Classic Blues Songs: Play 164 Hits With 5 Easy Guitar Chords

Brad

2 hours ago

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Published Oct 15, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · 6 min read

These 164 classic blues songs are some of the easiest great music you’ll ever play. Most of them use just three chords, and they follow a pattern you can learn in an afternoon. Better still, most songs come with a capo spot, so you can play along with the original record.

About These 164 Classic Blues Songs

Every song in this list can be played with a handful of easy open chords: G, C and D, plus Em and Am for a few riff songs. That’s it. No barre chords, no stretches, no tricky jazz chords.

The list covers classic blues, blues-rock and early rock ‘n’ roll, from Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf to Stevie Ray Vaughan and Chuck Berry. Most of these songs use the three blues chords, so once you can switch between G, C and D, you can play nearly all of them.

These are simplified “easy guitar” versions. They follow each song’s real chord changes, so they sound right, but they leave out the fancy licks and extra notes. For most songs we also show you where to put a capo so you can play along with the original recording.

Why Five Chords Carry So Much of the Blues

Why do so many blues songs share the same three chords? Our guide to 794 popular guitar songs you can play with 5 easy chords breaks it down. It explains what a chord progression is and why musicians write one as numbers like 1-4-5. It also shows why thousands of songs share the same patterns and how a capo moves them into any key. Read it once, and the PROGRESSION column will make instant sense.

The Blues Song List

Scroll inside the table to see all 164 songs. On a phone, swipe sideways to see every column.

SONG	ARTIST	CHORDS	PROGRESSION	EASY CHORDS	EASY KEY	ACTUAL KEY	CAPO FRET
After Midnight	Eric Clapton	4	1 – b3 – 4 – 5	Am – C – D – Em	Am	C	3
Ain’t That Lovin’ You Baby	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Baby Please Don’t Go	Muddy Waters	1	1	G	G	G	0
Baby Scratch My Back	Slim Harpo	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Back Door Man	The Doors	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Bad to the Bone	George Thorogood & The Destroyers	3	1 – b3 – 4	Em – G – Am	Em	G	3
Before You Accuse Me	Eric Clapton	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Big Boss Man	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Blue Monday	Fats Domino	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Blue on Black	Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band	4	1 – b7 – 4 – 5m	D – C – G – Am	D	D	0
Blue Suede Shoes	Carl Perkins	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Blues with a Feeling	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Bo Diddley	Bo Diddley	1	1	G	G	G	0
Bony Moronie	Larry Williams	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Ab	1
Boogie Chillen’	John Lee Hooker	1	1	G	G	B	4
Boom Boom	John Lee Hooker	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Born in Chicago	The Paul Butterfield Blues Band	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Born Under a Bad Sign	Albert King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Db	6
Bright Lights, Big City	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Bring It On Home	Sonny Boy Williamson II	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Built for Comfort	Howlin’ Wolf	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Caldonia	Louis Jordan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Carol	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Crawling King Snake	John Lee Hooker	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Crosscut Saw	Albert King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Ab	1
Crossfire	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – b3 – 4	Am – C – D	Am	Eb	6
Crossroads	Cream	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Damn Right, I’ve Got the Blues	Buddy Guy	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Dimples	John Lee Hooker	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Don’t Start Me Talkin’	Sonny Boy Williamson II	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Dust My Broom	Elmore James	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Every Day I Have the Blues	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Evil (Is Going On)	Howlin’ Wolf	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Flip, Flop and Fly	Big Joe Turner	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Frosty	Albert Collins	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
Further On Up the Road	Eric Clapton	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Goin’ Down Slow	Howlin’ Wolf	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Going Down	Freddie King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
Going Up the Country	Canned Heat	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Good Golly, Miss Molly	Little Richard	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Got My Mojo Working	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Great Balls of Fire	Jerry Lee Lewis	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Heartbreak Hotel	Elvis Presley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Help Me	Sonny Boy Williamson II	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Hey Bartender	The Blues Brothers	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Hide Away	Freddie King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Honest I Do	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Honky Tonk (Part 1)	Bill Doggett	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Hoodoo Man Blues	Junior Wells	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Hound Dog	Elvis Presley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
How Blue Can You Get?	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
How Many More Years	Howlin’ Wolf	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
I Can’t Be Satisfied	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
I Can’t Quit You Baby	Otis Rush	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
I Drink Alone	George Thorogood & The Destroyers	3	1 – b6 – b7	Em – C – D	Em	E	0
I Got Love If You Want It	Slim Harpo	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
I Just Want to Make Love to You	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
I’m a King Bee	Slim Harpo	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
I’m a Man	Bo Diddley	1	1	G	G	G	0
I’m Ready	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
I’m Tore Down	Freddie King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
I’m Walkin’	Fats Domino	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Ab	1
(I’m Your) Hoochie Coochie Man	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
It Hurts Me Too	Elmore James	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
Jailhouse Rock	Elvis Presley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Jesus Just Left Chicago	ZZ Top	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Johnny B. Goode	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Juke	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Just Your Fool	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Kansas City	Wilbert Harrison	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Key to the Highway	Big Bill Broonzy	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Killing Floor	Howlin’ Wolf	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
La Grange	ZZ Top	4	1 – b3 – 4 – 5	Am – C – D – Em	Am	A	0
Laundromat Blues	Albert King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Db	6
Lawdy Miss Clawdy	Lloyd Price	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Ab	1
Lay Down Sally	Eric Clapton	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Let Me Love You Baby	Buddy Guy	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Let the Good Times Roll	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Let’s Work Together	Canned Heat	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Little Queenie	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Little Red Rooster	The Rolling Stones	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Long Tall Sally	Little Richard	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Look at Little Sister	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Love Struck Baby	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – b7	D – G – C	D	Eb	1
Lucille	Little Richard	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Mannish Boy	Muddy Waters	1	1	G	G	G	0
Mary Had a Little Lamb	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Matchbox	Carl Perkins	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Maybellene	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Mean Old World	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Mess Around	Ray Charles	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Messin’ with the Kid	Buddy Guy & Junior Wells	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Midnight Special	Lead Belly	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Moanin’ at Midnight	Howlin’ Wolf	1	1	G	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Mojo Hand	Lightnin’ Hopkins	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Mona	Bo Diddley	1	1	G	G	G	0
Money (That’s What I Want)	Barrett Strong	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Move It on Over	George Thorogood & The Destroyers	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
My Babe	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Mystery Train	Elvis Presley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Night Train	Jimmy Forrest	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Ab	1
Nine Below Zero	Sonny Boy Williamson II	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
No Particular Place to Go	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Off the Wall	Little Walter	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Oh Well	Fleetwood Mac	1	1m	Em	Em	E	0
Oh, Pretty Woman	Albert King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
On the Road Again	Canned Heat	1	1	D	D	E	2
One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer	George Thorogood & The Destroyers	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Pride and Joy	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Ramblin’ on My Mind	Robert Johnson	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Red House	Jimi Hendrix	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Reelin’ and Rockin’	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Rip It Up	Little Richard	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Road Runner	Bo Diddley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Rock and Roll Music	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Rock Around the Clock	Bill Haley & His Comets	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Rock Me Baby	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu	Huey “Piano” Smith	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Roll Over Beethoven	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7
Roller Coaster	Little Walter	1	1	D	D	E	2
Rollin’ and Tumblin’	Muddy Waters	1	1	D	D	F	3
Rollin’ Stone	Muddy Waters	1	1	D	D	E	2
Route 66	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
Rude Mood	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
San-Ho-Zay	Freddie King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
School Day (Ring! Ring! Goes the Bell)	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Scuttle Buttin’	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
See You Later, Alligator	Bill Haley & His Comets	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Shake Your Hips	Slim Harpo	1	1	G	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Shake Your Moneymaker	Elmore James	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Shake, Rattle and Roll	Big Joe Turner	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Shame, Shame, Shame	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
She’s Nineteen Years Old	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
Smokestack Lightnin’	Howlin’ Wolf	1	1	D	D	E	2
Spoonful	Howlin’ Wolf	1	1	D	D	E	2
Stop Breakin’ Down Blues	Robert Johnson	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Sweet Home Chicago	The Blues Brothers	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Sweet Little Angel	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Db	6
Sweet Little Sixteen	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Db	6
Sweet Sixteen	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
Terraplane Blues	Robert Johnson	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
Testify	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Eb	8
Texas Flood	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F#	11
That’s All Right	Elvis Presley	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
The House Is Rockin’	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
The Hunter	Albert King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	A	2
The Sky Is Crying	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
The Things That I Used to Do	Guitar Slim	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Three O’Clock Blues	B.B. King	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
Tin Pan Alley	Stevie Ray Vaughan	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
Too Much Monkey Business	Chuck Berry	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Train Kept A-Rollin’	Aerosmith	3	1 – b3 – 4	Em – G – Am	Em	E	0
Travelling Riverside Blues	Robert Johnson	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	VARIOUS	VARIOUS
Trouble No More	The Allman Brothers Band	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Tush	ZZ Top	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	G	0
Tutti Frutti	Little Richard	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	F	10
Voodoo Child (Slight Return)	Jimi Hendrix	1	1	D	D	Eb	1
Walkin’ Blues	Robert Johnson	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	B	4
Wang Dang Doodle	Koko Taylor	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
What’d I Say	Ray Charles	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	E	9
Who Do You Love?	George Thorogood & The Destroyers	1	1	D	D	E	2
Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On	Jerry Lee Lewis	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	C	5
You Don’t Have to Go	Jimmy Reed	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	Bb	3
You Shook Me	Muddy Waters	3	1 – 4 – 5	G – C – D	G	D	7

What Each Column Means

SONG and ARTIST: The song and the recording we matched. If a song has many versions, the key and capo match this artist’s version.

CHORDS: How many different chords the song uses (1 to 4).

PROGRESSION: The song’s chords written as numbers. “1” is the home chord, the one the song keeps coming back to. “4” and “5” are the other two main chords. “m” means minor. A “b” (flat) number, like b3 or b7, shows up in a few riff songs. You don’t need to understand the numbers to play the songs, but they show you the pattern. Any song marked 1 – 4 – 5 follows the same chord pattern as every other 1 – 4 – 5 song.

EASY CHORDS: The chords you actually play.

EASY KEY: The key those easy chords are in.

ACTUAL KEY: The key of the original recording.

CAPO FRET: Where to put your capo so the easy chords match the original recording.

0 means no capo. Just play.
High numbers (8 and up) work, but the frets get cramped. It’s fine to skip the capo and play in the easy key instead. You won’t match the record, but the song will sound right.
VARIOUS means the key changes from one recording or performance to the next, or we couldn’t pin it down. Play it in the easy key, or find the capo spot by ear (see the tip below).

Getting Started With Classic Blues Songs

1: Learn the easy chords. For most of these songs that means G, C and D.

2: Learn the pattern. Most of these songs are “12-bar blues,” a 12-measure pattern that repeats for the whole song. With the easy chords, it goes like this (one chord per bar, four beats each):

1st 4 Bars | G | G | G | G |

2nd 4 Bars | C | C | G | G |

3rd 4 Bars | D | C | G | G |

Some songs use a “quick change,” going to C in bar 2 and then back to G. Others play D in the very last bar to lead back to the top. Listen for it.

3: Put on the record. Put your capo on the fret shown and strum along with the original recording.

4: Make it bluesier. When you’re comfortable, swap in G7, C7 and D7 for G, C and D. They’re small changes to shapes you already know, and you’ll hear the classic blues sound right away.

Quick Tips for Playing the Blues

One-chord songs (marked 1 in the CHORDS column) are all about rhythm. Lock in with the groove and keep your strumming hand moving.
To find a capo spot by ear, strum the song’s first chord along with the recording. Then slide your capo up one fret at a time until it matches.
Instrumentals are included. Strum the chords while the band plays the melody.\

What Makes a Song Qualify

Five easy chords. Every song can be played with G, C, D, Em and Am (G7, C7 and D7 are optional bluesy swaps). If a song can’t be played with those shapes at a single capo position, it isn’t on the list.

Simplified, not changed. We strip out the decorations, such as 7ths, 9ths, sus and add chords, and treat power chords as plain chords. We skip passing chords that go by in less than a beat. But we never swap a chord for a different one just to make a song fit. If a song truly needs an F, a Bm, a B7 or another chord outside the five, we left it out.

One exception: riff songs. A few riff-based songs (like La Grange and Bad to the Bone) are built on “power chords,” which aren’t major or minor. For those, an Em or Am shape stands in for the riff. You’ll spot them by the b3, b6 or b7 in the PROGRESSION column.

How We Matched Every Record

The capo matches the record. Capo positions are set to the actual pitch of the original recording. That includes records where the guitar was tuned down (Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix often did this), so the capo can look different from what you’d expect from the chord names alone.

Checked against sources. We checked each song’s key and chords against published sheet music and other references. Old records are tricky, so if you hear something different, trust your ears, and please let us know.

One entry per song. If several artists recorded the same song, we list one version, and the key and capo match that recording.

Where to Go After These Blues Songs

Once these classic blues songs feel comfortable, keep going. Blues-rock leads straight into rock, so the rock list is a natural next step. You’ll find the same three chords there, plus a few new patterns. For a deeper look at blues rhythm and progressions, see our guide to learning blues guitar songs.

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