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Walk, Don't Run

In 1965, the Ventures released the first in a series of instructional records and booklets that showed you how to play their hit songs using a system that they called Guitar Phonics, an early form of tab notation that diagrammed finger patterns and chords. In the first release The Ventures show you how to play lead, bass, and rhythm guitar for Walk, Don't Run, Tequila, Raunchy, and Memphis.

Here I have transcribed the instructions from the original booklet into tab and provided a link to the original audio for Walk, Don't Run, one of The Ventures biggest hits. Rare vintage footage of the original video from 1960 is presented below. The story goes as follows: In 1954 jazz guitarist Johnny Smith created a counter melody to the chord progressions of Softly, As In The Morning Sunrise (Sigmund Romberg 1929) and he named the song Walk Don't Run (10" LP Johnny smith Quintet - vol.2 - Roost). In 1957 Chet Atkins recorded the instrumental for his LP album "Hi-Fi in Focus" (RCA). The Ventures couldn't reproduce the complicated guitar style of Chet Atkins, so they created their own arrangement which expanded upon certain parts of the original.

Rhythm

A Chord

E||---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--
B||---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--
G||---|---|---|---|---|-2-|---|--
D||---|---|---|---|---|---|-4-|--
A||---|---|---|---|---|---|-3-|--
E||---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--

G Chord

E||---|---|-1-|---|---|---|---|--
B||---|---|-1-|---|---|---|---|--
G||---|---|---|-2-|---|---|---|--
D||---|---|---|---|-4-|---|---|--
A||---|---|---|---|-3-|---|---|--
E||---|---|-1-|---|---|---|---|--

F Chord

E||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
B||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
G||---|-2-|---|---|---|---|---|--
D||---|---|-4-|---|---|---|---|--
A||---|---|-3-|---|---|---|---|--
E||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--

E Chord

E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
B||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
G||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
D||---|-3-|---|---|---|---|---|--
A||---|-2-|---|---|---|---|---|--
E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--

C Chord

E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
B||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
G||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
D||---|-2-|---|---|---|---|---|--
A||---|---|-3-|---|---|---|---|--
E||---|---|-3-|---|---|---|---|--

C Chord (Alternate Position)

E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--
B||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--
G||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-2-|---|--
D||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-4-|--
A||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-3-|--
E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|-1-|---|---|--

Am Chord

E||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
B||-1-|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
G||---|-3-|---|---|---|---|---|--
D||---|-2-|---|---|---|---|---|--
A||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|--
E||---|-x-|---|---|---|---|---|--

[ 1=Index; 2=Middle; 3=Ring; 4=Pinky
x=Don't Play; If No x,1,2,3,4=Play Open String ]

Chord Chart:
 
|A/G/|F/E/|A/G/ |F///|C///|G///|C/// |E///|

|A/G/|F/E/|A/G/ |F///|C///|G///|C/F/ |C///|

|C///|////|Am///|////|F///|E///|Am///|E///|

|A/G/|F/E/|A/G/ |F///|C///|G///|C/F/ |C///|

Lead

Diagram 1

                A        G             F     E
E----------||----------------------|----------------|
B----------||----------------------|---------1--0---|
G------2---||----------------------|---0--2---------|
D---2------||------------0--2--3---|----------------|
A----------||---0--2--3------------|----------------|
E----------||----------------------|----------------|
             1.                     2.

Diagram 2

      A           G                  F
E-----------------------------|---------------------|
B-----------------------------|---------------------|
G-----2-----------------------|------0--2--0--------|
D-----------------0--2--3-----|--------------3------|
A--------0--2--3--------------|---------------------|
E-----------------------------|---------------------|
 3.                            4.

Diagram 3

    C                G                   C      E
E----------------|-------------------|-------|-----||
B----------------|-------------------|-------|-----||
G----------------|-------------------|-------|-----||
D---2--1--2--2---|---0--2--3--2--0---|-------|-----||
A----------------|-------------------|---3---|-----||
E----------------|-------------------|-------|-----||
 5.               6.                  7.      8.

Repeat Diagrams 1 through 3

Diagram 4

    C                         C
E-------------------------||---------|---------------|
B-------------------------||---------|---------------|
G-------------------------||--0-0-0�-|--0-0-0-0-0-0--|
D---------------0--2--3---||---------|---------------|
A------0--2--3------------||---------|---------------|
E---3---------------------||---------|---------------|
 16.                        17.       18.

Diagram 5

  Am                    F             E           Am
E-----------------|---|-------------|------------|---|
B-----------------|---|-------------|-0----0-----|-1-|
G-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-|-2-|-2-----2-----|---1----1---|---|
D-----------------|---|---3-----3---|-----2----2-|---|
A-----------------|---|-----3-----3-|------------|---|
E-----------------|---|-------------|------------|---|
 19.               20. 21.           22.          23.

Diagram 6

                    E
E---------------------------------------------------||
B---------------------------------------------------||
G---------------------------------------------------||
D-------------------2----0--------------------------||
A----------------------------3----2-----------------||
E---------------------------------------------------||
 24.

Repeat Diagrams 1 through 3

MP3

Click on the album cover below to "Play Guitar with the Ventures."