46 Comments
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Duganz's avatar

I love this song, but a part of me will never not hear “Make you butter.”

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Simon Kelso's avatar

Always thought the line “There’s a time in a man’s life when the music makes sense.” was always very striking in an otherwise funny music video.

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Niko Watson's avatar

Und jetzt, on The Old Blues Rock Palace Show, da band da Decemberists is bringing the hit music song, "I Make You Butter"

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Scott Z's avatar

Our cat is named Butter. She has been seranaded with this song more than once.

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Patty's avatar

omg lol i just came on here to literally say the exact same thing

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Faye's avatar

I've never noticed that strumming pattern was Smithsy until you said it but as soon as you said it (before we got to Bigmouth Strikes Again, haha) I was like HOLY CRAP

Also I love this weird chord and how few hand position changes you can get away with without capoing or anything but it just sounds fantastic. I mean that, it's super inspiring to play around up and down the neck with slightly modified chords.

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Colin Meloy's avatar

yes! That chord is very...I dunno...transient. You can move it anywhere and it sounds cool...

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Patty's avatar

I just can't unhear Nick Offerman saying "Make you BUTTER"

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Norman Glover's avatar

Great tutorial, thanks - Nice Fylde, my favorite acoustic guitars, got an Ariel and a Goodfellow and both are amazing guitars.

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Drilling4mana's avatar

Hey, it's the song that finally dragged my ass out of the swamp of misery I'd been living in since getting dumped in early 2013! Thanks for this one.

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Justin Williamson's avatar

This has me revisiting all of WATWWABW over again. Thanks for the reminder to go back to it 😄

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Christoph Whitbeck's avatar

(Pronounced "watoowaboo")

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Katherine's avatar

This song holds so much emotion for me. It came at exactly the right time, and it’s one of my absolute favorites.

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Collin's avatar

i remember goofing around on my guitar a few years ago looking for interesting chords, and stumbled upon that high Bm and was like "wait... this is the first chord in "make you better"! thanks for this — while i figured out the weird verse progression all on my own, the very natural chorus completely eluded me!

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metta eliot-smith's avatar

This song has a spiritual thing to it, gotta say, I really loveit.

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Robert Cohen's avatar

Yes, thanks...love you spelling this all out. Maybe I can learn to play it, but never sing it like you!

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ghost's avatar

gotta say i love that weird chord <3

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Soldier_Wolfe's avatar

Haha, as you started strumming the middle section, it's not the exact same chords, I don't think, but I heard Bigmouth Strikes Again in my head, and then you started singing it, very surreal pre-coffee moment for me.

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Deven's avatar

This moment hit me too

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Cort Buffington's avatar

Love love love Make You Better! Though I’m a bassist, so…. Gotta say I love what Nate did with this song too :)

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Oliver's avatar

Slightly off-topic, but is that by any chance a vintage Polish circus poster on the wall behind you?

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Colin Meloy's avatar

it is!

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Oliver's avatar

Ah, wondered if it was! Some of that Polish Poster School art is just incredible.

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Jason E's avatar

As a non-musician, I watch this and just go, "Yep! Music is magic." Colin explained it extremely well, but my brain simply doesn't understand how to choose between strumming patterns and frets and chords and oh man, it's incredible to see how all of those different things come together so fluidly into that great song.

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Doug Sutton's avatar

So where do you come up with these alternate voicings of chords? I hear D major with extra notes that don't fit the chord. I play piano and I struggle to find these voicings... most admirable! Gives me something to work on.

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Colin Meloy's avatar

I think I came on that chord by happenstance, by just throwing my fingers on the fretboard.

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