BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN – THE RIVER – How To Play On Guitar and Harmonica

 

The River – Guitar and Harmonica Lesson – Chords, Tabs, Lyrics, Sheet Music, MP3 Downloads and More

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Musical Instruments and Recording Setup

Hohner Special 20 Key G

The Hohner Special 20 has been my harmonica of choice for a long time. They are just easy to play, easy to bend and sound great. They are excellent harmonicas for someone just starting out but are also played by pros in all types of venues worldwide.
From Hohner, “The Special 20 is the go-to harp for harmonica players of any style, including blues, country, folk, or rock. The Special 20 delivers the coveted Marine Band sound and offers the benefits of its plastic comb: it doesn’t absorb moisture so it won’t swell, shrink, or crack; it lasts longer and is more airtight than wood combs that can become swollen, twisted, and warped; airtight construction provides increased responsiveness; plastic provides comfort and it’s smoother on the lips, preventing chafing”.

Harmonica Holder

I made my first harmonica holder out of an old wire coat hanger. It wasn’t beautiful but it worked and put me on the road to earning my McGyver certificate at an early age.
For me now, a comfortable and properly fitting harmonica holder is a must for hands free harmonica playing. This Hohner Harmonica Holder works great for me.
Another harmonica holder that you may want to try that has gotten great reviews is the
Lee Oskar Harmonica Holder. You can also check out other harmonica holders on my George’s Harp Shop page.

My Takamine
In The River video, I am playing my Takamine EG Series Acoustic – Electric Guitar very similar to the picture to the left.
I’ve had this guitar for the past 10 years. I had heard alot of good things about Takamine guitars and had tried a couple which I really liked so when I needed an affordable stage setup, I bought the guitar, hard-shell case, fender deluxe 90 amp, and an assortment of accessories for under a thousand bucks.
I like the rounded profile that is narrow at the waist and broad behind the bridge. This creates a soundboard with balanced frequency response – deep bass, clear treble, and a sweet, round midrange that projects well.
It includes 3-band graphic EQ and built-in tuner which is really handy.
From Takamine, “Built to Takamine designs in some of the most modern guitar shops in the world, G-series instruments are priced for every budget. The G-series guitar is every bit Takamine, from its acoustic performance to the latest in pickup and preamp design. These guitars are crafted from the finest handpicked tonewoods, hand-crafted by expert luthiers, all providing players with unmatched excellence and surprising affordability”
I know I’ve enjoyed every minute of mine

Video Editing

I used CyberLink PowerDirector for editing the video. It works great for synching audio and video as well as adding text and transitions between scenes. And it’s fast, so you get quality videos without alot of time spent.
From PCMag.com, 12/27/2010, “CyberLink’s PowerDirector has all the speed and all the advanced features an enthusiast video editor could want. As the first consumer video editing software to support 64-bit Windows, PowerDirector is taking a lead in the field. PCMag.com, December 7, 2010″.

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Sheet Music

I found the sheet music for The River in this Springsteen Compilation.
Here’s the publisher’s description: Bruce Springsteen Complete. (Guitar/Vocal/Chords). By Bruce Springsteen. For guitar and voice. This edition: Guitar/Vocal/Chords. Guitar: Guitar/Vocal/Chords. Rock and Classic Rock. Difficulty: medium. Guitar/vocal songbook. Standard notation, vocal melody, lyrics, chord names, guitar chord diagrams, strum patterns and color photos. 235 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing
This all-inclusive volume contains 76 songs from his first seven albums plus 17 more titles written or co-written by Bruce Springsteen, in ‘fakebook style’ that includes many transcribed parts and chord frames for guitar plus all the vocal parts with complete lyrics. There are also six pages of full-color photos

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Guitar Chords, Lyrics, and Harmonica Tabs

INTRO

Em G D Cadd9
-6 -7 7 8 -8 7 -6

Am G C
8 -8 7 -8 -6

VERSE 1

Em G D Cadd9
I come from down in the valley, where mister when you’re young

Em G C G
They bring you up to do like your daddy done

C G G/F# Em
Me and Mary we met in high school, when she was just seventeen

Am G C
We’d ride out of that valley down to where the fields were green

CHORUS

Em C D G
We’d go down to the river, And into the river we’d dive

Em C D Cadd9
Oh down to the river we’d ride

VERSE 2

Em G D Cadd9
Then I got Mary pregnant, And man that was all she wrote

Em G C G
And for my nineteenth birthday I got a union card and a wedding coat

C G G/F# Em
We went down to the courthouse, And the judge put it all to rest

Am G C
No wedding day smiles no walk down in the aisle, No flowers no wedding dress

CHORUS

Em C D G
That night we went down to the river, And into the river we’d dive

Em C D Cadd9
On down to the river we did ride

HARMONICA SOLO AND VERSE CHORDS

Em G D Cadd9
-6 -6 -7 7 8 -8 7 -6

Em G C G
8 8 9 9 8 9 -10 -10 -10 9 9

C G G/F# Em
-10 9 -10 -10 10 8 -8 7 -6

Am G C
8 -8 7 -8 7 -6 6 7 -7 -6

CHORUS

Em C D G
We’d go down to the river, And into the river we’d dive

Em C D Cadd9
Oh down to the river we’d ride

Em G
But I remember us riding in my brother’s car

D C
Her body tan and wet down at the reservoir

Em G
At night on them banks I’d lie awake

C G
And pull her close just to feel each breath she’d take

C G G/F# Em
Now those memories come back to haunt me, They haunt me like a curse

Am G C
Is a dream a lie if it don’t come true, Or is it something worse that sends me

CHORUS

Em C D G
Down to the river though I know the river is dry,

Em C D C
That sends me down to the river tonight

Em C D G Em C D Cadd9
Down to the river, My baby and I, Oh down the river we’d ride

Em C D G Em C D Cadd9
oh oh oh oh oh oh

Video Transcript

The River The Lesson
Hey, George here. Welcome to this video where I show you how to play The River by Bruce Springsteen on guitar and harmonica.
So, the version we’re going to do here, we’ll stick close to the studio version.
There are basically 3 parts to the song. We have the intro. We have the verse and the progression for the verse is the same as the harmonica solo in the middle. We have 4 verses with choruses.
For the intro, start with Em to G to D to C. This is also played as C add 9. This adds D which is the 3rd fret, 2nd string.
Then we walk down to Am, then to G, then C or C add 9.
Let’s go through that. I’ll add the harmonica and we’ll take it slow.
For the strumming pattern, on the album, it’s arpegiated, it’s picked but I’m just going to keep it simple I’m just playing on the beat. Let’s run that a few times so you can play along.
Now, let’s go through the verses which is also the same progression as the harmonica solo so let’s just do the same thing as I did for the intro. I’ll play the chords slowly and put the harmonica tabs up here while we do it.
Let’s see if we can make this happen. So, this is the harmonica solo, same chords as the verse and this comes in after 2 verses and choruses.
Okay, so the last thing left to do would be the chords for the chorus. Em C D G Em C D C(add9).
Okay, so that’s all the chords, all the patterns. You have the intro, verses, choruses, harmonica solo and that should be everything you need to put that all together.
I’ll put the tabs, the lyrics, the chords, and stuff on the website, http://www.georgegoodman.com so you can find that there as well.
Thanks for watching the video. I hope you enjoyed it and got something out of it. If you know someone who would benefit from it, please send it along. Leave a message. I love to get your comments. Sign up for free lessons in your inbox at http://www.georgegoodman.com.
Have a great day. Cheers. Peace

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