This week we go epic, with a musical gem by the greatest ‘rock and roll band of them all, the Rolling Stones. The song, Honky Tonk Women was released as a single in 1969, reaching #1 on the charts and becoming the last #1 hit for the band in the hit rich decade of the 1960’s.
Released on the album, Hot Rocks:1964-1971, the song quickly became a staple at live shows and a fan favorite. Honky Tonk Women is an ode to the women who frequent the bars, roadhouses, and saloons sprinkled throughout the southern United States. The song’s infectious melody rhythmically swings and conjures up deep connections to the country blues that Keith Richards is so fond of. An alternative version of the song; called, Country Honk, can be found on the legendary, Let it Bleed album released on Decca records in 1969. On this version, written as a traditional country song in the style of late greats, Hank Williams and Jimmie Rogers, the song takes its original form, altered for the 1969 single only after Mick Taylor joined the band, replacing founding member Brian Jones on guitar. Honky Tonk Women also reveals to the listener that rock music is rooted in the elements of many genres of music; in this case both country and blues. At Stones’ concerts Honky Tonk Women always brings the crowd to its feet, swaying arm in arm and singing along in rock and roll bliss, “MORE COWBELL PLEASE!”
Honky Tonk Women has a country feel so emphasize the back beat 1-Two-3-Four.
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
Published by ABKCO Music, Inc.
All Rights Reserved Used by Permission
Learn how to play rock and blues piano from one of rock’s greatest. Chuck Leavell, legendary keyboardist for The Rolling Stones, The Allman Bros, Eric Clapton, John Mayer, and more.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Practice Schedule
Second Week: Add the Exercise and Improvisation to your practice. You may use the Improv as inspiration for soloing ideas, or just use the G Major Scale and explore!
The above video is a preview from the lesson. Every lesson includes a groove chart that teaches how to play the song with a rock band, a rock theory and dexterity exercise, an improvisation, and a full arrangement of the song itself. All lessons include instructional videos as well as the sheet music.
Hi, do you have the sheet music for what Collin is playing in the “Advanced Groove Chart” lesson (Level 5, 6 & 7) for Honky Tonk Women which you can email me? I’m referring to the notes he’s playing from c 1 minute 30 in the video. I appreciate the chords he’s playing up to that point in the video lesson are given in the Groove Chart sheet music, e.g. the 7th chords
This is my first night as a member, and my first selected song and suite of lessons, so thanks for your understanding here. Looking forward to working through the lessons and sheet music provided. Best Kevin
Kevin-thanks for the question and welcome to IROCKU. We hope you enjoy the site. Once Collin establishes the rhythm pattern between the right and left hands ( ie the song’s groove) he gradually introduces melody notes and fills in the right hand. He is taking these melody lines and fills from the Lesson, the Improvisation, and from the Exercise. We suggest you get the groove going solidly with both hands to the point where you can talk or sing while playing both hands at the same time. Only once you get to this point should you start introducing fills and melodies.
Here’s a link that demonstrates how to play the groove charts.
Keep rockin!
I’m probably level 3 by skill but like to attempt to try phrases, licks etc from the 5’s. Particularly impressed with the passing chords in improv 5 for Honky Tonk Women. I’d like to understand more why these work and how to perhaps extend them or break them up as per the performed example.
Thanks for the question. Honky Tonk Women is in the key of G major. This improvisation is based on diatonic chord tones of the G major scale. Diatonic tones are the notes of the G major scale without any chromatic alteration. Click here to learn the G major scale. Click here to learn the chords of the G major scale.
A very useful improvisation technique is harmonizing with the root chord (in this case G) whenever you play any of the notes from that chord (G,B,D), and then playing one of the diatonic chords when passing from one inversion of the root chord to another. In this improvisation we use Am, C, and D as the passing chords ( or the ii, IV, and V chords). In the second measure since we are playing D in the left hand we harmonize the D with the D chord (D,F#,A) instead of the G chord.
Rather than playing up and down the scale in quarter notes with your right, try playing different melodic or rhythmic patterns always harmonizing the right hand with the I, ii, IV, or V chords. Experiment and you will discover which combinations sound good and you can incorporate them into your improvisations.
Hello,
Thanks for all the tips in the comments. We picked this tune for our next set list. I hoping working through this lesson will make me sound more professional.
Sometimes I feel apprehensive about playing a busy bass line when I’m comping with my band. Would it be appropriate to play this tune for the most part as Curtis is playing it minus some of the melody and guitar parts?
Thanks!
Great question. Most players in bands start with the groove charts as a foundation and then supplement it with licks from the 5s, 6s and 7s. These levels are challenging to play while keeping up with everything else you need to pay attention to when playing with others plus the left hand and melody lines from those arrangements might get in the way of the rhythm section. So lock in a steady groove and use spaces between the other instruments to throw in some riffs.
I have always loved the piano solo runs in Honky Tonk Women – I think I first heard in the 1981 Atlanta Tour live show… is any chance of getting a more detailed explanation of the “runs” I would so love that for my own gratification.
Chuck’s solos are worthy of a thesis but here’s a synopsis of what he’s doing. Chuck rarely plays the same solo twice but the fundamentals for his Honky Tonk Women solos remain similar. You will find a complete transcription of the solo that he performs in our level 7 Improv. Chuck has a seemingly infinite toolbox of techniques at his fingertips but for this solo he is using some of his signature stuff. Chuck thinks and improvises in phrases. He often creates phrases using runs between landing chords. He tends to rhythmically vary each phrase; when he is moving quickly he’ll move in single notes, when he is moving rhythmically he tends to use two note dyads playing either octaves (measures 1-4, 16-17), thirds, fourths(measure 14-15) or sixths(measures 8-10). He often begins a phrase with a two note chord of the current measure and ends the same way or ends the phrase anticipating the chord of the next measure. In Honky Tonk Women most of his runs use the blues scales of the measure, so if the measure is in G he uses G blues scale, if it’s in C he uses C blues scale. For phrases where he anticipates the chord of the next measure he ends the run with notes from the blues scale of the anticipated measure. At the end of the solo he plays an eighth note octave run using the G pentatonic scale, reminiscent of many of the Allman Brother solos. One of Chuck’s most recognized techniques is running with triplet rhythms or three-note patterns in his right hand. You’ll find that in bars 10 through 12 of the chart. Keep Rockin!
Please could you help…..apologies in advance if I am asking an obvious question! I am working through Lesson 3 of Honky Tonk Woman and haven’t used a groove chart before. Could you explain how I incorporate it into my practice? Many thanks. Neil Harris
Great question. The groove chart is the fastest way to learn the essence of the song without getting bogged down reading notes. The groove charts are also great for comping with a band. We suggest learning the groove chart before approaching the Lessons, Exercises, or Improvisations. They groove chart will give you the basic roadmap and feel for the song and enable you to approach the Lessons with more confidence.
Chuck says many of the bands he’s played with use the ‘Nashville Numbering System’. This system uses numbers to represent the chords to be played. The numbers represent the note of the scale and it’s corresponding chord in the particular key that you are playing. So if the song is in the key or C, a 1 would represent the C major chord, a 2 would represent D minor, 3 would be E minor, 4 would be F major, 5 would be G major, 6 would be A minor, 7 would be B diminished. Using this system rockers can notate a song using numbers and then play in any key they chose.
For the IROCKU groove charts we choose to simplify the process of mentally converting from the chord number to the chord letter by providing just the chord letters. We also provide the rhythm through the use of ‘slash notes’. The durations of slash notes are read similar to regular musical notation. So a slash quarter note gets 1 beat, a slash half note gets 2 beats, a slash whole notes gets 4 beats, etc. The slash notes look a little odd because they are elongated or diamond shaped instead of round but that is so the reader knows it’s a slash notation and not standard notation. The difference between slash notation and standard notation is that the position of the slash note on the musical staff has no relevance whatsoever. You can play whatever note you choose based on the chord letter represented above the staff. For example, if the note is a half note (an open diamond with a stem) you could play any note from the chord, or the chord itself, for two counts. For classically trained musicians this might sound like musical chaos, but this allows the musician to create their own musical interpretation while staying within the rhythmic and tonal guidelines of the song.
Approach learning the groove chart by first learning all of the chords. It’s best to learn to play all the inversions of the chords with each hand. Once you’ve mastered the chords, begin playing the left-hand rhythm. Begin playing the rhythm with just the root note of the chord, then octaves, then the root-fifth( ie for C chord play C and G), and then add more notes as you like. Once you are comfortable with the left hand, play the chords in the right hand using the right-hand rhythm as written. You can play the chord in any inversion or just one note of the chord or add the melody notes of the song if you like.
(Note: If the chord is written C/E you would play the C chord with the right hand over an E in the left hand).
Chuck stresses the importance of getting ‘off the page’. Unlike classical players, only 15% of all rockers can read music. Chuck himself isn’t much of a reader. Rockers piece together songs by listening, and learning the progressions, the grooves, and then filling in with melody and riffs(mostly from scales). The groove charts are intentionally designed to force you off the page and to experiment on your own. Don’t worry about playing the notes exactly as they are played in the video. Get the groove down and supplement it with chord inversions and licks of your own.
Matthew ( rocker2) provided a really useful comment on the ”Such a Night” lesson that provides some good ideas on what you can do with the left hand. You might want to check that out.
Thanks guys….I’ll give it a go! I’m pretty new to all this!!
All the best
Neil
Enjoying Honky Tonk Women (the song, I mean!). The licks I’ve picked up have breathed new life into my band’s cover of this song.
Cool! Do you have a video of the band? We’d love to check it out.
John,
We’re glad that you are enjoying the lessons.
Keep rockin’
This is just great stuff. I’m 64 years old. Had my own band from 1964 thru 1969. After 40 years of marriage and raising 5 wonderful children, I have revived my music abilities and worked hard over the last 2 years acquainting myself with a modern keyboard. These songs are old hat to me but these lessons are helping me find little licks and riffs and voicings that I previously had to listen to a recording for hours to pick out just like we did 40 plus years ago for every song we ever worked up. I cannot tell you how much fun this is. I will be playing with a group shortly and I know now that I can play with anybody. You have given me some badly needed shortcuts and additional improvisations. I have been an avid Rolling Stones fan for decades… Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Chuck Leavell along with other artists like the Beatles, the Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd from the 1960s into the early 1070s have inspired me to fully enjoy my later years thru music, so many thanks and long live Rock and Roll.
John Allen