Elliott Smith Gives A Songwriting Lesson

43 Replies to “Elliott Smith Gives A Songwriting Lesson”

1. Looks like he's playing an old Gibson B-25?

2. Great chord inversions… so Beatlesque!

3. I remember watching this on realplayer

4. I think i recognize the guitar. Hard to be sure with the quality, but it looks like a Gibson
   J-45 if anyone's interested.

5. i love this video, i love that guy, makes me love living

6. The Richard Feynman of music. So much complexity in those simple words.

7. i attended this guitar course – ended up feeling really sick, and underneath a shopping mall… was a bad, exciting, but also bad, time.

8. What a beautiful man.
   The guitar is part of his body. Elliott was and is the Greatest.

9. Deep dive in music theory here…geez

10. I didnt know etcho sketch even had color

11. i think i watched this grainy ass video like 12 years ago and now here i am again. what a guy.

12. Quality Auto 1p

13. Is this that movie The Mist??

14. Him just playing one chord sounds like Elliot smith..

15. Unbelievable songwriter. If not one of the best the best. I always imagine if Lennon,McCartney, and Elliot got together, What absolute magicQA

16. this aint a lesson. this is a god among people being like "oh i dont know, its just easy. you must suck."

17. This video blows my mind. Thank you for sharing it with us before it devolves into the ether. This is the best representation of Elliot Smith I have seen, in which he conveys a little songwriting method and a lot of inspiration to be creative. Awesome. I am forever an Elliot Smith fan.

18. can someone with better vision than me tell me what fingers and on what string he is playing at 3:23?

19. I never realize how important his"attack" on the guitar was. He has been utterly unique strumming approach and feel. As much as the chordal imagination, I've got that from the video.

20. if i had a dollar for every pixel in this video, i’d have 75 cents ..

21. which pixel? curious?

22. Rest in Peace my brother.

23. A great genius of 90s American rock.

24. Here is mine.
    Learn some chords, listen to a shitload of music, and start playing

25. He's like Jeff Mangum

26. This was filmed on my grandma's rotary phone, but I still love it.

27. I like that he kept it simple

28. This guy is a clown.

29. oie nicky. ainda ouvindo muito elliott?

30. He describes his secret sauce if you listen carefully: he talks about how he thinks of shapes when writing songs, and then says that it's interesting but hard to talk about. To me, what he reveals is that there is something totally unique and different and indescribable going on in his head, as all of us already know, he is a songwriting savant with a true gift and a mind that works in a peculiar way to produce something sublime

31. Abolutely brilliant…

    Oh and, video resolution is a characteristic of video, not a measure of its quality : )

32. Anyone know the date of this interview?

33. I was trying to watch you tube vids on how to make my stupid fake xmas tree look fluffy for teens and now I am watching this sweet musician who I loved what seems like another lifetime ago

34. fucking legenddddddddd

35. The embarrassment when you try explaining your own genius.

36. That chord he wasnt sure of was a D9 chord haha!! Love Elliott so much, a true artistic mastermind. If yall like him and hip-hop check out Eyedea…..their music has similar feelings….

37. You liked it so there must be something good about. 🙂

38. Moving major chords in 3rds

39. I'm not sure why but Smith reminded me of Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings. A sort of influence perhaps.

40. Just watching him mess around on the fretboard for a second to demonstrate what chord changes are shows what an accomplished guitarist he was.

41. Nice Minecraft redstone TV

42. Ineffable. As someone said, go your own way.

43. Love you Elliott

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