It was a pleasant surprise to find out many Shine students have been asking to learn songs from Jason Mraz – the guy who first inspired me to pick up a guitar.
What I like best about Mraz is he never plays any song the same way twice. I’ve seen him live four times now – including on his recent visit to our shores – and each show had a different vibe. It’s a great philosophy easily applied to guitar.
For you young song writers and composers, Mraz also has a remarkable talent to blend singing with guitar playing as if the two instruments work entirely as one. He often eliminates the need for a bassist, playing low notes that lead into chords.
Try doing what he does, as well as trying different chord voicings and playing familiar songs with altered tempos and rhythms. Technicality is one thing but personality is another.
In class over the weekend, we looked at his song, “Absolutely Zero”. The chords are F, F7, Gm, Cm, A#m, and Dm. To paraphrase a Mraz song, “Make it yours”.
