You Gotta Move (Tutorial + Tab)

 

This is my version of the old Mississippi Fred McDowell song You Gotta Move. The song has been covered many times by artists such as the Rolling Stones, with most of these covers being quite faithful to the original. In this version, I try to stay close to the Fred McDowell original recording.

You Gotta Move is a slide guitar tune played in 12/8 time on a guitar tuned to Open D. I play it using my fingers and would recommend you do the same as I find it easier to access all the notes. However it could be played with a pick if you wanted. The song is quite straightforward to play as it mostly uses single notes at once, and has a moderate tempo. It follow a very repetitive pattern and, apart from one section, the song is just a repetition of the first section / verse. Below is the tab in various formats and also some tips to help you play it.

You Gotta Move Tab - Power Tab - PDF - TXT

Playing Advice

• Sliding About - This piece of music uses a slide to play the majority of the notes. If you are comfortable using a slide this shouldnt be any problem. However, something to be mindful of when playing with the slide, is to suitably mute the strings. This stops erroneous string noise and also reduces the clanging noise which happens when the slide hits an already vibrating string. The easiest way to do this is to mute the strings with another finger on the fretting hand. There are numerous tutorials on YouTube about how to do this. But it is worth employing these muting techniques, as too much string noise can ruin this piece. Although its mostly single notes played with the slide, there are a few phrases played with more than one note at once. Just be mindful when playing these to make sure the slide has suitable contact with the relevant strings, and you mute all the relevant strings to stop unwanted noise.
  

• To Slide or not to Slide - Most of the notes are played using the slide. However, there is a recurrent phrase in each bar which I don't feel has to be played with the slide (shown below).

 

Although this phrase can be played with the slide, I find easier to play without it. Not only can you incorporate a slight bend into the note which sounds good, but it is also reduces string noise, as it is very easy to get a horrible clanging noise on the thicker string. It is up to you whether you play this with a slide or not, but if you dont like the sound you are getting using the slide, or you find you are getting too much string noise, just fret the note normally.

• 12/8 Time -This piece is not in the usual 4/4 time. Instead, it is in 12/8 time. This is twelve 8th notes in each bar. Although this shouldn't cause too many problems, you have to be mindful that the bars feel longer than in standard 4/4 time music. However, if you listen to the tune, and get a feel for it, this time signature wont cause you any problems.
  

• Adding the lyrics -I am not a good singer, so I dont add in any of the vocal setions in the video. However, you may wish to sing the lyrics whilst playing. The lyrics tend to follow the melody line that you are playing, making it quite an easy piece to sing along to. I would recommend learning the guitar part first before incorporating the lyrics. And, once you have the guitar part mastered, you can practise singing along until you get it. Below are the lyrics to the music taken from genius.com:

You got to move
You got to move
You got to move, child
You got to move
But when the Lord
Gets ready
You got to move

You may be high
You may be low
You may be rich, child
You may be po'
But when the Lord gets ready
You've got to move

You see that woman
That walk the street
You see the policeman
Out on his beat
But when the Lord gets ready
You got to move

You got to move
You got to move
You've got to move, child
You've got to
But when the Lord gets ready
You got to move

This is about all I need to say about this piece. It is an easy piece to play if you are comfortable using a slide. And as long as you are able to provide suitable muting to stop the slide clanging against the strings, and also understand the 12/8 time signature and how its feels, this should be a straightforward guitar piece to learn. Even addng the lyrics isnt too problematic as they mostly follow the melody line you are playing, so this song is well worth trying to sing along to. 

Thanks for Reading,
Neil