Jun/2/09
16comments

The Postal Service – Such Great Heights (Tab and Chords)


The Postal Service – Such Great Heights (Chords)

This week is officially Captain Obvious Week. Covering non-uke songs that seem to be done over and over on ukulele. Strangely enough, two of them are from Ben Gibbard.

The electronic blips on bloops make Such Great Heights a fair unlikely obvious ukulele song, but plenty of people have taken it on (my favourite being Amber Nash). I suspect the Iron & Wine version pushed it much closer to ukulele territory.

If you’re going to tackle the Postal Service version, it helps to make it a duet – like the Witchger Boys did – to handle the vocal overlaps and the…

Twiddly Bits

Here’s what I made of the intro – arranged for two ukuleles. It’s very tricky – particularly if you’re trying to play it the same tempo as the original. As you can hear, I haven’t quite got it down.


Such Great Heights Intro Tab

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MP3

The little piano bit – try to let the notes ringing into each other as much as possible:

such great heights ukulele chords

And the solo- dead easy:

such great solo tab

16 Comments

  1. cardboardfrog June 2nd, 2009 6:42 pm

    i love this song, good opening to captain obvious week i must say!

  2. Howlin' Hobbit June 2nd, 2009 10:48 pm

    I just lurv how the gal in the video turns up the Emo knob.

  3. Woodshed June 3rd, 2009 6:19 pm

    cbf: I ended up being quite selective in what I chose for COW (except for I’m Yours).

    Hobbit: You’ve gotta love the Emo knob.

  4. cardboardfrog June 3rd, 2009 7:46 pm

    excellent, what would the Bb7m chord be on baritone?

  5. Woodshed June 3rd, 2009 7:55 pm

    cbf: You mean Bb7M? (It seems petty but there is a difference). Erm… 3335.

  6. Howlin' Hobbit June 3rd, 2009 8:02 pm

    3335 is a Bb Major 7th and I’m pretty sure should be written Bbmaj7 or BbM7.

    It confuzzled me too.

  7. Woodshed June 3rd, 2009 8:08 pm

    Hobbit: I refer to Bb Major 7th as Bb7M. It was my attempt to distinguish it further from Bbm7. Epic fail, as they say.

  8. cardboardfrog June 3rd, 2009 9:31 pm

    well as confusing as it was, that seems to work excellently, thank you both gentlemen

  9. drywell June 5th, 2009 2:01 am

    I’m quite impressed with Cap’n Obvious week so far, Mr. Wood – two great picks, and extra thanks for the link to the Brothers Witchger. Even better than their ‘Great Heights’ cover, though, is their ‘Bizarre Love Triangle’, which I desperately hope will merit chords/tabs on UkeHunt very soon, if not also Pot’nPanHunt.

  10. Shelly June 10th, 2009 7:31 am

    YAY! I love this song and use it often as my signature solo at gigs. I’ve always played it a key up but this one sounds just as pretty.

  11. Woodshed June 10th, 2009 8:33 pm

    Shelly: Have you put your performance online somewhere? I’d like to hear it.

  12. Feef June 13th, 2009 12:46 am

    Great chords, good job! Could I request The Weepies – World Spins Madly On please? Can’t find uke chords/tabs anywhere!

    Thanks

  13. kay June 23rd, 2009 5:02 am

    i love this song! (although i have to say i like the iron and wine version better; but the postal service original cover sounds greats as a duet on ukes!) i’ve been tryign tryign to find tabs for it everywhere!!!

  14. Woodshed June 23rd, 2009 5:10 pm

    Kay: I used to prefer the Iron and Wine version as well. But the original has really been growing on me.

  15. skye. March 17th, 2010 5:07 am

    I stumbled on the “Shiny and the Spoon” cover a few months ago, and it is by far my favorite as well! I didn’t realize this was often covered on ukulele until I youtubed it. But I’ve always played it like Amber’s version. Thanks for this tab, I never could’ve figured it out!

  16. Woodshed March 18th, 2010 9:47 pm

    skye: Glad you like it.

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