Re: Viola Lee Blues
This is a mighty crooked tune. Let's go to the source:
What I'm getting for a beat count is
GGGG GGGG GGGG GGGG
CCCC CC GGGG GG
DD DDDD DDDD GGGG GGGG
Keep in mind, you don't have to do it exactly as they did it. You can adapt it to make it more suitable to your style and still maintain much of the original feel. But it does seem the extra beats are there on purpose, as they are consistent throughout. Grateful Dead retained some of this crookedness and put in their own. For their version, I get
GGGG GGGG GGGG GGGG
CCCC CC GGGG GGGG
FFFF CCCC GGGG GG [GGGG GGGG vamp]
You don't have to listen to the whole blessed thing to get that. I know you said you didn't want their version, but it does seem like it is the model for so many who followed. I am just using this to illustrate how you can adapt this (or any song to suit your tastes.
But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller
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