“Love Hurts,” famously covered by Nazareth, is a timeless rock ballad that resonates with guitarists and music lovers alike. Originally written by Boudleaux Bryant, Nazareth’s rendition transformed the song into a powerful anthem. This guitar lesson will guide you through playing this iconic track, focusing on the key elements that make it so compelling.
This lesson is designed for guitarists of varying skill levels who want to learn to play “Love Hurts” as performed by Nazareth. We’ll be using standard tuning (E A D G B E), although it’s worth noting that the original recording is slightly sharp. A crucial point to understand when learning “Love Hurts” by Nazareth is the discrepancy between some early TV performances and the actual recorded version. While some older televised performances show the band playing in the key of E, the audio often overlaid is the studio recording in G. For this lesson, we will focus on playing the song in E, the key Nazareth typically uses in live performances where the audio is genuinely live.
We will break down the song section by section, following the arrangement of the original Nazareth recording. A highlight of “Love Hurts” is undoubtedly Manny Charlton’s guitar solo. Charlton himself revealed that he achieved those signature sustained notes not with an eBow, but through a combination of a Les Paul guitar, a univibe pedal, an echoplex, and a heavily cranked Marshall amp, pushing the amp to produce feedback in the studio. He also employed a slide for note articulation. Recreating this studio magic precisely can be challenging without similar equipment and studio conditions.
In this lesson, the solo will be demonstrated on a standard guitar setup, without relying on eBow or feedback to sustain notes, mirroring how Manny Charlton often performed it live. We will explore techniques to capture the essence of the recorded solo, even without replicating the exact studio environment. This approach will provide a practical and achievable way to learn and perform the solo.
Dive into this lesson to master “Love Hurts” by Nazareth and add this classic rock ballad to your repertoire. Enjoy learning this timeless song and pay tribute to the legendary Manny Charlton through your playing.
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