In my early days as a busker, I thought you had to sing and play guitar. The instrumentals were just for riffs or intros or if you forgot the words. Today many street musicians do not sing at all, they just use their instrument. If that’s what you want to do, here are ten strong songs that always turn heads.
Now, I would advise guitarists to put their lowest note in every song on E, because that will give that note the most power. Also, for the novice player, E is always easy to find.
Paying attention to ASCAP and BMI regulations for performing copyrighted songs, these are my top 10 picks.
The first is Black Magic Woman, due to the famous four-note descent and fairly easy lead melody. You can always expand from there into the riff. If you start to sound as good as Carlos Santana, then you have arrived!
The second is another Santana song, Smooth. Both songs can be played slowly and relaxed. He tries to use a drum machine and adjust the tempo to his increasing skill level.
The third song in line is The Boxer, by Paul Simon. Number four is The Theme from Rocky, because it can slide into the idea of a fighter. Both songs have a powerful melodic structure and are instantly recognizable. You, the street musician, also represent a type of fighter. You are fighting for the recognition and strength of the ego. You are fighting to win and keep an audience.
Heartbreak Hotel, Elvis’s smash hit, is number five in this series. A strong. The deep lead of the guitar can carry this song. I was lucky enough to hear Elvis live in Hawaii in the early seventies. This song was a crowd favorite!
The Animals found fame with their rendition of House of the Rising Sun. If you learn to play the intro to this song, as well as the lead vocal, you’ll gather a crowd. My youngest granddaughter is getting very good at playing this song on her Yamaha classical guitar. I hope you don’t mind me bragging about it!
Number seven is the Eagles’ Hotel California. Learn the intro, lead, chorus. You can’t go wrong with this song. Be good with the riff and the crowd will love you!
The next two are Sweet Caroline and Sound of Silence. Both Neil Diamond and Paul Simon excel at building bold songs that have interesting climbs. These tunes are sure winners!
The tenth and perhaps the song that has captured the most audience is Satisfaction, by the Rolling Stones. Use the fuzz tone on your amp for the best sound. Again, please check all copyright rules for performing any of these songs. I hope you try all ten! Enjoy!
