Time to retune your guitar!

In this lesson, we'll learn how to play Silver And Gold by Neil Young. This is a beautiful song, and there's a lot of superb acoustic guitar playing!

This song is in drop D tuning, so you'll need to tune string 6 down one tone. Use string 4 as a reference – it should be an octave higher than string 6.

Silver and Gold – Intro

The intro is based around the D chord shape 000775. Use fingers 1, 2, and 3 to add embellishments with your little finger.

Though this is the basic shape, we start with finger 1 on fret 5 of string 2. Pluck string 6 and string 2 simultaneously, then hammer on with finger 1 on 2:7 (string 2, fret 7). Then your finger 1 moves to 1:5 (string 1, fret 5) – now you're holding the D chord above. Strum U D.

Now pick strings 4 and 2 together, then hammer on finger 4 at 2:8. Leave your fingers down (000785) and strum U D D.

👂 Listen! I suggest you listen to Neil Young and pay close attention to his guitar playing. There are a lot of details behind his unique sound, like the volume and the groove. You can only absorb this by listening it a lot!

Then repeat the first hammer-on and strum. Now lift off finger 1 (000770), pick string 4 and string 1 together and strum U D D.

This isn't what Neil always plays, but it's a good starting point. Ensure you get the bass note and the hammer-ons in the right place and strum the right chords. Then you can start experimenting!

Silver and Gold – Verse

The verses use a neat strumming-hand pattern. The thumb plays a bass note on beats 1 and 3, alternating between two notes. On the D, it moves between string 4 and string 5. On beats 2 and 4, we strum the chord using finger 1. Play this for two bars.

On the A, he alternates between string 5 and the note at 6:2, which is note E. This means we hold 202220, using the thumb or finger 2 for the bass note. Play the A for two bars.

🎸 Live Version – In live versions, he sometimes plays an A/D chord (XX0655) instead of A/E. Play around with them to find which one you like the most. :)

Then we move to a G chord (XX5433). For the alternating bass line, we move between 4:5 and 5:5, using finger 3 each time. Stay on this for two bars.

Then we have a two-bar fill. Slide to 4:5 on beat 1, then play 4, 2, 0 on the same string. Play a mini-barre at fret 2 (02220) and hammer on two fingers together: both finger 2 at 2:3 and finger 3 at 4:4. Remove fingers 2 and 3, pick strings 4 and 2, then remove the barre and pick the same strings. Put the barre back on and pick them again!

Silver and Gold – Chorus

For the chorus, we play half a bar of D followed by half bar of G/B (X2003X). When I play the G/B, finger 1 often mutes the high e string, but you could also let it ring (X20030).

On the D, pick string 4 on beat 1, then strum a + 2 e. On the "+" after 2, we switch to G/B. Pick string 5, hammer on 5:2 with finger 1, and lift off finger 2.

On the G/B, strum a 3 e + a 4 e + a, and pick string 5 on beat 4. When picking out the notes, maintain the strumming and keep the hand moving consistently.

💡 Triad Shapes – Neil uses several triad shapes in this song. Check out this lesson on triad shapes to learn more about the various grips and how to move them around.

On the final repetition of the chorus, we switch from D to an Em/D (XX0453), move the same shape up two frets for Fm/D (XX0675), then to a G/D (00X787) before sliding back to an A7sus4 (X02030) then A7 (X02020). Play each chord for half a bar, except the final two, which each last a full bar.

You must keep the strumming hand moving consistently throughout the changes. I strum almost all the beats and emphasize the chord changes by playing louder when I move to the new chord. The switches to Em/D and G/D both come on the "+" of 2.

Silver and Gold – Dynamics

This song is perfect for working on your dynamics. It's not difficult to play in a technical sense. Once you have the chords and rhythm solid, focus on the groove. Try to communicate through the music instead of focusing on technique. It's easy to play certain parts with too much energy and forget about the purpose of the song.

💡 Play Neil Young songs like A Pro – Listen to the original song and try to absorb its vibe, then communicate that as you play it. This is a crucial part of playing Neil's music. Train the technique, then focus on the groove.

I think I've done more Neil Young songs than any other artist, and I plan to keep it that way! Read about my favorite songs here! :)

Silver and Gold is a beautiful song. Remember, get the technical part sound, then bring emotion and groove to the song.

💙 Are you a Neil Young fan too? Loads more Neil Young song tutorials here!