Fun Songs To Play On Guitar: 9 Epic Songs That Will Make You Sound Great

Fun Songs To Play On Guitar #5 ‘House of the Rising Sun’ by The Animals

Although minor chords are sometimes associated with melancholy, heartbreak, or anger.

Fun songs to play on guitar can also be in minor keys. Check out The Animals’ iconic arrangement of this traditional folk tune.

This tale of a young man heading directly into a life of regret is one of the most enjoyable and fun songs to play on guitar.

• The chords in this song are arpeggiated. This means that you play the notes individually, one after the other.
• In “House of the Rising Sun,” the arpeggio is played with a flatpick for more bite, but it works equally well with fingerpicking.

To play the arpeggio, let your pick sweep down the strings quickly. It’s easy to hear how it’s done in the recording. The arpeggio looks like this.

Theory Hack!

This song is in 6/8 time, which means that there are six beats in a measure and beats 1 and 4 are the strong beats.

The chords are here:

Am chord

C chord

D chord

F chord

E chord

Pro-tip: Share the joy of your fun songs to play on guitar by leading a singalong! When you lead a song, sing the chorus first. This allows you to teach the song to anyone who doesn’t already know it. That way everyone is included.

Fun Songs To Play On Guitar #6 ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ by Nirvana

If you’re exploring power chords, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is one of the best fun songs to play on guitar.

This 1991 hit introduced grunge rock to the world outside Seattle, Washington, and it is the opening track from Nirvana’s second album, Nevermind.

• It changed the way a lot of people heard music, and it is one of the most fun songs to play on guitar.
• Power chords work like barre chords, so to play “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” all you have to do is take one chord shape – the power chord shape – and move it around the neck.

Here are those chords:

F5 chord

Bb5 chord

Ab5 chord

Db5 chord

Fun Theory Fact!

Power chords are also known as ‘5’ chords. These chords have a strong bassy tone with more ‘power’.

Within the chord, there’s no third note, which means that the chord is neither major or minor. This gives the chord more sustenance and drive when played in a rock context.

Music theory aside, this is one of the heavily rocking fun songs to play on guitar.

Fun Songs To Play On Guitar #7 ‘Picture Book’ by The Kinks

This may be a bit of a deep cut, but it is one of the most deeply satisfying and fun songs to play on guitar.

“Picture Book” came from the album The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society, an album full of fun songs to play on guitar including the title track, “Johnny Thunder,” and “Last of the Steam Powered Trains.”

However, “Picture Book” earned its spot on this list for its repeating riff, played in the recording on a 12-string.

“Picture Book” also features some great chords. Here is the chord progression for the song.

E chord

A chord

D chord

G chord

C chord

F chord

Play this through the verses and chorus and you’ll be rocking in no time.

Fun Songs To Play On Guitar #8 ‘Blue’ by The Jayhawks

If you’re looking for mellower fun songs to play on guitar, then ‘Blue’ by the Jayhawks is a fantastic choice.

This songs features a beautiful sliding E chord which sounds amazing and is not too hard to play either. Here are the chords for the verse and chorus.

E chord, A/E chord and B/E chord

Amaj7 chord, C#m chord and F# chordG# chord, B chord and F#m chord

Here are the chords for the bridge. Notice how we use the A shape and move it around the fretboard to create new chords within the song:

A chord

B/A chord

If you want to put the finishing touches to this song, take a look at this sweet little riff which appears after the chorus:

Stringing moving chord shapes together with a riff makes this song A LOT of fun to play.

Fun Songs To Play On Guitar #9 ‘Girl From Ipanema’ by Antonio Carlos Jobim

When learning fun songs to play on guitar, it would be rude not to include some jazz chords.

Although jazz chords get a bad rep for being difficult, this Antonia Carlos Jobim tune should help you turbo-charge your guitar progress. Here’s the song:

If you are an intermediate to advanced guitarist, spend a little time with the two progressions and revel in the beauty of your very own guitar playing.

Here are the chords for the A section. This is the section which starts with the words, “Tall and tanned and young and lovely.”

Fmaj7 chord, G7 chord and Gm7 chord

Gb7b5 chord

And here are the chords for the B section. This section starts with the words, “Oh, but I watch her so sadly.”

F#maj7 chord, B7 chord and F#m7

D7 chord, Gm7 chord and Eb7 chord

Am7 chord, D7b5 chord and C7b5 chord

Work those chord changes and you will have an amazing Brazilian standard to add to your pile of fun songs to play on guitar.

Technique Taster!

Jobim is picking the chords claw-style, which gets you that samba sound. If you would like help with your fingerstyle, here is a lesson for you.

Fingerstyle Guitar Lessons – 5 Easy Ways To Sound Amazing

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