Catchy instrumental introductions hook you in, especially if they return as an instrumental interlude later in the song. Without these intros and interludes, the song seems incomplete. Such is the case of Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” and Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville” both of which can be executed with double stops on the ukulele. To get the rhythm correct, it’s best to count and label the eighth notes with the tabs for correct placement.
Double Stops
A double stop originally refers to playing two notes at the same time on a bowed instrument. For the ukulele, it means playing (fingerpicking) two strings at the same time.
The catchy introduction to “Margaritaville” is easier to play than that of “Brown Eyed Girl. “Let’s take a look at what’s being played in Jimmy Buffett’s original version in D major.
Margaritaville in D major – intro riff
Just looking at these notes, it would seem that the chord placements for G and A are wrong. However, if. you listen to Buffett’s version, you’ll hear that the bassline goes from the notes D to G to A to D. His chords follow the bass, as seen in the official piano sheet music below.
San Jose Ukulele Club tabs the introduction and changes the chords below, however the third measure is different from the notes above.
To accurately translate the notes to tablature, it’s best to count the eighth notes, as shown below.
I’ve written it out below, translating the tablature to a table format with the numbers representing the frets to press on the E and C strings respectively.
Try the above chords vs these below. Which sounds better? Play along to Jimmy Buffett.
Margaritaville in G major – intro riff
By the same token, transposing this riff to G major would make use of the same rhythmic breakdown below, on the top two strings A and E, respectively. Which chords would you use with the riff, for those who prefer to strum?
Brown Eyed Girl in G
Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” opens with a catchy introduction, as shown below.
Using my method of counting the eighth notes, we get the following.
For the full introduction, follow the notes and tabs below.
