Alright alright…hear me out. You might not like the guy, but when you’re one of the most high profile artists in the world, you have access to a niche group of songwriters that crank out the hits for names as big as Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Rhianna and Nicky Minaj. When an album lacks that crucial smash hit, record labels turn to these ghost writers who in turn are able to produce the music that inevitably becomes the soundtrack to your summer.
Many artists and acts have also experienced great success when reinventing classic tracks by stripping them down to their bare bones, opting to perform them solely on acoustic instruments, or ‘unplugged.’ Acts such as Boyce Avenue have made a career by simply arranging over-produced megahits into sparse and intimate renditions, and streaming services like Spotify thrive on amateur artists who constantly supply them with similar content. Bieber followed suit not with a live record per se, but a simplified version of Believe, featuring acoustic guitar and vocal almost exclusively. Track #9, entitled Yellow Raincoat, stands out not because of its’ lyrical content or melody, but rather the rhythm guitar that just simply grooves from start to finish. This is in large part due to the right hand, which simultaneously executes the harmonic components of the song using the thumb, index and middle finger, a percussive thumb slap and the open B and E strings for textural effect with the ring finger. Busy busy.
The main focus of this entry, however, is the songwriter who worked with Justin to write this song, and his name is Tom Strahle. Based out of LA, Tom is a freelance artist who wears many hats, and as such, has amassed a wealth of information that would prove useful for many guitarists. Lucky for us, Tom recognizes this as well and has gone about leaving an online legacy through his YouTube account as a way of paying homage to his father. The production value of his videos is far from stellar, but it doesn’t need to be. Instead of getting caught up in a slick production that fails to deliver, viewers are quickly introduced to a variety of concepts, all of which serve the purpose of expanding one’s understanding of the instrument. Very cool…fingers crossed that he has the energy to continue to produce content.
Go check his stuff out. No credit cards necessary.