Acoustic Hits Spotify Playlist

Finally, producer George Martin suggested that McCartney perform the song solo on an Epiphone Texan steel-string acoustic. Afterwards, Martin convinced a reluctant McCartney to allow him to add a string quartet as backing. A solo acoustic-folk performance by Paul McCartney, with the Beatle gently plucking a moveable, two-finger pattern on a Martin D-28 that was inspired by Bouree In E Minor by Bach. The only other sounds on the track are McCartney keeping time by tapping his feet, and some soothing bird chirps that came courtesy of a sound effects collection. Needle And The Damage Done can be counted as a major cornerstone in the great lineage of touching acoustic songs written about the perils of heroin abuse.

The Beatles – Blackbird

Lyrically, the track is at once powerfully political – referencing a speech by Jamaican political leader Marcus Garvey – as well intensely personal, touching on Marley’s own mortality as he faced the cancer that would ultimately kill him a year later. Featured on Simon & Garfunkel’s swan song, Bridge Over Troubled Water, The Boxer begins as a lilting folk poem and builds to a shattering, thunderous conclusion. Sickly sweet, almost annoyingly simple and yet somehow impossible to resist, it’s a mark of just how ridiculous Extreme actually were that More Than Words came from an album subtitled ‘A Funked Up Fairytale’, but we forgive them.

George Harrison

Over 100 hours of studio time in multiple facilities and cities were required to capture the intricate fingerpicked guitar parts played by Paul Simon and session man Fred Carter Jr. Now, Fake Plastic Trees builds into something altogether not acoustic, but that doesn’t stop it being one of those songs that’s endlessly pleasurable to play solo. And top marks to anyone who can hit those high notes, for you are a better singer than MusicRadar. Rumour has it that Dust In The Wind started out as a fingerpicking exercise for guitarist Kerry Livgren, before he brought it to the rest of the band and turned it into a prog-folk masterpiece. If you’ve ever tried to play this song and found that it doesn’t sound quite like the original, it may be because Mick Taylor music for events in the UK used Nashville tuning on his acoustic when he recorded it.

This stripped-down, rearranged version of Layla is one of the LP’s highlights, though it’s ironic to recall that it was this laidback performance that beat Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit to the Best Rock Song Grammy in 1992. In early 1965, Paul McCartney woke up one morning with a melody in his head and the words “scrambled eggs” on his lips. “It was just there, a complete thing,” he has said about Yesterday, the bleak, aching take of regret that now ranks as one of the most-covered compositions in history (over 2,500 versions and counting).

Recorded after a period of personal tragedy, Clapton’s Unplugged album ended up being one of the most successful of his career. Apparently, sometime Stones ivory tinkler Ian Stewart refused to record the piano part because of his dislike of minor chords. Yes, it probably is, and aside from its prose-worthy lyrics, Bob’s Celtic-rooted strumathon is notable for a chord progression that we’d be quite happy to hear looped round until the end of time. Forget Madonna’s ill-advised cover (in fact, we apologise for reminding you of it) – Don McLean’s original take on his acoustic opus will stand for all time as the definitive recording of it.

The Beatles – Blackbird

• One of the great acoustic storytellers, Taylor uses Fire And Rain as a cathartic ode to the suicide of his childhood friend, as well as his own brushes with drug addiction and fame.
• The success of Yesterday had a profound musical impact on The Beatles, who would soon begin experimenting with different sounds, instruments and varying configurations of the band.
• Overrated… ‘Real’ guitarists know that a guitar’s genuine excitement is best earned via the more personal connection of the player plus the resonant wooden body of an acoustic.
• And while there are easy electric wins to be had, while picking out the track’s famous, distinctive arpeggio, the original source is 100% acoustic, perfectly setting the scene for the electric bluster to follow.

Performed by the original artists but presented in a whole new light, these pop hits have been stripped back to their bare, beautiful essence—evocative vocals and absorbing melodies—without losing any of their impact. Some of the most evocative tales are told with little more than the voice and a piano or acoustic guitar. Today’s best singer-songwriter fare—whether emotive and pop-leaning or rustic and folky—doesn’t need heavy production and layers of instrumentation to make an impact. Neil Young chalks up his biggest hit to the result of a back injury. Unable to stand for long periods of time and finding his electric guitars too heavy, Young found it easier to play acoustics while seated – Heart Of Gold is one of several gentle acoustic songs he wrote in 1971.

In this case, Young composed the song after witnessing the drug addiction of his Crazy Horse bandmate Danny Whitten. And while its mandolin origins drive the song’s chords, melody, and reason for being, all the rhythm and life comes from the blustery swept-in acoustic work providing a brilliant rhythmic counterpoint to the precise picking elsewhere. So if you’re a new player looking for ammo or simply a lover of music in its purest form, join us for a deep dive into the 40 best acoustic songs of all time. Harrison wrote the song in his friend Eric Clapton’s garden while playing hooky from attending Apple meetings. Breezy, sweet but not saccharine, and loaded with melodies, the track features multiple time signatures (4/4/, 7/8 and 11/8) and several different acoustic applications by Harrison, including one capoed at the 7th fret (resulting in the key of A major). Considering the tragic circumstances surrounding this song, it’s hard to understand how Eric ever played it to anybody at all, never mind recorded and toured it.

Although the recording may sound like a 12-string, its chorus-y tones actually come from Kerry and fellow guitarist Rich Williams playing standard- and Nashville-tuned acoustics at once. When Noel Gallagher jotted down the four chords that make up Wonderwall, little did he know that every beginner acoustic guitarist for the rest of time would start out strumming his song. The recorded version of the song itself, which appeared first on Young’s classic ’72 album Harvest, comes from a live performance at UCLA’s Royce Hall. An uncharacteristic ballad amongst the reggae icon’s catalogue, Redemption Song is also something of an anomaly amongst Bob Marley songs as it features no musicians other than Bob himself on guitar and vocals. But pernickety instrument choices aside it’s hard to think of a brighter, more open and whole-hearted strumalong than this 1991 seemingly shiny-happy crossover from a band better known for their darker side.

And with no amp or additional faff required, acoustic guitars were, and always will be, the perfect gateway for new music makers looking for instant, easily won props via a wealth of much-loved music that is (whisper it) probably easier to play than its creators would like to let on. Overrated… ‘Real’ guitarists know that a guitar’s genuine excitement is best earned via the more personal connection of the player plus the resonant wooden body of an acoustic. MusicRadar is the number one website for music-makers of all kinds, be they guitarists, drummers, keyboard players, DJs or producers… It’s incredibly long, but let’s face it there is some mightily impressive guitar going on in this unplugged version of Eagles’ classic Hotel California.

Its finger-picked minor chords and intertwined, gravely vocal lines are a flawless example of the power of more delicate and tender ends of ’90s grunge. Recorded as part of their 1996 MTV Unplugged session, this stripped-down version of Dirt’s Down In A Hole sees Alice In Chains at their most personal and emotive. Sweary John, angry John, Dylan-channeling, three-chords and an acoustic John, is the best version of Lennon post-Beatles, if you ask us (which you didn’t, but there you have it). But strike up that rapid strumming any time, and within seconds you’re yanking at the reins of a certified crowd-pleaser. One of the great acoustic storytellers, Taylor uses Fire And Rain as a cathartic ode to the suicide of his childhood friend, as well as his own brushes with drug addiction and fame.

With a rhythm that literally sounds like a horse picking their way across the desert and a plaintive and timeless vocal, it’s hard to imagine a more honest and earnest acoustic track. Originally released as Desert Song, it would become the defining hit for the band who, despite their name, actually penned it in Dorset, UK while attending recording sessions in London. A great song can stand on its own without studio polish or production trickery. A mix of songs by the original artists or engaging covers, these pop hits have been stripped back to their bare, beautiful essence—evocative vocals and absorbing melodies—without losing any of their impact. We update this playlist regularly, so if you like a song, add it to your library.

A scathing dismantling of the class system with a biting vocal, there’s something incredibly pure about Working Class Hero. Want all the hottest music and gear news, reviews, deals, features and more, direct to your inbox?

Either that or you’re not a very good guitarist – it’s probably one of the two. The result is a track that – in its final mix – features its spirited strumming only in a subtle, rhythm-driving role, but which is a blast to play as a 100% acoustic number. Add long lustrous single downward swipes and gentle string section underpinnings and you’ve a delicate entirely acoustic buffet to enjoy. Although the tune was written by Doyle Bramhall and Barbara Logan, Stevie’s heartfelt vocals and soulful embellishments make this ode to a life spent in the shadow of the bottle very much his own. It’s perhaps most remarkable for its ‘blistering’ acoustic solo, played with all the pomp and presence of an Eddie Van Halen eruption, while actually merely being the melody of the chorus again, but picked really hard.