How To Play Sweet Home Alabama?- A Guide By Zager Guitar
Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd is a popular song among many rock players known for its easy playability. It is originally played on an electric guitar but worries not. We will guide you through this article on how to play this fantastic sound on your acoustic Guitar.
Sweet Home Alabama is a single by the band Lynyrd Skynyrd in the early ’70s. It is worth noting that although none of the band members were originally from Alabama, it rose in fame, and the songs remained on the billboard on the 8th number across the US. It was loved by music enthusiasts in the US and internationally. Now, it is considered a classic rock guitar song across the world!
Sweet Home Alabama Chords
Let’s dive into how to play “sweet home Alabama” on a guitar.
The song is played in a typical standard tuning where the strings are tuned to E, A, D, G, B, and E from low to high.
Chords Used In Sweet Home Alabama
D Chord
C Chord
G Major Chord
Begin With The Opening Riff
Sweet Home Alabama’s famous opening riffs are played using fretted notes and open strings. It is an iconic and instantly recognizable opening riff. Remember that the main riff is directed toward the chords, so it’s easier to play whether you’re a beginner or a pro guitarist.
Hold on a D chord and then pick up the strings D, D, B, and G
Now, make a C chord, then pick three chords from the strings A, A, B, and G
Finally, make a G chord and pick up the E E G strings twice.
Alternatively, you can use this as a guide to the opening riff
e|——————————–|
B|——————————–|
G|——-2–4–2—————–|
D|—-2——————-2–0–|
A|–0—————————-|
E|——————————–|
Once you’re done playing the opening riff several times, move on to the main chord progression.
Verse
You can use downstroke to strum each chord per beat for singing each verse. Since each chord is played for one measure, strum each chord for four beats.
D C G mg
Chorus
Now, strum each chord for the duration asked and repeat the chord progression as needed.
You can add the iconic “woo” parts during the chorus by strumming the G chord and muting the strings in your hand. This technique gives a very peculiar sound close to the original sound.
Verse And Chorus Repetition- Sweet Home Alabama
The song has a homogenous structure throughout, with verses and choruses repeating. You can refer to the original song track or go through the Zager Guitar lesson learning guide to get a more precise and better sense of the song structure and transitions.
Sweet Home Alabama Power Chords
If you want to rock on with Sweet Home Alabama,
You can simplify the chord progression using the power chords instead of the open chords.
Grab your Guitar and get ready to unleash the power of rock! The force of power chords drives the “Sweet Home Alabama” verse.
D5 Power Chord
Position your index finger on the 5th fret of the A string (the chord chart’s second thickest string) and your ring finger on the 7th fret of the D string (the fourth string). Now, strum those two strings with all your might, unleashing the raw power of the D5 chord!
C5 Power Chord
Next, we move to the thunderous C5 power chord. Shift your index finger down one string to the 5th fret of the D string and keep your ring finger planted on the 7th fret of the A string. Strum those strings with authority, feeling the earth-shaking energy of the C5 chord reverberate through your Guitar!
G5 Power Chord
Move your index finger down to the 3rd fret of the low E string (the thickest string) while keeping your ring finger locked on the 5th fret of the A string. Strum those strings, and you’ll be propelled into a rock ‘n’ roll frenzy by the formidable might of the G5 chord!
About Us
Zager Guitars is a family-owned third-generation guitar builder building guitars in Lincoln, Nebraska, since 1902. It has been rated in the top 5% of all guitar brands. It has been featured in Time Magazine, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, FOX, and many national and international news media.
Many players have tried our guitars over the last 50 years because of muscle and joint pain, MS, arthritis, nerve damage, fibromyalgia, carpel tunnel, shoulder and back pain, broken fingers, and missing fingers. Our string heights are lower, allowing you to come down on the strings from a more perpendicular angle, so you no longer have to reach over other strings muting them out.
One thing that’s very different about our guitars is the spacing between the strings side to side is slightly wider, which creates more room for your fingers, so when you’re forming chords, you’re not accidentally leaning on strings that you don’t want, creating buzzes and rattles.
Denny Zager Guitar Learning Lesson Guide
Look at the best guitar players in the world; they have one thing in common. They play Guitar by ear. Since 1969 Denny Zager’s taught millions of people to play Guitar using his internationally acclaimed “Play-By-Ear” guitar method. The Zager Guitar Lesson Library allows you to learn Guitar using a revolutionary guitar system one-on-one with an actual guitar master.
Denny regularly adds new material to his library, so there’s always something new and exciting to learn. For 2016 he’s expanding his library to over 150 hours of streaming lessons with over 10,000 Easy Play tabs and hundreds of his patented guitar arrangements making this the most extensive guitar lesson library in the world.
FAQ’s
How Hard Is It To Play Sweet Home Alabama?
Sweat Home Alabama is not complicated to play on Guitar for a beginner. With just a few practice rounds, you will be on the right track to play it.
What Is The Third Chord Sweet Home Alabama?
CG and D are the only three of the song’s chords used. It’s simple to play or learn the lyrics. The F chord appears several times in one of the verses. Use your basic FT- chord if you have one.
