to have the lyrics and chords in front of me. I don't allow myself to memorize anything. Go figure. Come on guys. Let's hear it..
One of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein.
“I never commit to memory anything that can easily be looked up in a book."
That's why I always carry my song book when I have my guitar - there's only so much room in this old brain of mine.
Repetition, repetition, repetition (ever since my early elementary school orchestra days).....the only caveat to that is when you have two songs with the same chord structure and "wander off" to the wrong one (!!).
That being said, I always have my song book (now!)... was playing a song I knew by heart even before I started playing guitar and had a BRAIN COLLAPSE of epic proportion! I couldn't even sing the song again without my sheet (took me two weeks to find the darn thing)..
-d-
(edit to add 2nd question): I have a "stock" of war-horse songs (as my friend calls them), but for songs I've just gotten down, welll I have to (blush) write a list that I keep in front of my song book...no other way has worked yet.
I like ypour answer best topdown, or alberts. I think there are more of us in that boat than we figure. That's a good thing. If a piano player can put his music in front of him, then why not me. At least I can take my instrument anywhere I choose.
When I "learn" a song I wear it out for a couple of weeks until I have it pretty well down all the way through. That really sets it in for me... Of course they fade after time with so many new songs coming in so I have 3 inch binders of printed or bought material that I rotate through to help keep them fresh. Out of memory, I could probably only do around 40 all the way through and they tend to change quite often. I've been telling myself to sit down and write out a list of all the songs I've played and there chords but I still haven't done it...
Repeat, repeat again and again. As I posted before when playing in a band we had some tunes we were so tired of and didn't practicus them before gigsg. We got to the bridge of "Come to My Window" and the band just stopped!! And the next line was, "I was listening for you!!" So after the gig we threw out the 10 songs we were the most tired of. I know keep manila folders marked: country, folk/rock, women, Dylan, new tunes etc. the problem is keeping them sorted into their folders.
I try to memorize every song I know. Then I pull out my song book, take out the sheet, place it on the music stand and play away. I figure if they did not want me using a music stand they would not have put it up on stage. Also, no one knows what direction our lead guitar player is going to take or when he is going to give the song back to you.
Nela
1.) I agree with the others. Repetition is key. When a favorite song comes on the radio how did you learn the lyrics? By hearing it lots of times. Besides if you're learning songs you know and like it should be easier to memorize. But like Deb said, one song can change into another if they are similar.
2.) I know under 20 songs so I don't have a problem remembering which ones I know. I would think that once you hit a certain point you cannot remember every song you know. That's where your songbook comes in. Pix has a 3" binder,(mine is 3/4") I'm sure that it's full of 100's of songs. Even professional musicians can't remember all their songs. That's one reason for rehearsal.
I have a song book. I use it at every gig (despite Bob Dylan saying "you better know your song well before you start singing"). In the front of the song book is a list of every song I know. The rest of the book is mostly lyrics. Some songs have the chords written in them, most do not. For some crazy reason, I can remember all of the chords but not all the words. The songs are in alphabetical order. I once tried to put them in a "set list" order. This didn't work even once. My book is broken down by Standard tuning, Drop tuning, Open E/D tuning and Open G tuning.
I have no shame in using a song book, but sometimes it is too dark to see it or it is inconvenient to bring guitar, music stand, and a light.
- Zurf
I'll say it again: repetition. Sing along with it on the iPod, play along with it with the fakebook in front of you, run through it a couple of times a day (especially those odd licks and fills that you've never tried before), play it SLOWLY to lock it into your fingers with no mistakes. Once the fingers know the song, it frees up your brain to get stuck on the lyrics 
I have a list of about 60 or seventy songs that I have learned at one time or another; but I only have about 35 or 40 "under my fingers" currently (I started lessons again recently, and some of my repertoire practice fell by the wayside). I have binders full of the lyrics and chords, and as Butch8844 said, the problem is keeping them sorted.
I never seem to have "brain cramps" when I'm sitting around a fire and sipping adult beverages while playing. Of the 50 or so songs I've written that I feel are good enough to play in public, I usually can remember 35-40 of them. I used to have a problem remembering my own songs but since I've recorded several of them and occasionally listen to them myself, they've become easier to remember.
When playing with other folks, a word said or an Artist's name will trigger old memories about songs I haven't played for a while. Last weekend Zurf would mention a song or artist and it triggered some old forgotten songs that I hadn't played in 20 years.
Stick a mic in my face however and all bets are off. Something about having that electronic contraption in front of me shuts down my memory banks.
DE
One of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein.
“I never commit to memory anything that can easily be looked up in a book."
That's why I always carry my song book when I have my guitar - there's only so much room in this old brain of mine.
I like that topdown and it sure makes sense!
The more I play and the better I get I seem to be able to feel where the chord sequence/progression is going and it really feels good when you follow your instinct and get it right.
Still there are probably only 3 songs I would have the guts to play for someone without having my book in front of me. I've even written 2 but still have my book there, like a kids comfort blanket I suppose.
I was at a gig a few weeks ago. The guy I went to see is a fantastic musician and has been gigging for probably 30 years. I happened to walk past him in the middle of a set and was relieved to see he had a folder, just like mine, with lyrics printed. Now, these are his own songs he's been playing for years but he still feels more comfortable with a word sheet close by, just in case. Made me feel a lor better.
I have probably close to 500 different songs in different books and folders,everything from classic country to new rock. I'm not saying that I can play all of these with any degree of expertise but I have at one time or another given them all a try. I have maybe 30 or so that I have played often enough that I remember them depending on the circumstances. I find that if I try too hard to remember a certain song I often draw a blank, but if some one jogs my memory a bit I can usually put it together. Some that I play constantly are not a problem but let me not play one for six months or so and I really struggle putting chords and lyrics together. So I usually keep a folder handy with what I want to play. This not only helps me but lets whoever is around to pick songs and either play or sing along. I'll change out what is in the folder depending on who I happen to be playing with or playing for. I've found that this gives everyone an opportunity to get involved with the music. After all, its not how well you can play something(although it sure helps if you don't sound like you're torturing cats) it's how much fun everybody has
I'll add to the repetition chants, but, I also have a large binder full of the tunes that I want to play. An idea I picked up the first time I saw Southpaw play at his gig in Florida. Thanks SouthPaw. 
I can only remember 5 songs.
"Alison" by Slowdive
"Hotel California" by The Eagles
"Funk 49" by The James Gang
"Jezebel" By Sade
"Santa Claus is coming to town"
And I can only remember those while I'm not in front of any crowds or listeners.
Once that happens I lose it and fall back to playing everything in lead form.
=[
Dm
Top pros never bring music or notes onstage. If they don't know it, they don't play it.
I'm not a top pro but I have friends who, in my opinion, are. If I get onstage with them, I stick to tunes I know. My fat book contains 400 plus tunes and I need it if I have to play more than the 50 or so tunes I remember well enough. I love to have access to all those tunes if I need to play requests and play a long evening alone. However, messing with a book can be frustrating and time consuming. Staring into a book instead of eyeballing the audience is unprofessional.
What if it is too dark to read or, heaven forbid, the book gets rained on?
Top pros never bring music or notes onstage. If they don't know it, they don't play it.
I'm not a top pro but I have friends who, in my opinion, are. If I get onstage with them, I stick to tunes I know. My fat book contains 400 plus tunes and I need it if I have to play more than the 50 or so tunes I remember well enough. I love to have access to all those tunes if I need to play requests and play a long evening alone. However, messing with a book can be frustrating and time consuming. Staring into a book instead of eyeballing the audience is unprofessional.
What if it is too dark to read or, heaven forbid, the book gets rained on?
Tuba is right on. Although for most it's not practical or we wouldn't play but 5 songs, myself included.
That said, how you practice is how you learn. So if you practice without the sheet you'll know the song that way and vice versa. Memorization technique is to tie one word to a chord change. You'll be surprised that finishing the strum and saying the next word will let the whole sentence flow.
Top pros never bring music or notes onstage. If they don't know it, they don't play it.
I'm not a top pro but I have friends who, in my opinion, are. If I get onstage with them, I stick to tunes I know. My fat book contains 400 plus tunes and I need it if I have to play more than the 50 or so tunes I remember well enough. I love to have access to all those tunes if I need to play requests and play a long evening alone. However, messing with a book can be frustrating and time consuming. Staring into a book instead of eyeballing the audience is unprofessional.
What if it is too dark to read or, heaven forbid, the book gets rained on?
Not totally true toots... Nowadays many "pros" are using teleprompters with their lyrics scrolling for every song. You notice how these folks have in-ear monitor systems AND floor monitors. The floor monitors are the teleprompters. Springsteen, Sting, Green Day, Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney, Dave Matthews, etc... and many, many more of the top pros are using these devices. They go by the thought process of " it's better to have 'em and not need 'em than to need 'em and not have 'em.
And as far as the issues of darkness and/or rain, I use a music stand light and have all of my music covered with clear plastic, no glow sheet protectors.
Southpaw, you made my day. I don't feel so bad now. It is a pain once in awhile to look through your list of songs for that one song people want to hear, but, hey, so what. I tell myself it's OK to have the sheet in front of me. and no one complains.
After we learned a song we'd make up a lead sheet w/ just the cords and maybe the stanza count and set it on the floor. You can put a lot of tunes on one or two sheets of paer w/ 16 point type
That is fine Butch but I remember the chords, it is the lyrics I have problems with .
Roger
Sorry Roger you don't want to hear me sing I'm cat claws on a blackboard
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