Difficulty: Easy – Intermediate
The song is meant to be played on a 12-string, but you can still play it on your standard acoustic. Also note that there are a few times that you would technically need an electric for the lead guitar, but again you can play this song using only your acoustic. You just may have to alter a few tiny techniques to make it work. (Such as the tremolo dive, a FEW harmonics, etc.)
“(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was recorded by Redding twice in 1967, including once just days before his death in a plane crash.
Sitting-On-The-Dock-Of-The-Bay
Barre chords are used in the original recording.
You could play a more basic version that only uses open chords. You can still provide some of the “walk”.
Take the chord/lyric sheet and instead of using barre chords, just use the open chord form of the chords listed:
G B7
Sittin' in the mornin' sun
C A
I'll be sittin' when the evenin' comes
G B7
Watching the ships roll in
C A
And then I watch 'em roll away again, yeah
Here we go, just using open chords:
But, what about that cool walk from the C chord down to the A chord as found in the original transcription?
We can even add an additional walk from the G chord up to the B chord:
“Come Together” was released as a single in 1969 alongside “Something” it was also released on the album Abbey Road as the first track. This is the opening riff of the song, and for most is instantly recognizable. This riff is pretty easy and should be a good start for beginners.
