10 Guitar Chords Every Beginner Should Know!

Starting your guitar journey can be overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. Take it chord by chord—beginning with a few simple ones—and you'll be playing in no time.

In this episode, Marlene talks about the first 10 chords every beginner should learn. She explains why these chords are the perfect foundation, how they can open the door to countless songs. and she shares her tips for practicing them effectively. 

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
I'm Marlene Hutchinson and welcome to Tips for Guitar Plane Success.

(00:09):
As many of you know, I've been sharing my guitar plane tips every Thursday for more than
10 years.
It's been my way to hopefully help you stay motivated, be inspired, and continue expanding
your guitar plane journey.
If you're interested in more learning resources, go to my website, marlene'smusic.com.

(00:33):
And for anyone who's listening and feeling like you're missing out on all the guitar plane
fun, you can easily get started with my super simple, learn to play guitar in a day course.
Now on to today's tip.
This podcast is brought to you in part by Gator.

(00:57):
Whether you just need a bag to gig with on the weekends or a frequent flyer needing a
flight-friendly TSA series case or a dedicated road warrior bringing your instruments on tour.
Gator has a solution for you.
For the stuff you love, guard it with Gator.

(01:18):
Today's tip is 10 chords every beginner should know.
Starting your guitar journey can feel overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be.
In this episode, I break down the first 10 essential chords every beginner should know.
I'll explain why these specific chords are the perfect foundation, how they open the

(01:43):
door to countless songs and tips for practicing them effectively.
And whether you're just picking up a guitar or brushing up on the basics, this episode
will set you on the right path.
As always, a big shout out this week and thank you to our fellow guitarists joining us
from Tanzania, Iceland, Portugal and Vietnam.

(02:08):
Before we jump into this episode, can I ask you for a quick favor?
Would you please tap the subscribe button because that's the easiest way that you can show
support for this podcast and for me.
And don't fret, it's free to tap the subscribe button and it helps me to continue bringing
episodes to you every single week on your favorite channels like Spotify, Apple and Sirius

(02:34):
XM and on YouTube.
Thank you for supporting me and the show by hitting that subscribe button.
Now on to today's tip.
Those 10 foundational chords that I think are essential for you to know how to play are
A, E, D, C, G, E minor, E minor, D7, A7 and E7.

(03:04):
And those chords are exactly where I start when I'm teaching a new player.
I like for my students to have a really fun experience of being able to make music right
away and so that's why I start with what I believe are the most doable chords to play
right away.
After that is their plane abilities and chord competence grows, I continue to add in more

(03:28):
chords.
The first five chords of the 10 that I just mentioned, A, E, D, C and G are the perfect
starting point.
I start with A and then add in the E chord because I think those two chords are the easiest
to play right away.
They are achievable, including a decent sound pretty quickly.

(03:52):
And let's face it when we're first starting out if we can't get a decent sound right away.
It's kind of frustrating.
Next, I like to add in the D chord for a couple of reasons.
It's in the same general string and fret neighborhood as the A and E. But more importantly,
these three chords are found together in songs.

(04:14):
If, for example, you were going to look up three chord guitar songs, you would find numerous
songs with musical combinations of three chords, including A, D and E.
Some three chord songs you could play with just A, E and D are, I still haven't found
what I'm looking for by you too, and Big Yellow Taxi by Joni Mitchell.

(04:38):
So that means you could master just three chords and have a blast making music.
By the way, if you'd like to see me playing all ten chords, go to my YouTube channel.
The link is in the show notes.
Now, you could stick with just the A, D and E and become a master at those chords and have

(05:00):
a blast, but I think it's a good idea to expand your chord repertoire.
That's why the next chords I teach are C and G. They're a little trickier to master, especially
as a new B, which is why I start with A, E and D. Playing the C and G requires a little
more stretch of your fingers while still pressing hard.

(05:23):
And when you're first starting out, that can be a little tricky.
So that's why I introduced them at this point because it's my theory that since you've already
learned to play three chords, the A, E and D, you now know that you just need to get
used to where your fingers go, the shapes of the new chords and simply get more comfortable
with C and G. And bonus, another three-chord combo that you'll often find is G, C and D.

(05:53):
Like in the songs "Love Me Do" by The Beatles and "Sweet Home Alabama" by Leonard Skinnerd.
So once you've learned to play these chords again, it will lead to hours of playing fun.
Playing in the family of these five chords, I think a good next step is to add in a couple
of minor chords, E minor and A minor. Minor chords are a way to establish and create

(06:19):
feeling within your music. They are generally sad sounding chords.
A song where you can find the E minor is "The Boxer" by Simon and Garfunkel.
And you can find A minor in the song "Stay By Me" by Sam Smith.
Plus you can find both of these minor chords in the song "Iland in the Sun" by Weezer.

(06:40):
To play these minor chords is just a slight adjustment from the root chords, E and A. E minor
is really an E without your first finger. And A minor is the E chord, but just move down
one string on everything. The next direction I would guide you to are 7th chords, such as

(07:01):
D7, A7 and E7. Like the minor chords I just talked about, 7th chords are a great way to
embellish songs, except that 7th chords have a positive lilt sound.
Songs where you'll find these chords include "Stay By Me" by Ben E King, Hallelujah by Leonard

(07:21):
Cohen, and you belong with me by Taylor Swift.
To play D7, just think of it as a mirror image of a D, where the A7 is the A chord without
pressing on the 3rd string, and the E7 is just an E without pressing on string 4.
The best way to become more proficient at these chords and to learn to move from chord

(07:45):
to chord is playing chord progressions, which I've talked about in a previous episode.
I put the link for that episode in the show notes. And if you'd like to see me playing
these 10 chords, just go to my YouTube channel again. That link is also in the show notes.
Okay, so grab your guitar and start playing these 10 essential chords because they can

(08:10):
certainly open up a world of endless playing possibilities.
I hope this episode's tip has helped you to continue expanding your guitar playing skills
and knowledge.
If you'd like to learn more, please check out the many learning resources available at marlenesmusic.com.

(08:32):
Thank you for joining today's podcast, and as I like to say, play on.
[MUSIC]