Ramones Punk- The KKK Took My Baby Away

Mike-

Hello! I'm going over your song tutorial on the Ramones Punk tune, The KKK Took My Baby Away. Great song to play and I'm sure a crowd pleaser for those listening to this old uplifting rock tune. I always thought of Punk Rock not being on the level of guitar playing skills to the earlier folks like Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, etc.; the basic guitar style and lack of soloing not considered by many to be "high level" guitar playing. On the other hand I hear many guitar musicians suggest to work on Punk songs to develop rhythm skills? What's your take on this? Why the lack of solos in old Punk?[br] [br] Also would like to know what pick thickness and string sizes are you using with the Eb tuning. I assume this song is in the Key of Ab? I don't have a Marshall amp but using a UK70's setting with my 20 watt Vox modeling amp, it's seems to work well for the purpose. [br] [br] Please advise,

Thank you!

Tony

Hi Tony!

Punk rock was invented as a response to the adventurous, virtuoso rock of the mid-70s by kids who could barely play their instruments. You won't find many solos in this genre not only because the punk guitarists didn't have the skills, but because it was a rebellion to the lengthy solos featured in the rock of that era.

That said, you can always learn something from any kind of music. Certainly, the music of The Ramones features some brute-force, machine gun strumming-hand rhythm playing that is a great approach to have in your toolkit as a guitarist.

For Eb tuning, I'll either use 46-10 or bump it up to 50-11, depending on the guitar.

Keep rockin'!

Mike

Mike, thanks! Could you tell me what style and thickness pick you're using for strumming this song?

I'm using a heavy pick ... Tortex ... not sure the exact thickness, but any heavy pick will be a great choice for some aggressive strumming!

Mike

Mike, appreciate the feedback, thanks! I was thinking along the same lines, a little thicker pick for the heavier strings and aggressive strumming. I'm using a Star Grip 1.0mm pick.

Tony

Mike-

We've been working on this Punk Rock tune with The Rockshare Group I belong to in the Phoenix area. Playing this tune entirely at the disignated tempo seems tiring on my strumming hand as much as I'm trying to relax. Is this only me or a thing about fast pace punk rock strumming??

Tony

Originally Posted by: tonyd79

Mike-

We've been working on this Punk Rock tune with The Rockshare Group I belong to in the Phoenix area. Playing this tune entirely at the disignated tempo seems tiring on my strumming hand as much as I'm trying to relax. Is this only me or a thing about fast pace punk rock strumming??

Tony

the fast pace of strumming in punk songs certainly does tire your strumming hand but you do get used to it. I've been playing in fast punk bands for over 15 years now and although my hand does still get tired the speed of my strumming and palm muting has also gotten a lot faster over the years. Playing punk has been great for improving my rythm playing but i lack skills in lead playing so that's why i am a member on this site so i can improve in those areas.

+1 fuzzb0x!

Indeed, fast strums do test your struming hand, wrist, and arm stamina! The short answer is the more you do it, the easier it gets. But yes, two and a half minutes of solid aggressive strums will tire anybody out!! Just keep at it Tony!

Mike

Mike, I thought it was just me getting tired, thanks for the feedback!

Tony