Guitarist and author David Todd has released Songs That Stay With You: From the 50's, 60's & 70's, a songbook of 70 well-loved songs arranged for guitar. The book is available now on Amazon.
The significance of the release lies less in the familiar titles it gathers than in how Todd assembled them. He built the collection over the years as his own working songbook, holding the songs he actually reaches for when he picks up a guitar, whether playing alone, joining friends or leading a group. That origin matters for players who have accumulated stacks of songbooks that look good on a shelf but rarely get opened. Todd's selection leans on songs most people know a verse or two of and that are simple enough to carry a room, a practical filter for anyone who has watched a group lose interest when a song is too obscure or too difficult.
The list runs from The Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival and the Everly Brothers to Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and Elvis Presley, with pub and folk favorites such as "Dirty Old Town" and "Wild Rover" mixed in. Every song is written out with the chords placed above the lyrics, right where the player would strum or pick them. Where a capo makes a song easier to play, Todd notes the fret position and key at the top of the entry. A handful of songs also include playing notes for fingerpicking patterns, strumming styles and instrumental breaks.
Those details address a common friction point for recreational guitarists. Chord-above-lyric formatting removes the need to flip between separate lyric and chord sheets, while capo and key notes at the top of each entry let a player transpose quickly to suit a voice or a room. The fingerpicking and strumming notes offer entry points for players who want to move beyond basic accompaniment without formal instruction.
A reader quoted in the announcement described the book as reading like it was built by someone who has led a lot of singalongs, noting that chords sit above the lyrics and capo positions and keys are noted at the top of each song, which makes it easy to open and start playing. That usability is central to the book's stated purpose. Todd designed it to be used rather than shelved, for solo players, small groups and anyone leading a singalong, including at venues such as nursing homes and care homes, where familiar songs tend to bring people together.
The care-home angle gives the release a broader implication beyond hobbyist guitarists. Music leaders in residential settings often work with mixed abilities and limited rehearsal time, and a collection of widely recognized songs with immediately playable arrangements could reduce preparation burdens. For the wider songbook market, the release tests whether a personal working repertoire, rather than a licensing-driven anthology, can find an audience. Whether it does will depend on players finding the arrangements as usable as Todd's own experience suggests.
