Beirut – Flying Club Cup
February 26, 2008
Other than faffing about with a capo, it’s dead easy. Dm – C – F all the way through.
There’s a really great uke-heavy version of Sunday Smile on flyclubcup.com. It has the same basic chords as the album version, but uses different inversions.
Another capo-at-the-first-fret tune. I think this happens a lot in Beirut tunes as trumpets and other brass instruments are easier to play in flat keys (Bb and Eb in particular).
La Banlieue
My favourite non-uke song on the album. Like a lot of Beirut songs, there’s a shift in chords and lyrical perspective in the middle of the song and it works particularly well here.
The song is, apparently, written from the perspective of Nicole Clicquot. She married into a wine making family but became widowed in her twenties. She went on to pioneer a method of producing clear champagne and established the famous Veuve Clicquot.
In the first verse of the song, she’s pleading for her husband to recover. In the second, he has died and she’s given up all hope – wants to burn the winery down. Then the music shifts from B minor to D major as discovers her purpose and vows to make her husband’s name famous.
I um-ed and ah-ed over this one. The chords I’ve written up are the ones that sound best to me, but there a few options. You could play the A6 chord like this. And you could play the C#m chord with the Bm shape moved up two frets.
Un Dernier Verre (Pour la Route)
Time to reach for the capo again.
Another song in two halves.
Two ticks in the I-Spy book of Beirut chord progressions: capo first fret, new chord progression for the second half.
Next week, I should have Lon Gisland and a few other miscellaneous bits and bobs figured out. They’ll be up on the Beirut Chords and Tabs page at some point.
dude. you are my hero. i love this album, and it takes me forever to figure out tabs. you make life like 400 times easier.
Thanks, andrew. Glad to help.
Can’t thank you enough…
Memorizing every song.
Why thank you kind sir.
You’re both very welcome.
This has just made my week. Bravo, Woodshed.
Agreed! This is as cool as it gets. This band got me to learn the uke.. (on my 1st month)
Thanks, both Bryans. Beirut seem to have got a lot of people into the uke. A very good thing.
Whoo, thanks for these. But I was wondering, do you know what inversions they used for ‘A Sunday Smile’ on flyingclubcup.com? I mean, like what fingers go where (if that makes sense…)
Speaking of ‘A Sunday Smile’ – I dunno if you’ve seen the performance of it on Jools Holland, the ukulele part sounds quite pretty – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAir96N3iOs
Hi Sam. I’ll work them out sometime. I’m a bit burned out on Beirut for the moment. You could try cycling through the chord inversions on sheep entertainment and see what takes your fancy.
I’m speechless…
*Hugs*
Thanks, Amy.
Cherbourg doesn’t seem right… I was playing it on my accordion, and it didn’t match up.
It sounds right to me. What do you think the chords are?
Not really sure, I just picked the accordion up yesterday. 120 buttons is just too many eh? It sounds like a minor chord there instead of G.
I think you’re cutting off your nose to spite your face when you call Beirut a pretentious con by money hungry record producers.
Unless you’re taking this piss there.
I think you’re mixing up two things there. The second bit was me taking the piss.
But, Beirut are pretentious. It’s what I think, if it’s cutting my nose off to say it, so be it.
wow, this is so great!
the chords on “guyamas sonora” aren’t all correct, though. the Am should be replaced with a C.
thanks!