Learn How to Play Skip To My Lou on Guitar with Simple Guitar Chords
Skip To My Lou is a classic American folk song that is an easy guitar song for beginners to play. Note that learning this song is part of the award-winning eMedia Guitar Method, where you can learn to play this and over 70 great songs as you learn how to play guitar in a fun and interactive way.
How to Play the Guitar Chords for “Skip to My Lou”
This song uses the simple C and G7 chords seen below. These are incredibly easy guitar chords. So anyone young or old will be able to learn how to play Skip To My Lou on guitar.
Here is a video of how to play and strum the Simple C and Simple G7 guitar chords.
Remember to start slowly at first. It’s not easy learning how to change guitar chords but it will get a lot easier over time. it is better to play slowly than to miss a beat. Try to tap your foot so that you play in time at a slow tempo. Use a metronome if you have one to provide a steady click to play along with. If you don’t have a metronome yet, do remember that the eMedia guitar lesson software includes a complete set of great guitar practice tools that include an automatic guitar tuner, a metronome, an interactive chord dictionary and an audio recorder so you can hear your progress as you get better. These practice tools are also available on their own for only $4.95 as the Guitar Toolkit for Mac and PC. This can be easily purchased as a download from the eMedia website.
Welcome this set of free guitar lesson to help you learn how to play guitar. Most of the content is taken from the award-winning eMedia Guitar Methodguitar lessonsoftware, minus the interactive elements which are not possible using current website technology.
As you go through the lessons, be sure to use proper hand and finger technique and don’t try to rush things. Play guitar chords and notes cleanly. You will want to be sure that you don’t develop bad habits that can hinder your progress later on.
Types of Guitars and Parts of the Guitar
Here is an overview of the different types of guitars and their parts. Note that some music styles require certain guitar techniques, and some guitars support those technique better than others. For example, the string bends done in blues and rock would be almost impossible on a classical guitar. This instrument is not designed for it, as string bends are not found in classical guitar repertoire. However, string bending is easy on an electric guitar, as they are built to support this technique.
Acoustic Guitars
Acoustic guitars are designed to make sound without amplification. Some might include a pickup, but they are still designed as acoustic instruments. Acoustic guitars are like hollow boxes made of thin wood, with a sound holein the front underneath the strings. This allows vibration of the guitar strings to radiate sound waves into the guitar body, which then resonates. The front of an acoustic guitar (called a top) is usually made of softer woods like spruce that let the wood vibrate. The back and sides are usually hardwoods (mahogany, rosewood, etc.) to reflect sound back towards the sound hole.
Classical and Nylon-String Guitar
The classical acoustic guitar is commonly used for playing classical music — usually with the fingers, though a pick is also sometimes used. Unlike the electric and steel-string guitars, which have metal strings, the classical guitar has nylon strings, which can be easier on the fingers. The neck of the classical guitar is slightly wider and, likewise, so is the spacing between the strings. You also find nylon-stringed guitars used in flamenco and folk music. You should never try to put steel strings on these instruments, as they have no reinforcement in their necks to deal with the extra tension. Listen to how the nylon string acoustic sounds below.
Steel String Acoustic Guitar
The steel-string acoustic is the most common acoustic guitar, and is perhaps the most versatile. As the name implies, it uses steel strings and is common in folk, country, blues, jazz, pop, and rock music. It can also sound great when playing classical pieces, but will be much brighter than a classical guitar. Steel-string acoustics are commonly strummed and played with a pick, but can also be played with the fingers using various fingerpicking techniques. Play below to hear how a steel-string acoustic guitar sounds.
Electric Guitars
The electric guitar is hooked-up to an electronic amplifier and can be adjusted to create different types of electric guitar tones. Electric guitars are used primarily in pop, rock, country, blues, R&B and jazz. While usually played with a pick, it can also be played with fingers. The strings are usually thinner than the steel-string acoustic and the necks a bit easier to play. As a result, electric guitars can be a great fit for beginner guitarists who prefer the previously mentioned music styles. Hear the electric guitar licks below for a taste of how the electric guitar sounds.
Digital guitar tuners, such as the PitchBoymini tuner (pictured to the left), or the eMedia Guitar Toolkitmake tuning a guitar easier, as you can tune visually with less dependance on your own ear’s ability to hear pitch differences.
Holding the Guitar
It is important to hold the guitar properly while playing it. This can affect your arm and hand position which is crucial to get right when learning how to play the guitar. Hold the neck with your left hand and pluck or strum the strings with your right hand. Keep the guitar face nearly vertical with the top inclined slightly toward the body. If sitting, try to sit straight — avoid bending over the guitar. Settle into a comfortable position and stay relaxed. The type of guitar you have affects how you sit or stand with the guitar. Here are some examples of good ways to hold different types of guitars.
Sitting Position
(right leg crossed over left)
Classical Position
(Left foot on raised platform)
Standing Position
(With guitar strap)
Right Hand Guitar Technique
The right hand is used to make the guitar string vibrate by touching the string with your fingers, thumb and/or guitar pick. The right hand should rest comfortably on the guitar, with the hand basically parallel to the front of the instrument. The main right-hand guitar techniques are:
How to Strum a Guitar
Strumming is used for playing chords on the guitar. You strum with either the thumb, index finger or all the fingers across the strings in an up and down motion. See video for a demonstration. With any of the strumming styles, the right arm rests on top of the guitar and the usual place to strum is just behind (toward the bridge) or over the sound hole. For an electric guitar, which doesn’t have a sound hole, the strumming is done over the pickups. This video shows you how to strum a guitar.
How to Hold a Guitar Pick
To learn how to hold a guitar pick, try making a loose fist and put the pick between your index finger and thumb. Don’t let too much of the pick be exposed as you need to control firmly as you strum and play individual notes. Keeping a minimal amount of pick exposed also keeps it from being caught in the guitar strings and coming out of your hand. When using a pick, alternate between down and up strokes, giving each note a separate stroke. Thus the first note would get a down stroke, the second an up stroke, the third down, the fourth up and so on. Here is a video to show you how to hold a pick.
Fingerpicking
This is the technique widely used by classical and folks guitarists. Here your hand rests above the guitar strings with the thumb roughly parallel to the strings and the rest of your fingers curved and plucking the strings perpendicularly. Note that some rock guitarists will use fingerpicking too. When using fingers (playing fingerstyle), pluck alternately with the index (i) and the middle (m) fingers. Thus use i for the first note, m for the second, i for the third, m for the fourth and so on.
Left Hand Guitar Technique
Here are some things to observe when developing proper left hand technique for guitar. Those are:
Play With Thumb Parallel to the Neck and Arched Fingers
Your thumb should rest in the middle of the back of the neck, opposite your 2nd finger and vertical (perpendicular to the neck, not angled or parallel). Try holding your guitar neck with your left hand and then pull your hand down keeping your fingers slightly curved.
Keep space between the curve of your hand that is making the chord and the guitar neck. If you were to look at your hand from the end of your guitar (near the tuning machines), it should be in a “C” shape, with arched fingers.
Play On Your Finger Tips
Make sure you play with the tips of your fingers, so that notes can ring out and not be accidentally muted. Do not let your finger flatten out when playing single strings.
There is generally a one finger per fret, rule, that says all notes played on a particular fret should be played by the same finger across all strings on that fret. For example, if the 1st finger is on the 3rd fret, it plays all notes on the 3rd fret across all strings, the 2nd finger plays notes across the 4th fret, the 3rd plays the notes across the 5th fret and so on. Then as you move your hand up and down the neck you always have maximum reach with minimal movement. Very important when playing melodies and riffs at higher tempos.
Play Slightly Behind the Fret and Don’t Press Too Hard
Your fingertips should press down just behind the frets (slightly towards the tuning machine end of the neck), and as close to the frets as possible without having your finger on the top of the actual fret. This will make it much easier to hold down the string to get a good tone. You should not need to press down very hard to make a note sound. If the note sounds muffled, your finger is probably on the fret and you need to move it back a bit.
If your left-hand fingernails are too long, they may need to be trimmed.
Paying extra attention to technique as you learn how to play guitar pays off greatly as you start to improve. Getting the basics right during your initial beginner guitar lessons pays off a lot in the long run.
String and Finger Numbering
As seen in the graphic below, there is a guitar finger numbering system in place that indicates which finger to play relative to the frets. See the guitar fingering chart below for more information on guitar fingering notation.
Note: The dots on the side and face of the guitar neck are placed before the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th and 19th frets. The 12th fret has two dots. These dots help you find your way on the neck.
First Guitar Chords
The guitar chords below are called simple chords. They are perfect for beginner guitar lessons, as most of them only require a single finger and three strings to play. They are the most basic, easy guitar chords for beginners and work well for children with small hands, or others who might have problems playing full chords. Try playing them and remember to play all the notes in the chords.
Easy Guitar Chords Charts
Here are some videos to help you learn some of these beginning guitar chords and beginner guitar songs that use them.
How to Play a Simple G Chord
Beginner Guitar Song #1: Play Brother John/Frere Jacques
Now use your simple G chord to play this classic folk song. Each slash (/) indicates a downward strum on the beat. If possible, play to a metronome click so that you can to stay on the beat.
Have a clear idea of what you need to practice. Simply playing the same two songs over and over will not make you progress. In general, consider putting time aside for these three areas:
Improve guitar technique and strengthen your fingers. Remember that everyone needs to warm-up before playing and performing. Ways to do that effectively are to practice playing scales in different positions on the neck, changing between chords in common chord progressions, picking and fingerpicking, and playing in-tempo with a metronome. Start SLOWLY. Try to play CLEANLY without extra noise from accidentally hitting open strings, or accidentally muting notes by not holding down a note on the fret properly. Getting good tone will help make you a great player.
Practice songs and repertoire. Once you are all warmed-up, now is the time to practice the songs you know. Don’t rush them, but make sure that you are cleanly changing chords, hearing all the notes, and playing it at tempo without pausing.
Learn something new. Stretch yourself with a new technique, song, or musical style. Learn music theory and train your ear.
Learn Faster with eMedia’s Interactive Beginner Guitar Lessons!
Guitar lesson software such as eMedia Guitar Methodor eMedia Interactive Rock Guitar helps you learn how to play guitar faster. It provides a mix of great beginner guitar lessons by qualified teachers from leading music schools, and interactive music technology that gets you playing quickly. The Animated Fretboard and interactive guitar notation lets you see which notes to play, while the software listens to you and displays whether you’re actually playing the right note. Plus you learn hit songs like Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door and Rock’n Me.
Beware of Common Practicing Mistakes
Here are some really common mistakes made by new guitarists. As you practice and learn how to play guitar please keep them in mind. Be patient, as mastering any instrument takes a lot of practice.
Remember to tune your guitar first and warm-up your hands.
Be patient.
Practice slowly and watch your hands to have good guitar technique.
Practice with a metronome to have a steady feel for tempo and keeping the beat.
Change your chords on the the beat. Better to play slowly in rhythm than fast and miss a chord.
This free guitar tuner is useful as a reference tuner. Just click on a note to play it!
eMedia guitar software includes useful accessories such as this automatic guitar tuner, a metronome and an audio recorder.
Remember that you can get a full-featured, automatic, digital guitar tuner in eMedia Guitar Toolkit, for only $4.95. This gives you a digital tuner in software (for Mac or Windows) that lets you tune the guitar visually and take the guesswork out of tuning your guitar. It also includes other valuable music lesson tools too, such as a metronome, recorder and chord dictionary! Or if you want a hardware tuner to use on-the-go, be sure to see the EarMaster Pitchboy Mini Tuner.
As you learn how to play guitar and keyboard, learning basic chord theory will help you become a better player. A musician with a solid understanding of chord theory can use more varied chord voicings for accompaniment and more easily improvise solos and melodies to match a chord progression. Bass players will also use chord theory to create their bass parts.
What is a Chord?
A chord is the simultaneous sounding of three or more notes. Played together, they create what is referred to as harmony. The sound of a chord is based on the relationship of pitches between each of the notes, which are called intervals. Generally the intervals that chords use are the notes found on every other note of a scale. Any chord can be built on any note by using the appropriate formula provided for that particular chord. The notes in a chord are usually played at the same time, but occasionally are played in rapid succession as with arpeggios.
The three broad categories of chords are:
Triads: major, minor, diminished and augmented.
Seventh chords (and other four-tone chords): major, minor, diminished, augmented and dominant.
Extended chords: ninth, eleventh and thirteenth chords: major, minor, diminished, augmented and dominant.
Suspended chords are treated as a special type of chord. All chords can be altered. Note that the octave, which is the same note played higher or lower (e.g., the low E and high E in an E chord), is usually found in chord voicings played on polyphonic instruments like guitar or piano and is not considered a separate interval.
You will find that certain styles of music tend to us particular types of chords and voicings. You can learn much more about guitar chord theory and its applications in eMedia Intermediate Guitar Method, while piano and keyboard players can learn more about chords on their instrument with eMedia Intermediate Piano and Keyboard Method.
Triads
The most common chords are triads. A triad contains three notes commonly built on every other note of a scale. For example, take the C major scale: Begin with the note C and add two more notes in the scale, skipping every other note. The result is a C major triad (C, E, and G). The notes of a triad are numbered from the bottom upward 1, 3, 5. The first note (1) is called the root or tonic. The next note is called the third, and the top note is called the fifth. So for a C chord; the root is C, the third is E and the fifth is a G note.
As shown in the example, the root determines the name of the chord. Although the root is commonly played on the bottom (the lowest note of the chord), sometimes the notes of a chord are rearranged. These chords are called inversions.
Major Chords
A major triad is a chord made up of the root, third, and the fifth of a major scale. In the C major chord, the notes are C, E, and G. The major chord is often abbreviated using the capital letter of the root note — in this case C. When you hear play a C chord, you are being asked to play a C major chord. Major triads can be built on any note using this formula: root + major third + minor third (root + M3 + m3).
Minor Chords
Minor triads are chords made up of the root, third, and fifth of a natural minor scale. You could also consider it the first, flatted third, and fifth notes of a major scale. The notes of the C minor chord are C, Eb, and G. The abbreviated symbol of a minor chord is the capital letter of the root followed by a smallm for minor. So, a C minor triad is written Cm. Minor chords can be built on any note using the formula root + minor third + Major third (root + m3 + M3).
Suspended Chords
Suspended chords are chords where one note is eliminated (usually the third) and replaced with another note (usually the fourth or second note of the scale). Suspended chords are abbreviated as sus, often with a number added to designate the replacement note. The C suspended fourth chord would be written as Csus4.
Seventh Chords
Seventh chords are the most common four-note chords. Like triads, they are built on every other note of a scale, but they have a fourth note:
There are major seventh, minor seventh, diminished seventh, augmented seventh and dominant seventh chords. There is also the seventh chord with a suspended fourth, sometimes called a suspended seventh chord. Any seventh chord can be built on any note using the correct formula.
If you see 7 attached to a chord name (for example, A7), it is a seventh or dominant seventh chord. A7 is the shorthand spelling of the A seventh or A dominant seventh chord. The same rule applies to minor chords. For example, an A minor seventh chord would appear as Am7. The seventh note is the most common color note, used heavily in blues and rock music. If there is a capital M or a triangle (∆) in front of a number (such as with an AM7 or A∆7 chord), it is a major seventh chord.
Other Chords
Seeing other numbers next to chords (e.g., 6, 9, 11, 13) indicate extended chords that follow the same naming conventions and formula you saw with seventh chords. These chords include the basic notes of the major or minor triads plus one or more color notes. Extended chords are used largely in jazz and some classical music. You can also find the 9th and 7#9 (often called the Hendrix chord, as it was used in popular songs by Jimi Hendrix) used in blues, rock, funk, and pop styles. However, you don’t often see more complex extended chords in these music genres.
A diminished chord is a minor chord with a fifth that is only two and 1/2 steps higher than the root. An augmented chord is a major chord with a fifth that is four whole steps higher than the root.
Using Chord Theory
Each chord has a certain character that composers use to make songs invoke happiness, sadness, tension, and other emotions. Chords are strung together to create chord progressions, and the chord progressions for the basis of songs and other compositions. Another way that chords are used creatively is by using variations on a triad to add color to the chord progression. For example, if a chord progression indicates that you play a C chord for 8 measures, you might play a C for four measures and then a C7 for the second four measures.
To understand all the ways that chord theory can enhance your own playing you should investigate eMedia Intermediate Guitar Method,eMedia Intermediate Piano and Keyboard Method, and eMedia Bass Method. The curriculums were designed by highly qualified, professional teachers. They utilize interactivity to help you identify intervals by ear and teach chord theory to help you improvise solos and enhance your playing.
Tuning your guitar before you start playing is important, so you can easily hear when you are playing melodies and chords correctly. 
Guitar lesson software such as 
