As a beginner or advanced guitarist, knowing some chords will enable you to play more songs and make playing even more enjoyable.
There are three basic chord types – major, minor and power chords.
What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction
What Makes You Beautiful, One Direction’s most celebrated song since it debuted in 2011, has consistently topped UK official charts since. A catchy yet accessible guitar track, What Makes You Beautiful remains popular today and remains at number 1 on UK charts.
The song addresses how beauty doesn’t only come from physical attributes but can be created from within as well. Beauty comes not just through looks but from one’s actions too.
It’s an ideal song for new guitarists to learn, as it features only three basic chords and a straightforward strumming pattern that doesn’t require too much finesse or intricacy – plus its tempo makes learning easy!
This song requires guitarists to quickly muted the Bm barre chord after every string is struck, which may prove challenging at first. By practicing it at home before heading out on stage, it will become much simpler for them to pick up on the motion when playing live.
You Belong with Me by Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift has become one of the most successful and well-loved pop artists today, boasting eight number 1 songs, 11 Grammy Awards and 52 Guinness World Records as well as selling over 200 million albums worldwide.
She’s had many hits throughout her career, but her most renowned ballads include You Belong With Me as one example.
This was one of the primary promotional singles from her ‘Speak Now’ album and became one of its main singles to reach number one on Billboard Hot Country Songs chart; additionally it was certified platinum in the US.
This song is straightforward to learn on guitar with easy open chords like C, C/B, Am, Gsus4, Fsus4 which can be played in any open position without needing a capo.
It’s an enjoyable song to sing along to and an excellent beginner track for honing strumming techniques as it includes some attractive strumming patterns and arpeggiations techniques.
Hey Soul Sister by Train
Hey Soul Sister by Train is an essential ukulele song to learn quickly and effortlessly. Featuring simple chords and an irresistibly catchy melody, Hey Soul Sister will have you playing it over and over.
Train released Save Me, San Francisco as their fifth studio album’s lead single and it reached number three on Billboard Hot 100 chart to become their highest charting single to date.
It has been featured on several popular television series, such as CSI: New York, Hellcats, Medium and Hawaii Five-0; it was also covered by Dixie Chicks for their 2010 tour with The Eagles.
If you find it challenging to sing “Hey Soul Sister” in the same key as Train, try transposing it down a key so your voice can better accommodate this song. Doing this may allow for easier singing of “Hey Soul Sister.”
You Are My Everything by Ed Sheeran
If you want to start learning guitar quickly, there are numerous easy pop songs you can use as starting points for learning right away. Some feature straightforward strumming patterns while others might require fingerpicking in order to really engage your hands in playing along.
This song provides an ideal example of an easy acoustic guitar lesson with two distinct ways of playing it – strumming or fingerpicking patterns can both outline the same chord progression! Either way, it’s an ideal song to pick up and progress with over time!
Trigger caps can also help make chords easier to hold on the guitar; Ed Sheeran frequently employs them in his songs and it’s an easy tool to have on hand.