My Journey Learning Romain Virgo’s Song
So I heard this sweet reggae tune on the radio last week and immediately fell in love with it. Wanted to learn Romain Virgo’s Save Your Love for Me on my acoustic guitar. Grabbed my trusty Yamaha and my phone to search for chords. Found some complicated versions online with barre chords – no way I was gonna torture my fingers with those!
Breaking Down the Simple Version
Discovered a stripped-down version using basic open chords. Got real excited cause these are chords I already know:
- Verse: G – C – Am – D (repeating pattern)
- Chorus: C – G – Am – F
Tuned my guitar to standard tuning and tried the first progression. My C to Am switch kept sounding clunky, so I spent 10 minutes drilling just these changes. Used my thumb to mute unused strings cause that Am shape was buzzing.
The Strumming Struggles
Originally tried the reggae-style chop strum but sounded like I was smacking a tin can. Simplified to this pattern:
Down – Down-Up – Up-Down-Up
Practiced this rhythm on a single chord till my wrist felt loose. Slowed it way down to about 60 bpm using a free metronome app. Had to restart several times when my timing got messy with the chord changes.
Putting It All Together
After practicing sections separately for two days, finally tried the whole song. Messed up the verse-to-chorus transition four times straight – that F chord kept tripping me. Changed my fingering for F (used thumb on low E instead of full barre) and suddenly it clicked!
Recorded myself playing and cringed at first. Repeated for 30 mins daily, focusing on the weakest parts. Now it flows smooth like butter. Feels awesome nailing that sweet chorus vibe! My tip: start painfully slow and drill those chord changes separately.
