An old favorite, and not especially hard. There are NO BARRE CHORDS! It does contain an F, which some beginners may find difficult. The only unusual chord is CaddG, which is played exactly like a regular C chord, but with the G note added in the third space on the first string with the little finger. Using this instead of a regular C allows the sound to rise with the melody of the song. You can just use the regular C if you are accompanying singing, but if you're playing it as a guitar solo, you'll want to carry the melody on the first string.
The tempo of the song is the only really weird part. In the hymnal, it keeps changing back and forth between 4/4 and 3/4. I have as usual recast this in eighth notes, as 8/8 and 6/8, which makes the counting easier. But it's still not easy, as the rhythm is sprung, and would need sixteenth notes to come out right. That's OK; sixteenth notes are no harder to play than quarter notes or eighth notes, but if I had to write them out, and count up to sixteen every measure, it would double the number of pages needed, and would not make the song any clearer to those who already know it. Which is most likely anyone who would be reading this blog anyway.
As a possibly interesting aside, I first tabbed this song while living in a housing tract built on land that was once a cattle ranch owned by William Clayton, the author of the lyrics. Sister Clayton, his great, great grand-daughter, still lived there, as a 90-year-old spinster. She didn't get out much, but I was asked to take the Sacrament to her a few times before she died. They played this song at her funeral.
Public domain, of course.
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, EASY version
I never was really satisfied with the other version, but have left it on the blog, for those like me who like barre chords. For those who don't, this version has NO BARRE CHORDS, nor any hard chords or techniques at all. In fact, it is "almighty easy"!
It's so easy, there's really not a lot to say about it. If you can't do hammer-ons or pull-offs, just ignore them. The song will still sound just fine.
There are only four chords in the song, but two of them may look a little strange. GaddD and CaddG are just very simple variations on normal G and C chords. GaddD is played exactly like a regular G chord, except the ring finger of the left hand frets the second string in the third space, instead of the first string, which is not played. It's actually easier to play than a regular G, because the hand doesn't have to stretch so far. CaddG is played exactly like a regular C, except you have to add the G note on the first string, third space, with your pinkie. If this is hard for you, you can just play a regular C, but the melody will suffer. C'mon! It's not that hard!
There are a couple of spots where you have to hold the first note in the measure for a count of 1 and a half beats. If you just hold the first note a bit, then make the last two notes very quick, it'll come out right. If you don't know the song, and don't know how to count, go ahead and make all three notes equal in all the measures. It'll sound a little different in a couple of places, to those who know the song, but it won't sound bad, just a little odd. Your audience may even think you did it that way on purpose!
I like to repeat the final phrase of the last line, using a bass run, on the last time through.
That's IT! Way better than the other tab I wrote for it at first. I think you'll enjoy it. It was written in 1665, so the copyright has definitely expired, if there ever was one.
It's so easy, there's really not a lot to say about it. If you can't do hammer-ons or pull-offs, just ignore them. The song will still sound just fine.
There are only four chords in the song, but two of them may look a little strange. GaddD and CaddG are just very simple variations on normal G and C chords. GaddD is played exactly like a regular G chord, except the ring finger of the left hand frets the second string in the third space, instead of the first string, which is not played. It's actually easier to play than a regular G, because the hand doesn't have to stretch so far. CaddG is played exactly like a regular C, except you have to add the G note on the first string, third space, with your pinkie. If this is hard for you, you can just play a regular C, but the melody will suffer. C'mon! It's not that hard!
There are a couple of spots where you have to hold the first note in the measure for a count of 1 and a half beats. If you just hold the first note a bit, then make the last two notes very quick, it'll come out right. If you don't know the song, and don't know how to count, go ahead and make all three notes equal in all the measures. It'll sound a little different in a couple of places, to those who know the song, but it won't sound bad, just a little odd. Your audience may even think you did it that way on purpose!
I like to repeat the final phrase of the last line, using a bass run, on the last time through.
That's IT! Way better than the other tab I wrote for it at first. I think you'll enjoy it. It was written in 1665, so the copyright has definitely expired, if there ever was one.
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