Whenever someone mentions learning to play guitar in a matter of minutes, you know the drill: chords! Knowing the right chords opens up a world of possibilities to guitar players of all skill levels and walks of life. With just three chords, you can play dozens of songs.
So, we know which three chords you should learn first, but we also have a secret weapon for you. It’s called Card Chords, and it’s just what the name says; a set of cards with chord tabs written on them. But there’s more to it than that.
What makes Card Chords special?
Card Chords aren’t just some cue cards; they are specially designed so you can actually fit them into your guitar. You can place a Card Chord directly below the strings and play over it without affecting the guitar’s sound, muting, or hitting the strings.
What you get is a tab directly at your fingertips. When most seasoned players look back on their newbie days, they remember how difficult it was to remember where to place their fingers and strum the chords. As a beginner, having to press and hold the strings, so they actually produce full notes is hard enough. Having to remember where to place your fingers on top of that struggle can be too much.
You might have stumbled upon similar products before, but none have allowed the strings to ring out fully. So with Card Chords, you slide the card beneath the strings and strum away like it’s not even there.
Card Chords are available in two versions: the Stratocaster Edition for Fender Stratocasters and Strat copies, plus Ibanez Guitars, Guild Guitars, and Yamaha Guitars, as well as in the Les Paul Edition for Les Paul, Epiphone, and Gretsch instruments.
With this tool, you will cut the learning curve and legitimately learn to play guitar in minutes. To make the process even faster, we say you should know these three chords first. They’re easy, and they cover many songs. Let’s dive in!
The G Chord
The first chord we would like to introduce is the G Major Chord. G Major is widely applied, useful, beginner-friendly, and available on the Card Chords. It’s easy to play and can be played in several ways.
The chord requires you to use four fingers while strumming all six strings of your guitar. This makes G Major an open chord, which is a fancy term for saying that one or more strings are not fingered while playing. You just strum them open.
Anyway, to play the G Major chord, just follow these steps:
- Put your pinky finger on the third fret of the thinnest string, the first string from the bottom, the high-E string.
- Don’t touch the second, third, and fourth strings, leave them open.
- Put your index finger on the second fret of the fifth string, the second thickest string, the A string.
- Put your middle finger on the third fret of the sixth string, the thickest string, the low E string.
- Strum!
The C Chord
The second chord you should master is the C Major chord. This one is pretty similar to the G chord. All your fingers remain in the same position, with one difference. The pinky and ring fingers remain in identical positions, while the middle and index fingers also remain the same, but each is placed one string below.
Once again, we are looking at an open, beginner-friendly chord. To play C Major, just follow these steps:
- Put your ring finger on the third fret of the A string, which is the second thickest string, the fifth one from the bottom.
- Put your middle finger on the second fret of the D string, the third thickest string or the fourth one from the bottom.
- Don’t touch the third string (the G string), leave it open, and pay attention not to accidentally mute it.
- Put your index finger on the first fret of the B string, which is the second string, or the second thinnest string.
- Don’t touch the high E string, which is the thinnest string, the first one from the bottom. Let it ring when strumming.
- With the tip of your thumb, gently touch the thickest string, the E string. You should not press hard but just gently touch so you mute the string.
- Strum!
The D Chord
And finally, the D Major chord. This one is a bit easier, once again an open chord, and of course, readily available on Card Chords. You just need three fingers and one open string.
To play the D Major chord, follow these steps:
- Put your middle finger on the second fret of the first string – the thinnest string, the high-E string.
- Put your ring finger on the third fret of the second string – the second thinnest string, the B string.
- Put your index finger on the second fret of the third string, the G string.
- Leave the fourth string open.
- Strum the four thinnest strings!
So which songs can I play using G, C & D Chords?
To stimulate you to get those fingers working, here is a brief rundown of songs that you can play using these three chords.
- Lynyrd Skynyrd – Sweet Home Alabama
- Bob Dylan – Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
- Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire
- Bon Jovi – Wanted Dead or Alive
- The Beatles – Love Me Do
- Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight
- Poison – Every Rose Has Its Thorn
- AC/DC – You Shook Me All Night Long
If you’re ready to learn how to play guitar in minutes, check out Card Chords for Stratocaster, Yamaha, and Guild guitars here or the Les Paul and Epiphone version here. You can find more info on using Card Chords in the video below. Stay safe!
