# Beginning Acoustic Guitar - Cool Songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 22, 2003, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297 "2003-01-22T22:02:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/1 "2003-01-22T22:02:35Z")
There have been several threads like this but I can’t come up with exactly what I’m looking for, sooo… I’ve been playing for a little while now and I’m pretty well set with the basic open chords. I’m looking for a few not-so-hard but fun-to-play songs to broaden my repertoire while increasing my skills. I like everything, just to narrow it down a bit. Any suggestions? Thanks all… ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/2 "2003-01-22T22:36:08Z")
“Knocking on Heaven’s Door” is just D-A-G-A over and over. So is “Crimson and Clover.” “Village Green Preservation Society” is just G-D-C-G. “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” can be played over E-Em-A-A7 for the verse, G-C-D for the chorus (I think, I don’t have a guitar with me). “Eight Days A Week” is also D-A-G-D (I think, I’m air-guitaring) for the verse, with a B7 and a G for the “Eight Days a Week, I luh-uh-uh-uh-uv you” part. Tons of rock n’ roll songs are three major chords with the root-4th-5th relationship. You just learn to hear it after a while. ---
**Author:** ![bibendum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c77e96/32.png) [@bibendum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibendum)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/3 "2003-01-22T23:21:06Z")
Try Disarm by the Smashing Pumpkins. I think it’s E-, C, G, G, D, E-. ---
**Author:** ![Broodha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@Broodha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broodha)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/4 "2003-01-22T23:30:03Z")
I like Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” – it’s easy to pick up. Verse: Em Em D C Refrain: G D C And if you’re really into it, the bridge after the refrain is just prolonged strumming of A, basically. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/5 "2003-01-22T23:48:14Z")
_My Dog Has Fleas_. Rock on, baby! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/6 "2003-01-22T23:48:41Z")
Take it Easy and Lying Eyes by The Eagles are nice and simple. ---
**Author:** ![verbenabeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c4cdca/32.png) [@verbenabeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/verbenabeast)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/7 "2003-01-23T00:20:55Z")
Lots of Creedence stuff can be played based out of “G”… I play them that way to avoid having to screech the vocals… I play “Fortunate Son” transcribed to D C and G, for instance. [WWW.OLGA.NET](http://WWW.OLGA.NET) is a great resource for finding chords songs are in… Pick a song, or artist you want to play, look it up at OLGA. I personally ingnore the tab, but the ones with “crd” have the chords and enough lyric to get you started playing them. I will think of more specific songs and put them in here later… good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Kyomara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8edcca/32.png) [@Kyomara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyomara)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/8 "2003-01-23T00:29:19Z")
Most Nirvana. And of course anyone of their rip-offs deal almost exclusively in 4-chord progressions, if you’re looking to get bored. Of course every acoustic guitar player’s old standby is “Wish you Were Here” by Pink Floyd. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/9 "2003-01-23T01:22:12Z")
“I Gave My Love a Cherry” ? ---
**Author:** ![thermalribbon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@thermalribbon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thermalribbon)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/10 "2003-01-23T04:46:31Z")
a terrific song to learn is Green Day’s "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life). G - Cadd9 - G - D ; then like Em - G - Em - D : then like Cadd9 - D -G. Easy fingerings. Disregard the flatpicking and just work on chord changes and strum patterns, keeping time, etc… ---
**Author:** ![rmbnxs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9e5f3/32.png) [@rmbnxs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rmbnxs)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/11 "2003-01-23T05:23:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bup \* > **"Knocking on Heaven’s Door" is just D-A-G-A over and over…** That’s not right. The chords are: G D Am7 G D C G D Am7 G D C (D) ---
**Author:** ![rmbnxs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9e5f3/32.png) [@rmbnxs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rmbnxs)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/12 "2003-01-23T05:26:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > \*\*“I Gave My Love a Cherry” ? \*\* It’s called “The Riddle Song.” Doc Watson does a version of it on _Southbound_. ---
**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/13 "2003-01-23T05:33:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Kyomara \* > \*\*Of course every acoustic guitar player’s old standby is “Wish you Were Here” by Pink Floyd. \*\* Heh, that’s one of the few songs I figured out how to play on my own (I’m a decent guitarist but don’t have perfect pitch). That and ‘The Wooden Song’ by the Butthole Surfers. Most of the slow acoustic and/or clean electric intros to old Metallica songs are very simple to play, and sound cool. I know the slow intro to about every Metallica song, ever (though there are many that I don’t know the rest of the song, heh heh). ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/14 "2003-01-23T06:40:33Z")
No one’s mentioned ‘Stairway to Heaven’? You’ve gotta be able to play Stairway, man. ‘House of the Rising Sun’ is a good first song to learn fingerpicking with. Very easy pattern. ---
**Author:** ![Apos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@Apos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apos)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/15 "2003-01-23T08:18:52Z")
—Of course every acoustic guitar player’s old standby is “Wish you Were Here” by Pink Floyd.— “Pigs” is good to learn too. “Karma Police” by Radiohead is easy and good, as is “Fake Plastic Trees” ---
**Author:** ![Apos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@Apos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apos)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/16 "2003-01-23T08:28:40Z")
Nothingman, by PJ is pretty if you know bar chords. If not, transposed, it’s Verse D… D, Bm, Asus4, Bm, G… Pre-Chorus G… G… A G… G… A Chorus D, A, G ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/17 "2003-01-23T11:00:15Z")
I’ll also throw in a vote for Crosby, Stills, and Nash’s (and Young’s?) _Southern Cross_. It’s A, G, D, repeated, knocking on the guitar in between. It’s been years since I’ve had the sheet music, but I’ve still got the lyrics in my fingers and the structure in my fingers. Thanks for giving me an excuse to tune my guitar, by the way! CJ ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/18 "2003-01-23T13:41:11Z")
You people rock! This is just what I’m looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/19 "2003-01-23T14:24:48Z")
Freebird: G-D-Em-F-C-D (solo part = G-Bb-C) Every Rose has a Thorn: G-C-G-C–G-C-G-C-D-C-G Chorus G-C-G-C-G-D-C-G ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297/20 "2003-01-23T15:23:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > \*\*“I Gave My Love a Cherry” ? \*\* BAM BAM BAM!!! “Um…sorry man.” There are a million fairly simple three chord blues songs out there. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beginning-acoustic-guitar-cool-songs/150297.md?page=2)