Beginners Guitar Chords

Welcome to this lesson on playing basic guitar chords. One of the first things we want to do when we pick up the guitar is learn to play songs and these simple chord shapes will help you do just that.

These chords are probably one of the best things to learn when you start playing guitar. They form the basis of hundreds of songs and knowing these chords will let you play real music.

Try to get a feel for each chord shape and practice by just strumming it slowly and carefully, trying to get a good sound out of the guitar. Once you manage to get comfortable with these chords you can start switching between one or two of them to form a chord progression. Many popular songs written for guitar can be played with only a few of these simple chord shapes.

Let’s have a look at some simple progressions to practice. Play these slowly and in time making sure to move smoothly between the different chords. Make sure you play these in time. You can try counting 1, 2, 3, 4 as you play if it helps you keep in time.

Guitar Chord Progression 1

C | Am | C | G

Guitar Chord Progression 2

Em | Am | C | B7

Once you have learnt these shapes you are well on your way to becoming a guitar player. You can really start having fun by coming up with your own progressions and learning some simple popular songs. I hope you enjoyed this introduction to the world of guitar playing.