Love Don't Leave Me Waiting: Guitar TAB

This collection captures 18 songs spanning Hansard's evolution from his work with The Frames through Once and into his solo catalog, offering guitarists a window into how a master craftsman develops his songwriting voice across different periods and contexts. The TAB format makes these musically sophisticated pieces accessible without flattening their emotional complexity, and the breadth of the collection means there's repertoire for students at multiple levels and with varying musical interests.

These songs carry the warmth and directness of someone who has spent decades performing live, with lyrics that feel confessional and guitar lines that are both intricate and emotionally clear. There is a restlessness to the collection, songs that move between intimate fingerpicking and more rhythmically driven passages, reflecting Hansard's range as both a soloist and ensemble player.

Guitarists with solid intermediate skills who want to expand their repertoire beyond standard folk-pop fare and explore the work of a songwriter whose guitar writing is as important as his composition. This collection appeals to students interested in contemporary folk and rock, as well as players who have enjoyed Once or want to understand the depth of Hansard's artistic catalog beyond a single film.

• Study the original recordings to understand Hansard's fingerpicking approach and rhythmic phrasing; his guitar work often carries melodic weight equal to the vocal line, so approach the instrumental sections as complete musical statements rather than accompaniment patterns.
• Pay attention to alternate tunings if indicated in the TAB; Hansard frequently uses open and drop tunings that change the tonal character and playability of each piece.
• Build in dynamics and space throughout longer songs; many of these pieces benefit from subtle dynamic shaping that mirrors the emotional arc of the lyrics, even in instrumental contexts.
• Experiment with pick vs. fingerstyle approaches; the TAB will show you the mechanics, but trying both techniques helps you find the texture that best serves each song's character.

Integrate individual songs into student recitals as a way to expose audiences to contemporary singer-songwriter material with real substance; the 68-page collection provides enough material to support a themed concert or multi-week unit on modern folk composition. These pieces also work well as study material for students interested in songwriting, since each song demonstrates different approaches to melody, structure, and guitar texture.

• Reading and executing guitar TAB across multiple tuning systems
• Fingerpicking technique and rhythmic precision in complex patterns
• Understanding open tunings and how they affect voice leading
• Interpreting dynamic and emotional nuance in singer-songwriter arrangements
• Building fluency with contemporary folk and rock harmonic language