Beatles Complete easy guitar book by HAL LEONARD

**GBRow** · 02-25-2026, 11:32 AM

This books just arrived to me. Soon I found out most of the songs in the book is in different key to the original Beatles singing. Maybe they did this to make the chords easy for the guitar strumming newbies in camp fire settings, but it is absolutely no use for guitar students learning to read the music, and playing along with the Beatles singings while looking at the charts.

Does it mean, every note and chords must be transposed into the original keys note by note and chord by chord in order to play along with the original songs while looking at this book? Or should it be returned?

I could use capo, but I hate using it because it makes guitar sounds not natural as without it.

**grahambop** · 02-25-2026, 01:11 PM

The clue was in the title of the book, 'Easy Guitar' usually means the arrangements have been simplified and quite possibly put into different keys than the original.

**GBRow** · 02-25-2026, 01:36 PM

Originally Posted by grahambop

The clue was in the title of the book, 'Easy Guitar' usually means the arrangements have been simplified and quite possibly put into different keys than the original.

Would you happen to know any Beatles song books with the original charts with the notes and chords in the same keys as the Beatles performances? This HAL LEONARD book is really nice with the large and clean prints with all the notes and chords on the complete songs, but it is not for playing along the actual Beatles performing. It is unfortunate that they have published a book in good print and format in this way.

**nyc chaz** · 02-25-2026, 02:01 PM

Amazon.com

**pamosmusic** · 02-25-2026, 02:08 PM

Originally Posted by GBRow

This books just arrived to me. Soon I found out most of the songs in the book is in different key to the original Beatles singing. Maybe they did this to make the chords easy for the guitar strumming newbies in camp fire settings, but it is absolutely no use for guitar students learning to read the music, and playing along with the Beatles singings while looking at the charts.

Does it mean, every note and chords must be transposed into the original keys note by note and chord by chord in order to play along with the original songs while looking at this book? Or should it be returned?

I could use capo, but I hate using it because it makes guitar sounds not natural as without it.

I don't know. On the Amazon sample it has All Together Now which is in the correct key, Blackbird which is in the correct key, and Michelle which is not.

Michelle is in F and is written in E. Could be a recording artifact I guess. Seems a little too precisely up a half-step to be something like that, but I don't know. You'd either capo it, or you'd play all barre chords. Not sure why the barre chords would sound more "natural" than the capo. Sounds like open strings on the recording so probably just a capo and live your life.

**pamosmusic** · 02-25-2026, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by nyc chaz

Amazon.com

Oh yeah, this is a great book. Much tougher read, for sure, but really good.

Unfortunately, most folks would not consider songs in Eb or B to be suitable for "beginners," so it's kind of an either/or situation with respect to beginner-friendly scores and correct keys sometimes.

**grahambop** · 02-25-2026, 02:17 PM

According to wikipedia, Michelle was composed in C, but played in F by using a capo on the fifth fret. So the book is way off on that one.

**GuyBoden** · 02-25-2026, 04:31 PM

The early Beatle songs are an ideal way to learn songs by ear. No book needed.

**GBRow** · 02-25-2026, 04:38 PM

Originally Posted by grahambop

According to wikipedia, Michelle was composed in C, but played in F by using a capo on the fifth fret. So the book is way off on that one.

Yes, it is starting with E on this HL book. In the C Real Book, it starts with F.
In the Bb Real Book it starts in G. They sang in F.

So the Real Book C seems to be the standard. Problem is it only has 2-3 Beatles songs in it. Maybe need to learn transposing the notes and chords? That sounds tedious work. But maybe it is needed knowledge and skills as a guitar learner? Not sure.

**Mick-7** · 02-25-2026, 04:55 PM

The attached are good. The first pdf, Beatles Complete Songbook is tablature only, it's not copyrighted. The second pdf is an unidentified collection of sheet music.

**GBRow** · 02-25-2026, 04:59 PM

Originally Posted by Mick-7

The attached is good but tablature only, it's not copyrighted.

Wow, thank you. Got it OK, and it is in my PC now. Seems a very nice version of The Complete Beatles Song Book.

**Mick-7** · 02-25-2026, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by GBRow

Wow, thank you. Got it OK, and it is in my PC now. Seems a very nice version of The Complete Beatles Song Book.

You're welcome, I just added a sheet music collection, don't recall where I got either of these pdfs.

**pamosmusic** · 02-25-2026, 05:36 PM

Originally Posted by GBRow

Yes, it is starting with E on this HL book. In the C Real Book, it starts with F.
In the Bb Real Book it starts in G. They sang in F.

So the Real Book C seems to be the standard. Problem is it only has 2-3 Beatles songs in it. Maybe need to learn transposing the notes and chords? That sounds tedious work. But maybe it is needed knowledge and skills as a guitar learner? Not sure.

We need to really sort out this whole transposing instrument thing

**grahambop** · 02-25-2026, 06:10 PM

Originally Posted by pamosmusic

We need to really sort out this whole transposing instrument thing

I wish we’d never mentioned it.

**alltunes** · 02-25-2026, 07:49 PM

Originally Posted by GBRow

Would you happen to know any Beatles song books with the original charts with the notes and chords in the same keys as the Beatles performances? This HAL LEONARD book is really nice with the large and clean prints with all the notes and chords on the complete songs, but it is not for playing along the actual Beatles performing. It is unfortunate that they have published a book in good print and format in this way.

This one…The Beatles Real Book…link should work below. I actually find it to be pretty good and so far every song I referenced has been in the original key nice to have the melody notated and the words.

Sorry! Something went wrong!

**GBRow** · 02-25-2026, 08:51 PM

Originally Posted by alltunes

This one…The Beatles Real Book…link should work below. I actually find it to be pretty good and so far every song I referenced has been in the original key nice to have the melody notated and the words.

Sorry! Something went wrong!

Thanks for the link. It looks a great book too. I will keep on checking eBay for a used copy for cheap. The Mick-7's PDF book seems excellent, because it has many songs' chords in the same key as The Beatles songs in youtube.

**Mick-7** · 02-25-2026, 08:57 PM

This is not a Scribd promotion.

-- Beatles Fake Book | Scribd

They have the other book mentioned here too -- The Beatles - Complete Scores

Q. "Were are we going, Johnny?"

A. "To the top"

Q. "To the top of what, Johnny?"

A. "To the Toppermost of the Poppermost!"

**Mick-7** · 02-25-2026, 11:23 PM

Originally Posted by pamosmusic

We need to really sort out this whole transposing instrument thing

Range of Instruments

**GBRow** · 02-26-2026, 05:44 AM

Originally Posted by GuyBoden

The early Beatle songs are an ideal way to learn songs by ear. No book needed.

This is true on some of their songs. I managed to get Blackbird tune arranged for my finger exercise just by listening to the song. But then I am sure there are also tricky songs with the chords and chord changes, which the books might / will help.

**PMB** · 02-26-2026, 07:56 AM

The Beatles Complete Scores is pretty old by now. It was a big improvement on what came before but still has lots of inaccuracies. To be fair, a number of these relate to the arrangement rather than the key or chords. For instance, the Amazon sample page for Nowhere Man shows the guitar part played from standard open E but it was played in D with a capo on the 2nd fret. No doubt, there'll be a new series sometime in the future that references the high quality isolated stems now available for many of The Beatles guitar tracks.

The best book of the lot by far for guitarists who want to just play the correct chords is Rikky Rooksby's, The Beatles Complete Chord Songbook:

Amazon.com

**alltunes** · 02-26-2026, 09:09 AM

“Complete Scores” was a revelation when it first came out…and more useful when I had thirty year old eyesight. Man that typeset is small. I bought the hard copy back then but now have to blow up select pages from the a PDF.

Just the other day (reading from the aforementioned Beatles Real Book) I was working on “I Will”….nice little 1 6 2 5 with some great twists.

**grahambop** · 02-26-2026, 09:34 AM

Originally Posted by GBRow

In the C Real Book, it starts with F.
In the Bb Real Book it starts in G. They sang in F.

So the Real Book C seems to be the standard.

Actually both these books are correct or ‘standard’. But you are playing the wrong instrument for one of them.

**GBRow** · 02-26-2026, 11:16 AM

Originally Posted by grahambop

Actually both these books are correct or ‘standard’. But you are playing the wrong instrument for one of them.

Yes, I know what you mean. It is OK, if I just play guitar for myself with the books. It would be problem if I try to play along Youtube videos or with other folks, but I don't think I will be doing that for now. My priority is to learn to read music whatever key they are in.