These songs will be your short list of crowd pleasers, and they will probably be kind of old. Maybe even nineteen forties or fifties kind of old. Another thing you might notice is there are some songs that audiences like to sing along to. This might be uncomfortable for you if you are not an audience participation kind of guy. So do not learn too many songs that require you to yell, "Everybody now!!" or "Just the girls this time!". Likewise if you play solo acoustic guitar and have a voice like Johnny Cash you might want to stay away from Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love". But do not ignore songs you enjoy just because they might not seem immediately doable. Remember Jose Feliciano's reworking of The Doors' "Light My Fire" became the definitive version of the song and Eric Clapton's unplugged "Layla" was a surprise hit.

People pay to see artists who are better at performing than they are. Which is where playing material that you enjoy comes in. If you are playing a song that is an obvious crowd pleaser but you personally think it blows chunks you give attention to the part the audience likes and you play it with a degree of competence. Give the song what it needs so it becomes your vehicle for attracting the audience's attention. That is why you do not bellow, "Hello darkness my old friend" or shirk on the enthusiasm when you sing the line, "Welcome to the Hotel California".

Here is a basic list of songs that have been known to please a crowd or two over a period of years:

Wild World by Cat Stevens
Imagine - by John Lennon
Stairway To Heaven by Led Zeppelin
Catch the Wind by Donovan
Can't Help Falling In Love by Elvis Presley
Waterloo Sunset by The Kinks
Angie by the Rolling Stones
Everybody Hurts by REM
50 ways to leave your lover by Paul Simon
The 59th Street Bridge Song by Simon And Garfunkel
American Pie by Don Maclean
Both Sides Now by Joni Mitchell
California Dreamin' by The Mamas and Papas
Knockin' on Heaven's Door by Bob Dylan
Mrs Robinson by Simon And Garfunkel
You're so vain by Carly Simon
Blowin' In The Wind by Bob Dylan
Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison
I Walk The Line by Johnny Cash
Tears In Heaven by Eric Clapton
Gloria by Van Morrison (or Them)
Hotel California by The Eagles
Behind Blue Eyes by The Who
White Room by Cream
Sex And Candy by Marcy Playground
Californication by Red Hot Chili Peppers
What Its Like by Everlast
Alison by Elvis Costello
Life By The Drop by Stevie Ray Vaughn
Melissa by Allman Brothers
Dead Flowers by The Rolling Stones
Seagull by Bad Company
Mediterranean Sundance by Al DiMeola and Paco De Lucia
Classical Gas by Mason Williams

This list could be much, much longer, but you probably already see songs here that you would never play in a million years so all I can say now is I hope this guide to essential guitar tab has been helpful.

Thanks to Ricky Sharples at Learn To Play A Guitar For Free for all the great research for this lens.

And essential components in the guitar-learning recipe are Simple Guitar Tabs

Making Money With Squidoo

Write a review for this lens at The Isle of Squid or just go in search of more quality lenses!