In terms of guitar chords, none is more rockin' than E. The E-chord gives you all six strings to pluck, pick and bash. If there's a better sound on the planet, I haven't heard it yet. Lots of famous rock songs use the E-chord. But one to the things that make it sound so good is what other chords and notes are put around it. Rock ‘n roll, by its very nature, broke music’s long established rules. At one time certain chords and notes that we associate with rock 'n roll would have been deemed out-of-place, wrong and outright anti-social. As it turns out those broken rules tug at our heart-strings. We can't get enough of ‘em. Here's an example. I've always loved The Kinks' Lola since the first time I heard it on the radio when I was a kid. Lola's in the key of E and is a song with some serious rule-breaking! Right from the get-go. The opening three chords are C to D to E. The first two, traditionally speaking, are wrong. By the time we reach that big E chord just before the singing starts a storm is a-brewing. Looking at my set-lists from the last two months, in both my solo tour and the Brooks & Aaron tour, there's a fair bit of rule breaking, musically speaking. From the folkiest to the bluesiest songs, even when shrouded in sweetness and light, it's there. Like lightning in a bottle. Over the last couple months I drove roughly 6,500 miles (not counting my flight to and from The Netherlands). The tours were great and it's also good to be home. Jo and I are digging the crib-chilling for sure. And my guitar, like it has been for as long as I can remember, is always an arm's reach away, whether I'm gigging or not. I've already picked it up and strummed it four times since click-clacking these thoughts on the laptop. Apparently, I can't get enough of it. I'm reminded what Stones' guitarist Keith Richards says about the acoustic guitar. How it's “a magical thing…that little round hole and that bit of wood - that's the Truth.” Or lightning in a bottle, I might add. Plunk plunk. Bash bash. Boom boom. E-chord.
(My copy of Lola cost a whopping 95-cents back in the day.)
BROOKS ON TOUR
After back-to-back tours, I'm taking a little time off to work on some new music, but in and around that are ongoing gigs before it all kicks in again. Here's what's on the horizon so far.
April 2026
22nd Vinyl Forty-Five Cafe, York
24th Settlement Sessions, Letchworth Garden City, N. Herfordshire
30th Swallow Theatre, Moss Park, Ravenstone, Whithorn, Dumfries and Galloway
May 2026
1st Roberton Village Hall, Biggar, South Lanarkshire Scotland
7th The Potting Shed, Priors Marsden
8th Folk On The Pier, Cromer, Norfolk LAUREL CANYON PROJECT
15th The Spring Arts & Heritage Centre, Havant, Hampshire
16th Private Event, Essex
June 2026
12th Private Event, Los Angeles, CA
14th tbc, Pasadena, CA
July 2026
4th New Forest Folk Festival, Plainford, Ramsey, Hampshire LAUREL CANYON PROJECT
11th Sharrington Village Hall, Sharrington, Norfolk BROOKS AND AARON
12th Ely Folk Festival, Ely, Cambridgeshire BROOKS AND AARON
18th Winchcombe Live, Winchcombe, Cheltenham BROOKS AND AARON
25th Folk Day, Museum of Technology, Cambridge
August 2026
13th Norden Farm Centre for the Arts, Maidenhead, Berkshire BROOKS AND AARON
(photo by Theo Looijmans)
GUITAR WORKSHOP
WHEN: Saturday, 29th August 2026
WHERE: Hilbre Room, St Bridget's Centre, West Kirby, Wirral, Merseyside
TIME: 10am - 5pm
COST: £75.00 (includes lunch and refreshments)
DESCRIPTION: Explore the songs, rhythms and riffs of Americana music. Participants will focus on strumming and picking patterns, walking bass lines, and alternate chord shapes up the neck of the guitar. All techniques will be taught through new and classic songs, with lyrics and chord sheets.
Space Is Limited! SIGN-UP HERE!
(photo by Oscar Canier)
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(photo by Tash & Andy in Broughty Ferry)
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