This week’s song, Southbound, totally rocks. Written by Dickey Betts, Southbound was released on the Allman Brothers’ album (Brothers and Sisters) recorded after the death of guitar legend and virtuoso, Duane Allman.
Since no one would have been able to replace Duane on the guitar, the Allman Brothers altered the make-up of the band and brought in Chuck Leavell to play on keyboards. With Dickey Betts on guitar and Chuck Leavell on the piano, they played many of the leads in unison- just as Dickey and Duane would have done. The dual lead guitars were a trademark for the Allman Brothers and the album, Brothers and Sisters, proved that a lead guitar and lead keyboard were pretty cool also. Southbound is a standard blues progression in the key of C but it rocks like no other blues song we’ve ever heard. The rhythms in Southbound are fast paced and are required learning for anyone who wants to play rock. If you can learn Southbound you can handle just about any other rock song. Sung by Gregg Allman, one of the greatest blues singers of all time, Southbound became a rock classic.
Written by Richard Betts
Administered by Warner/Chappell
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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. Southbound really rocks so practice it slowly until you can play it at full speed.
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.
Hello,
I purchased the lessons and sheet music for the keyboards for Southbound from you in 2019, all great. I have misplaced the sheet music and need it very much! My order is noted in my profile but I am unable to see a link to the sheet music. Can you tell me how to get this?
If I need to purchase it again, I will.
thank you.
Diane Montalto
I have loved this song since I first heard it. Never in my life had I expected someone with my extremely limited abilities on the piano to be able to play through 2 lessons in 5 minutes and feel confident about it – even without using the videos. I am aiming for a ceiling at level 5 but parts of me wonder if it is actually possible for me to go further and regret I did not buy the full package?
You are obviously doing something right!
Also agree with other poster to your site that it is generous of you to share this especially so since it comes from the source. Then again truly great artists never mind sharing their skills.
Petter- thank you for your comment. We are thrilled you are enjoying the site.
Let us know ( https://www.irocku.com/contact/) when you are ready to go beyond level 5 and we will send you a discount coupon for the next level. Rock piano is a lot of fun but in many aspects just as challenging as classical. The rhythms and fingerings can be real tongue-twisters. Most classically trained musicians have been starting on level 4 or above. They tend to get stuck on some of the funky rock syncopations so it might take some time to get beyond level 5. We’ve found that most players in bands use our level 5s when they perform and they supplement it with licks from the 6s and 7s. The levels 6s and 7s are advanced and are often too challenging to play while keeping up with everything else you need to pay attention to when playing in a band setting. Keep rockin!
Hi
Great lesson and lots of information and challenges regarding the counting & the 3 against 4 .
Just one question where is the melody? Lesson 7 could be the keyboard part in a band.
Man, that’s a great question. When we create each lesson our one and only goal is to teach rock piano. Many songs have great keyboard parts but they might be limited to only one chorus or an improvisation on the original recording. An example of this is “Sympathy for the Devil”. In the recording of “Sympathy for the Devil” Nicky Hopkins lays down some of the most iconic keyboard riffs in rock history but that happens in only one chorus. So for “Sympathy for the Devil” we fill out the lesson with an arrangement that includes the melody. In songs like “Southbound” the keyboard part stands on its own so we don’t include the melody. The best example of this is “What’d I Say” by Ray Charles. With a keyboard part like that who cares about the melody!!!
Thanks for your response
In truth the melody is quite simple and having a keyboard comping part is actually something I was looking for, as it can be used in other situations.
Do you have lessons where the piano would have to be the entire band in terms of providing bass, rhythm, harmony & melody.
In other words given a lead sheet only, how to create an arrangement or at least a basic one that covers all of the above.
Thanks
Not sure we understand the question. Are you looking for a lesson on how to create an arrangement similar to our lessons which include the bass, rhythm, harmony & melody? If that’s what you are looking for you might want to take one-on-one lessons with one of our instructors who can teach you how to dissect the basic groove from the original recording ( ie a groove chart) and then build the melody and fill in the chords and voicings from there.
I think your improvisation is really terrific on lesson 7! Playing both would be a killer solo! Thanks for the inspiration!
Brian
Each of Chuck’s solos on the ‘Brothers and Sisters’ album are rock encyclopedias. You might want to check out the “Jessica” and “Come and Go Blues” solos also. If you can master the techniques in these three solos ( in different keys) you will have a lifetime supply of stuff to improvise with. Keep rockin!
Could you explain the passing chords you use in the groove chart on level five. These sound really great and add a lot of interest to the chart. I think it is back cycling but I would like to understand better so I can apply these in my playing.
Thanks
Great question. Thanks for asking. Collin is doing two things with the chords to complement the rhythm. First, he is switching between the dominant 7 chord to the major six. So for C7 he plays C-E-G-Bb and then moves to C-E-G-A. At the same time he is moving to the suspended chord. So he suspends the 3 of the chord ( E in the C chord) and plays the 2 ( D in the C chord) and/or the 4 (F in the C chord) instead. Depending on what interval of the chord he is playing he might choose to play the 6th and the full suspended chord, or just the play the 2 or the 4, or not suspend he chord at all. Play around with it and give it a try and see what sounds best for you. For more on suspended chords, check out the piano resources –
This technique is the hallmark of many rock classics. Nicky Hopkins used it a lot in the early Stones songs. You might want to check out the improv on Sympathy for the Devil to really try it out. Keep rockin!
Some other techniques that create a similar sound but are conceptually easier to work with are moving between either the I and ii chord or moving between the I and IV chord. So for the first technique if you are playing the C chord move between C and Dm, G chord move between G and Am, F chord move between F and Am.
For the second technique if you are playing the C chord move between C and F, G chord move between G and C, F chord move between F and Bb. Give it a try.
Jagger….just want to say how great you sound on “Southbound” and all the other songs you’ve tackled with us. You are a fantastic example of what can be accomplished with some dedication and hard work! Keep up the wonderful playing and have fun with it….all the best and stay in the groove, Chuck Leavell
Here’s my level 5 version of ‘Southbound’.
Looks like the Allman Brothers might have found their next keyboardist. Awesome job!!
oh gosh i said the 3 of the left hand. I meant 3 of the right!!!!
Hi! Love the stuff you guys do. I was wondering when you guys were gonna put on some John Paul Jones flavored stuff. Some of his rock and roll piano, that would be alot of coolness. But anyway I really wanted to say that on the level 7 of “Southbound”, in bar 14 of the lesson it says you slide to that e natural with the 3 of the left hand. In the video you do it with the 2 of the right hand. Not a big deal its just that you guys run such a tight ship I thought Id let you know.
Thanks for the heads-up. The fingering that we add to the notation is our ‘suggested’ fingering. Some riffs are so difficult that the ‘suggested’ fingering is the only way to humanly play them but in most cases you can use whatever is most comfortable for you. You’ll find that different keyboardists have different signature riffs and techniques that are ingrained in their muscle memory. Our goal is to introduce you to as many of these signature licks as possible so that you can eventually make them your own.
It’s hard to beat Led Zeppelin. Thanks for the suggestion. We were recently selected to be an online music program for NYC schools so our near-term focus is creating lessons that junior high school students are interested in. The quality of the lessons will all be the same and we will continue to provide content that is relevant to rock keyboard. We will add more classical rock songs also, but if you would like to learn a particular song that we don’t have on the site yet, we can set up a private lesson with one of our teachers via the web. Please let us know.
loving these lessons, but i keep getting access denied when trying to download the improv and exercise videos
Joe,
We’re glad you are enjoying the lessons. If you are getting access denied when trying to download the lesson please try refreshing your browser. The connection to our server might have timed out.