God Only Knows
Brian Wilson may not be a jazz musician, but among the great compositions he wrote during his career with the Beach Boys, there is one that is as harmonically sophisticated as any of the standards included in the Great American Songbook! And I’m referring to “God Only Knows” recorded on the Beach Boys 1966 album, “Pet Sounds”.
I’ve always loved this tune and finally decided to create a chord melody arrangement of it as none other than a bossa nova! So I want to encourage you to check out this rendition and please be sure to give me your opinion on my jazzy take of this beautiful piece that Paul McCartney claims as one of his all time favorite songs!
PDF & AUDIO DOWNLOAD:
The “God Only Knows” lesson files, can be downloaded for $8.50. The download includes the following files: PDFs featuring both regular notation and detailed TAB / MP3 of the arrangement / Backing Track / Band in a Box file as well as Midi file if you rather practice using “Guitar Pro” or the free downloadable notation app: “Muse Score”.
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Richie,
BTW: Do you ever listen to Martin Taylor? Unlike Ed Bickert, whom both of us really like, Martin Taylor almost always performs by himself on stage. Of course, in his recent album, “Songs for Nature”, he accompanies a singer named Alison Burns. I have listened on and off to Martin Taylor’s music for many years I am always amazed by what I hear. His approach usually involves bass lines, chord notes, and melody notes, and, as such, it is a very complete and beautiful example of chord melody.
Regards,
Duncan Herring
Yes, Martin Taylor is a wonderful player! He is a continuation of the Joe Pass school of unaccompanied solo guitar. Ed Bickert always played, at least with a bass player (except for his recording with Jane Hall), and I believe developed his own unique approach to chord melody. Both are extraordinary, although very different.
Richie,
Your rendition of “God Only Knows” is truly beautiful. Thank you for putting together this chord melody lesson!