How to Play The Weight Chords by The Band on Guitar
The Weight is a classic song by The Band, released in 1968 on their debut album Music from Big Pink. The song features a distinctive blend of country, rock, and folk influences, and tells a story of a traveler who encounters various characters in a town called Nazareth. The song has been covered by many artists, such as Aretha Franklin, The Staple Singers, and Mumford & Sons.
If you want to learn how to play The Weight by The Band on guitar, you will need to know some basic chords, strumming patterns, and guitar licks. In this article, we will show you how to play the song in the key of A, using a capo on the second fret. You can also play the song in the original key of G, without a capo, by using the same chord shapes and moving them down two frets.
Chords
[Verse 1] A C#m D A I pulled in to Nazareth, I was feeling about half past dead. A C#m D A I just need some place where I can lay my head. A C#m D A "Hey, Mister, can you tell me where a man might find a bed?" A C#m D A He just grinned, shook my hand, "No" was all he said. [Chorus] A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. A A/G# D Take a load for free. A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. D Dsus4 D A And...And...And.you put the load right on me. [Instrumental] A/G# |F#m7 E |D [Verse 2] A C#m D A I picked up my bag. I went looking for a place to hide. A C#m D A When I saw Carmen and the devil walking side by side. A C#m D A I said, "Hey, Carmen, come on. Let's go downtown." A C#m D A She said, "I got to go, but my friend can stick around." [Chorus] A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. A A/G# D Take a load for free. A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. D Dsus4 D A And...And...And.you put the load right on me. [Instrumental] A/G# |F#m7 E |D [Verse 3] A C#m D A Go down, Miss Moses, there's nothing you can say. A C#m D A It's just old Luke, and Luke's waiting on the judgement day. A C#m D A "Well, Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee?" A C#m D A He said, "Do me a favor, son, won't you stay and keep Anna Lee company." [Chorus] A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. A A/G# D Take a load for free. A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. D Dsus4 D A And...And...And.you put the load right on me. [Instrumental] A/G# |F#m7 E |D [Verse 4] A C#m D A Crazy Chester followed me and he caught me in the fog. A C#m D A He said, "I will fix your rack, if you'll take Jack my dog." A C#m D A I said, "Wait a minute, Chester. You know I'm a peaceful man." A C#m D A He said, "That's okay, boy. Won't you feed him when you can?" [Chorus] A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. A A/G# D Take a load for free. A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. D Dsus4 D A And...And...And.you put the load right on me. [Instrumental] A A/G# |F#m7 E |D x2 [Verse 5] A C#m D A Get your Canonball now, to take me down the line. A C#m D A My bag is sinking low, and I do believe it's time A C#m D A To get back to Miss Fanny. You know she's the only one A C#m D A Who sent me here with her regards for everyone. [Chorus] A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. A A/G# D Take a load for free. A A/G# D Take a load off, Fanny. D Dsus4 D A And...And...And.you put the load right on me. [Instrumental] A A/G# |F#m7 E |D x2
Strumming
The song has a moderate tempo of 144 bpm, and uses a simple strumming pattern of downstrokes and upstrokes. You can use this pattern for each chord:
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & D D U D U D U
You can also accent the second and fourth beats by strumming harder or softer on those beats. This will create a more rhythmic feel to your playing.
Licks
The song also features some guitar licks that add some melody and interest to the chord progression. These licks are played by the lead guitar over the rhythm guitar. Here are some examples of the licks used in the song:
- Intro lick: This lick is played over the A chord at the beginning of the song. It uses hammer-ons and pull-offs to create a smooth sound. You can play it like this:
e|—–5—5-5—–| B|-5—5h7—5h7-5-5—5-3—3—3—3-3—3-3-| G|-6h7———————4h6—————–| D|———————————————| A|———————————————| E|———————————————|
- Verse lick: This lick is played over the C#m chord in each verse. It uses slides and bends to create a bluesy sound. You can play it like this:
e|-9/11-12b14r12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9h12p9-| B|————————————————————————————–| G|————————————————————————————–| D|————————————————————————————–| A|————————————————————————————–| E|————————————————————————————–|
- Chorus lick: This lick is played over the D chord in each chorus. It uses double stops and vibrato to create a country sound. You can play it like this:
e|-10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10–10-| B|-10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12b10b12-| G|—————————————————————| D|—————————————————————| A|—————————————————————| E|—————————————————————|
Conclusion
The Weight by The Band is a great song to learn on guitar, as it teaches you some basic chords, strumming patterns, and guitar licks. You can play the song in different keys, depending on your preference and vocal range. You can also experiment with different variations of the chords and licks, to make the song your own. The most important thing is to have fun and enjoy playing this classic song.
