| By :
Paul Palmer
One of the best ways to learn how to play easy pop songs on guitar is to simply make a list of some of your favourite songs that you think might be within your grasp, and then find out the chords. It really is as simple as that to get going. The internet is an amazing tool and takes a lot of the hard work out of trying to figure out the chords. All you have to do is Google the song you'd like to play and see what comes up. You may already know all the chords, but if you don't it's no big deal. The whole point about learning an instrument is to improve. If there are some chords you've not come across before then have a go at learning them. If you're a bit impatient and can't quite get the hang of them, just move onto the next song on your list. You can always come back to the tricky ones later. I often find that things that seem difficult the first time you try them, somehow seem easier the next day. It's almost as if your hand and brain take in the new shapes overnight and the next time you try it, things seem a lot easier. You'll be surprised at how easy many songs are. There are plenty out there that have only 3 chords. Sweet Home Alabama is an obvious one (D, C and G all the way through). Lou Reed apparently once said "One chord is fine. Two chords is pushing it. Three chords and you're into jazz." Now that may not be completely accurate but you can go a long way with just a few choice chords under your belt. Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here' has 5 chords, but they're all easy to play as open chords without the need to use barre chords. (C, D, Am, G, with a bit of Em in the middle) If you can master most of the basic open chords (C, D, A, G, F) and their minor versions, you'll be in a good position to get going. After that you can explore 7ths, minor 7ths etc. Barre chords are a bit tricky when you first start but once you've built up some strength in your hand they will become easier. What's more, they'll open up a whole new world of chords to you and allow you to play pretty much any song you can think of. There are so many easy pop songs to play on guitar that you should be able to build up quite a repertoire in no time at all. Once you get going, the next step is to play along with your chosen song. This can either be the original version of the song or one of the many 'learn to play' videos out there on the internet. If you chose easy pop songs to play on guitar you will also develop your ear the more songs you learn. After a while you'll find that you can work out the chords yourself as you begin to recognise familiar chord sequences that are used over and over again in countless songs. Good luck and whatever you do, keep going. It does get easier!
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