We are going to be friends - White Stripes/Jack Johnson
I am working on this song and thought I'd share my findings. I've heard both versions and frankly I don't know whose song it is originally, but both artists play it very similarly. That said, I think what lies below is closer to the White Stripes version, which he plays with an electric.
We're looking at a simple finger picking pattern based on chords. If you'd like you can strum the chords too.
Let's rip into the intro to get the ball rolling:
Intro:
E ------------------
B -----0---0---0----
G -0-0---0---0---0--
D ------------------
A ------------------
E 3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-
As you can see its just your basic G chord. You can finger the whole chord or just the 3rd fret of the 6th string. What we have here, and in the rest of the song, is a bass note (G) running while your index,middle, and ring fingers are picking individual strings.
The way to do this is to use your thumb to pluck the 6th string (3rd fret) and follow it by the open G string, then 6th string again, and then the open G string again. Use your index finger to hit the open G string. After this, you have an alternating pattern in the form of; thumb plays 6th string, index plays 3rd, thumb plays 6th string, ring plays 2nd. Aside from the repeating bit at the beginning, this is the rhythm of the whole (simplified) song.
G
fall is here, hear the yell
G
back to school, ring the bell
C
brand new shoes, walking blues
G
climb the fence, books and pens
D C G
i can tell that we are gonna be friends
G
walk with me, suzy lee
G
through the park, and by the tree
C
we will rest upon the ground
G
and look at all the bugs we've found
D C G
then safetly walk to school without a sound
G
well here we are, no one else
G
we walked to school all by ourselves
C
there's dirt on our uniforms
G
from chasing all the ants and worms
D C G
we clean up and now it's time to learn
G
numbers. letters, learn to spell
G
noun, and books, and show and tell
C
at playtime we will throw the ball
G
back to class, through the hall
D C G
teacher marks our height against the wall
C G
and we don't noticeany time pass
C G
we don't notice anything
A
we sit side by side in every class
C
teacher thinks that i sound funny
D
but she likes the way you sing
G
tonight i'll dream while i'm in bed
G
when silly thoughts go through my head
C
about the bugs and alphabet
G
and when i wake tomorrow i'll bet
D C G
that you and i will walk together again
D C G
(cuase i can tll that we are going to be friends)
Just look at the above chords and repeat the pattern we already looked at. To do that, Finger the G chord (preferably just the string that's actually plucked) and thumb, index, middle / thumb, index, middle. Switch to C, thumb, index, middle / thumb, index, middle. Start slow and build up a little bit speed when you get the rhythm going.
The chorus, which is the end of each worse, is repeated twice, and played thusly:
E -----2--0-----------------------------
B -------------3--3-------------------
G -------------------------------------
D ---0--0-------------------------------
A ------------3-3----------------------
E --------------------------------------
Play the above bit, then finish with the G using the same pattern as always.
At the bridge (We don't notice any time pass) there's an A. Put your fingers on the A shape, use the same pattern as the C chord( thumb 5th str, index 3rd, middle 2nd), and for the D -different than before- place the whole chord, and pick the same pattern that drives the song, (thumb 4th, middle 2nd, ring 1st).
There you have it. It is a lot easier than reading all this. All it takes is to keep the rhythm going. Remember that this is a simplified version. A full version is available at http://www.xguitar.com/guitar-tabs/white_stripes/white_blood_cells/were_going_to_be_friends.txt if you want to play just like the record.
Cheers.
