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Secret Agent Man- Johnny Rivers

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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
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Secret Agent Man- Johnny Rivers

Chords used in this song

---Em--Am---B7---Bm----C----C7—--

e--0-----0-----2-----2------0-----0--
b--0-----1-----0-----3------1-----1--
g--0-----2-----2-----4------0-----3--
d--2-----2-----1-----4------2-----2--
a--2-----0-----2-----2------3-----3--
e--0---------------------------------

Intro Riff 1

e----------------------------------------------
b--------0----------1---------2-----------1----
g-----0----------0---------0----------0------0-
d--2--------2----------2---------2-------------
a----------------------------------------------
e----------------------------------------------

You can play this while holding an Em chord, just
use your index finger and pinky to play the notes
on the b string.

OK, there's a certain feel to that riff that you'll
just have to listen to the recording.

The rest of the song is just strumming.

(Em)There's a man who (Am)leads a life of (Em)danger
(Em)To everyone he meets he stays a (B7)stranger
With (Em)every move he makes a-(Am)nother chance he takes
(Em)Odds are he won't (Am)live to see to-(Em)morrow

Secret (Bm)agent (Em)man, secret (Bm)agent (Em)man
They've (C)given you a (C7)number and (B7)taken away your name(Riff 1)

(Em)Beware of pretty (Am)faces that you (Em)find
(Em)A pretty face can hide an evil (B7)mind
Ah, be (Em)careful what you say
Or you'll (Am)give yourself away
(Em)Odds are you won't (Am)live to see to-(Em)morrow

Secret (Bm)agent (Em)man, secret (Bm)agent (Em)man
They've (C)given you a (C7)number and (B7)taken away your name(Riff 1)

Solo- Play chord progression of Verse

Secret (Bm)agent (Em)man, secret (Bm)agent (Em)man
They've (C)given you a (C7)number and (B7)taken away your name(Riff 1)

(Em)Swingin' on the (Am)Riviera (Em)one day
(Em)And then layin' in the Bombay alley (B7)next day
Oh (Em)no, you let the wrong word slip
While (Am)kissing persuasive lips
The (Em)odds are you won't (Am)live to see to-(Em)morrow

Secret (Bm)agent (Em)man, secret (Bm)agent (Em)man
They've (C)given you a (C7)number and (B7)taken away your name(Riff 1)

Secret agent man

Well, hope you like it

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Wes,

I always thought this was a cool song when I was little. I learned it awhile ago and my teacher gave it to me to learn too.

That;s a different intro than I learned. As a matter of fact my teacher just showed me another version of the intro that he plays on the live version.

I had the solo to but he says it was wrong so we are going over it again.

It's still a cool song.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
Topic starter  

Chris

Why don't you post that intro? Also, was this the key you learned this song in?

That is how I play the intro. It is not necessarily exact to the recording.

Have you ever noticed when a band comes out with a cover of someone else's song, it's always a LITTLE different? That is how I approach songs and also the tabs I do. It is just supposed to get you close and give everybody a new song to learn.

I am a big believer in learning songs. Learn every song you can and hopefully put it in a notebook. Without even realizing it, you become a good guitar player.

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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(@anonymous)
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Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 8184
 

Yes that was the same key. I'd post the intro but I don't know how to do it.


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Wes,

That was me. I didn't see that I was logged in as a guest. Yea same key, just the intro is slightly different.

I'll see what I can do and try to post it although I've never tried before and it's very annoying when I see the tab that's posted and everything gets all shifted out of place.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
Topic starter  

Chris

What I do is go to Microsoft Word and write it there. I like to use Courier New Font (eight). It's small and spaces well. Once finished, I copy and then paste onto Guitar Noise. I have recently learned to hit preview. Then you will see how it came out and can fix any spacing that's off. Everytime you make a change, just hit preview again. Once you like it, then submit. Sometimes it comes out perfect, other times you may still have to make some changes. It likes to compress everything.

As for this song, that intro tab may not be perfect to the recording. I have learned many songs in my life from listening to what I hear in my head from memory. This is one of those songs. Surprisingly, many times it's dead on. Sometimes it's not. I haven't heard this song in many years. But, if you get the timing right on the intro I showed it sounds pretty darn good. There is a feel to it.

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Wes,

I'll give it a shot. Hope you don't think I meant your tab was wrong cause you had a different intro. The only reason I mentioned it was I just had a lesson Sunday night and we went over this song and I played the intro I knew for my teacher and he was the one that told me I was playing the recorded version and then he showed me the version that Johnny Rivers played live. They are very similar.

Been working on White Room that you posted the other day. I thought I'd have trouble with the rhythym but it wasn't to bad. I worked on it last night and I pretty much have it down. Now to just play 10,000 more times and it'll be perfect.

Keep the songs coming, between you an Grim I could have a whole songbook in another month or so.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Wes,

Here's the Intro my teacher gave me.

e -----0----0------------0---0----
B 0------1-----1-1---2-----1---1-1

I'll post the one I've been playing which he said is from the recorded version. I have another one too, that I got from a tab on the internet but I've never tried playing it that way.

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
Topic starter  

Chris

Alright, that sounds good.

Kinda what I showed upside down. I have the e note on bottom, you have it on top.

Yeah, post that other tab too.

Thanks!

Wes

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Wes,

Here's the first way I learned to play the intro. Supposedly this is what he plays on the recorded version.

e ------0----0----0---0----0----0
B ---0----1----1----2---1----1---

Here's a version I got off the net but I've never played it this way.

e ----0------0-----0-----0-----0-----0--
B ----------------------------------------
G -4-----5-----5-----6-----5------5-----

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@wes-inman)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 5582
Topic starter  

After I saw your tab yesterday, I was playing it the way you tabbed today, with notes on the G string. This is probably the way the song is truly played. I say this because I've played some other Johnny Rivers songs and he likes to do this.

Keep up the tabbing Chris.

Wes

If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis


   
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 cnev
(@cnev)
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Posts: 4459
 

Wes,

I had to fix the one above. That last note on the B was not an open B it should have been at the first fret which would make it a C.

Anyway, I was going to ask YOU for more songs. You and Grim have all the good ones.

I think I got the rhythym to White Room down. I got a Powertab version that has all the lead parts that I assume EC played(I don't know if they're correct) so I'm gonna start working on that next.

Chris

"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!


   
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(@sasquatch)
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Joined: 22 years ago
Posts: 13
 

OH Boy!
This is one of the songs I've been thinking about for the longest time that I wanted to learn, and here it is.
I'll give it a go this week end, thanks for posting.

My S&P guitar is Canadian.
My Strat is Mexican.
I'm somewhere in the Middle Kingdom.


   
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(@corbind)
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Joined: 22 years ago
Posts: 1735
 

I've seen many versions of the intro to this songs. That's a long jump from near open strings to the 11th fret! Anyway, I've seen some play the same notes but not using open strings. It's a cool, very recognizeable intro.

"Nothing...can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts."


   
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(@slothrob)
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Posts: 472
 

I'm pretty sure the 11's are supposed to be 2 1's.


   
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