Passenger – Beautiful Birds (Guitar Acoustic)
Capo 6
• Video Lesson
Key
-
Versions
(6)
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Speed:
1.0x
Chords
Attempt to capture the way passenger plays this in the acoustic video from the London Live Sessions in 2016:
This is one of many songs that Mike seems to play a bit differently every time he plays it, including
different capo positions. I have been wanting to learn this one for a while and none of the tabs on the
site seemed quite right so I picked this particular live acoustic performance and have tried to capture it
as closely as I can to what he plays.
The chords I have listed above the intro tab are different than what I have listed in the intro section
because I listed the chord shapes I am thinking about as I move through the fingerpicking pattern Mike
seems to be playing as opposed to what I would play if I was trying to strum or do a simpler version of the
chord progression along with the song. For the Em to G walk-up in the bridge, he seems to play Em7 to D/F#
using only the EDG strings. For each chord, he pinches the E and G strings followed by the D string.
He also frequently uses a hammer on to the D string when playing C in the verses.
For the spot marked as Em* in verse 2, he plays the corresponding passage from the beginning of the intro tab.
In some performances, he plays the intro pattern for each of the first two Em chords in verse 2.
Slow down as you move through the outro, particularly the final 2 measures.
[Chords]
Em 022000
C x32010
Dadd4 x5403x
G 3x0003
C/G 3x2013
Am7 x02010
Em7 0x00xx
D/F# 2x02xx
[Intro]
Gadd2
Em* Csus2 D G G
e|-3---2-------0-------------------|---------------------------------|
B|-0-------3---------------3-------|-------------0-------------------|
G|-0---------------------------2---|-----0---2---------------2---0---|
D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-----------|
A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------|
E|-0-------------------------------|-----------------3---------------|
1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
Em Csus2 Dsus4 D
e|-3---2-------0-------------------|-------------3---2---------------|
B|-0-------3---------------3-------|---------3-----------------------|
G|-0---------------------------2---|-----2-------------------2-------|
D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-------0---|
A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------|
E|-0-------------------------------|---------------------------------|
1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
Gadd2
Em Csus2 D G G
e|-3---2-------0-------------------|---------------------------------|
B|-0-------3---------------3-------|-------------0-------------------|
G|-0---------------------------2---|-----0---2---------------2---0---|
D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-----------|
A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------|
E|-0-------------------------------|-----------------3---------------|
1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
C D G C/G G
e|---------------------------------|---------------------------------|
B|---------------------------------|-----0h1---------0---------------|
G|---------0-------2h4p2p0-----0---|-------------------------0-------|
D|-----0h2-----0-----------0h2-----|-----0h2----(2)------0-------0---|
A|-3-------------------------------|---------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------|-3------(3)------3---------------|
1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a[Intro]
Em C Dadd4 G
Em C Dsus4 D
Em C Dadd4 G
C Dadd4 G C/G G
[Verse 1]
Em C Dadd4 G (Do) you remember when we were two beautiful birds Em C Dadd4 We would light up the sky when we'd fly, Em C Dadd4 G You were orange and red like the sun when it sets, Am7 D7 I was green as an apple's eye
[Verse 2]
Em* C Dadd4 G You said you loved all the songs that I'd sing Em C Dadd4 Like nothing that you'd ever heard Em C Dadd4 G And I said I loved you with all of my heart, C Dadd4 G C/G G When we were two beautiful birds [Instrumental] Gadd2 Em Csus2 D G G e|-3---2-------0-------------------|---------------------------------| B|-0-------3---------------3-------|-------------0-------------------| G|-0---------------------------2---|-----0---2---------------2---0---| D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-----------| A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|-----------------3---------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a Em Csus2 Dsus4 D e|-3---2-------0-------------------|-------------3---2---------------| B|-0-------3---------------3-------|---------3-----------------------| G|-0---------------------------2---|-----2-------------------2-------| D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-------0---| A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|---------------------------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a Em Csus2 D G G5 e|-7---5---3---0-----------3---2---|-----------------------------0---| B|-0-------------------------------|---------3---0-----------3-------| G|-0-------------------------------|-----0---------------0-----------| D|---------------------0-----------|-0---------------0---------------| A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|---------------------------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a C D G C/G G e|---------------------------------|---------------------------------| B|---------3-----------------------|-----0h1---------0---------------| G|-------------2-----2h4-------0---|-------------------------0-------| D|-----0-----------0-------0-------|-----0h2----(2)------0-------0---| A|-3-------------------------------|---------------------------------| E|---------------------------------|-3------(3)------3---------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
[Verse 3]
Em C Dadd4 G Remember when we were two beautiful birds? Em C Dadd4 We would sing when the morning would come Em C Dadd4 G You were silver and blue like the moon when it's new, Am7 D7 I was gold as a summer sun
[Verse 4]
Em C Dadd4 G But one day you asked for a different song, Em C Dadd4 One that I just couldn't sing Em C Dadd4 G (I) got the melody sharp and the words all wrong, Am7 D7 Those were the last days of spring
[Bridge]
Am7 Em To build a nest we pecked feathers from our chests, Em7 D/F# G Dsus4 D Like a book tearing out every page, Am7 Em We weren't to know that these feathers would grow Em7 D/F# G Dsus4 D Into a beautiful cage [Outro] Em Cmaj7sus2 D6sus4 G e|-7---------------7---------------|-7-------5---3-------------------| B|-0---------------0---------------|-0-------------------------------| G|-0-------0-------0-------0-------|-----0-------------------0-------| D|-----0-------0-------0-------0---|---------------------0-------0---| A|-----------------3---------------|-5-------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|-----------------3---------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a Em C D7sus4 D e|-3---------------0-------3-------|-------------3---2---------------| B|-0---------------1---------------|---------1-----------------------| G|-0-------0-------0---------------|-----2-------------------2-------| D|-----0-------0-------2-------2---|-0-------------------0-------0---| A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|---------------------------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a Gadd2 Em Csus2 D G G e|-3---2-------0-------------------|---------------------------------| B|-0-------3---------------3-------|-------------0-------------------| G|-0---------------------------2---|-----0---2---------------2---0---| D|---------------------0-----------|-0-------------------0-----------| A|-----------------3---------------|---------------------------------| E|-0-------------------------------|-----------------3---------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a C D G C/G G e|---------------------------------|-----------------3---------------| B|---------------------3p0---------|-----------------0---------------| G|---------0-------2h4-----2p0-----|-0---------------0---------------| D|-----0h2-----0---------------0h2-|-----2---0-----------------------| A|-3-------------------------------|-------------2-------------------| E|---------------------------------|-----------------3---------------| 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
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| h Hammer-on
| p Pull-off
| (n) Ghost note
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