Equally important is to make that process easy and fun, which is why we made this list of super easy guitar songs for beginners.
I used to spend countless hours reading guitar tabs and listening to my CD’s ( yeah, I’m that old) in order to learn new songs, and even though those methods are great for learning I can definitely understand why some people lose interest. That is NOT going to happen to you!
What makes a song easy?
Judging what is easy and what isn’t is very subjective, I know, so there were definitely guidelines we considered when putting this list together. Learning songs should first and foremost be a lot of fun, so of course we picked the ones we loved to play when we started out. Also, we stayed away from songs containing barre chords, or other difficult chords. We also skipped songs with advanced strumming patterns, tricky changes and odd time signatures.
So these 21 songs are all very easy to learn for beginners. In fact, I bet you will nail most of them pretty quickly.
Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison
Good riddance (time of your life) by Greenday
Wanted dead or alive by Bon Jovi
Every rose has it’s thorns by Poison
Knocking on heaven’s door by Bob Dylan
Have you ever seen rain by Creedance Clearwater Revival
Wish you were here by Pink Floyd
Save tonight by Eagle Eye Cherry
I’m gonna be ( 500 miles) by The Proclaimers
Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Smells like tee spirit by Nirvana
All the small things by Blink 182
When I come around by Greenday
What about strumming?
Not to worry, we’ve got you covered. If you struggle a little with basic strumming techniques, just watch this short video below before tackling any of the songs, and you should be good to go.
And chords? No problem, here’s a little reminder in case you need it.
Now, let’s have some fun and start playing. To keep it simple we separated the songs into acoustic and electric guitar respectively. If you want to see the video tutorials, just click the title of the song.
Accoustic
Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison
Key: G
Chords: G, C, D, D7, Em
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Such a classic song, and a must have in your repertoire as a budding guitarist.
Good riddance (time of your life) by Greenday
Key: G
Chords: G,C,D Cadd9, Em
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Very easy, very fun. And if you don’t feel like playing the chords in the beginning as they’re played in the song, just strum away.
Wanted dead or alive by Bon Jovi
Key: D
Chords: Dm, D, Dsus4, C, G, F, Csus4, G7
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Slightly more complex than most other songs on this list, but not as difficult as it looks.
Free fallin by Tom Petty
Key: F ( capo on 8 th fret)
Chords: A, D, E, Asus4
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Most Tom Petty songs have simple chord progressions, and this one is no exception. A great song for a beginner!
Every rose has it’s thorn by Poison
Key: G
Chords: G, Cadd9, D, C, Em
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Awesome ballad to play around the campfire. Very easy and straightforward.
Knocking on heaven’s door by Bob Dylan
Key: G
Chords: G, D, Am, C
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
A Bob Dylan song is a MUST on a list like this, and this is one of the very first songs I ever learned. Enjoy!
Wonderwall by Oasis
Key: Em
Chords: Em7, G, Dsus4, A7sus4
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Don’t let the weird chords throw you off, this is really not a hard song to play, I promise
Have you ever seen the rain by Creedance Clearwater Revival
Key: C
Chords: C,Am, G, F, C/B, Am/G
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Just like with Tom Petty, CCR has a bunch of easy songs with straightforward strumming patterns, and this is one of them.
Wish you were here by Pink Floyd
Key: G
Chords: Em7, A7sus4, G, D, C, Am
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
An absolute classic!
Save tonight by Eagle Eye Cherry
Key: Am
Chords: Am, F, C, G
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Absolutely love this song, and it oddly enough never feels repetitive. Watch the video tutorial for the strumming and pick attack, as it really makes the song sound great.
I’m gonna be ( 500 miles) by The Proclaimers
Key: E
Chords: E, A, B
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Repeat the same three chords and you have a winner! Happy, up-tempo song that makes everyone want to sing along.
Learning to fly by Tom Petty
Key: C
Chords: F,C, Am, G
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
Only 4 chords straight through the entire song makes this one super easy to learn. You might as well learn the lyrics too…
Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Key: D
Chords: D, A, G
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
How’s three chords for easy? This one you’ll pick up pretty much right away.
Electric
Smells like tee spirit by Nirvana
Key: F
Chords: F, Bb, G#, C# (all power chords)
Tabs: Guitaretab.com
Considering how easy this song is to play, and how much fun it is, it had to make this list. 90’s grunge rock at it’s best!
Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams
Key: D
Chords: D, A,G, Bm, F, Bb, Dm
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
If you’ve plugged in your electric and are ready to rock, you definitely need some classic Bryan Adams, and it doesn’t get more classic than this 80’s hit. Great fun to play.
In the end by Linkin Park
Key: Em
Chords: C, D, Em, G
Tabs: Ultimate-Guitar.com
If heavier music is your thing, you probably want to rock out to this gem. Super easy, just tune your guitar a half step down to Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb.
All the small things by Blink 182
Key: C
Chords: C5, G5, F5
Tabs: Guitartab.com
From their celebrated album “Enema of the state” comes this cool hit song, that sounds great almost immediately after you start practicing. A bit of a strain on your right hand from all the down strokes, but hey…
My own worst enemy by LIT
Key: D
Chords: D5, A5, G5, E5
Tabs: Guitartab.com
Might as well continue with more easy-to-digest indie rock
When I come around by Greenday
Key: G
Chords: G5, D5, E5, A5, C5
Tabs: Guitartab.com
What can I say, Greenday makes perfect songs for beginners. Rock on!
Keep away by Godsmack
Key: D
Chords: D, F, G, G#, C, A, Bb
Tabs: Guitartab.com
This list wouldn’t be complete without an easy drop D song. So crank up the distortion and tune your low E to a D. Here is a piece of groovy, hard hitting metal that’ll get you headbanging in no time. The very first song that made me tune my guitar to a drop D.
What to do next
Now that you have added some cool songs to your repertoire you might want to work on your technique a little. So be sure to check out our guide on the best free online lessons and courses for guitar or head straight over to Rocks Off Mag and their awesome article covering the best classic rock albums of all time to get a little more inspiration.
