Using the 3 chord 'trick'

Many songs can be played using only 3 chords, and once you have practised a little you should be able to play a song 'by ear' working out the chords as you go along.

The other usefulness of the 3 chords is that when you play a song and it is pitched too high or too low for you to comfortably sing it, you can easily change to a different key just by using the same 3 chords in a different key.

For example:

In the key of 'C' the 3 chords are:
(1) C            (2) F            (3) G7

And in the key of 'G' the 3 chords are:
(1) G            (2) C            (3) D7

To start off with, these will be your two main keys.
When you see a '-7' chord, you can just play the regular chord (although it will sound 'cooler' later when you use the right one!) So at first if you learn C, F, G and D, that will mean you can play in two different keys.

The Next Page

If you have practised one or two chords, then it is time to play some songs.
The next page shows you 'Happy Birthday' ...